This month: Battles in Bethlehem - A prayer for Bethlehem’s children - O little town... - The ultimate unusual gifts - Different in diversity - Three appeals at Christmas - The Micah Challenge - Recycling guidance
 

Battles in Bethlehem

Jessica Safar, aged seven, is a child of Bethlehem. All the children who live in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories have had their formative years scarred by the fear or presence of violence.
In Jessica's case it has left her with permanent scars - a loss of sight in one eye. She was returning from a visit to her father at work when she was caught in fighting and hit in the eye by shrapnel from a bullet fired by Israeli soldiers.
Jessica and her family were put in touch with the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in Beit Sahour, just outside Bethlehem. Funded and supported by Christian Aid, the YMCA specialises in helping young people with
disabilities and injuries caused by conflict.
Meanwhile, thousands more people are becoming victims of violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Christian Aid continues to work with Christians, Muslims and Jews through partner organisations to support initiatives for peace and justice.

From Christian Aid.

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The ultimate unusual gifts

If you’re looking for that really unusual gift to give this Christmas, you could consider the ‘Send a Cow’ scheme.
The idea is that you pay for a cow to be given to an impoverished African family working a tiny, worn out plot of land. The family is trained to look after the cow and the milk the cow produces helps the family to improve its diet. Any extra milk is sold to pay for medical care, better housing or children’s education. Manure from the cow helps to improve the quality of the soil, so the family can grow more - and better - crops.
Send a Cow has already helped thousands of families in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Lesotho, Tanzania, Zambia and Ethiopia. This year, the scheme has been expanded to include goats, chickens, pigs and even bees. Prices range from £10 to £2,000.
For more details, visit www.sendacow.org.uk or call 0845 660 4670.

Spotted by Graham Clarke.

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Different in diversity

The 2005 Baptist Assembly promises to be ‘different’ from previous assemblies.  For one thing, it will be held at the International Conference Centre in Birmingham.  For another, it takes place over just one day - Saturday 23rd April. 
While it will include some familiar elements - such us the induction of the presidents of the Baptist Union of Great Britain (Roy Searle) and BMS World Mission (David Doonan); the recognition of ministers; the valediction of missionaries; the ‘In Memoriam’ session, remembering those who have died since the previous Assembly, and some ‘business sessions’ - the event will include a look at ‘Scripture through different lenses’. This will involve different traditions from within the Baptist family exploring one piece of Scripture.
The Assembly’s theme is ‘Creating Diversity’ and, continuing that theme into the evening, there will be ‘Baptist music’ from the Northumbria Community and ‘Revive’.
Tickets are available for the whole event including the evening concert at £25 each. Tickets for the Assembly cost £20 and those for the concert cost £7.50. For further details contact Graham Clarke, on 01727 857786.

Supplied by Graham Clarke.

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Three appeals at Christmas

This year, the church’s Christmas giving is focused on three appeals: Spurgeon’s Child Care, Christian Aid in Bethlehem and Home Start.
There are several ways in which you can contribute to these causes.
First, you can give a donation in lieu of postage or cards through our ‘Christmas Cards postal system’ (see back page).  Collect an envelope from our church treasurer, Chris Songer; put a donation in the envelope and indicate, on the outside of the envelope, your preferred charity.  Return the envelope to Chris or place it in the offertory bag and the money will be passed on.
Over the Christmas period, our ‘loose’ offering on specific Sundays will be for one these charities.  At the morning Carol Service, on 19th December, we will be focusing on Home Start.  The offering at the children’s Carol Service on the same day will be benefiting Christian Aid in Bethlehem and, as is our usual custom, on Christmas Day we will be supporting the work of Spurgeon’s Child Care.

Here is some extra information on each of these charities:

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The Micah Challenge

BMS World Mission has joined several other well known Christian charities in the Micah Challenge.  Based on Micah 6:8, this is an initiative aimed at engaging UK Christians with the issue of global poverty.  The challenge, also supported by the Baptist World Alliance, World Evangelical Alliance and Tearfund, expresses the BMS’s commitment to alleviating suffering and injustice.
The BMS defines part of its mission statement as an aim to share life in all its fullness with the world's peoples.  As part of the holistic approach to achieving this end, the BMS does not limit itself to dealing with the symptoms of poverty and oppression but aims to address the causes as well.
Much of the humanitarian work in which the BMS is involved relates to development work. Education, medical, relief and basic aid work are often necessary because of the extreme poverty in which many communities live.
All 191 nations of the UN have promised to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.  The aim of the Micah Challenge is to provide a Christian voice to hold governments to those commitments.
The MDGs include specific targets regarding poverty, hunger, education, maternal and child health, disease, gender equality, the environment, debt and trade justice.  The Micah Challenge is motivated by the belief that advocacy for these objectives is in-keeping with the prophetic tradition of Scripture and the work of many Christian agencies among the world's poor.  The BMS believes that signing up to the Micah Challenge is an effective way to speak out boldly on behalf of those who cannot speak out for themselves.
Alistair Brown, the BMS general director, said of the BMS's decision to become part of the Micah Challenge: "I think the responsibility of those of us who have so much is to take sides with those who have so little; to be a voice for the voiceless; to act for the powerless.
“Those who suffer the most deprivation - the victims of unfair trading conditions, for example - don't have a powerful voice.  But we do have a powerful voice and we can at least challenge some practices and hopefully see things change.  There is evidence that this sort of campaigning really does change policies.  It makes a real difference to people who probably don't even know we're speaking for them. But we must do it.  It is part of bringing God's love to bear on those situations."

From BMS World News.

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Recycling guidance

Christmas is a time for giving and receiving - and, at this special time, I’m inviting you to give something to a stranger, at no cost to yourself, if you can.
Some members of my family have inherited an eye condition called Retinitus Pigmentosa, (RP).
RP is one of a group of retinal atrophies which cause loss of sight - sometimes rapidly from birth, but, more often, it starts later with loss of night vision.  Then peripheral vision disappears, or the central vision goes, leaving just side vision.
Very few ‘blind’ people have total loss of sight.  Most can differentiate light and shade, or are aware of blurred shapes.
As a child, it never occurred to me that it was unusual that one of my grandfathers was blind.
His sight had deteriorated quickly in his 20s and 30s.  His blindness never seemed to bother him, perhaps because his mother had gone blind in middle age - as had two of his five siblings and his maternal grandfather.
In the 1970s I was told that I didn‘t have RP but, about 15 years ago, I became aware that my night vision was very poor.  A routine eye check led to a visit to Moorfields, which confirmed that I had RP.
I now have only central vision - about ten per cent of a normal person’s vision - with a few dark patches appearing.  Through research, a cure is now thought possible within my lifetime - which is wonderful for future generations.
Visually impaired people can become mobile and independent with a guide dog.
Puppies are highly trained to be a pet, companion and working dog.
The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association (GDftB) is funded solely by legacies and donations from the public.  This charity pays for all training, vets’ bills and food for the guide dog if the owner is on a low income.
Did you know that visually impaired people pay just 50p for their guide dogs?
You could help to provide a guide dog by donating your old mobile phone if you get a new one this Christmas.
GDftB gets £3.50 for each phone donated.  It also receives £1 for spent printer cartridges.
So please help a visually impaired person to have a Happy New Year if you can.

By Sue Saunders.