Saint David’s Uniting Church
Minister: Vacancy
Church Office Tel: 01443 300345
Website: www.stdavidsuniting.org.uk
Admin email: [email protected]
Link for Live Stream – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1ftWuXHexnfFdo1FKwXBZA
15th October 2023
Welcome everyone! If this is your first visit, we invite you to join us for tea or coffee following the service for a time of informal fellowship.
We give a special welcome to David Powell, Minister in Training, at High Street Baptist Church Merthyr Tydfil. This is David’s first visit to us and we look forward to hearing his message to us.
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Church Family and Pastoral News
We include this in the newsletter to inform our prayers during the week.
- We are sad to report that Marilyn Dillworth passed away on Thursday. Those who used to attend the film afternoons will remember Marilyn. We pray for her family and her friends from Castle Sq who will miss her. Funeral details will be given when known.
- Those for whom this time of year holds sad memories’
- Many have had or will be having, their COVID booster jabs and Flu jabs, we hope all will be well!
- The Open the Book team will be sharing the story of Creation with the children at Coed y Lan.
Yesterday (14 October) marked the start of National Hate Crime Awareness Week, which aims to bring people together, to say no to hate and make our communities safer for all. Hate crime is crime targeted at people because of their disability, faith or beliefs, gender identity, race or sexual orientation. This week, let’s remember all those affected by Hate Crime and support them by showing acceptance and tolerance. For more information, you can visit the website https://nationalhcaw.uk/‘
Birthdays
Just two birthdays that we know of this week: Monday 16th October – Maralyn Tomlinson and on Wednesday 18th George Tustin. We give them our best wishes as they celebrate!
Diary for the Week
Monday 16th Language Class 10.00am.
Wednesday 18th St David’s Guild 2.00pm – see below Guides at 6pm
Sunday 22nd Morning worship with Rev Ray Vincent. The service will include Communion
Future Services
October 29th Maggie Kirkbride Lay Preaching Advocate for URC Wales Synod
November 5th Dave Kitchen
November 12th Remembrance Sunday Zoom Service with Rev Vaughan Rees
Parallel service led by Michael Howells at St David’s.
St David’s Guild
Last week we learnt about Purple Shoots as Helen Lock was our Guest speaker. The headquarters are in Pontypridd. Their support networks give people the confidence to achieve their dreams. that’s the thinking behind the Self-Reliant Groups. They’re small teams of likeminded people, dotted across South Wales and the West of England. Members come from all walks of life, with many looking for a fresh start after facing some kind of setback like ill health or family troubles.
This week we will have something completely different as Dave Kitchen is our Guest and his talk has the title ‘Never play leapfrog over a unicorn!’ An Intriguing title – we invite to join us in the Victoria Room at 2pm to find out more.
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Dates for your Diary
The Chaplaincy invites you to a meeting in the Meeting House on Tuesday, 24th October at 12.00 midday. Martin Stringer, a former Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Swansea University, a gay Christian with wide academic and community experience and a very interesting speaker, will be speaking on ‘Gender and Sexuality: A Difficult Conversation?‘ It would be ideal to have a good number in the room, but if you cannot come, there is a possibility of joining online. For details see Ray.
A Concert on Wednesday 1st November at 6pm featuring the Wind Band from Böbingen an der Rems
The band was founded in 1956, in a small community with approximately 4700 inhabitants in the south of Germany (approx. 60km east of Stuttgart). The band consists of 45 active musicians aged between 15 and 78 years, proving that the love of music does connect people of different generations. Working closely with young people we enable children to learn an instrument at an early age and play music together in a group.
Together with our musical director Jonathan Rhys Thomas we give several concerts a year in and around our hometown: our repertoire includes concert music, film and pop music, as well as traditional Bohemian and Moravian brass music like march and polka.
24 years ago, the group visited Wales and still have great memories of the trip. The members are all extremely thrilled to going back to their conductor’s home country once again, and are very much looking forward to performing there. The concert, which is free – retiring plates for church funds, but with no obligation; will be finished by 7.30pm.
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Donations to Pontypridd Foodbank
Pontypridd Foodbank opened in 2012 in St Luke’s Church Rhydyfelin, but by October 2020 they needed more space so with the help of RCT council, a temporary home was found until they relocated to Nile Street Treforest in November 2021
Sadly, in the current climate of a cost-of-living crisis, the services are needed more than ever. They continue to campaign for an end to the need for emergency food aid and are grateful for those who support them.
They provide food parcels to those in crisis in the Pontypridd area. and sometimes have additional items such as toiletries. They also offer some help and a listening ear to those who come to us.
As approved at the Church meeting, there is a collection box for donations to the Foodbank on the table.
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Thought for the week
Humility is the secret of fellowship, and pride the secret of division.
Robert C. Chapman