District Events

Monthly Zoom Meeting on 24th of every month
Join Christian Aid and their partners on 24 January as they continue to pray for peace in the Middle East. In January we will welcome Katherine Fitzsimons from the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). Katherine has recently returned from the region and will share her experiences with us.

Learn more and sign up:  Prayers for Peace in the Middle East - Christian Aid 

2025 will mark 80 years of Christian Aid. We will be remembering our history, looking towards the future and celebrating the unstoppable power of hope throughout the year. Our first event will be a special service at Paisley Abbey on Sunday, 26 January from 3:30pm. The Rt Rev Dr Shaw Paterson, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, will lead our worship, with music led by The Heart & Soul Swing Band.  
 
Let us know if you plan to join us: edinburgh@christian-aid.org 

Stories of Journeys - 3 Feb at 1:30pm

Where have we come from as a church? Who have been the pioneers, what lessons have been learned from where it went wrong. Led by Revd Helen Cameron

Stories of Justice - 4 Feb at 7:30pm

Coordinated by the young people from our districts, sharing stores that have come from 3Generate and the church priorities

Stories of Dignity - 5 Feb at 10am

The lived reality of inclusion in the church. What a safe space feels like and what it feels like when church is not safe. Led by Pauline Jackson

Stories of Solidarity - 6 Feb at 1:30pm

Examples of good practice, stories of where things are working well and the positive impact of finding a safe space in church. Led by Revd Mark Rowland

Each session lasts 90 minutes.

The theme chosen for the Regional Safeguarding Conference this year is based around the Justice, Dignity and Solidarity (JDS) strategy which was adopted by the Methodist Conference of 2021.

There are four sessions planned which we hope will draw out some of the lessons learnt and how to apply them in the context of safeguarding and our church life and ministry.
We will be using our stories to explore the JDS strategy through the lens of Safeguarding.

You can book on one or more of the sessions when you register to reserve a slot. The sessions are also recorded and will be available after the event.

The full strategy report can be found here: conf-2021-56-strategy-for-justice-dignity-and-solidarity-working-towards-a-ful_CaeKrNH.pdf

The theology of safeguarding report can be found here: https://media.methodist.org.uk/media/documents/conf-2021-27-the-theology-of-safeguarding_NsSFKxd.pdf

The UK government is consulting with the public on whether to end new drilling for oil and gas.

Operation Noah, Christian Climate Action, Christian Aid, the Laudato Si Movement and Green Christian are joining together with Uplift, the group behind Stop Rosebank, to use this moment to persuade our politicians to take action to end further exploration for fossil fuels in the UK.

Their online event on Thursday 6 February at 7pm will help Christians to find out more and to participate in the campaign.

More information and registration

The Gathering 2025 
The event will run for 90 minutes, and we’ll be hearing directly from Christian Aid Partners. We’ll also launch Christian Aid Week 2025, and mark the 80^th anniversary of Christian Aid.    

Register now to receive the link nearer the time and the recording after the event. 

This course is for leaders who really want to reach new people but also understand that evangelism is a word with baggage. It's for leaders who want to discover their inner evangelists - and it's for those who'd rather they remained undiscovered! It's for leaders who are thinking: 'evangelism was never part of my training for ministry' or 'if I mention evangelism in my place, everyone will run a mile and never come back'. It's for leaders who are wondering how to help others grow in confidence in their faith. It's for leaders who know they have a responsibility when it comes to evangelism, but are busy people trying to keep the show on the road. It's for leaders who are questioning whether evangelism is possible in a holistic, inclusive, relational and authentic way.

This is a free course for all leaders in the Methodist Church (lay and ordained, paid and unpaid, including but not exclusive to Superintendents, Presbyters, Deacons, Local Lay Pastors, Pioneers, Children, Youth and/or Family Workers, Chaplains, Church or Circuit Stewards, or leaders of mission, social action or outreach projects).

In 2020 the Methodist Conference adopted a Church-wide strategy for Evangelism and Growth, deepening our commitment to being an evangelistic Church. Leaders are crucial for this commitment. This course aims to equip leaders in their contexts to: confidently model what it means to follow our shared calling to evangelism; to intentionally prioritise and promote evangelism and to cultivate a culture of confident, authentic faith sharing which raises up those spiritually gifted as Evangelists. There are five sessions, each two hours long:

• Session 1: Evangelism: actually good news?

• Session 2: Everyone an Evangelist: even me?

• Session 3: Are we making disciple-making disciples?

• Session 4: Action planning for evangelism

• Session 5: How do we know we're doing evangelism right?

The course will run again in April 2025, dates and booking link below:

Session 1: Tuesday 1st April, 10.30am-12.30pm
Session 2: Tuesday 8th April, 10.30am-12.30pm
Session 3: Tuesday 29th April, 10.30am-12.30pm
Session 4: Tuesday 6th May, 10.30am-12.30pm
Session 5: Tuesday 15th July, 10.30am-12.30pm

This course will run on Zoom. You'll receive an email with all the joining details closer to the time if you've registered. When you register for a course, please commit to attending all five sessions - if you don't think that's going to be possible then you'll need to let us know. If you have any questions please contact Holly Adams, Evangelism and Contemporary Culture Officer on adamsh@methodistchurch.org.uk

There will be a free place for any woman from the District who hasn't attended the conference before. This includes the full cost of the conference and rail travel. Applications for this have to be submitted by 9 February. Anyone interested should get in touch with Barbara as soon as possible at methodistgirl65@gmail.com

The Community for Spiritual Formation 

Registration is now open for the next Five-Day Community for Spiritual Formation which will be held at the beautiful Drumalis Retreat Centre in Larne, Northern Ireland from 6-11 April 2025. The theme is Living Hope: Being hopeful communities in anxious times and the speakers will be Ruth Harvey and Roger Walton. The programme follows a Benedictine-style rhythm, incorporating teaching, silence, worship and small group sharing. For more information, visit our website to download the flier and booking form or email the Registrar.