This is the first issue of the NewsLetter to be published on the last Sunday of the month before the month of issue. Is this more convenient for you, my readers? Please let me know.

As you will see, there is one casualty of this change, in that we are unable to include the report of the Afternoon Fellowship’s AGM. Never mind, look forward to it next month.

Sunday, 19^th June, will be a very busy! We will have the first vote in the process of whether to choose a name for our church; there will be a special collection for Hospital-Sunday Appeal; our Minister, Rev. Pat Hall will be assisted in the leading of the Morning Worship by the prospective members who attended the recent Church Membership course; it’s copy day for the July NewsLetter (what, again?!) – and it’s Fathers’ Day!

This Sunday last year it was also Family Day, but this year Family Day will be held on 26^th June. Evelyn and Phyllis have assured me that everything will be in place for this, and that Phyllis’ recent fall will not hamper her. All we need now is weather like today – the hottest day of the year so far as I slave over a hot computer!

I take pleasure in including Mike Essex’s report from the Swanwick Conference. A well-written report which I include in its entirety, it demonstrates the efforts being made to keep the URC up with the times. I commend it to you.

Dear Friends,

Last Autumn, the Church met to discuss what we wanted to do as a congregation to improve our image. One of the suggestions that came out of that discussion was to give ourselves a name. We already have a name, you say. Well, yes, we are ‘Epsom United Reformed Church’. However, there was some thought that maybe a name (like St. Andrews United Reformed Church or Christ Church United Reformed Church) would help us to be more noticed, more easily identified.

We then invited people to propose a name, and give the reason why they thought it would make a good name for our church. Thank you to all of you who made suggestions. They were all good names and thoughtfully made.

At the last Church Meeting we chose four of those names to put before you. First of all, however, we will have a vote to see if there is the will to change. This will happen on Sunday 19^th June before we begin the morning service. If there is a will to change, the following names will be placed before us:

• Emmanuel – means ‘God with us’, and was the choice of a name for this church some years ago;

• St. Luke’s – connected with health and healing, and there is no other church near here of that name;

• Pilgrim – we are all pilgrims, or travellers on a sacred journey;

• All Saints’ – this name includes absolutely everyone.

Please give this some thought and prayer and please plan to be in church that Sunday morning so that you may have a chance to make your vote count. Everyone who attends this church is invited to cast their vote.

Peace

Pat

If your surname begins with                       If your surname begins with

If you can’t manage the designated day then please come on the alternative.

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible.

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Notes from the meeting held on May 10th 2005

Cote and Dovecote Annual Carol Concert. December 15th with the Bishop of Guildford

Borough 60th Peace Anniversary Celebrations August 28th, will include a Service at St. Martins Church.

Week of Prayer for Peace and One World Week begin October 3rd.

Make Poverty History. Has anyone any suggestions as to what we can do to put this forward after we have sent our postcards to Parliament? Should we press for Epsom to become a Fair Trade town?

Week of Prayer for Surrey. A 24/7 vigil at S. Barnabas Church 17 - 24th. September

For background to this see May Newsletter. The next meeting of Churches Together in Epsom in September was to have been held at Epsom URC, but the Rev. Michael Preston suggested that as his church was open all the week for the prayer vigil it might just as well be held there. So we are scheduled to host the January meeting instead.

LENT HOUSE GROUPS.

The Report from the House Groups, as set out in the paper on the Vestibule Notice Board, was considered.

One topic discussed, albeit briefly, was to consider the possibilities of a jointly funded Youth Worker for Epsom. Is this something which we would like to promote and show an interest in? I am mindful of the advice given to us by Harold Nurden on the possibilities of getting a local area grant. Also I notice that my Ward Councillor, Colin Taylor, is also interested in this topic. I suppose I could have a word with him, if required.

Our own Longhurst Room Group have also embarked on a little project. As part of the group activity we selected to make contact with the Local Fire Station. Since then we have followed this up and approached some of the men and the Commander. Some of you may remember that the Commander addressed a meeting of the Evening Church Fellowship not so long ago and he seemed quite friendly. Our ambassador has been met with very positive attention. In the first place we had been thinking of praying for the men working in a dangerous profession: but it turns out that they request that our prayers for them include more personal interests. So we have established a series of 20-30 minute visits to the Fire Station. The first meeting is on Monday May 23rd. We may use the Commander's room if he is on duty, since he does not go out with the Watch on call. Otherwise we use the messroom. If the alarm goes when the Commander is not on duty we have to vacate the Fire Station. It has been suggested that in such a case we could use our Crèche or a room at the Baptist Church, if Rosemary is with us, to finish our prayer time.

International trade may seem a remote issue, but when commodity prices fall dramatically it has a catastrophic impact on the lives of millions of small scale producers, forcing many into crippling debt and countless others to lose their land and their homes.

Too many farmers in the developing world have to contend with fluctuating prices that may not even cover what it costs to produce their crop.

Development agencies recognised the important role that consumers could play to improve the situation for producers. By buying direct from farmers at better prices, helping to strengthen their organisations and market their produce directly through their own one-world shops and catalogues, the charities offered consumers the opportunity to buy products which were bought on the basis of a fair trade.

But Fairtrade is best exemplified by a story such as this:

Sergio is a coffee farmer from Costa Rica. He is 37 years old, and married, with two children. Sergio is passionate about the stone tools and pots he finds in his fields. The archaeological remains are up to 1500 years old, and were made by the people who lived in Costa Rica before the Spanish Conquest. Sergio has a basket full of the relics, and even collects them from other farmers. 'If they give them to me, that's best. But if not - I'll buy them - so long as they're cheap!' National museum officials visited him to check he is not planning to sell his collection to foreigners. But that's the last thing on Sergio's mind. 'I have an idea of setting up a small museum for the children of the local school.'  

His Daily Life:

‘The first thing I do in the morning,’ says Sergio, ‘is give thanks to God for a new day, for everything he has given me. I don’t do this every day, but often. And then I brush my teeth.’ He gets up about 5 and has a breakfast of bread and coffee. By 6 he is in the field, working alongside his son Cristian, who left school last year. Sergio works 8-10 hours most days, including Saturdays, and sometimes on Sundays as well.  He goes to play pool once a fortnight.  He has very little free time, but says he loves his work as a coffee farmer. ‘I know that I’m alive, living with nature. I’m sowing things for my family, and breathing the fresh air.’

A Better Deal:

Sergio is a member of a farmer's cooperative which sells about 25% of its crop to the Fairtrade market. For this part of his crop, Sergio receives a price guaranteed to cover the cost of production. He says if he could sell all his coffee to Fairtrade, he wouldn't have any problems. So far, the consumer demand for Fairtrade coffee is not yet high enough to soothe Sergio's anxieties. Meanwhile, the world coffee price has slumped.

Like all small farmers who supply to the Fairtrade market, Sergio is a member of a democratically organised group, in his case a co-operative. He is very positive about co-operatives: 'The private companies want the coffee, but don't want to return the favour by helping us in any way.' The co-operative gives the farmers loans for farm expenses, and helps the community with road repairs and donations to schools. Through the co-op, farmers can also secure better prices on the conventional market than they could individually.

So Sergio has a message for consumers in the UK. 'Buy from co-operatives, not private companies. The private companies have an owner - they're out for themselves. They try not to pay the full value of the crop. But the owners of a cooperative are the producers.'

Jesus said: "He has sent me to bring good news to the poor."

There are more references in the Bible to responding to the poor than about prayer, atonement, or Jesus’ resurrection. And it is the poorest people in the world who are suffering most at the hands of unfair trade. So what might ‘good news’ mean for them? The verse goes on to talk about liberation of captives, protecting the weak, and the coming of justice so that all can be included in God’s Kingdom. Fairtrade has this aim at its heart – a just system which frees producers from exploitation, enabling them to lift themselves out of poverty.

And what can we do:

1. Look for the FAIRTRADE mark on products you buy; and

2. Join us at Breakfast at 9:00 on 3^rd July in Unity Hall - see below:

Please come to our

ON SUNDAY 3^RD JULY @ 9 O’CLOCK.

Location: UNITY HALL.

Enjoy a Light or Cooked Breakfast using FAIR TRADE Products.

Cost : £3 .00p per adult, £ 1.50 per child, 
or £7 .00p per family.

ALL profits donated to FAIR TRADE.

I attended this conference representing our District. It was run in parallel with the annual Treasurers' Workshop, containing some common and some separate sessions.

Listening to the financial analysis of the URC enabled us to see the deployment of ministers in the context of what the church can afford. Money is to a great extent the determining factor.  Over the last few years our membership and consequently our income has declined. In comparison the number of churches has not declined; therefore we are trying to spread ministers more and more thinly.  Another factor is the availability of ministers.  It seems hard to obtain facts about the supply of candidates and their quality, but there is a concern that new ministers will not fill the gap created by retiring ministers and those leaving active service.  Add to this the difficulty of persuading churches and ministers to do what does not suit them, and it becomes clear that as regards manpower planning the URC has its hands tied behind its back.  One part of a session dealt with the events leading up to the formation of the URC, in which the pioneers sought to reconcile the bottom-up decision-making of the Congregationalists with the more autocratic procedure of the Presbyterians.  It became clear that many churches cling to the Congregational traditions in an era that is totally different from that in which they were formed.

An early exercise we were asked to do was to divide into groups, each group being given a District of the country to reorganise its ministerial deployment.  Despite a plethora of statistics and factual information, we quickly found, that we were unable to make sensible decisions unless we knew the local situation.  It is apparent that there are no quick fixes, no 'one pattern fits all', no overall set of principles you can adhere to.  A recent but growing factor is the ecumenical dimension.  There are now 400 Local Ecumenical Partnerships (LEPs) plus a large number of united churches and special arrangements of different kinds.  In principle these are a step forward into inter-church co-operation, but in practice they may conceal deployment problems, e.g. too many ministers for too few members.  Ecumenical arrangements bring out another problem too - the way in which you measure need.  The traditional URC method is to use membership as a measure, but it is becoming clear that this does not always represent the true strength of a church.  Some may have a large number of active adherents, others may have a large number of dormant members; yet others may have an impact on their community disproportionate to their numbers, either greater or smaller than one would expect.  A number of discussions homed in on closing churches.  One helpful suggestion was that we should separate closing buildings from closing down congregations.  Some good solutions have been found to keeping congregations alive.  There are also dilemmas about priority areas for ministers.  Should they be directed towards larger concentrations of people, or to those communities who are struggling?  This question led to an interesting but inconclusive discussion about the difference between ministry and leadership, the consensus being that they do not have to be vested in the same person.  Another question was whether ministers should be directed on short-term assignments, say to areas of potential growth.

In our last session we tackled the question of the employment status of ministers and how this may impact on the business of deployment.  Some time ago the DTI initiated a consultation to determine how categories such as ministers related to recent employment law.  The questions raised have not yet been fully answered but some things have been clarified.  Ministers are seen as 'office holders', who are not employed by any person or body.  However, their remuneration is determined centrally and they are therefore obligated to the URC, its subdivisions and the local church.  They could become employed by, say, their District, which would confer certain advantages in employment law, such as the right to appeal to an employment tribunal, but would also bring potential 'threats', e.g. exposure to an incapacity procedure.  These issues are being debated by all the main denominations, and some changes are expected.  The discussion did emphasise that churches should exercise great care over their terms of settlement with their ministers.  Some attendees thought that ministry was becoming an 'occupation' rather than a 'vocation', but the consensus seemed to be that some conditions, e.g. indicative hours of work were needed.  It was recognised that a number of different categories of ministers existed, e.g. stipendiary and non-stipendiary. 

References have been made throughout this report to the role of Districts.  The whole structure of the URC is being reviewed as part of the 'Catch the Vision' process, and a likely outcome is that Synods and Districts will be replaced by a single tier of overseeing bodies, the nature of which is as yet unspecified. 

A number of comments were made about the ponderous process of finding a new minister.  We considered it wrong that the process was delayed until a minister had gone, even if the date of departure was known in advance.  Churches were advised to keep their Pastorate Profiles continuously updated. 

We could have been depressed by what appeared to be a number of intractable problems, insoluble because everything is in a state of flux.  However, I would say that our mood was less bleak, and more encouraged to look to the future, as hopefully we get better at governing ourselves.  The Treasurers, I believe, were less sanguine, which only stresses the point that we can only reform  structures properly and deploy ministers effectively if we have the means to do it.  100% response to the M&M request is the bottom line.  If churches fail to deliver on this, others will have to bridge the gap, or we will become ineffective as a denomination.  We need this stability even to play our part in working together with our ecumenical partners, probably the key area of change for the next few years.

Michael Essex

Church Secretary, Christ Church UR., Leatherhead

The place was easy to find, the parking was not a problem, a cheerful welcome with lots of meetings andgreetings, there were hundreds of people around.  I sat down for a coffee in the only seat available, and found that the person opposite me worshipped at Epsom Methodist Church!  There were lots of smiles all day long, so many things to look at and learn about, things to pick up and put  down and others to buy, that  I needed a recuperative rest in the restaurant which served excellent lunches and offered a view over North London (the Wembley arch was clearly visible in the sunshine in all its enormity).   

Ø      an overview of the passage to be studied,

Ø      the daily 'walk' (the chapters written out in full), 

Ø      an insight to light up a scriptural  or historical fact, and

Ø      every seven days, a devotional pause to reflect on the week's readings.

The course provided lots of background information: we learned how to make a mind-map of the journeys Jesus made so as to appreciate the miles he covered, and of Paul's missionary journeys and exactly which countries he travelled to and wrote his letters to, and from, and for what reasons.

If there's a chance to go to a "Walk Thru' the Old Testament" workshop I hope I am able to go and perhaps one of you would like to go with me?

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Our profile:

Ø      United Reformed Church in the London Borough of Kingston Upon Thames;

Ø      Existing youth work, including Boys' Brigade, Girls' Brigade and Church youth group.

We need:

Ø      A full time Youth and Family Worker to support and work along side our existing volunteers;

Ø      A committed Christian with a lively faith;

Ø      Qualified person with experience, either voluntary or paid;

Ø      Excellent communication skills.

If you have the drive and commitment we need and share our vision for our Young People please get in touch.  

Salary: JNC level 2, points 11-15, £17,00-£21,000 + Outer London Weighting (depending on experience);

25 days holiday entitlement; Work expenses. 

For an application pack please contact Mrs Erika Reeves on 020 8949 5932 or email: e.m.reeves@btopenworld.com.

We will be holding our annual collection for this Appeal on Sunday, 19th June.   Collection envelopes will be available for those who are able to Gift Aid their contributions.   This charity, now known as London Catalyst, was established in 1873 and must be one of the first ecumenical organisations in the country, as can be seen from the following extracts from their Appeal letter.

"Once again we are asking Churches of all denominations and Synagogues across the capital to support our work with sick and disabled people in London.   Specifically, we need to raise funds to assist individuals in desperate need.   Through our Samaritan Fund and Ministers' Fund we give immediate relief to sick and vulnerable people via their Social Worker or Minister of Religion.   The more money we can raise for these two vital funds, the more disadvantaged individuals we can help.

"In addition to our grants to organisations and individuals in need, in 2005 we are initiating a 'special interest' programme which will establish a health advocacy project in the London Borough of Southwark.   This scheme will reach out to help people excluded from accessing mainstream healthcare such as refugees, asylum seekers and travellers.

"Every penny raised by the 2005 Hospital-Sunday Appeal will go directly to those in need, providing clothing, footwear, household items and special equipment for sick, disabled, frail, elderly and disadvantaged people across London."

Friends may like to know how our donations have been used:-

Merlin          "Your money funded our immediate response:  48 hours after the disaster hit we had doctors and nurses on the ground in Sri Lanka.  And your support will continue to have an impact for years and years to come.  Merlin teams in Sri Lanka and Indonesia are providing medical assistance, refurbishing hospitals and are working with local people to build for the future.

"As well as meeting the urgent and immediate needs of people who are bereaved, homeless and without hope, we are now planning to use your money to restore proper healthcare to the worst hit communities."

Unicef  "Communities have been torn apart and left to cope without food or shelter.   Without adequate sanitation and with safe drinking water in short supply, the risk of disease spreading has intensified.      Your support is enabling UNICEF to prevent this by providing supplies to purify water and both treat and prevent disease.

"UNICEF is also supplying shelter equipment such as blankets, sleeping mats, clothing, medical supplies and other urgent relief items. With your help, we can save and protect the lives of the children caught up in this disaster." 

The Afternoon and Evening Church Fellowships arranged the Coffee Morning on 7^th May in Unity Hall. Those present enjoyed a ‘good natter’, but the support was rather thin. We thank those that did come for the £35 contributed. This money has been passed to the Church Treasurer to add to the Christian Aid total giving.

The next Saturday chosen for coffee in Unity Hall is 15^th October, when the Brownies will be hosting the occasion. Put a note in your diaries now!

On Tuesday, 24^th May, the Toddlers’ Group was sorry to have to say ‘Goodbye’ to Bettie Forster who has been an able and enthusiastic leader for many years – about fifteen, she thinks. We will all miss her greatly. Isabelle, who had her third birthday last Sunday, presented the flowers to Bettie, and we gave her a new flight bag and a card signed by those present, to express our thanks and to remember us by.

Please tell me if you know of anyone who would like to be on a rota of helpers so that it will not necessitate a weekly commitment for a new leader.

Evening Church Fellowship
Evelyn Beer

The May visit for ‘A Musical Evening’ presented by our friend Robert Blows was nearly a disaster: his car decided to break down and he had to be collected from home. His recorder then failed to operate! Help – what to do next?? The evening was saved by the quick action of Gwyneth who was able to produce a substitute machine!!

The AGM and Supper will be on 6^th June, and donations of savouries and sweets will be appreciated.

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Afternoon Fellowship
Daphne Dawe

This report is the one casualty of the change in NewsLetter publication date. Our AGM was held on Thursday, 26^th May, leaving too little time for a report to be prepared for inclusion in this issue. This report will be in the July edition.

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Our meetings in the month of May have consisted of: a super heroes evening when the boys completed a dot-to-dot picture of Spiderman, coloured pictures of super heroes and made a Spiderman mask; an animals evening when they made packs of cards of animal pairs and

for the other meeting they made cardboard boys and paper clothes of a pirate and a Red Indian that could be stuck on with Velcro with which to dress them.

Pauline and Tuck were both unable to come to the meeting on 9^th May, and I am very grateful to Phyl Cary who came and helped me to clear up.

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We decided to hold a Polish evening on 4^th May as the Polish National Day had been on 3^rd. The girls each made a dress-up doll that had alternative outfits of the Polish National costume and the Polish Brownie uniform. The girls all tried some Polish noodles and discovered they either liked them or hated them!

As the Brownies always support the Church’s Spring Event, we decided this year to combine it with the girls taking their Cook’s badge. The Brownies learned about hygiene and safety in the kitchen, and prepared and served fruit and washed up after themselves for the first week. Then on the Wednesday before the event they cooked various types of chocolate cakes for sale. Six Brownies helped at the Spring Event and they raised over thirty pounds with their cakes. Most of the Brownies have now gained their Cook’s badge.

On Wednesday May 25^th we arranged a visit from Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. Unfortunately Adam Wilson was unable to bring his dog with him as she had become ill and had to be taken back, and he will start training with his next dog in two weeks time. There was a short video and the Brownies loved seeing all the dogs in that. Afterwards Adam Wilson answered all the Brownies questions and was told a lot of ‘dog stories’.    

Local churches rely on the goodwill and commitment of many different people to help them in their youth and children's work, their community outreach—and to keep the building upright and secure! Volunteers are sometimes difficult to find—and even harder to keep! This session looks at how we can encourage people to volunteer for roles within our churches—and how to make sure they stay effective. It explores the value of volunteers to our churches, how volunteers can best be supported, ideas for attracting new volunteers and how to keep them happy. The session is aimed at those people in our churches who are responsible for finding volunteers to fill roles or in the support of volunteers. While this session cannot offer to solve your volunteer is-sues it will offer an opportunity to identify ways forward that will be effective. People who attend will also have the opportunity for further consultancy on this area when action plans are implemented. These sessions are being run by the United Reformed Church Southern Synod Training Team. 

Sessions are taking place throughout the Synod area and details are available from Sheila or the Editor.  Our local session is on Thursday, 7^th July at Tolworth URC.  All sessions will begin with refreshments at 7.30 p.m. and finish by 10.00 p.m. 

If anyone wishes to attend one of these sessions please fill in and return the booking form (available from Sheila) to:

I have just spent the last four Friday mornings sitting for the Friday painters. It has been an interesting experience especially seeing yourself as seen by others. I could recognise myself in each of the artist’s painting, but they were all very different. The painters are all very friendly and ensure your comfort, stopping midway through the morning for coffee, biscuits and a chat.

If you are free for four consecutive Friday mornings and would be prepared to sit for them or if you are a budding artist and would like to join with fellow artists the painters would be delighted to hear from you and you would be made very welcome. Just contact Yvonne Law on 01737 361826.

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With our annual effort now just a memory, the Women’s Church Council would wish to say a very big ‘Thank You’ to everybody who contributed in any way to the success of the day. If we attempted to name folks we would surely miss some out. By making and baking, giving so many different articles for sale, and then partaking of coffee and Ploughman’s Lunches, as well as buying many of the ‘goodies’ available, you all helped to make the outcome most satisfactory. I don’t know that I can say the final amount yet – from time to time cakes and plants continue to be bought – but at the time of going to print we have raised £472.40p. One is always conscious of a very happy friendly spirit embracing this event, and to you all again – thanks and well done.

Copy for the next issue should be with the Editor by 19th June for publication on 26th June 2005.  

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