Updates on church & community life

St. Marks United Reformed Church creative ministries have featured in Word in Action, a magazine of The Bible Society. Photos and a write-up of some aspects of bible study, worship and our community ministries are celebrated and good news shared about different ways of engaging with life & the bible together. Find out more by clicking on the article about Scenting God: mission gets messy! It's on pages 5-7 for you to share!http://www.biblesociety.org.uk/products/1012/49/word_in_action_winter_2009/

A review of messychurch wythenshawe is now underway with children, young people, adults & helpers all involved. See more on their blog www.messychurchwythenshawe.blogspot.com

Just to let you know that as Minister of St. Marks United Reformed Church I am now on maternity leave until summer 2010! Thankyou to everyone in wythenshawe for all your support and prayers during pregnancy and being part of the maternity blessing celebration on Sunday 18th October. Will let you know news of the arrival soon!!

A growing church - Betty, Marie & Phil are welcomed as new members of St. Marks United Reformed Church!

another new member joins st. marks!

A third new member joins us at St. Marks United Reformed Church this coming Sunday 6th September. Betty joins Marie & Phil as a new church member. She will share in making promises of Christian faith and be supported by her family and friends as she does so. Please pray for her in this new phase of her journey after 12 months worshipping as part of St. Marks.

We're excited to welcome you and your breadth of experience in Africa & the UK Betty!

The Wythenshawe Gospels day - postponed

Our day on The Wythenshawe Gospels has been postponed this Saturday 1st August.

It will feature again in the future - instead look out for our other special events coming up in Wythenshawe to share in and check out our newly updated YouTube site

http://www.youtube.com/stmarksurc

Sunny day at civic!

A fab day was celebrated by Churches Together in Wythenshawe for Pentecost recently when over 150 people painted beautiful pictures of things and people that inspired them.
It was part of wider community Pentecost celebration with music, dj, dancing by Keralite children & their friends and more paint!
The paintings which were given to Churches Together on the day are touring as many churches and community projects as possible in Wythenshawe in the form of a scroll so that the churches can continue to pray for and learn from the wider community in Wythenshawe about the diversity, inspiration and beauty of the Pentecost day when God's love and power was shared in a special way with a range of people in Jerusalem about 2000 years ago! Christians from a wider range of churches planned and prepared for the event together at civic and it was a first! A great success with lots of interesting conversations and sharing together. The painting was supported by Christian volunteers with Elizabath Gray-King, a Christian Minister and artist who worked with us all on the day and brought several of her own paintings which opened conversations.
During the day drama and singing and a short service was shared in public with passers by at civic.
The day was an experiement - one we're planning to hold again to support the communities we're part of as Churches and to listen and learn from people around us in Wythenshawe of what inspires them. Roll on Pentecost 2010 for another celebration!

Reel Faith - faith & films - theme for June at St. Marks

Films can be soul food nourishing our lives, stretching our minds and nurturing our Christian faith. This month St. Marks United Reformed Church is exploring Reel Faith: faith & films in Sunday worship. We've shared a little about A Wonderful Life' (1946), Shadowlands (1985) & The Truman Show (1998) together.

Many were familiar with A Wonderful Life and remembered characters like George Bailey and Clarence his guardian angel who helps him see his life differently. At first glance perhaps this film seems a bit sweet and gentle and possibly twee with its morals and feel-good factors but we explored a bit more together as a church. We recalled how the local community pull together to support George and the Bailey family in their difficult financial situation and made links between the harsh times people are in now with mortgage repayments, financial systems failing and some having no safety net or insurance. Some remembered the scene of George's despair as he contemplates suicide on a bridge in the middle of winter. We connected it with different parts of our lives and experiences including our faith when we are struggling to know our own roles, where we have given up on our or God's dreams for us and in exploring the importance of being connected together in a supportive local community. Some of our church community have experienced despair and aloneness like George showed - some have tried to commit suicide and we know people in our families and friends who have done that and it has been hard for us to know what to do and how to respond and pray for them as a Christian community sometimes. Lots of the church had seen this film around Christmas time and look forward to it then so to think more about the place of this film, its themes, teachings, connections with our Christian faith and possibilities of hope in times of despair and hardship was really interesting and powerful.

For the 28th June (11am-12.15noon) all of St. Marks (and anyone else who'd is welcome to share with us) are invited to have watched at least one of the Harry Potter films on which our service will be themed with characters, storylines and connections with the bible. In the meantime keep your eyes and ears open for films which challenge, contrast or comfort you in faith and leave a comment to let us know of any. We'd love to hear from you about your favourite film and how it connects with your life, faith or spirituality.