Thursday 25 February 2021

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope you have been enjoying the wonderful sunshine and the hopeful signs of spring.

All the seats are now taken for this Sunday, 28th February, but you can, of course, join in with the service online
Thank you to Hector, Art and Martin for their hard work in producing this.

If you would like to attend church on Sunday 7th March please ring or email the office, preferably by Wednesday.

Men's Group
The group will be meeting, via Zoom, every Sunday, 10.45am, until Easter. If you are not on the mailing list for the Zoom link, and would like to be, please let me know.

Sunday Coffee Time
Every Sunday, now at 11.30am to allow those at church to get home first. We meet together, via Zoom, to share reflections on the readings and sermon. Let me know if you need the Zoom link.

WHAT'S ON IN LENT

Lectio Divina continues on Thursdays, 10.30-11.15am, as we meet, via Zoom, to meditate in silence on a short passage of the Bible and then share our reflections. Even if you don't usually participate, why not take up this discipline for Lent? Let me know if you would like more details.

Bible Studies
During Lent, there will be a Bible study every Tuesday evening, 7-8.15pm, via Zoom. We are be looking at five different Old Testament prophets. This coming Tuesday, 2nd March, we will be looking at the prophet Hosea and David will be leading us.

Giving to those in need
Lent is a time to simplify our own lives and to be more generous in giving to others. From next Sunday we will put out a box in church collecting donations for the Passantenhilfe which helps those who are homeless and in need in Bern. Items of non perishable food and toiletries are welcome. If you are not attending church, you can also take any donations directly to the Passantenhilfe at Gartenstrasse 8, 3007, Bern. Phone: 031 380 75 40.

Online Sale and Books
If you have not yet made your order, please do so soon, through our website.
If you have placed an order but not received a confirmation, it may be that your order has not gone through properly. Please then contact the events team. If you really struggle with the online ordering you can send your order by email. There are now a few more things on the sale site including cards. If you want to add anything to your order, you can send an email with those added details.

The book stalls will be up in the lower hall from next week for several weeks. If you would like to come to look and buy books, please contact Maria in the office.

You will need to arrange a time to come during her work hours, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings.
Everyone who comes must wear a mask and use hand sanitizer.
In addition, the book stalls will be open this Saturday, 27th February, 10am - 12noon. Again, you will need to ring the office to arrange a time to come.
Many thanks to Allison and Maria for making this possible.

Message from the Archbishops
There has been a lot of criticism of the Church of England in the British press over the last few months. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written a response called 'A Defence of the Church of England'. This message is attached here if you are interested in reading it.

A Prayer for Lent
As the days lengthen and the earth spends longer in the light of day,
grant that I may spend longer in the light of your presence, O Lord;
and may those seeds of your Word, which have been long-buried within me,
grow, like everything around us, into love for you, and love for others,
that this Lent there may be a springtime for my life in Christ.
Amen
(Dick Williams)

With love in Christ,
Helen