Noticeboard
The women of the island of Vanuatu in the South Pacific have written this year’s World Day of Prayer service, so every day from Tuesday 23 February until the World Day of Prayer on Friday 5 March, an article about Vanuatu will be posted on World Day of Prayer Scotland Facebook page.
Leaders of most of the Christian denominations in Scotland will be offering their Thought for the Day about Vanuatu and the wider world, and this will be followed by a prayer led by a member of the Scottish committee. You are warmly invited to join each day.
During Lent the RSCM will be holding Night Prayer services every Wednesday at 8.00pm and they would love you to join them! Every service will be broadcast live on their Facebook page and YouTube channel, and will also be available to listen at your leisure. The 24 February traditional Compline service, with music by Thomas Tallis, is already available.
The liturgy will come from either the RSCM’s Night Prayer or Compline (Traditional language) Common Worship publications and will be on the screen as they go through the service. For those who want to sing along, the choral music used, including the hymn/anthem and the Nunc dimittis for each service is still available to buy as a download or printed, though the rehearsal tracks, performed by St Martin’s Voices, directed by Gabriella Noble, that enabled singers to learn the music in advance of the service have now been removed. [updated 8 Apr 2021]
An idea for a Lenten discipline
Last year one of the resources I used was from Embrace the Middle East, and part of it was that you put 5p in a tub each time you had a drink, remembering those who don’t have clean water.
I’m thinking that, given the focus this year on washing our hands, a way to remember those who don’t have proper washing facilities even in the midst of Covid, could be putting 5p or 10p into a Lent Box each time we wash our hands.
It would be a way to both appreciate how fortunate we are, but also collect some money to give to a charity at the end of Lent.
If you’re not using money much just now – many payments are ‘hands free’ with your card or ‘online’ – then you could have a sheet where you keep a tally, then count up and make the payment to your charity at the end of Lent.
Jan Benvie
The conference steering committee are proud to announce that ‘Responding to the Sacred: Gender & Liturgy in Conversation’ will take place this spring as a free online event. Each day from 12-16 April a new discussion video will be released, with space for our audience to comment during the livestream. On 17 April we’ll host a live plenary session from St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh (God-willing or, in the language of these interesting times, Covid-restrictions-allowing).
Aside from going online, our conference aims and roster of speakers remains the same. Taking in a wide range of perspectives we’ll discuss issues in the field of gender and liturgy, in the context of liturgical reform beginning within the Scottish Episcopal Church. Our speakers include: Merete Thommassen (University of Oslo), Bill Paterson (MindfulnessFife), Bishop Ian Paton (SEC), Leon van Ommen (SEC, University of Aberdeen), Bridget Nichols (Church of Ireland Theological Institute, Dublin), David Jasper (SEC, University of Glasgow), Lisa Isherwood (University of Winchester), Beverly Clack (Oxford Brookes University).
The main event will be in April but preliminary material is already online. Sign up via the Facebook event page (facebook.com/genandlit), or simply email us at genandlit@gmail.com.
A four-week study on Zoom from 7.00–8:15pm, on Tuesdays in Lent: 23 February, 2 March; 9 March; 16 March.
Tenants of the King is a four-part Bible-based Lent study designed to help each of us and our churches consider what the Bible has to say about today’s climate crisis. Each session is interactive and includes video interviews with leading Christian thinkers and insightful Bible commentary.
The study will be led by Jan Benvie, and will help us to reflect on the challenges of a changing climate, building on the motion passed at last year’s General Synod of the SEC setting the target of zero carbon emissions by the church by 2030 (report on the decision at this link).
It is produced by Operation Noah, a Christian charity working with the Church to inspire action on the climate crisis. There is a booklet to go with the course which you can download in PDF format at this link, or printed copies will be sent on request.
If you are interested, or simply want to find out more, please email jbenvie@yahoo.co.uk, including your postal address if you’d like a copy of the booklet.
