fulcrum - parish of friern barnet€¦ · a line from that song rings only too true, ‘the future...
TRANSCRIPT
PARISH OF FRIERN BARNET
Summer 2019
FULCRUM
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The Rector Fr Paul Walmsley Mcleod
147 Friern Barnet Lane N20 0NP
020 8445 7844
(NB: Fr Paul’s day off is Wednesday)
Parish Office St. John’s Parish Office
St John’s Parish Centre
Friern Barnet Road
N11 3BS
0208 361 7690
Church Wardens
Elvin Formosa 07814 663563
Helen Edwards 07802 709081
Helen.edwards130@ gmail.com
Director of Music Kelvin Thomson 07949 069270
PCC Secretary Carol Levy 0208 368 5756
Treasurer Andy Beal 0208 361 4960
Parish Co-ordinator Janet Beal
0208 361 4960 / [email protected]
Verger Kath Mortimore 0208 886 8824
Parish Archivist Mary Phillips 0208 445 1784
Junior Church Helen Edwards 0208 368 7152
Junior Choir Shirley Davison 0208 361 5758
www.parishoffriernbarnet.co.uk
Safeguarding Officer—Adults
Steph Davies 0208 441 7611
Safeguarding Officer—Children
Chris Caton 0208 632 0435
Children’s Champion
Lisa Coletta 07572 385681
Flowers Brenda Pershouse 0208 368 5475
Parish Centre Enquiries/Bookings
www.parishoffriernbarnet.co.uk
St. John’s CE Primary School
Crescent Road N11 3LB / 0208 368 1154
Head teacher Graham Gunn
St John’s Playgroup St John’s Parish Centre
Playgroup Tuesdays 9:30-11.15am
Tara Paulsson [email protected]
Impact Barnet Youth Group
Fridays 7-9pm St John’s Parish Centre
Kat Mutevelian 07817 016657
Uniformed Groups Stanford Road N11
BP Groups/ Church Co-ordinator
Helen Edwards—as above
Guides/Brownies Alison Johns/Penny Aylwin
0208 444 5705
Scouts Mhuire Mollison 01923 228 214
Cubs Mary Ballam-Davies 0208 211 9711
Beavers Val Finch 07947 820442
Any written correspondence to those named
above should be addressed to the Parish Office.
Fulcrum is our magazine and relies on contributions from the congregation. Any reflections on life, world events,
school news, poetry, stories, autobiographical anecdotes will be gratefully received. Contact: Becke Nevitt, email:
A reminder that the magazine costs us around £1.20 per issue to print, please leave your donation in the church.
Don’t forget to fill in a yellow envelope so we can claim Gift Aid!
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Church Calendar
June 2019
Liturgical Colour/Date/Day Please pray for…
W1 Justin, c.165 Archbishop Justin Welby
W2 EASTER 7 Parish and People
G3 feria St John's Servers
G4 Petroc Alton Abbey
W5 S Boniface Barnardo's
G6 feria Members of Parliament
G7 feria St John’s School Governors
G8 feria The people of Bangladesh
R9 PENTECOST Parish and People
G10 feria Noah's Ark Children's Hospice
R11 S Barnabas Prison Chaplains
G12 feria Victims of Drug Abuse
G13 feria The Ministry of Reconciliation
G14 feria Muslims in Britain
G 15 feria Macmillan Nurses
W16 THE MOST HOLY TRINITY Parish and People
G17 feria Amnesty International
G18 feria The Church Wardens
G19 feria Age UK Barnet
G20 feria Barnardo's
G21 feria St John's Musicians
G22 S Alban St Alban's Abbey
G23 TRINITY 1 Parish and People
W24 The Birth of S John the Baptist Victims of Violence
G25 feria Homeless Action Barnet
G26 feria Christian Aid
W27 S Cyril of Alexandria Oxfam
W28 S Irenaeus Wren Academy
R29 Ss PETER AND PAUL Pilgrims and Travellers
G30 TRINITY 2 Parish and People
Church Calendar
July 2019
Liturgical Colour/Date/Day Please pray for…
G1 feria The Newly Ordained
G2 feria Junior Church
R3 S THOMAS, APOSTLE
G4 feria The Rector
G5 feria Macmillan Cancer Research
G6 Thomas More St John's School
G7 TRINITY 3 Parish and People
G8 feria British Heart Foundation
G9 feria St John's Playgroup
G10 feria Oxford University
W11 S Benedict The European Community
G12 feria Great Ormond Street Hospital
G13 feria The Churchwardens
G14 TRINITY 4 Parish and People
G15 Swithun, Bishop of Winchester City of Winchester
G16 Osmund. 1099 The Church of England
G17 feria Parents and Carers
G18 feria Holiday at Home
G19 Gregory. C.394 Victims of Abuse
G20 Margaret of Antioch, Martyr St John’s School Leavers
W21 TRINITY 5 LEAVERS' EUCHARIST Parish and People
W22 S MARY MAGDALENE Victims of Abuse
G23 Bridget of Sweden The people of Stockholm
G24 feria St James Close
G25 S JAMES Santiago de Compostela
W26 Ss Anne and Joachim St John’s School Leavers
R27 feria Those going on holiday
G28 TRINITY 6 Parish and People
G29 Martha, Mary and Lazarus The Archdeacon of Hampstead
G30 William Wilberforce Freedom from Slavery
G31 Ignatius of Loyola Spanish Basque Catholic Church
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Church Calendar
August 2019
Liturgical Colour/Date/Day Please pray for…
G1 feria Those on holiday
G2 feria Barnet General Hospital
G3 feria Glenhurst Road
G4 TRINITY 7 Parish and People
G5 feria The Rector
W6 THE TRANSFIGURATION Greater Faith
G7 John Mason Neale Hymn Writers
W8 S Dominic The Dominican Order
G9 Mary Sumner The Mothers' Union
R10 S Lawrence The Diaconate
G11 TRINITY 8 Parish and People
G12 feria St George's , Beira
G13 Jeremy Taylor Homeless Action in Barnet
R14 S Maximilian Kolbe Amnesty International
G15 feria St John’s Junior Church
G16 feria The Shrine of OLW
G17 feria The people of Egypt
G18 THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Parish and People
W19 feria The Churchwardens
W20 S Bernard St John's Sidespersons
G21 feria The PCC
G22 feria St John's Prayer Group
G23 feria The people of Syria
R24 S BARTHOLOMEW St John's Flower Arrangers
G25 TRINITY 10 Parish and People
G26 feria Glenthorne Road
W27 S Monica Perseverance
W28 S Augustine St John's Chalice Bearers
R29 The Beheading of
S John the Baptist Victims of Injustice
G30 John Bunyan Prison Chaplains
W31 S Aidan St John's Intercessors
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Church Calendar
September 2019
Liturgical Colour/Date/Day Please pray for… G1 TRINITY 11 Parish and People
G2 feria The Anglican Communion
W3 S Gregory the Great St John's Playgroup
G4 feria St John's School
G5 feria Wren Academy
G6 Allen Gardiner South American Mission Society
G7 feria St John's Lunch Club
G8 TRINITY 12 Parish and People
G 9 Charles Fuge Lowder Goldsmith Road
G10 feria The People of New York
G11 feria St John's Almshouses
G12 feria The Church in New York
G13 feria St John's Youth Group
G14 St Cyprian The Rector
G15 TRIUMPH OF THE CROSS Parish and People
G16 feria Barnados
W17 Hildegard of Bingen St John’s Musicians
G18 feria Friern Barnet School
G19 feria Central Barnet Deanery
G20 John Coleridge Patteson Golfside Close
G21 feria Junior Church
R22 HARVEST FESTIVAL Parish and People
Dates for your diary
St John’s School Summer Fete Saturday 29th June 1-5pm
Hampton Court Palace
Evensong at Hampton Court. A trip to Hampton Court Palace is being arranged for afternoon
tea and to hear the Choir of the Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace, sing Evensong. It is
hoped this will be on September 22nd. More information in due course but please save the date!
Confirmation service Sunday 29th September at 10,00am
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Father Paul writes
Palm Sunday at St John’s was intensely moving. We met in the Parish Centre, heard the ac-
count of Jesus entering Jerusalem ahead of the Festival of Passover, the crowds shouting their
euphoric greetings. We blessed palms in remembrance which we then processed out of the
centre, through the car park, round to Friern Barnet Road, singing adoration and love. We
entered St John’s Church and walked its aisles to the familiar ‘All glory, laud and honour…’
Finally, our set places reached, rested, connecting with the frailty of our humanity, making
confession, hearing unfettering words of absolution and praying that following Jesus’ example
of patience and humility, we might, at the end, receive a share in his resurrection. Then the
choir sang with strident power David Morgan’s Palm Sunday Antiphon, “Hosanna to the Son of
David”.
Ed Newman had specially written a set of seven ‘soliloquies’ on the Passion, the women who
knew, followed and encountered Jesus on the way, speaking their passion, pain and love.
They were read from different parts of the church. As each told her part of the story, the first
woman reached out and journeyed to join the second and then two journeyed and joined a
third and three a fourth, until the seventh, Mary Magdalene, surrounded by all the others,
made the final, impassioned declaration, always to embrace love nailed to a tree.
At the end of mass, Margaret and Christopher Wood, joined by their family, were blessed in
celebration, on the very day of their diamond wedding anniversary. Sixty years of love, of joy,
hurt, regret, longing, hope and forgiveness, of loving other life into life, of living difference
faithfully within the same emotional one-flesh. An early foray into love had been for them to
see the Alfred Hitchcock film, The Man Who Knew Too Much. Back in the Parish Centre after
the service Doris Day was somewhat absent but we sang to them instead, ‘Que sera, sera,
whatever will be will be”
A line from that song rings only too true, ‘The future is not ours to see…’ I was reminded, as we
sang it, of Julian of Norwich, that great anchoress and mystic (late 1342 – after1416). She also,
unsurprisingly, recognised the precarious quality of time, its uncertainties and countless
question marks. I know absolutely nothing about the lyricist of ‘Que sera sera’, Ray Evans, but I
fantasise that Julian’s spirituality had an intensity more acutely insightful than his. Her answer to
vicissitude is utterly breath taking and still rings clanging bells across the centuries: “All shall be
well and all manner of thing shall well.” In the midst of uncertainty, only love, absolute love,
God’s love, quietens the mind.
It is that love that we celebrate at Easter, come down at Christmas, crucified on Good Friday,
raised to abundant life on the third day. God’s love steers the loved through precarious time,
uncertainty and countless questions. The same love dares to love the unlovely, touch the
untouchable, forgive the darkest sin, cast out fear, wrestle with hatred, prejudice and violence,
celebrate difference, demand love of enemy and persecutor, give rest to the labouring and
heavy laden, bind up wounds and heal the broken hearted. Love at Easter, in its purest
breath, imprints itself on the forehead and heart of every creature with indelible marks, signs all
of the supreme heights created humanity can reach, love-sacrificial, love-life-giving, love-
abundant, love-eternal, Resurrection.
We reach out and journey to join one other and the communities in which we serve, in Easter
Love proclamation, “Alleluia, Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, Alleluia!”
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Reflections over Easter
Shirley Davison writes
How often do you sit in silence with no phones, no music, no chatting, just complete silence? There is something very special about the Maundy Thursday night watch. Of course we take our hour to think about Christ and how he must have been feeling that night in Gethsemane, knowing what was in store for him and understanding that his whole life had been leading to this moment. Most of us probably also use the time to think about our world and those who are less fortunate than ourselves, our planet and what we can do to protect it - to try to reverse the tide of destruction but in a stimuli free hour, away from the hustle and bustle of life, there is also time and space to think about ourselves, our nearest and dearest and our place in this beautiful world. Surprising myself, I found myself weeping; not racked with tears, or sobbing or wailing but my eyes were definitely leaking! I’m not sure what it meant, no doubt it was a release for some of the stresses of life as I allowed myself to think about some of the slightly darker spaces but I think that in that one hour, when I had gone along to keep watch with and for Jesus, he came and sat with me and gave me the space to just be me, not a wife, mother, grandmother or sister – roles that I absolutely love by the way, but just me! And a me, that’s loved and supported by Christ is a pretty cool thing to be. I’m not sure whether sharing this experience will have encouraged you to sit for an hour next Maundy Thursday but I do recommend it, hey I’ll even supply the tissues!
Preparing the church for Easter Services
Our beautiful church requires love and attention, no more so than the preparations leading up to Easter services and the weeks that follow. Here are some of our congregation working hard to do just that. Church cleaning takes place on the first Saturday of each month at 9:30am and all help is very gratefully received!
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Palm Sunday Passion by Ed Newman
Woman in the crowd:
A man came to Jerusalem, a man who would change the world for ever. He was the one who gave us the com-mandment that we should love one another.
As Jesus rode into the city, we greeted him shouting ‘God bless the man who comes to us in the name of the Lord.’
But not everybody in Jerusalem was happy to see Jesus. The chief priests and others were already plotting against him and one of those closest to him was ready to commit the ultimate betrayal.
Homeowner:
It was the time of the Passover and this good man Jesus, who I had heard speak to the crowds with such wisdom and love, asked his twelve friends to meet with him to break bread in my upper room.
The disciples were all gathered together when he arrived. It was a small dark room but it was like there was a bright light shining when he was there.
There was something different though in the room that night, you could tell they were anxious, just waiting to see what was going to happen.
After they had talked for a while, Jesus asked me to bring him a pitcher of water and a bowl. Then, he astonished everybody when he washed Simon Peter’s feet. Peter tried to stop him at first but it was a very moving moment and it brought a calm to the room.
Then Jesus took the bread and broke it saying, this is my body given for you. And then he took a cup and said, this is my blood, shed for you.
It was then that he shocked them all by saying that one of them who had broken bread would soon betray him. They all insisted they would not but Judas Iscariot left soon after and I heard later that he was the one who turned Jesus over to the authorities.
Serving Girl:
We had been warming ourselves by the fire when I first saw him standing there. A tall, thin man with a worried look on his face. It looked as if he didn’t want anybody to notice him. They said his name was Simon Peter and that he was one of the so-called Messiah’s closest followers. He looked troubled and, encouraging him to get closer to the flames, I asked him whether he was one of the man’s followers. But he denied it immediately saying ‘woman, I don’t even know the man’ and he walked away. I couldn’t understand it.
Then later on, we saw him again and my father challenged him as to whether or not he was a disciple of this Jesus. And, angry now, he said ‘man, I am not’. It was a little while later when another man confronted him and said ‘There’s no doubt you were with Jesus, you are a Galilean after all.’
Yet again, he denied it insisting ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ And then, a cock crew loudly and the man suddenly looked devastated. He hurried away from the crowd. I’m sure there were tears in his eyes.
Pilate’s Wife:
I had a terrible night, deeply troubled by a dream about the man some called the messiah. I told Pontius to have nothing to do with him. It wasn’t his problem. Caiphas and the high priests just wanted to cause trouble, to test this man Jesus. They were jealous of him and saw his teaching as a threat to their authority. But this was not a problem for the Roman prefect to resolve and I told him to wash his hands of the whole thing. He tried to offer the crowd the opportunity to free this innocent man but they refused and saved the criminal Barrabas instead. The crowd shouted ‘Crucify him, Crucify him’ and he was left with no choice but to hand him over to be crucified. Do not blame my husband for this man’s death.
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Palm Sunday Passion by Ed Newman
Veronica:
We’d waited for hours in the crowd to see him. It was even hotter than usual and people were getting angry. Just days earlier they’d listened intently and now they were baying for his blood, even women and children.
Then they took him away, stripped him of his clothes and placed a cruel crown of thorns on his head.
How could they do that to this good man, this man who showed us how to love one another.
‘Hail King of the Jews’, they jeered, pure hatred in their eyes.
Then, suddenly, he was there stumbling at my feet. I took a cloth and wiped the sweat from his weary brow. Jesus looked deep into my eyes and I knew. Then they dragged him away, took him to die upon the cross.
Mary:
I gave birth to him in a simple stable in Bethlehem. Now here it ends on a cross in Jerusalem.
My son, put to death by the people he loved, the people who he had come to save. They mocked him shouting ‘he saved others but he can’t save himself.’
Then, he called out to John and myself and said ‘John, this is your mother, mother this is your son.’
Even on the point of his own cruel, brutal death, he was thinking of us and not himself. My unique, compassionate, beautiful son.
Then he cried out ‘My God, My God, why have you forsaken me. And with that he breathed his last. Then a kind man called Joseph came and took his body, wrapped it in a linen sheet and placed it in a tomb.
Mary Magdalene:
I loved him. I loved him more than anybody. The others always had doubts and questions but not me. I trusted him with my life and he gave his life for me and all of us.
He forgave me for my sins, when others condemned me. He understood me, while others turned away. I was there when they scourged him, I was there when they cast lots for his clothes, I was there when they nailed him to the cross. I was there when he cried out to his father in heaven. I was there when he died to set us free.
I won’t stop believing, I won’t stop thinking about him, I won’t stop loving him.
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Family of servers join the team
It was lovely to see ‘Family Gilham’ serving recently at the Sunday
Eucharist.
New servers are always welcome to join the rota.
If you would like to know more about this role
and how you can get involved please contact Andy Beal
on [email protected] or phone Andy on 07958 760323.
Baptism
Being baptised with my family was overwhelming beautiful and so special. To share our day on Easter Sunday and the wonderful church community was a true blessing.
Lucy, Scott and their daughter Helena.
LUNCH CLUB DATES June / July 2019
Friday 7th June
Friday 21st June
Friday 5th July
Friday 19th July incorporated into ‘Holiday at Home’
12.30pm – 2.00pm
We hope you continue to enjoy the lunch club. Please bring along any relations / friends
who you think might enjoy it too.
For enquiries/information please call Frances Jones on 07702 580354
If you require transport please call Joyce Brand on 07969 879352
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Talks at St John’s Church
HOW CHRISTIANITY HELPED SHAPE THE DEVELOPMENT OF PARLIAMENT
VENUE: CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE EVANGELIST, FRIERN BARNET ROAD, N11 3EQ
TIME & DATE: 6PM EVENSONG
A series of illustrated talks exploring the little-known story of the role played by Christianity in helping to
shape the history, heritage and culture of the Palace of Westminster, over the past 1000 years.
Question: ‘What on earth has Christianity ever done for the development of Parliament and the struggle
for democracy’!?
Answer: ‘Well, quite a lot actually …’ Come and discover this largely forgotten story, part of our cultural
inheritance, air-brushed out of existence, in an increasingly secular age.
Sunday 2nd June –‘From Magna Carta to Female Enfranchisement’ ‘Christianity and the Struggle for
Parliament, Liberty, Justice and Democracy’.
Sunday 30th June – ‘Unless the Lord Builds the House …’ ‘The Religious Life, Culture and Traditions of
Parliament’
Sunday 21st July – ‘An Illustrated Tour of the Palace of Westminster’ ‘Highlighting Christian Art,
Architecture, Iconography and Biblical Inscriptions’*
*The final talk of the series will take place in St John’s Parish Centre immediately following a
shortened Evensong. The specially illustrated presentation on the Palace of Westminster,
will be preceded by a drinks reception. The event will conclude by 8:30 pm.
Speaker: Barry Hall is a Licensed Lay Minister in the Diocese of London and director of the independent
Christian Heritage and Culture of Parliament Research Project. He is an architectural historian and was
formerly a director of English Heritage.
St John’s School Summer Fete
The St John’s School Summer Fete will take place on Saturday 29th June from 1-5pm
Barbeque & Bar
Tea, Coffee, Crepes & Cakes
Games, Tombolas, Pony Rides, Face Painting, Book Stall, Theatre & Dance Performances,
Basketball and Football Shootouts, Disco Tent, Tug-of-War, Raffle and more
Please come along and support the school!
We are raising money for a new activity trail and outdoor story telling area. We have set a target to
raise funds for three new pieces of climbing equipment as well as a wooden seating area.
This will completely revitalise the outdoor activity trail area to be enjoyed by school children for years to
come.
Raffle tickets will be on sale in church, do look out for them
St John’s School Summer Fete ❀ Saturday 29th June ❀1-5pm
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Christopher and Margaret Wood celebrate their Diamond Wedding Anniversary
With a delicious cake and a song, we congratulated Christopher and Margaret on their 60th wedding anniversary.
Some other events that took place in 1959
The United Kingdom grants Cyprus independence.
British Empire Day becomes Commonwealth Day.
Christopher Cockerell’s invention the hovercraft officially launched.
Prime Minister Harold Macmillan holds talks with the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev on a visit to the USSR.
Icelandic gunboat fires on British trawlers in the first of the "Cod Wars” over fishing rights.
Nottingham Forest beat Luton Town 2-1 in the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.
First showing on BBC Television of Juke Box Jury chaired by David Jacobs.
Cliff Richard and The Drifters release a recording of the song Living Doll written by Lionel Bart.
UK postcodes are introduced for the first time, as an experiment, in the city of Norwich.
Mental Health Act becomes law, modernising the care of mental disorder.
Obscene Publications Act becomes law.
Barclays become the first bank to install a computer.
House of Fraser wins the bidding war for Harrods in a £37,000,000 deal.
BMC launches the Mini, a two-door, 10-foot long mini-car with an 848cc four-cylinder transverse engine and a top speed of 70mph. Its designer is Alec Issigonis, who also designed the Morris Minor.
Harold Macmillan and US president Dwight Eisenhower make a joint television broadcast from Downing Street.
300 people need to be rescued when a fire breaks out on Southend Pier.
October general election results in a record third successive Conservative victory, with the slogan "Life's better with the Conservatives". Among the new members of parliament is Margaret Thatcher, who turns 34 on 13 October and represents Finchley.
Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club opens in Soho.
The first section of the M1 motorway is opened between Watford and Rugby. It is set to be extended over the next few years, southwards to Edgware and northwards to Leeds.
London Transport introduces the production AEC Routemaster double-decker bus into public service.
Britain becomes a founder member of the European Free Trade Association.
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An Easter newsletter message from the Bishop of London
Dear friends,
I have always found it amazing that years after what John recalls of Mary anointing Jesus was how
the gift of Mary filled the room with fragrance. The word used for filled is Pleroo and it is a frequently
used word in the New Testament; it is a word of fullness. John the Baptist and Jesus use it frequently to
tell us that Jesus is the fulfilment of the scriptures: (Luke 4:21). It is the word that Jesus uses to describe
the fullness available to the disciples through prayer in his name (John 16:24).
Isn’t it amazing that John could remember this fragrance so many years after Christ’s ascension?
What is our fragrance that will be remembered by others?
Jesus's death, his giving up of his life for us all, is the most extravagant love gift the world has ever
known. Like the perfume poured out he poured out his life in love for us all, to bring us back into a
relationship with God.
It is this extravagance of love that I reflect on at Easter. We all need to know that we are loved, loved
extravagantly. We all need to be people who love extravagantly.
In an era when we hear so much about austerity, about reducing and cutting, we need to smell the
joy and life of abundance, generosity and extravagance. Love which gives and gives and gives
again. Love towards those in deepest need in our world, whether they be asylum seekers and
refugees, the severely disabled, those caught up in violence or trapped in abusive relationships, we
need to recover the place and value of generosity and extravagance. We need to smell the aroma
of God's love and let it bring us to life and life to others.
As we reflect on that extravagant love I want to share with you some of the ways we are sharing that
love with others.
Modern Day Slavery
As the formal part of this year’s Lent Appeal, let us not forget that Modern Day Slavery is still a hugely
prevalent issue. The Home Office estimates there are more than 10,000 victims of human slavery in the
UK alone.
In London, as elsewhere, we must remember that there is no ‘typical’ victim. Modern Day Slavery
affects people of any age, race or gender. All can be targeted. Let us remember that new life comes
not just after death, but for those who are living.
To help us to continue to raise awareness of Modern Day Slavery, the Lent Appeal page on the
Diocesan website will be overhauled so that those of you who, like me, wish to continue working
towards the abolition of MDS can draw on the variety of resources available from one dedicated site.
The stories of our 5 partner charities, along with case studies, will also be available for parishes to draw
upon should they wish.
Many of us will be aware of the work of The Clewer Initiative and its Safe Car Wash app, which
enables those using hand car washes to pass on the information they collect. The National Crime
Agency, which is supporting the app, describes hand car washes as a high-risk business for
exploitation, with nearly 1,000 reports of potential human trafficking being made in the first five
months of the lifetime of the app. Recent statistics from Clewer show that the Modern Slavery Help-
line received over 900 reports of potential cases of Modern Slavery through the app alone.
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An Easter newsletter message from the Bishop of London
cont.
Mozambique
I want to update you on the work that has taken place across the Diocese to support the victims of
the terrible cyclone in Mozambique, which has destroyed many thousands of lives. The Bishop of
Edmonton, the Rt Revd. Rob Wickham, who was in Mozambique when Cyclone Idai first made
landfall, led initial prayers and support for the victims of the devastation in March. He has since been
in close contact with partner Bishops on the ground in the country through ALMA, the Diocese of
London’s Companion Link with the Anglican Church in Angola and Mozambique.
Bishop Mark Van Koevering, London’s partner Bishop in Niassa, in the Northern Mozambican Diocese,
has thanked the Diocese of London for the £5,000 ALMA has sent in faith to help with flood relief work.
I, too, would like to praise their efforts.
Floods have caused serious damage in Milange (twinned with St Nicholas, Shepperton), Mecanhelas
(twinned with St Augustine, Whitton), and in Cuamba (twinned with St Pancras).
I urge you all to pray for Niassa as their teams deliver help in treacherous circumstances. Donations
can be made to the Niassa Flood Appeal via LDF and ALMA or online.
Vision 2030
Finally, as our thoughts and prayers have turned to what follows Capital Vision 2020, we launched
our Listening to London, Listening to God campaign at the beginning of April. We are asking ourselves
what we can learn from the past five years; how the Spirit of God has been moving; and what He is
calling us as His body of believers to focus on and devote our energies to as we look towards 2030.
I am very pleased that so many have responded since we launched our survey at the start of this
month – so far more than 500 people across all our Diocese of London parishes have contributed to
this important exercise. The survey window is open until the end of July, so if you haven’t
already, please prayerfully respond to the questions it asks, pass it on to your friends, networks and
families, and consider organising church community sessions. The 2030 vision webpage has materials
to help you do this. We have also produced a longer video which explains this listening exercise, and
which I hope you can use in your communications and in the feedback sessions themselves.
May you know the extravagant gift of God this Easter. The Bishop of London
Listening to London, Listening to God
Acts 2: 42-47 (NIV) The Fellowship of the Believers 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
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Diocese of London Visitation Report
St John Friern Barnet
Introduction
My thanks to the Revd Paul Walmsley-McLeod, the Churchwardens, PCC, Parish Administrator and all
who prepared for the visitation.
Meeting with the Head Teacher of St John’s C of E Primary School Mr Graham Gunn
On this occasion I was also able to meet with Mr Graham Gunn, Headteacher of St John’s Primary
School, and it was a wonderful opportunity to hear something of the life of this school and its very close
relationship with the church. At the time of the visitation children from the school were participating in
the Barnet Music Festival with other schools throughout the local authority. There is a strong relationship
between the church and the school, and Graham spoke of this relationship as one that is a blessing to the
school community alongside the pastoral heart for the school with regular weekly visits to support staff
and pupils. This is particularly demonstrated in the way in which Fr Paul has been able to resource the
development of resilience among teachers dealing with bereavement at an inset day recently this year.
The school, like many in London, has a challenge in maintaining its role due to the changing demographic
which is not always easy to predict. As with the church, the school needs to do succession-planning for
senior leaders alongside the challenge of recruiting leaders. The school has been able to sponsor a
teacher from New Zealand, maintaining the quality in the school, which Graham is rightly proud of.
Meeting with the Assistant Priest Fr Ben Rutt-Field
Fr Ben has recently retired, and he was able to move into the parish, which is deeply grateful for his
enthusiasm and practical support in the life of the parish. He does still have commitments in the Diocese
of Chelmsford where he was a priest for many years, and during the evening there were certainly a num-
ber of people who spoke with great affection of his preaching and his presence among them, and I want
to use this opportunity to thank Fr Ben for his support.
Meeting with the Incumbent the Revd. Paul Walmsley-McLeod
My thanks to Fr Paul for his generous hospitality. Most of the evening we spoke about Fr Paul’s own
personal plans, as he reaches the last phase of a very active and fulfilling ministry. Fr Paul continues to be
committed and dedicated to the life of the parish, where he is held in high regard and affection. It is sad to
note that Fr Paul’s own health has not been as robust as it has in the past, and this has meant some
changes, but he remains positive about the life of the parish, while acknowledging the challenges around
maintaining the building and also maintaining the energy of the worshipping community. This is a parish
that is well-run due to Fr Paul’s leadership.
Meeting with the Churchwardens and Deputy Wardens
There is a good practice of support in this parish with the role of Deputy Wardens, one that I encourage
in other parishes. The wardens spoke of Fr Paul with great admiration and affection, although noting his
recent medical concerns which had been somewhat of a worry, at times restricting him. They spoke of
the addition of Fr Ben to the family here at St John’s, and they are very grateful for his ministry and
presence among them.
Page 17
Diocese of London Visitation Report
As we reviewed the last three years it is of course worth noting that the former Curate Fr Marius Mirt
has now left the parish and become an Incumbent in the Deanery, and again I took this opportunity to
thank the wardens, Fr Paul and the parish for training Fr Marius.
Congregation numbers are healthy with a third of the average Sunday attendance being children on any
given Sunday. This presents a challenge with Sunday School leadership as well as of course the challenge of retaining children into their teens and beyond. But St John’s is not alone in this challenge and I
mentioned a piece of research being done on this issue by St Andrew Enfield that I hope will give some
helpful direction to parishes across London in this area. The wardens spoke of the quality of welcome,
which is an important part of the reason why the congregation is strong in numbers. They also spoke of
the team of Eucharistic Ministers who assist with home communions.
The parish are making a great effort to raise funds towards the cost of over £500k for repairs to the church roof. There is further work to be done with the HLF, particularly looking at ways in which activity
outcomes can be tracked in order to attract this public funding in the future as the needs of maintaining
the beautiful fabric of this church remain a challenge certainly for the next few years.
Open Church remains a feature from Monday to Saturday as does the Holiday Club within the church,
which is an annual opportunity to create a home for people in the church from the community.
Meeting with the PCC
I had a full and engaging time with 12 members of the PCC. On asking what excites and encourages them
most at church they were able to speak of being a part of a community and growing together spiritually.
We spoke of the joy of having many young families as a part of the life at St John’s, and a sense of open-
ness to those who are outside the walls of the church. Here is a church that truly strives to welcome all
without judgment. The PCC spoke of a church that is busy; there is much going on mid-week, especially
around compassionate ministry. One member spoke of how the church fed her spiritually and how she
enjoyed serving young people. It is clear that there is a community of mutual support and friendship
which affects the way in which the church leadership is supported by the laity in this parish, something
that is rare to find.
There was a unanimous view that Fr Paul and Fr Ben’s preaching is outstanding, encouraging and
rewarding. The PCC also spoke of its appreciation for the music at church, for the choir and the
Director of Music.
As we looked at challenges together clearly ministry for young people is a concern across the Diocese, as
it is indeed one of the Capital Vision 2020 aspirations. This is a parish that is blessed with many young
people – more than the national average, and a considerable amount of time was spent in dialogue trying
to find creative ways in which to resource this work going forward, and also to tackle the reality of the
absence of young teenagers in the worshipping life of the church.
The compassionate ministry of this parish continues with the food bank, winter night shelter, lunch club,
holiday club and Homeless Action in Barnet – all of these very much being a part of the church’s life. I
also asked if the congregation would consider offering some debt counselling as a part of its
compassionate offer to the community. The challenge for the parish however continues to be finding
volunteers for all this important outreach.
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Diocese of London Visitation Report cont.
St John Friern Barnet
Conclusion
I thoroughly enjoyed the visitation, finding both the clergy and lay leaders in good humour and full of
positive outlook for the future. The visitation took place at a time of significant change in the Diocese as
we start to look to the discernment of what our ministry in London should be like 2030. Having spent an
evening listening to so many positive, encouraging and creative comments from members of the PCC I
feel that St John’s is in an excellent position to be able to join in the wider creation of the strategy for the
Diocese as we face the four questions together:
Where do you feel God has been at work in the last five years?
Looking towards 2030, what do you feel God is calling the church to be?
What do you feel God is calling the church to prioritise?
Do you have any further observations that would help our mission and ministry in London?
Christian Aid Week 2019
Women and childbirth in Sierra Leone have been the focus of Christian Aid Week 2019. £300 could provide a delivery bed for a new health centre giving mums a safe place to deliver their babies —see the article opposite to read more.
Above: Jebbeh Konneh is heavi-
ly pregnant. Her sister recently
died in childbirth and Jebbeh fears
she may be next: ‘I’m afraid. I
pray, when that day comes, God
will help me to deliver safely, so
that I can have a bouncing baby
and I’ll be healthy.’
Photo: Christian Aid/Tom Pil-
Left: Tenneh Bawoh gazes adoringly at baby
Ansumana. Tenneh’s first pregnancy ended in
tragedy but thanks to nurse Judith and medical
training you helped to provide, Tenneh’s second
labour resulted in the safe delivery of her baby
boy.
Photo: Christian Aid/Adam Finch
Above: Tenneh and baby Ansumana receive
care from nurse Judith at the community clinic.
Photo: Christian Aid/Tom Pilston
Page 19 FULCRUM
Christian Aid Week
Christian Aid Week 2019 focused on women and childbirth in Sierra Le-
one—An article from the Christian Aid Week campaign
Sierra Leone is the world’s most dangerous place to become a mother. Every day 10 women die from giving birth. In Sawula district, the community struggle with a clinic which has no electricity and only two delivery beds.
Tenneh’s story
Tenneh plays with her precious baby Ansumana. She blows raspberries on his belly. Lifting her baby up high she beams with joy. Tenneh gave birth to Ansumana three months ago. Thankfully, he’s a happy, bouncy baby. But Tenneh has lost and loved another baby before. When Tenneh’s labour started during her first pregnancy, there was no health centre in the village. Her mum took her to a traditional birth attendant. For the two days of her la-bour, Tenneh was in agony. She fell unconscious and was bleeding heavily. With very little medical training, the birth attendant was way out of her depth.
In the days and months after her labour, Tenneh felt very weak and her baby wouldn’t breastfeed. Tragically, her baby died when he was three months old. ‘That day I will never forget,’ she recalls. ‘I felt sick like I’ve never been sick before. ‘If God would not have saved me, I would not be alive today.’
New hope
Through our partner RADA (Rehabilitation and Development Agency), Christian Aid saw how difficult the situation in Sawula village was and began working to ensure that mums and babies have fullness of life. RADA has been working locally to help vulnerable women access healthcare, improve hygiene with simple interventions like hand-washing and, with your support, build a bigger, better health care centre.
Thankfully, when Tenneh was pregnant a second time, things had changed for good. This time, she had nurse Judith by her side. With her expert love and care, Judith helped Tenneh deliver her baby safely. Tenneh said: ‘During my second labour, I was scared. But nurse Judith was with me, assuring me of everything. When I delivered, I felt so good.’
‘With the coming of Judith, so many lives have changed,’ Tenneh continued. ‘We know that with Judith, as long as we see the light at the end of the tunnel, we’ll be OK.’ Thanks to nurse Judith and the medical training you helped provide, Tenneh could hold her beautiful baby boy in her arms.
A health centre for all
The community in Sawula dream of having a health centre that can meet their needs. The current health centre is the size of a small bedroom. Operations, deliveries and baby checkups all happen in one single room with only two delivery beds. Nurse Judith works around the clock to meet the needs of mums and young children who come to the clinic. But the need is great, and sometimes she’s forced to send people away.
When women come to the clinic at night, there’s no light for Judith to use. So she has to ask her patients to bring a torch to see by. In addition to this, there are often not enough drugs at the clinic. Judith sees diseases like malaria and typhoid, especially in children. She has to go on a motorbike or sometimes walk for three hours to collect drugs. ‘I need help,’ nurse Judith says. ‘Women are dying from childbirth, children under five are dying, because of poverty.’
What is Holiday at Home? If you’ve been to Holiday at Home before, you’ll know just what’s in store and we hope you’ll be keen
to join us again this year but if this is going to be your first visit, an enjoyable time awaits.
What should I expect?
Our programme varies across the three days but we try to include various crafts such as painting and
flower arranging, competitions, chairobics and performances by local schools and musicians, as well as
Bingo and Boccia.
Is it for me?
Holiday at Home is for any adult who would like a short break from their daily routine.
We can support people with limited mobility as well as the more able bodied and welcome anyone who
is just looking for a change of scenery.
How do I book?
If you’ve been before and gave us your authority to get in touch, you should have received a booking
form. Alternatively, booking packs are available from Shirley Davison (020 8361 5758) or the Church
Wardens on a Sunday morning.
We hope you will join us for the three days but if you can only manage one or two, we’ll be just as
happy to see you.