This month Revd. Roy Shaw wishes us all a happy new year in God, and also, with tongue firmly in cheek, imagines what the various Church groups would make the discovery of a sitting Cat in the Bible.Tony Service writes about all matters Methodist, and includes a piece about the annual Covenant Service.Pat Jarvis reports on the Parish Living Advent Calendar initiative, that was well received, and no doubt the start of a ‘tradition’. Meanwhile husband Karl provides an update on the Parish Hall, and shares his, and Pat’s, love of walking in the first part of Walking the St Hilda’s Way.I am grateful for a beautiful poem from Mike Bunn, and Revd. Pete reports on the Carol Singing groups that helped to raise good cheer across the Parish. Next year will be even better! Finally I bring down the tone with suggestions to improve one’s filing system. Works for me!
After a few quiet weeks it's started again - local church office holders such as churchwardens, treasurers etc. have received fraudulent email messages impersonating members of the clergy, typically in their own parish but sometimes more widely, asking for a variety of things including the purchase of vouchers and gift cards.There have been some close calls with one church office holder actually having spent quite a lot of their own money, but fortunately discovered before it was too late.The sender has taken some trouble both with identifying their chosen pseudo-sender and the intended victim (we guess someone is trawling parish church websites). In many cases the sender has used an un-traceable gmail address.In several cases the first message reads "Do you have a moment I have a request I need you to handle discreetly. I am currently busy in a prayer session, no calls so just reply my email."A reply then draws the recipient into a dialogue in which they are encouraged to buy vouchers, and ultimately send images of their serial and security numbers to the fraudster.If you think you have received one of these messages you can report this to the police on their non-emergency 101 number. They will pass it on to Action Fraud, a national agency. It may not help you directly, but by increasing the number of reports we make sure that they continue to take this seriously.No one at St Wilfrid’s - the clergy, the PCC or its officers - will ever ask anyone to spend their own money in an email – and therefore anything purporting to do this is a fraud. This is a low-tech solution – and it’s roughly what the big banks do when they keep repeating that they will never ask for login details by email, and will never ask you to move money to a different account by email.
Thank You!The trustees here in the UK want to thank supporters for the messages of support following the fire in the early hours of November 29<sup>th</sup>. Fortunately, no staff or children were injured in the fire; they have removed temporarily to accommodation some miles west of Kipchiria. The sleeping quarters are completely burned out, and the dining/kitchen block will require extensive rebuilding. The site has been looted since the fire.We are seeking further, more suitable temporary accommodation through our network of local contacts, while we consider the options for the site at Kipchiria. Monies have been sent for bedding and clothes, for basic food supplies and for the rental of the present accommodation. A further tranche was sent on Friday 4<sup>th</sup> December We face considerable unexpected costs at present, and have been touched by the responses of supporters. If you wish to make a donation to help with the demands of this devastating situation, please visit the website- stdorcasorphanage.co.uk and follow the links from ‘donate’ to the JustGiving page. Thank you for your donations, your thoughts and your prayers.Rev Roy Shaw, for the trustees.
Loving God,your Son Jesus Christ came that we might have life and have it abundantly;pour out your blessing upon our nation;where there is illness, bring your healing touch;where there is fear, strengthen us with the knowledge of your presence;where there is uncertainty, build us up in faith;where there is dishonesty,lead us into truth;where there is discord,may we know the harmony of your love;this we ask in Jesus’ name.Amen
