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1 GREETINGS Greetings greetings greetings Greenacres Congregational Church In this issue..... Page 5 - ‘5 minutes with Rowena’ Page 6/7 - Children’s ministry Page 12/13 - Chaplaincy A way of Serving Page 14 - Film review June 2013 greetings greetings

Greetings Magazine June/July 2013

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The Bi-Monthly Magazine of Greenacres Congregational Church, Oldham.

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GREETINGS Greetings

greetin

gs gr

eeti

ngs Greenacres

Congregational

Church

In this issue..... Page 5 - ‘5 minutes with Rowena’

Page 6/7 - Children’s ministry

Page 12/13 - Chaplaincy – A way of Serving

Page 14 - Film review

June 2013

greetings

greetings

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Church membership Church membership is a very important part of the life of

a Congregational Church. We at Greenacres value the commitment that is expressed through Church

Membership, devotion and service. If you would like more details about becoming a Church Member, we have an

information pack you may find interesting and

informative.

Please ask our Minister or one of the Deacons for a copy.

Weekly activities Sunday 10.45am Morning Service Communion follows the morning service on the first Sunday in the month

Tuesday 8.00pm Tuesday Club (Alternative weeks)

Tuesday 6.30 pm Karate classes Wednesday 6.30pm Beavers, Cubs and Scouts

Thursday 8.00pm Choir

Friday 7.30pm Youth Club (Alternate weeks)

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Greetings to each other, all our neighbours—and

everybody whose eye this leaflet meets Dear Friends,

The continued popularity of Facebook has brought about a very

interesting phenomenon. More and more quotes are being posted on its pages and people are being invited to ‘like’ them and ‘share’ them.

A popular one doing the rounds at the moment is: “In the end, it's not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many mo-ments took your breath away.” Another is: “When life gives you a

hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand

reasons to smile.”

On Facebook, of all the different genres of quotes and sayings, the

most popular is friendship. Like: “A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.”

One of my favourite quotes comes from Maya Angelou: “I've learned

that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

The one thing in common that lies behind all these words is care,

and that very much ties in with the words of Jesus to Peter telling him to “Take care of my sheep”. As a church we are deeply

committed to caring for one another. To looking after each other,

encouraging, supporting, helping in whatever way we can. Just as God calls us into a relationship with him, so as members of God’s family we have a relationship that requires us to look after each

other.

That is why, through the pages of Greetings, we want to say we are

here for each other. Relationships feed on communication, so please do let us know if you have any concerns, any news, or any needs. If you would like a visit, or know of someone who might appreciate a

visit from myself or one of the deacons, please do let me know.

We are all in this together, part of the body of Christ, sheep that are vulnerable and need looking after. Please play your part. As Theo-

dore Roosevelt once said: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

With every good wish,

Neil Chappell

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A few moments from the scribe

Hello readers,

This is my third issue of Greetings, and I think I am just about getting things sorted out! Whilst I love and deeply welcome your input, the saying ‘a camel is a horse designed by a

committee’, comes to mind! So be patient and we will get there, but I have big shoes to fill, and one must walk before

we run!

But talking about input and contributions, this is your

magazine, this is your Church, this is your chance to have a direct impact in the life of your Church. So please, if you have

anything you would like to submit for publication, any ideas or thoughts, comments, letter to the editor, then either e-mail me or hand it to me, Neil or anyone of the steering group in

Church, we look forward to your contribution.

In this issue we are looking at ‘Pastoral Care’ and some of it’s many forms. Peter Butler has written an excellent personal insight into chaplaincy, whilst Pam, writing for the children’s

ministry, has concentrated on Fathers day, and whilst both may seem distant, Fathers are probably our first experience of

‘Chaplaincy’, though it usually follows with ‘ask your Mother’!

So lets publish and be ……., see you next issue! And thanks

Steve Sinclair P.S I have a new mobile number, details on back page.

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5 minutes with Rowena

Most prized possession: My home– because it is where all the

people who mean the most to me live, meet and spend time

together.

Why do you come to Greenacres Church? I have never gone

anywhere else! I like the friendliness of the people, the

informality of the services and the knowledge that everyone

who worships at Greenacres does so because of their faith.

Favourite words of inspiration: Throw back your shoulders,

let your heart sing, let your eyes flush, let your mind be

lifted up, look upwards and say to yourself ….nothing is

impossible!

Saddest moment of your life: When my Dad died.

Happiest moment of your life: Happiest moment– marrying Ian

Happiest moments– when Mark and Ruth were born A figure in history who you’d like to have afternoon tea with:

Mahatma Ghandi, because he inspired people to make a dif-

ference whilst never compromising his belief in the impor-

tance of truth at all times.

Person in your life who has influenced you the most: My Dad–

I often find myself wondering ‘what would Dad have done or

said in this situation?’ and I try to be guided by the re-

sponse.

Piece of wisdom you would pass on: Always look for the good

in everyone.

Your philosophy in life: Do to others as you would have them

do to you.

Which film could you watch again and again? ‘Pretty woman’

- a real feel good film I can watch time and time again!

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The History of Father's

Day The tradition of celebrating Father's

Day as seen today originated in the last century. Though there are several

people who are credited for furthering the cause of Father's Day, there is far greater acceptance for Ms Sonora Louise Smart Dodd's

contribution. A doting daughter from Spokane, Washington, Ms Dodd is recognized as the Founder or Mother of the Father's

Day Festival. Inception of the Father's Day took place in Sonora's mind when

she happened to hear a Mother's Day sermon in 1909. Sonora, who was 27 then, had begun to recognize the hardships her

father must have gone through while bringing up his six children alone. When Sonora was 16, her mother had died during childbirth. Sonora's father a Civil War veteran by the

name of William Jackson Smart raised six children including the new-born on his own. Sonora questioned that if there is a day

to recognize mothers then why is not there a day to honour fathers?

Many people laughed and joked at Sonora's idea. But her will did not droop. She began a sincere campaign lobbying for the

cause of Father's Day. Her hard work began to show signs of success when Spokane celebrated its first Father's Day on June 19, 1910 with the support of Spokane Ministerial Association

and the local Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA). To pay tribute to her affectionate father, Sonora wished that Father's

Day be celebrated on her father's birthday on June 5, but it so happened that there was not enough time for preparation and the day came to be celebrated on third Sunday in the month of

June.

Try our Fathers Day Word search on page 15

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What is CF-XTRA?

The work of the Congregational Federation with children and young people is now split into two: Children First and CF-XTRA.

The work of Children First! helps churches reach and engage with children by:

promoting effective strategies such as Messy Church affirming excellence through the Child Friendly Church

award scheme

giving churches hands-on help to reach more families offering churches advice, support and training as needed.

CF-XTRA is the national youth provision for all young people aged 10-29 with connections to local CF churches. CF-XTRA is led by a Core Team who are elected by youth participants from

CF churches. A team of 5 are currently in post serving the churches of the

Congregational Federation. They are supported by John Brown as the National Youth Enabler. Their challenging brief is to develop an effective strategy for

participation by all the Federation’s young people aged 10 to 29 years.

CF-XTRA is about young people growing in faith and becoming radical disciples of Jesus.

CF-XTRA provides an exciting programme of regional, national and overseas events. CF-XTRA supports young people in local CF

churches - whether they are involved in Sunday worship, or attend a club or group during the

week. Whatever their connection to the fellowship of the church, they are already a member of

CF-XTRA.

CF-XTRA offers opportunities for local youth leaders to meet and support one another.

CF-XTRA is seeking to build a community of young people and to develop the relationship between local churches and the national provision.

For more information visit their website at: www.congregational.org.uk/cfxtra

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PASTORAL CARE

This is one encyclopaedia's definition of Pastoral Care:

“Pastoral care is a term applied where

Christians offer help and caring to others in their church or wider community.

Pastoral care can be listening, supporting, encouraging and befriending.”

Too often we think of pastoral care as just visiting the home bound or the ill and infirm. We regularly visit folks in nursing

facilities, in hospitals or in their homes. We sometimes fail to realize that everyone is in need of pastoral care at one

time or another. As loving and caring Christians, we should all keep our “antennae” out to sense the need for pastoral care in others.

“Listening” means giving your full and undivided attention.

It does not mean offering a solution to a problem or how to “fix” a situation. “Supporting” means offering nurture and validity to an

individual even if you don’t fully understand his or her needs. “Encouraging” means bolstering someone’s faith and

confidence. We all need to be reminded from time to time that the Holy Spirit will come along beside us to inspire us. “Befriending” means opening your heart to anyone you

believe to be in need of pastoral care.

When we sense a need in someone, a simple “Are you OK?” may well open a floodgate. Our caring response to his or her needs is what pastoral care is all about.

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Church Diary

June

2nd – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship & Communion

4th – Tuesday – 7.30pm – Deacons 9th – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship

16th –Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship - Father's Day 18th –Tuesday – 7.30pm – Peace & Quiet Time 23rd –Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship - Led by Rev John

Arnold 28th – Friday – 7.30pm – Quiz Night in support of Christian Aid

30th – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship

July

2nd – Tuesday – 7.30pm – Deacons

7th – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship & Communion 14th –Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship - Father's Day

16th Tuesday – 7.30pm – Peace & Quiet Time 21st – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship 28th – Sunday – 10.45am – Family Worship

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A number of people from church have lost a good friend,

neighbour and family member recently. We pray that you will

take some comfort knowing that you are all in our thoughts

and prayers at this time. We think especially of

Brenda Parkinson

Anthony Stockton

Offertories April May 7/4/13 £399.00 5/5/13 £285.60 14/4/13 £299.71 12/5/13 £327.70

21/4/13 £248.20 19/5/13 £232.60 28/4/13 £238.15 26/5/13 £192.00 Total £1185.06 Total £ 1037.90

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Greetings, to infinity and beyond

Easter Eggs We recently received a lovely letter thanking us for the donation of over 80 Easter Eggs for families in need.

Thank you once again for responding with such generosity, and thanks to Muriel Booth for organising it all

on our behalf.

We are now able to put an electronic copy of Greetings on the

Church Website. If you would like to be informed

when this happens please send your email details to

[email protected]. Thank you.

Wood Street Mission Appeal

For a few years we have supported Wood Street at Christmas by

donating toys for distribution in the Manchester and Salford areas.

At the beginning of Summer an appeal is sent out regarding school

uniforms.

This is a problem for the Mission as many families find it difficult to

provide their children with the necessary items.

If you feel able , when doing your supermarket shopping to add a

pack of shirts or blouses etc. then they would be gratefully

appreciated.

They are appealing for the following, ages from 5-16 years.

Boys or girls trousers and skirts, navy, black or grey.

Shirts, blouses or polo shirts, pale blue or white

V-necked or crew neck jumpers/ sweat shirts, black or navy.

Please bring them to Church so that we can then arrange for the

mission to collect them.

If you need further information then please contact me, thank you.

Lola Berry

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Chaplaincy – A way of Serving:

I am often asked what a chaplain is. The answer to that is that

they are people usually of a religious persuasion who want to give something back to society. They are not just from the

various Christian denominations, but include Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Buddhists and all other sorts from the faith community. All these variant peoples act as a team and apart from when

someone is in need of the sacraments our differences rarely matter. In point of fact I along with my colleagues are at pains

to explain to patients, visitors and staff alike that we are there for them if they need to talk and anything else is only at a

specific requests. Another question that sometimes comes up is why I do it, especially giving up my time as a volunteer. I am afraid that the answer to that one is that I get far more out of

the job than I put in. I am constantly amazed at the stoicism of people in distress and always humbled at the way the face their

adversities.

Of course there is a certain amount of consideration to be given about the situation that people in hospital find themselves in.

They are after all in a very vulnerable position, depending on others and often feel a loss of control over their lives and in an

undignified position. They have lost their badges of identity in the sense that they are not wearing their day clothes and look the same as everyone else. Given the situation it is important to

ensure that any contact one has with patients must allow for them to retain their dignity and take people at face value. One

never knows to whom you may be conversing and often people at their lowest ebb present themselves in an unfavourable light. This is when it is important to remember the importance of

being non-judgemental. Patients are there to be treated for

illness and nursed back to health, not preached at.

It is equally important that one never proffers medical advice, as not only is this not in the remit of chaplains, we are simply not qualified to do so, nor are we aware of the history of the

patients though I have been faced with questions such as do I think someone should allow the consultant to amputate or

should he try to live on without treatment. The job of a

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chaplain is to listen and

perhaps, pass on where people can obtain

information they might require. It is quite easy to be led into a situation whereby

people ask about you and you end up doing more talking

than listening, but as I said this is to be resisted. Talking is sometimes not appropriate,

either because the patient is too upset or because they are

not able due to their medical c o n d i t i o n . I n t h e s e circumstances simply the

holding of a hand is all that is necessary and is very much appreciated as can be discerned by the tightness of the grip

and the reluctance to let go.

In addition sometimes (though surprisingly rarely) patients

need someone to vent their anger at and if we happen to be the ones they do it to, then that too is a way of serving. Mostly however, people just need to talk to someone neutral, someone

they can trust to keep things strictly confidential and have no stakeholder involvement. Sometimes people need to say things

they would not wish to say to medical staff or friends and

relatives.

Of course there are some frustrations, we can’t always be the

answer to the problems we are presented with and have to defer to more experienced colleagues or other agencies, also

we often do not get to know the end of the story as we only see a person for a short time and do not know whether they fully recover and how they are after their hospitalisation. So why do

I do It? Simply because it is a privilege and pleasure to be allowed to be a part of someone’s life, if only for that short

time..

Peter Butler

CONFIDENTIAL HELPFUL APPROACHABLE PERSONAL LISTENING AVAILABLE INTERESTED NON-JUDGEMENTAL CARING FOR YOU

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QUARTET – a film review

Lifelong friends Wilf (Billy Connolly) and Reggie (Tom Courtenay), together with former colleague Cissy (Pauline Collins), are residents of Beecham House, a home for retired

opera singers. Every year on Verdi's birthday, the residents unite to give a concert to raise funds for their home. But when

Jean Horton (Maggie Smith), a former Grande Dame of the opera fallen on hard times, also Reggie's ex-wife and the

fourth and most celebrated member of their former quartet, moves into the home to everyone's surprise the plans for this

year's concert start to unravel.

As old grudges threaten to undermine past glories and theatrical temperaments play havoc with the rehearsal

schedule, it becomes apparent that having four of the finest singers in English operatic history under one roof offers no

guarantee that the show will go on.

Directed by Dustin Hoffman, Quartet is a joyous and entertaining film about redefining old age and growing old with

hope, demonstrating how art illuminates life and how the human spirit remains undimmed even as the brightest stars

start to fade.

Quartet is out now on DVD so why not treat yourself to an

evening of grand entertainment.

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Greenacres Congregational Church, Contacts and Organisations.

Minister Rev. Neil Chappell BA Home 0161 624 6337

53 Redgrave St. Church office 0161 626 2018

Oldham OL4 2DY

[email protected]

Secretary Mrs Joy Dean Tel no: 01274 81 4689

7 Fieldfare Drive,

Clayton Heights, Bradford BD6 3XL

[email protected]

Treasurers Mrs Rowena Bairstow Tel no: 01422 884559

Redacre Barn, Mytholmroyd, HX 5DG

Miss Margaret J Fowler Tel no: 0161 633 1914

238 Greenacres Rd, Oldham, OL4 3ET

Greetings Mr Steve Sinclair Tel no: 0161 627 4175

Editor 4 Cranberry St. 0759 2301714

Oldham, OL4 1AT

[email protected]

Deacons: Joy Dean Gail Waterhouse

Ian Bairstow Margaret Fowler Audrey Whiteman

Muriel Booth David Hopkins Pam Wild

Peter Butler ([email protected]) Joyce Ogden

Organist Choirmaster Miss Margaret Fowler Mr David Hopkins

Tel:0161 633 1914 0161 626 1291

Ladies Tuesday Club Freewill envelope distributor

Gift Aid Mr Gordon Bell

Mrs Audrey Whiteman 0161 678 7114

Tel: 01706 846445

Greetings Subscriptions Postal Greetings

Mrs Muriel Booth Mrs Olive Shuttleworth

Tel: 01457 870084 0161 287 1051

28, Summershades lane 4, Jowett St

Grasscroft Oldham