Notices
Please note as per Methodist Church recommendation all worship services and group meetings in Temple are 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 12th July
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.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Posted on the TDSS Circuit website http://www.pilgrimpeople.org.uk/ , written weekly by one of our local preachers.
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 please let Anne or Hazel Jordan know.
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 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, but in the mean time here are some thoughts on the matter from Chris.
Updated information on the reopening of church buildings from The Methodist Church’s Property team can be found here.
A letter form Deborah on preparations to reopen Temple for worship can be found here.
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
From Methodist News …
PLAN FOR JOBS - A RESPONSE: Paul Morrison, a Policy Adviser on poverty, responds to the Chancellor's Plan for Jobs announcement made earlier this week and explains why we need a new vision to create an economy where everyone can flourish. Read here.
HOLIDAY HUNGER CAMPAIGN: The school holidays can be a difficult time for some families, when the provision of free school meals leaves parents struggling to put food on the table. This year there is the added impact of Covid-19. The Children, Youth and Family Team, in partnership with the Joint Public Issues Team and Transforming Lives for Good, is encouraging Methodist churches to help alleviate the problem. Read more here.
FAIRTRADE: Nestlé has announced that from October 2020 KitKats will no longer contain Fairtrade cocoa and sugar. Instead, Nestlé is moving to the promotion of its own Cocoa Plan and the Rainforest Alliance certification. Read why KitKat should remain Fairtrade in this blog post from the Joint Public Issues Team.
COUNTRYFILE: Last Sunday's Countryfile featured the vital work of the Borderlands Rural Chaplaincy, an initiative of the Shropshire and Marches Circuit and the Diocese of Hereford, which provides pastoral support to farming communities.
VE AND VJ DAY: To mark the 75th anniversaries of VE and VJ Day and the end of the Second World War, the Royal British Legion has created a series of films of British and Commonwealth veterans speaking about their experiences and their lives. Watch here.
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.
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.
