M AR C H – J U NE 2015
IS S U E 60
ICS NEWS DEVOTIONAL 3 TERVUREN 4 WENGEN 6 VERSAILLES 8 HELIOPOLIS 10 THE FALKLANDS 12 OUTREACH APPEAL 14
WARWICK PRAYER GROUP 15
MISSION AND MINISTRY IN ENGLISH FOR EVERYONE
ICS NEWS
WELCOME Welcome to the new look ICS News! And so appropriately the first thing I want to say is: thank you so much to Dennis and Elizabeth Sadler who for many years have collated, edited and produced ICS News. We are hugely grateful to them and want to honour them for all their commitment. But it is time for change and we believe change that will help ICS News be read by even more people. Engaging them in the ministry of ICS and encouraging them to both pray and support this essential ministry. Our passion is to inform the emerging generation, while still honouring those people that have faithfully supported and cared for the ministry of ICS over the years. OUR PASSION IS TO INFORM THE EMERGING GENERATION, WHILE STILL HONOURING THOSE PEOPLE THAT HAVE FAITHFULLY SUPPORTED AND CARED FOR THE MINISTRY OF ICS OVER THE YEARS.
This change is symbolic, also of the focus and direction we feel is evident in ICS. Spiced with a good dose of optimism we have a real sense of mission and purpose. Historically ICS has always been about new frontiers and we find ourselves well placed to develop the frontiers that are opening up before us. More about that in issues to come.
Finally, I have been struggling to find the words that roll off my tongue easily that encompass what ICS does. Now, in the first few months of 2015, I can say that for me ICS is about Mission and Ministry in English for Everyone. English continues to be the lingua franca of the world and provides us with a great opportunity to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ afresh. We look forward to partnering with you in this phase of the life of ICS.
Richard Bromley Mission Director
Intercontinental Church Society Unit 11 Ensign Business Centre, Westwood Way, Westwood Business Park, Coventry, CV4 8JA
Registered charity no: 1072584; a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales no: 3630342 Intercontinental Church Society (ICS) is an Anglican mission agency. Founded in 1823, we have worked in most parts of the world, ministering and reaching out to people from many nationalities and backgrounds. From the early days we have planted churches in mainland Europe where our work is still strong but also in and around the Mediterranean, North Africa, the South Atlantic and South America. English language ministry has a strategic part to play, alongside national churches, in outreach as increasing numbers for whom English is a second language, attend English-speaking churches. Design by Greyjones Studio • Printed by Swan Print
DEVOTIONAL
WE WAIT, HE WORKS ‘Since before time began, no-one has ever imagined, no ear heard, no eye seen, a God like you who works for those who wait for him.’ Isaiah 64: 4 (The Message)
A friend recently sent me an extract from Andrew Murray’s classic devotional, Waiting on God, first published in 1896. Murray writes: ‘I have been surprised at nothing more than at the letters that have come to me from missionaries and others from all parts of the world, devoted men and women, testifying to the need they feel in their work of being helped to a deeper and clearer insight into all that Christ could be to them. Let us look to God to reveal Himself among His people in a measure very few have realised. Let us expect great things of our God. At all our conventions and assemblies too little time is given to waiting on God. Is He not willing to put things right in His own divine way? Has the life of God’s people reached the utmost limit of what God is willing to do for them? Surely not. We want to wait on Him, to put away our experiences, however blessed they have been; our conceptions of truth, however sound and scriptural we think they seem; our plans, however needful and suitable they appear; and give God time and place to show us what He could do, what He will do.’ This 19th century voice delivered a palpable hit at my over-crowded 21st-century schedule, and I decided to make a 5-night silent retreat in a monastery high in the hills of south-eastern France. Not as austere as it sounds – the setting was glorious, the welcome warm, the fare hearty; plus, this particular Dominican community has their own biscuit-making business. I returned to Paris re-built by many blessings and chiefly by the grace of unhurried prayer and communion with the one who is ever-willing to show himself to those who wait on him; the epiphany God who will instruct the very stars to lead seekers into the presence of his Son. When did you last make some unreasonable space to wait on him? Alyson Lamb Chaplain at St. Michael’s, Paris 3
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PERMANENT CHAPLAINCY by Simon Tyndall
SERVING THE LORD IN OUR NATION Eighteen months ago when Jo and Kristien (Brazilian-Flemish family) welcomed Ann and me to Tervuren they gave us a copy of Jo’s recently recorded CD, Meditation of my heart. On the accompanying sleeve she had written ‘Many blessings to you. Thanks for serving the Lord in our nation. Daniel 12:3’ It was a greeting God used, to speak to me and challenge me about ministry here and just exactly what I had come here to do (and what direction things might take).
In 2013, I was appointed as the fifth Chaplain of St. Paul’s, Tervuren – planted from Holy Trinity, Brussels in 1988. For twenty-five years there had been a lively and dynamic ministry to English speakers who lived mostly around the SE Brussels area. For the first years it was a ministry which engaged with many British expatriots but gradually over time more and more other nationalities came along. Last Sunday we had folk from Australia, USA, Solomon Islands, Kenya, Malaysia, Brazil, Belgium, the Netherlands, South Africa, France, Britain and Ireland (and others, I am sure!). Tervuren lies in Flanders (just outside the Brussels ring) and the local language is Dutch. Bishop Geoffrey had encouraged me to try to learn the language and, to my surprise, I have loved taking classes. I don’t think I was expecting this to feature greatly in what I would be doing here but the Lord seems to have had other ideas!
ex-pat bubble! (Easily done in Brussels – there is even a local ‘British shop’, but we don’t shop there!) What I have discovered is a far richer diet by trying to learn some Dutch and by looking for ways of engaging locally. It seems to me (writing this at Epiphany) that this is the model of incarnation. It is not easy to integrate fully into Tervuren and the local life but God is challenging me and our church community to embrace a different mindset as we become a different sort of church. Our Values are summed up by SWIMmeR....we are trying to be a church that is Scriptural, Worshipful, International, Missional and Relational and then asks the question ‘where does little me fit in all this?’
I think my mindset was of coming to an ex-pat ministry and maybe living in an
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Simon and Ann Tyndall
Churchwarden Adam Isaacs coined SWIMmeR and recently wrote ‘over the last eighteen months we have been thrilled to see a re-birth of the sense of community, that we are all on a journey of faith, learning more about Jesus and taking his love to our neighbours. One hundred and fifty of us recently spent a church weekend away exploring the theme of ‘Belonging’ and praying and caring for each other.’
We are trying to be a church that is Scriptural, Worshipful, International, Missional and Relational... We are now twenty-six years old, no longer a new church plant but well established and settled (despite meeting in a school canteen!). Interestingly, many of our church members are making the decision to become longer term Belgium residents. Some are now choosing to stay here in their retirement. It all changes the perceptions of what we are here to do and be, as we are being guided by our God. It is a wonderful journey as we try to discover where God is active in mission to his world... and how we are being called to be his ‘witnesses in Tervuren, and in all Flanders and Belgium, and to the ends of the earth’ during 2015 and beyond!
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St. Paul’s, Tervuren, Weekend Away
Carol Service in St. Jan’s, Tervuren, Simon Tyndall preaching
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SEASONAL MISSION
TAKING EVERY OPPORTUNITY
Switzerland
IN WENGEN 6
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Now there was a Jew, an Arab, a lapsed Mormon and an elderly Lutheran – no not the start of a joke based on racial caricatures, but some of the people we had an opportunity to meet, chat to and help while my wife and I were serving in the chaplaincy in Wengen.
St. Bernard’s Church with its long history of providing a spiritual refuge to Englishspeaking tourists now finds itself in a much more cosmopolitan environment in the summer season. Locals commented to me on how the number of tourists from Asia and Arab countries had increased this year. Some of these tourists can’t speak English at all, but many can and opportunities to show kindness don’t have to be limited to English speakers! So for example, I helped a couple of young Arab men find their way to their hotel and started a very simple conversation with them. While out walking, we met the Mormon and his family who were in Switzerland tracing their European roots and we were able to share something of our role as chaplains. And the Jewish man sat on the bench outside the church with his family while I was attending to the lawn – all opportunities to strike up a conversation in which one prays God is present.
stillness to go there and pray but I also spent some time one afternoon reading and praying. It was noticeable the number of people who came in simply for a few moments of quiet or just to look around. Occasionally there would be an opportunity to have a conversation, for instance with a Catholic family from Ireland who sat down and chatted. It is these encounters and conversations that we pray God will use to touch people’s lives - perhaps one step at a time. Because Wengen is not accessible by road, medical emergencies are dealt with by air ambulance which lands on the school playground at the back of the church. Having swept a lot of dust out of the church it was somewhat amusing to have it all blown in again by the blades and turbine of the helicopter as it landed, but there again a helicopter draws a small crowd – another chance for a conversation!
The Sunday services provide a focus for chaplaincy work in Wengen and it’s great to welcome those who come from many varied places. It was also good to see God at work. One lady who came to a Sunday service was worried about her son, a serving soldier who had been injured while on exercise. After the service, over coffee, she was able to talk to an RAF chaplain who was also in church that morning. Yes, God brings his people together to worship him (which is not difficult in Wengen with its mountain peaks and beautiful Swiss scenery) but also to encourage them. St. Bernard’s is a church that is open throughout the day, seven days a week for as long as the chaplain keeps the door unlocked. I found it really uplifting to take the opportunity of early morning 7
waiting for the service to begin at St. Bernard’s!
Kevin and Helene Billson served at St. Bernard’s, Wengen at an ICS seasonal chaplaincy last summer where they encountered many mission opportunities
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PERMANENT CHAPLAINCY
GREAT CELEBRATIONS
YEARS IN
VERSAILLES 8
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by Marge Pavageau a member of St. Mark’s, Versailles.
There was a great celebration at St. Mark’s, Versailles last November. Bishop Robert was with us to celebrate at least 200 years of Anglican ministry, and we took advantage of the occasion to confirm seven candidates, as well as admitting four younger candidates to Communion. The church was packed with about 220 people and we ran out of chairs! Two hundred years is a long period and may be a partial estimate of the time the English Church has been present in Versailles since this is mentioned in notes and references dating to the Court of King Louis XIV in the 17th century. Services at this time were most likely attended by the military personnel of the British ‘army of occupation’ after the Battle of Waterloo. In 1821 a building was offered to the church and subsequently bought. In 1828 the French Protestant community asked if they could share the building, an arrangement which lasted until 1859. The Église Protestante Unie still occupies this plot. So, St. Mark’s was offered hospitality by the Minister of the Interior and was thus able to offer hospitality to the Protestant Church.
church opened in November 1912. When Great Britain joined the Common Market in 1970, the British community began to grow and St. Mark’s congregation as a result, to the point that space became a problem. Monseigneur Simmoneau, the Bishop of Versailles, came to the rescue by offering St. Mark’s the use of the chapel at the Lycée Notre Dame de Grandchamp for Sunday services and church social functions. This continued for seventeen years until the congregation was ready to move into its own building. A suitable site was found on which to build a church centre, approval was obtained and endorsement from the congregation as well as an offer of financial help from ICS. Generous donations and interest free loans from the congregation also contributed to the purchase of the present day church site. The church was built in three stages to allow for adequate funding of each stage. On 16 February 2013 the completed church was dedicated by Bishop David. Rejoicing and celebrating 200 years of ministry hardly suffices to express the reality which was so pointedly expressed by Peter Milner, St. Mark’s Historian, ‘The real history of St. Mark’s is one of a church that has welcomed and comforted those who have felt a need of help in a foreign land. It has brought individuals to know God and others to a deeper faith. It has ministered to the homeless. It has inspired our young people to go out and serve in Africa, Latin America and Asia and given Christian knowledge to our children and youth groups. This is the legacy of St. Mark’s. Let it continue for the next 200 years and beyond.’
In 1859, when the French Protestant community ended its sharing arrangement with the church, Revd C. C. Glascott bought a piece of land near the château and at his own expense built a church. When he left Versailles in 1875 he sold the building to the founders of ICS and they remain St. Mark’s patron to this day. It is about this time that the church is referred to as ‘St. Mark’s’. A fire destroyed the building in 1911, but thanks to the energy and devotion of Revd Vivian Evans, the insurance money was used to build a new church. Work was completed and the 9
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ASSOCIATE MINISTRY
SCHOOL FOR SUDANESE REFUGEES Jos Strengholt, Priest-in-Charge at St. Michael’s Heliopolis, Cairo, and Dean of East Cairo, leads an English, Egyptian and Sudanese congregation. The past few years, to escape the war, the Sudanese congregation has grown immensely and so also the number of children who have no school to go to. At the request of many of the parents, St. Michael’s is starting a primary school from September 2015 where 200 children will be educated.
The St. Michael’s Sudanese congregation has grown in the past years from about 300 to 900 members, thanks to good evangelistic and social work, and because of the ongoing war of the Sudanese government against the Moro tribes in the Nuba Mountains. Many Moros are Anglicans; when they escape from the war in Sudan and arrive in Egypt, they go to particular areas of Cairo where presently about 10,000 Moro refugees live. St. Michael’s Church created a social centre in this area, the St. Gabriel Centre, and now a school will be added to this ministry.
Egyptian schools are not against accepting the children who escaped from Sudan, but in practice this does not work.
The Director of the St. Gabriel Centre, Shawgi Kori, took the initiative as he saw the need among his own community.
Most parents want their children to be educated on the basis of the Sudanese state curriculum (in Arabic), as this allows the children to do the formal final exams that are recognized in Sudan as well as in Egypt. This allows the children to eventually go to secondary school, and hopefully even to university.
Shawgi says about the plans: in spring 2015 we will hire four apartments in one flat building; we will do some reconstruction work to make the place more suitable for a school, and in September we hope to open the doors. The parents are so enthusiastic, you have no idea how much this means for all of us!
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Many of the Moro children have missed years of school because of the war in our mountains; so these kids cannot be integrated into the Egyptian system. There are some other schools for our children, but they cannot cope with the large influx of refugee children. Also, as they were started by Englishspeaking expats, they teach in English. We do not want this.
In our congregation, we already have the teachers we need for our school. These people presently work as cleaners or they do other menial
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work. For them, to be teachers again will be very honourable. Shawgi also points to another advantage of the opening of the school: the 200 children, we will accept in our school, are presently loitering at home so mothers cannot look for work. So, when the children are enrolled in education, they will also be able to add to the family income. For our families this means a lot! Jos continues: the initiative to start this school was taken in June 2014. We told our Sudanese leaders that we would only commit to do this project when the full running costs for the first year (and a bit more) and the start-up costs are guaranteed. We had to be a bit tough on this, because as a church we are already too financially stretched to take any financial risks. We thank God that we have received enough financial pledges to be assured of the running costs of the first year that starts in September 2015; the start-up costs will most likely be paid for by one of the western embassies in Cairo. We pray – and we trust our Lord – that we will soon be able to start this project.
Jos and Shawgi
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FALKLAND ISLANDS
INTERVIEW DAVID ROPER David Roper is the new Chaplain of the Falkland Islands where he moved with his wife Chris, in November 2014. He describes their first few months of living on the Islands... What was your first day like? We arrived mid-afternoon after a long eighteen-hour flight and were well met on a warm and sunny day for the hour-long drive to Stanley, with our baggage following on in a minibus. The house had been nicely prepared for us with a big welcoming box of groceries from parishioners and a meal ready to go in the oven. What are your first impressions? The Falklands’ people are warm and welcoming and open to new people. In many ways it feels like the UK, and the people are fiercely British, but it’s also very different. The weather is very changeable and in the UK we don’t have seals and dolphins swimming yards from the house. There is a challenge in both supporting people in their looking back to 1982, but also helping them to move on. And Christine? Chris has been very struck by the warmth and friendliness of people who all have time to wave and chat. How does life on the Falklands differ from living in the UK? Most goods are available but not necessarily the brand of choice and it’s important to buy it if it’s on the supermarket shelf, as there may not be any tomorrow. Then the supply boat arrives and there’s lots of everything. As the weather is so changeable we have to be prepared for all seasons when we go out, but it’s relaxed, and many people never lock their homes and leave the keys in the car. Medical emergencies are evacuated to Chile, but there is no provision for accompanying family and this can create hardship. 12
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It must be nice to be missing out on the dark, dank days we were having during the winter. What was it like, celebrating Christmas in the summer? Just outside my study window is a lamp post with Christmas lights on it, but as darkness doesn’t fall until bedtime we don’t see much of them! It was strange singing wintery carols in midsummer. We still had turkey and all the trimmings, though. Has anything surprised you about living on the Island? We have travelled somewhat already and I have been surprised how long a journey can take, even in good conditions. Everyone is on first name terms, from the local politicians, the Attorney General to the bank staff. What has made you laugh? Disasters in bread making and having to be careful about what we say about someone as they’re all connected, and having a stretched Land Rover as a hearse. What are your first impressions of the church? Most church members are incomers, with relatively few Islanders present. This means we have all come with different experiences of church and there is an openness and willingness for change, but it also means it is important to offer a variety of styles of worship. There is a tremendous commitment from the congregation in running the church and ministry so successfully, it is very positive. Where have you seen opportunities for ministry that interests you? People outside Stanley only have contact with any kind of Christian ministry when I go to see them, so I am planning a trip to West Falkland very soon, to drive around and visit the small communities and offer encouragement and ministry. There are also good opportunities through broadcasting on the radio. Flying out to take carol services was an unusual approach to Christmas and something I look forward to developing.
David and Chris
Recent comments on Facebook and Twitter St. Peter’s, Zermatt ‘So excited to be spending a week in Zermatt in February at St. Peter’s Church. Talking about God and snowboarding-is there a better combination?’ ‘I just love this place… a place of so much pain and a place where God’s healing is present for so many.’ ‘We have visited Zermatt many times winter and summer and St. Peter’s Church is always a place we love to visit. It’s a charming church and we have attended a couple of services there. The plaques on the walls tell the history of climbing in this area. Whatever your belief do visit it.’ St. Bernard’s, Wengen ‘I have visited this beautiful little church at least three times on holidays in Wengen. Thank God for this witness in this lovely little village nestled above Lauterbrunnen, one of the most beautiful places in Switzerland.’ ICS@interchsoc ‘Evangelism is not a survival strategy for the church, but is instead an activity “central to being the people of God”#anglicannews’
Please look out for BBC2’s An Island Parish due to screen later this year
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ICS@interchsoc Urgent prayer needed for St. Michael’s Heliopolis. http:// dioceseofegypt.org/2015/01/ tragedy-strikes-sudanesecongregation-st-michaels-churchheliopolis/
OUTREACH APPEAL
EASTER OUTREACH APPEAL Two years ago ICS, together with Holy Trinity, Brussels, embarked on a pioneering project and placed an Outreach Worker in the midst of the EU Institutions, to reach out to young professionals, assistants and interns. One of my first tasks as Mission Director was to interview Jeremy Heuslein, who heads up the work. Two years on I am pleased to say this new frontier is bearing fruit. We have written a number of times about this work. Having just come off the phone with Jeremy, I am once again inspired by the progress that has been made and praise God for his anointing on this ministry. As well as celebrating those who have come to faith or are on a journey of faith, I am excited to hear about a group of young professionals that want to take part in a Christianity Explored course, there is a genuine hunger for God. Secondly, the emerging leaders who are gathering around Jeremy to take part in the work with him. There is a community committed to outreach growing around him, keen to live and work together as part of this mission. I asked Jeremy how he would want to describe his ministry to you. He put it this way: ‘To be there! To be present with young professionals. To listen to their stories and to help them articulate their questions about God. A ministry of relationship and presence. Looking people in the eye in the name of Jesus’. This leads me to my point. To ask you to consider giving to our ‘Easter EU Outreach Appeal’, towards this developing ministry amongst young people around the EU in Brussels. To help us to build capacity for this ministry, not only to continue but also to flourish. Your generosity is hugely appreciated. Please mark your gift ‘EU Outreach’ and we will make sure it gets allocated accordingly.
Richard Bromley Mission Director
Jeremy Heuslein 14
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SUPPORTER FEATURE
WARWICK PRAYER GROUP Prayer is the real work, Evangelism is just the mopping up. At ICS prayer is one of our core values, we believe that our work is ineffective without the life-giving blessing of God. Anna Hopkins has led the Warwick prayer group for the past fourand-a-half years. We are deeply grateful for their commitment to us in prayer. Below she tells us a bit about what they get up to.
Our prayer group started meeting in response to the ICS office encouraging its members to consider setting up prayer groups in our local areas.
It is always a joy when we meet together. Being in a prayer group brings the work of ICS to life with additional insights into its ministry and what life is like for those who lead the work and those who are blessed by it. ICS’s ministry is unique: it is a privilege to stand in prayer alongside those who serve under its aegis, walking with feet clad in the shoes of the gospel of peace among those who might not otherwise get to know of the joy and love Jesus can bring to their lives. Why not start your own prayer group, or join one of the existing ones. Contact ICS for more details.
We are a small group – but God only requires two or three to be gathered together, after all. Between us, we have varied experience of both working for ICS and benefitting from its work, adding immediacy and personal insight to our prayers. We focus on a range of ICS’s work and keep in touch with what is happening in specific chaplaincies in North Africa, Cyprus, France and the Netherlands, giving thanks for the joys and praying through the challenges for both communities and individuals. Our prayers might touch on broader matters: soon after our group began, the headlines were full of events rocking North Africa. More recently, they report answers to our prayers as well as new matters to bring before our heavenly Father. We also lift to God ICS’s seasonal ministry, the ICS office and council – in our five years of meeting, there have been lots of changes there too, reflecting how God meets us in prayer and responds to our needs. Roland and Anna Hopkins 15
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PRAYER MEETINGS Cambridge Impington Church Hall Histon CB24 9JE Contact Dennis Sadler 01223 232 194 Cheltenham Friday 13 March at 10.30 am 39 Moorend Street, Cheltenham GL53 0EH Contact Audrey Martin-Doyle 01242 510 352 Exeter 2 Portland Court, 1 Portland Avenue, Exmouth EX8 2DJ Contact John Philpott 01395 225 044 Keighley Thursday 30 April at 10.30 am The Vicarage, Church Lane, Gargrave, Skipton BD23 3NQ Contact Michael Savage 01535 606 790 Norfolk The Vicarage, 37 Church Road, Tilney St Lawrence, Kings Lynn PE34 4QQ Contact Martin Dale 01945 880 259 North Birmingham Thursday 23 April at 7.30 pm 4 Footherley Road, Shenstone, Staffordshire WS14 0NJ Contact John and Mrs Ann Aston 01543 480388 Thursday 18 June at 7.30pm 27 Romilly Close, Walmley Sutton Coldfield, B76 2TN Contact Janice Ratcliffe 0121 378 2432
Northern Ireland Contact John Dinnen 028 44 811 148 South East The Rectory, Cock Lane, Hamstreet, Kent TN26 2HU Contact Rod Whateley 01233 732 274 Stockport The Rectory, Gorsey Mount Street, Stockport SK1 4DU Contact Roger Scoones 0161 429 6564 Warwick Thursday 16 April at 7.30 pm 11 Verden Avenue, Chase Meadow, Warwick CV34 6RX Contact Anna Hopkins 07745 223 580 The Wirral Monday 11 May at 7.30 pm 11 Stanford Ave, Wallesey CH45 5AP Contact Peter Jordan 0151 639 7860 Woking Fosters, Pyrford Heath, Woking GU22 8SS Contact Paul Bond 01932 351 137 Worthing Tuesday 12 May at 2.30 pm Ramsay Hall BN11 3HN Contact ICS office 024 7646 3940
ICS Annual General Meeting
Saturday 19 September from 2-5 pm Coventry Transport Museum, Millennium Place, Hales Street, Coventry CV1 1JD
MISSION AND MINISTRY IN ENGLISH FOR EVERYONE
www.ics-uk.org