Announcements
Announcements
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A letter to workers and churches of the South England Conference
15 November 2024
Dear Brethren,
Sincere Christian greetings. I trust that you and your family are well. The Bible bears record that it is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed. They are new every morning. God continues to be faithful to us. Our eyes are upon Him in these crucial times of earth’s history.
As a Conference we are still dealing with the public revelations of the non-recent despicable acts of abuse perpetrated by the deceased paedophile Donald Kelly. We are in communication with the survivors to agree a mutually convenient date for a face-to-face meeting to discuss our report findings and offer them an opportunity to share their thoughts in response to the report. As a new administration it is our intention to be open and transparent with survivors. We look forward to this meeting and pray that this will be the beginning of healing and restoration for everyone involved.
Our Church must keep safeguarding at the top of our agenda. Alongside Evangelism, safeguarding members and visitors to our Churches must be a priority. We must be the generation that fosters a zero-tolerance culture to abuse of all kinds. Our Congregations must feel and be safe places for everyone who chooses to worship with us. Wherever a culture of silence around abuse exists individuals will suffer lifelong pain, so please everyone speak up and speak out!
Every church congregation must have a designated safeguarding lead. This is simply not negotiable! Messages about safeguarding issues must be visible around all buildings used by our congregations. Those responsible for safeguarding must be easily identifiable by everyone. Reports of abuse must be taken seriously, and the policy followed. Parents must be vigilant in safeguarding their children. There needs to be heightened vigilance with our uniform programmes and youth activities.
The vulnerable must be always protected; – our Churches must be a hostile environment for abusers. This must be a watershed moment in our movement. Collectively we must do all in our power to minimise the risks of this ever happening again.
We need everyone to be onboard for this to be a reality. It is not uncommon when organisations face a crisis the response is yielding to the temptation to defend the organisation’s reputation at the expense of survivors who are forced to live and re-live the trauma they have experienced.
Moving forward our approach will focus on the welfare of survivors (this will lie at the heart of our efforts); where defending the most vulnerable among us is a key priority.
We will continue to update you as matters progress. In the meantime, if you have been affected by abuse support is available from the following organisations:
Cornerstone Counselling Services Listening Line - 9:30 am - 10:00 pm - 0330 133 2495.
Premier Lifeline - 9:00 am - 5:00 pm - 0300 111 0101
New Kapporet - 3:00 pm - 11:00 pm - 0808 801 0333
Samaritans – 24/7 - 116 123
The Survivors Trust - 0808 801 0818
Yours sincerely,
Dr Kirk Thomas
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40 Days of Prayer starts on the 17th of November at 6 am. Prayer Meeting Zoom ID has been changed to 89546335143 passcode 777.
The ADRA EMERGENCY APPEAL for Hurrican Beryl is still ongoing. Please see Audrey if you are able to donate to this Appeal or to ADRA in general. Thank you. https://adra.org.uk/emergency-appeal-hurricane-beryl/
Parking for Disabled Members Please will all blue badge holders notify me of their name and their car registration number. The church has a legal duty to ensure that there are enough accessible spaces for regular attendees, and we need to know the number required. Contact Joy: 01923 461044 or joybussey35@gmail.com
ADVANCE NOTICE The Christmas programmes have been prepared and ready for the following dates: Toy Service December 14 at 11am. Family service with a Christmas theme December 21 at 11am and Carols by Candlelight on December 24 at 6pm. With confidence, you can invite your family, friends and neighbours to join with you at this joyous time of year.
Women Ministry - Weekly prayer meeting on Zoom every Friday at 6:30pm. Meeting ID: 853 7558 6804 & Passcode: 615610 (new Zoom details)
Men's Ministry - Prayer Meeting from 9pm on Tuesdays.
Zoom ID: 519 552 6863 & Passcode: Pray3r
Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting is taking place in the Sanctuary. Zoom Meeting ID: 721 857 1482; Passcode: pray3r
Parallel has a website! Please use it to find the latest updates at parallelservice.co.uk
Parallel Sabbath School class has started at the back of the main sanctuary. Please join us.
If you have private Prayer Requests, please place them in the Prayer Box or you can email Stanboroughprays@gmail.com. Please note the change in the email address.
