CONNECT

AUTUMN

EDITIO

N

SEPTEMBER to NOVEMBER 20 23

Revd Peter Ball On Sunday 9 th July it was go od to agai n welcome R evd Peter Ball to lead our mor nin g worship. Peter will be known to many folk across the pastorate and was one o f our pre vious mi nister s. Since 2017, Peter Ball has been w orki ng at Westmi n ster Colleg e, Cambridge in t he Direct or of Church Resour ce Deve lopme nt. Peter leads the college’s wider remit o f bei ng a Resour ce Centre for Learni ng for t he w hole de nomi nati on, i n addition to taking hi s full part i n college life alongsi de his ot her teach ing sta ff colleag ue s. He works closely with Synods and t heir Training Officer s a nd Mi ssi on Ena ble rs, as well a s servi ng the d enomi nati on a s part of the Walking the Way Steering Grou p and t he Stepwise Task a nd Fi nish Gr oup.

Pet er trained at We stmi n ster (1991-94) bef ore ordinat ion. H e has ha d past orates at Sawston Free Church , Little Abingdon a nd o f course St John’ s URC Ipswich. Bef ore taking up hi s p ost at West mi nster, h e was Mis s ion and Training Officer fo r the URC’s Eastern Sy no d. Peter will be retiri ng l ater this year . His wife Catheri ne, also a n ac tive URC mi ni ster, wi ll be retiring later. We understand that Peter has a long list of jo bs to complete after his retireme nt a nd p rio r to Catheri ne’ s, ma ny o f which will revol ve around their home in Saxm undham. Build ings The buildi n g at St John’s, as wit h all of our chur ch buildings, requ ires regula r atten ti on and mai nte na n ce. Alth o ugh it’ s the newe st buildi ng i n the pa stor ate , bei ng completed i n t he 1980s, i t i s showing s ome signs o f wear a nd w e have ha d t o deal wit h a numbe r o f u rgent matters over the last few mont hs. These have inclu ded a leaky gutter and roof in the sanct uary, directly a bove t he s ound desk which, tha nkf ul l y avoide d da mage a nd the cost to repair t he problem was lower than we feared. However we have had a faile d, and leaking cold water tank which put the buildi ng out of ac tion, with no wate r f or dri nki ng or flu s hing lavator ies, for sever al days – this was res olve d qu ick ly but was costly. To cap i t all we have also ha d t o repai r a radiat or and attend to pr oble ms with one o f the u psta irs toilet fa cil ities . Over the last few mont hs we have be en working to repair and repaint the external

fire escape stairs lead ing from the upper h all to the main car pa rk. This work i s now nearing completion. T he struct u ral eleme nts were comp leted by a pro fes sion al provi der and t he rest of the work, in vol vi n g ha mme ring, wire br us hi ng, re moval of debris a nd pai nti ng h as been car ried ou t by chur ch volunteers . A huge th anky ou i s due t o the Bu ildings Team and the ma ny other v olunteer s who have worked so h ard to attend to the problems. The chu rch is grateful to eve ryone w ho plays a regular p art in t he clea ni ng and ma inte n ance of the p rem ises . The re mai ni ng mat ter wh ich nee ds our atten tion is t he front garden which w as da maged b y an ambul ance avoi di ng a collisi on. T ha nkf ully t he de nsity o f the pla n ts mea nt that t he ambula nce ca me to a ha lt with out ca using da mage to t he buildi ng itself. W e are now awaiting the insurance paymen t a nd p lanni n g how be st to rei nsta te and eco-frie ndly fron t garden. Hymn Sing I n t he la st ed ition o f Co nnect we sha red new s o f a Hymn Si ng which to ok place on April. We are planning to hold anot her on e on Satur day 4 th Novembe r . We will be s har ing f ur ther detail s wit h the churches in the past orate (and indee d i n t he area) nearer t he time but hope th at y ou mig ht like to pen ci l the date into your diaries. It will be in the afternoon and, as bef ore, wil l b e follow ed b y te a.

Weddin g On F rid ay 4 th Aug ust Felixstowe URC were delig hte d t o ho st the wedding o f Kayleig h and Dan. The servi ce was conducted b y Rev d David who ha d bee n in c ommunic ation with the couple since their initial enquiry. It is always a pleasure t o be part o f such an important step on the journey o f a couple, as they make thei r vows and lo ok ahea d to married live. May God bless Kayleigh and Dan i n their marr iage . Ukraine 2 Fe lixstowe The chur ch conti nu es to support t he work of th is important p roje ct inc l udi ng the provision o f “T he Hu b” (our former choir vestry). The needs o f ou r Ukrain ian gue sts ha ve sh ifte d ove r ti m e. Some o f the gues ts have retu r ned to Ukraine, de spite the ong oing conf lict . Some have m ove d out o f Felixstowe due to the locat ion o f work a nd accommodation. A key focus movi ng forward will be ra ising money, n ot so much for the g uests who a re in the UK, alth ough w e will not loose sight o f their nee ds, but for sendi n g to Ukra ine t o provide vital supp ort and resour ces for those who face t he day- t o-day challenge s of t he war. We hope t o be able to s up port i n helping to facilitate f und rais i ng opportunitie s for t his purpose. One key way i n w hich f olk are ab le to support our Ukrai nia n guest is b y engagi ng in conversation s, i n E nglish, t o he lp t he m gai n confide nce i n the la n guage. Felixst owe U RC have been ho sti ng a series of “Co ffee , Cak e, Craft and Chat” (C4) sessions, orga nised b y

U2F volunteer s. The first three session s, held o n Sunday afte rno ons, have focus s ed o n produci ng (croche ting) toppers for some of our l oca l pi llar boxes to be di splayed t o mark Ukrai ne Indep ende nce Day o n 24 th August. Any folk who would like t o come along to supp ort with conver sation, pra ctic al skills o r cater ing are alway s wel come. As the war in Ukraine rages o n with n o sight of a swift o r ea sy conclusion, we must continue t o p ray, su pp ort a nd encourage i n any wa y we ca n to he lp the people there . Reaching a Mile stone We ofte n m ark speci al birt hdays, es pec iall y the “milestone” year s. A s o f Septe mbe r, we will have fiv e chur ch member s w ho hav e reached or excee de d thei r 90 th Birthday. To mark this sign ifica nt eve nt, we will be h oldin g a celebrati on tea o n th e afternoon o f Sunday 3 rd September . We would like to congrat ulate a nd ce l ebr ate all th ose of our number who have reached this wonde rful age . A Time to Re memb e r We will be h olding a “Service of Re me mber ing” on Sunday 29 th October at  1 5:0 0 wh en we invite folk to gather and remember their loved  ones . The service h as a re fle ctive tone and i nclud es hymns, reading s, a short a dd ress a nd a n act of reme mberi ng. If you would like to join us o n this occasion, w e wo uld be ha ppy to welcome you. W e share refre shme nts after war ds.

Weddin g On t he after noon of Friday 4 th August we were delig hted to welcome Kate and Paul to our church to celebrate their wedding. Kate’s sister was married in the church i n 2022. The service was conducte d by Revd Adam, a fir st for h im, wh o was also acti ng as the Aut horise d Person. It was raining quite hard bef ore the service, as the gue sts and family gat hered, even when the b ride arrived. We had a joy ful service. By the end o f our time togethe r, the su n ha d made a brea kthrough and folk were able to gather o utside in Ch urch Square for photographs. Ma ny congrat ulati ons to Pa ul and Kate, may God bless you in your fut ure life togethe r. Proj ect40Seven The s hop pre mi ses adja cent to the chu rch o n t he Church Squ are side a re the base o f a new and exciting commun ity pr oject for Leiston . Named after the address o f the bu ilding (47 Hi gh Street) – t he p roj ect include s a commun ity café, a c omm unity pa ntry, art s and cra fts f or sa le and ma ny activit ies. T he pr o ject, part o f Creati ve Leiston, also orga ni se s regular eve nts for the community, inclu din g live music in Church S quare. The Church i s p lease d to supp ort the proj ect includi ng i n p rov idin g add itional spa ce f or activit ies wit hin our premi ses. This will include such th i ng s as a Re pair Ca fé – somethi ng which is bec oming increa si ng popular w here ver th ey are establi she d.

Part of the projec t, “The Le iston Pantry” – a mea ns of offe ring food, ofte n with limite d shel f life for very low price, has seen high demand. Along with the work of our own Food Ba nk there are many folk mak ing u se of t he resource du ring t hese challe ngi ng times . W hilst it is n ot a ca use for cele brati on that such thing s are i n de ma nd, it is at lea st encouragi ng t hat fol k are able to find t his help . W e are looki ng to work i n partnership with t he pant ry to support on e a not her in the provi sion o f food items i n a compli me ntary rat h er than a compet iti ve manner. Any donations of prod uce or money f or eit her o r bot h p roje cts would be extreme ly wel come . Buildi ng In Use We are contin u i n g to enhan ce the faci lities we h ave to offe r when maki ng our premi ses availa ble f or ot her users. We have recently orde red ne w curtains for the hall a nd are h opef ul that the blinds which cover the b i -folding doors leading to the C hurch Square wil l b e rep aire d and repla ce d. W e have also purcha sed a new s hel vi ng unit s o that w e ca n s ort th e bo oks we m ake availa ble for sale and provi de storage f or t he var ious to ys we ha ve for use b y t he childre n w ho vi sit. We are planni ng to d eclutter and dis p ose o f a number o f thi ngs to make better u se of t he space and make it more attractive. A s with ma ny chur ch build ings, t hi ngs te n d to accumulate over ti m e so we are taking the opportunity t o ti dy a nd make better use o f the storage s pa ce w e have availa ble . There have been a number of new bo oki ngs come i n inclu ding a Pilates Class, cu rrent ly holdi ng a six-week t rial to see how th in g s

work out an d a local theatre gro up will b e using t he buildi n g for t heir regu l ar rehear sals. Other enquiries ha ve been receive d. Local Church Le ade rs Fr Tony Roger s, the Pari sh Priest from All Sai nts Cath olic Chu rch, i n Leiston, is retiri ng i n September. We wish him a fond farewell and tha nk h im for a ll h e ha s done i n su ppo rt of the local community . He has been a welcome part of t he Le iston Chr istia ns Tog ether activities. F r Tony will be moving to Newmarke t . In Septe mber, All Saints wil l be welcomi ng their new priest Fr David Bagstaff. We pray that h e will settle and feel at home quick ly and look f orward to wor k ing al ongsi de hi m. Our frie nds at Le iston Baptist Chu rch will also b e welc o mi ng a new past or in Septe mbe r. Pastor Daniel Bryant and his family moved to Leiston i n August. There will be a service o f welcome at the Bapt ist Church on Saturday 23 rd September. Again we look forward to m eeting hi m a nd worki ng alongsi de hi m.

SAXM

U

NDHAM URC

Working To gether At Saxmundham w e conti nue t o expl ore a ra nge o f ideas for mission and e ngag ement wit h our nei ghbours a nd the wide r community . We a re alway s please d to me et up wit h the me mbers of othe r local churches

including S t Jo hn C ofE (Saxmundha m), S t Mary & St Peter CofE (Kelsale) a nd Ke lsa le Methodist Chu rch. Our ne xt activ ity together will b e the annual servi ce o f Rememb rance at 15:00 o n Sunday 12 th November . T his y ear i t will b e held at Kelsale Parish Church . As usual it will be pre ceded b y the p roce ssi on led b y t he Leiston Royal British Legion Ba nd . T hey also pro vi de ac compa ni men t for t he hym ns du ring the service . Someth in g New In June w e launche d a new activity to engage with folk i n the surrounding area, Start the Week w i t h a Cuppa . Once each month we invite people to joi n u s for refreshme nts, chat a nd activit ies. At ou r June gathe ri n g we were please d t hat one o f our friends b rought her little grandson along, h is cheerful d isposition a nd antics filled u s all with del ight . In J uly, a game o f Scrabble e nsued with a rea l sense of fun and competition i n the air. We now have a “large print” Scrabble set which ha s be en kindly donate d, the tiles and board are somew hat large r tha n the ba sic version. The date s o f ou r f ort hc omi ng gath eri ngs f or the remainder of the year will be: Monday 25 th September, Monday 30 th October an d Monday 27 th November . I f you are over i n our directi on and would like to j oin u s, you would be m ost we lc ome. Ha rv est Event Something else new for us at Saxmundha m, we will b e h olding an additi ona l event to mark the harvest season . If you would like to join u s you would b e more than welcome. As we ll a s re fres hm ents, some stall s and a raffle we will b e offe ring a “Harve st B runch”

Mussbach Vi sit Back i n June (7 th – 12 th June), as pa rt of our long standi ng a nd ongoing pa rtnership with the chu rch in Mus sba ch, we we re delig hted to we lc ome folk taki ng part i n our annual vi sit.

The eve nt wa s very well att ende d and o ver £300 was raise d for “Fa mily First” a nd “Suffolk Ref ugee S upport ”. Holiday @ Home This much wel come d annual event to o k pla ce, this yea r o n th e 25 th and 26 th July. O ur theme this year was “Germany”. Activities included: Painting, Craftwork, Entertainers, Game s, Keep fit, A sing a long and ma ny other s. Home-cooke d food wa s ver y much enjoyed b y all .

On t he second day a marquee was ere cte d i n the Chur ch Sport s Hall f or Ca stle Hi ll's versi on o f an O ctob erfest. No Alco hol but ple nty of tea and cak e! CHAPS Produc tio n The Castle Hill Amateur Players (CHAPS) are currently rehear sin g for an Aut umn perf orma nce of a Pantomime version of the Wizard of Oz story. It is somewhat different to the familiar film and musical version. The performances are scheduled to take place at the c h urch on Thursday 26 th , Friday 27 th and Saturday 28 th October. We hope

The Harvest Fe stival is a much love d a nd valued celebration. We give thanks to God for the ma ny b lessin gs we enjoy and refl ect o n t he bea uty o f creati on and our stewardship of it. We offer gifts o f gratitude, to sh are w ith t h o se i n nee d a nd si n g our hymns o f praise. Here are details o f how and whe n we will be celebrating in our pastora te churches . SUNDAY 10 th SEPT EMBER Leiston Christians T og ether HARVEST CELEBRATI ON & TEA 15:00 in Church Squar e SATURDA Y 2 3 rd SEPTEMBER Saxmundham URC HARVEST COFFEE MORNING & SALE 10:00 – 11:30 in the Chu rch Hall SUNDAY 24 th SEPT EMBER St John’s URC HARVEST SE R VICE 10:45 led by Revd Adam Leiston United C hu rch HARVEST AFTERNOO N SE RVICE & TEA 14:00 led by Revd Adam SUNDAY 1 st OCTOBE R Castle Hi ll URC HARVEST SE RVICE & COMMUNION 10:30 led by Revd Da vid Followe d by Harve st Lunch

Fe lixstowe URC HARVEST SERVICE & COMMUNIO N 10:30 led by Revd Adam Saxmundham URC HARVEST PRAIS E SE R VI CE 10:45 led by the Elde rs

SUE HARDY – LEISTON UNITED CHURCH On Su nday 4 th Ju ne, the Childre n and Fa m ilies Dep art me n t of URC Eastern Synod o rga n ised a Pra is e Pa rty fo r children (of all ag es!) . The party wa s led by Dougie Dug Dug, aka Doug Horley . The party was hoste d by Christ Chu rch, Braintree . This was a n ideal excuse for a girl’s day out wit h my two grandda ug hters, Harper (7) a nd Emma (11). We w ere joi ned by Emm a’s frie nd Be lla (11). Upon ar rival we we re warmly we lcomed a nd taken into the large worship area. The dais ha d bee n “con verte d” to a stage and t he team were preparing. I helped to arrange chairs int o a large semi-circle leavi ng a spa ci ous clear area for children (a nd some adults ) to sit on the fl oor . Doug welcome d ev eryone and explained, with video clips, that bubbles were created

appla use for Dougie, we were inv ited i nt o the hall to s hare in refres hmen t s includ i ng drinks, snacks and cakes. The girls quickly fo un d a space at the end o f a table and tucke d in! Tea, coffee and biscuit s we re provided for the adul ts – much appre ciate d after all the da n ci ng and excite me nt. As we were leaving t he church w e stoppe d at a small stall se lling some o f Doug’s CDs. I boug ht a set o f CDs so we ca n lear n a fe w new, lively worship songs. Harper became the proud owner o f a dolph in finger pu ppe t. Doug was there and we were invited ba ck into t he chu rch and each ha d a turn at standi ng insi de a bubble – wow!

A MESS

AGE FROM

TH

E URC FINANCE

TEA

M

To: Al l members and adherents o f United Reformed Churches and our Loc al Ecumenical Partnerships Dear Frie nds, Whe n will normal service b e resume d? As we are writi ng this le tter and closi ng off the URC’s accounts for 2 022, the count ry is still torn wit h industrial d isputes, most ly n otably with Health Service worker s, rail industry worke rs, teachers etc. etc. Whatever your view as t o the wisdom or j ustice o f suc h action, we sus pec t al l o f us a re affe cte d by the disr upti on to some degree . In church life to o, are we back to “norm al life”? Some churches n o doubt have retu rne d to somethi ng like their pre-Co v id level o f a ctivity a nd attenda nce numbe rs. Quite a few have recommence d their activi ty but find their numbe rs have reduce d. Some churches have found r e-open ing too difficult and have deci de d to close.

So

u

th

Suff

olk

Ar

e

a

Partners

hip NEWS

The churches of the Ipswic h and East URC Pastorate are part o f the Easte rn Synod o f the Unite d Re forme d Church. The Synod has a numbe r o f area pa rtnerships i n pla ce. We are part o f the Sout h Suffolk Area Partners hip (SSAP) . The S SAP cur rent ly i nclu des ni neteen loc al congregations. In addition to the five churches in our pa s torate, these includ e: Christ Church LEP (Ipswich), Wh iting Stre et (Bury S t Edmunds), Clare, Ha verhi ll, Hadle igh, Monks Ele igh, Fra mli ng ha m LEP, Christchu rch LEP (Needha m Mar ket), Southgate LEP, Stowmarket, Ha ug hle y, Stowu pla nd, Mendle sha m and De benha m. We cu rre ntly have four stipe ndiary mi ni st ers in post, Revd David Rees, Revd Adam Earle i n our pastorate, Revd Neil Coul son who serves Christ Church (Ipswich) and Revd Robe rt Sheard w ho ser ves the Central Suffo lk Chu rches includ ing and surroundi ng Stowmarket. We al so work with some of our Met hodi st collea gues, serving t he LEPs including Revd Rita Carr and Revd Sa ul Tadzau sh e. Farewel l to Revd Bryn Rickard In June, Revd Bryn Rickard move d on from Hadleigh to take u p a mission post in Oxford. We extend our th anks and appreci ation to Bryn for all h e di d whi lst m in iste ri ng i n Hadle igh a nd, n ot least of all, for serving a s Inter i m Moderato r to the pa storate du ri ng the appointment o f Revd Adam . We pray that h e and h is family settle well into their new r oles a nd contex t.

We pray for Hadleigh and the other church es cu rrently in va ca ncy (some for a consider able peri od) as dis cus sions ta ke place. The Easter n Synod are working to establi s h a new model for de pl oymen t of mi nisters i n fut ure bu t this will take time an d require s care ful consi derati on. Area Pa rtnership Celebration & Tea On Sund ay 9 th Ju ly, at 16:00, about 35 fo lk from t he vario us churches of t he SSAP, includ ing re p resentatives from our past orate churche s, gathere d f or a celebration se rvice a nd tea at Christ Chur ch Nee dha m Market . We were welc ome d by Revd Rita Carr . Worship wa s led by Easter n Syn od Mode rato r Revd Lythan Nevard on th e theme of praise. Revd Adam ha d a wonde rful ti me at the organ (an i nstrume nt th at rarely ge ts play ed these d ays ) and the sing ing was joyf ul and robust. The bring and share tea, served in the church hall after worship, was i mp ressive – as is often t he case o n such oc casions the re w as more than enough to go round. Thanks to everyone who c ont ribute d and to Chri st Chu rch for welcoming u s a n offeri ng such warm h ospitality .

Eastern Sy

nod

News &

Update

s

Here are a few key p oints a nd dates from t he July e dition of t he Eastern Synod Ne wslette r. If y ou would like to read the full newslett er, please conta ct Revd Adam t o request a copy. Synod Meeting s The ne x t meeti ng of the Eastern Syn od will take pla ce o n S atu rday 14 th Octobe r at Ca s tle H ill URC fr om 10:00 an d 16:0 0. Fut ure dates and ve nue s are Sat urday 9 th March 2024 at Downi ng Place U RC, Cambridge and Saturday 12 th Oct obe r 2024 at With a m URC. Faith In Ac tio n Day The synod will be holding its Faith in Action Day 2023 o n Saturday 30th Sep temb er 2023 a t Epping United Reformed Church. It will b e an exciti ng d ay of work sh ops, talks a nd youth act ivities o n social justice topics from a variety o f s peak er s. All are wel come.

U

RC

Ge

n

er

al

Ass

e

mb

ly

20

23

Revd Ad am Ear le As I st ill count a s a “new” mi ni ster, ( I thi n k I can get awa y wit h that excu se f or t hr ee years!), I was invite d to attend the 2023 Genera l Asse mbly o f the Unite d Refo r me d Church – thi s is t he largest council o f t he denomination. I attended as one of about ten repre sentat i ves of the Easter n Syn od which also i nclud ed my fellow “new mi nister” Revd Mar k Hayes from T haxt ed URC. Genera l Assembly m et from Fri day 30 th June to Monda y 3 rd July at The Hayes Confe rence Centre i n Swanwi ck. This was a n ideal setting wit h comfortable ac commodati on, good food and facilities. The on e slig ht disappoi nt me nt w as th at the a ir conditioni ng i n the main hall wa s n ot work ing. Genera l Asse mb ly w as attended by seve ral hundre d repre sentat ives from each o f the thirtee n URC Syn ods plu s ecumenical dele gate s w ho we r e invited to be f ull participants in the procee dings. Some additional folk were also able to join v ia Zoom i ncl udi ng some o f the speake rs . Assembly opened wit h wors hip and we the n proceeded to business. There were a wide range o f topics addressed over the four da ys and we attended to a conside rable number of res olutions . The “de cision maki ng” process at Asse mbly is somewhat complex a nd rel ies on conse nsus . Each represe ntative i s issue d with three cards, Orange, Blue and Whit e. Whe n invited t o do s o b y t he Moderat or, w e indicated wit h our orange ca rd if we we re