When you visit the Partners of organisations like Christian Aid, you hear stories that surprise you, and give you fresh insight into what the Spirit of God is doing in the world today. When you return home, wondering how to share those stories, and are invited to churches which use the Lectionary, you often find that they are perfect illustrations of the Gospel readings for the day.

That repeated experience led a group to set down the stories, link them to Gospel readings from the Lectionary, and present them especially for the use of preachers and others who lead worship regularly. The stories from overseas have been supplemented by others from nearer home, with reflections, songs and prayers. We hope this will be a good resource for churches who want to know where the Reign of God’s Love is at work today.

“Stories Worth Telling” is available from 15, High Street, Wymington, near Rushden, NN10 9LS, price £10 plus £2 p&p. Please make out cheques to T J Woods (the group Treasurer), or you can pay through Paypal at www.themeetingplacewymington.co.uk/swt.

Used Hymns Ancient and Modern (Revised) wanted by parishes in Sierra Leone, West Africa. Will collect anywhere in Greater London. Contact A Smith on 07800 929 864.

More than half of all school-age children living in poverty currently don’t get free school meals. These 1.2 million children may not be eating a single nutritious meal all day.

The Children’s Society is campaigning for all children in poverty to receive a free school meal. We’re approaching the deadline for petition signatures. Please circulate the attached, or ask people to go to www.childrenssociety.org.uk/fairandsquare by 3 February to join the call for all children to get the food they need to grow and thrive.

These palm crosses are made by members of the Church in Nongoma, Zululand, South Africa and are bookmark size. They also provide packets of ash at £3 per packet.

They invite a donation of £20 per 100 and crosses are supplied in multiples of 50. For an order form email emmteam (Email: emmteam [at] talk21.com).

Palm Cross sales and donations in 2012 enabled them to earmark £25,000 for use in Nongoma and the Diocese of Zululand. During the year they also supported two orphan feeding programmes for 550 orphans giving them a hot meal each day. They also provide a small fund that enables diocesan workers to respond to immediate needs within the community.

Palm Cross Order forms also available from:

Zulem Trust
Emmanuel Church
Weston Favell Centre
Northampton
NN3 8JR

Telephone/Fax enquiries to Admin Office 01604 406930.

Action by Christians against Torture  invites members of the Diocese of London to consider joining them in their work, which seeks to educate not only the general public, but more importantly the Churches, regarding the existence, extent and evil of torture, as set out in Article 5 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Formed by the (then) British Council of Churches in 1984, ACAT campaigns for the worldwide abolition of torture and extrajudicial executions.

They provide help, comfort and support to victims of torture and the families of those who have been tortured, executed or face the threat of death.

They remember in constant prayer, the victims, their families and their communities, and we pray also for those who order, inflict or tolerate the torture of their fellow human beings.

And finally they exercise vigilance to ensure that these same human rights are secured without exception, for all peoples within the United Kingdom.

ACAT’s patrons include the Rt Revd Peter Wheatley, Bishop of Edmonton, and the Most Revd Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, along with the Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu. ACAT’s president is the Revd Paul Oestricher.

Each year ACAT supports an extensive ‘Christmas Greetings Card Campaign’ when members and friends send cards to victims of torture, prisoners of conscience, persecuted Christians and human rights defenders around the world.

ACAT particularly invites you and your church members to join them in this coming Christmas season.

ACAT is a registered charity: 8 Southfield, Saltash, Cornwall PL12 4LX, e: uk.acat (Email: uk.acat [at] gmail.com) or visit www.acatuk.org.uk.

2 December Advent Sunday and the start of readings from Year C of the Common Lectionary.

With it comes a whole new set of Cartoons illustrating and illuminating the Sunday Gospel Readings. These will be downloadable from www.verycommonlectionary.com for you to use in any way you wish, pew sheets, study notes, monthly magazines or weekly bulletins.

Luke’s Gospel, from which most of the readings are taken this year, is a very vivid and humane gospel and lends itself to vivid imagery. Muf’s drawings work on this and as usual uncovers some surprises.

Reacting to Year B’s cartoons, The Rt Rev John Pritchard (The Bishop of Oxford) wrote

“Peter Murphy’s cartoons are a gift to the Gospel. He takes each week’s reading and tweaks it so that we stop, laugh, smile, or recognise something different.

“In our visual age we often need to supplement our diet of words with a parallel picture. Peter serves us very well with these cartoons and I hope to see them adorning many a service sheet and projected image in the churches of our land.”

Order your “Set C” now and we will have them to you in plenty of time for Advent Sunday.

As winter approaches many churches are thinking about carol singing and Christmas fairs and which charities they would like to support with their fundraising.

There are many charities who work with homeless people in the winter months, but Church Housing Trust’s support for some of the most vulnerable people continues throughout the year and includes women’s refuges, projects for young people, ex-Service personnel, specialist housing for people with drug, alcohol and mental health problems, and projects for-ex offenders. Over 80 hostels, supporting over 3,500 people, are located in many areas of England including several projects in London, such as King George’s and Queen Mary’s hostels in Westminster, and Livingstone House in Willesden which provide a home for vulnerable people, many of whom were street homeless and in bad physical and/or mental health. Many are also suffering from addictions and they are often socially isolated with little or no contact with their families.

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The Churchwarden’s Yearbook 2013 is now available from Churchwarden Publications. Every year, the Churchwarden’s Yearbook is used by over 5000 churchwardens and some clergy too. It is a useful publication and an essential helpmate for many in executing their duties as churchwarden.

Oxfam is holding its annual Mega Raid on 3 November. They need help in finding accommodation for two hundred students from university Raising and Giving groups across the country to collect money in buckets, aiming to raise £10,000 for Oxfam. They are looking to provide two nights’ accommodation free of charge (2 and 3 November) to allow RAGs from across the country to attend, and to keep our costs as low as possible.

If you are willing to lend your Church hall for two nights for a low rent or, ideally, for free, or point them in the direction of someone who could, please contact Ellie White (Email: EWhite [at] oxfam.org.uk).

Oxfam will cooperate with you regarding logistics, and would be extremely grateful for your generosity.

Sustrans is theUK’s leading sustainable transport charity. We are currently looking for people become cycling and walking champions and help others make more of their every day journeys by foot or bike.

Why?

Active travel is the easiest and most sustainable way for most people to bring exercise into their daily lives, and the results of this are incredible – better health, greater wellbeing and less stress! It also means less pollution and less congestion.

Anyone can volunteer as a Sustrans active travel champion either in a professional or a personal context. We can also come along and run in-house training which can be tailored to the groups’ particular needs. In this case we could run a session which looks at how active travel can be linked into the church community – whether it’s promoting cycling to the Sunday service, organising family fun walks or setting up a community bike loan scheme.

The volunteer decides on how they would like to champion cycling or walking so it’s a fully flexible way to make a difference. We also provide a full training programme, lots of resources and support from a volunteer coordinator.

For more information on this fully funded initiative or to apply please contact Kate Meakin on kate.meakin (Email: kate.meakin [at] sustrans.org.uk) or t: 020 7780 7201. Or visit champions/sustrans.org.uk.

The Guild Church of St Mary Aldermary are seeking to get rid of a large moveable notice board and a kitchenette.

If other churches are interested in seeing these or acquiring them (the kitchenette is being removed as part of a reordering of the Church)

Could they be in contact with Christos, part of the team at the Guild Church of St Mary Aldermary on christos.host (Email: christos.host [at] moot.uk.net).

The 2012-2013 programme for the London Centre for Spirituality is now available:

If you are interested in House and duties exchange in Queensland, Australia, at www.stfrancisnundah.org.au then contact The Revd Canon James Oulds (Email: james [at] assisinundah.org).