January 2022 Link

Priest Who do I contact? Calls to the in Charge c/o Rev Simon Parish Office Parish Office Holy Trinity, 01228 are monitored St Barnabas, Bickersteth 538983 & St Luke’s (Rural Dean) regularly Local Lay Minister Maria [email protected] (Outreach & Holmes Mission) Authorised Gemma [email protected] Lay Minister McManus (Pastoral) (Safeguarding) & PCC Angela & John Enquiries Yvonne Secretary Hewitt about Swainson Enquiries 01228 (Safeguarding) 536574 Foodbank For Lead) St Barnabas Alison [email protected] Sayer Link .uk Magazine alisonosayer @btinternet.com Donations are always very welcome Don’t forget to Gift Aid if you pay tax as we can reclaim an extra 25% We also have Contactless machines for both churches 01228 538983 for the Parish Office Vestry Hour: IS CURRENTLY SUSPENDED Mondays 6-7pm to arrange Baptisms, Weddings or for General requests. Information can be checked on www.achurchnearyou.com 2

What’s going on? (See also pages 7 & 15) Sundays; “Face to face” Services will be at St Barnabas at 10am We are now able to sing and respond while wearing masks! Holy Communion is taken in one kind only. Depending on government announcements in the coming days , the rota for January is as follows: Services in January are all at St Barnabas Sunday 2nd January Morning Worship Sunday 9th January Holy Communion Sunday 16th January Holy Communion Sunday 23rd January Morning Prayer Sunday 30th January Morning Prayer There are children’s areas at the front and back of both churches. Wednesday morning Holy Communion at 10am Every Wednesday in January at St Barnabas FOODBANK: The tp4c Foodbank will continue to run restarting on Thursday 6th January. For the moment, Yvonne will administer it, so if you have any enquiries, please speak to her or leave a message at the Church Office. Mother’s Union and Brownies will run as normal, but Little Fishes and GGs are suspended at the moment until the correct legal permissions are re-established. 3

Canon Paul Hardingham considers 2022. Looking to the New Year The month of January is named after the Roman god Janus, who is depicted as having two faces. As we look back on a difficult year dominated by the pandemic, how should we look forward to 2022 with fresh hope? The apostle Paul writes: ‘But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13,14). Firstly, to make a new start, you need to forget the things which are behind. Paul saw himself as an athlete running for Christ and purposely not looking back. He refused to allow his past sins and difficulties to define who he was. By God’s grace, he no longer saw himself that way. The same can be true of ourselves, as we confess our sins and failures to receive God’s forgiveness and new life. Secondly, we need to focus on the things that lie ahead. The athlete is entirely focused on winning the race and gaining the prize. Like Paul, we have to be single-minded in making Jesus the focus of everything we do. How can we go deeper in our prayer life and Bible reading this year? What will it mean to better serve Christ in our workplace and neighbour- hood, or family and children? Paul looked forward to the day when he would stand before God, who would say ‘well done, good and faithful servant’. In light of all that Jesus had done for him, Paul wanted to give his very best to Jesus. As we stand at the beginning of this New Year, let’s ask ourselves, ‘What can I do this year that will help me bring glory and honour to God?’ 4

Men’s Breakfast is on the first Saturday of the month. Meet at the Royal Scot on Langrigg Road at 10am for a good breakfast and a good crack. Check the tp4c facebook page for the date of the next one Following a collection from the parish, we were able to present Matt & Haley with nearly £700 during Matt’s last service on Sunday 19th December. They will be able to use this when they are settled in their new roles in Yorkshire. God’s fragrance – do people catch a whiff of it on you? ‘…and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.’ John 12:3 A story runs of how a lady was having tea outside a tea shop late one afternoon, when she became aware of a pleasant scent filling the air. She asked the waiter the source of the scent and was told that it came from the people passing by. He explained that they worked in a perfume factory down the street and were on their way home. When they left the factory, they always carried with them the fragrance that had permeated their clothes during their day’s work. As the perfume workers leave the factory full of the fragrance of where they have been, so we, as we leave our churches and chapels and wherever we spend time with God, are meant to carry the perfume of His presence with us. We are called to spread everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him (2 Corinthians 2:4). If we allow ourselves in worship to be permeated with Christ’s love and the sweetness of His presence, then we will be able to take the Jesus in us out into the world. 5

Christmas Activities We have had a wonderful time at our Christmas activities! We had Christmas dinner, crafts and music at St Barnabas on the Friday, the Saturday we went off to Blackpool for a fantastic Christmas dinner in the White Tower restaurant, we enjoyed seeing Aladdin the pantomime (Oh yes we did!) and then a drive back through Blackpool to see the illuminations. On the Monday, we went to our dear friends at Wigton Road Methodist Church who hosted a magician’s show, crafts and some fantastic food. We rounded off our activities on the Tuesday back at St Barnabas Church where we had a community nativity service involving one Joseph, six Marys and many other wonderful characters- there were 45 of us dressed up retelling the story of our Saviour’s birth... I can not tell you all just how amazing it was , to see and hear people asking questions and talking about Jesus right there in one of our churches! We were also able to bless the Community Chef project, based at St Herbert’s church in Currock, with the food which was left from our Christmas dinner. The project provides hot meals for those who are homeless and/or struggling in our city- another fantastic community project we have been able to support. We must give thanks to our Lord for allowing us to share his love with those around us especially this Christmas time, to Cumbria County Council for the funding to provide the activities, the girls from our girls group who came to set up and serve the food, to those joining us at the activities at St Barnabas, our dear friends at Wigton Road Methodist church who continue to support our outreach activities and to the fantastic volunteers without whom we could just not run these activities. If you would like to see some photos from the activities there are some on the TP4C Facebook page- I will finish off by sharing some of the comments people have made about the Christmas activities. “Hello want to tell a big thank you for TP4C for wonderful time for kids and families on Christmas period and all time it’s amazing you make lots of families happy” “The TP4C ladies are fantastic. What they do for the community goes above and beyond and it doesn’t matter if you are involved in the church or not they welcome everyone with open arms. They make a lot of children and families happy giving them experiences and memories they’d maybe not get” “Kids have had a fab time yesterday and today at tp4c events. Thank you Maria, Gemma and Aileen and everyone else who organised these! You’re amazing! Merry Christmas xx” Gemma 6

What’s happening to our churches now? From January 2022 Holy Trinity & St Barnabas and St Luke’s churches are in an interregnum. (This means between vicars.) Usually during this time the Churchwardens step up and sort out the services etc. Unfortunately, due to a variety of reasons and circumstances, our Parishes no longer have any official Churchwardens to do this. At this point we must thank Jannette King, Yvonne Swainson and Pete Brown, who have all stepped down after several years service, some of it during our previous interregnum, new working systems with a new incumbent and a pandemic. We thank you for your dedication. We must also thank John and Angela Hewitt for keeping St Barnabas Church open, warm, clean and socially distanced. However, we are Church of England churches and must follow Church of England rules. The Lay ministry team is only permitted to work under the supervision of the ordained clergy, so they aren’t allowed to just step in and fill the gaps. In addition to all this, we have a new Rural Dean from 1st December 2021, so we are now in his hands. The new Rural Dean is Rev Simon Bickersteth from St James’ and he has sorted out cover for us. We are taking it month by month, but for January the 10am service on Sundays at St Barnabas and a 10am Wednesday morning service also at St Barnabas are covered. It may not always be what we have got used to, but we are obliged to follow Church of England rules, as well as Government guidelines during the pandemic and the required Safeguarding and Health and Safety regulations. Please keep praying for our churches and for the people who keep them going. Pray for the groups which are not allowed to run at the moment because of various regulations and guidelines. Pray for the wider community who just think we are in a mess and don’t know what we are doing. Pray for ourselves and our part in the work and mission of the Church of England, Two Rivers Mission Community and tp4c. May we be Salt and Light in our community. (Matthew 5: 13-16) 7

Thank you very much to everyone at Holy Trinity and St Barnabas Churches for donating stamps to the work of Embrace the Middle East. Funds raised through the sale of your stamps will be used to support the Helen Keller School for the Visually Impaired. The students at the Helen Keller School have worked hard to achieve both their academic and extracurricular goals throughout the school year. They have all done extremely well and their teachers and families tell us how proud of them they are. Thanks to your donations, in 2020 the Stamp Fellowship raised over £6,250 for the Helen Keller School. Thank you again for donating your stamps to us and enabling the school to continue its vital work. With kindest regards Sam Franklin Supporter Experience Administrator You can check out the latest news from Embrace at embraceme.org Please continue to pass your stamps to me (Alison Sayer) The next package will be going to the Leprosy Mission. Thank you. Parish Prayer Loop: Maria Holmes : Speak to her! ([email protected]) Alison Sayer: [email protected] Geoff Brown from St Luke’s & Margaret Brown from St Luke’s All requests are confidential and can be for anyone about anything. We also have a prayer support page on facebook 8

Lectionary Readings for January Year C These are the readings for January. If you are the reader /intercessor for the Service, the readings are highlighted. Sunday 2nd January Jeremiah 31: 7-14 or John 1: (1-9), 10-18 2nd Sunday of Christmas Ecclesiaticus 24: 1-12 Psalm 147: 13-21 or Wisdom of Solomon 10: 15-21 Ephesians 1: 3-14 Sunday 2nd January/ Isaiah 60: 1-6 Matthew 2: 1-12 Thursday 6th January Psalm 72: [1-9], 10-15 Epiphany Ephesians 3: 1-12 Sunday 9th January Isaiah 43: 1-7 Luke 3: 15-17, 21-22 Baptism of Christ Psalm 29 John 2: 1-11 Sunday 16th January Acts 8: 14-17 Luke 4: 14-21 2nd Sunday of Epiphany Isaiah 62: 1-5 Sunday 23rd January Psalm 36: 5-10 3rd Sunday of Epiphany 1Corinthians 12: 1-11 Nehemiah 8: 1-3, 5-6, 8-10 Psalm 19 1Corinthians 12: 12-31a Sunday 30th January Ezekiel 43: 27-44: 4 Luke 4: 21-30 4th Sunday of Epiphany Psalm 48 Luke 2: 22-40 1Corinthians 13: 1-13 Sunday 30th January/ Malachi 3: 1-5 Wednesday 2nd February Psalm 24: [1-6], 7-10 Presentation of Christ in Hebrews 2: 14-18 the Temple (Candlemas) New Year Prayer 2022 Lord of all creation, Lord of all the years, Thank you for steering us through the fragmented landscape of two pandemic-riddled years. Here we stand at the beginning of a new year, not knowing what lies ahead. Our only security lies in you, Lord. Please take our hands and guide us, day by day, into January and beyond. We will not be afraid, Lord because you have promised never to leave us, never to forsake us. And you keep your promises. We are safe. 2022, here we come… expectantly, In Jesus’ name, Amen By Daphne Kitching 9

10

Across: 8 How the Abyss (NIV) is described in the Authorized Version (Revelation 9:1) (10,3) 9 Frozen water (Ezekiel 1:22) (3) 10 The Ten Commandments (9) 11 In Roman Catholic theology, neither heaven nor hell (5) 13 Des cons (anag.) (7) 16 ‘Though [your sins] are red as — , they shall be like wool’ (Isaiah 1:18) (7) 19 Keen (Romans 1:15) (5) 22 Repugnant, loathsome (Jeremiah 24:9) (9) 24 Drink like an animal (Judges 7:5) (3) 25 First and last (Revelation 22:13) (5,3,5) Down 1 Father of Ahi, a Gadite (1 Chronicles 5:15) (6) 2 Where David found the stone with which he killed Goliath (1 Samuel 17:40) (6) 3 ‘Hour by hour fresh lips are making thy — doings heard on high’ (8) 4 ‘And there were shepherds living out in the fields near by, keeping watch over their — at night’ (Luke 2:8) (6) 5 United Society for Christian Literature (1,1,1,1) 6 ‘If he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would — — or a tax collec- tor’ (Matthew 18:17) (1,5) 7 Where Paul was taken when things became difficult for him in Berea (Acts 17:15) (6) 12 Istituto per le Opere di Religione (Vatican Bank) (1,1,1) 14 ‘Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new — ; the old has gone, the new has come!’ (2 Corinthians 5:17) (8) 15 Used to colour ram skins red for use in the tabernacle (Exodus 25:5) (3) 16 Vat car (anag.) (6) 17 ‘Be joyful — — , patient in affliction, faithful in prayer’ (Romans 12:12) (6) 18 ‘The parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presenta- ble parts — — special treatment’ (1 Corinthians 12:23) (4,2) 20 Ancient rowing boat (Isaiah 33:21) (6) 21 Say again (2 Corinthians 11:16) (6) 23 What Jesus did in the synagogue in Nazareth after he stood up (Luke 4:16) (4) Answers on page 17 The Bible version used in our crosswords is the NIV. Crosswords reproduced by kind permission of BRF and John Capon, originally published in Three Down, Nine Across, by John Capon (£6.99 BRF). Acknowledgements go to www.parishpump.co.uk for many of the articles, prayers, puzzles & cartoons in this magazine. 11

Where did the Wise Men come from? Magi from the East – it isn’t a lot to go on. The Magi were a religious caste devoted to astrology, divination and the interpretation of dreams. Some scholars believe these magi came from southern Arabia, where the Queen of Sheba had lived. She would have learned about the coming Messiah from Solomon. In Matthew’s gospel the Magi ask Herod: ‘Where is the One who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.’ So it is possible that Queen of Sheba’s story of Messiah for Israel had survived. One thing that supports the theory that the magi came from southern Arabia is this: if you study any map of Palestine as it was during biblical times, you will find that the old Arabian caravan routes all entered Palestine ‘from the East’. magi scholars Herod east southern king religious Arabia star caste queen worship astrology Sheba Palestine divination Messiah caravan dreams Solomon Answers on page 17 12

13

14

THE LINK MAGAZINE The way you get your Link magazine is changing from now on. For the past 3 years your Link magazine has been available free of charge from the churches , from a distributor, by email or online. From the February 2022 edition onwards, it will still be available free of charge in St Barnabas Church, from a distributor, by email and online, but I need to know how many hard (paper) copies I need to print, so that I don’t waste paper. If you are already on the email list or read your copy online, you don’t need to do anything different. If you have a copy of The Link delivered or popped through your door, please could you let us know if you still want it by speaking to the person who delivers it, by speaking to Alison Sayer at church or by phoning the parish office (538983) and leaving a message. (It’s an answerphone) Please tell us exactly who you are; name and surname at least, so that we can identify you. You can read the Link magazine online through the Church of England website www.achurchnearyou.com Type Carlisle into the location box and a map will come up. Tp4c is number 6 on the map. Click on this and it will take you to tp4c page. The Link magazine is on the list on the left hand side. There are also details of other services and events on this page. Events are also advertised on the tp4c facebook page, if you have facebook. We are trying to make it as easy as possible for you to stay in touch with what’s going on in the Parish, even through difficult times when you aren’t able to get to church in person. You may not have a computer, but most people have a phone! 538983 Parish Office (Answerphone) 15

This series is written by Dr Ruth M Bancewicz, who is Church Engagement Director at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion in Cambridge. Ruth writes on the positive relationship between Science and Christian faith. Breathe You show your majesty In every star that shines, And every time we breathe. Your glory, God revealed From distant galaxies To here beneath our skin. These words from the song Magnificent by Matt Redman and Jonas Myrin speak volumes to me as a scientist. Redman is an astronomy geek who has ‘an appreciation for the universe that surrounds us, particularly its unique ability to lift our hearts to see how massive and mysterious God truly is’.* The microscopic level on the other hand – what goes on ‘beneath our skin’ – is less available to ordinary people. I have had the privilege of exploring this world to my heart’s content, and what I’ve seen has given me such a sense of awe that I want to share with others. Every time you breathe, a series of air pockets with a combined surface area the size of a tennis court is bathed with oxygen. These minute air pockets are covered with blood vessels. The boundary between air and blood is so thin that oxygen and carbon dioxide can diffuse freely from one to the other. When your heart beats at a normal rate, a single red blood cell takes about three quarters of a second to travel through the small blood vessels in your lungs. But in just one third of that time, a quarter of a second, that cell has already received all the oxygen it needs from the air. So, when you exercise, causing your heart rate to increase and the blood to flow faster, you’re still getting plenty of oxygen – as long as you keep breathing! Redman and Myrin wrote in their song, “You are higher than we ever could im- agine, And closer than our eyes could ever see.” The universe demonstrates God’s awesome power. This is a place made by a being whose imagination is not limited by time and space. Biology, on the other hand, helps to remind me of God’s creativity and close- ness. I am a product of a long and painstaking process of continued development over aeons of time. Beneath my skin are incredibly detailed, beautifully regulat- ed processes that give me life. Jesus said that ‘even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.’ The knowledge that God intentionally made me and knows every detail of my physiology is both amazing and humbling. *Indescribable: Encountering the Glory of God in the Beauty of the Universe, Matt Redman & Louis Giglio (David C. Cook, 2011) 16

ANSWERS Crossword Answers: ACROSS: 8, Bottomless pit. 9, Ice. 10, Decalogue. 11, Limbo. 13, Seconds. 16, Crimson. 19, Eager. 22, Abhorrent. 24, Lap. 25, Alpha and Omega. DOWN: 1, Abdiel. 2, Stream. 3, Wondrous. 4, Flocks. 5, USCL. 6, A pagan. 7, Athens. 12, IOR. 14, Creation. 15, Dye. 16, Cravat. 17, In hope. 18, Need no. 20, Galley. 21, Repeat. 23, Read. 17

David Pickup, a solicitor, considers the year ahead. A New Year’s Resolution from Micah Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of ol- ive oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression…? He has shown you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you: To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:7-8) I quite like olive oil; not the Popeye character but the cooking ingredient. Although I am not sure what I would do with even one river of oil, and I have nowhere to put a ram. Still, this is one of my favourite Bible passages, and it is an ideal one for lawyers. It sums up in a very simple but helpful way what true religion should be. That makes it a good verse to start the year. The message is simple: God does not want empty promises or lip service, but our real devotion, from our heart. What does it mean for us? Do justly - Be honest and open in our dealings with others this year. Be dependable. We should say when things are going wrong and be appreciative when they go well. Be fair in our dealings, whether at home or at work or in church. Keep confidences and never pass on gossip. Love mercy - Give people the benefit of doubt, do not take advantage of others and do not always criticise or complain. Accept apologies and explanations where we can, and be generous. Walk humbly - Quietly get on with things. Do not make a big show of what we do. Lastly, we are required to do these things. They are not options or choices but requirements. Like many requirements in the Bible, they are simple to understand, but not always simple to do. Happy New Year. 18

As for the future…. O my Father, my God, I am in Your hand; and may I rejoice above all things in being so. Do with me what seems good in Your sight; only let me love you with all mind, soul and strength. By John Wesley God’s Aid God to enfold, God to surround, God in speech-told, God my thought-bound. God when I sleep, God when I wake, God my watch-keep, God my hope-sake. God my life-whole, God lips apart, God in my soul, God in my heart. God Wine and Bread, God is my death, God my soul-thread, God ever breath. Ancient Celtic Prayer Earth and Seasons Lord of the elements and changing seasons, keep me in the hollow of Your hand. When I am tossed to and fro with the winds of adversity and the blasts of sick- ness and misunderstanding, still my racing heart, quieten my troubled mind. Bring me at last through the storms and tribulations of this mortal life into the calm evening of Your unchanging love; and grant that in the midst of my present perplexities and confusion I may experience Your peace, which passes human understanding. Brother Ramon, member of the Anglican Society of St Francis Excerpt from ‘The Glory in the Grey’ Almighty God, Redeemer... Sunshine and storm, mist and greyness 19

25th January: St Paul, the first Christian intellectual This month, on 25th January, the Church celebrates probably the most famous conversion of all. At least, what happened to a young man called Saul on the road to Damascus has become a byword for all instant conversions - what is known as a ‘damascene’ moment. Saul was a devout Jew, a Pharisee, a student of Gamaliel and a fierce critic of the followers of Jesus, then a very new sect on the religious scene. On his way to Damascus to start a purge of Christians in that city, he was blind- ed by a bright light and heard a voice saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’ He asked the identity of the voice, and was told: ‘Jesus, whom you are persecuting’. Stunned by the experience, he followed further instructions which led him to a Christian man in Damascus, who prayed with him. As he did, Saul’s sight was restored. The experience convinced Paul that Jesus - crucified in Jerusalem four or five years earlier - was in fact the Messiah and had risen from the dead. After a period of instruction, Saul was baptised and took the name Paul. At first, some Christians were wary about the reality of his conversion, but over a period of time he was accepted and indeed eventually recognised as an ’apostle’, a ‘special messenger’ of Jesus Christ. His intellectual stature and leadership gifts quickly marked him out, and within a few years he became a leading figure in the emerging Christian Church, preaching and founding churches all over the Middle East, largely of Gentile converts. He was eventually martyred in Rome, probably in 65AD. Paul was the first intellectual of the Christian Church, the man who was able to set the events of the life and teaching of Jesus, and especially His death and resurrection, into a coherent theology, with its roots very clearly in the Jewish faith of his own upbringing. Many people think of Paul as a rather negative, narrow misogynist, but even a quick reading of his letters actually reveals a person of great warmth, who evoked enormous affection and devotion from others. ‘You would have plucked out your eyes and given them to me!’ he writes to the Christians at Galatia. As for the charge that Paul disliked women, even a quick read of his letters will reveal how large a role women played in his churches. In terms of the first century, St Paul was a dangerous liberal! So, all in all, the amazing Paul of Tarsus deserves a bit of celebrating on 25th January. 20

The soaring cost of heating our church Here is some chilling news about the church’s heating and electricity bills: they could be doubling this year. The energy crisis is hitting the UK hard, and churches are not protected by the domestic energy cap. That could leave many churches in the same plight as St George’s in Rugby, which fears it will have to pay £10,000 for gas and electricity in 2022 – double what it paid last year. Some churches have already turned off all their heating, apart from pew heaters for services. Week of Prayer for Christian Unity – 18th to 25th January The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally observed from the 18th to 25th January – the octave of St Peter and St Paul. This year, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has been prepared by the churches of the Middle East. The Christians of the Middle East say that they offer these resources “conscious that the world shares many of the travails and much of the difficulties that it experiences”, and that it also “yearns for a light to lead the way to the Saviour who is the light that overcomes darkness.” More at: https://ctbi.org.uk/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2022/ The young pray and worship more than you think More than half of adults (51 per cent) who are aged under 35 pray at least once a month, while almost as many (49 per cent) make a monthly visit to some place of worship. In contrast, of adults aged over 55, only a quarter (24 per cent) pray, and only one fifth (16 per cent) attend a place of worship. The survey was done by Savanta ComRes, and included Christians, Hindus, Jews and Muslims. It was commissioned by the organisers of the Eternal Wall of Prayer, which is being built near Birmingham. The monument’s creator, Richard Gamble, is a former chaplain of Leicester City FC, who says: “Many are now discovering that prayer is not a response of the last resort.” 21

FamilyLife UK, a Christian charity, has developed the Toucan Together resource, designed to help couples to navigate some common daily challenges of marriage. By Christine Daniel. “I wish we could wave a wand and all the bills would disappear!” Many of us enjoy spending at Christmas. But receiving credit card bills in January can range from being an unpleasant hassle to a massive burden. Money is also the number one trigger for arguments between partners. But it is possible to manage your finances with confidence together, so you can make money work for you. Here are some basic tips… Talk openly and honestly with each other Try to find some shared goals; brainstorm your ideas and possible solutions. Stay factual and don’t hide anything. There is lots more about talking with your partner in our blog: 10 tips to make talking about money with your partner a little bit easier. Make a plan together to make money work for you Couples who make joint decisions around their finances have fewer problems and are more likely to experience harmony at home. A budget is simply the result of your joint decisions, and is the best way of managing your money. It will help you know: ● exactly what money is coming in and going out ● what you can afford to spend, and where you can make savings ● how much you can save, and afford to give away ● how to plan for the future, for your long-term goals Track your spending and review it regularly, perhaps once a month, to begin with. If you would like to know more, why not visit https://familylifeuk.org and click on the Toucan button at the top of the page? (www.toucantogether.com) Toucan Together’s Money Module can help you with savings, handling debt, building budgets and managing change. There are helpful tips and videos where couples honestly share their stories. It’s FREE! W22e

ST BARNABAS WITH HOLY TRINITY MOTHERS UNION We were very glad to be able to meet together on Thursday 9th December for our long awaited Service of Readings and Carols, followed by seasonal refreshments and, thanks to Angela, a couple of quizzes and ,of course, Pat kept us laughing with her collection of funny stories. We were so glad to know that Pat is on the road to recovery after her recent operation. Many thanks also to John for all his help with the music etc. At these times of celebration we give thanks that we can be together, but of course we are very conscious of those who are not able to be with us, remembering especially our good friend Agnes Swan; she will be missed by us all. We will meet again on Thursday 13th January for our post Christmas Lunch at Vallum House and hope that there will not be any further restrictions to prevent this. On behalf of us all in our Branch I would like to send our best wishes to Matt and Haley as they leave our Parish after some very difficult years. Thank you both for your ministry. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL…. Margaret t hanks Excerpt from ‘The Glory in the Grey’ Almighty God, Redeemer... Sunshine and storm, mist and greyness Eddy round our inner lives. But as we trace the pattern, looking back, We know that both darkness and light have been of thine ordaining, For our own soul’s health. Thy constant care in all, and everywhere, Is manifest. By George MacLeod, founder of the Iona Community I would like to thank everyone who donated at my Mum’s funeral. £130 was donated to the tp4c Foodbank for Christmas, as well as the many donations made personally. I know for example that trees have been plant- ed and a toilet twinned in Malawi in Agnes Swan’s memory! for his love of our countrAylis,on Sayer and for his devotion to duty. 23

24

WALKER’S FUNERAL DIRECTORS * 24 hour Complete Service * Private Chapel of Rest * Memorial Consultants * Woodland Burials * Pre-paid Funeral Plans 80 Wigton Road, Carlisle, CA2 7AY Tel: 01228 515650 25

SEAN CRILLEY Independent Family Funeral Directors 78 Brook Street, Carlisle ‘A Local Firm Proudly Serving Local Families’ For 24 Hour Personal Attention Call Sean on (01228) 544905 Private Chapels of Rest - Pre-Paid Funeral Plans - Memorial Consultants www.seancrilleyfuneraldirectors.com Email; [email protected] AQUADRy CARPET AND UPHOLSTERY CLEANING SPECIALISTS FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTES CALL 01228 810141 07867505206 26

Michael G. Maddison Independent Funeral Director 57-61 Newtown Road, Carlisle, Cumbria CA2 7JB Tel: 01228 317577 Mob: 07796102996 Offering a 24 hour Caring and Dignified Service Chapels of Rest, Pre-payment Funeral Plans & Memorials 27

CONTACT DETAILS Are you new to the Parish or would like some further information about the different Parish activities? Please tick the information you require on the list below, send this form to the address given and the right person will contact you soon. Send your Parish Office request to: c/o St Barnabas Church Brookside, Carlisle, CA2 7JU Phone: 01228 538983 Name Address Postcode Telephone Email Baptism/Confirmation Bible Study Courses (Alpha, Footsteps, Called to Serve) Family Church activities Pastoral Visiting Prayer/ Healing Ministry Youth Organisations Link Magazine Parish Activities and Events Anything else? (Please note request in space provided)