News (June 2009)
Stannington Church reaches prestigious finals
St. Mary’s Church in Stannington has reached the finals of a prestigious national competition to find a village church which has adapted to serve the needs of its community.
When the magazine Country Life ran its “Village Life” award last year for rural churches which had transformed themselves and enhanced their communities, the people of St. Mary’s thought they had to be in with a chance.
There was good reason for optimism. Since 2003 the church has undergone a massive face-lift, made possible because the remarkable sum of £314,087 was raised by the whole community. But were they too late to enter ?
Edna Beveridge, chair of the Fundraising Appeal Committee, takes up the story: “Last year I was looking through some old copies of 'Link' when I noticed info about the Country Life competition. I thought St Mary's had a great chance of becoming one of the finalists due to the enormous amount of work we have done in such a short space of time. So I phoned up, but was told I had missed the deadline by several weeks. I asked if it was likely to be repeated and was told that any future competition was likely to centre around other types of churches.
“I then dismissed it as a missed opportunity. However, much to my surprise in the February edition of 'Link' this year I saw details of the competition – once more involving rural churches and how they had adapted to involving the community. So I entered St Mary's.”
The Stannington church is a late Victorian Grade 11 listed building, which before 2003 needed much to bring it into the 21st century. There was an unsafe wiring system, poor lighting, no disabled provision, and no toilet facilities – and that was just the start.
Yet within thee years the church had achieved its aim and all the work was completed. Edna explains: “We had a well lit church, a disabled ramp, a loop system, a disabled toilet, several pews had been removed to allow a well equipped kitchen and a meeting room to be built, as well as making space for the nave to be extended further into the body of the church.”
But there was more to be done. The base of the tower was a ‘glory-hole’ where everything including rubbish was stored. The church approached the local council who suggested the space might be converted into an on-line centre for the community. The money was raised and the on-line centre was set up with eight computers. It generated great media interest with tv and local newspaper reports. And now classes take place three times per week and, says Edna, “ It is amazing how much progress has been made by senior citizens!”
Now St. Mary’s is thriving, and attention has switched from the church itself to the churchyard with a natural wildlife area and squirrel boxes which encourage the elusive “red”.
Edna adds: “We were astounded that we had achieved so much in such a short time. It has been really hard work but enjoyable. There were a few headaches, though. We did not bargain for both wet and dry rot being discovered in the church at the same time! However with the help of an interest free loan we have managed to complete all the necessary work.”
Now church members have an agonising wait to see if they might have scooped the £10,000 prize which last year went to a church in Somerset. Watch this space.
Dragon alert!
Dragons from Cullercoats are winging their way across the world as St. George’s Church begins to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of the Dedication. Sightings have already been reported in Oxford and St. Petersberg.
Over a glass of wine and a small banquet which followed the Eucharist in celebration of Saint George, the good folk of Cullercoats were introduced to the travelling dragons. Members of the congregation who were on their travels are being encouraged to take a companionable dragon with them, and bring back a photo of the dragon as evidence of a safe arrival. Photographs of dragons are expected from the far flung quarters of the globe by the time the anniversary celebrations finally come to an end in October 2010. One is reputedly going to visit Lambeth this summer, so we might even look forward to a photo of our Welsh Archbishop of Canterbury cradling a dragon from Cullercoats. Watch this space for further details….
The dragons’ P.A. who maintains their travel schedule has already complained that she is under too much pressure, and is concerned that the demands will simply be too much. There is a rumour of a third dragon who may yet make an appearance.
News of the whereabouts of the Cullercoats’ dragons and other anniversary celebrations planned for the summer and early are all on our website www.cullercoatsparish.org Just to whet your appetite - for those who love male voice choirs, you may like to know that the Newcastle Chorus are performing at St. George’s Church on Saturday 5th September. Tickets £5 at the door.
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Synod Presidential Address:"Doing God" in the real World
The “language of God”, common in public life in the first half of the 20th Century, and for centuries before that, “ is now muted, if not almost silent,” Bishop Martin told members of Diocesan Synod last month.
The mood famously summed up by Alistair Campbell with the words “We don’t do God” meant that if a politician referred to God it was in “a half embarrassed kind of way”, the Bishop went on.
“Religion is seen as something which may be privately engaged in, but publicly irrelevant – or worse, it can be seen as dangerous, emotional, and the cause of wars and terrorism.”
This set enormous risks and temptations before the Church. “It can lead to a temptation for the Church to withdraw from the public sphere, to withdraw from engagement with the world into self-defining agendas, or to a preoccupation with our own survival or health.”
Bishop Martin laid out the vision of a recent book by John Atherton of Manchester Cathedral which argues that “at the heart of Christian belief are questions of what it now means to be human, of what is our understanding of human well-being and flourishing, or what is the right and wrong way of promoting human living in our modern world.”
The theme of engagement with communities - at the heart of the Atherton book - also lay at the core of the Church of England’s central vision and purpose since Faith in the City report of 1985, as well as being integral to our own commitment to be “a generous, engaged and open church in this diocese.”
Bishop Martin continued: “Central to our purpose is the idea that the Church finds her God-given task as she engages with her context – even if, as in our own country, that context is profoundly and deeply secularised.”
John Atherton, the Bishop said, argued that “the way forward in a word such as this is not to shrink from or shy away from the public arena, but to enter it in new ways, engaging the life of the Church in our community and making connections which offer us chances to set a vision of the Kingdom of God before the world.”
The Bishop detailed a number of examples of such engagement throughout the diocese, including the “dedicated and difficult” work with asylum-seekers in Walker, Wallsend and the West End of Newcastle, and young people’s work in disadvantaged areas, including the North Benwell Young People’s project which recently won the High Sheriff’s award for an outstanding contribution to the well-being of young men.
He also praised the work at All Saints College – the first-ever Church of England secondary school in the diocese, pointing out that “When we took over there were four children in the sixth form, and no one had ever gone on to university. Last year the sixth form numbered 120, and our first students went off to university.” Now, he said, the diocese could look forward to the opening of the Church of England Academy in Seaton Hirst, an ambitious project incorporating 10 schools on five sites.”
There were many other examples, he said, which together amounted to “a substantial and growing commitment by the parishes of our dioceses to engage with their communities for the sake of the Kingdom.”
The Church in the diocese, Bishop Martin said, was responding with a range of imaginative and energetic options for connecting or reconnecting with the world, including cafe church, cell church, tea-time church, messy church, network church, and church arising out of community action as Cornerstone had done more than 20 years ago.
But as the discussions and planning proceeded and the second phase of the Mission Action Plans got underway, we needed to hold in mind a question. “What are these expressions of church for ?”
If their purpose was to strengthen and develop the church for the sake of its own members or its own survival, then this was something less than God’s mission in the world.
“If, on the other hand, these new expressions of the Church’s life are part of the ways by which we can reconnect the church with the culture, language, hopes, aspirations and fears of the real world in which we live, then this may be the coming into being of a new kind of church which does indeed exist – as our Lord does – for the sake of the world.”
It might then become legitimate, once again, the Bishop concluded, for our politicians to “do God” in public.
Thanks for service given
Diocesan Synod opened with Bishop Martin paying tribute to a number of people who had made a significant contribution to the life of the diocese through the work of the synod.
Philip Davies, diocesan secretary for the past 11 years, was owed “an enormous debt of gratitude” the Bishop said, and “I want to place on public record my appreciation of Philip’s integrity, his firmness, his loyalty and his friendship.”
Christine Wood, the diocesan property manager who has left to work in a similar capacity with the URC church, was thanked for being an ever- helpful presence at synod, serving the diocese for more than 18 years.
Ted Hartland, retiring from Synod which he joined in 1987, had been lay chair of Tynemouth Deanery for 18 years, a member of Bishop’s Council for eight years, and on the Board of Finance for eight years, as well as serving on numerous other committees. “There has hardly been an area of diocesan life where Ted hasn’t made a significant contribution,” the Bishop said.
Canon Michael Webb, standing down as chair of the House of Clergy and as a synod member, was thanked for having been “a doughty advocate and champion for the wellbeing of clergy in the diocese, a wise and esteemed member of Bishop’s Council,” as well as leading the Winchester Link with “energy and imagination”.
Two other retiring members were also thanked. Canon Michael Nelson was thanked for his contribution to the life of the synod as well as his membership of Bishop Council’s, and his work as an Area Dean, while Douglas Hoblyn, was praised for having kept a sharp eye on diocesan finances. “We will miss your attention to detail and your financial acumen,” Bishop Martin said.
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Members have their say
Synod broke into a number of discussion groups half way through the meeting for a “Looking Forward, Looking Back session” with each group being managed by a facilitator.
Among the subjects touched under “Looking Back” were the Mission Action Plans launched at Alnwick Gardens, the creation of the Lindisfarne training partnership, the effectiveness of synod forums, the three-year budget system, strategic development and the challenge of heritage tourism.
Questions asked included: “What have we done successfully ?” and “What might we have done better?”
During the “Looking Forward” session topics included priorities for expenditure, clergy pensions, parish share, women in the Episcopate and the development of lay and ordained ministry.
Each group reported back to the chair of the House of Laity with its findings, and after the discussions were over each group was visited by a Task Group member who expanded on the individual annual reports given out at the meeting, explaining what had been achieved in 2008 in the various areas of work, and what was planned for 2009.
Joint Education Director Approved
Synod approved a proposal put by Bishop Paul Richardson, chair of the Diocesan Board of Education, that a single Director of Education be appointed jointly by the dioceses of Newcastle and Durham.
Members heard that broadly the same issues and challenges faced both dioceses, and that Education Board officers from Newcastle and Durham already worked together on a number of initiatives, including the creation of the jointly-owned trading company NEEDS (North East Education Development Services Ltd.), which provides building services to schools. Other areas of current joint working included the administration of the Statutory inspection of
Church Schools, an FE task group working with colleges to explore faiths, values and community cohesion, Godly Play training, provision of collective worship materials and training for curates.
“This work has enabled us to share expertise, build capacity and make more effective use of our separate resources,” Bishop Paul told Synod.
Under the proposals there would be a joint Director of Education, two assistant directors, a bursar, an administrator and a personal assistant for the director.
Synod heard that the proposals would be virtually cost neutral for the Newcastle Diocese, and that the two diocesan education boards with their current legal structures would be retained.
New Chancellor Appointed
This month Bishop Martin announces a new chancellor for the Diocese of Newcastle, Judge David Hodson, who succeeds Professor David McLean.
Judge Hodson has been Recorder of Newcastle upon Tyne since 1997 and Deputy Chancellor of the Diocese of Newcastle since 2001.
A Lancastrian by birth, he was educated at Sedbergh School and Manchester University, and was called to the Bar in 1966. He has been a member of the Court of Newcastle University since 2000.
Judge Hodson reveals that he comes from a clerical, rather than a legal family. His great grandfather was a vicar in the Lake District, and uncles on that side of the family also served as priests. His own father, however, was a bank manager, and the family settled in Haslingden, a cotton town in South Lancashire.
After reading law at university, the young David found himself tempted by a life in journalism, becoming leader writer on the Yorkshire Post. He still remembers the pressure of having to write a column on topical issues every day, the anxiety when it wasn’t going well, and the sheer pleasure when it was.
“But I’d already started to read for the Bar, and it seemed silly not to get the qualifications,” he reflects as he remembers his time at the Post, “So I did the Bar trials, and then I got a pupillage in Manchester, and then I practised at the Bar for the next 20 years...”
Given the parlous state of journalism as a career, he almost certainly made the right choice, and yet it seems clear that he has unfinished business with the art of writing, something he seems likely to remedy as time goes by.
But for the moment, there is much else to do, not least the exercising of his duties as Senior Circuit Judge and Honorary Recorder of Newcastle upon Tyne, roles to which the task of Diocesan Chancellor will now be added.
He came to Newcastle in 1997 having been made a circuit judge in Manchester at the age of 45 – “relatively young for a judge” – and declares that it was “the best move we ever made”. He and his wife Patricia were not familiar with the city or the Northumberland countryside, but once they arrived and settled in Jesmond, there was nowhere else they wanted to be. Now they welcome their three grown-up children and two grand-children to a place that is very much home.
“It’s a terrific part of the world,” he says, “And I even managed to find some ancestral connections up here!”
In fact, in his family researches he uncovered a tragic tale, the inglorious fate of his great great grandfather who had been a surveyor of ships for Lloyd’s in North Shields.
“I discovered that he died from a violent attack of diarrhoea in the 1860’s,” the judge reveals, “It was reported in the Shields Gazette!”
Researching family history – a different branch of the Hodson clan took root in Teesdale - is one of his passions, but he also enjoys fell-walking, music, and sport. “I used to play squash and have the knee injuries to prove it!” he says. He’s a keen church-goer too, and as a member of St. George’s in Jesmond, reports that he is thankful to be part of a lively church where music is celebrated, and where much is happening.
His task as Chancellor of the Diocese is one for which, as deputy, he has been prepared, although now he will be dealing with faculty petitions from ten of our deaneries, rather than the two he handled previously.
The job of the Chancellor, he explains, is to examine all the plans from churches who want to alter and improve their buildings or churchyards, and then consult with the Diocesan Advisory Committee before deciding whether to grant or reject a faculty request. In the vast majority of cases, everything is straightforward, but there are those occasions – those churches – where the statutory notice of change pending produces some objections. When that happens, a Consistory Court hearing follows. He may also be called to preside over cases brought under the Clergy Discipline Measure, should such an event occur in the Newcastle Diocese.
Add in some ceremonial duties, some landmark church occasions, the odd garden party or fete, and it’s clear that the role of Chancellor has its pleasures as well as its weighty decisions, a fact reflected, perhaps, in the sums paid to a diocesan chancellor and his deputy. As deputy, Judge Hodson received £400 a year for his services, and now he’s looking forward to a modest rise.
He is likely to continue as Chancellor and as a judge until he’s 70, and it’s then that he may return to his first love of writing. He has plans to produce a history of the Recordership of Newcastle, delving back into the colourful story of the city’s premier judge which stretches back to the year 1400. It’s a story of which he himself is an integral part.
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St. Paul's welcomes new Lindisfarne principal
The historic church of St Paul’s in Jarrow provided a wholly appropriate setting for the licensing of Canon Cathy Rowling as the first principal of Lindisfarne, the new Regional Training Partnership for the North-East, and the commissioning of her training team.
Bishops, archdeacons, canons and priests from the dioceses of Newcastle and Durham packed the church for a stirring service in which Canon Cathy took her oath of allegiance and the team received their mandate to carry ministry in the region into a new era.
Representatives from other denominations, including the Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed churches in the area, welcomed Canon Cathy to her new post, and the sermon was preached by the Archdeacon of Lindisfarne, the Ven. Peter Robinson.
He reminded those present of the vision of Lindisfarne, and its three big ideas, the first of which was the understanding that the Church should prioritise continuing education and development of all its adult members and become a community that is always “learning, adapting and growing.”
The second big idea was that the Church should encourage far more joined-up thinking between dioceses, denominations and other institutions – including theological colleges – which provide adult education. The key word, Archdeacon Peter explained, was “partnership”.
Finally, ministerial education should be a natural extension of the ongoing learning of all disciples, and be seen as a life-long duty for all authorised ministers, he said.
A reception was held after the service at Bede Hall.
* Our picture shows the Lindisfarne team pictured outside from St Paul’s, Jarrow: Richard Bryant, Alastair Macnaughton, Cathy Rowling, Rick Simpson and Michael Beck.
Church buildings and Spiritual heritage in the North-east
English Heritage has announced the offer of a £5000 grant to the Diocese of Newcastle, working with Durham diocese, to part-fund a short Options and Feasibility study to identify the need for, and potential role of, a Historic Places of Worship Support Officer for the North East.
If appointed, the Support Officer will work closely with congregations in the region to help them understand, care for and make best use of their buildings, with the aim of developing an increased appreciation of the value of historic places of worship in the wider community. The Support Officer would also be required to help develop a strategy for the long-term management of the North East’s historic places of worship and develop an action plan for the buildings identified as priorities for support. The study will also look at ways in which the links between the heritage of the region’s historic places of worship and tourism can be strengthened.
Welcoming the announcement, Peter Robinson, the Archdeacon of Lindisfarne, said: “This grant is great news as it will help consolidate the work we’ve already done over the past few years. We will now be able to move forward to the point where we should be able to identify a clear role for a Support Officer and develop a strategy to safeguard the region’s historic places of worship”.
There are five phases to the study: Researching the heritage assets and the case for action; exploring potential relationships with regional regeneration, heritage and tourism organisations, church and diocesan bodies, other denominations, faith networks and interested organisations; assessment of options for a Church Buildings and Spiritual Heritage project, leading to agreement of a preferred option with supporting partners and decision-makers; the drafting of a business plan, including clear objectives, timetable and funding plan; preparing an application for grant funding for an Historic Places of Worship Officer.
The aim is to complete the study and business plan by the end of June 2009, and a consultant has already been appointed .
New Developments in the Diocesan Healing Ministry
Members of the Diocesan Healing Team( under the leadership of the Rev. Peter Bryars, Diocesan Advisor for the Healing Ministry), are responding to requests for training in the healing ministry by starting a monthly Diocesan healing service in which they can model good practice. The team hope that this modellingwill build on the training they already do within parishes in a very practical way.
“ Although many parishes have a robust healing ministry there are other places in the diocese where people are unaware that this ministry exists at all,” says Peter. “We want to provide opportunities for people to learn and experience in a safe and prayerful atmosphere what the ministry of healing and wholeness is about, and then take the good news back to their own churches and parishes.”
Services will start at 7.30pm on the first Tuesday of the month beginning on July 7th at St. Michael’s New Hartley. Further information from Peter on 0191 2371982
Flower Festival at Kirkharle
The congregation of Kirkwhelpington with Kirkharle grasped the opportunity with both hands when Kirkharle Courtyard put on a Spring Fayre on the first May Bank Holiday weekend.
St Wilfrid's Church, Kirkharle, is a gem of a church, and with a flower festival for the weekend and an excellent concert by 'Plura Videte Baroque' (see picture) in church on Monday afternoon, many hundred visitors to the Courtyard also came to admire St Wilfrid's. They were greeted by welcomers from the church and a visitor leaflet, not the mention the visual delights of the flower arrangements and the fragrance of the blooms. A ticketed preview evening on Friday with drinks provided the funds for the flowers, and admission and donations throughout the weekend raised £800.
The famous landscape gardener Capability Brown hailed from Kirkharle and was baptised at St Wilfrid's and the weekend saw the official opening of an exhibition about him in the Courtyard. So it was a fitting highlight that on Sunday morning a joyful congregation gathered for a Service of Holy Communion with the baptism of a little boy from Kirkharle.
Linking Environment and Farming
The ecumenical Rural Clergy Network for Northumberland met last month to visit a LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) demonstration farm, Bellshill Farm near Belford. The group is convened by the Rev. Dave Herbert, the URC Rural Officer. Farmer Helen Renner showed a group of clergy round the farm she and her husband own and run. The group learnt about building up a cattle herd and grazing as well as beetle banks but also about school visits from inner city children – links which need to be encouraged. Our picture shows from left to right:
Dave Herbert (URC, Belford), Michael Bryce (CoE, Whalton etc), Peter Robinson (Archdeacon), Helen Renner from Bellshill, Les Hann (Methodist, Haltwhistle) and Janet Flawn (URC, Bellingham).
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"Running" the Cathedral Choirs
How do you run a cathedral choir?
With a pair of shorts and a stout pair of shoes, says Michael Stoddart, Organist and Director of Music of St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle, who plans to run the 29 miles from Hexham Abbey to the Cathedral this July.
Michael, who will be breaking the journey at Prudhoe, plans to visit eight churches in the diocese along his route - Hexham Abbey, St Andrew Corbridge, St James Riding Mill, St Peter Bywell, St Mary Ovingham, St Mary Magdalene Prudhoe, St Oswin, and Wylam, St Michael & All Angels, Newburn) before "gannin' alang the Scotswood Road", the historic route of the Blaydon Races, to be met by the cathedral choristers, ready to rehearse them for choral Evensong.
It’s all in aid of the Cathedral Choirs Association, which supports all three cathedral choirs, the traditional choir of men and boys, the newly formed girls’ choir, and the cathedral consort comprising mainly sixth formers and university students.
In addition to singing the daily services, the choirs occasionally sing with other Cathedral Choirs and choirs in the diocese, give concerts in the cathedral and throughout the north east, broadcast on radio and television, undertake tours and take part in music festivals, make recordings and sing with leading orchestras and ensembles such as the Northern Sinfonia. The Choirs Association supports all of these with recent assistance with recruitment and publicity, choir tours, production and selling CDs and promoting concerts and other special events.
The run will cover two days, Saturday July 4 and Sunday July 5, and you can sponsor Michael by calling him on 0191 261 4505 or emailing directorofmusic@stnicnewcastle.co.uk for a sponsorship form. Cheques should be made payable to “St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle”
Some energetic folk may wish to show support by joining Michael for one or more legs of the journey. The target pace is between 9 and 10 minute miles. Again contact Michael if you would like to join in the running.
The path to success
Church warden Frieda Phillipson surveys the new disabled access at St. Andrew’s church in Heddon, the culmination of a long-running effort by the parish fund-raising committee to improve facilities for the many tourists who drop by at St. Andrew’s, as well as improving life for worshippers and members of the local community.
Over the past four years, the committee, chaired by Esme Tingate, has raisied £70,000 toward the cost of installing new toilets, a meeting room and an open area. A £10,000 grant from the SITA Trust enabled the parish to put the finishing touches to their project, creating a path from the back of the nearby Heddon library up to the doors of the church.
“Some people just like to sit in the peace and quiet and enjoy the wildlife we get here, or sit at the garden of remembrance,” Esme says, “Others want an informal tour of a wonderful, historic church which was founded around 650 AD.”
With a heritage centre which offers a taste of the rich Roman and Christian history in which the area abounds, St. Andrew’s has positioned itself very nicely on the tourist map.
Bedlington memorial chapel
The memorial chapel at St.Cuthbert’s in Bedlington awaits rededication, both of the scared space itself and the Colours of the 2nd Battalion of the Tynside Scottish Regiment, undergoing repair after a parish appeal.
The cost of repairing the Colours has been around £1500 and the work was considered important because the battalion existed for a very short time, making the item quite unique.
Memorial boards in the chapel commemorate 430 local men who lost their lives in the 1914 – 18 war. Of these more than three quarters had been employed in the local coal fields, with the remainder coming from the parish of St Cuthbert’s. In addition a board commemorates 60 men who made a similar sacrifice in the 1939 – 45 war.
The Chapel is situated in what was the South Porch, which was added to the church in the 14th Century. It was probably the principal entrance to the church in those days. It has subsequently been used as a sacristy and it is believed to have been used as a school room around 1723, although this has not been verified.
It seems to have become a memorial chapel in 1920 when it was decided that the many men who had worked in the local coalfields and who had given their lives for “King and Country” should be commemorated. It was also at that time that the “colour” of the 2nd battalion, disbanded in 1918, was “Laid Up”.
Both chapel and flag will be rededicated on Sunday July 5, at 3.00 p.m.
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Rogation Walk
Braving a bad weather forecast, the United Benefice of Kirkwhelpington with Kirkharle, Kirkheaton and Cambo, set out on its traditional Rogation Sunday Walk. The 5 mile walk went along a disused railway line from Scots Gap. At an old limekiln near Tut Hill, they met up with walkers preferring a shorter route. Prayers were said for the land and the people and biscuits shared. Some local cows followed proceedings with great interest! Oh, and it stayed dry throughout.
Award for North Benwell Youth Project
North Benwell Youth Project were given a High Sheriff’s award this Spring, presented by Sheriff John Squires in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the well-being of young men.
Sam Houston was one of those who met Mr. Squires and she says: “We went to Dance City for the High Sheriff’s Award Night and it was a great experience. Some groups received awards of £500, but North Benwell Youth Project were very lucky – we got an award for £750.”
She adds: “Laura and me had to accept the award from the High Sheriff of Newcastle, which was very exciting, and there was also a young man there who has competed in the Para-Olympics. He has won three gold medals. They both congratulated us. It was a fantastic evening.”
The award money will be used for outdoor activities at the project.
Our picture shows Sam and Laura receiving their award.
New MU members at Venerable Bede
Our picture shows a group of young mums eager to become members of the Mothers' Union. Diocesan President Canon Pat Johnson, Jenny Jones and Sheila Turner were delighted to be in the buzzing atmosphere of a large congregation where Dean Christopher Dalliston officiated and his wife Michelle delivered the sermon, surrounded at her feet by children squatting on brightly coloured cushions. She then admitted the new members. Banners from St. James, St. John and the Venerable Bede churches were paraded by lapsed members of their branches. "Delightful scenes like these bode well for the future of the Mothers' Union," says Sheila Turner.
Pause for Thought
When was the last time something stopped you in your tracks and made you think again?
That is the question being asked by the five young actors of from “Roughshod”, the touring arm of the Riding Lights Theatre Company - and soon to be put to church audiences in the Newcastle East deanery.
For over ten years Roughshod have taken their brand of theatre with a spiritual heart to all kinds of places where live theatre is rare, bringing a repertoire of shows and workshops to schools, churches, prisons, bases of the armed forces, streets, town halls, cathedrals and arts centres. Reaching an annual live audience of around 65,000 adults and children, the company has been praised for creating powerful new pieces of theatre which allow people “to come together to chuckle and cheer, to gasp and sigh and generally get things into a more eternal perspective.”
Reality Cheques will be shown at Christ Church, Walker Parish Church (NE6 3BS) on Thursday 16th July at 7.30pm. Tickets for performance can be purchased from the Parish Office by calling (0191)262 3666 costing just £4 for adults and £2.50 for concessions.
Kevin Hunt, Area Dean for Newcastle East, says: “ Last year the deanery decided to use its £ 2 000 allocation from the deanery evangelism fund to support a Roughshod visit to the deanery and the surrounding area, from July 5 to 19.
“We thought this was an opportunity to do something different to raise the church's profile in the wider community. In addition to two performances of “Reality Cheques”, at S Francis', High Heaton, and at Walker, Roughshod will be working in several secondary schools and at Acklington Prison, as well as performing during worship at various local churches and at St. Martin's, Byker, Summer Fair. It promises to be an exciting fortnight!”
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Wilf is sill going strong!
Church ? “It’s my second home!” says Wilf Smurthwaite, “And I’ve enjoyed every minute I’ve ever spent there! I’m truly blessed.”
If Wilf is blessed, then his fellow parishioners at Snods Edge certainly are because for the past 40 years – without a break – they’ve had Wilf as their churchwarden, an achievement marked last month with a special Eucharist at which Bishop Martin presided.
And Wilf’s not giving up just yet! At 74 he’s still fit for duty, not just at the church but also in the life of the village, helping organise, among other things, the famed Snods Edge Sunday teas, which take place in St. John’s church hall from May until October.
Wilf was a farmer before his retirement, having been born at Camperdown Farm in Shotley Bridge where his father was also born. His grandfather was the farm’s first tenant in 1892, and celebrated his 100th birthday in the farm house. But Wilf and his wife Daphne gave up farming themselves after the Foot and Mouth outbreak. Their daughter Julie and son Tony had already gone into other professions.
Alongside the life of the farm there was also the life of the village church.
“I went to Sunday School as a boy, and to church as a teenager,” Wilf recalls. “Daphne, who lived on a neighbouring farm, did the same. We went to school together, we grew up together, and we went to church together. It’s the sort of thing that happens in this kind of community.”
Does it still happen ? “Well, the church side of things has got even stronger,” Wilf says. “We get a tremendous turnout these days. In the 50’s we’d do well to get into double figures for Matins or Evensong. Now we regularly get 60 or 70 on a Sunday morning, and for the major services we have every seat taken, with people standing at the back.”
The reason, Wilf says, is simple: “It’s down to the priests we’ve had. They’ve been very different, but they’ve all been special, and they’ve all had the same aim - to make the church grow and bring people in.”
It was one of these priests, the Rev. Leslie Mitchell, who persuaded Wilf to stand as churchwarden 40 years ago. “He was the sort of man to ring up and say ‘I need you – my car won’t start!’ He was great, and I wouldn’t have dreamed of saying No...”
The tradition of inspiring and drawing in church members seems to have been maintained. The church has two thriving youth clubs, the junior one having to be capped at 40 members, and Wilf’s fellow church warden has been in post for 20 years.
“We’ve seen things change, of course, but it’s a settled, stable community,” Wilf says. “A lot of the farms are no longer farms – they’ve been made into houses – and that has increased the attendance at church. We all seem to get on so well together here. We never have any hassle!”
And then there are those Sunday teas – run by different groups in the parish each week with all the money raised going to their particular organisation . On a sunny afternoon there can be more than 100 people passing through for sandwiches, scones, and cakes, and sometimes you can’t get a seat.
“We insist that all the food is home made,” Wilf says, “That ‘s the clincher, I think. And it’s value for money. It’s not given away, but it’s not exorbitantly priced either. The various parish groups do very well out of it, and we get people coming from all over the place.”
Wilf manages to make Snods Edge seem like a little piece of paradise, and for him, it certainly is. He believes that it’s all to do with the church being at the very heart of the community. “We have a lot of support from non-churchgoers,” he says. “They’re happy to work for the church even if they don’t want to join the congregation. Having the vicar living in the village is a huge bonus too. We’re available all the time for weddings and baptisms, and the churchyard is still open for burials. It’s great!”
Is Wilf ever likely to retire as churchwarden ? “The time will come, “ he says, “And I’lll know when that time is. But no worries - there are plenty to follow on!”
It's Panic Stations for Campaigners
Make Poverty History campaigners have joined forces with local people in Cambois to become Panic Stations (people against new coal-fired power stations), meeting in St. Edward’s church hall in the village last month, only yards from the proposed site for a new coal-fired station.
They were encouraged to “just say no” to what have been described as “factories of death” and specifically to oppose the plans for a plant at Cambois which, if built, would become the second largest in the country.
David Golding, the veteran anti-poverty campaigner who has done so much to encourage the dropping of Third World debt, now finds himself embroiled in a new battle to protect the world’s poorest people from the effects of climate change.
He is chair of Panic Stations, and was recently invited to a Westminster seminar on 'Implementing the UK's carbon targets', attended by Members of both Houses of Parliament and senior government officials. He challenged the Chief Executive of the Committee on Climate Change about the targets, and was thanked for doing so by some of the NGO representatives there, but as he puts it, “I didn't get a satisfactory reply.”
He adds: “This is a matter of the greatest import, given the approach of Copenhagen, and I have already booked 500 coach places for the national, pre-Copenhagen climate rally in London on December 5. There will be coaches from every city and town in the North East!”
The problem with the new coal-fired power stations, campaigners say, is that they would emit unacceptable levels of carbon while the “capturing” technology (CCS) was perfected (an unknown length of time) with the danger that CCS might never be made to work satisfactorily.
Instead, they propose two demonstration plants with CCS for their entire output of CO2 from the start. One should have CCS of the ‘pre-combustion’ variety, and the other might be ‘post-combustion’ and applied to a gas-fired, combined heat and power unit. Ideally, they say, a third CCS pilot unit should be retro-fitted on an existing coal-fired power station.
David Golding explains: “If the technology can be made to work, at an acceptable cost, it could then be scaled up to full commercial size. In this way, we would not lock ourselves into a high carbon future, since, if CCS could not be made to work, little damage would be done even if the units involved continued generating.”
He says that according to the Government’s own figures (DECC, Press Release, 23.04.09), closure of existing coal-fired power stations due to new European environmental standards will reduce the contribution of coal by about 10% of current national generating capacity. However, during that time, the UK is committed to increasing its level of generation from renewables from 5% to about 35% of national capacity – more than covering the shortfall.
* Picture shows Left to right: Malcolm Reid (Greenpeace), David Golding (Chair, PANiC Stations), and Dorothy O'Connor, a resident of Cambois. Picture courtesy of Make Poverty History NE.
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Cleave the Wood
Since retiring as Priest-in-Charge at Riding Mill, Christopher Lewis has pursued and developed his artistic skills as a wood carver, and many people in Riding Mill will have seen his carvings in the Vicarage garden or at Shepherd’s Dene, Retreat House in the context of mediations led by him.
As part of Network Artists in Northumberland 2008 Summer Art Tour Christopher and Janet Lewis opened their garden at The Old School at Bingfield and Christopher’s workshop (converted from the former boy’s toilets). As an exhibitor in the Art Tour, Christopher’s artistic work became accessible to a wider audience.
In response to many people who have enjoyed his mediation sessions Christopher has written a book : “ Cleave the Wood and There I Am - Mediations with Carvings and Music”. (Published by Dendron Press, 2009, ISBN 978-09557510-5-9)
This delightful, slim volume pictures many of Christopher’s carvings. The accompanying text describes the type of wood from which the work is carved, the wood’s origins and the genesis of the piece. In looking at the raw material Christopher gives an insight into the artistic process, examining the nature of the grain, the shape of the wood and how these sometimes play a part in the creation of the final sculpture.
Cleave the Wood and There I Am is a book that explores relationships between wooden sculptures and their use in a meditative experience. An integral part of that experience is the contemplation of the physical work - a prolonged period of looking accompanied by a particular piece of music. Christopher always describes the journey he made in deciding which piece of music should accompany observcation of the carving.
Sometimes his musical choice was a visceral response to the theme or experience which lay at the root of creating the wood sculpture – in these situations, for Christopher, there was only one piece of music. At other times a piece of music was the starting point for a carving, as he describes for a commissioned carving, Sound the Trumpet, named after Purcell’s work. This music had been sung as a duet by the carver and the recipient of the commission.
This book can be used as a source of mediations with carvings and music. It will introduce the reader to a variety of meditative themes, to a wide range of visual images and to an unusual selection of music.
Cleave the Wood is also fascinating read; taking you on a journey through the eyes of an artist, a linguist, a lover of poetry and music. Christopher Lewis is an artist who opens up the opportunity to respond to particular themes in a spiritual dimension.
You can see Christopher’s work and obtain copies of his book during this year’s Network Summer Art Tour.
His studio workshop will be open 11am -5pm on Saturday 13th June, Sunday 14th June, Sunday 21st June and Sunday 28th June.
Alternatively you can obtain copies of the book from the author. (£10.00 plus pp.)
Christopher Lewis , Dendron Press, The Old School, Bingfield, Hexham, Northumberland , NE46 4HR Jenny Mathers
Boys' brigade annual camp
Over May Bank holiday, the 1st Morpeth company of the Boys' Brigade went on its annual camp at the Broomley Grange activity centre. The Company is based at St James's Church in Morpeth, and is an important part of the Church community.
Boys and staff enjoyed a wild weekend of adventure in the Northumberland countryside, with gorge walking and caving for the older lads, and zip wire and high ropes challenges for the younger ones. Each night a game of 'Midnight Marauders' saw the boys creeping through the dark woods to avoid capture in the ever popular escape and evasion exercise.
The weekend ended with a huge water fight, in which the boys got soaked and the staff had to run for cover!
Comments one of the leaders: “The Broomley Grange trips are important times in the Brigade's mission to encourage confidence, teamwork and initiative in the boys, but their spiritual development is also of great importance.
“The company had an exciting and fun time at Broomley; they are grateful to the staff for looking after them and feeding them so well, but they also set aside time to worship God, and to be thankful to Him for being so close as they explored the fantastic world He's made for us.”
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