District News – 20 February 2024

This Week's News

Faith, Hope and The Journey – The Peak Wesley Way

The second episode of the district podcast is now available to stream online.
Thank you to Sheila Travis from the Peak Circuit who shared her faith journey and also how The Peak Wesley Way was created.
You can listen to all the episodes so far in the following places:

• https://www.sheffieldmethodist.org/podcast.html
• https://open.spotify.com/show/4MN0hytkvraeDpFcGzVChM
• https://podcasts.apple.com/.../sheffield-methodist-district/id1728508852
• https://soundcloud.com/sheffieldmethodist

We'd like to hear any feedback you may have about our podcast, please email comms@sheffieldmethodist.org or mission@sheffieldmethodist.org also please share this podcast with your family and friends.

Life on the Breadline exhibition

Last Friday Nick Waterfield chaired the "Ask the Panel" session with a group of policy makers and leaders to explore some of the issues. The panel comprised: Rev David Bussue (SACMHA & Church of God of Prophecy), Cllr Fran Belbin (Deputy Leader of the Council), Shelley MacDonald (National Energy Action) and Colin Havard (Community Development Co-ordinator-SCC).
He has written a reflective blog about this and the exhibition in general which can be found here:
Pioneer Thoughts

New venue and dates

Partly as a result of this, the Church of Christ in Darnall have offered to host the exhibition from 26th February. It will be open as follows:

• Monday 10am-3pm
• Tuesday 10am-3pm
• Wednesday 10am-3pm
• Thursday CLOSED
• Friday 10am-3pm
• Saturday 10am-3pm
• Sunday 12pm-2pm

If you haven't visited it yet, please do consider making the time. As one visitor commented "The exhibition saddened me yet it was more hopeful than angry I thought which challenged me. Maybe it is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness."

A number of churches are going to using the Lent material – it will be interesting to hear feedback on that too!

Thy Kingdom Come 2024 resources online launch

7 March, 2-3pm

Thy Kingdom Come, the global, ecumenical prayer movement for evangelisation, is happening this year from 9th-19th May!
From Sri Lanka to Scotland, Australia to Austria, Finland to Fiji, and beyond, TKC unites Christians, worldwide, and from across different denominations and traditions, to pray earnestly between Ascension and Pentecost for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and for more people to come to know Jesus.
Join the TKC team on 7 March at 2pm, as they unveil this year's brand-new resources for all ages, including the new Prayer Journal – with specially commissioned artwork and the Novena, daily films, children's resources and content from The Way UK for young people.
Register here

A Methodist Way of Life (MWOL)

Two brand new webpages have been added to the MWOL toolkit, one for Pastoral Visitors and another for those leading Local Ecumenical Partnerships. Take a look, send it to someone you know in these contexts, and have a conversation about how all parts of the church can be part of supporting one another in the discipleship journey of a lifetime (don't forget about the new MWOL service outlines for church services, pioneer gatherings, Sunday Schools and small groups as well).

Urban Theology Unit

After over 20 years of volunteering as a UTU librarian, now well into her eighties, Christine has decided the time has come to take a step back. We are so grateful for all she has done over the years and for her kindness and willingness to help.
If anyone would like to contribute to a leaving gift for her, please give/send cash/cheques to me, Jill, in the office, clearly marked as a gift for Christine. If you would like to give by bank transfer and don't already have them, I will be happy to send you UTU's bank details (office@utusheffield.org.uk). Again, please mark payments with the reference 'Christine'.
We are very thankful for our current library volunteers, Maurice and Wayne who are working hard on the library re-organisation. If you would like to come and join them in our small, friendly library, then please contact Jill in the office.

Methodist Young Adult Fellowship (MYAF)

People within the age group 18-30 can be quite isolated within the church. Not because they aren't part of loving congregations and community, but because sometimes there are huge age gaps which means that they aren't journeying alongside people their own age. MYAF provides space for this community through monthly zoom fellowship meetings, a WhatsApp group, and annual in person gatherings. These spaces are safe places for people to ask questions about faith, and have those important God conversations with people of a similar age and within the same church.
Email myafellowship@gmail.com to find out more.

District Office News

Joined Up Conference

Bookings are live for our next Joined Up Conference on Saturday 2nd March 2024! Just £15 a ticket for workshops, worship, marketplace stalls, lunch and more! It's going to be a great day. Book your place now: https://joinedupconferencecom.wordpress.com

Youth Day – Hesley Woods

Saturday 16 March

Join us at our Annual Youth Event at Hesley Woods Scout Activity centre. Our theme this year is 'Hidden Treasures' where do we find hidden treasures in our normal day. The morning will be filled with worship and workshops. Then followed by a subway lunch. The afternoon we'll join in with the onsite activities including zip line archery, climbing tower, peddle karts and the cube. The cost is £10 per person (leaders also pay) which covers some of the costs for the day. Bookings close on mid-day on Wednesday 13th March.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/youth-day-hesley-woods-tickets-806342741847

GDPR Checklist

Hopefully your church and circuit are aware that the annual checklist reporting is now live. The deadline to complete is 31 May, so there is plenty of time to go through and make sure you are fully up to date.
At the recent meeting of the District Data Champions and our Data Controllers (TMCP) one area that was raised as a concern is that some churches may see this as a tick-boxing activity, without actually doing the work. I am sure that none of our churches or circuits would do this, but it was suggested that the occasional "spot-check" on the recording etc be carried out.
I have already lead 6 drop-in session on GDPR. I do plan to organising some more in the next couple of months, but these will only go ahead if there is sufficient interest. I will be sending out a short survey to gauge when best to set these up.
If you do have any questions or concerns about GDPR, data protection, consents and/or possible breaches – please do get in touch!
Katrin Hackett – admin@sheffieldmethodist.org
District Data Controller

Safeguarding News

Foundation Module Trainers

The new Foundation Module material is being finalised and is hoped to be live from September 2024. All Foundation Module Trainers will need to undertake a training session on this new material. The District Safeguarding Officers in our area are planning training dates from April, which will be in two parts. Part 1 is on the skills needed to effectively deliver the training, Part 2 will be familiarisation with the new material.
More information will be circulated as soon as we get it.

Advanced Module Training

A reminder that there are four face-to-face training sessions planned in the coming months, for those who prefer not to do the online version. They are:

• Saturday 27 April – Broom Methodist Church (Rotherham & Dearne Valley Circuit)
• Wednesday 8 May – Chapeltown Methodist Church (Sheffield Circuit)
• Saturday 15 June – Castleton Methodist Church (Peak Circuit )
• Wednesday 3 July – Bolsover Methodist Church (Derbyshire North East Circuit)

There will need to be at least 15 people registered for the event to go ahead. so please do register in good time! https://24CSSAdvanced.eventbrite.co.uk

Events

National Methodist Youth Brass Band concert

Saturday 24 February – 7pm

Chapeltown Church as part of our building 30th Anniversary, are delighted to be hosting the concert. It is free to attend but with seats limited please go to EventBrite to book your seat : https://www.eventbrite.com/e/national-methodist-youth-brass-band-concert-tickets-760292173357
Come along – It will be a great evening!

Sheffield Christian Aid

Saturday 2 March at 10am

The Sheffield CA committee have arranged an in-person 'Watch party' to watch the online Christian Aid Changemakers conference on Saturday March 2nd. Anyone is welcome – even if you aren't a CA church rep!
The morning will actually be starting with coffee and cake at 10.00 am (the on-line conference starts at 10.30am) and there will be a bring and share lunch if people want to stay on to chat afterwards.
Please contact the Chair of CA – Alison Trezise (jandatrezise@virginmedia.com) if you want to come along so we have some idea of numbers.

Ukraine Food Day

Saturday 2nd March, 5pm – 8pm

The Ukrainian Fundraising Evening which is being held at Chapeltown Methodist Church on Saturday 2nd March, 5pm – 8pm. The fundraising is to support a shelter in Western Ukraine for people who have lost their homes and need temporary accommodation, food and medicine. The project is the initiative of a Ukrainian Ants NGO.
See the poster for more details.

Ebor Lecture: Earth Hope with Professor Rupert Read

Wednesday 8 May 2024 at 5.00pm

Through the coming climate chaos we will find common cause in a spiritual orientation to our planetary home.
Rupert Read is a Green Party campaigner, a former spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion, and the current director of the Climate Majority Project. He is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of East Anglia.
This event is hosted by the Centre for Religion in Society at York St John University and jointly sponsored by York Minster, The Methodist Church (Yorkshire North and East District), The C. & J. B. Morrell Trust and the York Area Society of Friends (Quakers).
Register here to attend

Vacancies

Yorkshire Theological Education Partnership – Academic Registrar (part time)

• Do you want to support theological education across Yorkshire and beyond?
• Are you highly organised with an eye for detail?
• Are you a self-starter, able to work flexibly and on your own initiative?
• Do you have great people skills with the ability to co-ordinate academic processes which put learners first?
• Are you a team player able to nurture team culture and working practices with colleagues and partners who are working at a distance?

The Yorkshire Theological Education Partnership YTEP is a partnership between Church Army, St Hild College, The College of the Resurrection, and the Leeds and York Diocesan Schools of Ministry.
Our purpose is to support the formation of future generations Christian disciples and leaders – through the effective administration of Common Awards programmes validated by Durham University.

While we are based at the Mirfield Centre on the site of the College of the Resurrection, our partners' work is regional, national and international. Reporting to the Chair of the Common Awards Management Committee, the post of Academic Registrar is key to the support we offer to the teaching and learning of our partners.

Hours: 14 (0.4FTE)
Salary: £15,800 (£39,500FTE)

How to apply: Please return a completed application form by 12 noon 14th March 2024 to gary.wilton@churcharmy.org
If you have any questions, or you would like to request an informal conversation, please email gary.wilton@churcharmy.org

Administration & Operations Coordinator / Events & Communications Coordinator

Whirlow Spirituality Centre exists to encourage, support and resource spiritual development of individuals and communities in the Christian faith. It is based at the Chapel of the Holy Spirit.
The Centre is located on the edge of Sheffield, close to the Peak District, and is run in partnership by Whirlow Grange Ltd and the parish of All Saints Ecclesall in the Diocese of Sheffield.

We are seeking applicants who bring experience in finance and centre management for the Administration and Operations role and in events management, volunteer support and communications for the Events and Communications role.
Both roles will be accountable to the Chaplain as team leader and will be employed through the PCC of All Saints, Ecclesall. Office accommodation is provided at the Whirlow Spirituality Centre and applicants will be required to work from the centre on Tuesday mornings and two other mornings a week.

£27,500 FTE pro rata for 16 hours a week = £11,733.33 (£14.10 per hour) annual salary plus employer pension contribution of 8.5%.

More information about the Centre can be found on our website at www.whirlowspiritualitycentre.org

For more details about these jobs contact: Alison Richards, Chaplain, Whirlow Spirituality Centre, Whirlow Grange Close, Sheffield S11 9SY chaplain@whirlowspiritualitycentre.org. Tel: 0114 235 3704

Closing date for applications: 9am Friday 8th March 2024

Interviews to be held on:
Wednesday 20th March 2024 for Events and Communications Coordinator
Wednesday 27th March 2024 for Administration and Operations Coordinator

And finally...

From the Methodist Prayer Handbook

Lord of all,
by your amazing grace you gift us with all that we need.
We seek to depend on you, knowing your love is constant and new each and every day.
We give you thanks this day for the surprising gifts that will meet us in the kindness of others.
And, as your Spirit leads us, may we be an unexpected blessing – sharing Christ's love with others in our actions, thoughts and words.
For the coming of your kingdom we pray, in Jesus name.
Amen.
Stephen Lindridge, District Chair, Newcastle Upon Tyne District