January 2016
Minister`s Monthly Musings
Ponte Sant`Angelo
Methodist Church Rome
“I look upon all the world as my parish.” John Wesley
Copy for next month to Pastor Tim by 25th January 2016
Minister`s Letter for January 2016
A happy New Year to you all! For some this will be a time of resolutions - looking back with regret sometimes at the things which we have failed to do this past year and resolving to do better. Making a list of things we ought to do and the person we`d like to be. Maybe that should be our task as a church too? The Covenant Service is a good starting place for us to do this today as individuals and as a church. “Put me to what you will … put me to doing, …” , But what is the Church for and what more should we be doing in our 60th anniversary year?
We have our Church Council meeting on 17th January. I hope that we shall be able to give some time to identifying how we set ourselves some priorities in our programme for the coming year.
What improvements can we make to the physical fabric of the church? More comfortable seating? Better display facilities? Quieter conditions in the hall?
How can we be more welcoming and get more people through our doors in this Jubilee Year?
Which projects should we support? See the details of the project in Ghana that has been suggested – are you able to help?
And in line with our theme at the Covenant Service today:
What gifts has God given you that you want to offer his Church? In worship, in service, in mission and evangelism, in pastoral care and social outreach?
If you have something more to offer, in time, talents, or financial giving, or have other suggestions of what we should be doing, please prayerfully consider these and talk to me.
May God bless us as we enter this New Year with confidence and hope for the future of this congregation and its relations with other Churches in Rome, as Chiesa Insieme.
Pastor Tim
Church Family News:
We have been concerned with the health challenges that Marion Howcroft, Miriam Vergano and Caroline Suratos have faced in recent weeks. They continue to be in our prayers.
We are glad to welcome some assistance for Pastor Tim which has come through the grant the British Methodist Church made last summer as start-up funding for the establishment of the expansion of the work of Methodist Ecumenical Office as it moves into Apartment No.14 in the condominio (adjacent to the manse) This will provide office and conference space and some residential accommodation on a short stay basis for Methodist and Ecumenical visitors for meetings and study purposes. Charlene Adoo has been appointed and introduces herself here:
My name is Charlene Kuukua Saa Adoo and I was born on the 1st of February 1995 in Rome. My parents are both Ghanaians and they relocated to Rome over 20 years ago. My father is called Charles. He works at the Embassy of Ghana and he is also the pastor of our church “International Central Gospel Church”. My mother is called Esther and she works at the Vatican.
I also have a younger brother called Ariel who is 14 years old and who is attending the high school “Liceo Scientifico Aristotele”.
I study “Economics and Business” at LUISS Guido Carli University and I am in my second year.
I started working as the MEOR Secretary on the 30th of November 2015 and I am really enjoying the job. I hope this job will give me more experience in the job sector, improve my secretarial skills and open more doors for me in future.
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (18th to 25th January)
The annual Churches Together in Rome service will be held on Sunday 24th January at 5pm at St Andrew’s Church of Scotland, XX Settembre. The preacher will be the Rev. Willie McCulloch as this is his last year in Rome.
In addition there is an exciting new venture which we hope you will support as it comes from the initiative of our local; Roman Catholic Parish Priest, Don Luigi Venturi, at San Giovanni dei Fiorentini.
In this Year of Mercy declared by Pope Francis we are challenged as fellow Christians to witness to Christ to the many thousands of pilgrims who will visit the city this year. We can share in the spiritual ecumenism of worshipping together but also of social justice in witnessing together as with the work we do with Pozzo di Iacobi and others reaching the needs of the hungry and the homeless.
ECUMENICAL PRAYER SERVICEFOR THE WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITYIN THE JUBILEE YEAR OF MERCYAT SAN GIOVANNI DEI FIORENTINI – VIA ACCIAIOLI, 2 ROMEAT 18.00MONDAY 18TH JANUARY 2016. PARTICIPATING CLERGY: DON LUIGI VENTURI, REV. DR. TIM MACQUIBAN AND PASTOR ERIC NOFFKE. ALL ARE WELCOME FOR THE SERVICE AND REFRESHMENTS TO FOLLOW.
THE CHURCH COUNCIL RECEIVED A PROPOSAL FOR AN ANNIVERSARY PROJECT FROM MARY OWUSU. JENNY HAS WRITTEN ABOUT THE PROJECT WITH SOME RECENT INFORMATION:
PERSON WITH DISABILITIES PROJECT - A PLACE FOR THEM. According to the World Health Organisation, there are more than 600 million disabled persons in the world, of which approximately 80 % live in low-income countries. In most countries person with disabilities constitute an impoverished marginalized group, characterized by lack of access to public health, education, and other social services that would ideally support and protect people with disabilities.
Statistics have shown that, over 2 million Ghanaians are living with various degrees of disabilities. Those people are highly stigmatized and discriminated within their families and most of the time abandoned. They are considered unproductive and incapable of contributing in a positive way to society, and rather seen as constituting an economic burden on the family and the society at large, which leaves them in a vicious cycle of poverty.
In 2012, Ghana became the 119th country in the world to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and its Optional Protocol. Ratification was an important first step to ensuring that the 5 million Ghanaians with disabilities will be treated as equal citizens, with equal rights. Up to now however, nothing has change! Person with disabilities are still marginalized, have no access to the employment system and for these reasons they can only beg for money on the streets.
But in Accra there is a person, Mr. Amu Daniel, known as “Master”, disabled himself, that takes persons with disabilities off the street and teaches them an income generating activity, that consists in repairing televisions, radios and other electronic devices, in his little shack with the only aim to promote self empowerment and to enable these persons to provide for themselves. Most of them come from villages and can’t go back every day, others are homeless and so they stay at the shack also for the night.
Some years ago the shack was destroyed by a flood, but with the help of some people, they moved to another humble and now also crumbling structure and continue their activities; but for security reasons sooner or later they have to leave.
The dream of “Master” is to have a safe place where these people can learn an income generating activity (he’s also good in handicrafts) and stay. WE KINDLY ASK YOU TO HELP WITH WHAT YOU CAN TO REALIZE THE MASTER’S DREAM BY PURCHASING A CONTAINER BIG ENOUGH TO BE USED AS A TRAINING CENTRE.A SAFE PLACE FOR ALL OF THEM WOULD BE THE BEST GIFT EVER!WE WANT TO RAISE AT LEAST 2,000 EUROS TO MAKE THIS POSSIBLE AS PART OF OUR CHURCH 60TH ANNIVERSARY PROJECT – CAN YOU HELP?
PASTORAL LETTER FROM THE EUROPEAN METHODIST COUNCIL
The European Methodist Council: Dear Sisters and Brothers, We have met, as the European Methodist Council, in recent days in Bulgaria near the crossing point with Romania. As Methodist representatives from all over Europe, much of our time has been spent in conversation on migration in light of the reality of hundreds of thousands of desperate people crossing the borders of Europe, fleeing conflict and persecution and seeking the possibility of a future for themselves and their children. We have prayed together and been strengthened in our fellowship in the Methodist family. We have drawn hope and inspiration from stories of Methodists working in many places to assist migrants and refugees. Often these are small groups of our sisters and brothers tirelessly fulfilling our common commitment to Christian hospitality and care. We give thanks to God for their vision, courage and continuing service in the name of Christ. May we all draw inspiration from their example.
In renewing our fellowship, we have recognised our differences and drawn strength from the knowledge that our primary identity comes through our union with Christ which transcends ethnicity and nationality and is always open to receive those who differ or disagree. We have been reminded, through study of the Scriptures, that the people of God have often been on a journey and frequently known what it is to be outsiders and even refugees. We have been challenged to recognise the neighbour rather than fear the stranger. However, the experiences we have shared show our tendency to forget the commandment to love when God unexpectedly gives us new neighbours.
We know that migration raises a complex set of issues that cannot be solved with simplistic solutions. We struggle together as Churches whose members continue to hold a variety of political and theological views. We seek to move beyond a sterile discussion about the rightness of migration to engaging with the many complicated issues involved in the crisis affecting our continent. In all this, we are aware of our own limitations and the need of the help of others.
The following general principles are offered as a basis for further conversation and action as Churches seek to formulate a co-ordinated response from their members. We are called to:
• renew our understanding and practice of the obligation to radical Christian hospitality to all, recognising the practical implications for congregations and individuals
• acknowledge that migration has and always will be a part of the human story
• recognise that we experience and interpret the reality of migration to and within Europe in different ways, depending on our context
• resist false narratives, generalizations and negative stereotyping and challenge those who would play on people’s fears
• reaffirm our Christian commitment to honour Christ in the face of the stranger regardless of religious background or the prevailing political situation
• encourage and support those who dare to open their doors and offer hospitality to those in need
• pledge both our continuing solidarity with those parts of world from which migrants and refugees come and our active engagement to achieve a just and peaceful world.
God calls us to continue our journey together. We believe that God also calls us to welcome those who arrive as our fellow pilgrims. We commit ourselves to immediate actions and the long-term perspectives that the issues raised by migration require. With a united voice, the European Methodist Council calls on our fellow citizens across the continent to join us in reflection and action.
May Christ bless us all, as we seek to faithfully express and reflect his love and mercy in our lives and ministry.
Don Kerr /Christian Alsted, Co-chairs of the European Methodist Council.
COLLECTION FOR 2015
January P 477, 04 E 1461, 00 BB 110, 00 TTL 2048, 04
February P 336, 59 E 1314, 50 BB 120, 00 TTL 1771, 09
March P 741, 29 E 2039, 50 BB 45, 00 TTL 2825, 79
April P 802, 76 E 1656, 00 BB 105, 00 TTL2563, 76
May P 572, 24 E 1911, 00 BB 105, 00 TTL 2588, 24
June P 702, 35 E 1393, 00 BB 71, 50 TTL 2166, 85
July P 469, 52 E 1375, 00 BB 130, 00 TTL 1974, 52
August P 498, 75 E 1492, 70 BB 99, 50 TTL 2090, 95
September P 571, 76 E 1313, 00 BB 105, 00 TTL 1989, 76
October P 569, 03 E 1603, 00 BB 206, 50 TTL 2378, 53
November P 629, 39 E 1801, 00 BB 208, 00 TTL 2638, 39
December P 352, 68 E 1349, 50 BB 181, 50 TTL 1883, 68
TOTAL FOR 2015 TTL 27108, 50
If you would like to join the envelope scheme (which helps us to plan our financial affairs better and increase our resources for ministry and mission) please see Marcello Marinelli.
We are also looking to have individual sponsor a new chair 50 of which we would like to purchase in this anniversary year for use in the balcony and elsewhere. Please make donations to Pastor Tim or Marcello directly.Perhaps you could have cake bake or some small fund raising effort to help this and the Ghanaian project.