Bishop Geoffrey's Christmas Message 2008

In his Christmas Message Bishop Geoffrey considers Mary's "deep and reflective meditation" on God's action, referred to by St Luke as sumballo from which the word symbol derives.
For the full text and podcast click here.

Christmas Greetings from Jerusalem

St Thomas Becket Church supports the work of the USPG-Anglicans in World Mission including their work in Jerusalem. For the latest News of the remarkable work going on and a Christmas greeting please click here.

To see some other Mission projects supported, please look under "Mission Projects".

ADVENT SUNDAY CONFIRMATION

Our good wishes and encouragement for the onward journey go to Max, John, Philipp, Philippa, Benedict, Martin and Lilian who were confirmed on Advent Sunday.

For those who could not make to the service, and those who did, who would like to read Bishop David Hamid's sermon here it is, by kind permission of the Bishop to make it available online!

CHURCH BAZAAR: THANKS FOR ALL THE SUPPORT

After an enjoyable interview on NDR 90.3 early in on the Saturday morning, attendance at our Annual Church Bazaar was well up.
Regular visitors mingled with a large number of first-timers. Nearly all the stalls reported increased profits, both those selling articles and those offering foodstuffs and hot dishes.

Our sincere thanks to our visitors and to everyone who worked so hard on the day and throughout the year.

The Church and Carbon Footprints

The Anglican Church is committed to doing its part in reducing CO2 emissions and contributing constructively to the debate and action. As a first step the Diocese of Europe has recently adopted an Environment Policy. Further information, news and comment on the topic is available from the Church of England's web site Shrinking the Footprint.

Anyone interest in developing an information resource as part of this web site please get in touch.

Thought for the Week

This is a week to reflect on the example of the many women and men of modern times who have witnessed to the love of Christ.
Edith Cavell, Edith Stein, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and companions, Maximillian Kolbe, Martin Luther-King, Archbishops Luwum of Uganda and Romero of El Salvador, the martyrs of Melanesia, the Christians in India and Iraq.
"Be Faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life."

And to see the example of the work of "Everyday Saints" in our time, take a look at the Christian Aid Video on Climate Change to see how a farmer in Burkina Faso has brought joy to his community by introducing new techniques to conserve water.

The Church in action as Partners for World Development

A new website was launched by the CoE 24th October to help link up the extensive national network of local campaigners on world development issues to help amplify the Church's voice on crucial global topics.

The 'Partners in World Development' site, provides parishes with up-to-date information on issues such as trade justice, debt relief and climate change. It also provides profiles of many Church of England dioceses, with overviews of the projects they have underway and details of their link dioceses overseas.

It is worthwhile taking a look at the site to see the breadth and depth of activities going on in the different Dioceses, though the Diocese of Europe is not included in the list!