A Multisensory Maundy Thursday Service idea

Follow the link to our website http://www.methodistchildren.org.uk/adults/Maundy Thursday.htmand find  ideas to help make a Maundy Thursday service interactive and multisensory  You may want to add your own Powerpoint or include storytelling in the service. What follows are suggestions that may stimulate your planning.  The material can be adapted to meet your own needs, there is plenty of material you may not want to include it all.
The theme is Strange and Familiar Food, the suggested Bible readings covers Passover, Last  Supper and a selection of stories with a theme of eating, caring, loving gestures.and footwashing:  This material can be used with a small group or a full service. It could also be adapted and used in a Café Style situation after sharing a meal together.

Bring new life to your church this Easter with Leaves of Life

You may already have seen the exciting Eastertide initiative from The Children’s Society which gives you the opportunity to actively engage children in worship and the life of your church through preparation of prayer leaves in children’s groups and schools.  These leaves provide a powerful insight into how children at the heart of your community see their lives.

Leaves of Life will help you:
Engage children in worship between Easter and Pentecost through children’s group or school activities
Reflect on what you’d like to thank God for and what you’d like to see changed for children in your community
Invite friends from the local community to come and celebrate the Easter message of new life
Go out in the Spirit through responding to the children’s prayer leaves

New this year is the ‘my church’ postcard. It has been specially designed to gather children’s views on their experience of church and what difference church makes in their life.  The feedback received will be collated and used to help support you and children’s leaders up and down the country, as you share the Gospel with children, nurture their faith and walk alongside them on the Christian path.

For further information please visit www.childrenssociety.org.uk/leaves or to order your free materials telephone 0845 600 8585

More CORE Issues in Training - over 40 spaces gone already!

This ecumenical training conference is not to be missed! For those working with children, children's workers and beyond!

MORE Core Issues in Training at the University of Nottingham from Friday 5th September to Sunday 7th September 2008.

There will be workshops on transitions, special needs, global issues, as well as time spent looking at young leaders, spirituality and where the governments in the nations are heading with children's issues. This is an event not to be missed!

You can book in now for the Conference by downloading the booking form from here - http://www.methodistchildren.org.uk/adults/More Core booking form.pdf

The cost is £150 per person - talk to your Church Council or Circuit about supporting you to get there! Contact secretary@cgmcontheweb.com for more information.

NEW PASSION RESOURCE FOR CHURCHES AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD

This press release came from the Christian Enquiry Agency and we thought it may be useful-

Following the latest meeting of the churches’ representative group looking at how to respond to the upcoming BBC Drama production of The Passion, we have designed material for local churches’ use in promoting

1. -          the BBC1 screening, and
2. -          the follow up content on http://www.rejesus.co.uk/passion

It can be downloaded from:www.christianity.org.uk/downloads/the_passion_rejesus_poster_A3.pdf   www.christianity.org.uk/downloads/the_passion_rejesus_poster_A4.pdf   www.christianity.org.uk/downloads/the_passion_rejesus_poster_A5.pdf  

There are PDFs of three sizes of poster (A3, A4, A5) which can be printed out locally and used to raise awareness of The Passion and the churches’ response. 

The goal of all of this is quite simply to create the greatest possible awareness among the public at large of the BBC production itself and the fact that the churches are making a specific, creative response to the drama, which links into other content on the rejesus.co.uk site about Jesus.
The www.rejesus.co.uk website was established by the churches of Britain and Ireland in order that there is effective and accessible information about Jesus available on the internet.

Swop-Shop Dresden ‘Gehet hin in all the World’
30 April – 4 May 2008

Methodist children’s workers from all over Europe will be gathering at a floating conference centre on the river Elbe in the middle of the historic city of Dresden, Germany, for four days of inspiration and idea-sharing.
Would you like to join them?
The cost for accommodation is €100 (about £75) for adults and €50 for children. You will need to arrange your own travel but there are reasonably priced flights to Dresden around £100 and we may be able to help with this.

There is a children’s programme and the ship is wheelchair accessible.
We have worked with our German colleagues to produce a really exciting programme, you’ll come back having had a great experience and with loads of inspiration and ideas.

Download the booking form here (pdf) or contact children@methodistchurch.org.uk for more details.

Children are Unbeatable Alliance

The campaign to encourage parliamentarians to support the Children and Young Persons Bill includes a mass mailing to MPs. We have a supply of A5 postcards and it is a great opportunity for us all to take part in the campaign. The postcards are eye-catching and will make an impact on any MP receiving them in quantity. The message is already printed on the reverse and only the name of the MP and sender need adding. Below is a press release which gives background to the campaign.

The Children and Young Persons Bill, currently in the House of Lords, will reach the House of Commons in the coming months.  This offers a serious opportunity to change the law to give children the same protection from being hit in the home, that adults take for granted.  Our first task is to let Members of Parliament know that large numbers of their constituents want their law-makers to act in 2008 to achieve equal protection for children.

Hitting/smacking another adult human, however “lightly”, is common assault and is regarded as violating a person’s physical and emotional integrity.  Hitting/smacking the smallest and most vulnerable human beings is disguised as “discipline”.  The right not to be hit is also a child’s right under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 19). The UK has continually failed to meet its human rights obligation to give children equal protection. 

Hitting and humiliating children is common and socially accepted in many countries and some groups even use religious justification for the practice. But there is a growing global movement to outlaw the practice. Christian leaders are increasingly speaking out against corporal punishment and promoting positive non-violent discipline which models the way Jesus treated children - with respect, gentleness and compassion for their human dignity.

Websites: www.endcorporal punishment.org
 www.coe.int/children; www.churchesfornon-violence.org

Europe aims to become a corporal punishment free zone by 2009.
The following countries have already achieved full prohibition:

Austria (1989), Brazil (2007), Bulgaria (2000), Chile 2007; Croatia (1998), Cyprus
( 1998), Denmark (1997), Finland (1983), Germany (2000), Greece (2006), Hungary(2004), Iceland (2003), Israel (2000), Latvia (1998), Netherlands (2007), New Zealand (2007) Norway (1987), Portugal (2007), Romania (2004), Spain (2007), Sweden (1979), Ukraine (2003) Uruguay (2007), Venezuela (2007).

Have a look at these....

We are FUMC in Canon City Colorado. Our group of 4th and 5th grade (8-10 years) girls
are looking for Pen Pals. Would this be of interest to your age groups? http://www.canoncityfumc.org/

Thank you for your response.

Joyce Gregor
Children and Family Ministry Coordinator

Junior Solid
Live or work with children in the Essex area? Heard of Junior SOLID? If you haven't you will want to download this flyer and visit their website now! http://www.solidnet.org.uk/

ROOTS for Churches Ltd, Part-time (0.5) Administrator

ROOTS for Churches Ltd publishes worship and learning resources, in the form of two magazines, ROOTS Worship, and ROOTS Children and Young People, and a website, www.rootsontheweb.com, for worship leaders and those working with children and young people in churches across the denominations.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and professional administrator to support a small team consisting of the Project Director and three editors. This is a new post which offers plenty of scope for someone with initiative to help organise and run the project.

The post-holder will be responsible for:
•  processing payments and basic accounting/record-keeping
•  the administration of key documentation, e.g. issuing letters of agreement to contributors, maintaining the contacts database, maintaining central files and records
•  organising meetings and overnight conferences, e.g. finding and booking venues, preparing paperwork, attending some meetings to take minutes
•  responding to phone call and email enquiries and liaising with subscribers, contributors and suppliers.

The ideal candidate will be:
•  highly organised and have a keen eye for detail
•  an excellent communicator able to engage with a wide range of people
•  IT literate with experience of Microsoft Office and using the web
•  sympathetic to the Christian ethos.

The post is for 17.5 hours per week, with a salary of£18,000–£20,000 p.a. (pro rata), based in the Churches Together in Britain and Ireland office in Paris Garden, SE1. There can be some flexibility around school holidays and working from home.

Please apply by post or email with a letter explaining how you fit the requirements of the job. Enclose your CV and the names of two independent referees. Closing date 9th April  2008. Interview date 16th April 2008.

Send applications to Rosemary Nixon, ROOTS Project Director.
Email: Rosemary.Nixon@ctbi.org.uk
Postal address: ROOTS for Churches Ltd, Bastille Court, 2 Paris Garden, London,
SE1 8ND.

Breakout 2008 11th to 13th July
Cliff College Chesterfield

A  vibrant, exciting and inspiring event for young people, Breakout brings together leaders and young people from all over the country for a weekend of entertainment, education, reflection, faith, and worship. There is a great feeling of community.

Be challenged, have new experiences, tackle issues of injustice and division around the world.

Have access to a range of resources, top class worship including well known Christian band Yfriday

There are discounts for early bookings see more about breakout on www.breakout2008.info
Download a booking form here

If you require any further information please contact us on children@methodistchurch.org.uk 

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MethodistChildren