26 October 2014 Welcome to St John’s Welcome to St John’s especially if you are visiting with us today. We’d love to keep in touch with you, so if you leave us your details we’ll let you know what’s happening here at St John’s. Community Central Community Central is the way that we get together in small groups at St John’s. Every second Tuesday we meet at 6.30pm for a meal, then we have a short together time, and then break into small groups for discussion, prayer and encouragement. Community Central is on Tuesday October 28 at 6.30.pm. You are welcome. Freedom Sunday For the last few years we have celebrated Freedom Sunday. It is sponsored by World Vision, and marks the anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the UK, inspired by William Wilberforce. However, we realise that slavery is still very real in our world, and so we focus on those issues. Freedom Sunday is November 23. This year we welcome The Honeybees again at our morning service. Our speaker at 11am and 6pm is Amber Hawkes from International Justice Mission. Some Super-Advanced Notice! The St John’s Whole Church Weekend Away is only four months away! Next March 20-21 we are heading down to Stanwell Tops Conference Centre again. Last year’s weekend away was a real blast, so don’t miss out. Put the dates on your calendar now! More details to follow. Save the Date Thursday 11 December Twilight Christmas Markets In under two months, our annual Twilight Christmas Markets is on! This seasonal event aims to bring the local community together by providing an evening of entertainment– and we aim to raise some money for Rough Edges as well. Stay tuned for more info, and let Ed know if you want to get involved. A Night of Prayer and Ministry Over the last few months we have held a couple of ‘Prayer and Ministry Nights’. They have been very encouraging, very exciting nights– but perhaps you don’t know what goes on at one of these. So…. What we are looking to do is to create a safe space to explore and express some of the gifts of the Spirit that are mentioned in the New Testament. For instance, 1 Corinthians 12 talks about messages of wisdom, messages of knowledge, gifts of healing, prophecy, speaking in different kinds of tongues and so on. So our pattern has been to spend some in worship, singing songs of praise and reading from the Scriptures. Then Ed lead us in a study from the Bible about how some of these gifts are described and expressed in the New Testament. Then we prayed ‘Come, Holy Spirit, Come’, and waited quietly. Soon, someone had a word of encouragement, which they spoke about. Someone else in the group felt that that word was very pertinent to them. So we prayed for them for a while. And then we did that again. It is a very simple, very gentle, very ‘un-hyped’ time. If you are open to this, you are very welcome to come along. Our next evening is Tuesday 4 November at 7.30 in the Upstairs Lounge. Finding our way forward We are delighted for Brad and Mary, and their family, about their move to Watson’s Bay. But it does raise an issue for us– what does the future look like here at St John’s. The answer is that we need to wait upon God and listen carefully to his leading. The Parish Council are meeting for a Planning Day on Saturday November 15 (which they planned months ago!). A key agenda item will be considering our next steps as a church and how we want to respond to the vacancy caused by Brad leaving. Those of us making that decision would crave your prayers. We really want to know what God would have us do next. Please pray for us. Volunteering Information Nights Monday 10 November, at 7.30 pm - 9.30 pm in the church hall. These no obligation evenings are for people who are interested in finding out about becoming a volunteer for St John's Community Services at Rough Edges at Night or CAPP. Attending one of them is a pre-requisite for applying for training, so please pass the message along to anyone you know who might be interested in volunteering. RSVP welcome but not necessary to [email protected]. The Rough Edges Christmas Party The Rough Edges Christmas Party is on Friday 19 December. Would you like to be part of the planning team? Or help out at any time at all? It’s so much fun to create a wild, themed Christmas Party for the Rough Edges Community. Last year we had a Bush Dance theme and you have seen Ed and Jane dance up a storm on the dance floor. Who knew they had such talent? As the saying goes, many hands make light work, so it would be great to have you involved. Please email me (Alice) at [email protected] Isaiah 35:1-10 35 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, 2 it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God. 3 Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; 4 say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.” 5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. 7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow. 8 And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way. The unclean will not journey on it; wicked fools will not go about on it. 9 No lion will be there, nor any ravenous beast; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, 10 and those the LORD has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. WORLD NEWS Pakistan: High Court confirms Asia Bibi’s death sentence 16th October, 2014 Today (16 October), the Lahore High Court dismissed Asia Bibi's appeal and upheld the death sentence which was passed on her four years ago under Pakistan's controversial blasphemy law. Asia's lawyer, Shakir Chaudhry, immediately announced that an appeal would be filed in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The two judges who heard the appeal, Mr Justice Anwar Ul Haq and Mr Justice Shahbaz Ali Rizvi, listened to arguments put forward by prosecution and defence lawyers. Over twenty mullahs attended the court hearing, reflecting the pressure that often accompanies court hearings in blasphemy law cases. The court hearing was adjourned for over an hour while the judges considered their verdict. When they returned, they announced that they had dismissed the appeal and confirmed the death sentence. Asia's husband, Ashiq Masih, who attended the court hearing, said: "This appeal was supposed to be a ray of hope, but the rejection of the appeal has shattered our confidence." Abdul Hameed Rana, senior supreme court lawyer who represented Rimsha Masih in 2012, said: "The history of this trial confirms the problems emanating from Pakistan's legal system. Extrajudicial confessions, incongruencies within testimonies from prosecution witnesses, along with procedural glitches from the police, have been ignored." He remains optimistic that the Supreme Court of Pakistan will probably acquit Asia Bibi. However, it is feared that it may be several years before the Supreme Court hears her case. Following the court hearing the mullahs - including Qari Saleem, who brought forward the initial complaint against Asia Bibi - congratulated each other and chanted religious slogans. "We will soon distribute sweets among our Muslim brothers for today's verdict, it's a victory of Islam," Saleem told reporters outside the courtroom. Reaction Nasir Saeed, director of CLAAS-UK, said: "It is not surprising that the judges were swayed by pressure from local influential Muslims, but I had hoped that justice would prevail and that the case would be judged based on its merits. "While the rest of the world condemns such draconian laws, Pakistan continues to persecute its minorities simply because of their religion. "I have to now remain hopeful that the Supreme Court judges will look at the case objectively and allow the final appeal, eventually acquitting Asia." Wilson Chowdhry of the British Pakistani Christian Association, which has long campaigned for Asia Bibi's freedom, said; "This is a devastating blow to the humanitarian cause for Christians in Pakistan.This news of the failure of her appeal has had a hugely demoralising affect on minorities in Pakistan, who feel the legal system has regressed - despite promises of reform. Asia had great hope that this appeal hearing would be the start of a new freedom. However, the rejection of the appeal will have no doubt shattered her confidence and resolve. She will need our prayers and support. Her family have had to live in protected accommodation which will continue for the foreseeable future.There seems to be no escape from the hell this family has undergone, quite the opposite it seems to get worse despite all our efforts." (AFP, Church Times, CLAAS) Background Asia Bibi (48) is a Christian farm labourer from the Punjab village of Ittanwali in northeast Pakistan, 75km from Lahore. On 14 June 2009, she was working in the fields with a group of Muslim women. One of the women asked Asia to fetch water and she did so, but the other women said that it should not be drunk as it had been brought by "an untouchable" and was therefore unclean. A heated argument arose, and one of the women reported to the local imam (mosque leader) that Asia had said: "Jesus Christ died on the cross for me what did Mohammed ever do for you?" The imam filed a case with the police under Pakistan's blasphemy laws. After Asia was beaten by some local men in front of her children, the police came and took Asia into custody for protection. A mob demonstrated outside the court during Asia's hearing on 8 Nov 2010 and the judge, bowing to extremist pressure, handed down the death sentence. Asia is the first woman to be sentenced to death under the blasphemy laws. She has appealed against the verdict. Two politicians who expressed support for Asia Bibi, Governor Salman Taseer of Punjab and Minorities Minister Shabhaz Bhatti, were assassinated for expressing their support. The Lord’s Prayer Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are Yours Now and for ever. Amen. Supporting St John’s Support the ministry here by setting up a Direct Deposit with your bank to Westpac Bank: St John’s Anglican Church BSB 032-032 Account Number 811-496 Weekly Offertories Budget 2014 Actual Surplus (Deficit) 19th Oct $1,635 $1,392 ($243) 19th Oct YTD $68,670 $56,612 ($12,058) Rosters 11.00 Service 26th October 2nd November Celebrant Brad Kemister Brad Kemister Deacon Jonathan Adams Lilian Walls Communion Assistant Jonathan Adams Lilian Walls Speaker Ed Vaughan Ed Vaughan Reader One Felix Chong Chris Bertinshaw Prayers John Kippax Mark Woodhouse Warden Chris Bertinshaw Chris Bertinshaw Welcomers Lilian Walls Ian Coleby Steve Smart Jonathan Adams Morning Tea Joanna Knight Renie Roberts Katharine Parsons Renie Roberts We acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet. Our Sunday services 11am Communion - A classic Anglican service 6pm - Contemporary Worship Messy Church - 9.30am on the first Sunday each month Evensong - 3:30pm on the second Sunday each month Getting in touch St John’s Darlinghurst 120 Darlinghurst Rd., Darlinghurst NSW 2010 PO Box 465 Kings Cross 1340 Parish Office Tel: 9360 6844 Email: [email protected]