The last few months has seen the unfolding of the biggest financial crisis for decades. Greece and Italy are deeply enmeshed in such huge debt that “normal” rules within the European Union and management of the Euro have all but broken down. The obvious danger is that the management of these debts might become so difficult that markets fail to have confidence in the authorities to stabilise the currency leading to economic chaos.

Yet senior management in this country had a salary rise of no less than 48% last year. Well-known figures in the media, even the BBC, are earning literally millions of pounds a year. Bankers’ bonuses are the stuff of legend even following the banking crisis, and for many money is simply no object.

We require commerce and depend on it. Ever since we first started farming and dividing labour into trades we learned to rely on the skills of others. And today anyone on a pension or planning a pension is just as reliant upon the skills of businesses and the financial sector as anyone else. Although we may criticise the excesses in the financial sector we all benefit from them to an extent. It’s like getting caught up in a traffic jam and blaming the traffic: we forget that we are traffic ourselves. We want to have our cake and eat it – the benefits of commercial life without its extremes. In a de-regulated financial sector this is harder to achieve than it sounds, particularly in an economy like ours that derives such benefit from the City.

A tiny fragment of this chaos washed up at St Paul’s Cathedral. Facing one of the most recognisable buildings in London is a collection of the most temporary – nylon tents. The occupants are there to make the point about the excesses and injustices of capitalism and wealth in the face of the poor. The incident has cost the Cathedral dearly.

The still wider context is that there are now seven billion people on earth, all of whom need to eat, a home, an education, health care and something to hope, believe in and work for. We cannot all be wealthy; the resources of the earth cannot bear it. But is it not a matter of human justice that some live in wealth whilst others are virtually destitute? We already exist at a consumption rate of over twice what the world can produce, so how are we all to live? As Sir David Attenborough attests, it simply cannot go on like this without change.

And Christmas? Living in temporary accommodation with simplicity brings to mind the Christmas crib scene made popular by St Francis. It was he who confronted the wealthy of his own day with the story of Christ’s birth in Luke with the installation of a crib scene in Greccio in 1223. By placing life-sized figures in a nearby cave and inviting people to view it he made a big impact. The church of his day was (and in many cases still is) a wealthy institution. Merchants vied with each other to build and adorn churches. Yet at its heart Christ’s birth is a story of simplicity. Francis made this point with a media savvy that many a Cathedral might envy.

There is nothing worthy or good in abject poverty and the church has never taught that there is. But Christ warned frequently of the moral corruption brought by a reliance upon wealth – indeed he spoke of it more than any other moral subject. Let us hope that some of this wisdom can be used in the future as these complex issues are resolved.

As we set up our cribs perhaps we can reflect again on the financial situation, our reliance upon the financial and commercial skills of others, and the contrasting simplicity of Christ’s holy birth. It may come as a refreshing antidote to the news, and bring us a simple joy at Christmas.

Noel Hector, Rural Dean, Portishead

‘So what did we do last year?’ is a question often asked but seldom acknowledged when it comes to the planning of services. We’ll have more to refer to next year as last month saw the launch of three new services in the Camelot parishes.

Firstly, after considering how the links between the Church and the School could be developed, we launched our inaugural Family Service in North Cadbury Church School. It was an inclusive service accompanied by a dramatic version of the Prodigal Son acted out by some of the children. The designing and making of a Prayer Tree was led and designed by one of our new Lay Worship Assistants, and an interactive session in which I asked the congregation why we might want to run away from God, and our feelings when we do so, replaced a sermon.

The response was very positive, so we have set the date for the next one in February, and intend to continue with one each full term.

Next there was a Service of Thanksgiving for All Saints and All Souls. We wanted to take the opportunity to use such a service as a form or outreach to those who were recently bereaved, so wrote to all those families whose loved ones’ funerals had been taken by us in the past couple of years, and put an advert in the parish magazine. Around 60 attended, most of who were not regular members of our congregations. The feedback was that the service was a very special time, with the invitation to come to the altar to place a lit candle in memory as the most special moment.

Whilst no firm plans for next year have been made, our discussions have suggested that this service might open the door for some individual visits by clergy and/ or Lay Pastoral Assistants (we have recently completely Lay Pastoral Assistant training). The possibility of facilitating a Bereavement Support Group, an informal group of people who meet together to share their experiences, has also been discussed.

And finally, a special Remembrance Service led by the Archdeacon of Wells to commemorate the recent restoration of the War Memorial. There was a great feeling of the whole community coming together, and all different sections were represented.

Though these services were very diverse, each one of them brought in new and different faces to our regular congregations. What, I asked myself, could we learn from this? Creativity, children, schools, loss, grief and war are all significant markers in our common human experience regardless of our faith. Yet it seemed to me that there existed a spiritual hunger and a question, perhaps as yet unspoken, ‘where’s God in all of this?’

And this challenges us as the church to help people make the necessary connections. The example of Jesus’ ministry to the Samaritan woman at the well, drawing along side others at their time of need, is one that we need to continue to learn from especially in the season of Christmas.

Tristram Rae Smith, Rector, Camelot Parishes Benefice

The people of Foxhill Estate, Combe Down were celebrating the rebuilding of St Andrew’s Community Church last month after arsonists destroyed the old building in 2005. Bishop Peter Price came to rededicate the Church on 30 November.

The church members worked incredibly hard to raise around £800,000, through Holy Trinity Combe Down’s Rainbow Project, to enable this project to take place. Having been awarded planning permission in 2009, work finally began in April 2011, and has resulted in a brand new community church and refurbished church rooms, known as the Trinity Rooms.

The new church will be led by a team including Catherine Vaughan, Associate Minister at Holy Trinity who is really looking forward to the people of Foxhill having a building once again to worship in and meet together as community. She said “It’s fantastic. It has been a long time coming and it is brilliant to think it is actually opening in the community for the community.” Many of the events that previously met in the St Andrew’s Centre have since been meeting in the adjacent community centre, such as a worship services on Sundays, Hot Lunch Drop in, toddlers, craft activities, etc.

Catherine said “The new building is much more spacious and more flexible in terms of how it can be used. There is a café area and we are looking forward to it becoming a focal point for the whole community.”

Over 200 people attended the Dedication Service, including some who had been at the dedication of the original St Andrew’s Centre in December 1956, and there was a great feeling of celebration. Bishop Peter Price and Paul Kenchington, Vicar of Holy Trinity, dedicated and prayed for different parts of the building, saying “It was amazing to see the building so full of life and praise after such a long wait and so many prayers leading up to this day.” Archdeacon Andy Piggott also took part in the service and described the day as “one of the most exciting days I have ever been involved with during my ministry”.

Sarah Knedel, Vicar's PA, Combe Down Benefice

In the beginning it sounded exhausting 'forty four parishes in two days'. 15 drivers and 18 visits posed quite a logistical challenge, but everything went according to plan. Both Bishops really enjoyed the visit and met a wide range of people from across the Deanery.

Bishop Peter Maurice was impressed by the work of the Balsam Centre, Wincanton where resources and care are offered for people of all ages and stages of life within the local community. Bishop Peter Price visited Wincanton Community hospital and chatted with staff and patients about the joys and challenges of providing good quality health care in financially difficult times.

Also included in the packed itinerary was:

• Lunch and conversation with clergy, Readers and retired clergy from the area

• Visits to At the Chapel in Bruton, a community project which provides both a restaurant and arts centre

• A tour of the Carymoor Environmental Centre and Haynes International Motor Museum

• Meeting craftsmen at Horsehair textiles, artisan cheesemakers at Moorhayes Farm and the crew and volunteers of the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.

Rose Hoskins says, "It was a fantastic two days with mission and ministry coming together in a very natural way. The Bishops returned to Wells full of beans about the visit, saying it was one of the best they had experienced."

Read the full report on our website at www.bathandwells.org.uk/diocese/news

Rose Hoskins, Rural Dean and John Wood, Lay Chair, Bruton and Cary Deanery

Community Payback is a scheme where lower risk offenders (one who has driving convictions, perhaps a conviction for alcohol related night time activity etc.) serve sentences in the community as an alternative to a custodial sentence. Avon and Somerset Probation Service has made an approach to ascertain if there is scope for offenders working in or around our churches.

In my previous position I ran a community centre where we had eight young men come and decorate a room for a few hours a week. They were supervised by someone from the probation service, and got the job done to a good standard, costing us only in materials.

Within this Diocese schemes have been successfully completed at Sandford, where leaf clearing was undertaken, and at The Angel in Langport., where they have had Community Pay Back work teams for two years. They have decorated the village hall and carried out a variety of maintenance jobs at the community centre and churchyard. John Ford of The Angel said, “They have a variety of their own tools and equipment; all we do is provide any consumable materials, such as paint. They have been well supervised and will remove their "Pay Back" yellow jackets if they are a problem for anyone. We have come to know some of them personally, and they do appreciate thanks for their efforts. We have now signed up our three sites for "call out" when jobs arise and also as "fall back" sites as we can always find jobs to do at short notice”.

Archdeacon Nicola recalls “I remember using a similar scheme in Norwich and the chaps were asked to paint St Anne’s extensive iron railings around the perimeter of the church. One was heard to say, having been hard at it for several days, “I thought we were doing this so we didn’t have to be behind bars – it looks like we are after all!”

So, what can you do in your parish?

Make a list of jobs that need doing; some may only be suitable for one person. You will need to ensure that you can monitor arrival and departure times as they have to do a set number of hours. You will need to be able to provide access to wc facilities, and there should be an element of local supervision.

It helps if people know what is happening. If there is any sense at all that this might create a feeling of a ‘zoo’ then Community Payback is not for your parish; the punishment is doing the work, not having fingers pointed whilst the work is being done. However, the opportunity to work alongside cannot be ignored and that can form part of rehabilitation. It cannot be used for evangelisation – but you could talk about how the church is funded and theft hurts people and not an anonymous body.

Matt Davies, of Avon & Somerset Probation, said: “We have enjoyed an excellent partnership with Henbury Church recently where church verger Peter Bilby supervised a small group of up to six offenders every Saturday. Their tasks included maintaining the cemetery, refurbishing the hall and polishing the pews. It is a punishment that can also develop skills from punctuality to team work which can also help an offender find a job.” Matt has also provided an assurance that there will be no placements of offenders who have been involved in matters relating to theft.

An opportunity such as this enables discussion to take place about the nature of forgiveness. It allows us to remember that St Paul was not a stranger to prison and that Jesus worked with similar marginalised groups.

If you would like more information please contact matt.davies@avon-somerset.probation.gsi.gov.uk or me andrew.rainsford@bathwells.anglican.org

Andrew Rainsford, Stewardship Advisor

Food for thought from our fictional columnists

I was singing Once in Royal David's City last year. With verve and passion I like to think. And then it struck me.

It was nonsense. I was singing nonsense.

Christian children all must be

Mild, obedient, good as he.

Now don't get make wrong. I can sing nonsense as well as the next guy. Only the night before I had been belting out River Deep - Mountain High watching the X Factor: Now I love you just the way I loved that rag doll

But only now my love has grown

But at Christmas we hear stories of nativity which are supposed to have some deep truths in them. We tell stories of reindeer, elves and fat guys coming down chimneys which... well you know. And we sing carols contrived around a few flimsy verses at the beginning of Luke and Matthew. I read them to check.

Stable - no. Innkeeper - missing. Cattle - not mentioned.

How am I to know which bits are true, which contain deep truths and which are nonsense?

I guess if a vicar helped me to understand that then I'd want to hear what else they had to say.

Little Lord Jesus

No crying he makes

It just sounds like an attempt to manipulate kids to me. Anyone got any good new songs?

Lord Jesus

I love you like I loved that baby

Only now my love has grown

Someone do better than that. Please.

Wayne
Somerset, December 2011

Share the Light is a resource for Advent, Christmas and beyond from the Christian Mission Society. Your church community is invited to join with Christians across the country taking time this Advent and Christmas to connect with people in mission around the world who are Sharing the Light of Jesus. Go to www.cms_uk.org/advent to download the Share the Light resources, which include service ideas and outreach and follow-up materials and learn more about adding a little “mission spice” to your Christmas party this year.

Readings from Bishop Stephen Cottrell and Paperless Christmas

Bishop Stephen Cottrell has written a selection of free Christmas readings for the period from 18-31 December, which are available on the Advent Resources pages of our website. Stephen offers a distinct approach to the Christmas story.

Paperless Christmas, the Christmas story as you've never seen it before, is back this year. A joint venture between the Bible Reading Fellowship (BRF) and the Jerusalem Trust, the nine short videos called 'On the Road with Mary and Joseph' give the traditional nativity story an inventive, contemporary twist. Angels drive yellow vans, the shepherds travel in pick-up trucks and the wise men are leather-clad biker. This unique approach has been used very successfully with classroom and church groups, and the accompanying discussion material is easily adaptable for use with both children and adults.

Churches offered help from international mission teams during the 2012 Games

More Than Gold are now offering help to churches reaching out to their communities during the 2012 Games with one of the many international mission teams coming to the UK. The teams of between five and 20 members offer churches help with children’s clubs, street outreach, running a big screen Community Festival, sports clinics and more.

This could be a great resource for your church; many will have special skills in the area of sports mission, creative arts, holiday clubs, working with youth and practical. They will also be ready to take part in church services and bring the perspectives of their own nation.

The teams will be in the UK from June to September 2012. All the anticipated 3,000 people involved will receive a detailed briefing and full training on cultural issues. Find out more at www.morethangold.org.uk/mission

Resources released to help churches welcome 2012 with prayer

Churches planning to mark the arrival of 2012 with prayer now have a range of free resources, ‘Shine for the New Year’, to help them including service outlines and written prayers. A call for churches to pray at some time between 31 December and 8 January has come from all the main denominations, through This is through More Than Gold, the agency set up to help them make the most of the 2012 Games.

The help available, by way of free downloads from the More Than Gold website, includes outlines for New Year, Epiphany and all age services that all have their focus on praying for the opportunities and challenges of the coming year. There are also a list of prayer topics, set prayers and creative ideas for a prayer meeting.

The resources can be accessed at morethangold.org.uk/shine-new-year

Education Sunday 2012

Student protests and the debate around Higher Education funding highlight a fundamental question – what is education for? Our time in education is not simply about preparing us for the workplace; it is also about the development of the whole person and finding ways to use our newly acquired skills and knowledge in the service of others. Learnng and Serving is the theme for next year's Education Sunday on February 5 - the resources which draw on the lectionary readings are now available at www.cte.org.uk

Education Sunday is a national day of prayer and celebration for everyone involved in the world of education. For more than 100 years there has been an annual recognition of the day in England and Wales (traditionally on the ninth Sunday before Easter). The resources are designed to be used on or around Education Sunday, or on any other day during the year, such as the start or end of the academic year. You can use these resources in your church, in local schools, colleges and universities and in other places of learning.

New ecumenical York Course for Lent 2012 now available

‘Handing on the Torch – Sacred words for a secular world’ is a five-session ecumenical discussion course for groups or individual study, comprising booklet, CD/ audiotape and transcript.

Archbishop Sentamu, Clifford Longley JP (Roman Catholic writer and broadcaster) and Rachel Lampard (Methodist Adviser on political and social issues) are among the distinguished contributors to the new Lent course CD from York Courses. Dr David Hope introduces the course and Bishop Graham Cray provides the thoughtful closing reflections on the CD. Canon John Young has written the course booklet, and each of the five sessions offers a good selection of stimulating questions aimed at engaging every group member.

Go to www.yorkcourses.co.uk for more information.

Free resources for 'The Iron Lady'

There are free official resources for the movie 'The Iron Lady', which arrives in cinemas on 6 January 2012 available at www.damaris.org/theironlady, to help churches to think and talk about the big themes.

'The Iron Lady' tells the compelling story of Margaret Thatcher, a woman who broke through the barriers of gender and class to be heard in a male-dominated world. It is a surprising and intimate portrait of an extraordinary and complex woman whose legacy still polarises opinion to this day. The Iron Lady also offers the chance to think more deeply about questions that affect us all. The film delves into some of life's most challenging topics: overcoming prejudice; balancing family and career; making a mark; coping with change; celebrating achievement and dealing with regret.

These free official resources are designed to help people think through these themes, and what the Bible has to say about them. The best way to use these resources is to arrange a group outing to see The Iron Lady and then meet afterwards. The free resource contains everything that's needed to organise an event around The Iron Lady such as posters and invitations, recipe suggestions for food and drinks, and questions to help you get the conversation going. There are even clips from the film and special videos to remind groups of key scenes available on a free DVD.

All Saints’ Church Wraxall seeks a dedicated person to care for their beautiful Grade 1 listed church with friendly congregation. Duties include opening and closing the church and parish room (daily), preparing for and assisting with services, caring for church property, welcoming visitors. The successful applicant should be prepared to work an average of ten hours per week and be flexible with time management. Verger duties at weddings and funerals are paid a separate set fee.

Please contact the parish office Ph: 01275 852442 or either of the churchwardens Eileen Ph: 01275 856597 or Bob Ph: 01275 851501 for job description and application form.

Closing date is Friday 6 January 2012.

Spirituality and Art - a pilgrimage to Florence

From 10-16 October 2012, Revd Jane Eastell, Diocesan Adviser in Spirituality, will lead a pilgrimage to Florence on the theme Spirituality and Art - the divine art of Fra Angelico. It will be a chance to see and reflect on the frescoes and paintings of the Dominican Fra Angelico of the fifteenth century.

"In medieval thought, the noblest aim of painting was the portrayal of individual events in the life of Christ, leading one to meditate on the divine mysteries", says Jane. "Fra Angelico’s frescoes at San Marco, Florence are highly regarded examples. Vasari, a sixteenth century Italian painter and historian, described Angelico as a ‘truly Angelic father’, but there is much more to him than that!" she adds.

This pilgrimage is open not only to people in Bath & Wells but also those from surrounding dioceses. Download the pilgrimage flyer. Closing date for booking is 15 Jan 2012.

Employers' Liability Tracing Office need parish information

All churches in the UK have until 31 March 2012 to provide information needed by the new Employers’ Liability Tracing Office (ELTO).

ELTO is the new independent organisation responsible for holding records of all employers’ liability insurance policies. These records allow employees who have been injured or made ill by their jobs to trace their employers’ liability insurers with the aim of seeking compensation.

As part of the process to set up the new ELTO database, all churches with employees are required to inform their employers’ liability insurer of their employers’ reference number (ERN). This number is issued to a church by HM Revenue and Customs and is sometimes known as Employer PAYE Reference and appears on forms such as P45s, P60s and P11Ds.

If a church has been exempted from holding an ERN, its insurer will need to know this too. Once insurers have collected the information from their faith customers, they will pass the data to ELTO to use as part of the new national database.

John Coates, Direct Insurance Services Director at Ecclesiastical, said:

“The majority of churches will not have an ERN because they will either have no direct employees or each employee is paid less than £503 per month. Even if a church does not have an ERN number, we still need to record this fact and advise ELTO.

So that we can update the database, we need notification from each church of its exemption or its ERN number by 31 March 2012. If a church has purchased a new policy from us since 1 August 2011, there will be no need to contact us as we will already have this information.”

Ecclesiastical has set up three ways in which the churches can submit their details. These are:

• Online by completing a short form at www.ecclesiastical.com/churchmatters/elto

• By email to ern@ecclesiastical.com

• By phone, leaving a recorded message on an automated system on 0845 601 5671

Ecclesiastical’s Parishguard and Hallguard insurance policies both include employers’ liability insurance unless a church has opted not to include the cover as part of its policy. For more information, church trustees and staff can contact ELTO by phone at 0845 165 2805 or send an email to enquiries@elto.org.uk

A Christmas Near You

You may have seen the launch of www.achristmasnearyou.com recently with Jo Brand as its ambassador. If you still need to update your parish details then please do so.

Heating oil theft

The cost of heating oil has increased significantly resulting in more thefts of oil from both domestic and commercial properties. Many churches are being targeted, so it is essential to ensure you take every step to safeguard your tank.

Further guidance from EIG can be found here.

A Rocha UK expediation to Kenya 5-20 May 2012

Applications are invited for a two-week stay in Kenya. This will involve working alongside scientists to collect environmental data, assisting with local conservation work, and will include a two-day "safari" into Tsavo East which contains most of East Africa's wild animals. On another day off it will be possible to snorkle in a marine National Park. Accommodation will be at Mwamba, the base of A Rocha Kenya, which is similar to a field studies centre in the UK, but it has a beach on the Indian Ocean: see www.arocha.org

In contrast with commercial safaris this expedition will give a chance to see the country from inside, living and working alongside Africans and any surplus from the expedition will go to A Rocha Kenya.

The expedition will be jointly led by David Agassiz, a retired Anglican priest/ entomologist who has lived and worked in Kenya, together with Colin Jackson, Conservation and Science Director of A Rocha Kenya.

The cost will be approx £900 per person which includes board and keep, together with local travel and fees for entering National Parks. Participants will need to make their own arrangements to fly to Kenya. The number of places is limited to 12 and a deposit of £100 is required by 1 February 2012.

Watamu is more than 250km from the Somali border and there is no increased security concern in the light of recent incidents.

For further information contact Revd Dr David Agassiz agassiz@btinternet.com or Ph: 01934 620486.