John Sherbourne

This year the Fairtrade organisation is holding it’s annual awareness fortnight between February 27th and March 12th. This means that here at MBC Roger Robson and his Beehive team will be manning their stall after the morning service on March 12th and again (just ahead of Easter) on April 2nd.

As in previous years the stall will be heavy with a whole raft of Tradecraft products ranging from greetings cards and hand made jewellery to delicious teas and coffee.

Also there will of course be a chance to buy Real Easter Eggs… “The Real Easter Egg is the only one which has an Easter story booklet in the box, is made of Fairtrade chocolate and makes a donation to charity from its sales”.

If you can’t guarantee being in church on those dates but you would still like to buy some eggs just have a word with Roger, I’m sure he will be delighted to take your order.

Incidentally, there will also be a Fairtrade Coffee Morning with a variety of stalls on Saturday March 18th from 10.30am to 1pm at Chapel Allerton Methodist Centre ,Town Street LS 7. Please support these events to show you support fairness to producers in poorer countries

The Amity Summer English Teaching Programme in China for 2017 (9th July to 6th August) includes one week of orientation and three weeks of teaching working with Chinese English teachers in one of China’s rural provinces.

Amity Foundation, is a Chinese Christian Organisation created in 1985. Volunteers are needed for this summer. Teaching experience is helpful but not essential. Most volunteers are not teachers by profession. There is some funding to cover volunteers costs this summer.

This is a great way to experience the real China and the Chinese Church. For more information please speak with Jane Coates or text 0782 431 7650. You can also go on line www.short-term4china.org.uk

At times, we slip into a view that God is only concerned with human beings. Actually, the Bible tells of God’s much wider concern. In Genesis, we learn that all the universe is created by God and all is seen by God as good. God forms humans out of the creation – the dust of the earth and commissions them to be carers of the earth and it’s flourishing. After the flood, God made a covenant with humans and every living creature. In the New Testament Jesus teaches us to pray for the Kingdom to come on earth as in heaven and later Jesus is seen not just as the saviour of humans but the one in whom all creation holds together… so this makes the environment a faith issue.Carbon dioxide and climate change has become the first thing that people think of when they consider our impact on our world. However, this is just one area of concern shared by environmental scientists and ecologists. About eight years ago, a group of scientists was convened under the chairmanship of Professor Johan Rockström of the Stockholm Resilience Centre to consider as far as possible, the totality of humanity’s impact upon planet Earth. They identified the following nine areas of concern:

• Carbon dioxide and climate change
• Reduction in biodiversity and species loss
• Use and misuse of nitrogen
• Land use and misuse
• Fresh water supplies and the influence of water on climate
• Release of toxic substances including plastic materials
• Release of aerosol-sized particles into the atmosphere
• Acidification of the oceans
• Damage to the Ozone layer and its consequences

As we shall see, these topics are inter-related, and information on them will be put onto the Church website, month by month for a trial period, beginning with an item on plastics (shopping bags, etc.). In future we hope to touch on topics including food, transport, energy use and so on.