A “pop up” church based on an allotment gave the term “church plant” a whole new meaning when multiple baptisms and confirmations took place amongst vegetables and flowers.The three child and one adult baptism, and two adult confirmations, were celebrated by the Bishop of Lancaster, Dr Jill Duff (see photo). They were the first baptisms and confirmations held by the new church on the Higher Croft housing estate in Blackburn. The church grew out of small group meetings in the community library on the estate discussing the big questions in life and praying for people. Lockdown meant it was temporarily homeless but as restrictions eased, it relocated to a disused former allotment. The church now has a congregation of around 50 after being founded in 2018 by Licensed Lay Minister and urban evangelist Sharon Collins.She said: “The weekend of the confirmations and baptisms, people brought their families and friends who would not normally have come to church. “There was a buffet and music and they all saw the love of Jesus. We hope that this time next year the numbers coming forward for baptism will have significantly increased.” Bishop Jill said: “It’s the only church I know where people give their apologies when they can’t come. It’s as if they don’t want to miss out on the heavenly banquet.”More information: Pop Up Church also supports a weekly football session on the estate run by Ambassadors Football, a Christian sports charity. They currently have 57 children registered to take part. Sharon Collins’ post is supported by Strategic Development Funding from The Church of England and with local resources and support from the Diocese of Blackburn. Sharon also trains people for urban evangelism through the M:Power programme in Blackburn.
For the first time, the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Anglican Communion have jointly warned of the urgency of environmental sustainability, its impact on poverty, and the importance of global cooperation.Pope Francis, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archbishop Justin Welby urge everyone to play their part in ‘choosing life’ for the future of the planet. In a joint statement, the Christian leaders have called on people to pray, in this Christian season of Creation, for world leaders ahead of COP26 this November. The statement reads: ‘We call on everyone, whatever their belief or worldview, to endeavour to listen to the cry of the earth and of people who are poor, examining their behaviour and pledging meaningful sacrifices for the sake of the earth which God has given us.’The joint declaration strikes a clear warning - ‘Today, we are paying the price…Tomorrow could be worse’ and concludes that: ‘This is a critical moment. Our children’s future and the future of our common home depend on it.’The three Christian leaders spoke against injustice and inequality, saying: ‘We stand before a harsh justice: biodiversity loss, environmental degradation and climate change are the inevitable consequences of our actions, since we have greedily consumed more of the earth’s resources than the planet can endure. But we also face a profound injustice: the people bearing the most catastrophic consequences of these abuses are the poorest on the planet and have been the least responsible for causing them.’The statement calls on people to:Pray for world leaders ahead of COP26. For individuals: To make meaningful sacrifices for the sake of the planet, working together and taking responsibility for how we use our resources. For those with far-reaching responsibilities: To choose people-centred profits and lead the transition to just and sustainable economies.Read the full statement here.
Janet Ben (31) lives in Ngabu, Chikwawa District, southern Malawi. She and her husband have three children.Janet gestures at a pile of muddy bricks, all that’s left of her old house after Cyclone Idai swept through Malawi in March 2019. Homeless and only able to eat once a day, she was in a desperate fight for survival. Janet knew that other women in her community had teamed up to improve their finances. ‘I used to admire women who were already members of this group,’ she says. ‘They were able to support their families.’Joining the Makande Women’s group has changed everything for Janet and her family. Christian Aid works with communities to promote new technologies, tools, and training to equip them to adapt to the extreme weather conditions that threaten their lives.Pointing to the fruit in the massive baobab trees near her home, Janet tells me how the women make juice from the baobab fruit, working in shifts.‘Once we’ve made the juice, we take it to the market to sell. After selling we bring the money together,’ explains Janet.She has opened her own stall at the local market. ‘My business is doing well, and I have managed to save with the village bank. My two elder kids can now go to school on a full stomach.’This Harvest, will you donate what you can to help more people like Janet find a way out of poverty and become more resilient to the climate crisis?Please click on the link above to support the work of Christian Aid.
Same-sex couples can now have their marriage blessed by the Church in Wales after a vote was held.However, the church will still not marry same-sex couples. Former Dean of St Albans, the Very Reverend Jeffrey John, supported the change but described it as a "halfway house" that did not go far enough.The Evangelical Fellowship opposed the move, saying it did not uphold the "standard of Christian marriage between one man and one woman".But the church said it was a step on the way towards repentance of a history which has "demonised and persecuted gay and lesbian people".Individual clergy will be able to opt out of offering blessings to same-sex couples and some conservatives said the change would cause a split. The bill authorising a service of blessing was passed by all three orders of the church's governing body at a meeting in Newport.The bishops passed it unanimously, the clergy passed it by 28 to 12, with two abstentions, and the laity passed it by 49 to 10, with one abstention. The change is significant because a blessing, in theological terms, signifies God's approval. Bishop of St Asaph, Gregory Cameron, who introduced the bill, said he felt "no sense of triumph", but added that "the Church in Wales has done the right thing under God for the LGBTQIA+ community".Ruth Eleri James (see photo left with her partner Hannah) has both a personal and professional interest in the vote. As a woman in a same-sex relationship, she said she supported giving recognition to relationships like hers as a means of showing their validity in the wider community.She is also a trainee priest with the Church in Wales. Although unable to vote on the proposed change because of her junior status, she said she would back the bill all the way if she were able to, as has her partner Hannah, a lay member of the governing body. She said: "It's so important to us because it will reflect the real love and welcome that we have personally experienced in our local churches, who we know long to be able to offer something to couples who are in same-sex relationships."But it's also important because this is a message to LGBTQ folk in society at large to say their relationships are loved and blessed by God, and that's a message that hasn't been given, certainly in my lifetime, and I long to be able to share that with people."Ruth said she saw the contradiction expressed by other people in the LGBT community that the church would still not offer full marriage even as it blesses legal unions formed outside of its walls."Hannah and I feel strongly that God is asking us to be married one day and we will continue to hope and work and pray for the day when we can have what we call the sacrament of marriage in a church," she added."I do see the difficulty in not being able to have that and I do see the point of people who say this doesn't go far enough. But I think a step towards justice is a step in the right direction."
