Rector's Report to Annual Vestry 2016: St Andrew's Church, Newlands

They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord's Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity - all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

Acts 2:46-47 NLTse

Introduction

Amazingly, this is my third Rector's report to Annual Vestry. The last twenty-eight months appear to have flown by, which is quite possibly a good thing and a sign that we are an active and alive community. There are always milestones that mark the journey, of which tonight's meeting is an important one as we take stock of where we are spiritually and materially as an Anglican community of Faith in this part of Cape Town.

Thank you

Looking back over 2015 my thanks to you all for the manner in which you continue to embrace Dawn and I, and for your ongoing commitment to the work of God in and through this Parish community. My special thanks to Dawn who continues to support and encourage me on so many levels both personally and professionally, whose unstinting love and care keeps me centered and focused. My grateful thanks to our Parish Secretary, Bev Shaw, whose patience and resourcefulness appears to know few limits, even in the midst of Morning Market frenzy! I am thankful for each one of you, and especially those who have stepped forward and give leadership to one or other aspect of our Church life, and who include others in the process. My particular thanks to our outgoing Churchwardens and members of Parish Council for your willingness to share your insight and wisdom, and in helping give direction to our common life; and to our (retired) assisting Clergy and our Layministers for your ongoing commitment to our worship and pastoral care; and to our Finance team for ensuring we are responsible with Parish resources. Thanks, too, to the many in our midst who serve without expectation of acknowledgment or reward except knowing that God sees your gift to us.

2015

One of the main challenges of 2015 was an administrative one: the creation of a treasury team to pick up the responsibilities previously handled by Noel Peagam. My thanks to Frya Griffiths, Bev Shaw, and Simon Gilbert, for the exemplary manner in which they have ensured that the new financial systems, controls, and communication structures are now in place. I am appreciative of our Auditor, André Jager, staying on to oversee these changes.

2015 saw a Parish Weekend away at Volmoed, a good opportunity to reflect, pray, and share together for those who were able to attend; the return of the marriage course - a wonderful gift for marital renewal - attended by a number of Parish couples, including one couple who returned for a "refresher"; the Morning Market again reaching new heights in terms of effort and income; a series of Quiet Mornings offering a wonderful breadth of spiritual input, alongside our Lent Course that offered refreshing insights into the Apostles' Creed, and a Stewardship Course that got us thinking more broadly. Additionally, the Sunday 07:30 congregation has transitioned to only using A Common Book of Prayer  (SAPB) once a month, embracing the liturgy of An Anglican Prayer Book 1989 more fully; our monthly Sunday evening Family-focused Service has found traction, and the regular attendance during term-time by the St Cyprian's Boarders has brought new life to Sunday evenings as a whole. Home groups, Children's Church, our midweek services, Thursday Prayers, ad hoc Youth events and other "normal" aspects of Parish life have also continued - together with all the above - enabling us to give life to our wider mission, as well as to our vision to be a community "serving each other; serving the world".

2016

As a Parish we are experiencing a shift as older parishioners and those who have served our community in leadership positions over the last couple of decades, are indicating their need to step aside and allow space for a younger generation to step up to the plate. Since my appointment as Rector, Noel Peagam had the courage to lead the way, and Freya Griffiths reflected that courage in accepting the position of Honorary Treasurer; Graham Michael has followed suit and Jim te Water Naude has courageously stepped in to facilitate the 2016 Morning Market. Stepping aside and creating space for others, even if not always necessarily "younger" others, requires a special level of self-confidence and willingness to acknowledge that one is not indispensable and that perhaps God wishes to use one in other spaces. Thus the process continues, enabling us tonight to acknowledge André Jager as he steps down as Auditor, and Jill Joslin who has stepped aside as our Prayer coordinator (both after many years of faithful service), and we thank Doug and Rosemary Wallace for being willing to step in to these respective responsibilities.  We are not unusual in experiencing this "generational shift", and the challenge is for younger generations here at St Andrew's to step forward. The Tough's, Faure's, Coombe's, Zwicky's, Freya Griffiths and Lauric Bakomito (amongst others) have shown us in recent years that it is possible to have young families and/or demanding and burgeoning professional careers and still contribute meaningfully as Churchwarden, Treasurer or Parish Councilor. I do pray that by the end of tonight's Vestry meeting others will have had similar courage and we will be able to complete the election of Churchwardens, Parish Councilors and various representatives.

In my 2015 report I reflected on our growing awareness that while our mission statement finds substantial traction through our Ministry to the Needy and we have a considerable impact on individuals, families and communities less resourced than ourselves, we also need to focus on caring for each other. The tag-line, "serving each other; serving the world", reflects this growing awareness. One of the outcomes of participating in the Diocesan Stewardship Course during October last year was that we identified a need to become more personally involved in our outreach activities, leading to SA-Yes being invited to address our inaugural Parish Breakfast on the possibility of our being involved with them in youth mentorship, specifically of young people preparing to engage with the adult world after time spent in various Children's and Youth homes. This year's Sunday interaction with the Gospel of Luke, alongside the focus of our 2016 Lent Course People of the Way, is encouraging us to be aware of those on the outskirts of society, and to become more aware of who we do not "see" in our own community, to become more conscious of being friendly and caring toward each other, and especially of new-comers and visitors in our midst.

Our Future

Being "Church" in the 21st century, and in the context of the social, economic and political climate in South Africa, is challenging. Re-imagining ourselves and seeking to understand God's purposes for us in today's fast-changing and often dislocated society - and the accompanying uncertainty - is confusing, to say the least. Perhaps it is sufficient in these times just to seek to "be", and in "being" to allow God to work in us and through us.

On a practical level, we need to make decisions on where we go with our building programme as we do not yet have sufficient funds to give full go-ahead to the project, and the Building Committee Chairperson, David Sykes, will make a proposal in this regard. We are in a process with Kildare Pre-Primary School in negotiating a new long-term lease, a complex discussion linked to our building plans.

While these are of practical concern, they are linked to our vision and reflect something of how we perceive ourselves as God's people in Newlands; and what we perceive our purpose to be. We have a strong  commitment through our Ministry to the Needy to communities less resourced than ourselves, but I am not sure that we have any clear sense of our purpose and God's call on us to the well resourced community of Newlands and surrounds in which God has placed us.

This may be the challenge for 2016: to define our local role and ministry.

MARK R D LONG

Rector

7 March 2016

Why attend Annual Vestry

Dear Friends

Our Annual Vestry takes place on Monday 7 March 2016 at 19:30 in the Church Hall. We will receive reports on Parish life during 2015, make decisions that will affect Parish life during 2016, and elect new Churchwardens and Parish Councillors, along with Archdeaconry and Diocesan representatives.

Should you attend?

The Constitution and Canons of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa (and affirmed in the Acts of the Synod of the Anglican Diocese of Cape Town) require that "The Parishioners of the Parish shall meet in Vestry ... at least once every calendar year not later than the 15th of March" (Canon 27).

The Canon goes on to say, "By Parishioner shall be understood any person ... who either is on the list of confirmed Communicants ... or ... being baptised, and not being a member of any other religious body, is an habitual worshipper in the Church ... of the Pastoral Charge in respect of which a vote is claimed."

What is the purpose of the annual Vestry meeting?

We look back and we look forward. We look back over the preceding year, which is done primarily via a report from the Churchwardens on the year's activities, supplemented by additional reports from various Church activity groups, along with an audited report of the state of the Church finances. Looking forward is the primary function of the Rector's report along with what the Canon describes as, "the care ... of the Parish in matters affecting worship, stewardship, ministry, education, evangelism, unity, development and social responsibility." In looking forward we set the tone and direction of Parish life for the year that lies ahead. Decisions taken by the Vestry are binding on the Church Council.

The other role of the annual Vestry meeting is the election of two Churchwardens and an Alternate, Parish Councillors (at least five), two Synod representatives and alternates with an additional representative under the age of 25, and three Archdeaconry Council representatives.

Who may we nominate as Churchwardens?

Canon 29 requires that, "Every Churchwarden ... within this Province shall be a confirmed Communicant of the age of twenty-one years and upwards" and further stipulates that, "They shall be elected by the majority of Parishioners present and voting, with the subsequent agreement of the Incumbent [Rector]." The precedent for voting, set by Provincial Synod, is that each person present will have two votes (as we are electing two Churchwardens), resulting in the nominated persons gaining the two highest votes becoming Churchwardens, and the person receiving the third highest votes automatically becoming the Alternate Churchwarden.

At St Andrew's we have a long-standing policy that Churchwardens should have a limited tenure (tenure is not limited by Canon 29) of three to four years in order to encourage others to step forward into leadership. To ensure that we do not break Canon 29 in implementing this policy, there are two options: the first is for those individuals who have served us as Churchwardens for an extended period to refuse nomination; the other is for Parishioners present at the Vestry meeting to exercise their vote in such a manner as to ensure that this policy finds traction. Also it is useful, but not required by Canon 29, that those nominated for Churchwarden have had recent experience on Parish Council. We need three or more people nominated!

Who may we nominate for Parish Council (and as Synod and Archdeaconry Council representatives)?

Anyone who fits the definition of "Parishioner" (above) and is a confirmed communicant is eligible for nomination and subsequent election. Vestry decides on the number of Councilors to be elected. Again as per the precedent set by Provincial Synod, if the number of people nominated exceeds the number decided upon, a vote will be taken. If the number of nominations equals or is less than the number decided upon, then those nominated will be deemed to be elected.

Please note that those nominated for Churchwarden, if not elected, are not automatically nominated for Parish Council. They need to be nominated separately for both.

What are the roles and responsibilities of those elected?

Those nominated and are subsequently elected as Churchwarden will be required to attend at least a monthly Parish Executive meeting and a monthly Parish Council meeting, two Archdeaconry Council meetings during the year, an annual Diocesan Budget meeting, and any other ad hoc meetings requested of you by the Rector, Archdeacon or Bishop.

Those nominated and subsequently elected for Parish Council will need to be available for a monthly Parish Council meeting, and be willing to pick up some form of portfolio commitment as a member of the Council. Synod and Archdeaconry representatives need to be available to attend monthly Parish Council meetings, attend Diocesan Synod (Synod reps) or Archdeaconry Council (Archdeaconry Council reps).

How can we access a copy of the Constitution and Canons, and the Acts of the Diocese of Cape Town?

A full description of responsibilities for Churchwarden and Parish Councillor can be found in Canons 28 (of Parish Councils) and 29 (of Churchwardens and Chapel Wardens), and a full copy of these can be requested from the Church Office, as can a full copy of the Canons and Constitution of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and the Acts of the Diocese of Cape Town.

Hopefully the above information gives you sufficient understanding of what the annual Vestry meeting is all about, and sufficient encouragement to attend!

I look forward to your participation and involvement, and pray that if you are approached for nomination to any of the above positions you may have the courage to allow your name to go forward for election.

Blessings
Mark

Lent Course 2016: People of the Way

Dear Friends

Our Lent Course begins on Tuesday 16 February 2016 from 19:30 to 20:45. For those who find evenings challenging, a repeat will be offered on Wednesday mornings from 10:45 to 12:00.

You are welcome to invite friends and family to join us.

The format of each session is a DVD presentation followed by discussion and prayerful reflection. There are 7 sessions, the last of which will be a focus of our Good Friday Service.

"People of the Way" is an exciting, fresh look at what it means to be disciples of Jesus Christ, to be people who follow Jesus on the way in the 21st century. Each episode has a teaching segment that investigates a particular aspect of discipleship and it tells a story of how that expression of discipleship is lived out in concrete ways in the lives of Christians in the Anglican Diocese of Johannesburg. These stories are the most exciting part of "People of the Way" for they provide compelling and inspiring examples of how Jesus' call to follow Him on the Way is lived out in a contemporary urban African context.

Tuesday 16 February - People of the Way

Tuesday 23 February - Jesus' vision of the Way

Tuesday 1 March - The Call to the Way

Tuesday 8 March - A Spirituality of the Way

Tuesday 15 March - The Way is a Life of Service

Tuesday 22 March - The Way is for the World

Friday 25 March (Good Friday) - The Way leads to Jerusalem

Please fill in the list at the back of the Church, or inform the Church Office, if you will be attending.

Blessings
Mark

Summer Newsletter 2015: Article

Dear Friends

A change of Season

As we move from Spring to Summer we move liturgically into the season of Advent. This is a spiritual season of hope as we prepare ourselves for our Christmas celebrations. I defined "hope" in a recent sermon as trust and expectation, a feeling that flows far deeper than the frivolities that our increasingly secular and consumerist society often serve us with at this time of year. As we enter into this time and reflect on the gifts we intend to give one another as we again celebrate the coming of God into the midst of humanity, perhaps it may be helpful to ask,  "How will this gift build trust?", "How will this gift renew expectation?" in a world where we increasingly trust less, and our expectations are often thwarted. How will your gift be God's gift?

In Parish life this change in season is marked by our Morning Market and our celebration of St Andrew's Day.
      Our Morning Market has again been a huge success, and more important than the money we raise is how the Market draws us together as a community, giving us an opportunity to serve each other and to serve the world: we come together, give of our substance and the bric-a-brac of our lives; we create space and invite the wider community in; we raise money - lots of it - and give it all away!
      St Andrew's Day, as part of this festive weekend at the end of November, importantly reminds us of the key characteristics of the Andrean community, so well laid out in the St Andrew's Day collect (An Anglican Prayer Book 1989, page 315):

Lord God, by your grace the apostle Saint Andrew obeyed the call of your Son Jesus Christ, and followed him without delay: grant that we may offer ourselves to you in joyful obedience; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN

      Andreans are those who obey God's call, follow without delay, and are joyfully obedient. How do you experience these three "gifts" in your own life, and in our Church community? Are there people whose lifestyle delineates these characteristics for you? Have there been seminal moments in life and faith that have helped define these characteristics for you? How do you live these three characteristics out in your own relationships?

Outward change demands internal transition. Along with the changes in season and liturgy, what other changes are you experiencing, and what internal transitions of attitude or perspective are these demanding of you? Where are you experiencing God both in the outward changes and in the inward spaces of transition? And how are you responding?

A New Year

2016 is just around the corner, and with Easter falling in March, Lent is but a hop-and-a-skip from Christmas.
      I encourage you to think about joining us for our Lent Course, People of the Way, a discipleship course developed in the Diocese of Johannesburg based on the liturgical imperatives of the Lent and Easter calendar. The Marriage Course will hopefully again be offered in April and May, and a course on being Christian and Anglican, Becoming Anglican: a Journey into God, from mid-July through to mid-September. In October a Stewardship Course will again be offered, with a slightly different focus to 2015. These courses will form the backbone of our Confirmation Course for anyone who would like to be Confirmed next year (adult and teenager).
      If you're interested in learning more about prayer, then our series of five Quiet Mornings in 2016 titled "Why pray?" will be helpful to you as Bishop Geoff Quinlan and Prof Denise Ackermann offer teaching and reflection on various aspects of prayer.
      We're planning another Parish Weekend at Volmoed from 8-10 April, and would love to see you there. The Parish Council has once again agreed to cover the cost of the weekend, so you'll just need to get yourself to Volmoed.
      A further innovation for 2016 is a regular Saturday morning Parish Breakfast that David and Debbie Hoffmann will be facilitating. This may alternate with men's  and women's specific events, but the first one will be an inclusive Breakfast on Saturday 30 January to which we are all invited!
      And of course the regulars: our Annual Vestry in early March, our monthly "Love Packs", our winter Curry Supper on Friday 22 July, and our Morning Market on Saturday 26 November.

A big focus for the first half of 2016 will be to finalise the funding for our new building so that we can beat any cost escalation and complete the project by the end of 2017. A reminder that you can "purchase" one or more "bricks" for R5,000 each, or together with others contribute towards one. We are still looking for someone with the necessary time and passion available to do the "leg work" for the funding initiative. Our Churchwarden and Fundraising Facilitator, William Tough, awaits your call!

Abundant Blessing

I am reminded in today's lectionary readings that God works abundantly, despite our perception that resources are scarce. It is a verse that I shared two years ago in this column, and which reminds me that as we look directly onto Table Mountain from St Andrew's it is a symbol of God's provision in our lives, and is a source of hope for us as God's people and for us as South Africans in these challenging times both locally and globally:

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all people's a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear. (Isaiah 25:6 NRSV)

If you're traveling over Christmas, please drive carefully and be vigilant for other people's stupidity on our roads! If you're in Cape Town our Christmas programme of Carol Services and Christmas Worship will give you a number of opportunities to centre this season on God. Please remember that visiting family and friends are always welcome at our Services!

With love and Christmas blessings
Mark

Spring Newsletter 2015: Article

Dear Friends

Welcome to Spring! One of my favorite images in the Cape is the fresh green oak leaves that appear at this time of year, almost translucent. The clivias in their prolific orange are also a treat for the eye, as are the bursts of pink and purple, and the variety of blossom that greets us in the great outdoors. The days grow lighter earlier, and the sunset holds the dark at bay that little bit longer each day. Summer beckons, and Capetonians creep quietly from their winter hibernation, or fly home. The Church pews fill, and life begins again.

Not that winter has been lifeless; far from it! July saw Dawn and I celebrate our 50th Birthdays, and we much appreciated the many who joined us on Mandela Day to celebrate: a wonderful sense of belonging as friends old and new played tag at the front door. The accompanying pictures demonstrate the unexpected generosity of gifts; and thanks to all who brought a plate of food to share. The added gift of sunshine after a week of drenching rain added to the festive nature of the day. "Thing One" and "Thing Two" shared a glorious birthday!

August sawn Dawn and I, together with our daughter Cassie, heading to England for a family-filled three weeks. We were joined by our son, Nathan, and our granddaughter, Rebecca-Lee, for the final week. We spent the first week with my parents in Surrey and travelled daily into a London immersion of St Paul's Cathedral (where we "did the dome", climbing the five hundred plus steps to the top) with its amazingly beautiful mosaic ceilings depicting various aspects of creation; the Tate Modern where I enjoyed Picasso for the first time, and discovered from my daughter that Modern Art is all about cloud watching (images appear and disappear as you stare into the amorphous mess of paint on canvas); a tour of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace with their opulence and pomp of royalty (a really well put together tour); and time with my brothers, their wives and their children.
     We then headed to Cheshire, visiting the Michael's in Winchester on the way, a beautiful town with an amazing Cathedral. In Cheshire we visited the Moore side of my family, enjoying a family gathering on the Sunday, a visit to the family caravan on Anglesey and a final dinner together at the Stretton Fox; a visit to St Beuno's Retreat Centre in Wales, and a return visit to the beautiful Chester Cathedral. We then headed for our Long Family Gathering in Devon, near Exeter, via Oxford for an afternoon of exploration and to London to collect Nathan and Rebecca-Lee. Oxford was amazing in a short period of time, walking from Magdalene College up to the Carfax Tower, returning via Christ Church College (more recently of Harry Potter fame) and the Botanical Gardens, stopping in to visit the University Church of St Mary the Virgin (an intriguing space with not one cross visible, and a beautiful portrait of the Virgin and Child behind the altar) where Cranmer, Ridley and Latimer were condemned for their reformist ways and led to their deaths to be burnt at the stake.
     We had a wonderful Long Family Gathering in Aylesbeare - the main reason for our visit - filling a ten bedroom house with twenty three of us, four generations! We went swimming in the sea at Dawlish Warren, walking along the coastal path at Ladram Bay, and visited the seaside village of Beer (the source of Exeter Cathedral's stone), and Buckfast Abbey (a working Catholic Benedictine Monastry), and Exeter Cathedral, in between serious challenges at the pool table, much good food and family fellowship.

While visiting St Beuno's Retreat Centre in Wales, Dawn picked up a pamphlet that contained the following quote by Pope Benedict XVI:

Being a Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.

One might be tempted, visiting various Cathedral's in England, to think that these buildings were inspired by lofty ideas. However, when one considers the commitment, often of more than one and sometimes many generations, to the building of these incredible symbols of a glorious God, one becomes aware of a generation's encounter with something of substance that led to projects that continued to inspire future generations, that continue to creat new horizons of awareness every time one enters these magnificent structures; projects that gave decisive direction over long periods of time to generation after generation, and even today to the curious tourist like myself. Chester and Exeter Cathedrals, despite their size and incredible soaring Gothic architecture still manage to create a sense of intimacy even in their larger spaces for worship, a sense of this great and glorious God being accessible and available.

And I am challenged to ask, "Are we building similarly, not necessarily in stone and mortar, for future generations? Or in this consumerist culture that we've embraced, are we building only for ourselves?" It's an important question.

Blessings
Mark

Family and Youth Services/Events

Dear Friends

One of our core spaces for faith development as Anglicans is our immersion in sacramental worship. We know this as adults, but often forget this when it comes to our children. And we are surprised when our children in the suburban context often wander off as teenagers and young adults, despite their lack of exposure to sacramental worship in their formative years. At St Andrew's we offer the following opportunities for our children and Teenagers immersion in worship:

Morning Family Services

Our next quarterly morning Family Service takes place this Sunday, 21 June 2015, at 09:00. We recognise that it is difficult to keep younger children engaged for an extended period of worship, but really do encourage parents to persevere! Our older children and Teenagers are encouraged to directly participate with the readings and prayers, and the younger children to have time out of the pews by coming forward to sit in front for the participative sermon, and later in the service to join us around the altar for the Eucharistic prayer where we consecrate the bread and wine. Parents are also welcome to come forward where younger children may be anxious to do so on their own.

Evening Family-focused Services

We offer a monthly evening Family-focused Service for families with Teenagers or young adults who wish to worship together. Church Council has agreed that these now take place on the 4th Sunday of each month, and our next Family-focused Service will take place on Sunday 28 June 2015 at 18:30. School holidays, exams and long-weekends do prove a challenge to these events, and again some perseverance is required! Again, opportunity for our young people to be directly involved in readings, prayers and sidepersons duties, is offered. We seek to keep this service more informal in nature. Refreshments (Pizza!) are offered on the lawn after the service.

Archdeaconry Youth Services

At Archdeaconry level (we belong to the Archdeaconry of Rondebosch, which includes Rondebosch, Claremont, Newlands, and Protea) the involvement of our youth is a concern for all our Churches. We at St Andrew's will host the next Archdeaconry Youth Service on Sunday 26 July 2015 at 18:30. This will combine with our July Family-focused Service, and it will be great to have our youth and families participating, please.

Youth Event

Raymond Quinlan is organising a hike for our Teenagers up Plattekloof Gorge to the top of Table Mountain on Saturday 27 June 2015, 09:00 for 09:30. He would be keen for parents or other members of the Parish to join him for this. Raymond can be contacted on 0824277174 or raymondquinlan@hotmail.com if you are interested in participating.

Blessings
Mark

Winter Newsletter 2015: Article

Dear Friends

As always, time seems to move forward far faster than it possibly should! Winter is upon us, marked by late rains in June; half the year has passed and yet seemingly only just begun. Since our last Newsletter we have journeyed through the Seasons of Lent and Easter, entering now into the extended Season of Sundays after Pentecost that will take us through Winter and Spring and into early Summer. In terms of Church activities, Lent was marked by our Parish Camp in early March and our Lent Course that focused us on the Apostles Creed, asking us to reflect on the relevance of ancient beliefs in our 21st century world; the Season of Easter was marked by The Marriage Course.

The Parish Camp

This was a really good time away together, and my thanks to all who were able to join us. There was lots of time for fellowship and relaxation together. We did spend some time, though, applying our minds on the Saturday morning to Acts 2:42-47 while reflecting on the theme "serving each other; serving the world". We drew on the links between teaching,  fellowship, the sharing of meals, and prayer in terms of serving each other;  and on signs and wonders, the sale of property and possessions, giving to those in need, and generosity in terms of serving the world. Out of these reflections we moved into discussion groups, which highlighted the following as needing to be priority for us at St Andrew's:

Priority One

Preaching (the present quality and variety was affirmed); Home Groups (that the present Groups should be supplemented with new groups, for which leaders need to be identified); Young People (identify needs, create opportunity for volunteerism, and explore a supper club)

Priority Two

Regular multi-generational "Coffee Afternoons"; teaching on Contemplative Prayer and on "Being Anglican"; Newcomers (create room to be involved beyond the superficial); Programmes (Alpha, Renew, The Marriage Course, etc)

Priority Three

Worship (forms of worship, a review of service times, opportunity for quiet); Men's Breakfast; Ministry to The Needy (fewer, bigger projects with more opportunity for active involvement); Prayerfulness (prayerful support, being a "voice of hope"); Evangelism Training (how to market our community, attract visitors to belong; impact on our communities for Christ)

Parish Council has noted these priorities, but the key to implementation is finding people who will have the passion and time to help further interrogate, and then implement, these priorities in practical ways.

What of the above has warmed your interest? If you are sensing a gentle pressure from the Holy Spirit, please come and chat with myself, or a member of Council, or a Layminister,  and we can explore this prompting further. God generally prompts more than one person, so while one needs to take that step of Faith and speak to someone, often God already has a partner lined up. But you'll never know if you don't ask... and I look forward to a conversation with you.

The Marriage Course

You may have noted (above) that one of the items noted under Priority Two in our group discussions at the Parish Camp were programmes such as Alpha and The Marriage Course, both of which have their origins at Holy Trinity, Brompton, in the UK. Just as the Lent Course was an offering to us during the Season of Lent, so The Marriage Course has been an offering to us during the Season of Easter. The Easter Season reminds us about the essentials of our Christian Faith (death, resurrection, renewal), and The Marriage Course likewise does this in terms of our marriage relationships (the essentials of strong foundations, artful communication, resolved conflict, the power of forgiveness, the impact of wider family past and present, good sex, and putting our love into action).

Nine couples participated this year, and all completed the course strengthened in these essentials. Dawn and I were privileged to be able to participate (and I must admit to Dawn being keener than I was to start with). I must also admit to being surprised! It really was good, and enabled us to talk through numerous aspects of our relationship in a fresh and life-giving way in our twenty-fifth year together. And, of course, the weekly suppers... delicious!

This course took place (and will again next year, hopefully) because of Graham and Margie Michael's passion and commitment to facilitating this ministry. And also due to their willingness to draw others into the team (Waitrons Richard & Debbie Emery, and Edgar & Beryl Ruiters). My thanks to them all for their gift of ministry to us. And they are not alone in setting this example.

Participation

One of the huge challenges any volunteer organisation faces is ensuring people always feel welcome to participate in leadership and facilitation spaces, and the Church experiences this, too. I encourage you to look around: how often do familiar faces reappear in different settings at St Andrew's? There is comfort in seeing a specific face at the altar, then in the kitchen,  then on Church Council; but is it good for us as a community? There is a danger that we rely on the goodwill of the few, and take their availability and passion for granted. Or, as in the case of the Layministers, for example, there seems to be a large group, but we forget that there are five services a week at St Andrew's and not all Layministers are available all the time, or during the week, due to work or travel or illness.

A number of our coordinators and facilitators of key ministries have indicated a need to step back after numerous years of active and faithful service, but Council is finding it difficult to identify people willing to accept appointment. Among others, we are looking for new coordinators for the Morning Market, Children's Church, and Flower Guild. We're needing to grow the Layministers team, find additional Children's Church teachers, Home Group leaders, flower-arrangers, people to serve tea, sidespeople, readers. We need to add to our team of available people to help with various Ministry to the Needy projects, and people to participate in the Fundraising Committee for our new building project.

The temptation is to see people busy and active and involved and to say either, "They don't need me!" or, "There's no space for me!" I wish to suggest that neither statement is ever true... we need your participation, and we need more than just your help (although help is valued). If I may be so bold, "participation" is about being proactively willing to either lead or support depending on the need; it is about taking "ownership" of our community life. The nature of the Church (in the broadest sense) is that even if you don't belong, you do!

What are your gifts? What are your interests? What is your passion? How can you participate in the St Andrew's call to serve each other  and to serve the world?

I look forward to our next conversation, you and me.

Love and Blessings
Mark