The Minister's Letter

Dear Friends,

Greetings, yet again, in the name of Jesus!

What a special month March is. We look forward to celebrating Mothering Sunday on 10th and Easter right at the end of the month! These two events display something very special to me - LOVE!

Despite the advances in technology, we are all born of a mother. My prayer is that will always be the case. Mothers make great sacrifices for us, and I hope that we appreciate those sacrifices and remember them not only on Mothering Sunday, but every day!

Ministerial Synod this year had a guest speaker, John Levy, who is Jewish and was speaking on behalf of the "Friends of Israel Educational Trust". Whilst I found his address, and answers to the questions ministers put to him, interesting and informative, I could not help but keep seeing the images of Israeli tanks against unarmed stone-throwing Palestinians. On top of this, visions of young Palestinians, at school, being taught that Allah would richly bless them if they gave their lives in killing Israelis.

So, as we approach Easter and the remembrance of the greatest act of LOVE that the world has even known, we are confronted by the fact that the Holy Land is still divided by the hatred of men, women and children. Sadly, we here in Dover can not claim to be above it all. We have our own likes and dislikes, our own sense of worth and value, which often clash with views of others. My prayer is that Easter, with the sadness of Good Friday and the wonderful elation of Easter Day, will help each of us to reflect on our own lives and witness. Do we share LOVE with all we meet, or are we sometimes distant and unloving, therefore a barrier to God working through us? Can I urge everyone to use Easter as a time to reflect, and to see the changes that are needed in each of our lives if we really are to be of use in God's mission?

A reflecting and meaningful Easter to each of you.

Christine joins me in wishing you all every blessing for the times ahead.

I am yours because I am His.

John

Bible Study

Once again, I take the opportunity to remind folk that London Road is having Bible Study sessions on the fourth Wednesday of each month at 10 a.m. and the third or fourth Saturday at 10 a.m. We are looking at the Beatitudes on Wednesdays and Miracles/Parables at the Saturday sessions. ALL are very welcome. Themes may change during Lent! Please watch the notices for dates.

Easter Cross

As there were no complaints last year, I intend to put the wooden cross on the Church door on Good Friday. I invite all of you, on Easter Day, to bring a bloom, thus showing the new life we receive from the death and resurrection of Jesus.

London Road Hymn Book

Please don't forget that we are trying to put together a church hymn book, which will be dedicated to the memory of our dear friend Vic O'Connell. If you have a favourite hymn that is not in the books we use, please let Graham Tutthill know VERY soon.

Special evening

On Saturday 9 March there's a very special event at St. John's C of E Church, Folkestone. Entitled "Metamorphosis 2002", it is to be an evening of worship, teachings and reflections with guest speaker the Rev. Steve Chalke.

Riding in Style!

I felt richly privileged to be able to dedicate our new Ford Transit minibus at the youth service on 3 February. It has seat belts, thus allowing more use by church organisations. Our thanks to Keith Tutthill for all the time he spent researching costs, etc. Special thanks, also, to the Stephen Lewis Benevolent Fund for the way they have supplied the former minibuses over the years. The new vehicle is now funded by the church - our thanks to all those who make donations towards its upkeep and running costs - and the Stephen Lewis fund has made a £500 donation to get the new minibus fund off the ground. Drivers please remember that the new minibus uses diesel, NOT petrol!

Centenary Scrapbook

The scrapbook, containing many items and memories from our church's 100-year history, is now doing the rounds so that people can look at it. If you would like to see it, please see Linda Hayward who will be pleased to arrange this for you.

Centenary Pens

Have you bought one of these special pens to mark the church's centenary? They are only 50 pence each, and Evelyn Tutthill still has a few left for sale.

Weekly Offering Envelopes

Our list of subscribers has dwindled considerably in the past two years through deaths and removals and our numbers have fallen from 100 to 68, causing a considerable loss of income for the church. If you are not already a member of the envelope scheme, perhaps you would like to consider it. The scheme is totally confidential - no-one will know how much you put in your envelope. If you would like to know more, or have any questions, speak to Andrea, Rodney or me (phone 205498) but not later than the end of March when it will be time to order supplies of envelopes for September onwards. Phil Brockman

District Festival

Yesterday (Saturday 2 March) a number of our members were taking part in the area festival at Sittingbourne, and the results will be announced at our service this morning. The finals are at Maidstone on 23 March. We wish all our competitors well in their various classes.

Feast of Life

The next practice for this Christian Aid musical is this Tuesday, 5 March, and it's not too late to join in. Just come along to Salem Baptist Church at 7.30 p.m. and join the singers and musicians who are already enjoying preparing for this presentation. The music is by Garth Hewitt and Paul Field. It is being performed at Salem Baptist Church on 24 May and at River Parish Church on 25 May. Admission will be £2, and £1 for students.

Leading up to Easter...

Dover Choral Society will be performing J. S. Bach's "St. Matthew Passion" at Dover Town Hall on Saturday 23 March at 7.30pm, and this will be a very special day in the musical life of Dover. What is so special or different about that? For a start it will not just be a concert performance, but a semi-dramatic presentation with Kent Opera baritone John Hancorn both singing and acting the role of Jesus. Especially dramatic will be the confrontation between Jesus and Pilate (sung by local bass Philip Spendley) with the Crowd i.e. the Choral Society dressed in everyday clothes, not their usual 'black and white' and dinner jackets, shouting "Let him be crucified".

A second reason for being so special is that we are not only singing the new Novello English translation by the celebrated tenor Neil Jenkins, but we are being privileged in having Neil Jenkins himself to sing the part of the Evangelist. Neil is one of this country's foremost interpreters of this demanding role, one that he has often sung for Sir David Willcocks and the Bach Choir. For our soprano soloist, it will be a great joy to welcome back to Dover former head girl of Dover Girls' Grammar School, Mary Seers, the daughter of the Choral Society's much-loved former President, Tony Seers. Two fine local singers, June Woodland (contralto) and Paul Young (tenor) complete the line-up of soloists. The performance will be accompanied as usual by the Connaught Orchestra led by George Simpson, and conducted by the Society's Musical Director, Michael Foad.

Tickets £8 (children £4) are now available from Dover Town Hall, The Music Box in Maison Dieu Road, and members of Dover Choral Society. If there are any left, they may be available at the door on the night. The final reason for 23 March being so special: Bach's 'St. Matthew Passion' is one of the most sublime pieces of music ever composed! Do come and hear it.

On Palm Sunday, 24 March, the crosses will be placed at St. Mary's Church at 6 p.m.

On Maundy Thursday, a service of Holy Communion will be held in our church at 7.30 p.m.

The Good Friday procession is on 29 March, starting from outside the Town Hall at 10 a.m. We will not be having a service in our church on Good Friday.

The Easter Sunday sunrise service is on Sunday 31 March at 6.30 a.m. on the Western Heights car park overlooking the harbour. We have a Communion Service at 8 a.m. and the 11 a.m. service will also include Holy Communion.

Donations towards the Easter flowers for our church will be gratefully received by Marjorie Chivers and Evelyn Tutthill. Helpers are also needed to arrange and carry flowers into the church on Easter Saturday, 30 March, from 10 a.m. onwards. Will class leaders please collect flowers from the church on Easter Monday morning, at 10.30 a.m. to take to the sick and housebound members on their class. Help from any members with cars will be appreciated.

Prayer Partners

Easter is the time when we send cards to our current Prayer Partners, and choose a new one for the coming year. During the weeks leading up to Easter, please put your name on a slip of paper in the box at the back of the church. On Easter Day, pick out a piece of paper (make sure it's not your own), and that person becomes your prayer partner for the next 12 months. Don't forget to send an Easter card to the person who has been your prayer partner for the past year, revealing your identity at last!

Church Family News

Cyril Hopper

Cyril's death on Thursday 28 February, at the age of 85, brings to an end a life-time of service to our church. And this picture, perhaps, proves the point. For this was Cyril, at the age of 12, laying one of the bricks to build what was then the new extension to the church in 1928. The son of Edith and Harry Hopper - another loyal church member and officer for many years - Cyril grew up in the church and served as Sunday School treasurer for more than 50 years, proved invaluable in helping to look after the property, and sang in the Church Choir.

In February 2000, Cyril was presented with a long service certificate to mark his retirement after 52 years as treasurer of our Sunday School. He also received letters from the President of the Methodist Conference, Rev. Stuart Burgess, and the Children's Section Co-ordinating Secretary, Rev. Dr. Stephen Mosedale, thanking him for all his work. Cyril was very loyal in his service. Unfortunately, in recent years he had not been at all well. We offer our sympathy to Kath and the other members of the family at this time.

We have also been sorry to hear of the death of Naomi Sharp, who many of us remember. It was only recently that her husband George died, and she was missing him very much. We extend our sympathy to the family.

And we were also sorry to hear of the sudden death of Sylvia Reeves, who was a member of our church many years ago. Sylvia and her husband Ray grew up at London Road and belonged to many of our organisations. Sylvia helped with some of the young people's activities and also belonged to the "knit and natter" group which used to gather in each others homes. We continue to remember Ray, Philip and Jane in our prayers.

Just as last month's edition of "The Messenger" was being copied, we heard that Maud Darch had died, so some copies included news of her death, and some didn't. Maud died following an operation in St. Thomas's Hospital in London. Our church was represented at both Sylvia and Maud's funeral services. Please remember Maud's family in your prayers, too.

Hilda Driver is in Montgomery Ward at Buckland Hospital, Margaret Machin is due in hospital for an operation, and Eileen Ward is currently in the William Hjarvey Hospital at Ashford. We keep Sadie Gledhill (Tower Hamlets), Rae Smith, George Craven and Cliff Evans (Tower) in our prayers as they recover from their surgery. We still remember our broken bones brigade, Daphne Gretton, Mollie Hodgson who is still not free of pain, and Evelyn Tutthill. We continue to pray for all those who are unwell in their own homes, or in residential homes, especially thinking of Maud Green, Ann Kennedy, Edie and Winnie Seelly, John Bates and Ossie Hodgson at this time.

It's always nice to share some good news within our church family, and this month we are pleased to congratulate three couples who are celebrating special wedding anniversaries. First, Mr. and Mrs. Hogben are celebrating their Ruby Wedding Anniversary today (Sunday 3 March). Then there are two Silver Wedding celebrations, Jan and Andy Goldsack this Tuesday (5 March) and Anne and Gordon Speakman the following Tuesday, 12 March. We hope they all have a lovely day of celebrations, and we wish them well for the future!

Dorothy Noel celebrates her 94th birthday on 15 March, so we offer our congratulations to her, and also to her grand-daughter, Sarah Atkins who has passed her driving test.

John and Marita Bates have become grandparents - again - with the birth of their grand-daughter Avery. We wish the whole family well as they celebrate the arrival of a new life.

Edna Tutt keeps in contact with London Road and in a letter to Sue Brockman sent her regards to everyone who remembers her.

Our church has had an international atmosphere in the past couple of weeks. We have been pleased to welcome a group of Fijians who have come here to join the Army, and we appreciated their musical contribution to our service on 17 February, and then last Sunday, 24 February, we were pleased to welcome two South African vets.

Evenings of prayer and praise

There will be a series of four prayer and praise evenings starting on Saturday 9 March, and continuing on the second Saturdays of the month for the following three months, at River Methodist Church. Starting at 7.30 p.m. they will last about an hour and a half. These monthly events will be times of worship, prayer, sharing and ministry, and it is hoped they will be of great encouragement to all who attend. Please pray for these evenings, and bring a friend. Arthur Salisbury

Church Council

At the Church Council meeting the other week, the date of the General Church Meeting was fixed for Sunday 28 April. There will be a faith lunch after the morning service, followed by the meeting. It is hoped that at this meeting we can make a decision on the future of our church building.

We heard that we are not meeting our financial commitments at the moment, and during the past three months we have been £3,100 short of being able to pay the church's assessment. We need £510 a week to cover the amount of money we need. Please consider your giving carefully and prayerfully, and don't forget to see Rodney Friend about covenanting your giving. The church can benefit by claiming back the tax you pay.

In your personal prayers, please remember...

those of our church family who are ill, suffering the problems of age, and those who are housebound or in residential care, including Evelyn Tutthill, Margery Bones, George Craven, Eileen Ward, Gwen Bates, Ruby Wahlers, Rosemary Richards, Sonny and Vi Mills, David Morris, Mary Bond, Hilda Welburn, Maud Green, Sue Moat, Peter Burton, John Bates, Eileen Smith, May Griffin, Olive Morris, Ron and Irene Sutton, Doris Bailey, Doris Barker, Eileen Tolhurst, Anne Taylor, Myra Strelow, Doris Greenfield, Wally Watts, Jessie West, Edith and Winnie Seelly, Gwen Goff, Betty Allen, Keith Button, Eva Buttifint, Peggy Heritage and May Lancaster;

those away from Dover, including Vron Tutthill, Lisa Speakman, Andrew Booth, Robert Dunstone, Hazel Griffiths, Sid and Jayne Robbins and Henry and Sterling, Joyce and Alan Norman, Alan and Stephanie Warrell, Malcolm and Jennifer Cleaver, David and Rachel Cloke, Angela and Neil Baker, Andrew and Cath Powell, Joan Walker, Edna Tutt, Christina Edge and Reg Payne;

those who mourn including the family and friends of Cyril Hopper, Naomi Sharp, Sylvia Reeves and Maud Darch.

TOWER HAMLETS

Mary Page is still poorly, please remember her in your prayers. Sadie Gledhill is now back with us but is taking care not to over-do things.

Our Sunday School meets each Sunday at 11 a.m. and a warm welcome awaits all children.

The Women's League meets on Mondays at 2.30 p.m. All ladies wishing to join us will be very welcome. The March programme is: 4 - Members' Afternoon; 11 - Mr. Norman Shand; 18 - Mrs. Phyl Gay; 25 - Easter service led by Mrs. Sue Brockman.

The Fellowship will meet during March on a date to be fixed, at Issy Bailey's home at 7.15 p.m.. A warm welcome awaits anyone wishing to join us.

SHEPHERDSWELL

The preacher at the morning service on Mothering Sunday 10 March, at 10.15 a.m. is Mrs. Elaine Newton. Village Praise is at 6 p.m. on 17 March, conducted by the Rev. Marguerite Mower.

The coffee morning at 2 Church Hill from 10 a.m. to 12 noon on 20 March is for National Children's Homes, Action for Children.

MARCH ROTAS

MINI-BUS: Sunday 3 March - David Galley; 10 - Graham Tutthill; 17 - Shirley Carr; 24 - Colin Hadden; 31 - Margaret Tutthill; 7 April - Colin Hadden.

FLOWER ROTA: Sunday 3 March - Mrs. Dorothy Cloke; 10 - Mrs. Phyl Gay; 17 - Mrs. Ruth Edwards; 24 - Mrs. Susan Moat; 31 - Mrs. Mollie Hodgson and Easter Flowers.

PREACHERS: Sunday 3 March - 11 a.m. Family Service with the Rev. John Lines; 6 p.m. - Rev. Gordon Newton, including Holy Communion; 10 - Mothering Sunday service with Mrs. Sue Brockman; 17 - Rev. John Lines; 24 - Palm Sunday 11 a.m. Rev, Stephen Skinner; 31 - Easter Sunday, 8 a.m. Holy Communion with the Rev. John Lines; 11 a.m. Rev. John Lines including Holy Communion.

WOMEN'S OWN: Mondays at 3 p.m. 4 March - Mrs. Wendy Pilgrim; 11 - Phyl and Doris; 18 - Rev. John Lines; 25 - Easter Carol Service.

MINI-BUS DRIVERS FOR WOMEN'S OWN: 4 March - Ruth Edwards and Ken Vincent; 11 - Peter Hogg and Brian Jacobs; 18 - Judith Jacobs and Valerie Bowes; 25 - Colin Hadden and Ken Vincent. CUBS: Mondays from 6 to 7.30 p.m.

METHODIST AMATEUR DRAMATICS (MAD): Mondays at 7.45 p.m.

GUILD: Tuesdays at 7.30 p.m. 5 March - Network evening; 12 - Cultural evening with the Rev. John Lines talking about Dover Transport Museum; 19 - Social evening, Beetle Drive; 26 - Holy Week with our Minister, the Rev. John Lines; 2 April - Musical evening with the Church Music Group.

MOTHER AND TODDLER GROUP: The group meets every Wednesday at 1.15 p.m.

SOUP AND SANDWICHES: Wednesdays at 6 p.m. 6 March - Brian Winsett and Ken Hammond; 13 - Louise Gilbert and Lisa Dixon; 20 - Jill and Ellie; 27 - Linda and Derek Leach; 3 April - Peter Hogg, Nora Watson and Clarice King.

GIRLS' BRIGADE: Thursday evenings - 6 to 7 p.m. Explorers (aged 5 to 8 years); 6 to 7.30 p.m. Juniors (8 to 11 years); 7.45 to 9 p.m. Seniors and Brigaders (11 to 14 plus).

LADIES KEEP FIT GROUP: Thursdays at 7.15 p.m.

Items for the April edition of "The Messenger" should be handed to Graham Tutthill by Sunday 17 March, please.