The Link is Porth United Reformed Church's quarterly newsletter. Much of the content is available on other pages of this website. On this page we publish online the articles and news which are not already elsewhere on the website.
This edition was published in December 2009. Look out for the next edition in March 2010.
Minister's letter
Dear friends,
January is, like many of the days and months in our calendar, named after a pagan god – the Roman god Janus. His distinguishing characteristic was having two heads – as on the coin opposite. As you can see, one head points back and the other forward. He was the god of beginnings and endings, and so was particularly associated with the turn of the year, a time when we look back and look forward.
Fiona and I always write a family newsletter to go out with our Christmas cards, looking back on the year. We also always go out and buy at least one of the supplements in the newspapers showing the past year in pictures, to remember the events. I guess that this year there will be supplements marking the end of a decade also.
Churches are very good at looking back. We are proud of our past – and we have been thinking quite a lot about that recently because of the doubt about the future of our building. I believe passionately in knowing where we have come from – perhaps because history was my favourite subject at school.
During the past year in Porth, we have been able to welcome some new faces into our Sunday congregation; we have enjoyed a range of social events and a church outing to St Fagan's; we have shared a great deal together in the Prayer Meeting, Vision4Life evenings and more informally at TCC and Ladies' Guild; we have raised money for Breast Cancer Care, Christian Aid, the Bible Society and several other good causes, as well as arranging ourselves a very successful raffle in aid of our own funds. As a church, we can look back on 2009 with pleasure and satisfaction.
But living in the past is unhealthy. At one point in Israel's history, the prophet who writes in the Book of Isaiah told the people,
Do not cling to events of the past
or dwell on what happened long ago.
Watch for the new thing I am going to do.
It is happening already – you can see it now!
(Isaiah 43.18-19, Good News Bible)
I don't think that Isaiah meant that people should forget all the stories in what we call the Old Testament about God's dealings with people and people's searching after God. But he was worried that they were clinging to those events, dwelling on them too much.
Even the pagans knew this. Janus's two heads are of equal size – not one bigger than the other. This is a healthy balance between looking back and looking forward. We need to know where we have been in order to plan where we are going. But we need to know where we are travelling in the future also. Once we get stuck in a rut, ploughing the same ground year after year, we end up quickly becoming irrelevant and out of touch.
The church meeting in December showed that a new pattern of church life is clearly a frightening prospect for some of us. But for others of us, staying as we are and facing the seemingly inevitable demise of the church is even more frightening. The Bible says that "Perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4.18) and so as we face 2010 and whatever it may bring, the love of God for us and the love we have for one another must be at the heart of everything we say and do.
If we spend all our time looking back and are afraid to look forward, we will soon stumble and fall. So I hope that, in this respect at least, we can take a leaf out of the pagans' book and aim for a good balance between looking back and looking forward, between celebrating the past and anticipating the future. We cannot foresee the future, it is true, but there is one thing that we can know about it for certain – God is there too!
Nadolig Llawen a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda
Wishing you a Happy Christmas and a Good New Year
Gethin
United Services with Porth Newydd Parish
As agreed at the Church Meeting in September, we will be worshipping together with the churches of the Porth Newydd Parish (St John's, St Luke's and St Paul's) on one Sunday morning each quarter. The dates of the services in the three Anglican churches are close to their respective "Patronal festivals" (church anniversaries) and give us an opportunity to join in celebrating these occasions with our friends from the other churches. Please note that the services in the Anglican churches begin at 10.15am. Dates for 2010:
Sunday 31st January St Paul's
Sunday 9th May St John's
Sunday 29th August Porth URC
Sunday 17th October St Luke's
These services are in addition to the united services which we already share with Porth Newydd and with St Mary Magdalene's Catholic Church through LREC. The next service will be in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity on Thursday 21st January at 7pm in St Paul's Church, Birchgrove.
Looking to the future:
A statement from the Elders
Members present at the Church Meeting on Sunday 6th December voted by 13-12 in favour in principle of moving the church to Porth Plaza, with 2 abstentions. Adherents present indicated support for the move by 6-1, with 1 abstention.
At their meeting on 8th December, the Elders were mindful that a majority had voted in favour of the move, but that the vote was too close to enable implementation of the move at this stage. They had also noted the specific concerns raised during the discussion. They therefore agreed unanimously to gather together a group representing all church organisations and users of our current building to meet with the management of the Porth Plaza on Wednesday 6th January at 4pm to discuss matters such as costs, term of contract, noticeboards and a permanent visual presence, storage space, and so on. A full report will be presented in time for the Church Meeting on 17th January, when representatives of the wider United Reformed Church will also be present. All members will then have an opportunity to consider how we look to the future in the light of the information gathered by the group and the response of the URC representatives.
The Elders wish to make it clear that they still wish to seek a consensus amongst members as to the future of the church, and will welcome all suggestions from members and friends of the church as to ways in which our Christian work can continue into the future, and encourage other people in Porth to know about and benefit from our presence as a Christian community.
Christmas
I love the Christmas story. Christmas is a time when the ordinary and the extraordinary, the commonplace and the miraculous come together.
Stars are ordinary enough, but a star that heralds the birth of Israel's long awaited Messiah – that is something else.
A crowded inn is nothing new. But a manger transformed into a palace for a King – that is something special.
The birth of a baby is an everyday happening (though ever new and wonderful), but the advent of the Saviour as a helpless infant who is recognised as the Messiah from the moment of birth – that is most extraordinary.
For the Christian community around the world, Christmas is a time when the opposites of life come together in a remarkable and unexpected manner. As long as the world stands, humble shepherds and wise people alike will marvel at the simple yet majestic grace of the nativity of Jesus and afterwards exclaim "Thanks be to God for this inexpressible gift".
Mary Robins
Jesus was not a Welshman
I like the old story of a Welsh girl who went to London to work as a maid in one of the big houses. Every Sunday she travelled many miles across the city to worship with a congregation of Welsh speakers. The whole service was conducted in the Welsh tongue.
The family with whom she lived, were very kind to her, and invited her to worship with them at their local Church. However the girl very courteously refused, saying that she would rather make the journey to worship in the language which she knew and loved. The master of the house smiled, and very gently pointed out that Jesus was not a Welshman. The girl quietly replied, "I know that Sir, but it is in Welsh he speaks to me!"
Eira Griffiths
Church family news
It is with very deep regret that we must report the death of Mrs. Gwyneth Williams. Our sympathy goes out to her family at this sad time.
Sunday School Bank
I would like to thank all members and friends for their support of the Sunday School Bank again this year. Any new members are most welcome. Banking will recommence on Sunday 3rd January 2010.
Pat Carpenter
A Prayer for those who live alone
I live alone, dear Lord, stay by my side.
In all my daily needs, be Thou my guide.
Grant me good health, for that indeed, I pray,
To carry on my work from day to day.
Keep pure my mind, my thoughts, my every deed.
Let me be kind, unselfish, in my neighbour's need.
Spare me from fire, from flood, malicious tongues,
From thieves, from fear and evil ones.
If sickness or an accident befall,
Then humbly, Lord I pray, hear Thou my call
And when I'm feeling low or in despair,
Lift up my heart and help me in my prayer.
I live alone, dear Lord, yet have no fear
Because I feel your presence ever near. Amen.
Maureen Brown