3 August 2008

We give the assurance of our thoughts and prayers to all who are unwell, awaiting or undergoing treatment, or anxious or grieving for the loss of loved ones.

“Fifth Sunday Worship” - planning update

The next “café-style” service will be on Sunday 31st August. David Cowling (appointed on Plan) and Jenny Easson (coordinating for Dundee) will be meeting in Marketgait during the week beginning Monday 11th August. ANYONE interested in contributing to this planning is asked to contact Jenny as soon as possible so the exact date and time can be agreed.

Methodist Conference decision on Youth Work

The Methodist Conference has agreed to invest more than £4 million in a major initiative to develop and enhance the participation of young people in the life of the Church.

The Church's Youth Participation Strategy is a five-year initiative involving a specialist team of youth workers and young people employed to address how the Church engages with youth culture on local and national levels. Each Methodist district will receive a grant for the part-time employment of a young person aged 16-23. For most of their time these Youth Enablers will work within their district, but a proportion of their time will be used for national initiatives. Each year every district will take on a new 'Mission Possible' project proposed by young people and designed to put the Gospel into action in local communities.

Mike Seaton, Under 19's Team Leader for the Church, says; 'Young people need to be empowered to live as Christians, to witness to their peers and to participate as equals in the Church. Participation is all about involvement - it can be anything from providing opinions to setting agendas and decision making. In adopting this report, the Church is making a huge investment for future engagement with young people and youth culture. This decision demonstrates that the Church is serious about bringing youth participation into the heart of the life of the Church.'

District Youth Enablers will be supported by Connexional Participation Workers and seven full-time regional Participation Workers (five in England and one each in Scotland and Wales).

Conference received the report and endorsed its recommendations. The pilot project will begin in September with an ongoing programme of monitoring and evaluation with a full report in 2011.

Meetings this week

Support other Organisations

Scottish Bible Society

Our support through the Bible-a-Month Club is invited in August for work in Egypt. See library area noticeboard for more information. Our prayerful attention is drawn this week to

• religious events taking place on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe which begins tomorrow (Monday);
• fund-raising to ensure the Bible Society in the East Caribbean can be debt-free;
• Scripture distribution in the French Antilles among drug users and people infected with HIV/AIDS;
• Bible Society in Jamaica's attempts to penetrate the diverse culture of the people;
• work in Belize, Bahamas, and the Turks & Caicos Islands (new group established).

Forthcoming events

Prayer Points for this week

• The President of Conference's visit to Aotearoa-New Zealand and to Tonga;
• Methodist Circuits and congregations preparing to welcome new Ministers and their families;
• pastoral care and support of older people, their carers and families in our circuit;
• projects in the Northampton District (Methodist Homes);
• Action for Welfare's work with blind women in Togo (Feed The Minds);
• The Leprosy Mission's work in Bhutan and Nepal;
• The work of Christian Aid;
• Bible Society work in Egypt;
• we pray with and for the peoples of Canada and of the United States of America;
• we remember fellow Methodists in the King's Lynn Circuit (East Anglia District) and all in Grahamston United Church, Falkirk (Central Scotland Circuit).

• 27 July 2008
• 10 August 2008

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