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What's on
On this page: Worship | Square Groups | Other Square Events | External Events | Forward Planning
The Weekly Notice Sheet is handed out on Sundays, with news of what is happening at The Square. You can read the latest notice sheet here, and previous sheets can be found in our archive. |
Worship at The SquareFollowing our long period of closure due to Covid, we have now re-opened the church buildings for worship, and most of our services are now conducted live in church. Most of these are now also live streamed on YouTube, so you can join in online if you can't make it in person. See our Worship This Week page for up to date information. On that page, you can also find resources to help you in your worship at home, if that is your choice. Now that the government has removed the 'Plan B' Covid restrictions, we ask only that you wear face masks while singing. You are welcome to wear face masks at other times if you wish. Thank you. | Worship ElsewhereOther Opportunities for online worship in South Bedfordshire Circuit are listed on our Worship This Week page. Contact Catherine Roots at catherine.roots1@ntlworld.com
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Square Groups
| Parking Charges | From 1st April | Please note that parking charges in Ashton Square changed on April 1st. Tuesday afternoons are no longer free, but Wednesday and Saturday afternoons are (from 1pm). And the charges per length of stay are also changing. Please take care not to get caught out! |
| Tuesday, 24th May Church Parlour | Meeting Point is a study and fellowship group who meet in the Church Parlour on alternate Tuesdays. Contact Lisa Foster, stewards@squaremethodist.org or call 01582 757983 Normally alternates with Fill The Gap, which is currently taking a break. | |
| Armchair Exercise Group | Tuesday, 24th May Church Parlour | All are welcome to join us. |
| Tuesday, 24th May chez Sharan | ISS - I’m Still Standing – A Lent course based on the Elton John movie ‘Rocketman’ by Rachel Mann Session
One: ‘In Want of Love’ - using clips from Elton’s ‘present’ and ‘childhood’, this
session looks at how we become who we are and who we feel called to be. (Jesus’
childhood; Temptations in the Desert; David facing down Goliath.) | |
| Manse Garden Tea | Saturday 28th May The Manse | Manse Garden Afternoon Tea in aid of Project WW Get your tickets (£5 each) from Bridget Calvert, 01582 527459 |
| Tuesday 31st May | No meeting - half term week | |
| Monthly Prayer at the Square | Monday, 6th June Zoom | This month's prayer meeting is cancelled in favour of God In Love Unites Us (below) |
| God In Love Unites Us | Monday, 6th June Church Parlour and Zoom | At the last Methodist Conference in 2021 it was agreed that individual Methodist churches could make the decision to be churches where same-sex marriages could be registered. This is the first of two Zoom meetings to discuss the Square's response to this opportunity (full details here), and is open to the entire church community. Zoom joining details to follow, but in the meantime, you can read The 2019 Marriage and Relationships report on the national Methodist website. |
| Tuesday 7th June Chez Rogers | ISS - I’m Still Standing – A Lent course based on the Elton John movie ‘Rocketman’ by Rachel Mann Session Two: ‘Border Songs’ - concentrating on Elton’s friendships with Bernie Taupin, soul performers, as well as his manager John Reid, this session looks at how ‘relationship’ can build us up and break us down; how does friendship and betrayal shape our identities? (Jesus’ closest relationships; Jesus and Judas; Saul and David; Jonathan and David.) Session
Three: ‘Into Orbit’ - examining what success and failure can mean, looking at
Elton’s burgeoning success and the shadows emerging underneath. (Jesus’
greatest successes - feeding of the five thousand, triumphant entry into
Jerusalem - and the problems this success generates for those jealous of him or
fearful about what his ’success’ means.) | |
| Thursday 9th June Church Parlour | Methodist Women in Britain | |
| Gather Round | Tuesday, 14th June Church Parlour |
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| God In Love Unites Us | Monday, 20th June Church Parlour and Zoom | At the last Methodist Conference in 2021 it was agreed that individual Methodist churches could make the decision to be churches where same-sex marriages could be registered. This is the second of two Zoom meetings to discuss the Square's response to this opportunity (full details here), and is open to the entire church community. Zoom joining details to follow, but in the meantime, you can read The 2019 Marriage and Relationships report on the national Methodist website. |
| Thursday 23rd June Church Parlour | David Dellor – Lambeth Palace | |
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Other Square Events
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External Events
| Sunday Evening service via Zoom | First and third Sunday of each month | Trinity Methodist Church are holding evening services twice a month at 6pm via Zoom. The initial trial period has now been extended until at least September 2021. All are invited to join us. Contact Catherine Roots at catherine.roots1@ntlworld.com |
| Eco Church Survey | Wednesday 25th May Zoom | On Wednesday 25th May at 7.30pm Angela Brydon, District Discipleship Enabler will be hosting on Zoom an opportunity to explore the Eco Church Survey and to better understand how it works. This is ideal for churches who are just thinking about Eco Church and wondering what they may need to do. It would also be helpful to have some folk who understand how it works to also join on that evening.
The link
to register for that: |
| Thy Kingdom Come | Thursday 26th May Bunyan Meeting | with worship led by Rev. Dr David Chapman, Chair of the Methodist District and contributions from: Stay for refreshments, prayer and an opportunity to meet with organisations serving our churches and communities from around Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. Full details in this leaflet. |
| Belonging Together Ministers Group Conference | Saturday 28th May | The theme for this conference is "Celebrating Diversity: growing in hope", and will be held on Saturday 28th May at Selly Oak Methodist Church. Click the poster to enlarge. |
| District Probationer Testimony Services | Sunday 29th May High Town Methodist Church | DISTRICT PROBATIONER TESTIMONY SERVICES AHEAD OF RECEPTION INTO FULL CONEXION AND ORDINATION AT METHODIST CONFERENCE 2022 The Rev’d Margaret Newman Preacher: The Rev’d Dr. David Chapman Please give your support through your attendance and your prayers |
| Free Church Service | Wednesday 1st June Lady Chapel, | You are invited to attend a Free Church Service in the Lady Chapel |
| Jubilee Party | Sunday 5th June 43 Strathmore Ave | Luton Airport also known as Luton Rising has awarded Strathmore church £3000 to support our ongoing monthly Breakfast Club which we run every first Sunday of the month. The fund will also contribute to the celebration of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The Jubilee celebration will be an all-day event, starting with breakfast and continuing with lunch/afternoon tea and BBQ. We will be inviting charities, local children’s entertainers, music, and much more to join in the festivity.
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would like to work with churches in our circuit to reconnect and show love to
families and individuals in our communities. This will be a chance for us to
see you all again, after a very difficult 2 years. We are currently seeking
volunteers to help make the event a huge success. If you would like to
get involved or have young people in the church, please send an email to
Deborah at Strathmorebreakfastclub@gmail.com |
| District Course - ACORN | Tuesday 7th June Zoom | This involves a small group meeting initially for 3 weeks for an hour each time. The first week the ACORN method is explained and explored: A is for Ask. We start by asking God who he would have us connect with outside of the church. C is for Call. We listen for Gods call, who is God calling us to speak to. O is for Obey. We obey God - and contact whoever he has called us to contact and start a conversation by simply asking "How are you?" R is for Report - what we might call testimony. We talk about what happened as a result of asking God who to contact. This happens back in the group the 2nd week. As one individual speaks the rest listen and: N is for Notice. The rest of the group whilst listening notice where God was as often others notice when we ourselves cannot see.
That is the basics and to experience these times of sharing are amazing. There are a few folk who have shared in ACORN in the District so it could be possible that those individuals may be able to organise some face to face sessions locally to where they are. In the meantime I am setting aside some time to run some ACORN sessions on Zoom Tuesday evenings from 7th June at 7.30 for an hour. Then 14th and 21st June. Also Thursday Mornings at 10am for an hour. Thursdays 9th 16th and 23rd June.
Register here for the Tuesday Evening ACORN sessions |
| BEH Bible Course | Wednesday 8th June Zoom | BEH Bible Course, over 8 sessions, combines video teaching, group discussion, personal reflection and daily readings. Each weekly session will last an hour to an hour and a half. The sessions will be on Wednesdays at 7.30pm starting on 8th June for 8 weeks. These will obviously need to be on Zoom which limits access for some. But moving forward if more folk across the District feel better equipped they can then share with others.
Register here for the BEH Bible Course on Zoom |
| Annual Circuit Service | Sunday, 12th June Dunstable Downs | On the 12th of June at 11.00am we will be holding our service of worship at The Downs, and you are invited to bring a picnic for the end of the service. We envisage that the event will be similar to those that we have held previously and there will be some activities organised for all ages. We need volunteers for the following roles: Welcoming team General Team Worship Team We will be holding a preliminary meeting for those able to attend and who are interested in any of the above on Weds 11th of May, 7.30pm at The Square. If you are interested but not able to attend that meeting, please respond to Nina Johnson (revbiker_nj59@btinternet.com Tel 07896668616) or to the circuit administrator, Mia (office@southbedsmethodist.org.uk). With my thanks, |
| Unconscious Bias online training | 14 June 7-8.30pm Free, online | An Unconscious Bias training session, run six times, for members and leaders of the Methodist Church. This Unconscious Bias Training session is aimed particularly at those engaged in the stationing invitation process, but is also applicable for those on circuit meetings and church councils, etc. We will be using the video resources for introducing unconscious bias which is now available on the Methodist Church Website. The resources can be found at: Introduction to Unconscious Bias – for church councils, circuit meetings and other groups (methodist.org.uk) The online session will include watching the videos and joining in small group conversation/reflection following each of the 3 video clips. The Reading/study material which is required before and after the session will be sent to participants once they have booked a place. When booking your place, please select which session you will be attending. To Book: Unconscious Bias Training Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite |
| Christ, Democracy, and the Struggle for a Common Life | Wednesday 15th June June | During the session Luke will use key Christian ideas, including love, lament and listening, to unpack how through doing politics in a democratic way we can help sustain a generous and just common life in days when societies can be divided and polarised. These are important matters in the world today. Please come along and engage with them and with Luke, in this session.
Luke Bretherton is Robert E. Cushman Distinguished Professor of Moral and Political Theology and Senior Fellow of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, USA. Before joining Duke in 2012, he taught at King's College London. His latest book is Christ and the Common Life: Political Theology and the Case for Democracy (2019). His other books include Resurrecting Democracy (2015), which was based on a study of community organizing; Christianity & Contemporary Politics (2010); and Hospitality as Holiness (2006), about pluralism. He is actively involved in grassroots democratic politics. £10 per person Booking via Eventbrite using this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/272123918967 |
| Working Out Worship: | Thursday 16th June Zoom | What does it mean to be truly 'intergenerational' in worship? How do we integrate different styles, approaches, and levels to ensure that we are engaging and meeting the needs of all ages? In this session, we will explore what it looks like to be an intergenerational church, what it looks like to worship intergenerationally, signpost to some resources and look at how we can be inclusive and engaging in all that we do. For more details and to book in, visit: https://bit.ly/workingoutworship |
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Forward Planning (more than a month away)
| Certificate in Pastoral Care | 20th - 24th June | Cliff College offers an in-depth five-day Certificate in Pastoral Care (20-24 June) that is suitable for church ministers, employees and volunteers who want to grow their skills in this important area. Click here and find out more. |
| Working Out Worship: | Thursday 30th June Zoom | Is your church engaging in a form of digital hybrid worship or hoping to do more digitally? So much change has happened in the way we worship over the past two years, and many of us are still continuing to adapt to a "new way" of doing worship. In this session we will look at how hybrid worship is: inclusive, accessible, engaging, and most importantly - Church! We will look at ways in which we can best facilitate hybrid worship in a way where everyone feels included, loved and enabled to worship God.
For more details and to book in, visit: https://bit.ly/workingoutworship |
| Drama Circle production: a review called Tale As Old As Time | 7th, 8th, 9th July | |
| Sunday Nite Live | Sunday, 10th July Farley Hill | The Circuit Worship Team are planning to relaunch Sunday Nite Live on Sunday 10th July at Farley Hill at 6pm. Further details will be made available in due course, but the proposed theme is Healing & Reconciliation - What has Covid meant for us. More details here. |
| Shambles Big Band Show | Saturday, 24th September |  Come and see (and hear) the wonderful Shambles Big Band in their September show at The Square. Proceeds in aid of 'Action for Children' (formerly NCH) |
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