Wednesday 20 September 2023

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope to see you in church this coming Sunday. We hope to especially welcome university students to the service.

Lunch for students
After the service on Sunday, there will be a lunch for students. If you know any students who might like to come along, please do tell them about it, and ask them to contact the office if they would like to come to the lunch. I attach a welcome leaflet about the church which we have particularly designed for students.
Please share this with any students you know.

Lectio Divina
A group of us meet every Thursday morning, 10:30-11:15am, via Zoom, to meditate on a short Bible passage and share our reflections. Ask me for the Zoom link.

Exhibition of Brian Morgan's Pictures
I attach a flyer with information about an exhibition of Brian Morgan's artwork. The exhibition is open for the last time this Friday, 22nd September, 18:00 - 21:00, Marktgasse 63, Käfiggässchen, 3000 Bern. Please ask Brian, or the office for more details.

'Generations Together': Special Archdeaconry Day
This coming Saturday, 23rd September there will be a workshop at St Andrew's Anglican Church, Zurich, with Revd Mary Hawes, reflecting on how different generations can worship and work together in church. The day runs from 10am - 4pm and is free. Everyone is welcome. More details are in the attached flyer.

Looking Ahead...

TearFund Quiz
We are holding a quiz on Saturday 7th October to raise money for TearFund, a Christian aid agency working to support those in most need across the world.
In fact we will run the quiz twice:
15:00 with afternoon tea
19:30 with Turkish food and drinks
Do come along and bring your friends!

Last Sunday in my sermon I quoted some words from Johann Tauler (one of the 14th century Rhineland Mystics) who uses a powerful illustration of a horse and its dung (manure) which is used to fertilize the field to remind us that God in his grace can use even our forgiven sins, our failures, weaknesses and faults, in his gracious purposes and bring good out of them. Tauler's words are below:

The Fruit of Repentance
'The horse drops dung in the stable. Although the dung is unclean and evil smelling, the same horse laboriously pulls the same dung to the fields where fine wheat and good sweet wine grow from it which would never grow so well if the dung were not there. Now, your own faults, of which you cannot rid yourself or overcome are your dung. These you should carry with much effort and labour to the field of God's will in true detachment from yourself. Scatter your dung on this noble field, and without any doubt, there shall spring up noble and delightful fruit.'
(Johann Tauler)

With love in Christ,
Helen