6 March 2011

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.

Lent Observance

• The Broughty Ferry Churches Group will share in
  • a Service of Ashes on Wednesday 9th March at 7.30pm in Our Lady of Good Counsel;
  • a series of Study Groups on Wednesday evenings at 7.30pm using the CTBI material 'Reconciliation Together'. See poster and weekly newssheets for details of venues and titles of individual gatherings.
• Riverside Methodist Church Blairgowrie, will be hosting a series of Lent Talks, supported by EPACTS (East Perthshire Action of Churches Together in Scotland), at 7.30pm as follows:
  • Wed 23rd March: 'Is Faith in God a Creator necessary?' - Rev Fraser Penny;
  • Sun 27 March: 'Our Moral Choices' - Dr Jim McManus;
  • Wed 6 April: 'Richness of Diversity' - Dr Bill Reid
  • Sun 10 April: 'Caring for the Environment' - Rt Rev Bruce Cameron
  Our support is warmly invited. See poster on noticeboard.

Year of the Bible 2011

• The Reading Group will meet on the third Thursday of each month at 7.30 pm in Marketgait, starting on 17th March, and, for any who cannot manage the Thursday or wish a second session, on the third Sunday of the month at 10 am in Marketgait from 20th March.
• The Dig Deeper Group will meet on the fourth Thursday of the month, starting on 24th March, with the fourth Sunday as an alternative or second session, from 27th March. The book which forms the basis of the session can be accessed on www.thegoodbook.co.uk/dig-deeper), with a copy and discounted copies also available from Tom Penman.

For more information on Bibles / Groups, contact Tom Penman.

Methodist Statement on the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti

Christine Elliott, Secretary for External Relationships for the Methodist Church in Britain, has issued a Statement condemning the recent assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs, and a Christian.

For the Statement text see www.methodist.org.uk

Our Lady of Good Counsel Broughty Ferry: Trip to New Lanark

Our friends at OLGC give an invitation to ecumenical partners to join them on an outing to New Lanark on Wednesday 11 May, at a cost of £28. The outing will include a Peace Service, tour of the Heritage Village and High Tea. For more details, contact Father Anthony McCarthy, 29 Westfield Road, DD5 1ED, tel: (01382) 778750, to whom bookings and payment should be made no later than Sunday 20th March

A New Book from an Author some of us know!

Malcolm Rothwell (our former Minister in Dundee) has written a second book which he has asked us to publicise: “Sense and Nonsense, conversations with a clown about spiritual things”. It is published by authorhouse 2011, and is available from Amazon (online) or Waterstones.

The preface, written by the Revd the Lord Griffiths of Burry Port (Rev Leslie Griffiths) states “This book took hold of me and would not let me go until I had finished it” and concludes “I found it immensely pleasurable and I can only hope it gets a wide readership”.

Meetings this week

Support other Organisations

Scottish Bible Society

Our support through the Bible-a-Month Club is invited for work in March for work in Croatia. See noticeboard in library area for more information.

Our prayerful attention is drawn this week to

• completion of the Aymara Bible revision and ongoing project in Central Quechua, Bolivia;
• colleagues in Uruguay facing crises which may be opportunities for new ministry and colleagues in Paraguay praying for wisdom and honesty among the country's leadership;
• planning in England and Wales for the People's Bible tour this summer.

The SBS also invites our prayerful support for The Bible Society in Egypt in its response to the changing situation in its own country and region. The SBS has received news that the Society has placed front page adverts in the 4 major newspapers, with a heading 'We Rise and We Rebuild Together' (the theme in Egypt now) linking it to Bible passages and especially the Book of Nehemiah. This is the first time that the Bible Society in Egypt has placed such a message as this - not promoting a product or special sale offer. “Our goal is to have a Christian presence through the Bible at a time when our country is seeking democratic reforms that are based on values most of which are basically Biblical values.” The Society have been sent messages of support from other faith communities and are meeting with other groups such as key youth leaders in Cairo who can assist in use of the media and modern methods of communication such as YouTube & Facebook. The Society is also to print 300,000 copies of each of 4 different Scripture selections in the Nehemiah campaign, with banners to place outside churches around Egypt.

Forthcoming events

Prayer Points for this week

• The President of Conference at a Connexional Working Party on Wednesday, and Wesley House Cambridge on Thursday;
• Connexional Law and Polity Committee on Tuesday;
• Fair Trade Fortnight (continuing this week);
• those preparing tenders for the use of Scottish Churches House;
• Arbroath Pastoral Committee, Perth, Montrose and Blairgowrie Church Councils meeting this week;
• residents and staff in schemes in Scotland (Methodist Homes);
• Princess Basma Centre for disabled children in Jerusalem (BibleLands);
• The Leprosy Mission's work in Bangladesh;
• women in Afghanistan; UN Day for Women's Rights and International Peace on Tuesday (Christian Aid);
• Bible Society work in Croatia;
• we pray with and for the peoples of Burma and Thailand (WCC Ecumenical Calendar);
• we remember fellow Methodists in the Welshpool and Bro Hafren Circuit (Wales Synod) and in Peterhead (North of Scotland Mission Circuit).

• 27 February 2011
• 13 March 2011

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