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Metropolitan Congregation - Disciple - weekly newsletter

Week commencing 29th July 2018
 

Welcome to our church which serves, affirms, and celebrates the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans (LGBT) communities of Manchester and the North West.

If this is your first contact with us, we are delighted to greet you here. To find out more about us we invite you to visit our website, 'like' our Facebook Page, view our Instagram gallery, and follow us on Twitter.
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Wilbraham St Ninian's URC
Egerton Road South, Chorlton, Manchester. M21 0XJ - Find us here.
Email: contact@metropolitanchurch.org.uk

Sunday Worship

 

Last Sunday - 29th July

 
Songs of praiseOur service was devised and led by Walt Johnson and followed a Songs of Praise format with a range of songs nominated by people in our congregation, together with readings, prayers, and ending with a simple communion.

A wide range of hymns were nominated by an equally wide range of people, and we are grateful to all who shared their comments on what the hymns meant to them.

We were able to include the choices of Ian D, Ian S, Cyrille, Emgard, Fabrice, Mamadou, Magadaline, Kevin. Gaius, Nathan, Lydie, Nas, Ruth, Andrew, Lydia, Nelson, Abdullahi, Anna, Jean Francois, Zenlita, Margaret, Cat, Rachel, and Jean Pierre.

The songs we sang are listed in the section below.

Our sincere thanks also go to:
  • Ian D, Jean Pierre, Pam, Elen, Cat, and Jean Francois, for their contributions to the service;
  • our singers and musicians for their dedicated ministry of music in the church;
  • and the team of helpers who prepare the church for worship, provide us with refreshments, manage collections from FairShare, organise distributions from our foodbank, and clear everything away at the end of the day.

Next Sunday - 5th August


Adam ScottWe welcome Revd Dr Adam Scott as our preacher and celebrant. 

All are invited to join us for inclusive worship which celebrates our place within God's diverse creation, and which welcomes us around a communion table which is always open to anyone seeking God in their life.
 

Every Sunday

  • The church is normally open from 2.30pm while the worship space is being prepared.
     
  • Music practice takes place at 3.30pm - anyone is welcome to join us for a run-through of the songs.
     
  • Our worship service begins at 4:30pm and ends at around 5.45pm followed by a time for conversation, fellowship and refreshments.

Songs this Week

 
Reflecting the diverse nature of our congregation, we sing a wide range of songs and hymns from many different traditions. These notes are intended to offer some background information on the words and music we use in our worship.
 
  • Those who sing pray twiceAbide with me (recording before service)
  • Hark the glad sound (recording before service)
  • Gaudete (recording before service)
  • The Lord's my shepherd (recording before service)
  • We are marching in the light of God
  • He came down that we may have love
  • Blessed assurance
  • What a friend we have in Jesus
  • And can it be
  • O Jesus mine / O Lamb of God
  • Silent night
  • Great is thy faithfulness
  • Jesus is the name we honour
  • Here where dreams are more than visions
  • I the Lord of sea and sky
  • When I needed a neighbour
  • Make me a channel of your peace
  • How great thou art

Please pray for... 

  • closer to god and each otherOur first-time visitors this week, and those who have yet to hear about us or are still deciding whether to come.
     
  • All who are considering the commitments of baptism and membership of our church.
     
  • The LGBT Pride celebrations which continue through the summer, and all people of faith who promote God's message of welcome, inclusion and unconditional love.
     
  • Our First Wednesday group, people seeking asylum, people with refugee status who are seeking to rebuild their lives in our communities, and especially those who are presently awaiting Home Office or judicial decisions following interviews, appeal hearings or fresh claims.
     
  • The people in our lives who are receiving medical treatment, coping with stress, undergoing therapy, feeling unwell at this time, or caring for others.
"I came that you may have life in all its fullness." John 10:10

Exploring membership of our church 

 
Salt to the earthFrom time to time, we invite people who have been attending worship with us for around six months or longer to consider becoming full members of our church.

Membership signifies a decision to make a personal commitment to the life and mission of this church, and to receive the privileges, and to accept the responsibilities, which come with membership.

Within that framework, it gives the right to vote at Church Meetings and to take part in the decision-making processes of the church.

We have already received two enquiries about baptism into the church, which brings with it membership of the URC church where the person is baptised. If you have not been baptised already, and if you are considering membership, please discuss this with either Walt or Philip.

At this stage we are seeking expressions of interest from anyone who may wish to explore what membership means and we will be inviting you to come to a discussion and preparation meeting led by our Interim Minister, Revd Alan Poolton, some time after September when he returns from his sabbatical.

For those who decide to go forward to baptism or membership, a formal service of admission will be planned for inclusion in a future Sunday worship service.

Anyone who needs further information, or who wishes to register an expression of interest with absolutely no commitment at this stage, is invited to speak to Walt or Philip after worship, or via social media, at any time.

Pride Events 2018

 
Now that the warmer weather is with us, it must be LGBT Pride season!

rainbow flagBelow is a list of regional Pride events:
  • Leeds - 5 August
  • Chester & Wigan - 11 August
  • Manchester - 24-27 August (Parade: 25 August)
  • Bolton - 21 September
  • Preston - 29 September
An extensive list is available on the Pink UK website here.

Meetings Calendar

 
meetingChurch Meetings (Sundays at 1.45pm)
  • 16th September 2018
  • 16th December 2018
Elders Meetings (Mondays at 7.30pm)
  • 22nd October 2018
  • 26th November 2018

Daily Prayer Resources

 
PrayerDaily readings, reflections and prayers via email are offered by the United Reformed Church. To subscribe to the free service please complete the online subscription form here.

You can access an archive of all previous URC Daily Devotions here.

If you would like to explore some additional online prayer resources, please visit the Daily Prayer and Devotion page on our website here.

Foodbank

 
you did it for meMany thanks for your regular and generous donations to the foodbank from which we make small weekly donations to people in need. You make a real difference to people's lives - some will have a meal on their table today solely because of your gifts!

We provide a bag of food and other basic essentials to a number of people each week which supplements either the meagre allowance they are given by the state or the Red Cross food parcels they receive for a limited period.

We know that some people rely significantly on the food we provide as they are not entitled to either help from the state or the Red Cross.

As a general rule, we always need long-life foodstuffs such as:
  • rice,
  • pasta,
  • pasta sauces,
  • tinned vegetables (peas, carrots, baked beans, kidney beans, potatoes, chopped or plum tomatoes),
  • canned fruit,
  • jams and preserves,
  • tea, coffee, sugar,
  • and any other long-life basic larder items such as herbs, spices and condiments
Personal toiletry items (ideally 'family' brands for use by both men and women) - such as shower gel, shampoo, soap and deodorant - are also very welcome.

Previous issues of Disciple

 
NewsletterIf you missed an issue of our weekly newsletter Disciple which comes out by email, you can view previous issues covering the last 12 months.

Just go to our website here and click on the links in the right hand column of the home page headed 'Recent Newsletters'.

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'Easter Morning' window by Francis Spear.
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