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NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Saturday March 6th 2010 at Kingswood Meeting House
If you do not require lunch you are still most welcome to come early for a chat or arrive in time for the Annual Service which will open the Synod at 1.30 pm and will be conducted by the Minister at Kingswood, the Rev Anthony Howe. A short AGM will follow which we hope will include a presentation about our sponsored child in the Middle East. The afternoon will end with an opportunity for a chat over a cup of tea and we should be leaving around 4 - 4.30 pm. Please join us if you can.
DIRECTIONS: FROM BIRMINGHAM - Take the A435 for about 8 miles from the centre of Birmingham until you reach a roundabout with a Sainsbury’s supermarket. Cross the roundabout onto Alcester Road. Continue on this road for about a mile and a half. You will see the Packhorse public house on the right. Turn right here into Packhorse Lane and the chapel is a couple of hundred yards on the right.
FROM THE MOTORWAY - M42 JUNCTION 3 - Take the A435 towards Birmingham. On reaching a roundabout take the road signposted for Hollywood (Alcester Road). Look out for the Packhorse public house on your left and turn left into Packhorse Lane. The chapel is a couple of hundred yards on the right.
From either direction DO NOT follow road signs for Kingswood, doing so will take you miles off course. The chapel although called Kingswood is in Hollywood.
BY PUBLIC TRANSPORT – buses 177 and 178 run hourly from Birmingham city centre to the end of Packhorse Lane.
OUTLINE AGENDA FOR THE AFTERNOON
12.30 Lunch 1.30 Annual Service conducted by The Rev Anthony Howe 2.45 Annual General Meeting and presentation 3.45 Tea and Biscuits
Over thirty members gathered for the 11th UCA Synod on Saturday, 31st October at Cross Street Chapel in Manchester with participants travelling from as far away as South Wales. Following the custom of the early Christian Church, those who attended shared a simple (but hearty!) meal in the chapel’s Percival Suite, and then moved to the sanctuary for a celebration of Holy Communion, led by Jeff Gould. The sharing of the sacrament was an appropriate way in which to mark the beginning of Remembrancetide, and UCA members who had died in the past year were honoured. Wynne Simister played the chapel’s organ in accompanying the hymns, and also contributed musical offerings from a variety of traditions. Tim Moore (bass) sang an American hymn that was based on a Negro spiritual.
The business meeting was ably chaired by the Moderator, the Revd Alex Bradley, who expressed the thanks of those present to the officers for all their work.
Events Officer, Jeff Gould (above), reported that a Lenten Synod would take place at the Kingswood Meeting House in Hollywood, Birmingham, and that a July Synod would be held in London. It was acknowledged that new membership continues to grow, and that the UCA would benefit from a Standing Order arrangement for payment of subscriptions. It was also explained that these could be Gift-aided by taxpayers.
The Annual Lance Garrard Lecture was this year given by Su McClellan (above), who is Central Area Representative of BibleLands (formerly known as the Bible Lands Society). Su explained that the original motives of this international charity were more paternalistic than altruistic, but that its activists, working in the Middle East since the end of the 19th-century, quickly jettisoned their evangelical goals for the nobler effort of providing practical solutions to humanitarian needs. Those efforts continue today in all the lands associated with the birth of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Her talk highlighted the work that is supported by the charity in the areas of health, education and community development from Lebanon to Egypt. It was decided that the UCA would sponsor a child through BibleLands, and that a possible pilgrimage to the Holy Land would be explored under the aegis of the UCA in partnership with BibleLands. The day ended with continuing fellowship over cups of tea. Jeff Gould UCA VISIT TO “THE ROCK”
The Unitarian Christian Association held its 10th Synod at Graig (“The Rock”) Unitarian Chapel in Llandysul, Ceredigion on Saturday, 25 July. The visit to one of the 13 chapels in “The Black Spot” of southwest Wales was an opportunity for the UCA to offer itself as a resource to the congregations of that area. The day began with a buffet lunch, provided by members of the congregation, over which the officers of the UCA were able to speak informally with members of the nearby congregations about their own personal circumstances. A good deal of information flowed in both directions, and a very positive relationship was formed by the 30 people who took part in the gathering.
The resident minister, the Revd Wyn Thomas (who serves six congregations), led a worship service in both Welsh and English, and involved the contribution of Lewis Rees, who is training for the ministry. Following the worship, a short meeting of the UCA was held under the chairmanship of the Moderator, the Revd Alex Bradley. This gave visitors an insight into the work of the Association and introduced the other officers to those present. The main offering of the day was a workshop, led by Wyn Thomas, which asked participants to engage with three different paintings that had a religious theme or influence. Discussion of the paintings in small groups encouraged inter-action and self-revelation, which proved effective in establishing closer relations between the English and Welsh Unitarians who took part in the exercise. The day ended with a question and answer session, by which visitors and hosts alike were able to speak freely about ways in which the UCA might contribute to the well-being of the Welsh congregations. Jeff Gould |
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