Presbyterian Herald September 2022

The Big Quiz Night is back. Get your family, friends and church together for Tearfund’s Big Quiz Night – an evening of great big poverty-beating fun.

Saturday 19 November at a church near you. Visit tearfund.org/niquiz to find out more.

Hundreds of churches. Thousands of people. One Big Quiz.

legacy of hope and care - a gift in your Will.

A gift in your Will could not only help your loved ones but can leave a legacy of hope for generations to come.

In Northern Ireland four in ten adult deaths are caused by chest, heart and stroke illnesses. We’re working hard to change this by funding life-changing research and caring for those who are affected by devastating health conditions every day.

We’ve been helping local people for almost 75 years, and with your help we can continue to be there for people who need us now, as well as those who will need us in the future.

Please visit nichs.org.uk/giftsinwills for further information on leaving a gift in your Will to NICHS or call us on 028 9032 0184.

Cover photo by Jamie Trimble (artwork by Rosie Bradley)

CONTRIBUTORS

Deborah Sloan is a member of Orangefield. She has four teenage daughters and has recently left a career in academia to pursue her lifelong dream of being a writer.

Graeme Thompson is PCI’s Youth Development Officer, an elder in First Holywood Presbyterian and the current Moderator’s chaplain.

Pip Florit is a Mission Support Officer for PCI. She is a member of Bloomfield Presbyterian and lives with her husband, Ismael, and son Jonah in Belfast.

Donna Jennings works for Evangelical Alliance. She and her family are members of Orangefield Presbyterian.

10 years of farm family health checks p54 Blind spots and bias on the Bible p44

EDITORIAL LETTERS

Ready for a new season

For ‘In this month…’ for this edition, I was drawn to September 1996, with memories of a time when I was just finished school and embarking on a new adventure at university. It’s funny how we often can’t remember when things happened in our lives, yet there will always be key dates or years that we never forget, those that help anchor us to our past.

In her reflections piece, Ruth Sanderson discusses the draw of nostalgia, as she ponders the airing of the final episode of Neighbours. She muses about the lure of nostalgia, but soberly reminds us of its dangers: “…the nostalgia trap can make us miss the opportunities that God lays out for us. He wants us to keep our eyes focused on him, to look to the future and everything he has in store for us.”

As we enter a new church year, many will undoubtedly be feeling nostalgic for our pre-Covid times – back when it all seemed simpler. Attendance was larger; volunteers were more plentiful and more committed; and members were more devoted and less apathetic. Or maybe the nostalgia just makes it appear that way?

In 1996 Russell Birney wrote a piece in the Herald called ‘Ready for the new season’. Although 26 years ago, and long before any thought of Covid, his words still resonate strongly. At a time when many feel discouraged, Russell reminds us: “We can become paralysed by sheer discouragement which I am convinced is Satan’s favourite and most effective weapon.”

Seeing lives turned around is a great inspiration for us to keep going. One such story is that of Rosie, a resident at Gray’s Court, a PCI supported living facility for those recovering from addiction. Rosie bravely shares her story of being a heroin addict and prison inmate, to rebuilding her life and volunteering at the local boxing club, helping young people from both sides of the community.

As a result of a ‘Supporting People Innovation Fund’, Rosie was able to take part in an art project through Gray’s Court; one that resulted in an exhibition at this year’s General Assembly. Her painting of a lion is our front cover this month and she aptly says some of her artwork “represents…being in such a dark place and coming into the light.”

Russell Birney’s words offer us the encouragement we need for this season ahead: “We need to have unfailing faith that God…will do great things in us and through us and that if we are faithful, he will pour out his Spirit upon us and the church. So let us go into this new season with that expectant hope.”

Education

Dear Editor

After a heartening year for the profile of education in PCI, it was disappointing that the busy General Assembly agenda caused debate on this vital area to be curtailed. However, there was some time to reflect on the year past, the privilege of being able to come together in January to share what we do, how we do it and where we need additional focus, such as SEN and integrated education.

Delegates were reminded that the Integrated Education Bill caused much division, and those who expressed their reservations did so on the content rather than the intent of the Bill. While supporting natural integration, PCI cannot support the promotion of one sector above others and the diminution of parental preference. Nor can it condone the position in which schools feel pressured to conform, the work of Shared Education is devalued, or the ethos of controlled schools is undermined.

Controlled integrated schools are a valued part of the sector and we recognise that others may wish to consider their status based on decisions led by, reflective and in the best interests of, their community. Where

sustainable schools do so, with the determination to preserve the distinctive character of controlled education, we are here to travel that journey with them.

Over the incoming academic year, PCI will continue to defend and promote the Christian ethos which underpins our education system although some are questioning its value. As our world tries to ‘find itself’ in these dark times, we know that we have a better story. Our story is about inclusion and acceptance, not simply a tolerance that only agrees with the loudest voices. In a world beset with hatred for those who don’t share views and, too often, self-hate, ours is a story of love, service, hope and light in the darkness.

Dr Andy Brown  Convener, State Education Committee

Luther’s legacy

Dear Editor

Professor Gordon Campbell’s article in the July/August edition of the Herald on ‘Luther’s legacy’ is informative but makes no reference to his alleged antisemitism. In 1543 Luther published his book On the Jews and their Lies describing Jews as a “base, whoring people, that is, no people of God, and their boast

Letters to the Editor

Write to: Presbyterian Herald, Assembly Buildings, Belfast BT1 6DW Email: herald@presbyterianireland.org

of lineage, circumcision, and law must be accounted as filth.”

Luther’s writings on Jews and Judaism were later used by Nazi ideologues to propagate the murderous, evil barbarism of the Holocaust.

Luther had undoubted reverence for sola scriptura but seemed to be unaware of his cognitive dissonance in his attitudes to Jews and Judaism.

George McNally Londonderry

Tea and coffee

Dear Editor

I wonder how many picked up in the latest Blue Book a subtle change contained within the printed schedule of the General Assembly.

Up until 2021 the intermissions for refreshments were described as ‘tea/coffee break’, but in 2022 this became simply ‘coffee break’.

Undoubtedly, this shift in the preferred beverage at General Assembly is reflective of changes in wider society, as a new generation with different tastes arises. It is these seemingly insignificant details which can reveal to historians how institutions, like Christian denominations, develop over time, either to their benefit or to their detriment.

Rev Alastair Rosborough Minister, Ballyarnett & Knowhead

Please note: Letters are limited to 300 words and may be edited for clarity and length. They will only be published in the Herald if the author’s name and address have been supplied to the editor. On request these will be withheld from print. Anonymous letters will not be considered for publication. The views expressed in the letters are not necessarily those of the Editor or PCI.

Topical Tweets

@Tearfund

In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), at least 15 people were killed this week when anti-United Nations protests turned violent. Local people believe the United Nations peacekeeping forces have been ineffective at stopping armed groups from attacking their communities. (Part of thread)

@CAP_NI

People may be in debt for many reasons. From low income (20% of CAP clients cite this as a primary reason), mental ill-health (18%) or a change in circumstances e.g. losing a job or relationship breakdown. Whatever the reason, we want to empower you to get out of debt. #AlwaysHope

@christian_aid

Despite the deteriorating situation, just 23% of the British public in a poll we commissioned said they were aware of the humanitarian crisis in East Africa. That compares to 92% who are aware of the conflict in Ukraine.

@SloanStreetPC

18 of us head to Brazil this evening to visit the Craigs and Paul Crothers @Latin_Link. Pray we keep safe and God does useful work through us!

@PCIModerator

Today I’m reminded of John Newton’s wisdom: ‘A nation’s safety lies more in the prayers of its people than in the fleets of its navy’. Watching events @10DowningStreet. Please join me in praying for all in authority, particularly for wisdom, cool heads & calm as a new PM is found.

@BorisJohnson

Very humbling to be in Lisburn today remembering the extraordinary life of David Trimble. His principled determination to forge a better future for all marks him out as one of the giants of our history. My thoughts remain with Daphne and the whole Trimble family.

@AlexKane221b

Today in the Assembly there will be a lot of tributes to David Trimble. The best possible tribute, though, would be to find a collectively agreed way to make the institutions work and prove that we are, in fact, capable of governing in the best interests of everyone here.

@BibleSocietyNI

Delighted to be with @pciassembly to hear the Council for Global Mission report this morning. We are so grateful for the support, encouragement and partnership we have. #pciga22

@mark_turkey

Say what you want about General Assembly, but after the past few days of #pciga22

I’ve left closer to God, being encouraged by others and the work of his Church.

@kevinhargaden

I don’t know his name but some young lad is standing up now to push us at #pciga22 to let the divestment decision flow down to our day-to-day practices. Total legend, in fairness.

@wycliffeuk

The Bashkir people of central Asia will get the full Bible in their language for the first time this month. Pray for open hearts and minds as they read these words of life and truth.

NEWS | IN THE ROUND

IN BRIEF

Cruise Ship or Lifeboat

Following the successful publication of the booklet, Road to Freedom, former Moderator, Dr Ian McNie, has published Cruise Ship or Lifeboat as a resource for individual Christians, Bible study groups, or church leaders to use for discussion purposes or congregational distribution. Copies are available at all Faith Mission bookshops or The Evangelical Bookshop for £1.25. Multiple copies at a discount price are available from the author for congregational distribution. Email: imcnie@ presbyterianireland.org

New venue for CE Convention

The 107th Irish National Christian Endeavour Convention will be held on Saturday 17 September at 7.30pm, with a time of praise from 7.15pm.

The 107th Convention, unlike its predecessors, will not be held in a church building but in the T3 Conference Centre in the Vic-Ryn in Lisburn.

Rev John T. Graham, associate minister of Hill Street Presbyterian Church, Lurgan, will speak on the theme ‘Faith over fear’.

Moderator honoured with doctorate

Portrush minister and PCI Moderator Dr John Kirkpatrick receives his honorary doctorate of divinity from Rev Professor Gordon Campbell, Principal of PCI’s Union Theological College.

Presbyterian Children’s Society AGM

The Presbyterian Children’s Society held its annual general meeting in Assembly Buildings, Belfast recently.

Lindsay Conway OBE was the keynote speaker, and special guests included the then Moderator of the General Assembly, Dr David Bruce, and former Deputy Lord Mayor of Belfast, Alderman Tom Haire. Special presentations were made to several long-serving congregational representatives of the Society and also to Sharon Norris, who recently retired from the Society.

Highland Hope hits new high

The amount raised by Rev Jim Lamont’s new book Highland Hope has now reached the €25,000 mark – and all the proceeds are going to Donegal Hospice.

A cheque for the latest donation of €5,000 was presented to Isobel Doherty, administrator at the hospice, at a ceremony which took place outside Highland Radio.

The funds raised by Highland Hope so far brings to €150,000 the total raised by Mr Lamont’s three books and a number of concerts he organised in aid of the hospice. Mr Lamont began his broadcasting career with Highland by contributing to the ‘Thought for the Day’ slot on John Breslin’s breakfast show back in 2000.

Mr Lamont said: “As a chaplain I know that the pressures on the hospice are growing all the time so it’s good to be able to assist in this way.

“We are pleased by the support for this book and I have received a lot of favourable feedback. My message through this book is that we should never give up on hope.”

Copies of Highland Hope (€10) are available in leading bookshops and gift stores in County Donegal and from Faith Mission outlets in Northern Ireland.

Historical Society

Rev Geoffrey Allen will speak on Rev William Martin, preacher, pioneer and patriot at the next meeting of the Presbyterian Historical Society.

William Martin was the first Irish Reformed minister (ordained at Vow, near Ballymoney) who then resettled hundreds of his congregations and others in South Carolina in 1882, only to find themselves embroiled in the American Revolution. Twice he carried the witness as the sole Covenanter minister, once in Ireland and then in the United States. The talk takes place at Kellswater Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ireland on Thursday 20 October, starting at 8pm.

Moderator pays tribute to Lord Trimble

Following the death of Lord Trimble, Nobel Laureate and former First Minister of Northern Ireland, PCI Moderator Dr John Kirkpatrick has offered his “deepest condolences and sincere sympathy” to Lady Trimble, his family, friends and former colleagues. Paying tribute, Dr Kirkpatrick said, “…we remember and honour Lord Trimble’s legacy – his personal courage, his ability to see a way forward to a more peaceful future, and his tenacity in laying the foundation that enabled society to move to a better place. This was not without huge cost, not only to himself but also to his family, and we may never fully know the extent of the sacrifices both he and they made. We remember a man who provided leadership and committed himself to looking to the interests of others over and above his own. “On behalf of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, of which Lord Trimble was a member, I would like to extend our deepest condolences and sincere sympathy to his wife, Lady Trimble, his family, friends and former colleagues, and assure them of our prayers at this difficult time.”

John Breslin (left) presenter of Around the North-West on Highland Radio pictured at the presentation of a cheque for €5,000 by Rev Jim Lamont and Fiona McNutt, from the Highland Hope committee, to Isobel Doherty (second left), administrator at Donegal Hospice.

Moderator takes part in commemoration

Presbyterian Moderator, Dr John Kirkpatrick, recently participated in his first state event – the Republic of Ireland’s National Day of Commemoration.

The annual event took place in Dublin in the summer to remember Irishmen and Irishwomen who lost their lives in past wars, or on service with the Irish Defence Forces with the United Nations.

Dr Kirkpatrick said, “It has been an honour and a privilege to be able to represent Presbyterians from across Ireland at this important act of remembrance and say the closing prayer during the Christian act of worship.

News

Recruitment drive ‘exceeds expectations’

As a social care provider who looks after over 300-plus people, one of the biggest issues facing PCI and the sector in general has been its ability to attract and fill staffing vacancies. But a recent PCI communitybased recruitment initiative exceeded expectations when it filled 70% of vacancies.

Having tried traditional advertising methods to recruit, it was decided to take a more hands-on approach for Aaron House, a care home in Dundonald for people with a profound learning disability. So over 1000 homes in the local area were leafleted.

The leaflet – which listed some of the benefits of working at Aaron House, including a £500 ‘welcome bonus’ – was also an invite to a special recruitment day held in Ballyoran Community Centre. Here people could be interviewed by members of the Council for Social Witness team and colleagues from PCI’s personnel department at one of three interview stations that were running throughout the day. Assistance was also given to those who needed help filling in their application form, along with the promise that each interviewee would have a decision on the same day –conditional on future Access NI clearance and the taking up of references.

“At this significant time in the history of the state, as this year marks the centenary of the beginning of the Irish Civil War, we remember those who fought against one another, brother against brother, on this land 100 years ago and those Irishmen and Irishwomen who paid the ultimate price in the Great War and the Second World War. We also remember the 87 service personnel who paid the same high price on the many peacekeeping tours that the Irish Defence Forces have conducted and continue to conduct in numerous countries with the United Nations,” he added.

Cycling events to highlight men’s mental health

A national charity, Cycle Against Suicide, aims to fight stigmas around masculinity and mental health with a series of cycling events organised to coincide with World Suicide Prevention Day on 10 September.

In Ireland, 300 men died by suicide in 2019. Better mental health literacy can prevent deaths, helping Irish men express their feelings and seek support. Sadly, the stigma of mental health starts early — many young Irish men don’t seek help because of worries about social exclusion, self-image or perceived masculine responsibilities, studies show.

Middle-aged men are currently at highest risk of suicide in Ireland, while this country has the fourth highest suicide rate in Europe for males aged 15–24 years old. A rising population of older men living alone are also at risk.

Further details are available at: www.cycleagainstsuicide.com

“If we got two or three people we would have been pleased. Come the day we were able to fill 11 vacancies, which was far and away beyond our expectations. We were amazed,” said CSW convener Rev David Brice.

DIARY DATES

September

Presbyterian Women leadership forum

Assembly Buildings, Belfast –Saturday 10

Martin Luther conference Union Theological College –Monday 12 to Tuesday 13

October

Pastoral care training event

Assembly Buildings, Belfast –Wednesday 5 October

Onward Carnmoney Presbyterian –Saturday 29

Pictured outside Aaron House before the leaflet drop are: Caroline Yeomans (PCI’s Head of Disability Services), Margaret Millar (Aaron House acting manager), Dermot Parsons (Secretary of the Council for Social Witness) and Rev David Brice (Council for Social Witness convener).

Three of the participants who took part in the Christian act of worship during the National Day of Commemoration: Most Rev Dr Michael Jackson (Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin); Most Rev Eamonn Walsh (Roman Catholic Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Dublin); Rt Rev Dr John Kirkpatrick (PCI Moderator). Photograph by Patrick Hugh Lynch

Dr John Kirkpatrick praying the closing prayer as seen on the screen at Collins Barracks. Photograph by Patrick Hugh Lynch.

Dr John Kirkpatrick with his wife Joan at the reception after the ceremony with An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin TD.

Overseas personnel news

Nigel and Antónia Craig are to be commissioned this month to serve as global mission workers in Hungary. They have been invited by the Bishop of the Transtibiscan Church District of the Reformed Church in Hungary to serve in a church planting and pastoring role amongst the 7,000 or so international students in the University of Debrecen, some of whom come from countries where the gospel is not openly known or accessible. Antónia will encourage and support the church plant through translation and hospitality.

Gary and Mary Reid, PCI global mission workers in Kenya, are on home assignment and involved in deputation. They are due to return to their work amongst the Maasai community in Kenya at the end of September.

Volker Glissmann, PCI global mission worker in Southern Africa, is currently on home assignment and involved in deputation in September. He is due to return to Malawi at the end of the month.

Naomi Keefe, PCI global mission worker in Brazil, is also on home assignment and is involved in deputation during September. Naomi plans to return to her work in Olinda at the beginning of October.

Chris and Rachel Humphries, PCI global mission workers in Portugal, returned to N Ireland, during August for final home assignment with a focus of reintegration into life and work in Ireland.

Overseas partners news

The Presbyterian Church of Myanmar, held a two-day partners’ meeting in Singapore at the beginning of August. PCI was represented by Rev Uel Marrs, Global Mission Secretary. Sadly, ongoing violence in Myanmar continues, as does the military dictatorship, and it was a good opportunity for the Church in Myanmar to be able to tell their partners about the huge difficulties they are facing at present.

PCI is a member of Eukumindo – an organisation which brings together European churches and mission organisations actively engaged in Indonesia, together with leaders from the Council of Churches in Indonesia. This September, Eukumindo’s annual conference will be held in the Netherlands and PCI will be represented by Rev Uel Marrs, Global Mission Secretary.

Rev David McCullagh is representing PCI at Scripture Union Malawi’s 50th anniversary celebrations in September. David formerly served with Scripture Union Malawi as a PCI global mission worker and is currently convener of the Council for Global Mission’s Mission Partnerships panel.

Resources

Back together again

As summer gives way to autumn this year, there is something more going on than the usual changing of the seasons in the natural world. A new season of church life is gradually coming into being as we emerge from the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The ‘Back together again’ resource is offered as a short, simple, stimulus to thinking and talking about how this next season in church life might take shape in your congregation. Copies of the resource have been posted to every minister. Additional copies, priced at £1 (Euro equivalent), can be ordered from: www. presbyterianireland.org/ backtogetheragain

Events

Pastoral care training event

Dr Tim Witmer is the speaker of a pastoral care training event, which takes place in Assembly Buildings, Belfast on Wednesday 5 October, from 10.30am to 12.45pm.

This will be a helpful event for ministers, elders and church staff members in a variety of roles.

The Covid-19 pandemic and its restrictions highlighted both the strengths and weaknesses of the pastoral life of our congregations and forced us into considering and experimenting with a new range of ways of staying connected with our members. As we emerge from the pandemic, we have an opportunity to stop and take stock of what we have learned and to

think afresh about how we will pastor the flock under our care.

Dr Witmer, author of The Shepherd Leader, has extensive experience, as both church pastor and Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, of thinking about models of effective pastoral life in congregations and what it might look like to transition towards doing things differently than we have done before.

The cost of the event is £5. To find out more or to book, go to: www.presbyterianireland.org/ events

Children’s, youth and family ministry regional resourcing events

‘Foundations’ is new opportunity for volunteer leaders and helpers in children’s, youth and family ministry.

These evening regional events will be a mix of teaching, discussing and resourcing for ministry in this season of church life. Join with others in your region, to be equipped to build ministry with children, young people and families in your congregation.

For more information on dates and regional venues and to book tickets go to: www.presbyterianireland.org/foundations

To stay up to date with the latest resources, events and training for your congregation’s life and witness, sign up to E-quip e-zine at www.presbyterianireland.org/equip

Free downloadable youth resource

Bite-size is a flexible, downloadable discipleship tool which can be used to help young people aged 11–18 learn God’s Word in a way that connects to their lives.

Proximity

The ‘Proximity’ resources provide relevant and challenging content for the context of relational discipleship.

This second series of Bite-size sessions is on the theme of ‘church’ and will teach five pictures of the church found in the book of Ephesians.

The first Bite-size sessions are on the theme of ‘identity’ and both resources can be downloaded at: www.presbyterianireland.org/ bitesize

Ideal for one-to-one or small-group discussion, they provide biblical content and practical questions on a range of key discipleship themes, and aim to put a tool into the hands of ordinary believers to resource relational discipleship in a variety of contexts.

The latest book in the series is Habits of a lifetime and will aid reflection on: healthy habits; an open Bible; persisting in prayer; rhythms of worship; Christian community; committed service; a generous spirit; and withdrawing to rest.

www.presbyterianireland.org/proximity

MY STORY...

Alex Mackay, from Ballyclare Presbyterian Church, shares his story of being involved in choral singing and how it has helped him to express his Christian faith through the medium of song.

A lifetime of singing and praising

Iwas born in Scotland and brought up in the Church of Scotland where I attended Sunday school, Bible class, Life Boys, Boys’ Brigade and became a communicant member when I was 18 years old.

My love of choral singing first took root at primary school when I sang with the school choir. Later after leaving secondary school and college, I joined the Glasgow Phoenix Choir and was with them for two seasons.

In 1963, I moved from Scotland to Northern Ireland with my wife and two children where we joined Suffolk Presbyterian Church, which was just being established. While there, I was a member of the church committee, men’s fellowship and bowling club. Having that love for choral singing had me singing in the church choir for five years before moving to our present home in Ballyclare.

I have lived in Ballyclare with my late wife Moira, who died in November 2021, for the last 54 years and have been a member of Ballyclare Presbyterian Church during all that time. I have served as an elder, been a member of the church committee, church secretary for a number of years, and sang in the choir for 40 years.

our visits to smaller and often remote rural churches.

The last couple of years have been tough on a lot of people and on a variety of organisations. Ballyclare Male Choir is no different and we too had to postpone many of our engagements during that time. While many choirs became silent, under the excellent direction of our enthusiastic accompanist and deputy conductor, Sheelagh Greer, our choir met weekly using Zoom. This in itself was challenging for many members, but we all soon got used to the benefits (and pitfalls) of using this technology.

Sheelagh’s infectious energy and commitment kept us all together as we maintained our repertoire, revised some dormant pieces, and learnt three new songs. One of the songs has a very poignant title – Hard Times Come Again No More.

We have an ambition this year to sing in each of the six counties of Northern Ireland and we want you to be part of our dream.

In 1998 I joined Ballyclare Male Choir and continue to sing with them to this present day. This choir was formed in 1933 by several members from Second Ballyeaston Presbyterian Church, but local knowledge leads us to believe that the choir had its roots in the 1920s by servicemen returning from the First World War. Over the years, the choir, which is multidenominational, has performed throughout Northern Ireland and across all other jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. Performances have also been given in Southern Ireland, Germany, Finland, Norway and Switzerland. The majority of these performances have taken place in churches, some as secular concerts and many as sacred concerts or services. Nearly all are to help raise funds for charitable organisations and other worthwhile causes. We have even performed for the General Assembly. The most responsive times, I have found, occur on

This incoming year will be the 90th season for Ballyclare Male Choir and we would like to be able to share and celebrate it with you. If you are planning a fundraising event or a church service, we would like to be part of it and would welcome an enquiry from you. Visit our website at www.ballyclaremalechoir.com to make contact with our secretary Ronnie Lee.

We have an ambition this year to sing in each of the six counties of Northern Ireland and we want you to be part of our dream. No distance is too far for us to travel so long as we have the opportunity to sing and to entertain.

On a personal note, (pardon the pun) I find singing brings me great satisfaction and fulfilment and as a Christian, I realise that God has given me a talent which he wants me to share and to use in bringing happiness and pleasure to others through the pieces we sing in order that it may bring praise and glory to him.

I look forward to our new season starting again in September, when we will once again have the opportunity to entertain audiences, help charities and good causes and above all, bring praise to our Lord.

Ballyclare Male Choir on stage at the Courtyard Theatre – Alex Mackay is front row, far right.

Dipping into the archives to take a look back at what was making Presbyterian headlines and news in history.

Ready for the new season

Russell Birney

Most of us consider September to be the start of the church year. The summer is drawing to a close and by now we are either rarin’ to go or we are viewing the prospect of sustained church activities with more than a little apprehension. If the latter, maybe it is because we feel ill-equipped or unprepared for the task, maybe a bit of both. How can we prepare ourselves for the new session?

Firstly, there will be a need for real dedication. God’s people are called to ministry and whether we lead public worship, teach a Sunday school class or clear away the chairs after a meeting we are doing ministry…

Then there will be a need for total dependence. No matter how gifted or able we may be, we are in the end utterly powerless to bring about any lasting good or blessing apart from what the Holy Spirit chooses to accomplish through us…

In any great enterprise there is a need for clear objectives… The first is to always graciously and lovingly present Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord in such a way that those who do not know him will come to faith and life eternal in him. The second is to build up the church in their faith in the Lord Jesus so that they may grow in grace and in their knowledge of him…

There will also be a need for realism. Church work is not like any other… We can become paralysed by sheer discouragement which I am convinced is Satan’s favourite and most effective weapon…

Finally, there will be a need for strong faith. A feature of western Christianity is its loss of faith in the power of God… We need to have unfailing faith that God can do greater things than we can ever imagine; that he will do great things in us and through us and that if we are faithful, he will pour out his Spirit upon us and the church. So let us go into this new season with that expectant hope.

Guysmere ’96 – The boys camps

Each camp is different and distinct… the boys are different, this year some 240 of them from all parts of our island home, with one even flying in to join us from Holland!

…As faithful people have prayed over the last 70 years, so God has graciously blessed Guysmere boys’ camp. Many boys have been won for Christ and have gone on to serve their Lord in his Church.

Trevor D. Gribben Commanding officer, 1996 Guysmere boys’ camp

Moderator in Drumcree negotiations

“Pull back from the brink,” was the Moderator’s plea as violence flared.

Following a visit to east Belfast to see the results of two nights of rioting, Dr Allen travelled to Drumcree to meet both Orangemen and RUC officers.

“I was there on a fact-finding mission. The sad thing was that on either side of the barrier were fathers and sons, BB captains and officers, good Christian people.”

The meeting with David Trimble came the next day and saw the four Church leaders work into the night to see if an accommodation could be reached. Discussions continued until 4.30am and after a few hours’ sleep it was back to Portadown to meet delegations from the Orange Order and Garvaghy Road.

This was now the ‘Eleventh’ and both delegations were very tense and uneasy. “I felt that we were making progress, though very slowly, but then word came through that the parade would go through – everyone left. Time was always our enemy and it had run out.”

Also from Sept ’96

The last remaining Magdalen asylums close in Ireland

In Afghanistan, the Taliban capture Kabul

The Nintendo 64 video game system debuts in America

PERSONAL VIEW

Life lessons

Dermot Parsons

Secretary to the Council for Social Witness

I grew up in a small village in the south of England, where I was embarrassingly idle at school before going to university in Dundee. After 12 wonderful years in Dundee which included becoming a Christian and meeting my future wife, we moved to Bangor where we have lived ever since.

In the Council for Social Witness (CSW) it is a privilege to work to deliver the reality of people mattering to God –both the people supported by our services and each person in our staff team. I have been personally encouraged by the clear Christian commitment in our senior team, and through the times of prayer and devotion that surround our decisionmaking. This is not something I have experienced before and I am immensely thankful for that.

It is hard to predict the future for social care as we emerge from Covid restrictions. I suspect that future models will be less reliant on buildings where care is provided, with more personalised support in people’s own homes. Social care has never been a well-paid occupation, which is an issue in itself, but a challenge we want to meet in CSW is to ensure that all of our staff are managed and treated well, in line with the unique value that each one of them has to God.

There are many things that I am thankful for, and in which I see God at work in my life. The most important of these is probably my family. In a turbulent society, I am constantly thankful for our marriage and relationship with our two adult daughters who we both love and respect.

I have never really placed people on pedestals. However, in my personal life I admire my mother-in-law, Mabel Gamble. I have known her for 39 years and through that time and many challenges she has supported development of Christian maturity in the lives of those of us in the family, and continues to have a real and vibrant presence in the lives of our daughters. An example of lived faith for us all.

Over the years, I have experienced more personal hurt at the hands of Christians than from other people. Yet it is important to continue to love, trust, and build relationships with others in the body. In difficult times, I often read Psalm 27 which I find helpful in restoring my confidence in Christian community.

During the period of lockdown I was very grateful for the possibility of refreshing walks along the North Down coast where we live. We also spend a fair bit of time in north Donegal. Sometimes Lorna and I meet after work on a Friday evening, and I drive us up to Inishowen. On Saturday we may just read and walk the coastal path to Greencastle for a meal in Kealy’s Seafood Bar, or possibly drive to Letterkenny for brunch in Sonder café before a walk in Glenveagh National Park. If we stay to the Sunday, it’s Moville Presbyterian before lunch and back home.

My taste in holidays is a bit odd. In 2019 I cajoled my wife into a week in Tirana, the capital of Albania. It truly was different – arriving at the airport, there was no transport to the city. Somehow we ended up in the back of an Albanian man’s VW Golf being taken to an unknown destination. Then there was my economy solution to a tour of the mountains – take a service bus. We thought the bus became full, but I never realised you could pack the aisle with picnic seats and still get a couple more people on the luggage rack! Truly it was a spectacular country though.

My hardest life lessons can all be summed up in the word: ‘trust’ –primarily the need to trust God. In work situations, it is tempting to get completely caught up in professional interactions that are intense, challenging and perhaps deceptively rewarding. In reality though, this can lead to neglecting the required intensity of seeking God’s will and not listening to him enough. Outside work the same applies. My learning is: always be yourself; judge the character of those you may trust carefully; pray about how to commit in those situations; do not base your judgments solely on your understanding. In some areas, perhaps I was slow to learn this regrettably! Finally, choose your friends wisely, and allow the right people to challenge you. I am blessed by having a wonderful network of friends who don’t flinch in tough times.

A work in progress

Suzanne Hamilton explores the invaluable work of Gray’s Court and hears the inspiring story of one of its residents, Rosie.

Living at Gray’s Court has been a “godsend” for Rosie, who is rebuilding her life after suffering from years of addiction.

A joint project by PCI’s Council for Social Witness and Habinteg Housing Association, Gray’s Court in north Belfast has been providing supported accommodation for people in early recovery from addiction since 2000.

For Rosie, it has been her home since she was released from prison, on licence, 19 months ago. It has given her both the space and support to put her life together.

“I’m 38 years of age and this is probably the first time I’ve lived by myself in my own flat…I love it,” she says, adding that she would have been back in prison within weeks if she’d gone anywhere else.

“I think if I’d gone to a hostel, I wouldn’t have coped…I know if I’d gone home, I wouldn’t have coped. Here, being a sober house and it’s clean, it’s great because you don’t have people using around you, and everybody here is in serious recovery, so that gave me a big starting chance.”

Originally from the Ballymun area of Dublin, Rosie had a settled life until her father contracted Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) when she was just 13. With her father in hospital for the nine months before his death, Rosie started missing school and, following the example of her peers, starting smoking heroin, at just 14.

Referred to addiction services at 15, Rosie was put on methadone, but that did not stop her using. In fact, she was also gambling and taking tablets by this stage.

“When I was 18 my mum decided to just uproot us all and move to Belfast… It was only when I got help two years ago that I realised how much of an impact that alone had on our lives,” she says.

While the move stopped Rosie taking heroin, her addiction to gambling and tablets got out of control. “It went on for years and years. I started getting caught shoplifting and started doing small sentences like two months, four months

and they just kept growing and growing,” she says. She reckons that since 2006, she spent at least 10 years in prison.

“I was in and out, in and out for years and obviously I didn’t really care, but in the last eight years I started realising that I didn’t want to be doing this anymore, but I couldn’t get help.”

Despite being seen as a low priority and denied much-needed help, Rosie did manage to get her life on track for a while in 2015. She met someone, became pregnant and got a dog – a Staffie called Sonia. Even when she lost the baby, Rosie coped, but in 2017 that all changed. Her sister, a cocaine user, was having mental health problems, and Rosie was often called upon to help. It wasn’t long before she was also taking cocaine.

“I ended up horrendously into it. I lost 5½ stone in four months. I lost everything because of it. So, it ended up that the police were looking for me for shoplifting and I took the rap for somebody, for the drugs that were in the flat where I was. I ended up in prison for 18 months and I then got out on licence.”

Sleeping on her mum’s sofa and working two jobs, Rosie was really trying to put her life back together, but then one day she walked into a chemist and walked out with a bottle of perfume without paying. “I think it was because I wasn’t coping at my mum’s – it was too much.”

Rosie’s recall into custody prompted the prison commissioners to question why she had never undergone mental health or psychology assessments. “So, we started the psychology. I was clean at the time – I had got myself clean in prison –and I was ready to get help.”

Through working with the psychologist over the next six months, Rosie found herself getting better, but knew she couldn’t go back to her family upon her release. “It wasn’t their fault, but I couldn’t cope with them and they are a massive trigger for me,” she explains. Thankfully, the probation service found a place for Rosie in Gray’s Court. Describing it as a “godsend”, she says, “I

Living at Gray’s Court has been a “godsend” for Rosie…

didn’t know what to expect, to be honest, because I’d never been in a hostel…It was the first time I ever made a choice not to go home, but when I came here, I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe what I had landed.”

Her family live close by, but that has its negatives and positives. Rosie remembers her first day at Gray’s Court. She left her stuff in her flat and walked across to her mum’s, only to find arguments and stress. “I just remember thinking the usual thought of: ‘I need something to settle me, I can’t cope with this’,” says Rosie, referring to tablets. “The fact that I was able to walk over here and just leave it, after that first day I knew then that I wasn’t going to use.”

Living at Gray’s Court has also given Rosie the confidence to make a significant contribution to the local area, through cross community initiatives in this contentious area of Belfast.

A six-week boxing course in prison, facilitated by Carl Frampton and Paddy Barnes, gave Rosie an interest in the sport, so once settled in Gray’s Court, she contacted a local club which had just opened in nearby Duncairn Gardens, offering to help.

The Building Bridges Community Boxing Club sits between the loyalist Tigers Bay estate and nationalist New Lodge and so has an important role in crossing the sectarian divide and bringing people together.

Rosie loves volunteering there and has been instrumental in much of its successful outreach into the community. In partnership with the Dean Clarke Foundation and the 174 Trust, her efforts at the club’s Christmas appeal saw 87 families in the area helped through donations of food and over £7000 worth of toys.

Contacts made through a cross community women’s group led to a joint Christmas tree light-up and carol service. Rosie says it was a special night, with Rev Bill Shaw (chief executive of the 174 Trust) arranging for the gates separating the two communities to be left open in order for 100 young people from both traditions to meet.

“There were some worries about if we were going to get kids clashing, but it was unbelievable. Then all the kids came back to the club and they got presents and we did food and a movie night,” she explains.

Rosie says it may have started out as a boxing club, but it is more like a community group now. Many of the young people who would have been down at the interface fighting are now junior coaches.

A mystery donor from Australia has donated £75,000, and this has allowed for more activities, such as taking kids on trips. The young people have been put through cyber bullying, Mini Medics and social behaviour courses. Rosie has also been busy, completing nine courses in the past year, including her Youth Leaders Level Two.

“I never thought I’d see the day I’d be a youth leader,” says Rosie, although she admits that there are days when she does struggle, especially as she deals with chronic pain.

“I’m a long way off where I need to be – it’s going to be long struggle. For 22 years I was taking drugs without a break.” However, Rosie knows she has come so far already, and that the low days are only temporary. She finds she gets so much

from working with the young people at the club. Open water swimming and painting also keep her calm. “I’ve changed…I know there is more positive stuff to make me feel better.”

A talented artist, Rosie loves painting in the style of local artist Terry Bradley, copying his images and altering their colours.

“I’m not very good at drawing something out of my own head, but I can copy something and change it,” she says modestly. The walls of the club are decorated with Rosie’s pictures of boxers, while various charities have also benefited from her talents. One raised £700 for Skegoniell food bank.

One of her striking pictures is of a colourful lion, which most people will recognise from paint-by-numbers. Rosie’s version is so good that many don’t realise that it is hand-painted (this edition’s front cover image).

“I was in prison and…I just saw a picture of him and decided to paint it, and I needed something that would take

“I’m 38 years of age and this is probably the first time I’ve lived by myself in my own flat…”

Frances Craig, project lead at Gray’s Court

hours to pass the time,” she explains. Rosie says she can zone out for hours painting. Indeed, the benefits of activities like painting have long been recognised by PCI, with courses run in various locations, including Gray’s Court.

Frances Craig, project lead for Gray’s Court, says the whole point of the supported living accommodation is to help people in recovery reengage with their community – something Rosie is a shining example of.

Part of this involves building self-esteem and confidence through different programmes and courses, but the Covid pandemic stopped a lot of what could be done. Despite this, while many struggled with their mental health, those living at Gray’s Court found that being part of such a supportive community helped.

thinking outside the box as to how they can do their work differently – we were in that position as well…It challenged us all,” says Frances.

Through a grant from the Supporting People Innovation Fund, they bought gym equipment, were able to clear and replant the overgrown garden at Gray’s Court, and hold a residential last September at Greenhill in Newcastle.

Rosie has fond memories of that residential, saying it was a big part of her recovery. “We were all just sitting outside the ice cream parlour eating ice cream and I got a real feeling of being settled…Just sitting, looking out at the ocean, eating ice cream was the most normal thing I’ve ever experienced, and it was great.”

“We were all just sitting…eating ice cream and I got a real feeling of being settled…”

“The people that were here at the time said that if they had been living on their own and were having to stay in their homes, there was a good chance they would have relapsed, but it actually helped to be here…and we were all in the same boat,” says Frances. “I am thankful for the grace of God which sustained us all during this period.”

Ways were found to adapt what had gone before – group walks stayed in the local area instead of going further afield, some courses went online. “I have noticed with every agency that everybody is

It was this Fund which also facilitated an art course in Gray’s Court and Thompson House, which provides supported housing to offenders. An artist spent eight evenings with residents, getting them to explore where they are on the journey and how they wanted to express that.

The results were on show at an exhibition at this year’s General Assembly, with one picture representing breaking chains of addiction, another depicting the Belfast Waterworks – the scene for so many of the group’s Covid walks.

For Rosie, her picture “Represents coming here, and being in such a dark place and coming into the light.”

Gray’s Court

Gray’s Court was opened in 2000 in response to a need identified by Carlisle House Addiction Rehabilitation Unit for supported accommodation for people in early recovery who were homeless, or living in circumstances detrimental to their recovery. The project is a joint one between the Council for Social Witness on behalf of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Habinteg Housing Association and is supported by United Appeal.

Carlisle House

Established in 1992, Carlisle House is a residential substance misuse treatment centre. Carlisle House aims to provide the opportunity for individuals who have a substance misuse problem, and their relatives, to begin the journey of recovery through self-awareness and change.

Further advice

Addiction NI

Treatment and support for people who are dependent on alcohol or drugs.

+44(0)28 9066 4434

www.addictionni.com

Tiglin

Tiglin provides an effective and comprehensive solution to addiction problems. Operating under a Christian ethos, it endeavours to help people become mentally sound, emotionally balanced, socially adjusted, physically well, and spiritually alive.

+353(4)04 40010

www.tiglin.ie

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022

works

At the opening night of the General Assembly, incoming Moderator, Dr John Kirkpatrick introduced his theme for the year, ‘Grace works’.

He said, “The message that I will try to share this year is neither new nor is it complicated – it is the story of grace not works: The story of how grace alone works and of how grace inspires works and is the One.”

Basing his address on Ephesians 1, Dr Kirkpatrick outlined how grace is at work in the past; grace is at work in the now; and grace shapes our future.

He concluded: “This truly is our story, this is our message, this is big enough to carry the weight of human need, to both change and unite everyone on this island who embraces Jesus.”

Earlier in the evening in his outgoing address, Dr David Bruce discussed his two years in office.

“My overwhelming emotion in stepping down is of gratitude to God and his people for these two years –albeit in a deeply turbulent period of our history. Much of my second year in office has been a time of readjustment for the Church as we have gradually

emerged from the pandemic.”

Dr Bruce also commented on how the denomination has been viewed in the public square. “We have found ourselves in recent times under harsh scrutiny as a people. Some have struggled to understand what we mean when we say we are a confessional church, with standards to which we physically subscribe as elders at the moment of our ordination. Our critics, alighting on a number of social policy issues such as the provision of abortion, end of life care, the redefinition of marriage, a changed understanding of human identity, among others consider our views to be incomprehensible, or even dangerous.

“We are painted as rigid, unchanging and even unloving… We do of course need to listen carefully to those who criticise us… But similarly, we need to be confident in the calling we have received to be the church of God, and especially when to do so means swimming against the tide. In particular, and for us with confessed standards which define us, we need to state with loving clarity to the world around us,

that we are not minded to redefine our relationship with the Bible, which as our supreme standard we consider to be the Word of God. We will not rewrite it, re-edit it or reframe it… The Bible is not a toxic text, but the word of life…

Dr Bruce concluded: “I do not know what the future of Ireland (north and south) will be, but I pray this – that those of us who live here bearing the name of Jesus, whether loved or despised, respected or reviled, would walk Peter’s mixed-up journey of grief and rejoicing, knowing that Jesus has gone ahead of us and is even now cheering us on and waving us home. Keep going. Do not falter. Glory awaits!”

Grace

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022 | GENERAL COUNCIL

Visiting delegates

PCI’s global partners were at this year’s Assembly for the first time in two years.

The Church of North India, Gujurat Diocese and Scripture Union Malawi were represented, as was the Reformed Church of Hungary, whose representative, Rev Professor Zoltan Literaty, thanked PCI for the generous financial support is has provided for both the rebuilding of its college, which burnt down in 2019, and following the outbreak of war in Ukraine.

“The empathy of Irish Presbyterians…is touching and in the same way strengthening for the Christian people in Ukraine.”

Rev Edwin Kibathi brought greetings from the Presbyterian Church of East Africa. He said, “The PCEA General Secretary has asked me to convey the Church’s gratitude for the many mission projects PCI has carried out and continues to undertake in many parts of Kenya. These projects cut across all areas of life where they have impacted and transformed the lives of many communities.”

Closer to home, the Church of Ireland, Methodist Church, Religious Society of Friends and the Irish Council of Churches were all represented.

Presenting a Bible to the Moderator, Catherine Little, General Secretary of the Bible Society in Northern Ireland, thanked the Presbyterian Church for its support, both financially and prayerfully. She stressed that millions of people around the world still don’t have access to the Bible, including many Ukrainians who have fled without their Bibles, and added, “There’s a huge amount of work to be done, but together we can make a difference.”

More time given to dissent task group

The task group looking at dissent and decision making needs another year to complete its work.

This is the fourth year the group has reported to the General Assembly, having been tasked to draw up a comprehensive report on the freedom of those in ordained leadership to promote opinions at variance with the clear position of the General Assembly, in 2021.

Addressing the issue of public comment upon or debate on positions held by the Church, Dr Noble McNeely, convener of General Council, said, “It is recognised that discussion and debate does take place outside the courts of the Church. Where this occurs, leaders of the Church should approach such in a gracious and diplomatic manner, respectful of the policies of the Church and recognising their ordination vows.”

As regards the issue of Church leaders’ use of social media, Dr McNeely explained that deliberations within the task group continues and more time is needed.

In the debate that followed, former Moderator Dr John Dunlop expressed his hope that the final report, when it comes to the House next year, will make room for “diverse, creative, energetic, biblically interpretative theological discourse which this Church, at all times, and, at this particular moment in history, desperately needs.”

He added, “This Church is predominately rich, it is predominately white, it is overwhelmingly male even to the extent it is almost weird in this day and age that there are a disproportionate number of men in this Assembly and very few women. It is also culturally British. There is nothing wrong with rich, being white, being male or being British provided we understand that we will be carrying to the Bible biases of rich people, biases of white people, of male people and of culturally uniform people.”

Rev William Moody, minister of Brookside, Ahoghill, was concerned about unintentional consequences. “I’m just concerned that this is a blunt object. It’s almost as if administrative decisions are put on like of doctrinal decisions.”

Rev Alistair Beattie, retired, said, as a fallible body, it is possible that the Assembly could make decisions that are contrary to the Word of God, adding, “As a Church we uphold and cherish the right of freedom and speech and expression of the mind.”

Rev Cheryl Meban, chaplain, said where decisions have caused damage, division and upset, it is the responsibility of leaders to use “every Christ-like means to change the minds of our colleagues, congregants and the wider community, and we cannot be limited to once a year.”

Membership and people with intellectual disabilities

Last year’s General Assembly set a task group the remit: “to address the issue of accepting special needs young people and adults into communicant membership”.

The full report will be brought in 2023 and Lindsay Conway, convener of the task group said, “This topic has been a real burden for many individuals and families for decades… Much of our discussion recognised the dangers of a purely legalistic approach, versus a climate of grace and acceptance.” He appealed for people to get in touch and share their experiences as the task group moves into its next phase.

Commending the work of the task group, Dr Trevor Morrow said, “I am uncomfortable with the distinction between those who seem to have some knowledge and those who do not – it’s much more difficult than that. We should treat them as our brothers and sisters in Christ. If they want to receive, we ought to receive them.”

Rev Mark Neilly, minister of First Ahoghill, expressed caution saying, “I’m worried that this could be seen as the thin end of the wedge where we are deciding that we are going to admit those to the Lord’s table without a credible profession of faith.”

Rev William Hayes, speaking personally as the son of a mother with learning difficulties commented, “We can get as blinded by our overdoing of our theology as somebody like my mother could with her lack of understanding in this. This is just a plea for flexibility in this and to commend what has been brought forward here.”

Guysmere

Rev Jim McCaughan and a team of dedicated panel members have been moving forward with plans for the Guysmere Centre in Castlerock. Mr McCaughan updated the Assembly:

“We have established the Guysmere Trust; it has been incorporated as a company limited by guarantee; we have secured charity status with the Charity Commission of Northern Ireland; we have leased the site from PCI; and today we have launched our website – http://guysmeretrust.com…We envisage a centre for people of all ages to use, of all backgrounds, of a wide range of abilities and that it will also be open for other groups to use…”

The group aims to raise £300,000 this year which will begin the plans, which includes appointing a project development manager.

Code republishing

The work of the Code Republishing panel is to be sent to presbyteries for consideration. Presbyteries and the Judicial Commission will have until December to send back comments and suggestions, and a second draft will be made in time for the 2023 General Assembly. The agreed text will then be sent down to presbyteries under the Barrier Act for report to the 2024 General Assembly.

United Appeal

Martin Hampton, an elder in Strand and convener of the United Appeal Committee said, “Last year…I was reminded from the floor that this is not just a United Appeal, but a United Appeal for Mission… We should realise that we…are partners in the gospel…congregations working together as a united Church body to achieve what we cannot do alone.”

He outlined that the 2021 appeal had a Covid-reduced target of £3,300,000, of which 96.6% had been received. He also reported that the 2023 target has been set at £3,500,000 saying, “We ask the members to note that this is still below the ‘gross’ targets set in 2021 and 2022… Each year the Councils and the committee step out in faith as we set a target. As we do so, we continue to trust in the Lord and thank him for being such an incomparably kind and relentlessly generous God.”

Pandemic response

A task group looking at PCI’s response to the pandemic, specifically with regard to the theological, moral and spiritual aspects of it, was set up. An interim report was brought to the House this year.

Karen Jardine, convener of the task group spoke of the complexity of the issues the group are dealing with. She also said, “If you were to ask me to sum up in one word the primary activity of the task group since December, I would suggest the word ‘listening’. In order to ‘review’ we need to learn and understand what has happened.”

Rev David Johnston said, “My concern is we could end up with an echo chamber with Presbyterians talking only to other Presbyterians who mostly hold the same views… I pray that as they seek to fulfil their remit that this will be exercise, not in self-congratulation, nor even in selfjustification but one of self-examination, where we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God…”

Miss Jardine responded that, “In no way is the task group engaging in selfcongratulation or justification – it is very much a self-examination.”

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022 | GENERAL COUNCIL

Supporting families in challenging times

The remit of this task group is wide and includes supporting women and families in crisis pregnancy, pregnancy loss, diagnosis of a life-limiting condition, as well as those caring for a child with a disability.

Rev Richard Houston, convener of the task group, referenced an article in the Herald that had prompted response to the group. “Their personal experiences were far from positive with some citing how the church’s ministry to them was often characterised by carelessness and lack of sensitivity in speech and language… It seems clear to us as a task group that we as a Church are illequipped to properly engage and help women and their families in times of crisis and challenge in this regard...”

Emma Logan, from First Newtownards, and a physiotherapist for 20 years, working with women in maternity

hospitals said, “We have a significant imbalance in leadership in our Church. Women do often find it easier to talk to women in circumstances like this…What I would really encourage the task group to think about in their training would be not only to train the ministers and the elders, but to look to training the women in the congregation as well.”

Rev David Cromie, minister of Greenisland said, “The Presbyterian Church is often known for what it is against… Getting involved in pregnancy crisis is complicated and messy but…we have shown as a Church that where there’s a will…that we can achieve great things…”

Congregational assessments

Clive Knox, Financial Secretary, said of congregational assessments, “The committee is always conscious the impact this has on congregational finances but is also aware of its responsibility to ensure that the various Assessment Funds have sufficient resources to meet their ongoing commitments.”

In regard to the rates of Assessment in 2023, he said, “I think this may well be a lengthy discussion and challenging decision in light of the current high rates of inflation…I have no doubt the committee will reflect carefully on these important matters.”

Assembly time in 2023

Given the number of reports being brought to the Assembly in 2023, it was recognised that beginning business on a Thursday may not give enough time for debate and deliberations. A resolution was therefore passed to allowed General Council to subsequently make a decision on a suitable time for Assembly to take place in 2023.

Conveners thanked

Dr Liz Hughes and James Livingstone were thanked for their service in convening the Council for Global Mission and the Linkage Commission, respectively.

Moderator, Dr John Kirkpatrick thanked them both for their dedication and leadership.

Reconfiguration of ministry

A task group has been set up to examine the “key principles and practicalities that will underpin a radical reconfiguration of ministry in the light of changing demographics and ministry and mission opportunities.” The group will bring a final report in 2023.

Rev David Allen, convener of the task group said, “We mustn’t simply manage decline, doing so because we want to keep doing everything we have been doing, in the way we have been doing it, for as long as we can. We must reconfigure so that we can do better what the Lord wants us to do in his Church.”

Rev Andrew Faulkner commented, “I want to encourage us here today to be bold. The report calls for radical action... This is our chance to think collectively differently about the Church.”

Rev Kenneth Patterson said, “The statistics are alarming and we’re burying our heads in the sand. We need to rediscover the gospel...faithful, bold, fearless, loving declaration of the whole counsel of God…”

Louise Moffet, an under 30 representative from Sloan Street offered some hope saying, “I know the statistics can be concerning, but I would encourage you that...there are still committed young adults in congregations, like myself.”

New collaborations

Union College has welcomed new collaborations with the Kirby Laing Centre and Crosslands. Rev Nigel McCullough, convener of the Council, said these links will “help cement and augment the College’s PhD programme. This is a very positive development and brings significant mutual benefits.”

TRAINING IN MINISTRY |

A time of transition

Principal, Prof Gordon Campbell, outlined three specific actions that were undertaken in Union Theological College’s time of transition, following the end of the collaborative arrangement with Queen’s University, Belfast.

Firstly, there was a redevelopment of training in basic competencies for ministry and its delivery for ministerial students, involving a new three-year cycle of non-award courses which began in 2019.

Secondly, Union has developed some new branding, including a new website. And lastly, the College is extending its reach with the postgraduate degrees it is now delivering. As well as that, there is a new Bachelor of Arts in Theology, opening to students this September, delivered in collaboration with St Mary’s University, Twickenham.

Ministry student intake

The Council reported that there are only four students for the ministry due to start their training in September. Rev Nigel McCullough commented that this was probably due, in part, to the pandemic.

“These folk started their application process in the midst of Covid at a time when lots of us felt unable to make major life decisions. Some were not sure if we might have any applicants at all during this time so we are very grateful for this cohort.”

Mr McCullough continued, “I do hope as a denomination we are increasingly seeing the raising up of a new generation of gospel workers as key to what we should be doing… I would suggest that this should therefore be a regular request in public prayers, prayer meetings and the personal prayers of every church member.”

Ministry reviews

Both the Auxiliary Ministry Scheme and the Accredited Preacher Scheme will be undergoing a review. Rev Nigel McCullough said, “These courses and schemes have been a great benefit to those who have undertaken them but we want to make sure they are appropriately shaped for the new realities we find ourselves in.”

New Faculty members

The College has welcomed three new academic colleagues during the past year – Dr Robbie Booth (Lecturer in New Testament); Dr Olwyn Mark (Lecturer in Practical Theology); and Dr Stephen Moore (Lecturer in Old Testament).

Flexible pathways to ministry

Rev Gareth McClean, minister of Orangefield, spoke on the subject of flexible pathways to ministry. He said, “I have been so encouraged and hope-filled to see this happen in the past year – but equally, I continue to be grieved and broken-hearted to see the inflexibility of the flexible pathway.

“I have lost count of the number of Presbyterian men and women who are now leading churches and movements in other denominations because, at times, the lack of creativity – trust – and flexibility in pathways to ordination.”

Rev Nigel McCullough responded, “The flexible pathway is being reviewed… we hope that next year we will have some revisions to that.”

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022 | GLOBAL MISSION

Ukraine aid tops £1m

A total of £1.1 million has been raised by the Moderator’s Emergency Appeal for Ukraine.

Rev Uel Marrs, Secretary to the Council for Global Mission, revealed the figure during a resolution thanking PCI congregations and members for their generosity. The 2021 World Development Appeal, ‘Weathering the Storm’, raised £446,879.

In his speech, Mr Marrs referred to the four ‘C’s of climate, Covid, conflict in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis. While the first two have led to 276 million people being food insecure, with 49 million on the brink of famine, the cost of living crisis means the World Food Programme faces a shortfall of $10 billion if it is to feed all who go to bed hungry. Furthermore, it is faced with halving the rations to many of the hungry in order to feed the starving.

“Thank you for the undiminished generosity of congregations and PCI members in supporting appeals launched in the past year,” said Mr Marrs.

The Council Secretary concluded by commending the 2022 World Development Appeal. With the theme ‘Rekindling hope, from flight to flourishing’, it will focus on the issue of migration.

Whilst encouraged about the amount raised for humanitarian aid in Ukraine, Gary O’Rourke, elder in Abbot’s Cross, highlighted another need – having a Bible in their own language. He explained that the global Bible ministry, Biblica, had released a new contemporary Ukrainian translation of the New Testament and Psalms on an app, following the Russian invasion. More than 400,000 people have downloaded that, but there is a need for printed Bibles too.

“Crisis times bring a unique opportunity for the church. There are so many agencies providing beds, blankets, bread, bottles, which are all very necessary – but what about Bibles?”

Partnering and learning through listening

Dr Liz Hughes, CGM convener, explained that the Council wishes to expand on a pre-Assembly partner event held this year.

“Meeting with our partners through the years has been both humbling and inspiring. And it does take a huge amount of careful listening and endeavouring to see how we can most effectively partner together in the gospel.”

She continued, “We were challenged about our Western or northern hemisphere approach to partnership at a Global Connections conference during lockdown by a number of speakers, but especially a Malawian theologian Harvey Kwiyani, now their CEO, who told us that Africans, for example, are tired of asking for a seat at the table and tired of us in this part of the world appearing to listen, but not making any changes in our way of going. Our lingering colonial tendencies make us expect our partner Churches to become like us rather than being prepared to change as we learn from them.”

Dr Hughes said the Partnership panel, on behalf of the Council, is presently working on what the future for partnership needs to be.

Percy Patrick spoke of the long history between PCI and the Church of North India, Gujarat Diocese, when the first

General Assembly sent two missionaries to bring the good news to Gujarat.

“The seeds planted have become a full-grown majestic tree,” he said, adding, “Gujarat Diocese is looking forward to strengthening our relationship and ties.”

This partnership will promote world development issues such as food security, inequality, the environment and human trafficking.

Amon Chanika, director of Scripture Union Malawi, said, “We are very thankful to you and to the Presbyterian Church in Ireland for the support you continue to give to us and we pray God will continue to bless you.”

As a way of growing connections, he appealed for congregations to consider visits to Malawi to greatly impact the work.

Council’s plan of work approved

Climate justice, finding new ways of standing in solidarity with Christians in the Middle East, listening to Black and ethnic minority people on issues of racism, and reflecting on the plight of asylum seekers are all key areas of work for the Council for Global Mission (CGM) over the next three years.

Stating that CGM has been tasked by the General Assembly to lead thinking on global issues, Council Secretary Rev Uel Marrs said, “We cannot do this by simply forming a view from a distance, but must listen keenly to those who often find they are dealing first-hand with issues.”

Mark Turkington, under 30 representative for Donacloney, wanted to see more action in congregations on environmental issues, asking how many had set aside a special Sunday to highlight this.

Rev Johnny Frazer, minister of Garnerville, recalled a recent visit to the Holy Land, where he learned that only 2% of people are Christian and that figure is diminishing. “Yet in the midst of persecution they speak in great faith which we can learn so much from…We need to listen to other voices, voices that are different from us,” he said.

Speaking on the CGM report, Rev Johnston Lambe, retired, referred to an “invisible and silent community of people” – those who have come here from other countries across the world, and are seeking support, sustenance and protection.

“I would encourage our global mission to look again and look with fresh eyes at how we as a Church can vocalise the needs of this community,” he said.

An exercise in listening

Thanks to global mission workers

A resolution giving thanks for the faithful and enduring witness to the gospel of PCI’s global mission workers was passed.

Currently, PCI has 25 adults serving in Europe, Africa, Brazil and Russia.

‘Hearing from the heart’ was the theme for this year’s Listening to the Global Church.

Those gathered heard stories of conflict, people on the move, food insecurity, and the problem of reaching young people from representatives of PCI partners around the world.

Among the powerful presentations was an update on the situation in Ukraine. Dr Karoly Czibere, President of the Hungarian Reformed Aid (the agency supported by the recent Moderator’s Appeal), sent a video message, explaining the ongoing work to deliver aid to Ukraine as well as provide shelter and basic necessities for those fleeing the war.

Ukrainian-born Rev Professor Zoltan Literaty, a minister in the Hungarian Reformed Church with a congregation in the suburbs of Budapest, spoke of the challenges facing pastors serving in Transcarpathia, in western Ukraine.

Many people have fled the villages in the region, but they have been replaced by those fleeing war-torn areas of Ukraine. This makes it difficult for ministers to know which members are at home and who are abroad. They are also caring for the refugees, which requires a lot of organisation.

“It is a strong testimony of their faith that the ministers have stayed in

Ukraine. They have families and children – some young children, some teenage – and they are responsible for their families as well. So, it’s a hard situation because if you are alone you can stay and hide in a bunker, but you don’t want to do that with a family.”

The challenges faced by those in the Gujarat Diocese of the Church of North India were outlined by Percy Patrick.

Covid-19 has had a terrible impact.

For example, one minister in a small church carried out over 300 funerals, with every house experiencing death. Now because of the Ukraine war, inflation is too high and people are losing their jobs.

Christians account for only 2% of the population in India, but the Church is working hard at overcoming the challenge of connecting with young people by providing care and reaching out to the young through music and sports. Encouragingly, one three-day event attracted 10,000 young people.

“Yes, we have our challenges, but God has provided us with strength,” he said.

The challenges of those coming to live in the United Kingdom from Kenya were also highlighted, with Rev Edwin and Anne Kibathi giving an overview of

their work.

As a result of a 16-year collaboration between PCI and the Presbyterian Church of East Africa, the Kibathis have been serving in London, initially in chaplaincy work and now in church planting. Fellowships have been set up in Barking, Reading, Birmingham, Luton and Glasgow.

Edwin explained that those arriving face the language barrier and a culture shock. “Most of them have no documentation so they cannot work, so they cannot access a bank or look for a house.”

The couple’s work is about creating safe spaces, where they can give emotional and financial support. This includes fellowship for men, a women’s guild and mentoring initiatives to help children adapt to a different schooling system.

Commenting on the session – the seventh since its inclusion in the Assembly programme – Council for Global Mission convener Dr Liz Hughes stressed the importance of our listening and said, “If we are truly listening, these stories from the hearts of our brothers and sisters should call on us to respond from our hearts.”

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022 | LINKAGE

Townsend Street to be dissolved

The Belfast church of Townsend Street is to be dissolved, with the passing of a resolution to that effect at the Assembly.

Morris Gault, clerk of South Belfast Presbytery, said the congregation has an illustrious history in supporting many charities, having over the years helped many schools, bought hospital beds for those dying of consumption and provided home nursing care for those who were terminally ill.

“This congregation has had a mighty history, but circumstances have dictated that now is, sadly, the time for them to close,” said Mr Gault, who paid tribute to the minister Rev Jack Lamb.

The church building will now be used by the Ulster Orchestra for rehearsals and to teach music to the citizens of north and west Belfast. He said it was not about abandoning areas, but there is a need for people to be realistic and allow PCI to do new things.

“I thank Townsend Street for their honesty, I want to thank for them for their desire to see the good work they had done in the past not go to waste,” he added.

Rev John Martin, minister of Culnady and Swatragh, said the closure means the Greater Shankill community will have been divested of four of its congregations.

“As someone who has grown up in a Protestant working-class family, I am becoming more convinced year in and year out, day in and day out, that as a Church we are largely, though not exclusively, less able to engage with those working-class and needy communities as we decamp to leafy suburbia.”

Former Moderator Dr John Dunlop, who is minister emeritus of Rosemary Presbyterian Church in north Belfast, said many middle-class congregations in leafy areas of Belfast are themselves in serious decline.

“Not all that many years ago in my ministry there were many Belfast leafy congregations that had in excess 500 to 600 families. There are very few now that have more than 200 families,” he explained.

In his speech, Linkage Commission convener James Livingstone said it is increasingly evident that for some congregations Covid-19 has brought into sharp focus decline which has been “under the radar” for a number of years.

“For many years my predecessors as conveners have warned from this platform that we have too many buildings serving too few people. This is more and more evident. Either this General Assembly seeks to grasp that nettle or simply allow us to sleepwalk into a place where we allow the last man or woman out to put out the lights.”

Mergers

Two mergers were formally agreed by the Assembly – First and Second Islandmagee, and Dromore (Route) with Drumreagh.

Linkage Commission secretary Rev Ker Graham paid tribute to those involved and said, “As one congregation, they have the joy of worshipping together as a larger body of people, and that brings great encouragement to one another.

“They also have greater resources, and no doubt in time, fewer buildings to maintain. Surely these two examples of successful harmonious amalgamations serve as a great challenge to our wider denomination.”

Thursday night celebration

Peter Lynas, UK director of Evangelical Alliance, was the guest speaker at the Thursday night celebration, with music provided by Jonathan Rea and the New Irish orchestra.

Discussing the topical issue of identity, he said, “It takes wisdom to navigate an age of information overload. It takes courage to navigate an age of fear and anxiety. It takes character to navigate an age driven by image and graven images… In a chaotic and contested culture, we need to know the God story and the God of that story.”

Reflecting on the challenges that people in society are experiencing, he commented, “We are living at an extraordinary moment. Our culture, our friends are living in a nightmare and they need someone to reveal the hidden mysteries of this moment.

“This season belongs to the pastors and the prophets. People desperately want to talk to someone they can trust – someone who will genuinely care for them. But they also want someone to guide them through this chaos – reveal hidden mysteries – to chart a way through.”

Peter concluded his talk by focusing on the grace of God. “By grace we navigate the current choppy waters – in a culture all at sea. By grace, we serve the church in this land – praying for revival and renewal. By grace, we seek the least and the lost –inviting them to encounter Jesus.”

GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022 | MISSION IN IRELAND

Recognising the breadth of work carried out

Convener of the Council for Mission in Ireland, Dr Frank Sellar, highlighted the variety of work and witness carried out by the Council and extended thanks to all involved, particularly during the disruption and uncertainty of the pandemic.

He said, “The desire to serve permeates the selfless work of Home Mission and Urban Mission ministers; Irish mission staff and deaconesses; the staff of International Meeting Point and South Belfast Friendship House; hospital, prison, armed forces, third level and rural chaplains, not forgetting those who also freely give their energies convening and actively participating in the panels of our Council, not because they have an exaggerated and exclusive self-image, but because they want to mirror Christ and serve his Church at this moment of our island’s history.”

Church planting

Following on from a successful church planting conference in May, Dr Sellar highlighted the Council’s enthusiasm for exploring new ministry opportunities: “We want to have a mindset that does not merely exist to survive but thrive, building new communities of faith, encouraged and stimulated by existing ventures including Maynooth and Donabate, ‘Central’ meeting at May Street and ‘Grace and Hope Community Church’ at Carlisle Circus, Belfast.

Rev Andy Carroll, minister of Donabate encouraged boldness in church planting, saying, “Pray...for us to take risks and for us not to be worried that a congregation may not be there in 300 years...it won’t not have been worth it. God has been at work. Let’s try things, let’s follow the leading of the Spirit.”

Dunfanaghy and Carrigart

Acting Secretary to the Council, Rev Jim Stothers, highlighted the new ministry opportunity in two small, isolated congregations in north Donegal: Dunfanaghy and Carrigart.

Carrigart is the only PCI congregation situated in a Gaeltacht, that is an Irishspeaking area. Its former manse, the Bewglas Centre, has been well-used for a number of years as a residential centre and a committed group of people in Carrigart not only want to get it back up and running after Covid, but also to see it used strategically for mission by PCI. Alongside that, a couple from north Down have committed funding for five years which has allowed PCI to initiate a mission project based in the Bewglas Centre so that a minister will be there full-time – as a part-time minister of the congregation and part-time project manager. Mr Stothers commented, “The project will seek sensitively to impact the local area with the gospel and bring others into the area using the Bewglas Centre and again exploit gospel opportunities in that.”

Progress for Maynooth

Rev Keith McCrory, minister of Maynooth, reported to the House that “last week...after quite a few years of work and effort we acquired our new site in Maynooth on which we hope to build a new church facility... Thank you to the House for all the prayers and support you have given us as a congregation through these years.”

Under 30s event

A fringe event was held on the Thursday evening, designed to listen to the views of under 30s. Rick Hill (Discipleship and Leadership Development Officer) chatted with a panel of three of the delegates: Chris (youth worker coordinator of First Ballymoney), Holly (children’s intern in First Lisburn) and Erin (a dietician from Whiteabbey). The three reflected on their interest in, and experiences of, attending the General Assembly.

New development officer

Andrew Dickson has been appointed as PCI’s new Congregational Life Development Officer.

He will help the Council identify a range of appropriate ways of supporting congregations.

“We look forward to Andrew’s help to give us fresh eyes in all of this…We don’t want to simply return to what we’ve always done, in the way that we’ve always done it. We’re encouraging congregations not to do that so as a Council we don’t want to do that either,” said CCLW Secretary Rev David Thompson.

Turning of the tide

Listening exercise

The Council for Congregational Life and Witness is to embark on a twoyear listening exercise across all 19 presbyteries.

Starting in September 2023, it is hoped it will enable the Council to better resource the whole Church and understand the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The exercise – and a call for presbyteries to participate fully – was endorsed in a resolution passed by the Assembly.

It is hoped that the initiative will help the Council tailor its work to a variety of congregational realities, and by starting in September 2023, it will give time to allow a more settled picture of church life to emerge. The work is expected to take two years to complete.

CCLW convener Rev Colin Morrison, outlined priorities for the “next season in life”, saying there will be a focus on accompanying congregations, who find themselves on a variety of journeys beyond the impact of the pandemic.

Rebuilding programme

A programme of events to supplement the gradual rebuilding of congregational life is being planned by the Council for Congregational Life and Witness.

Activities planned include: six regional events for leaders in the areas of children’s and youth ministry; a short hybrid in-person/online programme called ‘Stepping forward, stepping up’ for new leaders; a Youth Night-style gathering for young people; a regional Kids’ Big Day Out; and Family Big Day Out to help connect with families on the edge of church life.

PW boost

The ministry of Presbyterian Women was given a notable boost with the return of an in-person conference in May, said CCLW Secretary Rev David Thompson.

“It was the first large-scale PCI event in which social distancing did not have to be in place,” he explained.

The turning of the tide was the theme for this year’s CCLW alternative presentation. It looked at how congregations have emerged from the pandemic, and considered the challenges and opportunities ahead.

Commenting on the theme, Council convener Rev Colin Morrison said, “The phrase means things are changing. I don’t know an awful lot about tides in the technical sense, but I know they don’t always form with one pace, they come in and out, different tides with different amounts of gentleness or ferocity. I suspect that this is the experience in these days for congregations in our denomination. Where things are changing, the tide is turning but in different ways, a different pace in different places.”

An interview session heard from Rev Andrew Gill (minister of Blackrock and Bray), who warned that people need time and space to process all that has happened. “I think it’s easy to say restrictions are lifted, life is back to normal, but it doesn’t mean

everything is all of a sudden all right for everybody…A lot of people really struggled with a lot of things during that time.”

Heather Anthony, youth worker in First Ballynahinch, spoke on the dangers of pushing leaders back into returning to their roles, with many burnt out even before the pandemic and others losing confidence. She advised starting small, being flexible and “not being afraid to go slower and simpler if you need to.”

The last interviewee, Moderator Dr John Kirkpatrick, said the pandemic presents opportunities to make church life better. “I think we need to change our mindset, not simply get back to where we were.”

The alternative session also heard of the two themes for the Council –‘Being back together’ and ‘Getting going again’. Council Secretary Rev David Thompson said, “Being back together again is something we have

eagerly anticipated and will value as never before…Perhaps in what was becoming a very individualistic world, the pandemic has helped us appreciate that community is at the beating heart of church life, that it is a defining mark of our identity as the people of God.”

These will be explored through a short booklet called ‘Back together again’ and a flexible one-session resource on the ‘Getting going again’ theme, which is due to be released in the autumn.

The session also highlighted other resources and events, such as the yearlong Bible reading journey 52, a youth gathering called ‘Onward following Jesus’ planned for 29 October and an eight-session Bible study resource called ‘Expressions’.

Social Witness in an altered world

It was the first General Assembly for Dermot Parsons, the new Secretary to the Council for Social Witness.

Addressing the Assembly, he referred to the challenging times experienced during the pandemic, but said the Council is now emerging into a changed world. “But we are different from other social care organisations. We are called to live out our mission – people matter to God. So we are in a Covid-altered world, but our values are not of it.”

As CSW wrestles with the realities of this changed world, there are challenges. Mr Parsons said the senior management team had committed to meeting regularly as a group to pray through complex issues. “This has transformed some situations,” he explained.

Praise for staff

Staff of the Council for Social Witness were commended for their resilience and care for residents, service users and relatives throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

Council Secretary Dermot Parsons said they had worked sacrificially through the past couple of years, sometimes at cost to their peace of mind and health.

“Our staff, like all working in social care, do not receive great financial reward. They work because they care – they care deeply about the people they support and they make our mission achievable,” said Mr Parsons.

His sentiments were echoed by Rev Stephen Lowry, convener of the Disability Services committee, who said we are blessed as denomination to be able to care for those in the twilight of their life through our older people’s services, people in difficult seasons of their life in our specialist services, and those who require care as part of who they are as a person in the disability services.

Singing the praises of staff who make this happen, Mr Lowry said as a committee convener, he sees a snapshot of the labour poured into giving people dignity in their hour of need.

“The staff have nothing but my respect and my utmost admiration, worthy of highlighting and public thanks.”

Rev John Stanbridge, convener of the Specialist Services committee, described the staff as heroes who have worked tirelessly to maintain and provide specialist services throughout the pandemic.

Referring to the teams working in Carlisle House, Gray’s Court and Thompson House, he said, “Miraculously, these specialist services have remained open for business throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. All due, I suggest, to the determination, the diligence and often doggedness of these managers and their staff teams…I feel it is right for us to acknowledge their commitment and courage to serve those on the margins of our society.”

Rev Nigel Reid, convener of the Older People’s Services committee, said the challenges faced are great, but a “mighty work is being done”.

He added, “We stand in the frontline of social care in the midst of a challenging world.”

Excellence sought

The Assembly has passed a resolution welcoming the pursuit of excellence through the development of strengthened governance arrangements and risk management protocols.

Council for Social Witness convener, Rev David Brice, explained that the care sector is highly regulated with frequent inspections.

“We have decided to embrace this regulatory environment and, through the expertise of a senior management team, prepare, equip and support our managers so that on the occasions of inspections they know that their unit will raise no concerns.”

Trauma initiative

The Presbyterian Church is involved in the implementation of trauma informed practice, the Assembly heard.

Jacqui Montgomery-Devlin, head of Safeguarding for PCI, explained, “In 2017 the Department of Health announced that £1.5 million would be invested in the work with the aim of Northern Ireland becoming a trauma informed society, and we are delighted to be part of this.”

Working alongside the Safeguarding Board of Northern Ireland, CSW has been exploring how adverse childhood experiences cause trauma, and impact throughout a person’s life.

Two pilot projects – Trinity House and Thompson House – are implementing the process.

Giving an overview of Taking Care, Ms Montgomery-Devlin said she was encouraged that churches continued to seek safeguarding training for their leaders.

“The Taking Care volunteer trainers, who give so generously of their time and their skills, stepped up to the mark and together we continued to safeguard our congregations through the online training of leaders, designated child protection persons and ministry,” she said. For various reasons, 50% of volunteer trainers are no longer able to continue in the role, and Ms Montgomery-Devlin asked for support by highlighting the role within churches.

Stormont

The lack of a functioning Assembly at Stormont was addressed. Convener of the Council for Public Affairs, Rev Daniel Kane, described it as having a “profoundly detrimental effect across all sectors of life in NI.”

He continued, “Where the means do exist to allow Executive Ministers to work together…even if not optimal, then it is our expressed desire that these should be utilised to their full extent.”

Karen Jardine, Public Affairs Officer, noted PCI’s frustration over the Secretary of State’s actions, “to undermine the devolution settlement…on matters which range from the provision of abortion services to education, to language and identity.”

She noted as well: “It was also deeply disappointing that earlier this year the Northern Ireland Assembly rejected legislation designed to protect children with a pre-natal diagnosis of severe, but non-fatal, foetal impairment.”

Graciously confident gospel engagement

The Council for Public Affairs continues to progress its paper ‘Graciously Confident Gospel Engagement in the Public Square’ as it develops PCI’s thinking on current issues and communicates its views in the public square. The work of the CPA is complex and varied in its scope as is evidenced by the seven consultation responses submitted from August 2021 to March 2022, along with submissions to the Independent Review of Education and the public consultation on improving the effectiveness of hate crime legislation in NI.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS | GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2022

Cost of living crisis

Rev Daniel Kane addressed the current cost of living crisis saying, “The struggle to pay the heating bills and put food on the table is having a hugely negative effect on the weakest and most susceptible in our society…This presents us with the massive challenge of adorning the gospel with open generosity and practical Good Samaritan style compassion.”

Mark Baillie, an elder in First Holywood and interim convener of the Welfare and Wellbeing panel quoted statistics which state that the number of families facing destitution in Northern Ireland could soon increase by 67% to 25,000 individuals and in the Republic almost one in five households are in poverty (about 950,000 people). He commented that amongst those who are working to help people in these circumstances, there is “considerable trepidation” about the incoming winter.

Mr Baillie concluded, “We as a Church need to be willing to speak up for the most marginalised and vulnerable in this society, when we engage with decision makers in Belfast, Dublin and Westminster.”

Republic of Ireland panel

Rev Daniel Kane commended the significant work being carried out by the Republic of Ireland Panel, under the convenership of Rev William Hayes.

On the issue of asylum Mr Hayes said, “I feel that the Irish government deserves a note of congratulations. The recent amnesty in which people were given the opportunity to get up to date with their paperwork has lifted untold stress… And the generous response to Ukrainian refugees is also something that deserves commendation, especially when compared to more powerful and well-resourced neighbouring countries. We have, for example, a larger number of Ukrainian refugees in the parish boundaries of my church than have been allocated by the British Home Office to the entirety of Northern Ireland...it has been a brave response and very much in keeping with what the Scriptures require of us...”

Appeal for Protocol negotiations

A resolution was passed appealing for the European Union to “take steps to enable the necessary negotiations” with the UK government, and for the UK government to enter into those negotiations “as a matter of priority”.

Endorsing the resolution, Clerk of the Assembly, Rev Trevor Gribben said, “This is not an affirmation of any political party’s policy…people need to find a way forward to talk. Negotiations on things like the Protocol is the only way forward.”

Integrated education

Karen Jardine, Public Affairs Officer said, “It is disappointing that the commentary and debates on the Integrated Education Bill, which has now become law, fell into lazy stereotypes.

“There was little acknowledgement of the role played by Shared Education, or that in areas which are naturally integrated and reflective of diverse communities, the local school community in any sector also reflects this diversity…PCI is not against integrated education, far from it, but the integrating of education should not be associated solely with one sector.”

Andy Brown added, “We can’t support the promotion of one sector above others and the diminution of parental preference. In a world in which only Ghana, Cuba and North Korea have a single education system, I’d say keeping such preferences is a pretty clear hallmark of a democratic society.”

Tribute to Very Rev Dr Andrew Rodgers

Andrew Rodgers was born in 1930 to Thomas and Alice Rodgers. His father was minister of Magheragall Presbyterian, near Lisburn and had previously been married and widowed with four children.

Alice was very ill after the delivery of Andrew and so for the first year of his life, he was looked after by Aunt Molly. Primary schooling was in Ballycarrickmaddy and then education continued at Inchmarlo and Wallace during the war years. In 1943 his father retired from Magheragall and the family moved to Windsor Avenue on the Lisburn Road.

In that same year, sadly his mother developed breast cancer and needed £700 to pay for the life-saving operation –money that was way beyond their £230 annual salary. They prayed and the money arrived from everywhere. The operation went well and his mother survived until 1965. This impacted hugely on the young Andrew who was very close to his mother and taught him lessons that stayed with him through his life: the significance of prayer; the generosity of people; and that cancer can be helped.

expectant mother who delivered her baby in the car en route to hospital, earning him the nickname of the ‘Clones midwife’.

The call to Dungannon Presbyterian came in 1965 – a much bigger congregation of over 600 families. He saw it as his responsibility to know and visit every member and to provide support to those who were sick.

His 32 years as minister in Dungannon were during the worst years of the Troubles. The church had its windows replaced nearly 30 times because of bombs in the town, but much more devastating was the grief and pain to families who had members killed or maimed in the conflict. Being there as Christ’s representative in those dark days took its toll, as did the intimidation and threats from those who felt his ministry should have been more political.

A determination to do everything that he possibly could to help people and promote the gospel…

As the crucial final exam years at school approached Andrew contracted rheumatic fever and was confined to bed for a whole year, an experience which gave him a lifetime empathy for those in hospital. He was committed to following his father into ministry and enrolled in Magee for the BA course. Six weeks after enrolment his father died and but for the financial support of his stepbrother, Dr John Rodgers, his ministerial career hopes might have ended then. Andrew was always so very grateful for this great kindness and sacrifice.

He became assistant to Rev Gillespie in his father’s old church, Ulsterville, at a time when attendances were often more than 1,000. Attending Windsor Presbyterian Christian Endeavour, he met Helen White, from Glasslough in Monaghan, who trained telephonists in Fortwilliam. It was the start of a long courtship and a much longer marriage, a formidable partnership.

In 1957 Andrew was installed in Clones Presbyterian Church and stayed for eight years, during which time he married Helen and they had their three children.

The characteristics of his later ministry were honed in Clones. A determination to do everything that he possibly could to help people and promote the gospel, a warmth and a sense of humour, an approach that took his calling and his responsibilities seriously but never himself or his own needs. He was there for people when needed, even to the extent of providing transport for an

Dr Rodgers was elected Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in 1993, an honour for which he felt ill prepared but one he relished. Once again, he committed himself to hard work in this new role. During that year he travelled 47,000 miles in Ireland, 7,500 in Africa and 2,000 across the UK. ‘Back to basics and forward with fervour’ was his theme and he and Helen developed a real pastoral concern for the manse families across Ireland and PCI’s missionary families abroad. The spotlight was never far away during that year – such as the awful Shankill Road bombing, which catapulted them from a happy wedding celebration into the heart of bomb devastation, bereaved families, traumatised rescue workers and the media.

Dr Rodgers retired from Dungannon in 1996 and he and Helen moved to Gortnaskea near Stewartstown. He began a new career which was to last over 20 years as the self-styled ‘geriatric assistant’ in First Cookstown. He thrived with visiting and preaching – the things in ministry that he most enjoyed without the pressures of being in charge. He was grateful to Isaac Thompson and the congregation for this opportunity which meant so much to him in his retirement years.

Dr Rodgers and Helen were both very active until a little over three years ago when illness intervened, leading to Helen dying in 2019. Dr Rodgers nearly died then too but a heart operation was transformative.

His final days were spent in Loane House following a fall. He died very peacefully and gently with his family at his side.

This article was adapted from the tribute given by family members at Dr Rodgers’s funeral service.

Mission Connect

Sowing seeds in the garden of Ireland...

Mission news from workers around Ireland and the world.

Every aspect of our Church’s mission depends to some extent on United Appeal. Hundreds of projects and programmes at home and overseas are helping to advance God’s kingdom, showing God’s love in action to hundreds of thousands of people.

Meeting the need Shirley McGonigle

Helping young people feel loved Dan Rosbotham

A battle rages… Gary and Mary Reid

Fixing our eyes on Jesus Louise Davidson

Sowing seeds in the garden of Ireland… Rev Michael Anderson

Including September prayer diary

Meeting the need

Shirley McGonigle

Assistant project leader, International Meeting Point, north Belfast

As the International Meeting Point (IMP) has grown, so has the need to respond to the changing circumstances of those seeking sanctuary in Belfast. Numbers have increased considerably, with many being housed in the north of the city. To meet this changing need Keith Preston, founder of IMP, asked North Belfast Presbytery if a work could begin around Carlisle Circus. The first step was the opening of the IMP’s baby and children’s charity shop in 2019. This provided a natural way to connect with and provide for the many refugee families who found themselves living in the local area. God has used Frances, the manager, in a wonderful way, gifting her with the ability to welcome, love and pray with people in the name of Jesus.

outside the times stated, and topics discussed cover more than grammar.

…it is clear that those who are coming are also hungry for meaningful friendship. As Christians, we are called to serve others, not just by meeting their practical needs, but also their emotional and spiritual needs.

Three years later, and post-pandemic, it is humbling and exciting to see how God has been working out his purposes. In addition to the shop, IMP at Carlisle Circus now has a hall and in March, I had the privilege of being appointed to join the team as assistant project leader for IMP in north Belfast, to build on the work already established.

Connecting with asylum seekers in this part of the capital is happening naturally through the provision of weekly English classes. Being able to communicate in English is obviously vital to settling, but it is clear that those who are coming are also hungry for meaningful friendship. As Christians, we are called to serve others, not just by meeting their practical needs, but also their emotional and spiritual needs. Our aim at IMP is, with God’s help, to serve holistically. For this reason, English classes can extend well

The ministry of IMP is undoubtedly long term. However, there are clear signs that God is already opening doors in expanding opportunities for connections to be made, and for faith conversations to be had. Several of the women in the conversation class on Tuesdays have shared how this time together has helped to combat loneliness and the conversation is already turning to matters of the heart. The advanced class has several Muslim men who are searching for truth and often ask questions with respect to who Jesus is and the differences between Islam and Christianity. Each Thursday at the Bible study we have people from the local area, but also those from countries such as Iran and Iraq, new to the faith and thirsty for knowledge about God. On Friday mornings there is a wonderful atmosphere of joy and community at the parent and toddler group. We are, therefore, encouraged and give thanks: “God performs wonders that cannot be fathomed. So the poor have hope and injustice shuts its mouth” (Job 5:9,16).

Please pray:

• Pray that God will continue to bring those in need through the doors of IMP.

• Pray that friendships will deepen, that we will be bold in sharing the gospel and that people will come to faith.

• Pray for wisdom, as we inquire of the Lord his purposes for the way forward.

Helping young people feel loved

Dan Rosbotham

Community outreach worker, Ravenhill

For just over two years I have been working for Young Life International alongside Ravenhill Presbyterian Church in east Belfast. My role is to engage with local young people outside of the church. Starting in 2020, this was difficult! After initial engagements through schools and especially a local drop-in football programme, we were able to meet with lots of local young people as well as build good relations with other local organisations. However, when lockdown hit, it very much stalled any progress or momentum.

…something special is happening… God has big plans for the young people in the Ravenhill area of Belfast

One of the ways we were able to meet young people over lockdown was through the use of a hot chocolate outreach, meeting them on the streets and at Ormeau Park.

Finally in September 2021 we launched a weekly Young Life club with over 100 teenagers attending over the course of the year. This was a great opportunity to help young people feel loved, see that they didn’t have to take themselves too seriously and share the gospel with them.

Very quickly we discovered that young people were coming with a variety of different problems, one of which was not eating a substantial dinner. So we made it our goal that no young person left the building hungry, and we supplied a hot meal for supper.

As the year went on, we decided that in the summer we would run a ‘day camp’ with young people attending for football or craft, fun games, dinner and Young Life club every evening. This was a really special week with over 35 young people engaging in the camp. Every night we broke into small groups and gave them the

opportunity to discuss the day, but importantly using questions to discuss the talks they heard each evening. In one of these groups our leaders provided the opportunity for response, and four boys decided to make a commitment to follow Jesus. This week has helped us to build momentum and increase our relationships with young people, leading into the club returning in September. We are also bringing multiple young people to Scotland at different points of the summer for Young Life camp.

Another thing to note would be the relationship we have built with schools, in particular Breda Academy. They have been hugely receptive to mentoring in the school, as well as football on the playground at lunch time, with discussions ongoing as to how we can develop this relationship further.

This has been a time of ups and downs since starting, especially with lockdown, however, I believe that something special is happening and that God has big plans for the young people in the Ravenhill area of Belfast.

Please pray:

• Give thanks for the four boys who became Christians and pray that they will grow in their faith and love for the Lord.

• Pray too that many more of the young people whom Dan is in contact with will also commit to following Jesus.

A battle rages…

Gary and Mary Reid Global mission workers in Kenya

Crashing, blow on blow, upon our exhausted frames. God lifts our souls. The thrill of expectation – knowing he will hear our cry, will answer, and will make a way – causes our hearts to rise and we ride on his promises.

Many are already glorifying our Father for his provision and goodness and how we bless him that despite countless difficulties, we saw his enabling, working and provision repeatedly.

Our last months before returning with our youngest to Northern Ireland were fraught with difficulties, but we saw the hand of our Lord at work and how we praise him! Tiredness shrouded our bodies and minds; the sun beat down harshly as we laboured, while the cold nipped when we worked into the night. But – our Father enabled much work to be accomplished.

Our Father provided three containers and their transportation for one of the local government schools sponsored by the Mission. He enabled a literal road to be made for the containers to travel over to reach their final destination. When a lorry got bogged down after some heavy rain, assistance was required to procure its release and much work was required to make the ‘road’ passable for the delivery of toughened glass doors and windows for the containers. Dear Maasai worked diligently on these containers, alongside tradesmen and labourers brought in to cut and weld, and then finally install the windows and doors.

Our Father provided rainwater catchment tanks (though due to some other unforeseen problems, the guttering was unable to be installed on the containers, but a broken 6,000 litre tank adjoining a building provided previously by the Mission was replaced and was already storing water before we left). While the workers were staying on site at the Mission, a girl came in the evening seeking

to go to school. Despite the rain, she was transported to the local boarding school and our return journey to the Mission was certainly arduous. That night we were again confronted with rats in the Mission buildings and over the coming weeks we encountered more rats, snakes, safari ants and bees!

Over the final weeks, more vehicles were helped – the digger being required to assist a very entrenched lorry. The new entrance to the Mission was completed. The containers had trusses and roofing attached, alongside shelving. Cupboards were transported and gifted to the school and a large whiteboard was fixed to the wall. Separately, four 10,000 litre water tanks were put in place as storage for the community, trenches dug and pipes buried, while a water trough was made for the livestock, with an adjacent tap. Many are already glorifying our Father for his provision and goodness and how we bless him that despite countless difficulties, we saw his enabling, working and provision repeatedly.

Please pray:

• Give thanks for God’s provision and help and pray that all he has provided will be a blessing to the community.

• Pray that as God’s Word is taught each Sunday, that God’s Holy Spirit will unite the true believers in him, in love.

• Remember the believers in prayer, that they will be our Lord’s faithful witnesses, bringing him glory whilst they grow deeper in their relationship with him.

Fixing our eyes on Jesus

Louise Davidson Deaconess, West Presbyterian Church Bangor

On 20 October 2020, I was commissioned as deaconess of West Church Bangor (since then West Church and Kilcooley have merged). At that service I explained that Martin Luther King wasn’t the only one to have a dream – I too had had a God-given dream of becoming a PCI deaconess. I had dreamed of this night for years – the church packed, a great supper afterwards, and, of course, an opportunity for selfies! On the night, however, due to the pandemic, numbers were restricted, no supper, no selfies. My plans had changed.

encourage and let them know that we were praying for them. This opened new avenues of connection with those I had yet to meet.

Connections Women’s Ministry is intrinsic to the whole work of the church, encouraging women to use their God-given gifts to impact their homes, workplaces, communities and beyond.

Reflecting on this, I saw that while dreams are important, what or who matters most is the divine ‘dream-maker’ – God himself, our salvation, joy, peace and hope. Our deepest dreams and longings can only be realised in him. That’s why Hebrews 12:2 encourages us to “fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

As a student deaconess in West, 10 months before the pandemic struck, I had met many of the congregation, but not all. Alongside serving in the pastoral team, sharing God’s Word in Bible studies or Sunday services, my role during this time was to develop and lead a women’s ministry that would serve and enable women to deepen their relationship with God. Consequently, Connections Women’s Ministry (CWM) was formed, where I serve with a team of nine women who share a passion to see women nurtured in their faith.

Integrating PW, CWM is intrinsic to the whole work of the church, encouraging women to use their God-given gifts, to impact their homes, workplaces, communities and beyond.

During Covid, we embraced meeting virtually as a group and inviting friends to join.

Meanwhile, I wrote to many of our frontline workers, to

As restrictions began to be relaxed, CWM ran a few events: a journaling evening; worship and praise evenings; ‘Gift of Hope’ Christmas worship night; ‘Soup, Sandwich and Song’ and ‘Devotion and Dander’. Now, I’m looking forward to this incoming (post-restriction) CWM season, when much of my focus will be on meeting women individually, being attentive to what God is saying as we read and share his Word together. We have some events already planned, including: women’s breakfasts; Faith and Fitness; seminars on many different issues; and praise and prayer evenings.

How true it is that, we can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps (Proverbs 16:9). We trust and focus always on him. His ways are not our ways; his ways are best, because not only is he the dream-maker, he is the Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer of us all.

Please pray:

• Give thanks for the love, support, and encouragement that I have received from West and Kilcooley.

• Pray that the women at West and Kilcooley will know the love, peace and grace of God.

• Pray that in my pastoral ministry, I will be attentive to the Holy Spirit’s leading.

• Pray that God will expand my opportunities to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Sowing seeds in the garden of Ireland…

Rev Michael Anderson Minister, Arklow Presbyterian Church

“Michael at the end of the day, all we are doing is sowing seeds…” I find these words from a senior colleague in ministry deeply encouraging on many levels. They keep me humble by reminding me that any spiritual work is God’s – only he can make seeds grow. They relieve the pressure that I often place on my own shoulders to make things happen – the only thing God calls me to is faithful sowing. In fact, I have found this phrase so helpful that I have a little jar of mustard seeds on my desk as a constant reminder.

Like many other churches we have found it difficult to gain traction with our teens, especially since the disruption of Covid.

Every region and microclimate is different, so let me share a few details of the soil in which we are attempting to plant and the ways that we are seeking to sow seeds for Jesus here in the ‘garden of Ireland.’

Arklow is a town located in Co Wicklow on the south-east coast of Ireland. As a commuter town to Dublin, we have a growing population of around 14,000 people, many of whom are from other parts of the world. This increasing diversity is reflected in our church family – we have people from the north and south of Ireland, England, America, Canada, Nigeria, Brazil, South Africa, the Philippines and South Korea.

Biodiversity is a sign of healthy growth, so it’s wonderful to see so many people of all ages and nationalities taking part in our Sunday services and using the gifts God has given them as we worship him together. This is also reflected in the wonderful balance of men and women within our eldership team and the variety of church backgrounds that we come from.

In addition, we are very grateful to have the support of our Irish mission worker, Philip Whelton, together with his wife Susan

and daughter Amy. For more than 25 years now they have toiled faithfully in sowing seeds within our community, particularly among young people and their families. Practically this involves coordinating the Wednesday club for primary school kids and the Friday night youth club for younger teens. It’s been such a joy to see the numbers attending these gradually recovering since the lifting of Covid restrictions. Another aspect of their work and the highlight of the year is our holiday Bible club which is always the first week in August. It’s become so popular over the years that many local families and sports clubs plan their holidays and sports camps around it! Normally well over 250 children and young people attend each year. As I write this article I am buzzing with excitement for today was the first time to have the camp back since Covid. It is wonderful to see so many children and leaders in attendance, especially our friends from Hamilton Road in Bangor.

Each Sunday we sow seeds in our own lives as we sit around God’s Word. The beginning of the service is very much geared towards our younger children after which they leave for their own Sunday club programme, which builds on the theme of the church service that day. Our teenagers are encouraged to remain in the service and to get involved in serving from time to time by singing, playing, reading or helping with the younger children. Like many other churches we have found it difficult to gain traction with our teens, especially since the disruption of Covid. We are planning some communicants’ classes in September so please do pray for wisdom and insight in how we might sow seeds within the lives of our young teens.

Please also pray for how we might meaningfully sow seeds in the lives of a small but wonderful group of young adults.

One area of encouragement has been to witness the engagement within our women’s monthly Bible study and our weekly Bible study and prayer groups. Over the last semester we have been blessed as we have studied Esther and the Psalms together and taken time to pray for one another and for the needs of our community.

Another significant area of encouragement has been to see how our church redevelopment project in 2011 has enabled us to sow seeds within our wider community. Our church facilities are now a hive of activity every day of the week. We have become a recognised hub within the community, facilitating a wide range of activities, including bridge classes; a Montessori school; art classes; an autism support group; HSE vaccination clinics; Samaritans’ training; first responders’ training; the Tuesday coffee dock (tots and carers); council and business meetings; birthday parties; science club etc.

Undoubtedly one of the highlights of this year has been the privilege of sowing seeds in the lives of our friends from Ukraine. As soon as migrants started arriving in Arklow, my wife Emma, who is a trained TEFL teacher, opened the church on Monday and Wednesday mornings for English classes. After a couple of weeks she was contacted by the local council and so a partnership began.

Over the weeks and months that have followed the numbers of Ukrainians availing of this service has grown significantly. Many people came for just a few weeks before they were moved on to other parts of Ireland to find accommodation. But around 130 families have remained in Arklow and many people continue to attend the classes each week. One of these migrants who is a trained psychologist has begun a trauma class on a Thursday morning.

It has been amazing to see how many of our congregation, especially those who are retired, have come along each week to share their knowledge of English with these wonderful people. It has been beautiful to witness the relationships that have grown

Undoubtedly one of the highlights of this year has been the privilege of sowing seeds in the lives of our friends from Ukraine.

through this and to hear the laughter as we seek to learn each other’s languages. I’ve tried my best to learn some Ukrainian phrases but one of the funniest things of all has been getting to know a retired Ukrainian man through our mutual understanding of German. The thing that’s most amusing for him is that he is a devout communist learning English in a Christian church!

We have had to take a break for the summer but these classes will resume again in the third week in August. Please pray that we will be able to reconnect and to sustain this ministry in the weeks and months ahead.

If you ever fancy a break, let me highly recommend this very beautiful part of Ireland. We are surrounded by many superb beaches, various forest walks and there is a good selection of places to visit, including the Avoca hand weavers and Glendalough. Do drop in to worship with us any Sunday morning, you’ll be made very welcome. In the meantime, wherever you are, in whatever you do, just keep sowing seeds and pray that God will make them grow. And to him be all the glory….

Please pray:

• Pray for the sowing of seeds for Jesus in Arklow and that they will see many more people come to faith.

• Give thanks and pray for the various outreach ministries of the congregation, especially the new English classes and trauma class for people from Ukraine.

• Pray for all the members of the Arklow church family, including Philip Whelton (Irish mission worker) and Rev Michael Anderson (minister) that they would be guided by God in all they do.

n MISSION IN IRELAND – Give thanks for everyone in PCI congregations who engages in mission. At the start of a new ‘church year’, pray that each person will be envisioned and filled with the Spirit as they share God’s love.

n COUNCIL FOR MISSION IN IRELAND – Pray for Dr Frank Sellar (Council convener), Dr David Bruce (Council Secretary) and Rick Hill (Council Secretary-Designate), along with members of the Council for Mission in Ireland. Pray that they will have wisdom and guidance in their work throughout the year ahead.

n COUNCIL FOR GLOBAL MISSION

– Pray for Rev Stephen McCracken (Council convener) and Rev Uel Marrs (Council Secretary), along with members of the Council for Global Mission. Pray that they too will have wisdom and guidance throughout the year ahead.

n COMMUNITY OUTREACH – Pray for Michaela Tucillo, new community outreach worker in Abbey Presbyterian Church in North Belfast Presbytery, as she settles into her new role.

n COUNCIL FOR SOCIAL WITNESS – Give thanks for our senior managers and their faithfulness to the work. Pray for all care staff, as they provide 24-hour care to residents in our homes and units. Give thanks for the dedication of so many volunteers, who give freely of their time.

n HUNGARY – Pray for Nigel and Antonia Craig who are due to begin serving with the Reformed Church in Hungary in Debrecen this month, ministering to and reaching out to the English-speaking community there.

n CHAPLAINS – Pray for Rev Rodney Cameron, part-time prison chaplain in Hydebank Wood College and Women’s Prison, as he offers pastoral support to prisoners and staff.

n LAWNFIELD HOUSE – is a residential respite care home. Pray for staff and service-users – and especially for Andrea McComiskey, the interim home manager –that they will all know God’s presence in their daily routines.

n HOME MISSION – Pray for new members received recently in Corboy and Mullingar congregations. Pray also for the 200th anniversary of Mullingar taking place this year and that the celebrations will be an opportunity to witness and bring glory to the Lord.

n CHAPLAINS – Pray for Rev Norman Harrison, serving as chaplain in the Royal Group of Hospitals, Belfast and lead chaplain in the Northern Trust. Pray that the people he visits will have open hearts and minds to trust in Christ in all circumstances.

n WORLD ALZHEIMER MONTH – Pray that following assessments those affected by dementia and their carers will receive appropriate support and advice. Pray that we can all be a practical and prayerful support in tough times.

n HOME MISSION – Pray for God’s blessing on the congregations of Bray and Blackrock near Dublin, and for Rev Andrew Gill, the kirk session and all in leadership positions in the church.

n WORLD FOOD CRISIS – Pray for people across the world dependent on food aid and for the aid agencies helping them. There are increasing concerns of a global hunger catastrophe unfolding fuelled by the facts that grain is trapped in Ukraine, the protectionist policies of other significant grain producers, and a poor harvest in East Africa.

n CHAPLAINS – Pray for Rev John Coulter, part-time chaplain at the Ulster University (Coleraine campus), as he provides pastoral care to students and supports the work of the Christian Union.

n SUNNYSIDE HOUSE – is a 45-bed unit offering care and support to older people. Give thanks for our staff team. Pray for friends and relatives who work in close partnership with staff, offering support, knowledge and expertise which can enhance residents’ care.

n URBAN MISSION – Give thanks for plans for a new Special Ministry in west Belfast and for the appointment of Rev David Moore to lead this work. Pray for him as he seeks to establish this new ministry.

n HOME MISSION – Pray for the life and witness of Cootehill, Drum and Kilmount home mission congregations in Co Cavan and for Rev Daryl Edwards, the kirk sessions and members of the congregations.

n PORTUGAL – Pray for the Christian Presbyterian Church of Portugal. Pray for this small denomination to grow and flourish, and that through it, the Holy Spirit will bring many people to faith in Christ.

n HOME MISSION – Give thanks for a wonderful Bible club week during the summer in Fermoy (Co Cork) and pray for more opportunities to sow into these young lives. Give thanks for blessings in Cahir (Co Tipperary), as they see people trusting in Jesus. Pray for more labourers.

n MALAWI – Pray for the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian, Blantyre, Livingstonia, and Nkhoma Synods, Malawi, especially for its healthcare, education and development projects as it seeks to help people living in one of the world’s economically poorest countries.

n HOME MISSION – Pray for the members of Carndonagh, Greenbank, Malin and Moville congregations in Co Donegal. Remember also Rev Philip Poots, minister of these four home mission congregations.

n TOPLEY COURT – part of the Willow Brook project, the bungalows are dedicated to the care of individuals with a physical disability. Pray that tenants will feel very much at home and feel part of the Willow Brook community. Pray for all staff as they work to support tenants.

n IRISH MISION – Pray for David Boyd, Irish mission worker in Dublin. Pray for his efforts to reach out to Ukrainians in Dublin who have fled the war in Ukraine, with practical support and the good news of Jesus.

n HOME MISSION – Pray for the new exciting opportunity for mission in Carrigart using the Bewglass Centre. Pray for the minister of God’s choosing to come forward to lead this work and to minister to Carrigart and Dunfunaghy congregations.

n KENYA – Pray for Naomi Leremore and members of the Theological Education by Extension writing team, as they prepare resources to help people grow in their Christian lives.

n INDONESIA – Pray for God’s blessing on the Christian Church of Sumba as they continue to worship God and share the gospel with others on the island of Sumba and beyond.

n SOUTHERN AFRICA – Pray for Volker Glissmann, who during most of September is in NI, sharing in PCI congregations about the work he is involved in. Pray too as he returns to Malawi towards the end of September and resumes his work with the Theological Education by Extension College in Johannesburg, South Africa and for Theological Education by Extension Malawi.

Nigel and Antonia Craig

David Boyd

TALKING POINTS

Recovering hospitality

Norman

Hamilton discusses

the importance of

hospitality and why, after Covid, it is more in need than ever.

Please forgive me – but I do want to be upfront right at the beginning of this article. It is an unambiguous plea for us to recover and practise the Bible’s teaching on ‘hospitality’ as an absolutely normal part of living for Christ. I am making this appeal to absolutely everyone – and I do mean everyone! – men, women, young people. There is an increasing need in our highly individualistic society to offer hospitality to young families, singles, widows and widowers, the lonely, the visitor, the distressed, the energetic… whoever and in whatever circumstances they find themselves.

I do so for two reasons. Firstly, it is exactly the Bible’s pattern and guidance for Christian living. “Share with God’s people who are in need.

Practise hospitality” (Romans 12:13).

“Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling” (1 Peter 4:9).

The call to hospitality also extends to those outside of the church: Galatians 6:10 tells us “…as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people…” And there is a fascinating passage in Luke 7 where Simon the Pharisee appears to have held an ‘open house’, since the woman who anointed Jesus was simply accepted as someone circulating among the guests.

of preparing meals for those in need or under pressure (for whatever reason), and taking it round to them in their homes.

And there are new and creative ways to bless others with good food. If we are on our travels to somewhere further away, how about contacting some folks who live around there, and suggesting that you meet for coffee and a catch-up chat?

Speaking personally, one of the happier things I discovered during Covid was that at least one of the larger supermarkets will deliver a box of wonderful fruit to almost any address in the UK on a specified day! And what about including a bar of chocolate (or something else) in a suitable envelope when sending a birthday card or the like to celebrate an event in someone’s life?

Simply looking after ourselves is not an option for God’s people…for the Bible is very clear that caring for those outside our own circles is crucially important.

Secondly, some of the circumstances in the New Testament are clearly just as real today as they were then. For example, the increasing material need, shown by the ongoing and rapid rise in the use of food banks, including by those who are in work every day. Add to this the loneliness, isolation, pressure and distress that afflict so many ‘ordinary’ people, and it is abundantly clear that hospitality, decent conversation, a listening ear and companionship go together and that there is a wonderful ministry of hospitality calling out to us all the time.

It is also important to say that it is not to be a burden, but a joy, and, if I may say so, it is fundamentally an attitude of mind and heart enabled by the Holy Spirit. It is a work of grace, and a big one at that, since it is a response to the generosity and grace of God in salvation. It is no accident that the salvation events of Easter started with Jesus sharing a meal with his disciples (Luke 14).

Of course, none of us can do everything for everyone who could be blessed by hospitality, and so we need to explore just how any of us can do it well. Hospitality can, and should, come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, for that is the basis on which everyone can practise it. Some of us like to cook meals at home (I do). Others are excellent at inviting friends to coffee in a local café or in our homes. Some have a particular ministry

I am, of course, very aware that the cost of living crisis is affecting us all to a greater or lesser extent. Yet we are still unambiguously called by Jesus to take the initiative and love our neighbours as a very practical outworking of our love and commitment to him. Simply looking after ourselves is not an option for God’s people. It never has been, for the Bible is very clear that caring for those outside our own circles is crucially important. Indeed, it will count not just now, but at the final judgment (Matthew 25:31–46).

At the beginning of this article, I asked that we recover and practise the Bible’s teaching on ‘hospitality’ as an absolutely normal part of living for Christ. I am deeply troubled that the importance of warm supportive relationships is constantly being eroded, even in our churches. Meeting on Zoom has been no substitute for proper fellowship. Wearing masks hasn’t helped either, even though both have been a blessing. It really is time to put the sharing of food back on the menu of support and fellowship.

So – anyone for coffee? I’m actually quite serious about saying that! And if you want to take me up on it – please do – and I’ll buy!

Norman Hamilton can be contacted at hamilton.norman@gmail.com

Rev Dr Norman Hamilton

Very Rev Dr Norman Hamilton is a former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.

My first General Assembly

Deborah Sloan offers her thoughts on her first General Assembly experience.

Iwas running late. My husband was 963 miles away. I had navigated three school drop-offs, supported some lastminute GCSE Physics preparation, unloaded and re-loaded the dishwasher, unblocked the toilet, walked the dog, stopped for diesel, collected a parcel. I wondered would there be others similarly behind schedule due to their domestic duties but as I stood in the queue of aftershave in Assembly Buildings at two minutes past 10am, I couldn’t see too many that looked like me. My yellow lanyard publicly heralded my status, reminding me that I wasn’t a minister or an elder, I was an ‘other’. I didn’t have a vote. As I climbed the stairs to the viewing gallery, I considered what might happen if I got carried away and accidentally shouted ‘aye’. Were there consequences?

It is difficult to encompass the sights, sounds and smells of the PCI General Assembly in less than 1500 words. It is an anthropologist’s paradise, a homage to ‘no wriggle room’ governance; the Blue Book with its reports and resolutions is quite simply a masterpiece. Any minor apologies re typos are testament to the person who had the joy of proofreading it.

Despite its Twitter take-over and endless decision-making about various aspects of church life, the average Presbyterian who turns up on a Sunday still remains oblivious to the General Assembly’s purpose. Its impact though was undeniably felt across the city centre. By 12pm on Thursday, Costa had run out of sandwiches. Forced to go further afield for a fishcake and three salads on Saturday, I caught sight of a Blue Book under an arm in Avoca.

I found the General Assembly simultaneously enthralling and confusing. Never before had I seen so many retired people wield so much authority. I couldn’t think of another sector where the pensionable were still controlling dayto-day business. I pondered how it was possible to hold so many resolute opinions on so many disparate social, cultural and political issues whilst remaining completely unfazed by nuance and lack of personal expertise. Some faces became increasingly familiar up front. I noted there

was a specific uniform for those retiring this year. I was bemused by the on-stage props, the countdown clock, the green light, the buzzer that made me jump. There were elements of a Channel 4 game show. Failure to sit in the blue seats when entering the debate necessitated a ticking-off from the host. There were a lot of mini-sermons, mostly about how far we have transgressed, how liberal we have become. There was a lovely tribute to the Queen. A bishop told a joke. Very few succeeded in concise speech-making. Four minutes felt like a lifetime. Training is definitely needed in formulating a question. Although there were bonus points for submitting a question in advance, most weren’t actually answered. Interim was the main excuse. 2023 sounds like it’s going to be a bit of a nightmare, something to do with a Code as well. I was glad the Moderator recognised a rhetorical question. I wished he would use his motorcycling analogies more. As time ran out and there was a danger of lapsing, I liked his golfing one about keeping it on the fairway, no straying off into the rough. It was great that he seemed to either know everybody or they had holidayed in Portrush at least once.

I was bemused by the on-stage props, the countdown clock, the green light, the buzzer that made me jump.

I found myself comparing the stance of the women versus the men. One gender leaned less on the lectern. As the males competitively leapt on to the stage and appreciated their youthful knees, I was struck by their ease. I realised that speaking passionately about Christ’s love for the marginalised, as a woman, does indeed cost dearly; that women have to work so much harder to earn respect, it is not naturally gifted to them through the advantage of gender. I was pleased that one academic discerned that less is more when she asked the Assembly not to demand the sacred right to teach religious education, but to explain why it should be taught as a sacred privilege. I decided the future will depend on how well we can dissent with grace. I was grateful for all the women who had made it there, for their biblical faithfulness, their intellectual robustness and their unique insights. I focused on a vibrant pink jacket amidst the

grey and beige and prayed for greater diversity to break through. When John Dunlop highlighted the non-inclusivity in the Assembly hall, “This Church is predominately rich, white, male and British”, social media pounced on the Britishness. There is a distance to travel to ‘raise Jesus as the single flag’.

If we could only package what unites us rather than divides us…the potential to witness in the public square could

be limitless.

There was the potential to be overwhelmed by the wealth of topics discussed, from integrated education to devolution, Brexit, the Northern Ireland Protocol, refugees, the cost of living, samesex attraction, fossil fuels, the Troubles, the fallout from the pandemic. The General Council has a ridiculous remit. It seems there are areas saturated with Presbyterian churches, others unreached. Rural demands a different strategy to inner-city. The Moderator offered some advice, “Concentrate on the depth and let God look after the breadth”. For me, there weren’t enough stories. What does the outworking of so many task groups mean to the teenage girl who finds herself pregnant, to the parents raising children with intellectual disabilities, to those struggling with identity? I wanted to hear more about real interventions into real lives – offenders, addicts, those in respite care, supported housing. Their artwork was outstanding. I especially wanted to hear more about William’s mother, how her learning difficulties meant “her theology could be written on the back of a postcard yet she understood God’s grace and that he had saved her”.

I needed to both ground and elevate the whole experience. What had specifically moved me? When had I felt the presence of God?

But it was listening to the global church that challenged me most. Reaching out into communities that desperately need the gospel, Anne, resplendent in her Women’s Guild headscarf, was a no-nonsense beacon of hope. She personified the theme of ‘hearing the heart’ and described exactly what church should be – a safe space.

When her husband added that men can’t cope with empowered women, I caught the eye of my favourite clerk of presbytery. It was a moment of solidarity.

As we stood to sing Turn Your Eyes on Thursday lunchtime, as we looked up and lifted our voices to cry “All glory to Jesus alone”, there was a palpable togetherness. It was a powerful reminder that we were worshipping the same God. Somewhere there was a Carrickfergus window, I didn’t know where it was but the light was surely shining in. If we could only package what unites us rather than divides us, take that light outside the building, the potential to witness in the public square could be limitless. It will not be the words of our inward resolution-passing that defines us but the actions that emerge through the consistency of our outward living. As we were reminded, ‘aye’ doesn’t just mean agreeing, it means committing.

When Emma, a pelvic physio, braved the podium to ask for more women to be trained in pregnancyrelated pastoral support, she also highlighted the non-existent queue for the ladies. I had one to myself, a secret one round the side of the lift. I spotted a second throne abandoned there, the twin of the one the Moderator was occupying to conduct proceedings. I deliberated whether to take a selfie…

Late on Saturday afternoon, the Assembly got to the crux of the matter, the drop in numbers across the denomination, the depressing statistics. It was acknowledged that PCI may have to decline first in order to grow. Covid has accelerated a stripping back, an inevitable pruning. Throughout the General Assembly, there were impassioned calls for vision, for boldness and courage, to be grace-givers wherever God places us. For one anxious moment, there was a brief possibility that the die-hard few remaining at the close of business would break into Be Bold, Be Strong

At 4.30pm, Louise, a female under30s rep, an ‘other’, stepped up and told the Assembly to be encouraged, that there are dedicated young people, willing to take risks, to live in faith, not fear. It was an offer to hand the future over to a new

generation. In 2023, when the General Assembly meets again, when it reviews its progress, that richness of perspective is vital, diversity of thought and experience is key, inclusivity of gender, race, age, class is essential. That’s how we can best spread the good news. More yellow lanyards please!

Deborah Sloan is a member of Orangefield Presbyterian Church and was a women’s representative at the General Assembly for east Belfast.

Anne Kibathi

Rev William Hayes

Facilitating mission

Daryl Edwards outlines how new facilities in Kilmount congregation in Co Cavan have facilitated new mission and ministry opportunities.

Kilmount Presbyterian Church is situated in rural Co Cavan about 8km outside Cootehill, surrounded by windmills and picturesque scenery. The small congregation of around 30 families is deeply committed to the ongoing work and witness in the area.

Back in 2018/19 the Youth and Children’s project ‘Foundations’ supported the United Bible Training Centre in Pakistan and, for the local element, the building of a Sunday school room at Kilmount. A lot has happened in the last four years! The old stable block was demolished and has been replaced with a new Sunday school room which includes a toilet and kitchenette off the main room.

way during the service. They have been excited to occupy this space as well as get back together to learn from God’s Word.

The number of Sunday school age children has risen in the last decade or so, from one to around 20. This has brought much enthusiasm and energy to our Sundays and the space is necessary and will be well used.

This has proved very useful in so many ways. Completed just before the pandemic struck, the room proved an invaluable space for overflow for the congregation during the social distancing requirements when services first resumed. Later, Sunday school resumed and the children and young people now leave part

On Sunday 22 May 2022, the then Moderator of the General Assembly, Dr David Bruce, visited to conduct a service to give thanks for the completion of the Sunday school room and the adjacent car park. Neighbours, friends, former members, representatives from government (including Minister Heather Humphreys TD), from local government and from presbytery joined with the congregation for this special day. The car park had been purchased and developed just prior to the building of the Sunday school room and was tarmacked thanks to a grant from the Department of Rural and Community Development. This addressed an important safety need because the church

Please

pray that these facilities will indeed be well used to facilitate ministry and mission in this area…

is situated on a sharp bend – it is good to have the children off the roadside as well as the extra space it creates for parking on special occasions.

A live video feed into the service enabled the Sunday school to meet in the new room where they were joined by the Moderator and guests for the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate the occasion. They sang All Through History, which very appropriately reminded us of God’s faithfulness and presence throughout time. In generations past the space the children and young people now occupy had been a different kind of meeting place – the old stables were often used for men talking before the service, and maybe, as the saying goes, they were putting the world to rights! Now, for the next generations it is a meeting place for fellowship and for learning, where the story of Jesus will not only be told but where they will be encouraged to put their faith in him as Saviour and Lord, the one who will truly put the world right!

This project has been a long-held aspiration of the congregation in one

form or another and so the memorial and other gifts were gratefully received by the Moderator.

After the Moderator returned to the church building Ruth Bromley, PCI’s Children’s Development Officer led the children in their own programme, in the Sunday school room, focusing on a verse from the Foundations project from Psalm 62:2: “He is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken”. Ruth had visited prior to the Foundations project and so the children enjoyed seeing her again, and we hope Ruth enjoyed it too.

With the support of others we have done what we could never have done on our own.

At the close of the service we took the opportunity to say thank you to Dorothy Wilson who recently stood down after playing the organ for almost 40 years. The afternoon finished with refreshments outside in gazebos, which was a great

opportunity for old friends to catch up as well as to see the new facilities.

The congregation acknowledge the vital role partnership played in the delivery of the new Sunday school room. Support from a Home Mission property grant, the Youth and Children’s project and donations and gifts from many others around the island who were moved by our story made it possible and for this we were indebted. With the support of others we have done what we could never have done on our own. We thank all who supported this project for their partnership in the gospel.

The completion of these projects opens a new chapter before us, for as the Moderator reminded us, now the real work begins. Please pray that these facilities will indeed be well used to facilitate ministry and mission in this area, not just for Sunday school, but for fellowship and as a meeting place in this generation and for generations to come.

Rev Daryl Edwards is minister of Kilmount, Cootehill and Drum Presbyterian churches.

Blind spots & bias on the Bible

Donna Jennings addresses how we need to be aware of unconscious bias and how this can affect our reading of the Bible.

“Please help us evangelical Christians to see our blind spots,” wrote John Stott (age 77) to Vinoth Ramachandra, an emergent evangelical theologian from Sri Lanka. Stott’s evangelical theology changed shape over the course of his life. Largely he admits, because he allowed the blind spots of “British public-school theology” to be disrupted by listening and learning from the voices, experiences and theological reflections of non-Western Christian leaders.

Theological disruption often comes from the act of deep, double listening. Deep listening occurs when we come face to face with people whose life experiences are quite different to our own. People whose life experiences express real-life questions, questions that demand real faith answers.

Deep listening draws us into what Stott called ‘double listening’. Double, because we listen both to the questions that emerge from different lived experiences and we listen for answers from Scripture as our sacred text. Such is the practice of theology, our ‘faith, seeking understanding’.

Deep, double listening Church planting in Bangladesh is the perfect place for the disruption that comes from deep, double listening. Reading Mark and Luke’s gospel with a small group of believing women from a Dhaka slum, disarmed me. Unpacking the gospel that I knew and loved, while listening to the hardship and injustice of

these women’s daily lives raised questions. What exactly is Christ’s good news announcement for these women – why is it good? What difference does the present rule and reign of Christ and the reconciliation of all things in heaven and earth make for these women, for this slum, for this city and this country?

At the same time, I had been asked to write a series of Bible studies for women on the Sermon on the Mount. I felt not a little uneasy. Yes, I had the language and a robust theology of discipleship from Matthew’s gospel. But I only knew of following Jesus within a Western Christendom culture, a privileged, protected life with my pension pot, NHS, and health insurance. What understanding of discipleship could I offer these women?

Rereading Scripture, not to but with these ladies recovered the divine design of Jubilee justice and the ancient promise of Shalom. I had developed blind spots and bias to these biblical realities because I and my Christian community had never been forced to ask the questions, for which these biblical realities are the answer.

Sitting alongside other women whose lives were oh, so different to my own, Stott’s heart-cry resonated – ‘come and help me to see my blind spots!’

Perhaps the deepest disruption from

Theological disruption often comes from the act of deep, double listening.

my evangelical blind spots and bias arrived with the raw questions that emerged from my son, Micah’s autism, severe learning disability and complex needs. Mainstream Christian theology and community left me with more questions than answers.

My Christian faith sought new understanding as to how the Imago Dei could be revealed in Micah who failed every volume of systematic theology’s criteria; how the Word of God could interact with a boy who did not operate in words; how Micah’s humanity could become a full participant in the Body of Christ.

Again and again throughout Scripture’s witness, God chooses the weak things of this world, to shame the strong. Micah shamed me and exposed the blind spots of a church incubated too long in the corrupting influence of Christendom, whose reading of Scripture emphasises the triumph of Christ’s resurrection to the exclusion of his self-emptying, sacrificial, cross-scarred character and ongoing ministry to the world.

Christian friends and family have so deeply loved us, yet there have been few individuals whose response imagined anything beyond doing for Micah or speaking about Micah within their existing understanding of church. I am humbled by individuals who listen deeply enough to receive the disruptive questions that Micah’s humanity demands from the Christian faith; individuals who invite him as a wordless prophet, to ‘come and help us to see our blind spots’.

Scripture as sacred story

The Bible has always been a sacred text for me. Sacred, because it is the story that recounts God’s purposes and acts that create, sustain and redeem his world. And sacred because the God we worship chooses to reveal himself not only to and for his human creatures, but in, through and with his human creatures, revealed ultimately in Christ, as a human creature!

Scripture recounts sacred stories of human people’s real-life encounters and adventures with God; sacred stories that were memorised, retold, and written down by human people; sacred stories that were inspired to speak, guide and shape human lives and communities across time and space.

I do not understand why, but God as Father, Son and Spirit works in such a way that binds our human-beingness into every aspect of Scripture as sacred story.

Aware of this, the church has been committed to a faithful reading of this sacred story by asking questions that dig into ‘the world behind the text’. That is, to understand the relationship between the text and its human author and original audience, their time, place, and purpose. More recently, theologians are calling the church to a faithful interpretation by asking questions that dig into ‘the world in front of the text’. That is, to understand the human lenses, assumptions or questions that shape how and why human readers, or reading community approach the text in our time and place.

A faithful reading of Scripture as sacred story requires our confession that (in the divine design), we human readers and

I only knew of following Jesus within a Western Christendom culture, a privileged, protected life…

interpreters have blind spots and bias. Every person, every small group, every congregation, every sitting of the General Assembly reads and interprets Scripture through a set of lenses that are shaped by our human lived experience – whatever that may be.

Blind spots – beware or be aware

This is an uncomfortable conversation. It is tempting to cry, “Beware, cultural currents!” and to retreat into a ‘literal interpretation’ of the text (but… whose literal interpretation?). Cultural eras have and will keep changing their minds about what truth is and how truth is formed.

The church is not immune to our cultural era. For this reason, we must always ‘be aware’ as we engage and respond to the questions of culture for our witness to Christ and his kingdom.

As our faith seeks understanding in a changing world, we must learn deep, double listening and resist the urge towards single listening. Firstly, listening only to lived experiences. Cultural currents seek an understanding of reality by listening singly to lived experience, which

trumps any external voice. ‘I define me’, becoming ‘true to myself’, often leads individuals and communities to listen to voices that affirm and shut down any conversation that disagrees.

Secondly, listening only to Scripture from the limited lens of privilege and power. We cannot ignore the fact the evangelical church constructed theologies, church practices, language and even hymns from terrifying blind spots that permitted our sorry role in the slave trade, restriction of women in society, the Third Reich, apartheid, race relations and British imperialism.

Whose voices and life experiences have formed the foundation of our Christian theology and practice? Well, look at your bookshelves – largely, those of white, Western, middle class, educated males. Deep, double listening both elevates Scripture as our sacred text and invites the ‘other’ kind of person to ‘come, sit under Scripture with us, let us listen and learn together; help us to see our blind spots!’

Beyond our blind spots –reading as community

From the beginning of time, humanity was created to perform our imagebearing role as a ‘we’. Humanity was not designed to make sense of life or make sense in life from our own silos, but within diverse ‘comm-unity’. The Christian life calls us into a miraculous but messy ‘we’ as we live out what it means to be ‘the new humanity in Christ’ across different lived experiences.

For the first Christian ‘comm-unities’, Paul names these differences as Jew

and Gentile, male and female, slave and free. The first Christians forged out (not without difficulty) a new way to live out the unity that Christ had created, and the Spirit had birthed.

Gathering in the Spirit, as Christ’s body, sharing the reading of Scripture, the eucharist meal, and other corporate acts enable deep, double listening, through submission to Christ our Head and submission to each other as members of his Body. We call this one-ness in Christ, koinonia. This is the nonnegotiable miraculous essence of what makes the church, church.

When Paul addresses his instructions for faithful living to ‘you’, the vast majority of his ‘you’ is plural, like a vous, y’all or as we say in Northern Ireland, yous-uns. How can we forge out new ways to read our sacred story as a ‘we’, us-uns, across difference, within ‘community’?

Can we create intentional space to do deep, double listening to Scripture through the life lens of someone different to us? What might the Spirit be saying to the church, and are we ready to listen as we read Scripture through the diverse life lenses of age, gender, giftings, social class, race, family status, employment?

How can the church in the north listen to and learn from the church across the south of Ireland? What does it look like for us to deeply, doubly listen with our global church family – not only to be encouraged and informed by their stories, but to be inspired and to learn new insights from Scripture from their witness?

Deep listening occurs when we come face to face with people whose life experiences are quite different to our own.

Can we truly say to one another across our church communities, local, national and global, ‘come and help us see our blind-spots’?

Beyond our blind spots –reading in the community

Christian people are a placed people. As congregations and individuals, we are incarnationally embedded in our place and for our place. There is no better setup for some deep, double listening! Local congregations who seek a faithful reading of Scripture do so not only to, for and about our local communities, but within and alongside those whose lives look different to ours.

Jesus often sent his disciples beyond their boundaries, into highways and byways and towards ‘the other’, the Gentile, the disabled, the ‘sinner’. I am convinced this was a spiritual strategy of the Lord Jesus, similar to deep, double listening. As the sent disciples came face to face with the ‘other’ kind of person, now walking toward Jesus together, these encounters became the place of mutual transformation and blessing.

Who is the risen ascended Christ through his sending Spirit moving you out and towards – men and women seeking asylum, children in the care service, the

disabled community, families in food and fuel poverty, the doubter or denier of Jesus, the progressive liberal activist?

How might your congregation create space for such deep, double listening within your local communities? Are you present to listen to their heart cries and real-life questions? Are you postured to read Scripture as sacred text not just to your local community, but with these individuals? How might such a presence and posture thrust us as Christ’s body into the reconciliation of ‘all things’, and ignite our witness to him? Are you willing to be mutually transformed as you invite these people to ‘please, come and help us see our blind spots.’

Faith seeking understanding

We must be aware of our blind spots on the Bible for the faithful reading and living of Scripture in the world today. Intentional acts of deep, double listening, commit us to our Christian faith that continually seeks understanding. Understanding, not for its own sake, but for a fuller faith and more faithful witness to Christ and his kingdom; and so that our faith may be understandable to the changing, hurting, divided world around us.

Donna Jennings works for Evangelical Alliance. She brings MTh and cross-cultural ministry into the NI church, and works to help the church reflect on theology, culture and practice as we step into effective witness in our places and spaces. She and herfamily are members of Orangefield Presbyterian Church.

REFLECTIONS

The preacher... on life and age

David Clarke

Themes in Ecclesiastes

“Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years approach when you will say, ‘I find no pleasure in them’.” Ecclesiastes 12:1

The process of aging produces wit and cynicism in equal measure. Actress June Whitfield said, “There are three stages in life: youth, middle age, and ‘I say, you do look well’.” An elderly lady joked about her ailments: “Will Power gets me out of bed in the morning, and Arthur Itis comes and stays for the rest of the day.” Others have listed the telltale signs of aging: “You know you are getting older when the candles cost more than the cake; when you sit in a rocking chair, and can’t get it started; when you sink your teeth into a juicy steak, and they stay there!” Yet another moaned, “The first half of life is ruined by your parents, and the second half by your children.”

The great observer who wrote Ecclesiastes had arrived at certain conclusions about life, expressed in the beautiful imagery of his 12th chapter. He encourages us to “use youth wisely”. The advice to “Be happy, young man, while you are young” (11:9), seems scarcely necessary. The young are determined to be happy, and no lecture from prudish parents, teachers or clergy will stop them. But young people are not always best placed to make the most of those years. As one observer wrote: “The older I get, the more I realise that there’s a lot of waste when you are young. The young have so much idealism, but so little wisdom. They have boundless energy and enthusiasm, yet lack many of the life skills necessary to harness that energy and enthusiasm... They’re ready to take risks, yet often they take foolish risks.”

…we can take steps to ensure that we do not become impossibly cantankerous as the years accumulate.

The second image is of declining physical powers: the legs become unsteady, and teeth decay (“the keepers of the house” and “the grinders”, v3), hearing fails (“the doors to the streets are closed”, v4) and the hair turns white (“the almond tree blossoms”, v5),and life becomes a burden (“the grasshopper drags himself along”, v5). The fragility of human life is made plain in v6: “the silver cord is severed” (the spinal cord?); “the golden bowl is broken” (the head?); “the pitcher is shattered” (the heart?); and “the wheel is broken” (the lungs?). The human body is, wrote Derek Kidner, “a masterpiece as delicately wrought as any work of art, yet as breakable as a piece of earthenware, and as useless in the end as a broken wheel.”

While we cannot draw a ‘ne plus ultra’ line on the advance of age, we can take steps to ensure that we do not become impossibly cantankerous as the years accumulate. Professor Blaiklock, commenting on Anna of the Christmas story (Luke 2:36–38) advises us “to deal early with the faults that make old age ugly, learn to be unselfish, to rest in the Lord, not to burden others, to dispense love, to discipline the tongue, to enjoy loneliness, and to live a life of prayer.”

The preacher advises us to reckon on judgment constantly, reminding us that “God will bring everything into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil” (v14).

The American patriot Daniel Webster declared that the greatest thought that ever crossed his mind was that of his personal accountability to God. And unless this is so, life is chaos, devoid of meaning.

As a brake on the impetuosity of youth, the author states, “Know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment” (11:9). Too many promising lives have been lighted by youthful carelessness and indiscretion. The young need to recognise that they are creating their future by every thought, deed, and motive of the present.

The writer also urges us to prepare for old age thoughtfully: “Before the days of trouble come” (v1), when “forty winters shall besiege thy brow”. The signs of aging are conveyed into two pictures. First comes the imagery of the storm, “When the sun and the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds return after rain” (v2), for one storm is soon followed by another. There is no stopping the process of decay.

Time and death are great revealers. One of Thomas Hardy’s characters laments the death of a neighbour and says, “Poor soul! All her shining keys will be taken from her, and her cupboards opened, and little things she didn’t wish seen anybody will see, and her wishes and her ways will be as nothing.” How much more awesome is that fact that “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Very Rev Dr David Clarke is a former PCI Moderator and minister emeritus of Terrace Row Presbyterian Church, Coleraine.

Helping young people move onward

Graeme Thompson looks at the current challenges of youth ministry and highlights an upcoming event to help young people and their leaders re-engage with faith and fellowship.

It is still difficult to measure the true impact of the last couple of years on youth ministry. The majority of congregations have had ‘in-person’ youth work again in some form and there is plenty of cause for encouragement and hope across the denomination. However, even those who have managed to keep programmes going will have noted losses in that time. Many report a decrease in numbers of volunteer leaders and are struggling to reconnect with all their young people, especially older teenagers. Though the impact of Covid on our overall youth ministry is a concern, perhaps even more worrying is how it may have affected our young people individually. In many ways it has been a time of loss for them, due to many significant milestones, achievements and rites of passage which they missed and will now never experience; so most young people will be grieving that to some extent. In terms of more significant impact, headlines tell us about rising referral rates to mental health services as the pandemic has taken a heavy toll for some. For the majority of young people, though, there has been an increase in underlying anxiety and a greater sense of isolation. An article by Sarah O’Connor in the Financial Times this summer

described this as a “social recession” where the pandemic intensified already rising levels of loneliness in teenagers, “leaving more people isolated and lonely and accelerating technological shifts that depersonalise our interactions.”

Looking

around

O’Connor’s conclusion as she reflected on young people’s social needs was that as adults we need to think urgently about how to help them feel more connected to each other. While this is undoubtedly true, in the church we know this is not the whole answer to even their social needs, aside from spiritual and other needs. Young people,

Though the impact of Covid on our overall youth ministry is a concern, perhaps even more worrying is how it may have affected our young people individually.

and their parents, need a clear message from us as the church that we can and will address what they most need and have missed: an intergenerational community and adults who will invest in them (to borrow financial language). In practical terms, there are arguably three targets for us over this next season as we seek to engage with young people: Connect. We need to simply make good connections with young people at a basic level, something many congregations have been doing increasingly over the spring and summer months. It is a priority to reconnect with as many of our young people as possible, including those in particular who have not been back for a while, and perhaps friends and other new faces who may find it easier to slot in at the start of a new church year. Our programmes need to be engaging and intentionally build

community and create trust between young people and their leaders. We will do well to think beyond our youth activities and programmes, though, and consider ways to link young people relationally to whatever we do in the wider church, helping them feel part of a community of all ages.

Deepen. Those relationships must not remain superficial and surface level for long as it is vital to deepen our pastoral and discipleship interactions. These next months will be a time to find out what is really going on with our young people, and how they are doing spiritually. It is so important that we really invest in young people relationally and this of course takes time and effort, not to mention suitable adult leaders. Although there will be challenges, prioritising people over programmes may never have been a more fitting value than it is now.

Grow. Let us not forget that our ultimate aim is spiritual growth in our young people. We want to give young people who do not know Jesus opportunities to hear and respond to the gospel, something they may not have had for some time. We also want to help Christian young people to grow in their relationship with Jesus, equip them to read his Word and apply it to their daily lives as they learn to follow him effectively. Let us ensure the busyness of this coming season does not distract us from the ‘business’ of making disciples of Jesus.

In outlining these three priorities, note that none of them requires a particular programme or organisation. It is very likely that our youth ministries will look differently than they did before, so we should be relaxed about that. Taking into account the capacity of our resources and leadership, it is really important that we reconnect, deepen relationships and prayerfully seek spiritual growth in our young people. We want to play to our strengths by taking advantage of opportunities created by others. PCI wants to help congregations and their leaders, not to spend time looking back, but to look around for ways to support young people and help them to positively look onward in hope. That is the aim of the returning PCI programmes and events.

Looking onward

In April, ‘Onward: journeying together in hope’ was a fun hybrid event with a clear gospel presentation to kick-start groups and create spiritual momentum. Though the ‘live’ attendance was not large, many groups were able to stream this event to their own halls, several doing so as the first event they had held in two years.

At last we are ready for in-person youth events again, so under the same banner of ‘Onward’, a one-night event for young people will be held in Carnmoney Presbyterian Church on Saturday 29 October. The aim of ‘Onward: following Jesus’ is to connect young people from across our Church and inspire them

…prioritising people over programmes may never have been a more fitting value than it is now.

with a biblical vision for their lives now, looking forward as they focus on Jesus and living for him every day.

priced at £5 each and we hope that many youth groups across the denomination will be able to attend. This will give leaders the opportunities associated with bringing a group to a Christian event, something many have been unable to do for three years or more. Often the journey to the event and stopping for chips can create memories and build up the relationships that have been so difficult to create recently. The programme will be a chance for young people to take stock spiritually, and ask where they are in their relationship with Jesus. They will have a tangible opportunity to respond to what God says to them on the night and commit their lives to follow Jesus in a more focused way, or perhaps for the first time. Follow-up materials will allow leaders to revisit the themes of the night when they are back in their churches and have deeper conversations about what it means for them to follow Jesus.

‘Onward’ will give young people a clear, positive understanding of what it means to follow Jesus in these days, with a message from Scripture to inspire courage and purpose in ‘ordinary’ Christian lives. Life may still feel somewhat uncertain, but we will encourage young people to respond by living focused lives, moving onward with Jesus. Two young hosts will lead a fun, engaging programme with stories of faith and an opportunity to worship together, led by young people from High Kirk Presbyterian. Youth workers, Hannah Cree (Downshire Presbyterian) and Stephen McGall (First Ahoghill Presbyterian), will share from God’s Word on what it means to be an ‘onward’ follower of Jesus and how to identify effective practical expressions of that in their everyday lives.

Tickets for ‘Onward’ are available from www.presbyterianireland.org/onward,

‘Onward’ is just one example of a tool that is there to support leaders as they seek to pursue the three priorities: connect – deepen – grow. There are many other resources, some of which can be found on the PCI website (www.presbyterianireland.org). As we approach what is arguably the most important year of church youth ministry for a very long time, our focus should not be on whether or not we can restart all our programmes in the same way as before. Instead we should play to our strengths, and also use what help, events and resources we can from others to support young people who need us more than ever. Let us not worry about what we cannot do, but move onward positively as we trust Jesus together, doing what we can, as often as we can, to connect with young people; deepen those relationships and help them grow spiritually as they follow Jesus.

Graeme Thompson is PCI’s Youth Development Officer.

Strength in solidarity

Ifirst met Rev Balázs Ódor, from the Hungarian Reformed Church (HRC), a few years ago at an international meeting of the partners of a Church in the Middle East. The HRC was a key partner of this Church in Syria and Lebanon, supporting the Church’s mission as they dealt with war and resultant mass people movement. At that stage, Balázs perhaps couldn’t have foreseen that a crisis of conflict and migration would arise much closer to home.

Hungary, many more have travelled to Western Ukraine, where there is a large Hungarian-speaking Reformed community.

Hungary and its Reformed Church have previously been shaped by war. Following World War One, the country’s

Balázs visited Belfast in June this year for a meeting of PCI’s global partners and as we sat down to talk, it was clear how significantly and how rapidly the situation had changed in Hungary, along with other countries bordering Ukraine.

“The Church has been welcoming refugees and internally displaced people since the first day of the war in Ukraine,” he said, explaining that while many Ukrainians have crossed the border into

How can you settle in a place when you don’t know how long you will be there, but how can you live your life when you can’t settle?

borders were moved so that areas previously within Hungary became part of countries including Romania and Austria, as well as what would become Ukraine, Serbia and Croatia. While Hungary’s borders receded, the HRC, which was formed in 1881, remained in the areas surrounding the country. The Church districts remained symbolically united, though geographically separated.

Since February, when the war began

in Ukraine, there has been considerable movement of Ukrainians out of the country, while millions more have fled the sites of the worst conflict but either have been unable to leave the country, or have chosen not to. More than 7.7 million people are reportedly internally displaced within Ukraine – people who have had to leave their homes, unsure when they’ll be able to return.

The majority are women and children and many have arrived in the Transcarpathian District of Western Ukraine, where volunteers from the Church have been ready to meet them. They have provided for them, physically and spiritually. Church premises and boarding schools have become shelters. Local Hungarian and Ukrainian speakers have become interpreters.

As a wider organisation, the Church is working through its aid and development wing, Hungarian Reformed Church Aid (HRCA), to meet the vast and varied

Pip Florit interviews Rev Balázs Ódor from the Hungarian Reformed Church about the Church’s ministry, mission and support for Ukrainian refugees.

needs. In Hungary and Ukraine, staff and volunteers are welcoming refugees at train stations and providing food, hygiene products, information, spiritual assistance and accommodation. HRCA is providing medicines to hospitals in Ukraine, some of which are drastically short of them, risking public health crises. They are also helping families to ensure they have livelihoods and food through their ‘Seeds of Hope’ project, which has provided 11 tonnes of seeds, including potatoes, onions, carrots, tomatoes, beetroot and lettuce to families in Transcarpathia. These seeds will help almost 10,000 families to secure provisions, which have become more limited as a result of the war.

While much of their work is focused on the people who have fled from the east of Ukraine and the places they have arrived in, HRCA is also going directly to the war zone to reach those who have remained there. They have delivered shipments of aid to Eastern Ukraine, which have included leaflets inviting people to pray.

And people are praying and turning to God. While Ukraine is reported to be a largely Christian country, with many people connected to the Orthodox Church, Balázs says that Ukraine’s communist past has left a legacy of little connection with the Protestant Church. Churches have recently lost many members as one third have left the country since the war began. However, church attendance is increasing throughout the country as people gather to pray for peace. In Transcarpathia, churches that would normally conduct services in Hungarian are pushing out of their comfort zones to reach out to those who have arrived in the region by organising Ukrainian services and events for adults and children who have come from other parts of the country.

The work of the Hungarian Reformed Church and HRCA has been extensive. They have reached many people in many ways and this has been made possible by support that has come from all corners of the earth.

Balázs reported that the Church has been overwhelmed by the response from around the world, from within Europe to as far away as Japan. Within PCI, the Moderator’s Appeal for Ukraine

…the Hungarian Reformed Church and those it is walking alongside need us to pray without ceasing. It is the only hope.

had raised almost £1.3 million as of early August. This money is being split between development partners, Tearfund and Christian Aid, as well as HRCA.

The key feature of HRCA is that it is “communities reaching out to communities” and the wave of solidarity between communities around the globe has been exceptional. While it is hard to see any positive outcomes of a war, Balázs hailed the incredible unity shown by both the church in Hungary and churches worldwide. Speaking particularly of PCI, he said, “Your local churches were so generous and the volume of what they gave from the heart to help us help the refugees was a never-before-seen solidarity, I believe.”

I asked Balázs what we can do, what is needed from the church in Ireland and, without hesitation, he said “prayer”, acknowledging that it is the only hope for resolution, for transformation and reconciliation. We need to pray, together with the HRC for an end to war, for peace so that those who have been forced to leave their homes can return.

He asked us to pray for the encounters that happen in the midst of war – for those opportunities that God’s people have to testify to his love, to connect people to Jesus and change lives. These

encounters are already happening and people are seeing God at work. Where there has previously been tension between Hungarians and Ukrainians, divisions are being healed in many places. People are experiencing God’s peace and love for the first time as his church shows it to them.

We also need to pray for the people who have been displaced and for those who have been welcoming them as the effects of the war take a toll on both. For both groups, their lives have been turned upside down. The local communities who are offering shelter are becoming weary as the people keep coming – people who are themselves weary, traumatised, afraid and uncertain. “They can’t see the end of the story,” said Balázs, and that seems to be one of the greatest struggles. People are in limbo, eager to return home but unsure when they might be able to. How can you settle in a place when you don’t know how long you will be there, but how can you live your life when you can’t settle? HRC staff and volunteers need our prayers as they have been working so hard to care for displaced people. They are drained, but they continue to do the job because there continues to be a job to do. They need to be recharged physically, emotionally and spiritually. Balázs pointed towards Matthew 25:40, saying that these many workers are doing good deeds inspired by their faith, knowing that whatever they do for the least, they are actually doing for Jesus.

There are no signs of an end to the war yet, so the Hungarian Reformed Church and those it is walking alongside need us to pray without ceasing. It is the only hope.

Expressions of faith

Neil Harrison introduces a new PCI resource designed to help church members reflect on how they express their faith in their own context and community.

Stephen comes from an unchurched background and when he discovered faith his lifestyle changed and he wanted to talk to others about the difference Jesus was making in his life. Karen is one of the most caring and compassionate Christians I know whose heart breaks for the hurting and passionately advocates against injustice in the world. Alastair is a godly man whose commitment to allowing God’s Word to shape his life, and the lives of those he meets every day, is inspiring.

Although their real names are different, these individuals are friends who have moulded my understanding of Jesus and the Christian faith. Stephen and Karen are the first Christians I noticed whose faith made a difference in their

Stories from Expressions

People know there is something more to life than partying or sport or music or family. Whenever they see someone who is an example for Christ they find that interesting, intriguing and want to know more.

Sam’s story

life, which had a significant influence in my coming to faith aged 17. Alastair is a Christian leader who faithfully and quietly reveals the way of Jesus to me as I watch him serve others with wisdom and integrity.

The way we express our faith among others has a huge impact in shaping their understanding of Christianity, Jesus and the church.

The

way we express our

faith among others has a huge impact in shaping their understanding of Christianity, Jesus and

the church.

I think it’s really important that in our everyday we’re reaching for compassion, we’re reaching for relationship, and trying to do that really well. Hazel’s story

Personal not private

PCI has produced a wide range of Bible study resources that have been well received by congregations across the denomination. The latest version of this is called ‘Expressions’ and is inspired by Paul’s words to the Galatian church when he said: “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6).

Perhaps we see our faith as an internal thing lived out in the quiet places of our lives. No doubt there are parts of society that want that for Christians. Theirs is a strong encouragement to keep faith private, within the confines of our home or places of worship and certainly not intruding into the public square. Of course, following Jesus is personal but that doesn’t mean it should be private and

People go where they feel welcome but stay where they feel valued. For me, hospitality is key in helping people feel valued.

Renée’s story

I think Jesus is trying to get across that the presence of God is the most defining feature of our lives. Who you are before God is who you are.

Andy’s story

there are many passages in the Bible that encourage and command us to express our faith in society.

Paul, Silas and Timothy write the following words to the believers in Thessalonica: “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well” (1 Thessalonians 2:8). Sharing our lives and sharing the gospel are both essential in communicating the good news of Jesus to others as we seek to be faithful witnesses. Therefore, how we live and express our faith in the workplace, with our neighbours or in the local sports club, presents a significant opportunity to make our faith known, and is hugely important as we seek to be disciples who make disciples.

Expressions’ themes

Faith can’t be all talk and the Expressions resource is an eight-session film series that seeks to help people connect themes from different passages of Scripture, and open up conversations of how our faith expresses itself in everyday life and witness. Each session introduces a different way we can express our Christian faith and the films have a variety of Bible teachers from within PCI unpacking this, alongside personal stories from ordinary members describing how they seek to live out their belief and trust in God in everyday ways. The film series is accompanied by a booklet for participants with questions for discussion.

Some of the themes are obvious, such as ‘compassion’, which helps people to consider how they can love others, or ‘telling’, where people are encouraged and equipped for sharing their own story of faith. A couple of less obvious themes that feature in the resource are as follows: Awareness is the first session and it seeks to remind people of how we can express our faith through being conscious of living with Jesus in each moment. In many ways, that sense of awareness of God’s presence with us each day shapes how we express our faith in all other ways. Beyond is a session that looks at the vision in Revelation chapter 7 of the great multitude from every nation, tribe and language standing before the throne of the Lamb crying out in worship. Here we are reminded of the richness that comes when we express

our faith with those who are beyond our natural circles of relationship. This comes through raising our awareness of what God is doing in other parts of the world, but also that at a local level; with increasing migration, we have a growing opportunity to be global disciples in our communities.

Together is a session that considers how faith is expressed through the witness of the whole church. In John 13:34 Jesus says to the disciples: “Love one another as I have loved you”. This is a command to set aside differences, forgive and care for one another as a community of believers. Immediately Jesus reminds them of the wider impact this will have, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another”. How we treat each other inside the church will affect outsiders’ views of the church and of Jesus. Our love for one another is a window advertisement to the world for the gospel.

The other themes that complete Expressions include ‘humility’, ‘conversation’ and ‘hospitality’, giving a broad variety of ways to express faith within the resource.

Using Expressions

Expressions has been primarily written for use in church small groups, but could also be used in other church settings such as a midweek meeting, or series of Sunday evening gatherings with group discussion. Each session starts in the booklet by introducing the theme, before reading the Bible passage together and sharing any initial reflections that stand out.

You can find out more information about Expressions and place an order using the website link: www.presbyterianireland.org/expressions

From there, participants watch the film which begins with two people unpacking some points from the Bible passage that relate to the theme. The Bible teachers represent a broad range of PCI ministers and members from all across Ireland. This lasts about 10 minutes, followed by a few questions to help people reflect and respond in a way that pushes them to consider what this teaching means practically in their lives.

The closing section of the film brings the theme alive in the story of a PCI member who is expressing their faith in a related way. These stories have been recorded in various locations, from Donegal to Bangor, and capture a wide range of contexts and characters that are very relatable. Following further discussion with one another, participants are encouraged to pray together about what they have learned and how they hope to apply it in their lives.

Planning ahead

As you plan for the autumn we encourage you to consider taking a look at Expressions and begin opening up conversations in your congregation about how faith expresses itself in everyday life and witness. With high quality Bible teaching and personal stories that are genuinely rooted in our Irish Presbyterian context, it is a unique resource for this moment.

Neil Harrison

PCI’s Mission Development Officer

is

Faith can’t be all talk…

10 years of farm family health checks

Rebecca McConnell meets Christina Faulkner, coordinator of the Farm Families Health Checks programme as they celebrate 10 years of bringing medical health checks in a portable clinic to farmers and their families across Northern Ireland.

Growing up on a farm, I was always amazed at my dad being able to give calves medicine to make them better – how he would load up the syringe with so many CC and insert the antibiotic into the animal’s neck. Farmers are part animal doctors, part mechanics, part engineers, amongst many other job titles.

Perhaps it is a sweeping statement to say that farmers will phone a vet about a sick animal quicker than they will phone their own doctor about personal health issues, such is their desire to look after the animals, often to the detriment of their own health.

So having a service that brings the health professionals closer to the farmers in rural areas, especially at a time when the health service is under so much pressure, is surely good news for everyone.

Enter the Farm Families Health Checks programme, which this year is celebrating 10 years on the road. This is a free of charge programme delivered by the Northern Health and Social Care Trust, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the Public Health Agency, with the aim of providing an easily accessible health check programme specifically to farmers and members of the rural community.

It has been an extra busy year for its

…farmers will phone a vet about a sick animal quicker than they will phone their own doctor…

coordinator, Christina Faulkner, and celebrations have been in full swing. Christina has worked on the service for five and a half years and her professional experience as a nurse is accompanied by her own farming background, having grown up on a beef and potato farm. “I know what farmers are like and the challenges they face in their work on a daily basis. I can relate to them; I still live in a rural community myself and attend Finvoy Presbyterian Church.”

This year, they also launched a new van, which Christina and her senior nurse colleague, Helen McAuley, drive all around Northern Ireland. They visit a variety of locations including 27 livestock marts, typically calling at each twice a year. The team also attend many community events and agri businesses and have been back at agricultural shows since their return from the pandemic.

“From the beginning of the programme, we have seen around 22,000 clients,” says Christina. “It is a great job and very rewarding. There are challenges of course and targets to meet, but hearing some of the good news stories – people we have referred to GPs that come back to us and tell us how they got on – it’s fantastic.

“That’s the beauty of the review calls that we make back once someone has been referred. Clients could find an irregular pulse or high blood pressure and we’ve come across a lot of skin lesions. We also now screen for pre-diabetes and we hear of clients who get onto the right medication and call back to say how much better they are feeling.”

The health checks are very thorough as I myself discovered at Balmoral Show in May, in their modern well-equipped van. Stepping inside was just like entering a health clinic; it didn’t feel like I was in the middle of Northern Ireland’s largest agricultural event. The service was highly professional and the process explained well. My blood pressure and cholesterol levels were checked, height and weight measured to determine my BMI, as well as a questionnaire for diabetes. I was a little taken aback by questions on my mental health in my screening, something that not even my doctor has asked on previous visits, so the check is an overall look at a person’s health and wellbeing.

“People do open up; we can signpost

them to other services – Rural Support being one of them – who are specifically trained to help farmers in times of need. We are well embedded in the farming community now and especially with the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact on the health system, people don’t need to wait on an appointment with their GP, they can come and see us.”

The need for this type of service in the rural community is backed by Dr Rebecca Orr, a rural GP and a board member of Rural Support. She took part in a panel during the ‘Make a Difference in Rapidly Changing Times’ event at Balmoral Show and revealed how farmers will typically open up more to their vets who are out on their farm than they will their own doctor.

“My colleagues from the vet industry would find the farmers would disclose more to them, and the meal reps and suppliers too – sometimes the GP is the last person to find out about some issues. Health should be a farmer’s number one priority. If you don’t know your statistics – blood pressure, cholesterol – those are the most important numbers on farms, followed by your farm finances. Farmers should be benchmarking their health and then benchmarking their finances. We need to normalise this as an industry; it will be much more sustainable, with happier farmers and families with improved communications.”

Dr Orr went on to say, “Up to a third of farmers are possibly depressed – we are seeing one in two farmers reporting

“Health should be a farmer’s number one priority… – blood pressure, cholesterol –those are the most important numbers on farms…”

they are in pain every day and that it is affecting their work, however they think it is part of the job. All the pressures on farmers, those stoicism qualities in the farming community, getting on with things etc., may be unhelpful in times of change. With regard to men’s health, males don’t like to ask for help so we need to normalise this, that it is okay to seek out support.”

Christina and her team try to address this as they meet clients: “We work with all ages over 18 so we can instil good healthy habits with our younger clients that will hopefully continue as they grow older. We raise awareness of certain cancers – especially skin cancer since farmers work outdoors so much. We encourage clients to attend screening services such as bowel screening that could save their lives. We can also advise on how to stop smoking and highlight the effects of alcohol consumption. Small changes can make a big difference.”

Christina also has contact with PCI’s rural chaplain, Rev Kenny Hanna, who works across four presbyteries in Co Armagh and parts of Co Down. The Health Check van attended two ‘Looking after yourself’ events Kenny ran at Markethill and Hilltown marts in the springtime.

“This is a vital service for our farming families across Northern Ireland and one of the many farming organisations I am delighted to work alongside,” said Kenny. “Their checks are so detailed and Christina and her team are also so warm and welcoming and greet you with a smile. I’ve been encouraging farmers to make use of this fantastic free service. The physical health of our farmers is so important and bringing medical advice to where they are at is a welcome offering to farmers who are busy people by nature and often don’t have the time, nor like to, make appointments with their own doctors.”

Finally, there is an invitation by Christina for churches in rural areas of Northern Ireland to book the service. They have brought the van to men’s meetings and other gatherings: “We are more than happy to come out to churches to run checks, so do get in touch if you want us to be a part of future events. I am well used to manoeuvring the van across our country roads by now!”

Upcoming dates

2 September – European ploughing competition, Eglington

10 September – Bessbrook vintage rally

24 September – Kilcronaghan community event

1 October – Clogher mart

If you would like the Farm Families Health Check van to visit your rural congregation, contact Christina via farm.families6@northerntrust.hscni. net or call (028) 2563 5573

REVIEWS

Canyon

Ellie Holcomb

FULL HEART MUSIC

£10.95 «««««

In an album with an expression of trusting Jesus through a collision of lament and joy, Holcomb writes lyrics focused on what God does and – equally important – who he is.

She has created contemporary Christian music to praise and worship Jesus, for evangelism and to strengthen the faith of Jesus’ disciples. “Canyon is a record about a deeper sorrow and a higher hope,” shares Holcomb. She continues, “We all know what it is for our hearts to be broken, split wide open by pain and loss and the sorrow we encounter here. We know brokenness.”

The title track speaks volumes of Holcomb’s knowing and understanding of valley lows, as is experienced by all, and who Jesus is to us is in those seasons: “There’s a river running through my deepest sorrow…through my deepest pain… through every dream that never came true…Made me a canyon, but there’s a river running through it; I’m a canyon…There’s a river running through it”.

Her worship-centred songs are lyrically dense as they ooze God’s wise counsel, comfort and encouragement – fostering concentration on his presence and providence.

Traversing through my own canyon season with Canyon on repeat is a consistent reminder of both God’s salvific plan as well as redemption, reconciliation and renewal in challenging times.

Unless otherwise stated all resources are available from your local Faith Mission Bookshop or online www.fmbookshops.com

Growing Together: Taking mentoring beyond small talk and prayer requests

Melissa B. Kruger

CROSSWAY BOOKS

£9.65

Mentoring and discipleship are essential for our Christian lives yet so many of us do not know how to do it. We just need to remind ourselves of the relationship between Moses and Joshua to know what an impact mentoring can have.

Although this book is not primarily about the concept of mentoring, the first couple of chapters briefly explore why we should be in a mentoring relationship and offers some practical considerations about developing such a relationship.

The remainder of the book provides topics about our relationship with God that we can study together as we develop our relationship with each other. Issues included are wide ranging, from Bible reading to contentment, to discernment. There are activities and questions at the end of each topic to encourage us to apply theoretical learning to our own lives in a deeply personal way.

The highlight for me was the chapter titled ‘Joy in the journey’, how we can cultivate contentment in all seasons.

Using Paul as our example, we are encouraged, within the mentoring relationship, to reconcile that our present contentment is rooted in a past reality (the cross of Christ) and a future hope (an eternity with Christ).

Kruger has produced an instructional read, grounded in biblical principles which is both practical and versatile. Whether we are in a mentoring relationship or not, this book encourages women to grow in godliness under the power and glory of the Holy Spirit.

Assist our song: Music ministries in the local church

Douglas Galbraith

SAINT ANDREW PRESS

£20

“Worship fails for anyone if they have to say: I might as well not have been there, I did not recognise myself.” This sentence from the first few pages summarises what this book is about – worship, or more specifically, the musical element of worship that does not always help us, in all our diverse individual circumstances, to sing with conviction.

It aims to do this by equipping all who plan and lead worship with knowledge they may not have previously encountered or thought about. Clergy may lack musical expertise and musicians the ministerial training, so this book aims to fill that gap. The author, a Church of Scotland minister who is also a composer, brings a perspective that we can relate to yet is open to what others can teach us.

The intended readers are primarily those who choose, plan, approve and lead our worship. Some of it is slightly academic in its exposition, which to an extent may reduce its appeal to those with a less technical interest or a pew-side perspective. Nevertheless, those bits can be skimmed past for there is much to give anyone something to think about, whatever one’s background.

The use of technology is also considered as to how it helps and hinders. For example, projected rather than printed text can affect our understanding of what is sung. Hence, there is a chapter that is of specific interest to those who oversee and operate AV systems.

The book distils lessons from the whole of church music history that can be applied to today’s worship.

REVIEWERS

TF – Tom Finnegan is a ministry student

SH – Sarah Harding is editor of the Herald

RF – Reneé Finnegan is an administrative officer for the Herald

The Samaritan Woman’s Story

Caryn Reeder

IVP ACADEMIC

£15

«««««

Occasionally in a movie based on historical events, an innocent real-life character is wrongly portrayed as a villain for the sake of embellishing the story. Something like this happened to a character in the Bible: the Samaritan woman in John chapter four. You may well have heard sermons or read Bible notes which represent this woman as a scandalous sinner and social outcast. John does not paint this picture in his gospel, but these false colours have been added by reading between the lines. In her book, published in the wake of the #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements, Reeder redeems the Samaritan woman by challenging centuries of flawed interpretation. She exposes how the false story began and continued largely unquestioned except for a few differing voices. In the third century, Tertullian called the Samaritan woman a prostitute, and the die was cast from then. Reeder questions this narrative, noting how women who are abused are often shamed and, in the eyes of others, turned from victim to perpetrator. She thoroughly re-examines the biblical account in its cultural context and presents the Samaritan woman as she truly was – a hero and not a villain.

This book, while having academic depth, is a very readable and inspiring way to understand the Samaritan woman’s story. As well as being accessible to any Christian reader, there is much to inform those who teach the Bible on how to avoid too easily imitating what others have preached or written without careful study of the Bible text itself.

CS – Clare Smith is a psychotherapist and member of West Church, Bangor

PG – Peter Gray is a member of the music team at Knock Presbyterian

DH – Dorothy Hamilton is a member of Ballygrainey Presbyterian Church

Immeasurably More

Liz Parker

10PUBLISHING

£9.72

This is a most enjoyable book, filled with stories of faith in God to provide, guide and protect this amazing family, as they served our Lord in four different African countries. A very humbling story leaving you in awe of them, with three young children, facing difficulties and danger, but seeing how God’s hand was obviously upon them.

The author is the wife of a MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship) pilot. These pilots fly medical provisions, those needing hospital treatment and, on occasions, bicycles for heath workers, enabling them to travel to remote areas. Africa has some very isolated villages with no roads, so only planes can reach them. The pilots’ flights can be dangerous as they must land in very difficult places. Runways are dirt strips in the middle of the jungle or the base of a mountain. Many unfortunately have lost their lives in these extreme conditions.

The family live in MAF compounds, that don’t always keep them safe from snakes and poisonous spiders. Danger is never far away, as they experienced whilst living in South Sudan, when war erupted and they had to be quickly evacuated to Kenya, leaving most of their belongings behind.

Through all of this, their faith sustains them; they pray over every situation and God is in every aspect of their lives. He is their father who walks with them daily.

This is a must-read and a ‘can’t-putdown’ book, full of faith, courage and devotion and I heartily recommend it.

DH

Both–And

Ross Cunningham

CHRISTIAN FOCUS PUBLICATIONS

£9.99

The subtitle of this book is ‘Understanding apparent contradictions in Christianity’ and that is exactly what the author achieves very successfully. Although the topics and issues are all theologically deep and rich, he has managed to write in a very accessible way, backing up everything with a wealth of biblical quotes.

The book is unusual because there is a large emphasis on the illustrations, as well as the text. Acknowledging that illustrations can be helpful for visual learners, Cunningham has creatively used images that display the contradictions he addresses in a fresh way. For example, when addressing God’s nature as both holy and intimate, the illustration is of a throne and also a rocking chair. The graphics are one of the great strengths of this book as there is one at the beginning of each chapter, allowing the reader time to digest the concept and reflect on it before reading the explanation.

Cunningham covers three main themes: contradictions in the divine nature; in the experience of salvation; and in the characteristic of being in Christ. Within each section there are subjects you would expect to see – such as the contradiction between God being angry and merciful, or between Jesus being God and man. But equally there are other thought-provoking topics, like the contradiction between the now and the not yet.

This is an excellent resource – and perfect for anyone who struggles with understanding or accepting the complex nature of God, of our salvation, or of our life of faith. SH

LIFE IN PCI

Jubilee fun in Portstewart

Portstewart Presbyterian Church marked the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations with a family day.

Taking place on Friday 3 June, the day started with games for children, carnival games and an inflatable. Families brought their own picnic and the event continued into the evening with local entertainment, including live music, Irish and modern dance displays, before finishing with a barn dance.

On the Sunday, a tree (a ‘Paul’s Scarlet’ hawthorn) was planted after the church service and the congregation stayed to watch the planting and have a cuppa.

Growth during the pandemic

With 36 boys in the BB Company at Sixth Newtownards in March 2020, the question for the leadership team was – how will Covid affect numbers and the viability of this important element of Strean congregation’s youth work?

The ongoing use of The Boys’ Brigade’s #BBAtHome materials and a change in direction to greatly increase outdoor activities has resulted in a massive surge in numbers with 54 boys now registered and regularly attending.

Leader-in-charge Stephen Boyle believes that Covid gave his leadership team a chance to reflect on how they delivered programmes each week. Instead of worrying about ‘how we used to do things’, the officers and helpers embraced the challenges of Covid restrictions and had a mindset of ‘how can we do things differently’.

Consistent prayer support from Session and the congregation, not just for BB but for all youth organisations at Strean, undoubtedly underpinned this change in direction. As Psalm 127:1 reminds us: “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain.”

In spite of Covid, the Company saw a number of its senior boys achieve major awards earlier this year – an indication of their commitment and the invaluable support of their respective parents.

A leading light in the Company, working with Anchor Boys, is Lieutenant Janet Johnston. In her 35 years of service, she has welcomed the sons of boys who were previously in the ranks. A number of presentations were made to mark this milestone and Janet’s retirement from BB. The Company wishes her well as she continues serving Christ in other aspects of Strean’s life and witness.

Photographs by the Newtownards Chronicle.

Children enjoy the bouncy castle and games.

Families enjoy musical entertainment and picnic.

The congregation gathered after the Sunday service to watch the Jubilee tree planting.

At the tree planting are, from left to right: birthday boy Mark Wright, Riley Nicholl and Rev Stuart Morrow.

Receiving their President’s Badges are: L/Cpl Joshua Finlay with Suzanne; L/ Cpl Matthew Harris with Joanne; L/ Cpl Carter McIlwrath with Janine; L/Cpl Cameron Montgomery with Susan; and L/Cpl Harry Scandrett with Deborah. Also included are Company Section officers Stephen Boyle and Carl Harris.

BB officer Lt Janet Johnston has retired after over 30 years of service to the Company. She is pictured with Wallace McKee (former captain), Rev Jeff McWatters (Company chaplain), John Black (Company president) and Stephen Boyle (Company captain).

Three senior members received the BB’s highest award, the Queen’s Badge. Sergeants Callum McCaw, Conor Finlay and Alex Montgomery are pictured with officers Stephen Boyle, Janet Johnston and Carl Harris.

Retirement in Smithborough

A barbecue was held recently to mark the retirement of John Bole. A lifelong member of Smithborough congregation, Mr Bole served on the kirk session for 22 years. As well as being very active in congregational and community life, he was involved in Monaghan Presbytery and the General Council, especially on the Conciliation panel. Pictured at the barbecue are: Sandy Moore (elder), Arlene North (clerk of session), Mr Bole, Alison Bole, Rev Alan McQuade and Carol Graham (elder).

Attendance prize at The Groves

Sarah McKee recently received a presentation for nine years’ unbroken attendance at The Groves Sunday school in County Monaghan. She is pictured with Rev Ker Graham (minister), Sharon McNiece (superintendent) and Hazel Dickson (teacher).

To share good news stories from your congregation please send your photographs and details to herald@presbyterianireland.org

100th birthday for Magheramason member

Amy McCorkell, a member of Magheramason congregation, celebrated her 100th birthday at Cornfields Care Home, Limavady and enjoyed a special visit from the then Moderator Dr David Bruce, his wife Zoë (not in photo) and minister Rev Graeme Orr.

Elders ordained in Trinity Boardmills

Simon Irvine, Mervyn McKeown and Iain Watters have been ordained as elders in Trinity Boardmills. They are pictured with a commission of Down Presbytery.

Ballinderry residential

Ballinderry Sunday school enjoyed fun and fellowship at Greenhill YMCA during their first residential post-Covid.

LIFE IN PCI

Tree planting in County Fermanagh

The clerks of session of Irvinestown, Pettigo and Tempo Presbyterian churches planted a tree to celebrate 70 years of faith and service by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, in the grounds of Irvinestown church. From left are: Rev Gunther Andrich, Ken Hunter (Irvinestown church), Carole Trimble (Tempo church) and Alan Moore (Pettigo church). Photograph courtesy of Norman Donnell.

Jubilee marked in Lisbellaw

The County Fermanagh church of Lisbellaw Presbyterian was among those to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. Pictured are: Rev Rodney Beacom, his wife Laura and David Scollan, the church’s oldest member, who cut the jubilee cake.

New elders in Aughnacloy and Ballymagrane

A special service was held in Aughnacloy Presbyterian Church to ordain and install David Bell, Paul McClean and Edgar Mullan to the office of eldership in the congregation of Aughnacloy, and Nigel Robinson and David Wilson as elders in Ballymagrane. Pictured in the back row are members of Omagh Presbytery commission: William Liggitt, Nial Henry, Rev Roger McElnea (Aughnacloy and Ballymagrane), Rev Clarke Deering (presbytery moderator), Colin Busby, Rev Jonathan Boyd and Rev Robert Herron (presbytery clerk). Front row: Mr Mullan, Mr McClean, Mr Bell, Mr Wilson and Mr Robinson.

Associate minister ordained in Hill Street

Rev John Graham has been ordained as associate minister in Hill Street Presbyterian Church, Lurgan. He is pictured with Rev Peter Gamble, Kenny Belshaw, Dr Stafford Carson, Rev Philip McClelland, Gordon Frazer and Rev Nigel McCullough (minister of the County Armagh church).

Annual dinner for Malone PW

Malone Golf Club was the venue for Malone PW’s annual dinner – an occasion which had to be suspended for two years due to the pandemic.

Eglinton elders

The Presbytery of North Belfast has ordained and installed five additional ruling elders in Eglinton congregation. The new elders Naomi Morrison, Liz Moore, Peter Moore, Rachael Newburn and Mandy Willis are pictured with members of the presbytery commission.

First Donegore PW returns

Members of First Donegore Presbyterian Women held a coffee and scones morning at the Dunadry Hotel, to celebrate the recommencement of PW after an absence of two years due to the Covid pandemic. The County Antrim PW has been in existence for more than 100 years and everyone is glad of its return in September.

Tag good news stories from your congregation on Twitter with #lifeinpci and @pciassembly

First Cookstown deputy lieutenants

Then PCI Moderator Dr David Bruce preached the sermon at Her Majesty’s Northern Ireland Lieutenancies’ Platinum Jubilee service in St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast. Among those in attendance were four deputy lieutenants from First Cookstown: Chris Kerr, Maureen Stratton, Meta Bell and minister emeritus Dr Isaac Thompson. Also pictured are Catherine Kerr, Nigel Stratton and Wm T. McElhinney MBE (an elder in Kilfennan).

New elders for First Bangor

Six new elders have been ordained and installed in First Bangor. Jill Brady, Joanne Calvert, Joy Hare, Mark Hamilton, Gary Rodgers and Stephen Jardine (who was already ordained) were welcomed into the kirk session. The minister of First Bangor, Rev Mairisine Stanfield, is currently the moderator of presbytery and so was delighted to be the person who ordained the new elders. Also pictured are Rev David Stanfield (associate minister of First Bangor), Rev Mark Johnston and Rev John Flaherty (presbytery clerk).

Sloan Street ladies visit Hillsborough Castle

To celebrate its 70th anniversary year, ladies from Sloan Street PW visited Hillsborough Castle where they enjoyed a tour and afternoon tea.

West Presbyterian Church, Bangor Children’s Worker

We are looking for someone who is enthusiastic and passionate about seeing children and their families come to faith in Jesus Christ, and who has compassion for families. They should be dedicated to their own personal relationship with God and have a heart for prayer, outreach and teaching.

The successful applicant will work alongside the Minister and the Youth and Children’s Team in the implementation of West Church’s vision and strategy for its children across its Rathmore Road and Kilcooley sites.

The ministry will be guided by the Church aims: “Growing and maturing our faith, supporting and ministering to one another and reaching out with a mission to share the hope and love of Jesus.”

The job is for 37.5 hours per week within a flexible framework that involves evenings and weekends.

The salary will be within the Presbyterian Church in Ireland’s Salary Band B (£23,772–£27,899) depending on qualifications and experience.

For further details and application pack please contact the Church Office, telephone (028) 9145 9688 or email: office@westchurchbangor.org

Applications should be returned to:

Senior Church Administrator, West Church Bangor, Rathmore Road, Bangor, BT19 1DF by Friday 16 September 2022.

CROSSWORD

compiled by Harry Douglas

Live in Carer / Companion

required in the Ulster Lakeland / Enniskillen Region to assist / support and help an alert retired Professional Christian Lady in her early 70s now partially disabled.

❖ Excellent living conditions with use of separate self-contained flat attached to a larger private family home set out in extensive wooded grounds close to a major town.

❖ The successful applicant will ideally have some relevant nursing / care experience, either in a hospital or residential nursing care home.

❖ Have a full UK / EU driving licence with own car, being available for the occasional short trips,

❖ The successful 30–60-year-old individual will be fit, healthy, agile and able (with a good outgoing personality) while assisting a disabled person who only requires a wheelchair at certain times with advanced new medical treatment pending.

❖ Very good working conditions are offered within a relaxed and peaceful environment, while benefiting from an extensive network of good friends and a caring well respected family circle who are living close by and can provide additional care and support as necessary.

❖ Specially negotiated terms, hours and daily / evening responsibilities, along with time off and holidays – all clearly set out within a fairly agreed Contract of Terms and Employment.

If you are interested in hearing more please apply by email with your current situation and all past experience (work and academic) in strict confidence to: The Secretary (Bethany Care), Email: carerapplications2021@gmail.com

All applications acknowledged

The nostalgia trap

Ruth Sanderson

It’s 1994, I’m still in my school uniform. We’ve just had tea and now the main event of the early evening… Neighbours! The familiar melody starts as the TV screen fades up the most famous street in Australia. I still have my maths homework to do, and French vocab to learn, but that can all wait. I lie on the floor in front of the telly, transfixed for the next 25 minutes as I watch the residents of Ramsay Street live their needlessly dramatic lives.

I was quite the Neighbours fanatic in my youth and deeply felt every twist and turn of the plotline. Would Joe Mangle ever find love again? Would Harold Bishop ever be found having fallen off a cliff into the sea? (Plot spoiler – yes! He had drifted all the way to Tasmania where he suffered from amnesia before returning two years later to remarry Madge!) Would Caroline Alessi ever find out that her twin sister was having an affair with her husband? And who tried (and succeeded) to blow up Lassiters? If you know the answers to these questions then you were just as big a fan as me.

Ah those neighbours, how they kept me enthralled, until of course I got a bit older and completely lost interest. However, after a 20-year hiatus in my viewing habits, I returned for the last ever episode of the soap. I wasn’t too keen on the new theme music, and the less said about the current cast the better. However, my former passion came back to me as lots of the old faces returned (including Jason and Kylie, aka Scott and Charlene). The feeling of nostalgia wrapped around me like a warm duvet. I will even admit to shedding a tear as the final credits rolled.

By allowing ourselves to fall into the nostalgia trap, we fail to fully live in the present, to embrace all its complexities both good and bad.

only in recent times been seen as a good thing. Only a couple of centuries ago nostalgia was considered a dangerous disease which could lead to delusions, despair and even death. The word itself was coined in the 17th century by a physician to describe the debilitating algos (pain) felt by people who had left their nostos (native home). I read recently that during the American Civil War, Union army doctors reported 5,000 serious cases of nostalgia leading to 74 deaths. In Europe, there was much medical debate about how to stop this ‘home sickness’ and contain its spread. Concern seems to have waned in the 19th century, and by the 20th century its meaning had evolved to describe the pleasant memories of a time which we think of fondly.

However, I think nostalgia can still be pernicious without us realising. How often do we cast our minds back to a moment in time and catch ourselves thinking, ‘I wish life was like that now?’ or ‘why couldn’t those days last forever’. We might not be physically sick because we miss our homelands, but nostalgia can make us question the lives we are leading, our relationships, the realities of our current day to day.

Yet, the past is deceptive, nostalgia never seems to focus on the bad parts or the difficult moments, only the warm and cosy ones. By allowing ourselves to fall into the nostalgia trap, we fail to fully live in the present, to embrace all its complexities both good and bad.

Nostalgia seems to be in vogue at the moment. The finale of Neighbours, the Friends reunion, Derry Girls. I wonder if hankering back to our pop culture past is some comfort in the age of rising energy prices, war in Europe and climate emergency? It certainly feels more appealing to remember the days of being a carefree 11-year-old. Although I’m sure every generation has been nostalgic for what has come before. I remember a friend’s grandmother talking wistfully about what a happy time World War II was. I suspect she was wearing a very strong pair of rose-tinted glasses.

Nostalgia is nice to indulge in, but we must be careful not to fall into the ‘nostalgia trap’. In fact, our love of nostalgia has

Crucially, the nostalgia trap can make us miss the opportunities that God lays out for us. He wants us to keep our eyes focused on him, to look to the future and everything he has in store for us. It’s hard to do that if we keep turning our heads round to the ‘good old days’. Today is a good day and how thrilling that there are so many more days to come. Even more thrilling is the future that God has in store for us. Who needs nostalgia when we have God’s amazing promise of a life, and eternity with him?

CHURCH RECORD

VACANT CONGREGATIONS, MODERATORS AND CLERKS OF KIRK SESSIONS

(Information supplied by Clerks of Presbyteries, Conveners of Assembly Commissions and Councils).

1

LEAVE TO CALL GRANTED

Application forms are available on request from the Clerk’s Office or may be downloaded from the PCI website.

BALLYGRAINEY:

REV R.S. HAMILTON: Mr Brian McDowell, 263 Killaughey Road, Ballyhay, Donaghadee, BT21 0ND.

BALLYRONEY and DRUMLEE: (Reviewable Tenure – 7 years)

REV A.M. BORELAND: (Ballyroney) Mr David Peters, 30 Seafin Road, Ballyroney, Banbridge, BT32 5ER. (Drumlee) Mr Graham Truesdale, 128 Lackan Road, Ballyward, Castlewellan, BT31 9RX.

BANGOR, HAMILTON ROAD (ASSOCIATE): REV CHRISTOPH EBBINGHAUS: Mr Alan McDowell, 11 Braemar Park, Bangor, BT20 5HZ.

BELMONT:

REV T.J. STOTHERS: Mr Christopher Steele, 1 Hawthornden Drive, Belfast, BT4 2HG.

CARRICKFERGUS, JOYMOUNT:

REV G.A.J. FARQUHAR: Mr Stephen Drake, 8 Bluefield Way, Carrickfergus, BT38 7UB.

DUNFANAGHY and CARRIGART: (Home Mission) 50% Congregational Ministry, 50% CMI Mission Project

REV DR BRIAN BROWN: (Dunfanaghy) Mrs Ethel Montgomery, ‘Millrace’, Marble Hill Road, Dunfanaghy, Co Donegal, F92 N2WO. (Carrigart) Mrs Joy Buchanan, Figart, Carrigart, Co Donegal, F92 N2WO.

DUN LAOGHAIRE: (Reviewable Tenure – 7 years)

REV A.J. BOAL: Mrs Dorothy Shanahan, 1 Holmwood, Brennanstown, Cabinteely, D18 T2T5.

GARVAGH, MAIN ST and KILLAIG:

REV DREWE McCONNELL: (Garvagh, Main St) Mr Alan Farlow, 39 Ballynameen Road, Garvagh, BT51 5PN. (Killaig) Mr Ivan McKane, 27 Cashel Road, Macosquin, Coleraine, BT51 4PW.

GLENWHERRY:

REV S.D. KENNEDY: Mr Andrew Hoey, 49 Ballynulto Road, Ballymena, BT42 4RJ.

GORTNESSY:

REV A.J.A. ROSBOROUGH: Mr Ross Hyndman, 32 Temple Road, Strathfoyle, Londonderry, BT47 6UB. KILRAUGHTS, FIRST and ARMOY:

REV R.M. MURRAY: (Kilraughts, First) Mr Maurice Christie, 10 Kilmandil Road, Dunloy, Ballymena, BT44 9BH. (Armoy) Mrs Heather Morrison, 82 Carrowreagh Road, Armoy, Ballymoney, BT53 8RS.

LECKPATRICK and DONAGHEADY:

REV S.J. RICHMOND: (Leckpatrick) Mr Sam Clyde, 36 Woodend Road, Strabane, BT82 8LF. (Donagheady) Mr Ernie Colhoun, 44 Lowertown Road, Ballymagorry, Strabane, BT82 OLF.

LECUMPHER and MAGHERAFELT, UNION ROAD:

REV J.A. MARTIN: (Lecumpher) Mr Sammy Thompson, 10 Ballynagowan Road, Desertmartin, BT45 5LH. (Magherafelt, Union Road) Mr Ian Francis, 32 Caraloan Road, Magherafelt, BT45 6NW.

NEWMILLS and CARLAND:

REV W.A. DICKEY: (Newmills) Mr Roy Wilkins, 38 Dungannon Road, Coalisland, Dungannon, BT71 4HP. (Carland) Mr Howard McLean, 16 Ballynorthland Demesne, Dungannon Park, Dungannon, BT71 6BT.

RATHFRILAND, FIRST:

REV C.G. HARRIS: Mr David Scott, 13 Sleepy Valley, Rathfriland, Newry, BT34 5HL.

TOBERKEIGH and RAMOAN:

REV JOHN STANBRIDGE: (Toberkeigh) Mr Jim Kane, 67A Ballinlea Road, Ballinlea Upper, Ballycastle, BT54 6NN. (Ramoan) Mr Robert Getty, 23 Carrowcroey Road, Armoy, Ballymoney, BT53 8UH.

2 LEAVE TO CALL DEFERRED

CLADYMORE and TASSAGH:

REV R.I. ABRAHAM: (Cladymore) Mr David Wilson, 73 Kilmachugh Road, Mowhan, Armagh, BT60 2EN. (Tassagh) Mr Philip Crozier, 68 Bachelors Walk, Keady, Armagh, BT60 2NA.

DROMORE and DRUMQUIN:

REV E.T. FRAZER: (Dromore) Mr Lynden Keys, 25 New Park Road, Dromore, Omagh, BT78 3JU. (Drumquin) Dr Paul Booth, 231 Tummery Road, Irvinestown, BT78 3UF.

RICHVIEW:

REV N.S. HARRISON: Mr Victor Garland, 25 Abingdon Drive, Belfast, BT12 5PX.

SETTLED STATED SUPPLY APPOINTED

BALLINDERRY:

VERY REV DR W.J. HENRY, Minister of Maze.

BOVEEDY:

REV DR T.J. McCORMICK, Minister of 1st Kilrea.

CAHIR: (Home Mission)

REV WILLIAM MONTGOMERY, Minister of Fermoy.

KATESBRIDGE:

REV N.J. KANE, Minister of Magherally.

TYRONE’S DITCHES:

REV J.K.A. McINTYRE, Minister of Bessbrook.

3 DECLARED VACANT

ARMAGH, FIRST:

REV G.R. MULLAN: Mr Ian Kyle, 8 Drummanmore Road, BT61 8RN.

BALLEE:

REV D.A. McMILLAN: Mr John Quigley, 81 Queen’s Avenue, Magherafelt, BT45 6DB.

BALLINA, KILLALA & BALLYMOTE: (Home Mission)

REV D.J. CLARKE: Mr Geoffrey Shannon, Robin Hill, Carraun, Corballa, Ballina, Co Mayo, F26 A070.

BALLYALBANY and GLENNAN:

REV D.T.R. EDWARDS: (Ballyalbany) Mr Sam Condell, Billary, Smithborough, Co Monaghan. (Glennan) Mr David Russell, Knockafubble, Emyvale, Co Monaghan.

BALLYMENA, FIRST:

REV N.A.L. CAMERON: Mr Tom Heaney, 109 Loughmegarry Road, Ballymena, BT43 6SP.

BELLAGHY and KNOCKLOUGHRIM:

REV J.B. MULLAN: (Bellaghy) Mr Harry Ferson, 12 Railway Terrace, Castledawson, Magherafelt, BT45 8AY. (Knockloughrim) Mr Wilbur Bownes, 10 Meadowell Fold, Westland Gardens, Magherafelt, BT45 5DP.

BELVOIR:

REV B.J. WALKER: Mr Brian Dunwoody, 19 Drumart Drive, Belfast, BT8 7ET.

CASTLEROCK:

REV D.H. BROWN: Miss Heather McSparran, 26 Freehall Road, Castlerock, BT51 4TR.

COLERAINE, NEW ROW:

REV R.D. GREGG: Mr Adrian Cochrane, 12 Cambridge Park, Coleraine, BT52 2QT.

CRUMLIN:

REV BEN JOHNSTON: Mr James Livingstone, “Edin”, 56 Largy Road, Crumlin, BT29 4RW.

CUMBER and UPPER CUMBER:

REV S.W. HIBBERT: (Cumber) Mr Eric Christie, 43 Gorse Road, Killaloo, Londonderry, BT47 3SS. (Upper Cumber) Mr Jack McFarland, 12 Cregg Road, Claudy, Londonderry, BT47 4HX.

DROMARA, SECOND:

REV D.H. GILPIN: Mr Herbert Chambers, 29 Stewarts Road, Dromara, BT25 2AN.

DUNDROD:

REV R.C. KERR: Mr William McClure, 20 Thorndale Road, Dundrod, BT29 4UD.

ENNISCORTHY and WEXFORD: (Home Mission)

REV M.R.J. ANDERSON: (Enniscorthy) Mr Ian Gibson “Tanglewood”, Monart, Enniscorthy, Co Wexford. (Wexford) c/o Mr Ian Gibson.

Editor’s Note: Information for this page is supplied by the General Secretary’s Department. Vacancies for conveners of commissions, councils and committees of the General Assembly are online at www.presbyterianireland.org/convenerships

Clerks of presbytery please note: Only material received by the General Secretary’s Department by 12 noon on the first Friday of the month can be included in the Church Record.

FAHAN (Home Mission) and WATERSIDE:

REV G.A. McCRACKEN: (Fahan) Mr James Lamberton, 1 Deanfield, Limavady Road, Londonderry, BT47 6HY. (Waterside) Mr William McIlwaine, 19 Glenaden Hill, Altnagelvin Park, Londonderry, BT47 2LJ.

GLASTRY and KIRKCUBBIN:

REV A. GILICZE: (Glastry): Mr Will Taylor, 43 Manse Road, Kircubbin, Newtownards BT22 1DR. (Kirkcubbin)

HILLTOWN and CLONDUFF:

REV KENNETH NELSON: (Hilltown) Mr John Ervine, 51 Rostrevor Road, Hilltown, Newry, BT34 5TZ. (Clonduff) Mr Cecil Brown, 39 Bannfield Road, Rathfriland, Newry, BT34 5HG.

HYDEPARK & LYLEHILL:

REV C.K. McDOWELL: (Hydepark) Mrs Lynas Alexander, 22 Broadacres, Templepatrick, BT39 0AY.

KELLS: (Home Mission)

REV ALAN McQUADE: Ms Ruth McCartney, Shancarnan, Moynalty, Kells, Co Meath, A82 PF60.

KILMAKEE:

REV ROBERT LOVE: Miss Aileen Irvine, 5 Aberdelghy Park, Lambeg, Lisburn, BT27 4QF.

KILREA, SECOND:

REV DR CLIVE GLASS: Mr John McIlrath, 9 Moyagoney Road, Kilrea, Coleraine, BT51 5SX.

LOWE MEMORIAL:

REV DR D.J. McKELVEY: Dr Moyna Bill, 6 Old Coach Avenue, Belfast, BT9 6PY.

McQUISTON MEMORIAL:

REV R.S. McILHATTON:

MONEYDIG:

REV DR S.D.H. WILLIAMSON: Mr Steven Torrens, 115a Agivey Road, Kilrea, Coleraine, BT51 5UZ.

NEWINGTON:

REV DR I.D. NEISH: Mr John Lynass, 8 Bushfoot Park, Portballintrae, BT57 8YX.

NEWTOWNARDS, SECOND:

REV DR W.J.P. BAILIE: Mr Ivan Patterson, 11 Heron Crescent, Newtownards, BT23 8WH.

NEWTOWNARDS, REGENT STREET:

REV P.T. DALZELL: Mr Ian MacDonald, 11 Stanvilla Road, Newtownards, BT23 8HE.

PORTAVOGIE:

REV G.J. SIMPSON: Mr Trevor Kennedy, 1 Cairndore Road, Newtownards, BT23 8RD.

RANDALSTOWN, O.C.

REV A.W. MOORE: Mr Alun Coulter, 48 Portglenone Road, Randalstown, BT41 3DB.

RATHCOOLE:

REV A.K. DUDDY: Mr Ken Neill, 307 Merville Garden Village, Newtownabbey, BT37 9TY.

SAINTFIELD, FIRST:

REV B.A. SMALL: Mr Paul Jackson, 20 The Grange, Saintfield, BT24 7NF.

SPA and MAGHERAHAMLET:

REV D.F. LEAL: (Spa) Acting Clerk - Mr Stephen McBride, 28 Ballynahinch Road, Castlewellan, BT31 9PA. (Magherahamlet) Mr David Whan, 74 Castlewellan Road, Dromara, BT25 2JN.

STRABANE and SION MILLS:

REV COLIN McKIBBIN: (Strabane) Mr William Watson, 44 Orchard Road, Strabane, BT82 9QS. (Sion Mills) Mr Colin Campbell, 26 Albert Place, Sion Mills, Strabane, BT82 9HN.

TULLYCARNET:

REV DR COLIN BURCOMBE

VINECASH:

REV P.W.A. McCLELLAND: Mr Thomas Graham, 38 Richmount, Portadown, BT62 4JQ.

WHITEHEAD:

REV N.W. DUDDY: Ms Helen Graham, 4 Kilcarn, Islandmagee, BT40 3PJ.

TEMPORARY STATED SUPPLY ARRANGEMENT

BALLYCAIRN:

REV WILLIAM HARKNESS: Mr Brian Milligan, 19 Glenariff Drive, Dunmurry, BT17 9AZ.

BELLVILLE:

REV D.S. HENRY: Mr Mervyn King, 29 Ardmore Road, Derryadd, Lurgan, BT66 6QP. CARNLOUGH-CUSHENDALL and NEWTOWNCROMMELIN:

REV J.A. BEATTIE: (Carnlough-Cushendall) Mr Norman McMullan, 91 Ballymena Road, Carnlough, BT44 0LA. (Newtowncrommelin) Mr James Gillan, 67 Gracefield, Ballymena, BT42 2RP.

GRANGE with CRAIGMORE:

REV R.S AGNEW: Mr Jamie Harris, 32 Portglenone Road, Randalstown, BT41 3BE.

NEWTOWNSTEWART and GORTIN (Home Mission):

REV R.N. ORR: (Newtownstewart) Mr James Baxter, 22 Strabane Road, Newtownstewart, Omagh, BT78 4BD. (Gortin) Mr Adrian Adams, 32 Lisnaharney Road, Lislap, Omagh, BT79 7UE.

RALOO and MAGHERAMORNE:

REV D.R. CROMIE: (Raloo) Mr Geoff McBride, 72 Raloo Road, Larne, BT40 3DU. (Magheramorne) Mr Morris Gardner, 89 Ballypollard Road, Magheramorne, Larne, BT40 3JG.

WARRENPOINT and ROSTREVOR:

REV S.S. JOHNSTON: (Warrenpoint) Mr Denis Brady, 28 Seaview, Warrenpoint, Newry, BT34 3NJ. (Rostrevor) Mr Terry O’Flynn, 15 Aurora Na Mara, Shore Road, Rostrevor, BT34 3UP.

THE ELDERSHIP

Ordained and Installed:

COMBER, FIRST: Matthew Jamison, Richard Nelson, Mrs Amanda Pollock, Mrs Claire Sherlock, Mrs Margaret White, Trevor White, Trevor Wilson

KILBRIDE: David Annett, Christine Craig, Marc McCallion, Philip McMaster, Denise Milligan, Maureen Stirling

MOUNTJOY: Karen Ballantine, Paul Alexander Colhoun, Richard John McAskie

WOODLANDS: Jonathan Addis, Brian Allen, Peter Drysdale, Richard Gibson, Nathan McConnell, Andrew McCorkell, Jonathan Parkes

Died:

ATHY: Doris Maxwell

KILLYLEAGH: Anna Georgina (Zena) McAllister

THE MINISTRY

Licensed:

Keith Derek McIlroy, by the Ballymena Presbytery, on 19 June 2022

Installed:

Stephen McNie, as Minister of Muckamore, on 17 June 2022

Jonathan Edward Sloan, as Minister of Moneymore First and Second, on 30 June 2022

Retired:

Robert Beggs, as Minister of McQuiston Memorial, on 31 July 2022

Anthony Daniel Davidson, as Minister of First Armagh, on 31 July 2022

Resigned:

Stephen McNie, as Minister of Ballyalbany & Glennan, on 16 June 2022

Jonathan Edward Sloan, as Minister of OC Randalstown, on 29 June 2022

David John Steele, as Minister of Dundrod, on 27 June 2022

Died:

Rev Kenneth James Caldwell McConnell, Minister Emeritus of Dunfanaghy & Carrigart, on 29 May 2022

Rev Dr William O’Neill, Minister Emeritus of Howth and Malahide, on 30 June 2022

Very Rev Dr Andrew Rutherford Rodgers, Minister Emeritus of Dungannon, on 29 June 2022

The Herald magazine is now available as a free digital download for 2021.

A voice for Presbyterians For these and other issues visit issuu.com/presbyterianireland “Read

Convoy Presbyterian Church invites applications for the post of

Youth and Children’s Worker

for the congregations of Alt, Carnone, Convoy, Donoughmore, Raphoe and Ballindrait.

The Kirk Sessions wish to appoint a person who will help the church to realise the stated vision for its children and young people: “Recognising children and young people as a vital part of today’s church, we seek to nurture them towards a maturing faith in Jesus Christ”.

Hours: Full-time (37.5 hours per week) on a 3-year contract which can be extended

Salary: PCI Salary Scale Band A Point 1 (€28,530 per annum)

The nature of the post will require evening and weekend work. Accommodation nearby, with subsidised rates.

Congregational profiles, job description and personnel specification are available from the office Contact Majella 00353 749147021

Office hours: Tues 9.30am–1.30pm; Wed 9.30am–1.30pm; Thurs 9.30am–1.30pm

Closing date for applications: Saturday 30 September 2022 We are an equal opportunities employer

Leaking flat roof?

Upgrade to a new Warm

Rubber Roof

Save money on heating bills and add comfort to your home

Supply & Fit Service Also D I Y Kits

Haire Bros Ltd

028 7034 2696 www.hairebros.co.uk

Cuningham Memorial Presbyterian Church, Cullybackey

Youth and Community Outreach Worker

We are seeking to appoint a Youth and Community Outreach Worker to help us develop and coordinate our work among young people, nurture future leaders and reach out to unchurched young people / families within the district of Cullybackey.

The position is a full-time post for 37.5 hours per week and will include evening and weekend work.

This is a three year Fixed Term Contract. Salary will be in line with PCI salary scale Band B1 – £24,307

A commitment to the Christian ethos of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland is essential. For job description, personnel specification and application form, please contact:

Rev Noel Mulholland 07732 686146 or email noelmulholland800@btinternet.com

Closing date for applications: Friday 30 September 2022.

Church and Faith Insurance

The TL Dallas team in Belfast has over 100 years collective experience in designing and arranging bespoke insurance products for the Faith sector.

Leveraging their experience, our Belfast team designed a facility for the Faith sector, which is now in its sixth year, and with the backing of Aviva, now covers over 200 churches. We also have access to Home Insurance policies for Ministers, including unique features, geared at protecting Ministers assets and responsibilities.

Flexibility is at the heart of the facility, which we’ve seen many Clients benefit from, with significant premium savings and the comfort of extensive cover.

Get in touch today to learn more or for a no obligation quote.

Visit Call Email

www.tldallas.com 02890 380 980 gary.proctor@tldallas.com

TL Dallas (NI) Ltd is an appointed representative of TL Dallas & Co Ltd, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered Office: Dallas House, Low Moor, Bradford, BD12 0HF. Registered in England No. 645405.

Are you a caring and compassionate person?

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland provides residential and day services across the island of Ireland. Our services reflect our Christian ethos and we are currently seeking to build our team to deliver excellence in service provision.

As an employer, we value career progression and have dynamic training opportunities to meet your training and development needs.

We have opportunities available across our homes in Bangor, Belfast, Dundonald, Newcastle, Omagh and Garvagh.

We have a wide range of roles that could suit you with a variety of working patterns, including full-time, part-time and relief.

• Senior Care Assistants

• Care Assistants

• Cook/Kitchen Assistant

• Housekeepers

For many roles, previous experience is not required as full training will be provided. We are hiring!

Benefits normally include:

• Discount card – entitling you to money off in various locations

• Free staff meals, uniform, and training

• Enhanced annual leave

• Free Access NI and NISCC registration

• Enhanced maternity pay and pension scheme

£500 WELCOME BONUS *

Are you interested in a change of career?

Would you like to work in a caring and supportive workplace?

Download application packs from www.presbyterianireland.org/socialcarejobs

Email personnel@presbyterianireland.org or call +44 (0)28 9041 7255 for more details

WE ARE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EMPLOYER

*Terms and conditions apply