Lent Appeal

As Lent draws to a close, please consider making a donation to our Lent Appeal in aid of two international charities with local connections.

75% of the proceeds of the Appeal will go to the very influential work of the CBM whose headquarters are in Oakington, with the remaining quarter supporting the work of Street Child World Cup, an imaginative initiative linked to the Football World Cup to be held in South Africa

CBM

Street Child World Cup

 

How to donate

If you, your church or group would like to give to the Bishop’s Lent appeal you may do so by either:

• Sending a cheque, made payable to ‘Ely Diocesan Board of Finance’ to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal, Accounts Department, Bishop Woodford House, Barton Road, Ely CB7 4DX. If you are a UK Tax Payer please click here to download a Gift Aid form which allows the Appeal to reclaim an extra 28p for every £1 you donate from the Government.

or you may donate online at

• Bishop’s Lent Appeal Justgiving page.

  Click this button to donate to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal

Filed under: Lent

Football Frenzy

 

Saturday’s star Football Fixture was between the Ely Cathedral and Diocese All Stars (Capt. Alan “Cruncher” Hargrave – we saw that so-called friendly handshake …) and the Cambridge Castle Free Rangers (Capt. Philipa King – normally to be seen caring for her wHoly Happy Free Range Hens but gallantly transferring her skills for the day).

The All Stars allegedly won 5-0, though the Archdeacon may be exaggerating the size of the victory in the shot of the celebrations above. Nevetheless the captains did not so much shake hands as positively hug in friendship (also above) and all agreed that it was a very fair match, with the youngest players playing the starring parts.

And a four-figure sum was raised for the Street Child World Cup, one of my Lent Appeal Charities, so the game goes on!

Donate to the Lent Appeal through our Justgiving page by clicking http://www.justgiving.com/lent2010 and read more about the charities at http://www.ely.anglican.org/news_events/news_items/lent10.html.

Filed under: Church of England, Events, Lent

Clergy clash in football frenzy for charity!

Two teams of fearless footballers are set to clash at 3pm at the Paradise Centre Ground, Newnham St, Ely on Saturday March 20th to raise funds for the charity Street Child World Cup, one of two charities supported by the Bishop’s Lent Appeal this year. The Street Child World Cup will be taking place at the same time as the main World Cup in South Africa and will involve teams of street children from across the world playing football to raise awareness of their plight and to launch an international campaign to give street children the basics rights of security, housing, education, food and clothing.
The Cathedral and Diocese All-Stars will  be captained by Canon Alan ‘Have a Go’ Hargrave
and the Cambridge Castle Free Rangers will be captained by Rev. Philipa ‘Chopper’ King.
The teams will be raising money through sponsorship for each minute the individual players remain on the field, via donations taken at the match and also through their justgiving websites:
http://www.justgiving.com/Philipa-King
http://www.justgiving.com/Alan-Hargrave
So whether you want the Diocese or the Castle team to win, come along and support the match but do give as much as you can.
More information about the Lent Appeal can be found on the Diocese’s website here,

http://www.ely.anglican.org/news_events/news_items/lent10.html

http://www.churchatcastle.org/
01223 315000 (parish office)

Filed under: Lent

Lengthening our Stride

Lent is a time for lengthening our stride as Christians, smelling the spring,  and seeing nurtured roots sprout new shoots for a new year.

You may recall The Way of Life sculpture by Jonathan Clarke at the west end of the Cathedral, depicting a winding path making its way upward and heavenward to a cross. Prayer is one of my key themes for 2010. It’s a way of life that opens up The Way of Life.

I would like to commend Lent to you as a time for getting the stride of your prayer life going again. A simple suggestion: try to pray in your own way each morning and each evening until Easter comes. Use the daily office; use the Scriptures; use favourite prayers; remember to listen… Here are some other ideas and opportunities you might like to consider as well.

If you would like to support my Lent Appeal, which is raising money for the Christian Blind Mission and the Streetchild World Cup, please click here.

                                  

Filed under: Lent

Launching Lent 2010 at Ely Cathedral

Come and join me tomorrow morning (Ash Wednesday) at Ely Cathedral!

At 10am we’ll be launching

my Lent Appeal, with presentations by the Christian Blind Mission and Street Child World Cup and a short act of worship so that we can pray for them and for the people they are working with.

Then between 10 and 11 I hope you will join me in collecting prayer requests from the many visitors and locals who will be in and around the Cathedral, as part of the “Say One for Me” campaign”.

At 12.10 we will take the prayer request cards to the Ash Wednesday Communion Service in the Cathedral, and offer them silently during the intercessions.

 

 

 

Filed under: Church of England, Lent

Famous names endorse Bishop’s Lent Appeal Charity

The Bishop’s Lent Appeal this year is supporting two charities, the Christian Blind Mission and the Street Child World Cup.

The second of these is a new project so you may know less about it. It was a thrill then to see some ringing endorsements for it the Sun newspaper:

David Beckham said:

"I know from personal experience just what power football can have to inspire and change young people’s lives whatever their background or nationality. This is what the Deloitte Street Child World Cup is all about and I give it my full support."

Sir Alex Ferguson added:

"I am delighted that the first Street Child World Cup will take place in South Africa where I know there is a huge passion for football. No child should have to live on the streets and and I fully endorse this campaign giving street children a voice to claim their rights."

Arsenal and England’s Theo Walcott said:

"I’ve played football as a teenager with the world watching me. The Street Child World Cup is a brilliant project which will help hundreds of thousands of teenagers who live on the streets by getting the world to listen to them and give them a fair chance."

And even Archbishop Desmond Tutu has lent his voice, adding:

"The Street Child World Cup demonstrates the tremendous potential of every single child, and especially street children, who are so often treated as less than human. I am proud that the first ever Street Child World Cup will take place in South Africa – and I urge all governments to guarantee the rights of this most marginalised group of their citizens to lives in which their promise is fulfilled."

Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/2851140/Well-put-the-boot-into-poverty.html

Filed under: Lent

BISHOP’S LENT APPEAL 2010

 

Click here to donate to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal

For the Bishop’s Lent Appeal 2010, I am asking parishes to support two international charities with local connections:

• Christian Blind Mission (CBM)
• Street Child World Cup

I will launch the Appeal during a short act of worship at 10am on Ash Wednesday, 17th February 2010, in the Lady Chapel, Ely Cathedral. Each of the charities will give a short presentation on their work.

We invite those who have contributed to our past appeals and other groups to give generously to these two charities during the coming Lent season.

75% of the proceeds of the Appeal will go to the very influential work of the Christian Blind Mission whose headquarters are in Oakington, with the remaining quarter supporting the work of Street Child World Cup, an imaginative initiative linked to the Football World Cup to be held in South Africa

How to donate

If you, your church or group would like to give to the Bishop’s Lent appeal you may do so by either:

• Sending a cheque, made payable to ‘Ely Diocesan Board of Finance’ to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal, Accounts Department, Bishop Woodford House, Barton Road, Ely CB7 4DX. If you are a UK Tax Payer please click here to download a Gift Aid form which allows the Appeal to reclaim an extra 28p for every £1 you donate from the Government.

or you may donate online at

• Bishop’s Lent Appeal Justgiving page.

Christian Blind Mission

Christian Blind Mission is an international Christian development organisation, committed to improving the quality of life for those with disabilities in the poorest countries of the world.

They act upon the needs and rights of people with disabilities and support the provision of more than 900 projects in more than 90 countries. It is estimated that they reach out to 20 million people worldwide.

Wherever possible, these services are provided within the communities and therefore Community-Based Rehabilitation programmes are provided to leave communities with a legacy of skills.

CBM’s focus is on the prevention and treatment of diseases, and on education and rehabilitation so that people with disability can be included into their society as equals and lead a largely independent life.

Here are some resources from CBM:

• For use with church groups
• To raise awareness in a school environment

Street Child World Cup

From March 14-21 2010 in South Africa, Street Child World Cup will, for the first time, bring together street children from eight different countries to play football. They will also be able to discuss the issues that are important to them

Tens of thousands of children and young people are living on city streets around the world due to a multitude of poverty related issues.  Typically, hunger, violence and poverty drive children to the streets, and hunger, violence and poverty meet them there. Street Child World Cup aims via its international campaign to make a difference on these issues and build a better future for hundreds of thousands of street children throughout the world.

The Street Child World Cup seeks to ensure that the 2010 South Africa World Cup is not remembered for the abuse inflicted on this highly marginalised group but for the long term change it has made possible.

Here are some ideas from Street Child World Cup to help you plan a church service and raise money:

Ideas for a Church Service

• Ideas for a SCWC church service
• Readings and prayer for a SCWC service
• Background information for a SCWC service

Ideas for Fundraising

• Feasting for football -the big idea!
• Recipes for a SCWC South African feast
• Promoting your fundraising event
• Download a poster for your community event

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Useful Lent Links

• Bishop’s Lent Appeal Justgiving page
• Gift Aid form for UK Tax Payers
• Christian Blind Mission
• Street Child World Cup

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Other Lent Links

• Christian Aid’s Count Your Blessings calendar for Lent- a resource for personal response and reflection
• ‘Wild Wanderings’: a Day of Preparation for Lent at the Simeon Centre Saturday 13th February, 10am – 4pm Ridley Hall, Cambridge

Filed under: Church of England, Lent