Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014
WORSHIP in A U G U S T Sunday August 3rd
11 am
Morning Worship, including Communion - Revd. Ray Adams Theme: “A Capacity for Compassion”
Sunday August 10th
11 am
Morning Worship - Revd. David Jenkins Theme: “Learning to Face our Fears”
Sunday August 17th
11 am
Morning Worship - Mr. Adrian West, URC accredited lay preacher Theme: “Encountering Jesus”
Sunday August 24th
11 am
Morning Worship - Revd. Ray Adams Theme: “Who is Jesus?”
Sunday August 31st
11 am
Morning Worship - Revd. David Jenkins Theme: “Following Jesus”
The lectionary readings for August Sundays are. August 3rd Isaiah 55: 1-5 Psalm 145: 8-9 14-21 Romans 9: 1-5 Matthew 14: 13-21 August 10th
1 Kings 19: 9-18 Romans 10: 5-15
Psalm 85: 8-13 Matthew 14: 22-33
August 17th
Isaiah 56: 1 6-8 Romans 11: 1-2a, 29-32
Psalm 67 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28
August 24th
Isaiah 51: 1-6 Romans 12: 1-8
Psalm 138 Matthew 16: 13-20
August 31st
Jeremiah 15: 15-21 Romans 12: 9-21
Psalm 26: 1-8 Matthew 16: 21-28
AT A TIME OF ANNIVERSARIES 22.7.1907 07. 1908 05. 1909 26.09.1909
Opening Service in the Hazelwood Lane cottage. Site in Fox Lane purchased. Services transferred to Avondale Hall in Hoppers Road – now part of Palmers Green High School. Main Hall in Fox Lane opened for all Services and church activities.
04.08.1914
Start of World War 1
01.10.1914
CHURCH BUILDING IN FOX LANE OPENED
11.11.1918
End of World War 1
The Union of the Congregational Church in England and Wales and the Presbyterian Church of England to form the United Reformed Church. The only buildings purchased by the Church Members were Manses and, for a short time, a house for the caretaker. The Members also purchased land in Oakfield Road in 1935 and laid out four hard tennis courts to replace the six grass courts in Hedge Lane that had been hired. The financing of the purchase of the sites in Fox Lane and Oakfield Road and of the Manses and house and of the building costs of the buildings in Fox Lane was made possible by the giving of the Church Members with relatively small loans from a bank and denominational funds. A very important part of the funding of the alterations to link the Church and Main Hall buildings in 1980 was from the proceeds of the sale of the St. George’s Church buildings at the corner of Fox Lane and St. George’s Road and from monies arising from the
Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014 sale of St., James-at-Bowes Church in Wood Green. The costs of other alterations to, and the maintenance of, the present church buildings and gardens and of the Manse have been and still are met from the giving, sometimes in the form of legacies, of the Church Members and from the income received from letting the church buildings for community activities. At the end of 1914 55% of the Congregational Church Members lived in Fox Lane or in the 15 roads leading off it. Today 29% of Church Members live in these roads. In 1914 there was a Sunday School, a Young People’s Society, a Band of Hope, a Young Women’s Guild, a Ladies’ Prayer Union, a Ladies’ Working Party, a Dorcas Society, a Red Cross Society, a Women’s League, a Young Worshippers’ League, a Watchers’ Band, branches of The International Bible Reading Association and of the London Missionary Society, a Literary and Social Union, an Annual Eisteddfod, a Lawn Tennis Club and the 153rd North London Scout Troop. These all indicate that the Church was a centre of community activity but then this is not surprising for the area was a very new residential one and the Church had been started by the new residents. All this was before the start of the 1914-1918 War and the Minister, the Revd. Nicholas Richards B.D., in his letter in the 1915 Church Manual, which included reports and accounts to the end of September 1914, wrote :
Unhappily our rejoicings at the opening of the new building were subdued by the commencement of the great war of the Nations, and though for us local conditions of Church life made for joy and thanksgiving, the larger issue raised by the war almost completely dominated our thoughts and produced feelings of anxiety and sorrow in every breast. We can but pray, and that earnestly, that before the time comes to compile another Manual this terrible upheaval of civilised Nations may have ceased its ravages and an enduring reign of peace by securely established. These hopes were not of course realised. Mr. Richards served three months in France with the YMCA and by the end of the War in 1918 one woman and thirty men connected with the Church, St. George’s Presbyterian Church, St. James-at-Bowes and Wood Green Congregational Church were killed while serving in the Forces. Their names are shown on the Memorials now in the church building. Records show that there were an additional sixty-four men from one of those Churches who served in the War. Memorials, also in the church building, from two of the Churches, give the names of four women and twentyseven men who were killed in the 1919-1945 War. In the case of one of the Churches records show that eighty women and men, of whom four women and sixteen men were killed, served in the Forces. Although the church buildings suffered no direct damage in the 1939-1945 War, they were damaged by blast which rendered them unsafe for worship. St. George’s Presbyterian Church Members offered the use of their premises to the Congregational Church and united services were held. The two congregations then continued with a joint and regular week-night service and then every year for services during Holy Week and August. The Revd. John Huxtable M.A, the Minister at Fox Lane and a great admirer of the Revd. J. Macara Gardner, the Minister at St. George’s, wrote that it was in this setting that he first saw the possibilities of a union between the Presbyterian and Congregational denominations which with the formation of the United Reformed Church came about on 5th October 1972. (Brian Smith)
MY RETURN TO TABORA I returned to Tabora, Tanzania June/July spending most of my time at St Philip’s clinic. I was supposed to get a chicken
laying project off the ground. An income generating project aiming to help fund the wages of the staff of Familia Moja. Familia Moja is a Project which works with the most vulnerable families in Tabora. Three hundred chicks were bought just before I arrived. Unfortunately and very tragically the vehicle that fetched the chicks had an accident and Mashaka, the person in charge of the chicken project, was thrown out of vehicle and died. The clinic staff are a close knit group of people and this had a very serious impact on all of them. Mashaka was a lovely man who has left behind a wife and seven young children who will now be supported by the clinic. Although the chicks were scattered across the countryside the staff managed to collect the majority of them, around 250. The first two weeks of a chick’s life is quite critical and despite the initial disaster, those collected have all survived and are doing well. They are being looked after by someone who knows what they are doing and he is teaching some of the other workers about their care and needs.
Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014
Another impact of the accident is that the vehicle which is used on mobile clinic runs is no longer useable. We did manage to go out on one mobile clinic using a different vehicle which I had use of while I was there. We drove 65km through the bush on non-existent roads to Mwakashindye village. That day we inoculated over 260 children, the lab carried out over 800 tests, 32 mothers had antenatal check-ups and the doctor saw 24 patients. My final weekend coincided with the 25th Anniversary of the Diocese which meant various dignitaries were around including the Archbishop of Tanzania. Most of the clergy and staff I worked with during 2007/8 returned to Tabora. It was great to see and catch up with them. Several buildings were opened on the Saturday including a new Lab at the Clinic. At the celebration service I was asked to read out greetings from the Archbishop of Canterbury. The service started at 8am and finished around 2pm, my poor bottom was feeling it a bit after 6 hours on a metal chair!! During my stay I led a training workshop for the Sunday School teachers and another day I spent with a youth club. Other days, I visited families in their houses to deliver food, mattresses or just to pray with them. Many of them are receiving palliative care. Seven year old Holo, suffering from AIDS, lived in one of the farm houses PG URC built. Over the last couple of months she has deteriorated, was weighing less than 10kg and was blind in one eye. It was upsetting visiting her as she was in constant pain and looked like a living skeleton. My final day in Tabora, I was called out of a church service to visit her as they thought she only had a few hours to live. When I arrived we got her to munch on some biscuits and drink some juice which meant and she pulled through but a few days after I returned home I have heard she died. She is now at rest and free from pain. You at PG URC enabled her to live out her last few days of life with dignity. Her mother and grandmother were and are grateful for your support. THANK YOU. You have made a difference! (Gillian Whiting)
The URC welcomes women bishops The United Reformed Church has warmly welcomed the Church of England's General Synod vote in favour of allowing women to become bishops. The moderators of the General Assembly of the URC, the Revd David Grosch-Miller and Mr John Ellis, said: "Throughout its life the United Reformed Church has opened every office to both men and women and has found its life enriched by the gifts and insights that women have brought to all parts of the Church. In recognising that God calls both women and men equally we have found our understanding of leadership deepened and the language we use of God broadened. As a result we share the delight of most members of the Church of England that the General Synod has, at last, accepted women into the episcopate.[......] We look forward to being able to include some of the new bishops in our celebration of the centenary of the ordination of Constance Coltman, who in 1917 became the first woman to be ordained into the ministry in our tradition.”
Comings and Goings Rev Roberta Rominger will formally step down as URC General Secretary on 31 st July. Way back in February Rev. Rominger wrote: “As my term as general secretary comes to an end, it is time to look ahead to new adventures. I am very excited about this next move! It has been nearly 16 years since I left local church ministry to serve in the wider Church..... I am looking for a fellowship of fellow seekers who are on the same wavelength. I worry that my roles as synod moderator and general secretary will put them off..... I want to come with who I am and meet others in who they are - and see what God can make of us together." At URC General Assembly on 5th July, the Revd David Grosch-Miller gave a heartfelt speech saying: “Roberta, you have touched lives and changed them for the better. You have been a courageous and inspirational general secretary; you have given without reserve… you are a woman with rare gifts and abilities; there is no more inspirational speaker in the church than you.” Ruth Gledhill, previously religious correspondent of The Times, and the daughter of an Anglican vicar, was made redundant in May after 25 years.
Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014 If still working for "The Times" Ruth Gledhill could surely not have resisted being in the congregation at Christ Church, Southgate, on 11th July and commenting on the Ordination and Induction of Rev Hazel Miall as priest at Christ Church, Southgate by Rev Bishop Stephen Platten, Honorary Assistant Bishop of London, Rector of St Michael's Cornhill who will be standing in for Rev Bishop of Edmonton, Fr Peter Wheatley. Fr Peter Jackson will be leaving Christ Church, Southgate to take up a post at Holy Trinity, Nice (Anglican Diocese of Gibraltar) after a leaving party on 14th September. (Web links are available from Donald Smith)
PLACE TO MEET There was a gathering of 22 people for a 'Summer Medley' in June organised by Barbara and Jill. Barbara and Jill had chosen a selection of 10 short poems each complemented by a piece of music. Many of the poems brought back memories of school days, especially to me ' Leisure' by W.H.Davies
What is this life if, full of care We have no time to stand and stare. No time to stand beneath the boughs And stare as long as sheep or cows. This is something we ought to all remember, in today's fast moving world. We listened to a selection of music including 'Over the sea to Skye' and 'Ash Grove' which always conjures up different memories to us all, not forgetting 'Hippopotamus Song' By Flanders and Swann and 'Country Gardens' By Percy Grainger. The afternoon concluded with a splendid tea of sandwiches, rolls, cakes, strawberries and cream served by Margaret. Our thanks should go to Barbara and Jill for organising the afternoon. To quote one poem which has meaning to us all.
New Every Morning
By Susan Coolidge
Every day is a fresh beginning Listen my soul to the glad refrain. And, in spite of old sorrows And older sinning, Troubles forecasted And possible pain, Take heart with the day and begin again.
(Mary & Jill Bysouth)
Stanley, again. The start of the day was not promising. The morning of our return visit to Cookham, the birthplace and home of Sir Stanley Spencer, was cloudy and damp. Stanley Spencer painted the images of “Christ in the Wilderness” discussed in Lent Groups in 2013, and Cookham scenes are the background for many of Spencer’s well known images, inspired by his very personal Christian sensibility. A visit to Cookham in 2013 had proved so popular, that we arranged another on 12 July. In spite of the clouds, we set out hopeful and by the time we arrived in Cookham, found parking and found our friends (in the back garden of a very nice coffee shop, naturally), the sky had cleared, and was blue and cloudless.
Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014
Ray Adams guided us around the village, using a handy and nicely illustrated guided walk booklet. Our first stopping point was the Tarry Stone, a small boulder which was a focal point for village sports and entertainments in the 16th century and before. From the Stone, we could almost see our next destination, the Ferry Hotel, at the landing stage by Cookham Bridge. The landing stage and Hotel lawns provide the scene for a number of Spencer's best known paintings including “Swan Upping at Cookham”, “The Bridge” and the incomplete “Christ Preaching at Cookham Regatta”, one of the treasures of the Stanley Spencer Gallery. A short walk under the bridge and across Bellrope Meadow brought us to Cookham Church, where we could view the church itself and appreciate Spencer's fascination with the churchyard, even to see in some of the leaning or apparently uplifted memorials how he could have visualised the Resurrection occurring there, with the saved forcing their way up to share in the new life. Stanley Spencer's own grave is there and, close by, a Judas tree planted by the Friends of the Stanley Spencer Gallery to commemorate the centenary of his birth. Returning to Bellrope Meadow (the scene for a delightful painting of wild flowers in a landscape), we soon found our way to The Crown, and lunch. We were very grateful for the umbrellas in the beer garden, and enjoyed a good lunch before shuffling our cars (on account of a two-hour limit) and making our way via Cookham War Memorial and the picturesque High Street to the Stanley Spencer Gallery for our 2:30 appointment. On the way we passed “Fernlea”, the house in which Spencer and his brothers were born and grew up. A very interesting talk by a custodian of the Gallery, took us through the current exhibition, “Paradise Regained: Stanley Spencer in the Aftermath of the First World War”. The paintings exhibited, particularly “Unveiling Cookham War Memorial”, often recall those who died in the war by showing them still playing a part in the life of the village, relaxing on the grass as the memorial is unveiled. Many other paintings exhibit Spencer’s exquisite draughtsmanship and feeling for nature. A great favourite with us was a pen and Ink drawing of “Roy”, a boy leaning on a pew at Cookham Church. As there seem to be adults sitting in the background, he is no doubt entranced by a sermon. We thanked the custodian for her very interesting talk and, after tea/coffee at another Cookham coffee shop, drove home. If you fancy taking a visit to Cookham by yourself, the guidebook makes it very easy to find your way around, and there is a good selection of places to eat. For a longer day, and contrasting view of heaven on earth, add in the nearby National Trust property, Cliveden, a striking and unusual house, with fine gardens and extensive views across the Thames. (Stephen and Celia Wells)
Catholic Church Leaders Palestine/Justice & Peace Statement The Justice and Peace Commission of the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries in the Holy Land has issued an urgent appeal for peace: “Our hope to bring the cycle of violence to an end is shattered by the irresponsible language of collective punishment and revenge that breeds violence and suffocates the emergence of any alternative. Many in positions of power and political leadership remain entrenched, not only unwilling to enter into any real and meaningful process of dialogue but also pouring oil on the fire with words and acts that nurture the conflict. The violent language of the street in Israel that calls for vengeance is fed by the attitudes and expressions of a leadership that continues to foster a discriminatory discourse promoting exclusive rights of one group and the occupation with all of its disastrous consequences. Settlements are built, lands are confiscated, families are separated and loved ones are arrested and even assassinated. The occupation leadership seems to believe that the occupation can be victorious by crushing the will of the people for freedom and dignity. They seem to believe that their determination will ultimately silence opposition and transform wrong into right.” (Included in the light of the current unrest between Israel and Gaza, and very relevant to our service on July 27 th - Ed.)
N O TIC E B O A R D
Palmers Green URC Magazine August 2014
Mary’s Meals, a charity which operates a school feeding programme in parts of Africa, is coming to Palmers Green on Sunday 3rd August as part of their ‘Rags to Riches’ campaign. They will have a van in St Monica’s car park from 8am until 12.30pm and they will be collecting clothing, towels, curtains, bedding and any other textiles for recycling. Depending on the quality, two bags of textiles can feed a child in Malawi for a whole year! Revd Papa Owusu takes up his new post at Grange Park Methodist church on September 1st. His welcome service will be at the church on September 6th at 6.30pm with refreshments from 5pm. The preacher will be the Revd Dr Stuart Jordan who is Chair of the London District. In this scientific age, what do we do with the first eleven chapters of the Bible? Can we still find anything of value in ancient stories about two people talking to a snake in a garden? Why not come along to the Synod Scripture retreat at Felden Lodge from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th of October 2014 and discover more about reading Genesis for the 21st Century. The event is for everybody - no prior biblical or theological knowledge is required. If you are unable to attend the whole weekend, you are welcome to come for the day on Saturday. Costs are: Single Room £165: Shared Room £145 (per person): Saturday only £35 (including lunch). If applying for a grant, please contact the Synod office. August & September local and church diary A ‘Place for Coffee’ with Bookstall is open every Saturday morning from 10.30am to 12 noon Music in Church every Sunday at 10.30am (except August 3rd) Sun Tues Sat
3rd 5th 9th
‘Rags to Riches’ collection van in St Monica’s car park 8am until 12.30pm Elders’ Meeting at 8pm Andy Johnson pupils’ concert at 3pm
September Sun
14th
Church Meeting at 1pm
