Churches Together Newport Pagnell
Letter from a Minister
A year ago I visited Turkey for the first time and one evening we went to see the whirling dervishes. Ever since I first heard of them I imagined them frantically spinning around in a kind of frenzy. I was completely surprised to see that they gradually move round in a circle pivoting on their toes in a stately and beautiful dance to soothing music played on a guitar and a flute-like instrument called a 'nay'. It's a kind of ballet.
That ex perience confirmed how easy it is to jump to conclusions. My picture of the whirling dervishes was completely wrong and I've noticed since I saw them that when they are referred to, particularly when fanatics are likened to them in the press, my original prejudiced view is commonly held by others.
On one occasion I invited an atheist to come to a church gathering to speak about what he objected to in Christianity. Imagine my surprise when he attacked Christians for believing things that I for one don't believe. How easy it is to let prejudice distort the truth! On one occasion I was asked at a meeting "Why do Christians worship three gods?" My answer was that we worship
one God who is revealed in three different ways.
Recently we celebrated Easter which focuses on the revelation of God in Jesus Christ; soon we shall celebrate the revelation of God in the Holy Spirit and later we shall observe the harvest festival which centres on God as Creator. All these festivals speak of the one God who loves this world and seeks its wellbeing. Although the churches in our town have different names and worship in different ways we are united in our faith in that one God. That is why we are united in our desire to contribute to the wellbeing of everyone in the town.
John Reardon
Christian Aid Week 2014
Give people a future without fear. War tears lives apart. You can help put them back together.
For a growing number of people across the world , the horror of war is part of daily life. Right now, fuelled by the devastating violence in both Syria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the numbers of people driven from their homes by war is on the rise. It stands at 42 million people - an appalling statistic
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and a stain on the conscience of humanity. We can't turn our backs. We must act now.
The good news is that individuals , communities and churches can make a real difference this Christian Aid Week . Last year, a magnificent 20 ,000 churches across the country helped raise £12m in Christian Aid Week. Thanks to these efforts , many more people can look forward to a future free from poverty. Together we can send people living in fear this message: you are not alone. We're with you, helping you to rebuild your lives, and working for peace.
Could you provide the gift of hope?
• £15 could provide blankets
for refugee children to protect them from bitter night-time temperatures .
• £40 could provide enough good quality and nutritious food for two refugee children for a month.
• £150 could help provide specialist emotional support for a child deeply traumatised by the horror of war that they 've witnessed or experienced .
Look out for the red Christian Aid
envelope coming through your letterbox in Christian Aid week and give what you can to help communities affected by war in many parts of the world . Envelopes are delivered and collected by volunteers from the local Christian churches. If you don 't get one, please consider making an online donation via www .christianaid .org .uk
As we remember the start of war in 1914 and the millions of lives that were lost or profoundly changed by that conflict and others in the last century, let us join in working for peace and justice intoday'sworld.
Coffee morning
with cake and book stalls at the United Reformed Church on Saturday 10th May. All proceeds will go to Christian Aid.
For more information about Churches Together in Newport Pagne/1 visit our website (www. ctnp.org.uk)
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