Notices
Please note as per Methodist Church recommendation most worship services and group meetings in Temple have been suspended for the time being in line with Government guidance during the coronavirus outbreak. In the mean time we will continue to bring you church news on this page.
Notices for the week beginning 20th September
For further information about any of the items below, please email enquiries@templetaunton.uk
STREAMED SERVICE at 9.30 am: each Sunday, taken by Rev. Deborah Kirk and Rev Tony Cox (link here).
ZOOM MEETING at 10.30am: each Sunday, taken by Rev Chris Brown and Rev Peter Thomas. Contact Chris chris@revbrown.co.uk for details on joining in.
ZOOM BIBLE STUDY: at 7.30pm each Tuesday. Contact Chris chris@revbrown.co.uk for details on joining in.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Posted on the TDSS Circuit website , written weekly by one of our local preachers.
AT TEMPLE THIS WEEK:
Sunday 20th September: Thanksgiving Service at 2:30 pm
(Limited to pre-booked places)
Tuesday 22nd September: Temple Open for Private Prayer 10:30 am til 12:30 pm
Wednesday 23rd September: Midweek Service, Rev Tony Cox 10:15 am til 11:35 am
Coffee tea biscuits in the hall from 10:50 am
(Limited to 12 so please book)
Please note that face coverings should be worn at all events in Temple. Please do not attend if you have any symptoms (more information here).
CHURCH NOTICES: The weekly notice sheet will continue to be produced and sent to anyone who would like a copy by email, as will the monthly Circuit Link magazine. If you would like to be added to the mailing list or have items to be included, please contact Anne or Hazel Jordan.
CIRCUIT LINK: The monthly Circuit Link magazine will also continue to be produced and sent to anyone who would like a copy by email. If you have items for the next magazine or would like to be added to the mailing list please contact Janet Dickinson.
PASTORAL TEAMS: While we are unable to meet in person a new telephone contact list has been drawn up and circulated to keep us in touch. Please contact Anne Jordan for more information.
CHURCH FAMILY NEWS: Please note that although we cannot put personal details on the website, Church Family News can be found in the Notices distributed via email. If you wish to be added to the email list please contact Hazel Jordan.
PAUL STREET URC MONTHLY CHURCH MAGAZINE: A copy of the monthly URC magazine for June can be found here.
RESOURCES FOR HOME WORSHIP: See our This Week's Service , Prayer Page , and Home Worship pages for home worship resources, as well as the following ...
Live-streamed Services: Wesley’s Chapel in London Wednesday 12.45, Thursday 12.45 and Sunday 9.45 and 11.00. Swan Bank Methodist Church in Burslem Sunday 10.30 Methodist Central Hall, Westminster Sunday 11.00. Methodist Central Hall Westminster have made their sermons available online as podcasts. Click here to listen.
Morning Prayers: 09:00 Monday-Friday - from Wesley House Cambridge. Resources for following the prayers and readings are available at: www.wesley.cam.ac.uk/prayer-space
Worship Resources: the Methodist Church website has links to worship and prayer resources for home as well as the latest news from the Connexion.
ROOTS is currently offering free resources to use at home every week on the ROOTS website. See www.rootsontheweb.com/
BBC LOCAL RADIO: BBC Local Radio, including Somerset, are broadcasting half hour virtual services on Sunday mornings at 8.00am on 95.5 AM / DAB and 1566MW. You can find how to listen to your BBC local radio station here.
PLANS FOR REOPENING OF CHURCHES IN THE CIRCUIT
Although the Methodist Church's current advice is for most churches to remain closed, we are beginning to look forward to the time when our churches will be able to reopen, and in this respect we are beginning to plan how this can be accomplished, whilst putting the welfare and safety of our congregation first. Detailed planning will only be started once we have this advice from the Methodist Church.
Updated information on the reopening of church buildings from The Methodist Church’s Property team can be found here.
Here is an update on the circuit view from Chris.
A September update from Deborah on the reopening Temple can be found here.
Update following the government announcement on 8th September ...
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has provided us with further clarification on the Government announcement this week of changes to permitted social interaction which come into place on Monday 14th September. We understand that the full regulations will be published later this week and we will update our guidance accordingly.
In summary:
• Places of Worship can remain open for services and prayer. As before, the limit on the number of people is based on the risk assessment but now any group can be no more than 6 people.
• Weddings and funerals are still allowed and maximum numbers remain at 30 with people divided into groups of no more than 6.
• Community Halls remain open and activities are allowed as before but within each activity, participants can be in groups that consist of no more than 6 people.
• The government has emphasised that venues must be Covid-19 secure and contact details must be left for Test and Trace.
See also Upcoming Services
BIBLE STUDY OPPORTUNITIES:
Rev Brian Stocks has offered to lead an online (Zoom) short Bible Study on the Gospel of Mark. These will begin on Thursday 24th September, between 10.30 and 12noon and continue on Thursday mornings for 4 weeks. Please would you contact Deborah to register interest, so that the zoom passwords, and notes can be shared before the first session.
Brian writes: There are many question and answer sessions in Mark’s story about Jesus, but the 4 I have chosen to focus on are:
Mark 2 After the healing of the paralysed man, “Who is this?”
Mark 7.56 Why don’t your disciples keep our traditions?
Mark 4 What is this parable about?
Mark 4 Don’t you care if we drown?
VACANCY:
Regional Development Officer – Devon. 8 Hours per week, £15-18 p/h, contract: One Year initially (Review after 6 months). The role will be a self-employed position and will involve working from home. We are specifically looking for someone with the relevant experience who shares our vision to reach and support isolated older people. All applicants must be sympathetic to Linking Lives’ Christian beliefs. For more information and a Role Description, please contact Jeremy Sharpe at recruitment@linkinglives.uk.
Application deadline: 5.00pm Wednesday 23rd September 2020.
From Methodist News …
YEAR OF PRAYER - PARTICIPATE:
The Methodist Conference has declared 2020/2021 a year of prayer. Join others across the Methodist Church to pray together, every Tuesday from 12.45pm to 1.00pm. Read more and register here.
GLOBAL RELATIONSHIPS - PRESIDENTIAL THEME RESOURCES:
The Global Relationships team have published worship resources based on the Presidential theme for 2020/21 of "The Best of All is God is with Us." The resources include videos, stories, pictures, prayers and reflections from the work of God around the world. Download the resources here.
PEACE SUNDAY RESOURCES:
Sunday 20th September is Peace Sunday, the Sunday closest to the UN Day of Peace, 21st September. The World Council of Churches calls on churches to make this a day of prayer for peace. Resources can be found here.
ACTION FOR CHILDREN – POVERTY:
The charity Action for Children have released a report entitled Childhood During Coronavirus: protecting children from the effects of poverty. The report highlights the need for the government to improve financial support for low-income families. You can read the report here.
REOPENING:
The Revd Mark Lawrence of Plymouth and Devonport Circuit was interviewed across the BBC local radio network on how churches have reopened with the restrictions required to keep worshippers safe and how churches are adapting to pastoral ministry online. You can listen to his interview on BBC Bristol here, starting at 1:09.
FREE TELEPHONE PRAYER AND NEWS
Prayers and news from the Methodist Church.
Listen to a prayer: 0808 281 2514
Listen to news: 0808 281 2478
Content is updated every Thursday afternoon.
SOCIAL MEDIA AND OTHER SCAMS
Please be aware that unfortunately in these uncertain and difficult times when we may be more vulnerable than normal, there are people who are taking advantage of our desire to communicate with one another via social media. Other routes used include cold calls on your phone, text messages or emails, and bogus websites. The following websites have advice on recognising and reporting scams, and what to do if you think you have fallen prey to a scam.
UK Government - Avoid and report internet scams and phishing
Citizens Advice - Check if something might be a scam
Age UK - Scams and fraud
SAFE FAMILIES
Safe Families are looking for volunteers in Somerset who might be able to support a family virtually through telephone or video calls. Certain people may also be free to pick up shopping, but staying in contact through this period of isolation is a priority need. There is a checking process, training and oversight for any volunteers. (Don't be put off by this - it probably just means joining a short virtual training session.)
If anyone feels they are in a position to help in this way, you are able to sign up on the volunteer website page.
You can find out more about the work of the charity from the website www.safefamilies.uk, and - whether you are able to volunteer practically or not - we are encouraged to pray for their work.
TAUNTON FOOD BANK
The latest update is that they are doing ok for volunteers and the Council has given them delivery vans and drivers. However, they would welcome additional supplies. Please find details on Taunton Foodbank website of their updated list of items to shop for and also how to donate if you are unable to go out shopping.
COMMUNITY FOOD SUPPLIERS
As up to date as possible, the printable A-Z Food Suppliers Directory can be found here: Coronavirus Community Help Taunton
CHRISTIAN AID
The Covid-19 situation has meant that much of this usual fundraising could not go ahead for Christian Aid Week 2020, so the charity built a vibrant, virtual Christian Aid Week to help people in Britain and Ireland show love for neighbours near and far, as a global family, in these challenging times. For details see here.
ALL WE CAN
In the world’s poorest communities people are having to face coronavirus without access to running water and soap. Living in cramped and unhygienic conditions, social distancing simply isn’t possible. All We Can and the Methodist Church in Britain have launched an Emergency Coronavirus Appeal to help equip vulnerable communities across the globe to combat coronavirus.
YOUR NEIGHBOUR: A new website, YourNeighbour.org, aims to support the work that churches are doing to be good neighbours in communities across the UK during the coronavirus crisis. They will support vulnerable, people working as a coordinated national response, partnering with the UK government and other agencies.
MHA: MHA are looking to recruit volunteers across the country to help them through the coronavirus crisis and support their clients. The roles are flexible and will be allocated dependent upon the needs of services in your local area. You can find details of the roles here.
ACTION FOR CHILDREN: Action for Children has launched an Emergency Coronavirus Appeal to help provide essentials to the most vulnerable families they support across the UK and those potentially affected in the future. You can read more here.
