I would encourage you all to do your utmost to turn up at 10:30 on 30th April at Unity Hall for the presentation of Nigel Uden’s review. In different circumstances it could be called ‘The State of the Nation’, and the points made will have a bearing on all of us. Now is the time when decisions, if not actually taken, need to be considered. This is your opportunity.

I expect that, without a great deal of discipline, most of us are hoarders; it takes a house-move or some equally cataclysmic event to make us shed the baggage assiduously accumulated over the years.

Joan Denman was a hoarder. This was probably not intentional, but Joan had lived in Copse Edge Avenue for quite a long time, and there had never been the need to have a clear out, or even a sort-through. Now Antony, Anne and Clive are carrying out this long-overdue task.

And what treasures they have found! For example, a Book of Common Prayer that belonged to my great-grandmother! We have had quite a time going through various inscriptions and aligning them with our family tree.

One book, ‘Great thoughts from Master Minds’, was given to my grandfather, the Rev. E. Hitchcock, one-time Minister and Minister Emeritus of Epsom Congregational, on the occasion of his marriage in 1899. For your enjoyment and edification, I will dip into this book from time to time for some of the interesting and illuminating gems hidden in its pages. You will find the first of these gleanings here. And you’ll have to wait for the next January magazine to find out what Longfellow said about Robert Burns!

I have recently noticed that a number of the ‘standard’ pages on the church web site have not kept up with events, and have become rather out-dated. I have started making a note of these and when time permits – or when I break a leg! – I hope to be able to revise these. In the meantime, don’t be too harsh on me!

I am told that Spring has officially arrived, although sitting and looking out of the window at the moment it is hard to believe, and having not long returned from Spain it seems very dull and dreary. However, the Church calendar for April is certainly not dull and dreary, but very lively and busy.

On 5^th April at the next District Council Meeting I have to give a reply to the Pastoral Consultation for Mission visit, which you may remember took place last year on 24^th May. The following day we have a joint Elder’s Meeting with Ewell; these are always interesting meetings.

This year over the Easter period we shall be holding a Maundy and Tenebrae combined service on 13^th April at 7.30 p.m. at Epsom. This will be a joint venture with Ewell. On Good Friday there will be the usual Procession of Witness with Churches Together in Epsom. Easter Day will begin at Epsom with Breakfast at 9 a.m. in Unity Hall, followed by Family Worship and Communion in the Church. The previous breakfasts have been well attended and very much enjoyed by all, so put the date in your Diary to celebrate the joy of Easter Morning with us.

You will probably have seen publicity for the Barn Dance and Supper on 22^nd April, the eve of St. George’s Day. I was unable to attend last year’s celebrations, but I have heard how much fun it was. This year there is to be a Barn Dance as well, all profits will be donated to “Christian Aid”, a very worthy cause in need of our support. Another important date for your Diary.

I once heard about a women's group who were asked to bring decorated eggs for an Easter service, the eggs to be given to a local hospital. The minister explained to the ladies of the group, ‘As you enter the church, will you please lay your eggs in the font’!

I don't think any of us will be required to do so – not at this church anyhow! But come Easter Sunday and the resurrection is a very inconvenient truth. It interferes with our plans and gets in the way. It forces us to reckon with the certainty that one day we shall meet with Jesus Christ himself.

World champion, Jonathan Edwards, once nearly gave up athletics. In the 1992 Olympic Games he failed to qualify for the final. But Jonathan Edwards, who is a Christian, says God taught him a valuable lesson: ‘God taught me again that my hope was to be in him and not in happy circumstances and that, come what may, he is to be praised.’

In 1995, at the World Championships in Gothenburg, he smashed his own world record twice with a jump of 17.98 metres.

Jonathan's no longer a full-time athlete, but he says he would give it up tomorrow if he thought it would be harmful to his great priority in life, that of being a Christian.

Unlike Jonathan Edwards, the major barrier that prevents people believing in the resurrection is their unwillingness to be committed to Jesus.

The Resurrection is still not good news to those who want to have nothing to do with the risen Christ and who prefer to say, ‘I don't believe’, hoping that it will go away.

But it's good news if we do as those first converts did in Jerusalem. Cut to the heart they may have been, but the day ended with them believing, and the membership of the Christian Church ballooned by over two thousand per cent!

To end, let me tell you about a wife who was showing her husband an egg. 'The Easter Bunny must have laid this one,' she said. 'Perhaps she did,' he answered absently. 'I always thought the Easter Bunny was a he,' the wife replied. 'Look,' said the husband, 'it's hard enough for a rabbit to lay eggs without being male too’.

‘Dear Phemie and Friends of the Epsom United Reformed Church,

Please accept our sincere thanks for the wonderful donation of £530-42p raised by your holding of the Burns' Supper on Jan. 28th. I was very fortunate to be with you on that special occasion.

For the second time on our behalf you, Phemie, have worked so hard to give all who attended a memorable evening, as well as raising such a wonderful monetary result. Many thanks.

February 21st was a very proud day for everyone at Shooting Star House when TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall officially opened the Hospice.

Since August last year, we have been privileged to provide care and support to many children, young people and their families. It is through the financial support from many people such as yourselves that the Dream has become the Reality!!

With very best wishes to you all.

Yours sincerely,

Gloria Sheridan

Co-ordinator, Epsom and Ewell Group

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I met Gloria Sheridan, co-ordinator of the Epsom and Ewell group, for coffee recently, and she had the photographs of the official opening of the Shooting Star Hospice by Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. Before the Prince and Duchess arrived, they said that they would meet the Patrons but they wanted to spend time with the parents and children. The Royal Couple spent over two hours in this way.

I saw photographs of the Royal Couple sitting on the floor playing with the children, and one of the Duchess holding a little baby. The Duchess wore a red woollen dress with black accessories, but no hat or coat. The Royal Couple looked happy and relaxed with the children and the photographs were really good, an excellent record of a big day for the Hospice.

Sheila Carpenter points out that the time has come round again for this very good annual exhibition, and recommends that for speedy and efficient entry, you should book in advance. Tickets are £4.50 for adults and £3.50 for concessions (Senior Citizens, Disabled, Students, and 16-18s). Entry for under-16s is free.

Sheila says she will be going to CRE on Tuesday, 9^th May, and will give a lift to two people who would like to spend the day there, leaving Epsom at 9 a.m.

An organisation known as Book Aid request that you bring your spare books and Bibles. By donating these to Book Aid, you will help to meet the needs of areas in Africa so scarce of these resources. Sheila has kindly offered to take any books that you would like to donate.

THE end of church music is to relieve the weariness of a long attention, to make the mind more cheerful and composed, and to endear the offices of religion. There must be no voluntary maggots, no military tattoos, no light and galliardising notes—nothing that may make the fancy trifling, or raise an improper thought—which would be to profane the service, and to bring the playhouse into the church. Religious harmony must be moving, but noble withal, grave, solemn, and seraphic; fit for a martyr to play and an angel to hear. It should be contrived so as to warm the best blood within us, and to take hold of the finest part of the affections; to transport us with the beauty of holiness, to raise us above the satisfaction of life, and make us ambitious of the glories of heaven.

Robert Southey

We tend to take the instant availability of water for granted in the British Isles. Listening to Tom Mercer’s excellent mini-presentations about “Pump Aid” at Epsom’s Sunday Morning Service on 19^th March made me start thinking about the third world’s water resources and how the western way of life is draining those resources.

Going back to early history, civilisations rose then fell but, not unusually, the initial cause of both can be traced to climatic change and availability of “fresh water”. Following this up, I wondered how often the Bible refers to water.

With the help of my internet search engine, I obtained some interesting results. Regardless of which version of the Bible is taken, the word “water” invariably appears about 630 times. About a fifth (140) of the total relates to the first three Old Testament Books with only a seventh (95) to the whole of the New Testament (which is twice as long). Could this apparent imbalance reflect the advance of civilisation - particularly Roman - and casual acceptance of water’s availability by a more sophisticated population?

Reverting to current times. A recent edition of the “New Scientist” * magazine headed an article on water by stating, “Our demand for water has turned us into vampires, draining the world of its lifeblood”.

The article estimates how much water is being pumped from underground aquifers causing serious falls in the water tables of India, China and other Asian countries - a very similar tale to what is happening in the Thames Valley.  Regardless of local population needs, the western lifestyle poses a major threat to future water supplies worldwide.  It takes prodigious amounts of water to produce many of the consumables we import from the third world.  If the New Scientist’s figures are to be believed, the amounts of water needed for the production cycle of some of our “basics” are:

20,000 litres for one kilo of coffee

11,000 litres for one quarter pounder hamburger

7,000 litres for one cotton T-shirt

5,000 litres for one kilo of cheese

3,000 litres for one kilo of sugar

2,000 litres for one litre of milk

          1,000 litres for one kilo of wheat

The result is that, “…a typical meat-eating, milk guzzling westerner consumes as much as a hundred times their own weight in water every day”. Staggering thought, isn’t it !

Referring back to my previous reference that “water” appears about 95 times in the New Testament. Supposing a “new” New Testament is being written by a westerner today- I wonder how often “water” will be mentioned and in what contexts.

* Ó New Scientist 25^th February 2006 pages 32 to 36 extract Fred Pearce “When the rivers run dry”

Please note that there is now a notice in the foyer giving details month by month of bookings made for the church and the Longhurst Room. This innovation is to assist those of you who need to access the buildings for various purposes to be aware of when they are likely to be free – and when there will be room in front of the church for parking your cars!

This event will be on 20^th May at 10:30 in Unity Hall – as if you needed to be told!

Now is the time to be tending the plants and seedlings, and hopefully, with warm spring weather, we may find the time and energy to turn out unwanted books, CDs, tapes, etc. – in fact, anything in good condition.

Carshalton Choral Society is performing this well-loved work at 7.30 p.m. on Saturday, 29^th April at St. Andrew’s Church, Northey Avenue, Cheam. Tickets, available on the door, are priced £10.00.

Visit by the Revs Eddie Boon and Les Mather to India 
Barrie Scopes

Eddie Boon and Les Mather returned home on February 8 after a five-week visit to the Rayalaseema Diocese in South India. Eddie was based in Guntakal with the Revd Dev Anand Subuddy and his wife Reeta, who had spent some weeks at Eddie's church in St Mary Cray in September/October last year. Les was based at Anantapur with the Revd Isaac Vara Prasad and his wife Bharathi, who had spent three weeks with him last year. Both of them greatly enjoyed their time in India, finding it full of rich experiences, and they have been enthused regarding the continuance of the partnership between the Rayalaseema Diocese and the Southern Synod.

One part of their time was in organising and carrying through seminars in five towns for presbyters and evangelists of the diocese. At each of these gatherings, which took place with the help of money sent from the Southern Synod, Les led a session about 'ministry teams' and encouraging the gifts of people within a congregation. Eddie led a session on partnership between ministers based on a covenant model - something which has been developed by ministers in the Medway District. These occasions provided opportunities to eat together, pray for one another and hear the concerns of the presbyters. Building trust is important but not easy. One of the concerns voiced was the need for parsonages especially for those serving rural churches.

All this took place against a background in which the Rayalaseema diocese was without a bishop, as no successor to Bishop Frederick had been appointed. In a country which is so hierarchical and people look to leadership from above this meant that there was much administrative paralysis. The situation was not helped by the fact that a court case had been taken out against the diocesan officers who had been elected in December 2005 and were disbarred from many of their duties. For example they were not allowed to vote at the CSI Synod in Mysore and the presbyters of the diocese were not paid for three months (though this was put right at the end of January).

In spite of these negative aspects Les and Eddie have been very positive about their experience and about the future of the partnership. They found that wherever they went people expressed their happiness at being in touch with the United Reformed Church (though for many this was a harking back to the LMS). Until a new bishop is appointed it will not be easy to make arrangements for further exchange visits. One of the best results has been the

formation of congregation to congregation partnerships where Les and Eddie have been. Ways must be found to extend such partnerships.

With the Queen's 80th birthday approaching, I unearthed this sonnet that I wrote at the time of her Coronation, and which was printed in the Rosebery School magazine.

Come Dancing! 
Valerie Wood

A few weeks ago it was announced that there was to be a course in ballroom dancing held in Unity Hall on Monday evenings from 7.30 p.m. until 9 p.m. I remember several people saying to me, “I think I might like to try that out”. As I was already at Unity Hall anyway, I waited to see how many people would come to the opening class.

The March Coffee Morning realised £125 for the Royal Marsden Cancer Campaign. Thank you for your generous support.

Tuesday, 11^th April is the date for the next such effort. On this occasion we shall be raising money for ‘The Rainbow Trust’. Sadly, there are many children with terminal or life-threatening illnesses, and ‘The Rainbow Trust’ gives support to the children and their families both in the home and at ‘Rainbow House’ in Bookham. We shall be glad to welcome you.

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 For our first meeting since the winter break, we welcomed most of our regular members and, most pleasurably, a few visitors. Phyl Cary gave us a most interesting illustrated talk, ‘The Mediterranean – Ancient and Modern’. Without a note, she took us on an absorbing journey, starting in Venice, visiting Athens, Dubrovnik and several islands, clearly giving the historical facts and appropriate dates. It was a privilege to be present.

  2nd     Sheila Carpenter
  9th     Ron Parkins
16th     Rebecca Drake
23rd     Rebecca Drake
30th     Charles Senior (in Unity Hall)