Thursday 25 September 2008

CALLED TOGETHER - The annual service to affirm and celebrate authorised lay ministries

The annual service to affirm and celebrate authorised lay ministries in the diocese will be held on Saturday 11th October 2008 at 11.00 am in the Cathedral. This service will include the Admission, Licensing and Re-dedication of Readers and the authorising and reaffirmation of Ministry for Evangelists, Pastoral Assistants and Children & Youth Workers.

All are very welcome, and members of those congregations who have lay ministers being admitted or authorised are particularly encouraged to attend – tickets are NOT required. Following the service there will be refreshments and musical entertainment to which all are cordially invited.
Mike Harrison - Director of Mission and Ministry, Leicester Diocese, email: Mike.Harrison@LecCofE.org Tel. 0116 248 7428.

FRESH EXPRESSIONS – URBAN VISION DAY New Ways of Being Church in an Urban Setting

Saturday 4th October, The Salvation Army, Kildare Street, Leicester – 9.30am – 4pm.

A day for the whole Christian community to discover more about fresh expressions of church.

Speakers will include Tim Lea and Rachel Jordan and local church leaders.

The programme will include:
• An overview of developing fresh expressions of church within a mixed economy
• Worship, prayer and reflection in a variety of styles
• Stories of fresh expressions of church within Leicestershire
• Workshops in particular areas of interest

You are welcome to come on your own but we particularly welcome small groups and ministry teams.

The day will be a fresh expressions experience in itself for:
• Complete beginners
• Teams and individuals with a heart and passion for urban ministry
• Those who have questions about fresh expressions and mission shaped church
• Those who have started something new and need some practical help
• Christians from any church and every tradition

Cost: £5 including lunch.

To book please contact Sally Cresswell, Tel: 0115 983 5000 or E-mail: sally.cresswell@salvationarmy.org.uk and for more information visit www.freshexpressions.org.uk

Fresh Expressions is an initiative of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York supported by the Methodist Conference and working in partnership with many churches across Great Britain. www.freshexpressions.org.uk

A fresh expression is a form of church for our changing culture established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church.

GROWING WOMEN LEADERS: nurturing women’s leaders in the Church

Revd Rosie Ward, Leadership Development Adviser at CPAS (The Church Pastoral Aid Society based in Warwick) has written a highly acclaimed new book ‘Growing Women Leaders: nurturing women’s leaders in the Church’. (Published Sep08, £8.99).

Christina Reece of the Archbishop’s Council says of Rosie’s book “An impressive summary of biblical and historical information and an insightful analysis of the issues surrounding women and leadership. Every church leader – and aspiring leader – should read this book.’

Visit the CPAS Women In Leadership blog HERE.

Friday 19 September 2008

Worship in Music Weekend

St Wilfrid's Church in Kibworth are holding a Worship in Music Weekend from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th October. 

The Friday night worship will be led by Noel Alexander and the team. 

The Saturday workshops are for all guitarists, drummers, keyboard players and singers.

Everyone is invited to the Sunday 10am service. 

There is no charge for the event. To register fill in your details below or telephone 0116 2793358.


Wednesday 17 September 2008

Two new mission booklets from ReSource


From ReSource: We are finding increasingly that we are being invited to provide support and training for mission. To help meet this need we have just published two new ReSource booklets by Roger Morgan. Roger has for years been involved in mission and evangelism, working amongst university students, for a time with Daniel Cozens and Through Faith Missions, and latterly in his own parishes of St Columba’s Corby and then Holy Trinity Leicester. Roger has now joined the ReSource team as a strategist and specialist missioner.

The first booklet, Stay Evangelism, is written to encourage ordinary Christians to develop a transparent and friendly lifestyle which makes it possible to share their faith unthreateningly and in a servant-hearted way with others. The second, Decision, is for those who are thinking of making a step of commitment, and is ideal for use with Alpha or in the context of parish missions and outreach events.

Stay Evangelism costs £3; Decision is £2 or £10 for a pack of 10. Both are available through www.resource-arm.net.

Cycle Ride from Lands End to John O'Groats

Our congratulations to Neill Griffiths from St Paul's Oadby who recently completed the magnificent feat of cycling a thousand miles from Lands End to John O'Groats in fifteen days to raise funds for Leicester YMCA.


Friday 12 September 2008

Searching for Peace and Happiness?


Come and experience through meditation a simple technique which can change your whole life.
Six Tuesday afternoon sessions from 2.30 - 3.30 pm, starting on Tuesday 7th October 2008 , in The Manor Room at St Peter's Centre, Wigston Road, Oadby.
For further information, contact The Rev'd Paskal Clement
Parish Office 0116 272 0080.

Monday 8 September 2008

Bishops Pledge Change to Young People

The voices of young people on key issues, such as poverty, wealth and the environment were heard and reflected at the Lambeth Conference during a previous consultation organised by the Diocese of Leicester. Thirty bishops and 100 young people from 17 different nations discussed the themes of faith, life and power at The Lambeth Talk, a four-day consultation in July. The topics discussed were later covered during the Lambeth Conference, where the bishops were able to amplify the voices of the young people within the programme.

The key findings of the consultation were fed in to the conference through a dedicated session on the 22nd July, where the bishops had the opportunity to hear directly from five of the young people who attended the earlier event. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, also attended this session.

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, and the Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Rev Tim Stevens, headed the delegation of archbishops and bishops who visited the Peepul Centre in Leicester ahead of the Lambeth Conference on the 14th July.

The young people, drawn from across the worldwide Anglican Communion, were invited to air their views on issues of faith, life and power and influence the bishops of the Anglican Communion’s discussions. The topics discussed included areas of family and relationships, education, employment, poverty, wealth, the environment and economy and why they feel the Church doesn’t take young people seriously. Consequently, many of the bishops made promises, written on scrolls, to the young people in their diocese. These included pledges such as setting up or meeting with their youth council, allocating more funding to youth projects in their diocese and offering support to their local youth workers. Bishops wrote their promises on scrolls, signed by themselves and the teenagers to take away and remind them of the experience.

During the consultation, the bishops and young people were involved in different activities to explore the themes together. Seventeen year old Matthew Rusk, chair of the Bishops youth council in Leicester, reflected on the activities: ‘We played a ‘life’ game, a ‘faith’ game and a ‘power’ game, which all explored the impact of these areas for young people. In the life game, for example, we led the bishops blindfolded on a giant board, a bit like a snakes and ladders board. They encountered different life scenarios such as ‘you fail your exams’ or ‘your parents get a divorce’, and the young people had to advise the bishops on the next move to take. The bishops had to trust the young person’s advice because they were blindfolded!’

Matthew continued: ‘One of the aims of the day was to challenge the bishops to think about young people’s perspectives – and I think we did that.’ Becky Jackson, also 17 and vice-chair of the Bishops youth council said that the unity between the bishops and the young people was a highlight of the event: ‘It was amazing to bring so many different cultures, denominations and generations into the same place and work together for one aim. I think that the bishops realised that young people really appreciate being listened to, and as a result have decided to give the young people more of a look-in. I don’t think they understood before how seriously young people want to take these issues.’

Friday 5 September 2008

Advance Notice: Christ in The Centre - Good Friday April 10th 2009

TWO IMPORTANT MEETINGS – coming up soon

SCRIPT READING - Thursday 25th September, All Nations Christian Centre, Frog Island, 7.30 – 9.30p.m.

CASTING WORKSHOP - Saturday 11th October 10 a.m.– 4:00 p.m. (Venue To be Confirmed)

Easter 2009 may seem far off, but preparations for Good Friday's production have been going on for some time! There is a new and exciting script for 2009 which will need a large cast. These meetings are both essential if people would like to be involved in next year's Christ in the Centre. At the first meeting we will be reading the new script and outlining rehearsal dates. *Rehearsal dates/times will depend on parts allocated, but most will take place after Christmas. On Saturday 11th October we will spend the day work-shopping and casting the script. Please note: We will cast the production from these meetings so if people are unable to attend one or both but would still like to be part of the cast, please do let me know and I will put you on the list!.
From Hilary Ayling (CITC 2009 Cast Co-ordinator) - 01509 890 115 or email hilary.ayling@woodhouse-eaves.co.uk

Want to know the true meaning of Christmas ?

Ask a Teenager ! (and persuade them to enter the competition!)
Mobile phones may be a must-have accessory for Britain’s much-maligned youth, but now teenagers are being challenged to put their phone and video cameras to good use: to reveal their deepest thoughts about the true meaning of Christmas.
In a new national competition launched today and backed by the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, the YouTube generation is being asked to film their own short video clips showing what they believe Christmas is really all about.
READ MORE at: HERE
And then visit: www.truemeaning.co.uk