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Radford Road Church web site: www.radfordroadchurch.org.uk
Radford Road
Church
Leamington Spa
June 2020
And finally,
Thank you for reading this electronic copy of Radford Road Church
Magazine.
At present the Church Magazine is not being printed and is only being
produced electroically.
Please let Marjorie know the email addresses of anyone who would like
to receive the Magazine by this method. This is a much greener, cheaper
and less time consuming way of producing the Church Magazine.
In future, it may be a sensible idea to continue in this way and to only
print hard copies for those unable to access the internet and for visitors
to the church.
What’s more, those receiving the Magazine electronically have
a colour version!
At present 61 copies of this Magazine are being sent out..
Please email [email protected] before Sunday June 21st
if you have any items suitable for publication in the July/August
Magazine.
2
MINISTER (URC)
MINISTER (Methodist)
ADMINISTRATOR
CHURCH TREASURER
ORGANIST
MID-WEEK WORSHIP
WEDNESDAY LUNCH
FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE
PROPERTY
RAINBOWS
BROWNIES
GUIDES
RANGERS
BEAVER SCOUTS
CUB SCOUTS
SCOUTS
EXPLORER SCOUTS
ACTING GROUP SCOUT
LEADER
MAGAZINE EDITOR AND
WEBSITE COORDINATOR
15
THE MINISTER’S LETTER
It's hard to believe that we've been living under lockdown for
over two months now. When this crisis started none of us
knew how long it would take to get the virus under control,
and it looks like it will take a while yet. That means we have been prevented from entering our church buildings for the
whole 50 days between Easter and Pentecost, sometimes
known in the church as the great 50 days. It has felt to some
like a period of exile, when we have been cut off from
familiar things and even our spiritual home. So, we draw comfort from the experiences of the people of God in the Hebrew scriptures who
carried the burden of real exile when they were kidnapped and taken away from
their homeland. In those stories, not only do we hear their grief and anguish, but
also stories of renewal and hope.
The Bible reminds us that periods of exile or disruption have also been marked by new understandings of the presence of God, where calls to faithfulness have been
renewed. The people of God, cut off from the Temple in Jerusalem, were forced to
improvise and to meet God in new ways. It is thought that the synagogue, as a place
of meeting and prayer, was a result of the exile of the Jewish people in Babylon. When they returned to the Holy Land, they brought the synagogue back with them,
and it has remained an important part of Jewish life and worship ever since.
God teaches us new things, new ways, new wisdom whilst we are unable to do the
familiar. As the book of Joel says:
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall
dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even upon the
menservants and maidservants in those days, I will pour out my spirit.”
The question is: What is the Spirit teaching us in lockdown that we will bring back
when the crisis ends? What will the ‘new normal’ look like for us as a church and as a society? Our Moderator, Steve Faber, has produced, with others in the URC, an
excellent document to help us reflect on what God is saying to us now, and I
recommend it. Within the circuit we are also trying to capture some of those dreams
and visions that God is sharing with his people in order to plan for the future.
I encourage you to reflect deeply on what ‘being church’ might look like and what we need to do now to enable that to happen.
I have put together a short questionnaire to gather your thoughts and reflections. as
we will do with members across South Warwickshire. You can go to the website
https://www.cassowary.eu/new-normal or give me a call and I'll send you a paper
copy. In all this, we are reminded that wherever we are, in whatever crisis, God is present
with us through the Spirit. And we rejoice that God continues to lead us home.
God bless you all.
Sam
Revd. James Church [email protected]
Revd. Sam McBratney
Margaret B
Tina
Margaret H
Jane
Veronica
Margaret H
Ruth
Bridget
Andrew
Bridget
Bridget
Emma
Sarah
Matthew
Matthew
Malcolm
Mark
Mark
Marjorie [email protected]
14 3
FAMILY NEWS
Please remember in your prayers
those who have suffered bereavement. Comfort the families and friends who grieve.
those who are ill . Please think especially of Mavis, Ken, John F. Ann and Clarice.
those who have worries and anxieties. Give them peace and comfort in the knowledge that you are close to them.
those who are self-isolating and all who are confined to their homes over recent
weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic. Please may they know of your nearness to them as they feel cut off from family and friends.
We are all thankful that both Ken and Hazel are making steady progress after surgery.
Janice is now living in her house in Leamington and we welcome her back to our Radford Road Church fellowship. Some of our congregation may remember Emmanuel Toutungi, a member of
St. Peter’s Church, who visiting Radford Road Church some years ago to give a moving presentation of St. Mark’s Gospel. Sadly, Emmanuel died in May and we send our love to his wife, Jennifer and their two daughters.
ADD A RIBBON
Sally and Andrew have heard of an idea that someone had seen whilst walking
through their local churchyard.
People were tying ribbons onto an arch, some were blank in memory of loved
ones, others had a prayer attached. It was a way of people coming together at their
church even though they were unable to go in to the building and showing the
community that the church was not closed even if the building was inaccessible.
Sally and Andrew suggest that we, at Radford Road Church, could copy the idea.
So, when you are next out for your daily exercise, please take a ribbon of any
colour with you and tie it onto the hand rail up the ramp at Radford Road Church
or even onto the side gate. The ribbons will show the community that we still care
for them and that we are still church even if the building is closed at present.
The Daily Devotions from the United Reformed Church offers you a
Bible reading, reflection and prayer for every day of the year. They can
be sent to you by email, viewed on the URC website or on a Facebook
page. The devotions are written by a team of writers from different places
and perspectives in the URC
To subscribe (free) go to the URC website urc.org.uk and look for
Daily Devotions
Fill in form, press Subscribe and the Daily Devotions will appear each
morning in your inbox.
You will find A Prayer for the Day page on the Methodist web site at
https://www.methodist.org.uk There is also a Prayer Wall where you
are able to ask others to pray for your particular concerns.
ANSWER TO THE CRYPTOGRAM PUZZLE ON PAGE 6
Guard me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings
Psalm 17:8 NRSV
A PRAYER FOR THE CHURCH
May your love that never fails
strengthen the weak
encourage the fearful
calm the anxious
heal the sick
through your church –
your washed hands
and feet on earth –
distant but still present
virtual but still connected
apart but still helping.
God in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Amen.
13 4
CHRISTIAN AID AND CORONAVIRUS
AND
During Christian Aid Week as a Church we would have been delivering and
collecting envelopes from the streets around the Church. Obviously we could
not do that this year so I wanted to ask you to donate to Christian Aid via an
e-envelope, direct via the Christian Aid website
(https://www.christianaid.org.uk/appeals/key-appeals/christian-aid-week)
or via a cheque made payable to Christian aid and posted to me
(12 Earl Rivers Ave, Warwick, CV34 6EN)
and I will make sure the cheque is given to Christian Aid.
As the coronavirus spreads across the world, love rises up in response. Join
me this Christian Aid Week in reaching out to protect our neighbours around
the world. Please think about giving a donation and sharing an e-Envelope
with your friends. Thank you,
Bridget
Coronavirus impacts on all of us. But love unites us all.
‘Love…bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all
things. Love never ends.’ (1 Corinthians 13:7-8)
Even in the darkest moments, love gives hope.
Love compels us to fight against coronavirus alongside our sisters and
brothers living in poverty.
Love compels us to stand together in prayer with our neighbours near and far.
Love compels us to give and act as one.
Now, it is clear that our futures are bound together more tightly than ever
before.
As we pray in our individual homes – around the nation and around the world
– we are united as one family.
If you have not yet done so
Please donate to the Christian Aid
Coronavirus Emergency Appeal today.
Please respond using your e envelope or hand your gift to Bridget
Halpin, our Radford Road Church Christian Aid Organiser.
VE75 CELEBRATIONS
AT WARWICK
You may remember that a group of people at Radford Road Church and our
Brownies made two lengths of bunting to decorate St. Mary’s Church,
Warwick for their planned VE75 Celebrations.
Unfortunately the event could not be held on the 75th anniversary of VE Day
because of the lockdown. St. Mary’s Church were very grateful for our gift
and have now sent the following letter to us:
Just wanted to let you know that we have rearranged our VE75 celebrations
- the Gala Dinner will now take place on Wednesday 28th October and all
our bunting will be proudly displayed, and hopefully remain in situ until
Remembrance Sunday.
However, the bunting was used to
decorate The Lord Leycester
Hospital when the ITV camera
visited prior to VE75 Day and
filmed a rendering of Vera Lynn
songs being given for the
residents of the Hospital.
The bunting will then be used to
decorate Torry's shop in the shop
window competition for Warwick, then by St Mary's church for their
celebration dinner and finally it will go to Warwick Town Council for use at
future special events.
THE QUEEN’S SPEECH
In part of her deeply moving speech to the nation on the 75th anniversary of
VE Day, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II paid tribute to the “never give up,
never despair” conviction of the British people that secured victory in Europe
75 years ago.
She went on to say,
“Our streets are not empty, they are filled with the love and care we have for
each other!
What moving and sincere words from our dearly loved monarch.
Covid 19
5 12
WHEN I’M 64 MUSICAL TOUR
We are still hoping that Dan Holmes, a
Christian folk singer and songwriter from the
US, will be able to make his fourth tour of
England in October. If restrictions are lifted by
then he will be performing live concerts at
fifteen churches AND HE WILL BE
PRESENTING A CONCERT AT
RADFORD ROAD CHURCH ON
OCTOBER 17TH 2020.
Dan will make a definite decision “later this summer” on whether or not the tour
can take place or whether it will be cancelled/ postponed because of the current
restrictions.
ANGELS
AND HATS, GLOVES & SCARVES
The knitting of our angels has started in earnest and
many people, during this period of isolation, have
started to make them for distribution to our local
community during Advent.
We also hope to make lots of hats, scarves and gloves
for the clients of our Night Shelter
The people who use the Shelter prefer hats and gloves in darker colours but
that really isn’t essential. What they all need are garments to protect them
from the bitterly cold weather of winter. It doesn’t matter what patterns
you use - all garments will be much appreciated.
Knitting is an ideal way of countering the boredom of being in
lockdown! So please start clickety clicking NOW!
GREAT NEWS!
ALL ARE WELCOME
All Are Welcome has now been running for just over 12 months and is serving a
real need in the local community. Regular people come along and we also
welcome new people who then become regulars. There is a wonderful
atmosphere of friendliness and everyone looks forward to the weekly Tuesday
morning get-togethers. Of course, meetings have had to be cancelled during
lockdown.
The whole ethos of “All Are Welcome” is that we welcome people unreservedly
and it is completely free to our clientele. However, during this first year we have
been living “from hand to mouth”. Fortunately, two grants and smaller
donations from individuals, have enabled us to buy an A Board, print publicity
material and buy refreshments.
During lockdown, the organisers of the group have
tried to source further money. On the advice of
Councillor Martin Lockhurst a request for a grant
was made to Persimmon Homes. This resulted in
our receiving a cheque for £1000 for All Are
Welcome.
In addition, The URC Synod Mission Fund has awarded
£500 for the work of All Are Welcome.
We are naturally delighted with this result.
The money will enable us to buy refreshments, craft
materials and publicise and extend our work in providing a
place of welcome to those in our community.
BRIDGET’S CYCLE RIDE As many of you know Bridget has been
preparing for the cycle ride of a lifetime!
She bought a new bike, helmet, saddle
protector, waterproofs, drinks container and
other essentials ready for her proposed E to
E ride from Land’s End to John o’ Groats.
Then she set about her training regime.
She started off with gentle rides around the
town and gradually increased her daily
distance until she was doing 20 miles and then 30, 40 and nearing the 50
mile daily trips!
Her muscles, bones and every part of her body ached and ached but she
persevered. She discovered parts of Warwickshire that she didn’t know
existed and enjoyed riding on roads free from traffic. On occasions she
took the wrong turning which added to the distance she had intended
covering and coming down steep hills. She did not always remember to
cover herself in sun cream and so , on occasions, was rather red at the end
of the day.
She was really looking forward to setting off with her friends on this
wonderful adventure until the dreaded, but not unexpected, news came
that the trip was cancelled because of the Covid 19 pandemic.
Never mind, Bridget. We shall all look forward to cheering you on when
you are able to set off next year.
6 6 11
FINANCE
As Radford Road Church remains closed because of the coronavirus pandemic,
it is important that we all remember our regular giving. Although the church is
closed there are still costs as is the case with any building and we have lost the
income from lettings.
If you would like to consider setting up a standing order or give via bank transfer
please contact either Tina Wise, Bridget Halpin or Margaret Bull for banking
details. Alternatively you can send a cheque made payable to ‘Radford Road
Church’ to Margaret Bull.
EASY GIVING
Please bear in mind, if you are ordering goods online, to register for easy giving
as the church receives a donation on each order. It costs you nothing and it is
easy to register. If you download the reminder you will be guided to which
companies are participating.
Dear Friends The English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll, wrote a novel in 1865 with the instantly recognisable title ‘Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland’ commonly shortened to ‘Alice in Wonderland’. One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree.
“Which road do I take?” she asked. “Where do you want to go?” was his response. “I don’t know,” Alice answered.
“Then,” said the cat, “it doesn’t matter.” As Christians we have both a compass and a destination. The Bible is our compass giving us guidance every step of the way. And we have an amazing destination in
Paradise with our Heavenly Father; the journey made astonishingly possible through His Son on the cross. Our paths will vary - we may find it to be a long and
meandering route, or it may be short and direct. When foggy, we may not see far ahead, but that is where a compass comes into its own – there is no need to stab around in the dark. We have a reliable route.
Yours in His Service,
Fiona
2nd April 2020
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN by FIONA BAXTER for
CASTLE HILL BAPTIST CHURCH, WARWICK
‘You cannot look in a new direction by looking harder in the same direction’ Edward de Bono
‘People pray in one direction but they walk in a different direction’ Andy Stanley
‘No matter how long you have travelled in the wrong direction, you always
have the choice to turn around’
‘I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always
reach my destination’ Jimmy Dean
‘You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.’ Dr Theodor Seuss
‘Direction determines destination’
‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding’ Proverbs ch 3 v 5
‘Seek his will in all you do and He will show you which path to take’ Proverbs ch 3 v 6
A CRYPTOGRAM PUZZLE FOR YOU TO DECIPHER
ANSWER ON PAGE 14
7
PRAYING TOGETHER IN JUNE
The monthly Prayer Diary encourages the Church family to focus prayers on specific people or organisations on a daily basis
1st Charities which have seen a
dramatic drop in donations
16th All in our church community who
are supporting others
2nd Ken 17th Our politicians who are having to
make difficult decisions
3rd For those who are grieving the
loss of loved ones
18th All who have contracted
coronavirus
4th Clarice 19th Gill
5th NHS workers during these
challenging times
20th Those who are isolated, alone,
scared or anxious
6th Rehoboth Children’s Centre 21st John F
7th Christians Together in
Leamington
22nd All key workers on whom we
depend
8th Radford Road Church 23rd Elders of the Church
9th Those working with the most
vulnerable in our society
24th Hazel
10th The family of Ralph 25th Mavis
11th Businesses and people who are
struggling financially
26th Joyce
12th Jherell, Jenny and Helen 27th Home Carers
13th Valerie 28th Staff and Residents of Care Homes
14th Kingsley and Anne 29th Peggy
15th Our Ministers and their families 30th Ann B
10
A PRAYER FOR OUR TROUBLED TIMES
Let us pause and find a moment of peace, as we lift up our hearts together in
prayer.
For the health workers tending the seriously ill
for the scientists working on a vaccine
for the researchers analysing data and identifying trends
for the media outlets working to communicate reality
for the supermarket workers, hygiene and sanitation providers
for the good news stories of recoveries and effective planning
for the singing from balconies by locked-down communities
for the recognition that isolation doesn’t need to mean loneliness
for the notes through letterboxes offering help and support
for the internet and telephones and technology that connects
for the awakened appreciation of what is truly important
Thanks be to God.
For those who are unwell and concerned for loved ones
for those who were already very anxious
for those immune-suppressed or compromised
for those vulnerable because of underlying conditions
for those in the ‘most at risk to coronavirus’ categories
for those watching their entire income stream dry up
for those who have no choice but to go out to work
for those who are afraid to be at home
for those who are more lonely than they've ever been
for those who are bereaved and grieving.
God be their healer, comfort and protection,
be their strength, shield and provision
be their security, safety and close companion
And raise up your Church
to be your well-washed hands and faithful feet
to be present to the pain
to respond with love in action
if even from a safe distance.
8
WONDERFUL THINGS WHICH HAVE HAPPENED DURING
THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
We are so grateful and full of appreciation to James and his team of worship
leaders for providing on line worship, morning and evening prayers via
WhatsApp and for his support of individuals during the pandemic.
Our thoughts and prayers have been
with the medical profession and, in
particular, with Jherell, Jenny and
Helen working in hospitals and in
the community to care for the sick
and the vulnerable.
9
Clapping in
appreciation of the
work of
the NHS
“Hallelujah! He is risen!”
STRANGE TIMES
Many of us have been in self-isolation for
several weeks now and have greatly missed
social interaction with friends and relatives.
We have missed the things which we always
took for granted:
popping in to see a neighbour,
going to the shops,
giving a friend a hug,
our church services and weekly activities
and lots, lots more.
However, many of us have been able to keep
in touch by telephone calls, video links,
Zoom meetings and WhatsApp chats.
The conversations have been lively,
entertaining, amusing, serious, thoughtful and
uplifting.
To give a flavour of how we have all coped during the lockdown we have
compiled a little book detailing snippets of news and anecdotes of people’s
activities during this very unusual period.
The book is called “Strange Times” AND IT IS AVAILABLE NOW!
It is easy reading and contains about 50 pages which we trust you will find
interesting, amusing and informative.
The book has been professionally printed and so we have incurred costs.
Each book costs approximately £2.10 to produce and we are hoping that
those who buy one will add a donation for Radford Road Church. Please send
your cheque (including donation) made payable to Marjorie Carrier or make
a bank transfer:
Sort Code 09-01-34
Account Number 35786806
The book is a wonderful keepsake and would make an ideal gift for a friend
or relative for a birthday, Christmas present or just as a gift. Already several
books have been sold.
Stocks are limited (we have only had 100 copies printed) so please let
Marjorie and John know as soon as possible if you would like one.
If you would like a book posted to you there will be a further charge of £1.50
to cover postage.
