Happy New Year and welcome to January Page 3Letters Page 5News of the Church Family Page 7From your Church Secretary Page 7The Ealing Food Bank Project Page 9City Presby Children’s Party Page 11Festival of Church Music Page 14Craft Fair Page 12Last Lap of the London LOOP Page 13Rotas Page 16

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EALING GREEN CHURCH

(Methodist and United Reformed)

Ealing, London W5 5QT

Telephone (020) 8810 0136

Web site http://www.ealinggreenchurch.org.uk/

Email egcadministrator@btconnect.com

Contributions to Unity unitymagazine@hotmail.com

Minister Rev. Dr. Jen Smith (020) 8579 8114

Church Administrator Ms. Rebecca Catford (020) 8810 0136Church Secretary Dr. Anita Oji 07435 081342

Church SecretariatMr. Stalin Sundarraj, Mrs. Valerie Jokosenumi, Mr. Philip Burnham-Richards

Choir Leader Mrs. Fleur Hatherall (020) 8248 6774Organist Mrs. Fleur Hatherall (020) 8248 6774

Communion StewardMrs. Hema Souri-Parsons

(020) 8840 4200

Unity Magazine Mr. Lee Horwich (020) 8567 2851Unity Distributor Mr. Peter Chadburn (020) 8537 1966Ecumenical Officer Mr. David Groves (020) 8933 8315Bible Reading Rota Church Administrator (020) 8810 0136

The Church Office is staffed on Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week between 9.30am and 12.30pm, with the exception of public and other occasional holidays.

UNITYcontributions:

All contributions gratefully received. Please hand them toLee Horwich, or email them to: unitymagazine@hotmail.com

Last date for contributions to the February issue –Sunday 12th January

If you are new to the church, the following groups meet on a regular basis, either weekly or monthly:Afternoon Bible Study Thursday (monthly) 1.30 pmMonday Fellowship(fortnightly)

Monday 2:00 pm

Choir Practice Friday 7:00 pmLuncheon Club Thursday 12:00 am-1:15 pm

Full details can be found in the weekly notice sheetThere are also a number of House Groups, which meet on a regular basis - see Church Notice Board for fuller details.

You are welcome to come to any meeting.

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Happy New Year and welcome to January!

From Dr. Jen

Happy New Year! Welcome to this edition of Ealing Green’s magazine, and to January in the life of our church.

We are in the season of self help books and improvement regimes, of gym memberships and resolutions to add and subtract virtue and vice. As the banner headline on the North American version of the Amazon website says: ‘New Year, New You!’ It suggests I start 2014 with a renewed focus on ‘...fitness, health, nutrition, organisation, wellness, money management, and more.’ (One wonders what the ‘...and more’ might include, the mind boggles.)

Of course (and assuming Amazon sorts out its labour disputes) the nice folk there are more than willing to sell me books and products in each category to help me become this ‘New Me.’ I am one-click away from entire re-creation. And my finger hovers over the mousepad, because I want entire re-creation! I am sorely tempted to borrow the life of the strong-thighed woman on the cover of the book ‘Women and thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail’; I want to do something that requires the purchase of the ‘Nomad roll-up pants’ (trousers, that is) or adopt even one of the ‘7 habits of highly effective people.’ This is a seductive time of year, whatever our situation, and however we might express the things we hope for.

New years’ resolutions can be extremely healthy. If they draw me more into my best self and my sense of being beloved of God whatever my circumstance, or if they develop skills and talents I may be afraid of using, or help me to live a freer, more healthy life. But resolutions that carry the subtle message ‘who I am is not good enough, who I am is not loveable to God,’ are not healthy, for people or for churches. Here is news, as sung by angels: however many Amazon deliveries, it is not going to be a ‘different me,’ but the same old usual me that looks in the mirror on January first, and well beyond. And that is a good thing, because we are beloved just as we are. We do not remain static, un-growing, but healthy resolutions help us grow into Christ as who we are, the usual and normal us. ‘I have called you by name, you are mine;’ says the prophet Isaiah reassuring a bereft Israel. And ‘...as the Father has loved me, so I love you,’ says Jesus.

This year, we will begin the refurbishment of the church. A big new years’ resolution to get to grips with if every there was one, and a healthy thing as it will provoke and release us to be more ourselves as Christian community on Ealing Green, and as part of our wider churches. But be reassured: in the same way as for me or any of us with our new years’ resolutions, it will not be a new set of people that greet us when we open the doors. Those of us who expect that we will suddenly have become extravagantly clever or especially righteous (the church equivalent of ‘thinner thighs in 7 days’) will be disappointed, and if we’re very honest there’s probably a little of that unrealistic expectation in all our hopes. That’s ok, and normal. But we will open the doors and find there still ourselves,

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accompanied by the Holy Spirit and endowed afresh with all its curiosity, joy, creativity, and sense of justice. We will be hosts of a new and growing community in a place that is still beloved, inhabited, and beautiful: church re-opened for a new phase of its life.

So in the meantime, be filled with expectation. Not based in quick fixes of the ‘9 steps to a flat stomach’ variety, but with confidence in the God who does more than just promise re-creation. And by all means if you happen to meet that woman on the cover of the ‘thru-hiking the Appalachian trail’ book, please do offer her a chair and a cup of tea: no doubt they will be welcome.

Every Blessing, Jen

Advice

93. George Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury

On becoming Archbishop in 1991 a student of mine said: “George, power

changes people. Be yourself always. Your integrity is crucial to all you stand

for. Value and honour all people and laugh, often, at yourself and the ridiculous

antics of the Church.”

94. Annabel Croft, former professional tennis player, TV presenter

A TV producer once told me that the simplest questions were the best ones, and

that asking open questions makes people work harder at their answer.

95. James Cracknell, Olympic rower

Abraham Lincoln said: “If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six

sharpening my axe”. No wonder he’s the only US President with a statue in

Parliament Square. It took me years to understand the value of this but I

genuinely try to abide by it.

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Letters and emails

From Colin and Merle

Hi from South Africa where, as you can imagine, we've heard on radio, seen on TV and read in the press for the past 3 days, nothing but MADIBA (the clan name used mainly in SA for Nelson Mandela). The BBC World News channel (the only dstv international one we can get in our bouquet) has been amazing and we've spent many hours glued to our set. Yesterday's local Sunday newspaper was almost totally devoted to coverage of Madiba, including of course all the details of the programme for this week. SA is likely to play host to some 60 world leaders, they say. So Merle and I had better be prepared for much more 'couch potato' activity this whole week. I'm sure the UK has had its fair share of media coverage following Mandela's death last Thursday night.

On another subject altogether; the article in your November Unity headed 'Pitzhanger Manor: The Jewel in Ealing's Crown'. Merle & I have visited the Manor a number of times and taken visitors there. A lovely building and so good to read that big plans are afoot to restore the whole property, including the grounds. Now the article doesn't name the author, who says he or she is lucky enough to lead the Pitzhanger Manor Trust that will take over the running of the Manor. So who is the mystery person? Could it be YOU? If so, congratulations on the appointment and lots of luck with the whole project. If its not you, then who is it? Presumably someone connected with EGC.

Merle and I have decided not to send Christmas cards this year, so may we take this opportunity of wishing you all a very happy Christmas and all the very best for 2014. If you are able to include a message in Unity along the same lines to our many friends at EGC - and to say how much we enjoyed spending time amongst them a few short months ago - we would very much appreciate it.

Much love from Merle & me.Colin

The Greatest Mathematical Error

The Mariner I space probe was launched from Cape Canaveral on 22nd of July 1962 towards Venus. After 13 minutes flight a booster engine would give acceleration up to 25,820 mph; after 44 minutes 9,800 solar cells would unfold; after 80 days a computer would calculate the final course corrections and after 100 days the craft would circle the unknown planet, scanning the mysterious clouds in which it is bathed. However, with an efficiency that is truely heartening, Mariner I plunged into the Atlantic Ocean only four minutes after take off. Inquiries later revealed that a minus sign had been omitted from the instructions fed into the computer. 'It was a human error' a launch spokesman said. This minus sign cost £4,280,000.

As the saying goes – ‘That was when £4million was a lot of money.’

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OK, that’s it for the consumerist blowout for the next twelve months, unless you are still harbouring thoughts about any remaining sales or online offers still hanging around. I am, of course, ignoring all the permanent discounts and sales from such places as the ever present furniture stores advertising on the TV, dare I say, incessantly – at least unless you can ignore them, but I find that if I recoil from the tv during an ad break and take it as an opportunity for making a cup of tea or going for a piece of cake, we are well away from the turkey at this stage, or other foods I end up bloated, resenting my weakness, and railing against the “unmissable”opportunities or bargains that have driven me to this sorry state.

But now it is, or soon will be if you are reading this in its first week of issue, a new calendar year. Last month Jen wrote about the new year for the church starting the whole cycle over again with the nativity. In terms of the more secular calendar, January the first does it for pretty much everything else. It’s the time to make, and in most cases fleetingly keep, new year resolutions and to, metaphorically at least, turn over a new leaf, waving goodbye to all those things about the old year that we can consign to a, hopefully favourable, memory and to look forward to the new year unfurling, if not unravelling, in front of us.

I started the last year with a lot of baggage from the previous year that I won’t bore you with, and made a concerted effort at leaving it behind. To my amazement and delight it mostly did just that, so this year I am hoping to build on that and get myself more in tune with what really matters.

As far as the church is concerned, this is potentially a really big year for the changes that have to be made unless we want things to wither away with the fabric of what for many of us is one of the most important things in our lives. The church buildings were last significantly updated a century ago. A lot has changed in that time and the years have had their effect on the church and everything associated with it. There are things, not least the asbestos that, although it carries no immediate danger, will have to be sorted out at some stage in the near future. The heating system, valiantly struggling, with some mixed success in cold weather, to keep us warm, is always riding for a fall in that it needs to be replaced as the existing units are reaching the end of their useful life. The ramps for disabled members of the congregation and those we would like to welcome are, frankly, unsuitable and don’t meet today’s regulations, let alone that we would like them to be more of a welcome to those who need them. And the overall fabric of the building needs to be looked at and tackled as a whole and not as isolated bits of work applying patches where they are most visible or needed.

But apart from all that - It is a new year and it is an opportunity to look forward and a chance to check out yourself and what you are doing and, after the break, to see if something you might want to could be changed. Happy New Year.

God bless you

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News of the Church Family

At the time of writing, a week before Christmas, three of our Church Family were in-patients at Ealing Hospital:-

Lloyd Clarke, Geoff Harper and Audrey Brown.

Please pray for them and their families.

We also pray for healing for Patsy Robinson who broke her arm whilst she was on holiday in India.

We pray particularly for those mentioned above and for all who carry the burden of illness and for their families and friends.

Stacey Ali is returning to London, from her native Trinidad, to visit friends in the UK and hopes to attend church on 5th January. We look forward to hearing all her news.

We wish all our readers a Happy, Healthy New Year.

Gill Hatherall

From your Church Secretary

Moving into 2014 we are in the centenary of the First World War (WW1) and it is a time to reflect on past events, to consider our debts to that generation and to think what this means for us today and in the future (I shall come back to these tenses later). How I wish I could talk to my granddad. He survived the trenches in France with the North Staffs regiment and in later years became the senior steward in the Methodist chapel he attended with my grandma. I wish I could pick up some gems from his experience.

It was when we were in Nigeria that I suddenly understood the ‘eye witness’ experiences described in the Bible in the days after Jesus’ resurrection. We had verbal news of churches being burnt down in the next state. The media had no reports of this and then published denials of these stories. It was at a time when petrol was unobtainable. As a result our church members pooled their meagre supplies of petrol and set off in a car to find out for themselves what had happened. After a three hour journey they found that over a hundred churches had been burnt including the Bibles and ministers’ houses and that the state police and army had not intervened to stop this vandalism. The church members were able to set up some relief for these people.

Future Church Meetings2nd March and 1st June.

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So the eye witness experiences of those involved in WW1 are a valuable record. War photography was scarce so many artists were used to capture images. One of these was Stanley Spencer (1891 – 1959) and until January 26th there is a free exhibition of his ‘Sistine Chapel’ at Somerset House. The canvases are hung as they would be in the memorial chapel at Sandham which is being renovated by the National Trust. Stanley Spencer was an orderly in the Royal Army Medical Corps, a soldier in the infantry of the Royal Berkshires and a patient who suffered three attacks of malaria when he was serving in Macedonia (yes, the same place Paulwent to and himself suffered long term illness). He witnessed combat and death yet he transforms this experience into the sublime where the menial and everyday assumed spiritual resonance. This outlook was informed by a devotional text (St Augustine’s Confessions) that helped him to realise that the monotony of fetching and carrying and the drudgery of daily routine could bring him closer to God. The canvases are arranged in a theme. First wounded soldiers are brought into the hospital via massive high imposing gates signifying the gates of hell. Then the hospital’s daily activities are pictured with shell-shocked disturbed men, orderlies, nurses and other soldiers sorting kit, cleaning themselves, their clothes and the wards, and preparing food. At times civilians appear then the environment changes to dug out trenches with a tense atmosphere created by barbed wire and black clouds with soldiers looking towards the altar where the painting of the resurrection is hung. Here Jesus Christ mingles with the soldiers. Next comes the moment when war is over and soldiers are drawn waking up from sleep in their mosquito-proofed tents. All is not well though and the disabilities left need humans to perform angelic tasks such as cleaning up the mess and ferrying water.

In our own church we have memorials to those who died during WW1. Looking back is appropriate for the New Year as we consider what God has done for us as individuals and as a congregation. We can sit and reflect because He has given us today. Tomorrow we know that God is also there before us (I imagine He is organising the cleaning up of the mess).

Anita Oji

Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity

January 18th to 25th 2014

During this week we have:

St Barnabas Taize Service Sunday, January 19th 2014 at 6.30pm

Ealing Abbey Unity Service Friday, January 24th at 8.00pm

The Ealing Green EG Choir is invited.

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Chris Sutton, the leader of the Ealing Food Bank Project

is preaching at EG on Jan 12th. We thought it might be a useful introduction to him and the work he and those working with him are undertaking. Here's an update on the breath-taking growth of Ealing Foodbank over the past 2 months

Amazing generosity!

It has been amazing to witness the generosity of so many people. We received a vast quantity of food from 15 schools and 18 churches across the borough from Harvest thanksgiving donations - almost a tonne from just one school.Our first supermarket collection was at Morrisons in Acton where the public donated 1,497 kilos of food on 2 Saturdays. Recently, Tesco shoppers at the Old Hoover Building, Greenford, donated 3.3 tonnes of food over the 3-day national event agreed between Tesco and Trussell Trust

Acton up and running

Acton cafe has been operating on Fridays at Oak Tree Anglican Fellowship for 8 weeks and is running very smoothly. Emma Benwell, the centre manager, has a great team of over 20 volunteers – between them they greet the clients with tea or coffee and, usually, some home-made cake; sort out the food to be given, and then offer a listening ear and help to find other agencies that may be able to assist with further help. The average stay in the café is around 20-30 minutes and people are never hurried on their way. Emma recently ran a training session for new volunteers to be added to the pool.

A full store (for now)

Our store at Hanwell Community Centre is incredibly full. Olu Faseke and a growing team of volunteers receive, weigh and stack the food and also select and pack the requested stock ready for transfer to the 2 cafes that are now open. We urgently needed a second 'warehouse' before the Tesco collection and the PCC of St Mellitus church agreed to allow us to use a room in the vicarage as a temporary overflow store and over 3 tonnes of food are currently being stored there.

Greenford open, Southall and Hanwell to follow

Greenford cafe was launched on 2nd December at Greenford Methodist Church, Ruislip Road, after an information and training evening on 21st November. The start was quite slow but is sure to build up. Brian Morris is centre manager here and is leading a team of 15 volunteers this month.Southall. A good number of interested people and potential volunteers attended an open meeting at St Anselm's RC church, The Green, Southall on 5th November with a view to opening a cafe there in the early months of next year.Hanwell. An open evening is planned at St Mellitus C of E church in January to explain how Ealing Foodbank works, answer question and sign-up volunteers.

Attention Waitrose shoppers!

An easy way to help Ealing Foodbank.When you shop in Waitrose, West Ealing, this Christmas, make sure you get your

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green token and then allocate it to Ealing Foodbank. If you ever doubted that Ealing needed a Foodbank perhaps you would be interested to know the first Foodbank in Acton fed 100 people in the first month.As of Friday 6th December, a total of 180 people had received emergency food for 3 days (107 adult, 73 children)

The National Picture

The Trussell Trust announced last week that the number of people given 3 days'food since April 2013 hit 500,000. Tesco shoppers donated a record breaking 4.3 million meals for people in crisis.There are well over 400 Trussell Trust foodbanks in the UK and several more not with Trussell Trust.

The Food bank is very grateful to all the following (and more) for their support:

• All the schools and churches who gave their harvest festival food donations• Rev Mark Aldridge and the members of Oak Tree Anglican Fellowship• Rev Peter Catford and the stewards and members of Greenford Methodist

Church• Fr Gerard Mitchell, St Anselm's, Southall, for offering the church hall for a

future café• The PCC of St Mellitus for offering their church hall as a venue for a future

cafe and their vicarage as a temporary overflow store• The manager and staff of Morrisons, Acton, and of Tesco, Greenford Old

Hoover Building• The 35 voucher partners who work with clients and refer them to us• Jane Harrison of Ealing Gazette, for her positive support and sensitive

reporting• All the staff at Hanwell Community Centre• The Rotary Clubs of Hanwell & Northfields and Ealing for their support

The small number of churches and individuals who have donated finance, often extremely generously.

• All the wonderful volunteers who have helped in so many ways, not least thetransport volunteers

So remember when you go shopping, or take a sheet from the front of the church and, if you can, please help – and come and hear Chris on

Sunday the 12th January

"We are not here to do great things, we are here to do small things with great love....."

Mother Theresa.

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City Presbyterian Church Children's Club - Christmas

We have received these pictures of the Christmas party thrown for the street children in Harare that come into the care of the City Presbyterian Church. These kids have no future other than what the church can help them form.

We support the church and those who work in and for it through our donations. There are always too many calls on us, but it is good to know that in some small way we are helping these children just a little.

Thank you for all your help. You can see it’s doing good in their faces. Please continue the work.

Thank you

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Craft FairThirty three stalls, a warm welcome, about 300 visitors and cold but dry weather! Our winter craft fair was a great place to come for a bit of shopping, demonstrations, fun, a chat and delicious food. One lady I spoke with had returned to EGC after 4 years, last visiting at a

summer market where she had received such a warm welcome she felt she wanted to come back, travelling to us by bus from Heston. When I caught up with her she was loaded with craft fair shopping, her treasured purchase being a handmade quilt for a beloved grandchild.

Feedback from our stall holders was really appreciative of the help they got from all of us; many have asked to ‘book in’ for our

next one. Interestingly, stallholders joined us for a variety of reasons. For example, selling goods made by international women’s co-operatives, young entrepreneurs trying out a new business idea, local partnership ventures, local artists and craftspeople, some of whom represented local networks. Perhaps,

food for thought on how we might use our space in future with some of these communities’?

As a refurbishment fundraising event we raised over £3,000 which will be about £2,650 after deducting our expenses. Thank you very much to everyone for all their help, on the day itself and all the contributions before and after.

Susanne Baker

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Last Lap of the London LOOP (otherwise known as alliterative walking).

Eagle-eyed readers may have noted that I have not written up every stage of the LOOP: there would be too many. But we have finally completed the job (on the 18th December) taking some 18 months, 15 days walking and about 150 miles. For those who like to walk, I hope that you are encouraged to try out walking around "The Great Wen" (William Cobbett, in Rural Rides): even within the M25 - where most of the LOOP meanders - there is some very beautiful countryside and much to gaze at. However, this contribution looks at just the last lap which begins at Harold Wood (named after King Harold of Hastings fame who owned the nearby manor of Havering-atte-Bower). The River Ingrebourne is a fairly constant companion for the first part of the walk, with many small and not-so-small parks on the way: a rather busy stretch of road follows although there seems little reason why the route should not one day go through the fields and thus stick to the river. All the time the route skirts the outer eastern London suburbs of Havering, Romford and Hornchurch and even Upminster could be quickly traversed (although we stopped for an excellent coffee and cake)- this is a 15-mile leg and it was a bit cold.

The route to Rainham follows the river into reedy, swampy and very beautiful open water (some of it flooding our path) passing the site of RAF Hornchurch. This was a major fighter base in the early years of WWII, being strategically placed on the route into London from Germany. Several pill boxes are still extant as well as the remains of a Tett Turret (a not very successful and rather lethal one-man defence post). The base is close to the marshland and it is hard to imagine what use such defences would be on a damp and foggy night!

Next stop was Rainham where the local pub seemed rather unfriendly (and unwelcoming to the dog, Duke), and thus we repaired to the local chippie. Here, the chef, who appeared to be local (if somewhat middle-eastern) commented that we weren't from "around here" and on hearing Douglas and I were from West London asked what we were doing. The response "walking to Purfleet" resulted in what my Mother used to call "an old-fashioned look" (several sandwiches short of a picnic) - the train takes two minutes. However, the fish and chips were excellent and we ate them in the peaceful confines of the 11th century church of St Helen and St Giles. Rainham Creek, pretty much silted up, used to be navigable from the Thames and the village shows the remains of considerable wealth in some smart houses.

After Rainham, it is into the marshes via a bridge over HS1 (Channel Tunnel Link) -the wind was getting up and making that wonderful sighing noise in the bullrushes. And suddenly it is up a ramp and here is the River Thames again (the last we saw of it was in Kingston at New Year): very grey, with Erith on the other side where the whole adventure began. There used to be a ferry here which would have made the LOOP complete…..

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In a muddy inlet are some barges, unusually made of concrete and actually from the Mulberry Harbour built in Normandy after D-Day: these made their way back as flood defences and now lie sadly abandoned on the mud. A huge waste tip dominates the left hand side of the walk (visible from Erith when we began) but the river makes up for that (although it must be said that Mssrs Veolia appear to be doing a very efficient and tidy job). And suddenly there is Purfleet in the distance but guarded on the west by a nature reserve (containing a shooting range -disused) amid the marshes. Purfleet appears to have little to offer although Bram Stoker (Dracula) lived here for a while. But maybe we were tired and a bit damp.

A railway worker on the way home told us that he reckoned HS1 would eventually have to be shored up as it was built on marshland and the water table had been severely disturbed by it's building (and of the nearby M25). But maybe by then we will all be on HS2. Or maybe not.

Where next is the question? Supper in Brick Lane one night with wives and then perhaps the Thames Path. Watch this space and thank you for reading.

Peter Baker December 2013

Bear with me on this

Once upon a time in America a troop of cavalry were being pursued by some very angry Indians through the woods. Suddenly they broke through the edge of the woods and were galloping through open terrain. After about half an hour they seemed to have dropped the pursuing Indians, but they had to find somewhere to hide because they knew the Indians would keep coming. After a while they came to a steep bluff alongside some abandoned railway huts and they decided that the lightest of the men would continue riding towing the other horses behind him while the rest of the troop would hide in the abandoned railway hut. In the hut they hunkered down and had a smoke. Unfortunately some wit had mixed jimson weed in with the tobacco and after a short time the men started to hallucinate and become paranoid. They were sure that the Indians would discover them in the hut by looking in through the windows, so they decided to melt their chocolate rations and smear the windows with it. They did this and crouched down, trembling with fear. Some time later there was a knock on the door. The captain rose unsteadily on his feet and went to the door. Opening it he saw the magnificently feathered Indian chief and behind him, bows to the ready, the rest of his band. He spoke: give us your weapons and you shall live. The captain readily agreed and as the Indians were about to ride off, the captain now sobered by the whole experience asked the Chief to answer one question: how did you know we were in the hut, he asked. You white men always assume we are savages and know nothing, it’s common knowledge that (sings) “Huts, old railway huts, cavalry take ‘em and they cover them with chocolate.”

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News - Bishop critiques official denial of food poverty in Britain

The Anglican Bishop of Southwark has criticised government ministers who refuse to recognise food poverty and meet with those who set up foodbanks.

The comments in the Rt Rev Christopher Chessun's Christmas sermon atSouthwark Cathedral, though carefully non-partisan in party political terms, nevertheless put Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith and his colleagues under pressure.

Government supporters mocked stories of hardship and poverty in a recent parliamentary debate on foodbanks. Leading government representatives like Lord Freud and Employment Minister Esther McVey have suggested that they are a 'lifestyle choice' rather than testimony to the reality of deprivation and the impact of swingeing cuts and welfare changes.

The Bishop of Southwark, whose diocese covers south London and a large swathe of east Surrey, offered a very different commentary on the reality he meets in his pastoral role. He declared: "In our own land instead of the Big Society we have in this city alone thousands of people who cannot afford to feed themselves. "In this –one of the richest cities ever to have existed – there are people who go to bed tonight hungry. "In the past few weeks I have been visiting some of the many foodbanks that exist across London. These impressive works of social care and relief are often run from local churches and resourced by Christian people and others, all working together with a wonderful spirit of goodwill. "The fact they are needed at all is a terrible thing. And more alarming still is that the great trend they have all seen this year is a huge leap in the number of clients who are in full-time employment.”

"Is it any wonder that the payday loan companies, which seem to be little different from the loan-sharks of old, thrive in these conditions? "So in the South London I see and know and love, it is an absolute scandal that people go hungry.

"These are often good, hard working honest people. They are not playing the system; rather, they despair of what tomorrow might bring. "Poverty is growing in this city in ways not seen since Victorian times. I continue to find it astonishing that, despite the fact that food banks are now the fastest growing third sector social-care agency, many in positions of power and leadership refuse to visit them, acknowledge them or meet with those who lead or co-ordinate them."

"It seems to me that there is something terribly wrong with the balance of our society. Undoubtedly a healthy successful economy is a good thing. But I wonder if we have lost sight of what heath and success looks like.

"The greed that stalks the city, the individualism and the selfishness that ignores the plight of those alongside whom we live is completely challenged by the child born in Bethlehem," said the Bishop of Southwark.

With thanks to Ekklesia

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Methodist News

Methodist Church launches consultation on same sex marriage and civil partnerships

A consultation regarding the implications of same sex marriage legislation for the Methodist Church has been launched.

Susan Howdle, chair of the same sex marriage and civil partnership working party, said, "The working party has begun its consultations by meeting a few pilot groups as well as having very lively conversations at 3Generate 2013 Children's and Youth Assembly. From this, we have begun to identify some of the key implications which the legislation poses for our Church. We are now embarking on wider consultation, trying to fulfill our brief to be as open and inclusive as possible."

The consultation is open to Methodists and will run until early February. (Methodists without internet access can contact the Help Desk at Methodist Church House on 020 7486 5502 to ask for a copy of the consultation to be sent to them in the post.)

Called to Preach? Called to Lead Worship?

These two new A6 booklets make ideal prayer and conversation starters for those seeking to discern God’s calling to preach or lead worship. They include testimonies, Scripture and practical guidance to encourage reflection, prayer and talking things through with others.

Priced £2.50 plus postage and packing for a pack of 20 (10 of each booklet) from Methodist Publishing or call 0845 017 8220.

Family Ministry research project - an update

The family ministry research project has been gaining momentum over the past few months with a number of focus groups and discussions held with family workers around England. In the new year the project will expand and we’re looking forward to meeting to hear the thoughts and views of practitioners further afield. It’s been fascinating so far to hear the wealth of great stories and work that’s growing on with families in churches. But we’d love to hear more!

If you know of projects or people supporting or engaging with families in your local area, emailGail Adcock or call 02074673793.

One has to be able to count if only so that at fifty one doesn't marry a girl of twenty.Maxim Gorky

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Classic Cinema Club EalingFriday evenings 1930 at Ealing Town Hall This month’s theme is:

January 10th

DUCK SOUP (1933)

Director Leo McCarey

The newly appointed leader of the tiny state of Freedonia proceeds to dictate chaotic policies and declares war on bordering Sylvania. This topical political farce “is often regarded as the definitive Marx Brothers movie, the picture in which every shot, every line, and every gag worked.”

January 17th

YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW (1963)

Director Vittorio De Sica

Starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni

An anthology of three stories set in Naples, Milan and Rome, following couples engaged in flirtations and denials in a light-hearted exploration of the power and allure of sexuality. One of many collaborations between Italy’s great director, esteemed writers and two of the nation’s top stars – one of whom performs one of cinema’s mostseductive stripteases. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

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January 24th

HIS GIRL FRIDAY (1940)

Director Howard HawksStarring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell

A newspaper editor will stop at nothing to prevent his ex-wife and best reporter from re-marrying and leaving him and the job for good, so he tempts her with one last big scoop. One of Hollywood’s landmark screwball comedies, a rapid-fire, fast-talking battle of wills and battle of the sexes, with both genders formidably represented by the cast.

January 31st

PLAYTIME (1967)

Director Jacques TatiStarring Jacques TatiThe director’s regular character Monsieur Hulot and a troupe of tourists get lost in a maze of modern Paris architecture and technology. An enormously ambitiousproduction of exact choreography and giantset structure, filled with inventive

Febuary’s ThemeSci - Fi

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Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter

We provide emergency dormitory style accommodation for up to 14 guests from those who are sleeping on the streets, are at immediate risk of rough sleeping locally and the ‘hidden homeless’. Our shelter is open from the beginning of December to the end of March.

On each night of the week, whilst the shelter is open, a different church opens its doors to our guests, providing a hot meal, somewhere to sleep, breakfast and above all else, companionship and friendship. On average, guests stay with us for about 4 weeks before moving on – hopefully to more permanent housing.

It is an opportunity for us all to learn from each other, and also to meet with Christ himself. Jesus said, ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25 v 40).

About Us

Ealing Churches Winter Night Shelter (ECWNS) is run by an ecumenical coalition of churches within the London Borough of Ealing. It first opened in January 2011. We are a registered charity (No. 1152768).

ECWNS stands in the gap by providing for the most basic and essential needs for homeless people – sleep and food. A person who has been made homeless faces enormous risks as a rough sleeper including substance abuse, poor physical and mental health, and acts of criminality. ECWNS seeks to minimise these risks by creating a safe space for homeless people to find temporary respite while helping them to secure more permanent accommodation. Providing temporary respite ‘buys’ some more time before guests become further entrenched in homelessness and are adversely, and sometimes irreversibly, affected by the risks presented by homelessness. Each guest is offered a minimum of 28 days in the shelter, during which time ECWNS works with partner agencies (St. Mungo’s, Ealing Soup Kitchen and Acton Homeless Concern) and local housing services to find sustainable accommodation.

What impact does this have on the wider community?

Besides alleviating some of the problems of homelessness, ECWNS has a wider impact on the community through the extensive network of volunteers. Over 200 friends and neighbours of ECWNS volunteer their time and resources to provide for homeless people in our area. This has been an immensely positive experience for many volunteers who are given the opportunity to work together for a greater cause. The network of volunteers at ECWNS has truly given proof to the saying, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. Please give generously

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January Rotas

January Preacher Reader PrayersCommunion

StewardsCoffee Duty *

5th 11.00 am Dr. Jen Smith Colin Hatherall Jonathan Morris PB-R, VJ, SS Please See

12th 11.00 am Chris Sutton Boni Moyo Colin Hatherall Susanne

19th 11.00 am Dr. Jen Smith Yvonne Moyo Ron Honor

26th 11.00 am Local Arrangement Hazel Humphries Ramesh KhannaNote: Could we have some volunteers for the Coffee Rota. All help is welcome - and it would be nice to see other faces behind the counter (no offence to those who already volunteer). Please could the underlined person bring milk.

February Readers2nd Helen Harper9th Pat Sucher16th Ramesh Khanna23rd Jonathan Morris

Church Notices

Weight Watchers will meet at 7pm at the First Presbyterian Church.

Please use large double door at the side entrance.