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Re-cycling medical blister packs – an idea shared – a challenge made.

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Six months ago, Stirling Methodist Church members were challenged to bring their empty medical blister packs to church and deposit them in a suitable container. (In our case a re-purposed wild bird fat ball container). We had no idea whether this would work but when sufficient had been collected they were taken to Superdrug, who have a large collection box, and dropped off. This worked as I pass by Superdrug several times a week, so not out of my way. It is also convenient for those who live outside of Stirling, as no special trip required. In the six months since we have started this scheme 1,250 blister packs have been recycled. A small contribution to cutting aluminium waste and carbon emissions. I wonder if there are other churches who would like to try this out in their areas.

Walter Attwood

Welcoming Refugees

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Scottish Faiths Action for Refugees (SFAR) and Faith in Community Scotland have produced some short videos, Journeys of Faith and Welcome, to celebrate the stories of New Scots and faith communities, and the role faith has played in their journeys of seeking, finding and offering sanctuary.  SFAR are always keen to encourage faith groups to get involved in or start similar projects and would be delighted to work alongside and equip any group that might be interested.

Any faith communities wanting to get involved in welcoming and supporting asylum seekers can find further information here or contact Sabine Chalmers, Co-ordinator for SFAR at schalmers@churchofscotland.org.uk.

JPIT internships

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JPIT, the Joint Public Issues Team, run three annual internships, hosted by the Methodist Church, aimed at recent graduates aged 21–30. These are 12–month, full time, living wage roles, starting in September 2023.
Applications have just opened for the full–time role which focusses on communications, engagement and research. Applications for this role are open until 22 May.
JPIT are holding an open meeting on May 4, for potential applicants to learn more the internships and application process.

More information for potential applicants.

Working out Worship

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The Learning Network in Scotland is offering a series on ‘Working out Worship’ and the first of those begins with Local Arrangements on Tuesday 18th April from 7-9pm.

This session is designed for church stewards and worship leaders, as well as anyone else who currently or would like to contribute to worship. This will be a very accessible session and will be a great opportunity for churches to explore different ways of worshipping together. It will look at the steps of planning a service, different aspects and approaches to keep in mind, and how to plan ahead. The session will also signpost participants to useful resources.

Sign up here:  Working out Worship Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite

This link is the same to register for the other events which will be helpful for all involved in worship and preaching. They are:

  • 2nd May Creative Worship 7-9pm on zoom
  • 16th May Intergenerational Worship 7-9pm on zoom
  • 20th May Practice what you preach 10.30-3pm onsite – venue to be confirmed

Volunteer at the Solas Festival

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Hope and Anchor from the Methodist Church will be at the Solas Festival at Errol Park 16th to 19th June 2023. We have a fantastic venue with dry bar and an amazing programme of speakers, conversationalists and artists and lots of activities in the venue for all ages.

If you’d like to be on the volunteer team, more details are here and you can complete an application form https://r1.dotdigital-pages.com/p/BVI-13Y4/volunteer-with-us-at-festivals-and-events

You will receive a complementary ticket for the whole event, assistance with travel and accommodation, and food and refreshments vouchers for the sessions you cover.

If you’d be interested in attending, we do have some additional complementary tickets as well as discounted tickets. So please get in touch with Holly Adams if you would like to reserve tickets and receive more details. Also, feel free to speak to any of the planning team for further information:

Holly Adams (Connexional Evangelism & Growth Team)

Rev Nick Baker (Angus, Dundee & Perth Circuit)

Tim Baker (All We Can)

Kathryn Campbell (Connexional Learning Network)

Emergency alert testing and phones only you know about

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On Sunday 23rd April, at 3pm, the government will send a test alert for possible future emergencies. This will go out to all 4G and 5G phones that are switched on at the time, and will sound an audible alarm.

If you have a phone that an abusive partner does not know about, this  alarm could alert them to its existence. You should decide whether to switch off the phone, or change the settings so that you do not receive such alerts. The alert will still sound if you have your phone on, but switched to ‘silent’.

To opt out:

  1. Search your settings for ‘emergency alerts’.
  2. Turn off ‘severe alerts’ and ‘extreme alerts’.

The Methodist Council, March 2023, Leamington Spa

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The Methodist Council met at Woodland Grange, Leamington Spa between the 25 and 27 March 2023 to discuss matters relating to the life of the Church including the Walking with Micah project, the Anglican / Methodist Covenant and the composition of the Methodist Conference. Read more about the decisions and work of the Council.

Beginning a Church at the Margins: A three session interactive online cour

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Aim of the course: A space to think about connecting and becoming a community of new Christians amongst and led by people experiencing poverty.
For: People who are passionate about their community with very little or no experience of this kind of work. Whilst you can attend alone ideally, we would like you to join as a team (you plus one other person from your church or circuit) to share in conversation together (if you are an experienced pioneer drop us an email for more information).

Important: Each session in the course builds on the previous session, so you need to be available to attend all three sessions. The sessions are designed to be interactive rather than formal presentations and will not be recorded.
Hosted by: Eunice Attwood, Church at the Margins Officer and Kerry Scarlett, Regional Learning and Development Officer

The next courses – Please sign up for all 3 sessions by clicking on the links below in red: Summer 2023:
Tuesday 6 June 7-9pm: Session One: Creating connections and spaces where people truly encounter one another.

Tuesday 20 June 7-9pm: Session Two: Nurturing communities in which people with lived experience of poverty are recognised as the experts.
Tuesday 4 July 7-9pm: Session Three: Sharing the gospel and seeing transformation as people grow in faith and challenge injustice.

If you would be interested in attending this course over two days face to face at Cliff College, please email: attwoode@methodistchurch.org.uk