newsletter church of scotland geneva · on christmas day, saturday 25 december from 12.00 to 15.00...

One of the gifts given to me for my recent “significant birthday” was a ticket to see Bob Dylan at the Geneva Arena. Those who know me will realise it was greatly appreciated. Back in the 1960’s, when so much was changing so fast, Dy-lan came to be seen as a spokesman for a new generation. All these years later he is still able to fill venues all over the world.

When he appeared in Geneva, he did-n’t sing his classic song “The times they are a-changin”, but it occurred to me that those words might be just as relevant now as they were when he wrote them back in 1964.

Indeed the sense that things can’t re-main as they have been may be even stronger this time round. Whether we think of the so called “Arab spring” to the rise of China as a global force, or the cri-sis in the financial markets, the conclu-sion seems to be that many things are in the process of serious change.

Most of the developments we see are influenced by the new technology which continues to emerge at even accelerating rates. It might be the latest iPhone that catches our attention, or the mystery of sub atomic particles which seem to move faster the speed of light, or the continuing strides in understanding human DNA.

In any case we have a sense of old things being left behind and new possibili-ties opening up. Whatever else we might say about the times in which we live, it is hard to deny that they are a-changin’.

So where does all of this leave the church with its traditions and institu-

tions? Well we are still here talking about a baby being born in a stable to a couple forced to travel far from home.

We are still telling the ancient story of the boy who was given the name ‘Jesus’ which means ‘Saviour’. We are still pro-claiming the faith that he was sent by God to save humankind from the sin which was ruining the world, setting us at odds with one another and disturbing our relationship with God.

The message may now be blogged about, podcast, texted and tweeted, but it remains the same message.

Perhaps we should ponder how re-markable it is that the church hasn’t yet been swallowed up by change or by-passed by technology. Or perhaps we need to ponder just what it is about this message that remains to relevant and vital for human lives, even while so little else remains constant.

Whatever kind of society emerges from the current turmoil, few things seem more certain than the fact that it will be made up of people who sense an ancient longing to know that they can be forgiven, to believe that they are loved, and to have a vision of a better future.

All of these longings are addressed by our ancient story, and the saviour whom we proclaim.

Many things are changing, but that will always remain.

Wishing you a blessed Christmas,

Ian Manson

Winter 2011

Newsletter

“Times they are a-changin”

Church of Scotland Geneva

Minister: Revd. Ian Manson, 20 Ancienne Route, 1218 Grand Saconnex Tel/Fax 798 29 09

Church Office: 6 ch Taverney

Tel: 022 788 0832 E-mail: [email protected]

Church Bank Account: UBS 279-C7114389.0

www.churchofscotland geneva.com

Events:

• Thursday 1, 8, 15 and 22 December: Advent Service at 20:00

• Friday, 9 December: Decorating Christmas Tree

• Sunday, 11 December: Family Christmas Service at 11:00; Carol Service at 15:00

• Sunday, 25 December: Christmas Day Service at 11:00 followed by lunch at 12:00 in the Salle

Concerts …

• Saturday, 28 January 2012: Winter Ceilidh, Campus des Nations, International School with Loch Léman Ceilidh Band,

• Sunday, 26 February 2012: Foundation Choir, International School

• Friday, 11 & Saturday, 12 May 2012: Festival of Young Musicians, Auditorie

Church Life

Flowers

I would like to say a very big thank you to all who have contrib-uted flowers during this year.

Next year’s flower rota is stand-ing beneath the notice board in the Salle. I hope you will add your name to it and let me know when you wish to donate some flowers.

If you need any help arranging them do not hesitate to contact me.

Flowers bring life and colour to the Church as living evidence of the mystery of creation and can be as fundamental to church worship as music.

I do hope you will feel called to share in this ministry and contribute flowers on a particular Sunday

∗ to remember the passing of a loved one,

∗ or on the occasion of a celebra-tion,

∗ or for the sheer joy of seeing fresh flowers brightening the Auditoire on a Sunday morn-ing to glorify God...

I look forward to hearing from you,

Janet Askew Flower Coordinator

Congregational Committee

2012 Congregational Committee meetings are: 31 January, 27 March, 5 June, 18 September, 20 November.

Our Annual Congregational

Meeting will be held on 22 April, and the General Assembly is 19 - 25 May 2012

Arthur Askew, Secretary

Sunday Bible Readings

Ever thought you’d like to read a lesson at one of our Sunday morning services but never been asked; been unsure of speaking in front of others or just never got around to it?

Well, I have been asked to take over the coordination of our Sunday readers and, if you’ve never had a go, here’s your chance. I have set up an email list of willing volunteers al-though contact by phone is just as easy.

The plan is to send out a general invitation every 3 -4 weeks and have people put forward their availability for up-coming services.

I will send the reading by attach-ment or other suitable means or you can use your own bible if you wish. We also have a ‘Good News’ bible in large print available in the vestry.

If you’re not used to speaking before a microphone there’s no need to worry. The only things to re-member are:

∗ to put the microphone on!

∗ that the microphone can only do so much. You still need to project a bit more than you might in gen-eral conversation.

∗ to speak a little more slowly than usual to allow for the slight echo in the Auditoire.

∗ to enjoy speaking aloud the word of God!

So, come on, how about giving it a try? To be placed on the readers list simply drop me an email to [email protected] or have a word with me in church.

I very much look forward to hearing from you.

Many thanks, Nicola Hollyman

Organ Appeal

The ap-peal fund now stands at CHF 251,300, more than half way to our target of 445,000 Euros. Thank you to all our supporters in the congregation!

For your diary:

∗ Winter Fund-raising Ceilidh, International School Campus des Nations, Saturday, January 28, 2012. Live music for dancing by the Loch Léman Ceilidh Band. Tickets, including aperitif and dinner, 70 CHF, in advance from Linda Revkin (022 366 3960) or Peter Tulloch (0033 450 411723). A warm atmosphere for a cold night!

∗ Foundation Choir, Brahms’ Ger-man Requiem: Auditoire, Sun-day, 26 February 2012, at 17:00. In

∗ “ACCENTI” Festival of Young Musicians, Auditoire, Friday 11 and Saturday 12 May, 2012.

Support our ‘Sponsor a Pipe’ campaign! The new organ will have over 1000 pipes, of all sizes. You may sponsor a small pipe at the modest sum of 100 CHF; medium pipes are available at 300 CHF, and

(Continued on page 5)



Advent Advent Advent Advent ServicesServicesServicesServices Join us in the Auditoire

every Thursday evening at 20:00, during December, when we prepare our hearts for the celebration of the birth of Christ —Thursday 1, 8, 15 and 22 December.

Come and Come and Come and Come and decorate our decorate our decorate our decorate our Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas tree !tree !tree !tree !

On Friday eve-ning, 9 December, at 19:00, we will deco-rate our church Christmas tree.

Do come along if you would like to help, have something to drink and

eat and sing carols round the tree.

Betty Morris would be grateful for any offers of snack food, contact her on 022 734 24 50.

Family Family Family Family Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas Service Service Service Service

On Sunday, 11 December at 11:00, the children put on their an-nual nativity play. It is a fun way of remembering how our Lord came to live among us.

Come and join them and relive the story.

Carol Carol Carol Carol Service Service Service Service Each year, the Church of Scotland Geneva welcomes everyone—members of its congregation, visi-tors, passersby, to spend a short while together in the Auditorie lis-tening to songs offered up as joyful prayer to our God ... Sunday, 11 December at 15:00.

Christmas Christmas Christmas Christmas Day Service Day Service Day Service Day Service Join us at 11:00 on Christmas

Day, 25 December to celebrate the birth of Christ, followed by lunch.

Christmas in Christmas in Christmas in Christmas in our Churchour Churchour Churchour Church

Come one, come all, join the celebration...

Come for a few minutes, or for a few hours...

immediately following Christmas Day Service in the Auditoire

INVITATIONINVITATIONINVITATIONINVITATION

Caring for One Another Group are very pleased to invite you to a

Special Christmas Special Christmas Special Christmas Special Christmas Reception Reception Reception Reception & Lunch& Lunch& Lunch& Lunch

— drinks, food, friends, fellowship —

on Christmas Day, Saturday 25 December

from 12.00 to 15.00

Salle Théodore de Bèze above Auditoire de Calvin

If you would like to stay on for the lunch please contact Jim Sharp

Telephone 022 786 48 47 or email: [email protected]

Missed the Fair Ceildih??

Then DON’T miss

the Winter Ceildih

Campus des Nation,

International School

Saturday, 28 January

Live music and dance tuition

by the wonderful

Loch Léman Ceilidh Band

Tickets purchased in advance,

70 CHF aperitif & dinner

Contact Linda Revkin (022 366 3960)

or Peter Tulloch (0033 450 411723)


Saturday, 19 November saw all the hard work and noble efforts of many come to fruition when our Church held its 2011 Scottish Fair and Ceilidh.

The location was set, the stalls ably manned and stocked, and the visitors happy to part with their hard earned francs! The day, I think it is fair to say, was a wonderful day of fellowship, community spirit and camaraderie with over 16,000 CHF raised for the Church Funds through the Fair.

The Ceilidh was also a great eve-ning, with inspiring music from the

Loch Léman Ceilidh Band and an amazingly good atmosphere, which raised a further 2,300 CHF for the overall Fair funds.

A great many people need to be thanked for all their time and efforts, too many to mention by name, but you know who you are, and for you all I would like to say a HUGE thank you and well done.

On a personal note what shone through most clearly from everyone was the enthusiasm, hard work and dedication to make sure that the Fair was a day to be proud of. The fel-

lowship, community spirit and ca-maraderie was amazing.

All in all, a great time was had by all, and for those of you who do-nated time, energy, efforts and money, remember, the date has been already set for next year: 17 No-vember!

That said, there is still an oppor-tunity for you to participate in this year’s Fair as it also saw the start of a Silent Auction. On offer is a lovely holiday home in the South of France for a week’s hire. Interested? See below for details, write your best offer and send it in as directed —

Good luck!

We did it!!! 2011 Church Fair was once again a success...

Silent Auction One week's holiday in south of France

The property is situated in Domaine Saint-Pierre de Tourtour, Haut Var (about 5 hours drive from Geneva

/ 85 minutes drive from Nice / 3km from Tourtour 'village dans le ciel'). Sleeping six, it has 2 bedrooms, separate bathroom, with kitchen and dining / living

room leading onto the terrace and garden. There is another bedroom / bathroom in the annex. The Domaine is set in 180 hectares with large swimming pool, lake

and tennis courts. Check out www.tourtour.org and www.adventure-

sports.co.uk for more info on this beautiful

area and its tourist attractions.

Send your bid (minimum bid is 400 CHF) in a sealed envelope to Jurg Strittmatter, 7 rue du Grand Bay, CH-1220 Les Avanchets

by 30 December 2011 at the latest.


large pipes at 500 CHF.

AOAC Bank Account for dona-tions or Ceilidh ticket reservations:

UBS SA, IBAN CH36 0024 0240 4893 8001 M

Welcome to Lucie and thank you, Ritchie:

After many years of devoted service to our congregation, Ritchie is stepping down from manning the book stall, and from the Financial sub-committee. Her contributions to the life of our church are beyond measure, and our deep appreciation goes to her staunch support.

Meanwhile, we welcome Lucie Good-man as our new Choir Director. Lucie started in September this year and will be with us initially for one academic year until end June 2012. Originally from Scotland, Lucie trained as a classical singer at Trinity College of Music in Lon-don. She is juggling freelance sing-ing with running after a very ener-getic and funny 18 month old son called Isaac. Lucie is keen to ex-pand the choir and aims to make rehearsals as much fun as possible. She has some exciting new pieces in mind already.

New members are always warmly welcomed and rehearsals take place on Wednesday evenings.

Women’s Group

Monthly lunches will continue on the first Monday of the month (except in January). Reluctantly

due to rising costs, the meal will now cost 12 CHF per person.

∗ 5 December: Lunch - card-making session – Come and and have fun while you give free range to your creative skills.

∗ 9 January: Lunch - raclette lunch followed by a Quiz.

∗ 6 February : Lunch – Nicola Hollyman will tell us more about her life and singing career.

∗ 5 March: Lunch—Guest speaker is Mr. James Gillis from CERN.

∗ 2 April: Lunch - presentation by Prof. Béat Friedli, “Make a Wish” Foundation.

∗ A Guided Tour of the Jet d’eau is proposed for Monday, 30 April, provided we can book in advance, knowing that at least 10 people will participate.

∗ 7 May: Lunch – to be con-firmed later (although we are hoping to invite Mr. Bernard Caloz to speak to us about Opal mining)

∗ Monday, 14 May: A trip to Champéry, thanks to Chris-tine’s kind invitation.

∗ June: No lunch. AGM date and details plus BBQ will be communicated nearer the date.

N.B. If enough interest is shown we may plan a trip to Tropi-caland, at Songy in Haute Savoie; Le Parc des Oiseaux at Villars les Dombes, France, though further away, might also merit a visit.

For more information contact:

Christine Bunn or Carleen Knowlton-Winch

Confirma-tion Class

The start of the Confirmation Class has been delayed a bit this year and won’t get under way until the new year. This means that there is still time for anyone who may wish to take part.

The group normally meets with the minister after Sunday Service to talk about what the Christian faith is and what it might mean to be part of the church.

No commitment to be con-firmed is expected; as these discus-sions are offered to help people bet-ter understand what they believe so that they can make a better in-formed decision at the end.

If you are interested, let the minister know and he will keep you up to date with when the meetings will start.

(Continued from page 2)

Yes, our Minister has reached half a cen-tury, but hopefully will not need the in-flatable zimmer for some time to come!

Happy 50th Ian!


The first phase of the Sunday

school project - to buy new cup-

boards - has just been approved by

the Congregational Committee.

Background: For four years,

the Godly Play programme has been

used by our Sunday School children.

Around 20 children, aged from 4 to

10, meet regularly in the Salle sitting

in a circle on the floor opposite the

main entrance.

The strength and beauty of our

programme is brought to the

children thanks to stories told by the

story tellers using magnificent

material which the children can

explore.

Unfortunately, the present layout

makes for a rather inefficient and

restricted space. The Salle is being

used simultaneously for several

activities, including the crèche at the

back near the book shelves and the

junior group in the room next to the

kitchen.

We have to leave room for adults

and children to pass by going to the

crèche and the toilets, and the

inevitable disturbance created has

always been a problem for the

children.

Lack of space also means we have

to stack away the material in boxes

in cupboards, instead of leaving it on

display, ready for children to use.

In fact, the current storage

arrangements make it very difficult

to achieve one of the primary

objectives of the Godly Play

programme – self-discovery by a

child through direct, easy contact

with the material.

Proposals: To improve the

quality of our lessons, the Sunday

School team spoke with the other

users of the Salle, did some head

scratching and measured the place to

find some lasting solutions: our

proposal is to modify the present set-

up over a period of time (see plans of

the proposed layout).

Initially, we would simply replace

the two existing Sunday School

cupboards with new cupboards

(IKEA modular type), of a similar

height but with upper and lower

sections opening separately for easier

access. Three additional smaller

cupboards would also allow for

more efficient storage and display of

the material. It is estimated that it

would cost around 2,400 CHF for

five new cupboards.


Church of Scotland Geneva, Sunday School Project

Present layout of Salle showing built-in storage areas and

the Sunday School layout with five new cupboards.


Cell Phone vs. Bible

I wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phones.

What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?

What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?

What if we flipped through it several times a day?

What if we used it to receive messages from the text?

What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?

What if we gave it to kids as gifts?

What if we used it as we traveled?

What if we used it in case of an emergency?

What if we upgraded it to get the latest version?

What if we made sure it was plugged in so we wouldn't run out of power?

What if stores had to put up signs saying, "No Bible reading while at the cash register”?

What if states had to pass legislation saying, "You must lis-ten to the Bible on CD or cassette because too many people are having accidents while reading their Bible while driv-ing"?

This is something to make you go...hmmm...where is my Bible?

Also, what if establishments put up signs with a picture of the Bible with a red circle around it with a line through it that meant "No Bibles"?

What if?

Grace Ansah, A MountainWings Moment

The next phase involves altering

one or more of the built-in storage

spaces, i.e. removing the partition

walls and renovating the space up to

the external wall, in the same way as

the present meeting room used by

the youth group.

Each of these storage spaces is

being used by different communities

/ groups within our church,

therefore we would need to discuss

the proposal with them, as well as

getting the approval and

coordination of the Auditoire

Committee for planning and

carrying out the work.

Open floor space would allow for

much more flexibility than the

present built-in “crawl” spaces,

where forgotten boxes and bric-a-

brac gather dust. This storage spaces

are not insulated and have no

finished floor or walls. Accessed by

a single tiny door, they are difficult

and impractical to use.

With the proposed modifications,

each group would still have its own

open area for storage with lockable,

modular cupboards against the

external wall and more usable floor

space for everyone.

The present floor area

of the Salle would be

increased which would

contribute to creating a

more spacious and

user-friendly Salle for

everyone.

Freda Craeye

& the Sunday School

team

(Continued from page 6)

Proposed future layout after modification of storage areas

which would add about 1.5m to the overall width of the Salle (partial drawing)


Support to Tsunami Victims

Over the last ten years the

Church of Scotland in Geneva has

been linked to Christians in Japan,

firstly through Noriko Kinoshita

and then through Chie Yoshimura,

who later married Joachim

Saalmüller.

These links leapt to mind when,

on 11 March 2011, a magnitude 9

earthquake struck just off the

north-east coast of Japan causing a

massive tsunami to smash into a

long stretch of the mainland result-

ing in widespread death, injury and

destruction. God be praised that

neither of our friends nor any

members of their families were di-

rectly affected by the disaster.

In June, on the recommendation

of the Mission Sub-Committee, the

Congregational Committee agreed

to send 2,000 CHF to Chie’s home

church as a donation to the work

that it and its sister churches are

doing to help those who have suf-

fered as a consequence of this terri-

ble disaster. The funds were trans-

ferred to Japan in July.

Noriko has been working in the

worst affected area assessing dam-

age. Early September she came to

Geneva for a week, not only to

meet up with old friends, but also

to find some relief from the stress

of life on the job back home.

Later in September,

Joachim Saalmüller trav-

elled to Ishinomaki

town, Tohoku Prefecture

to join in the relief ef-

forts himself.

Arthur Askew

Joachim writes: “During my

recent trip to Japan I had the opportu-

nity to serve on volunteer teams as-

sisting in the ongoing cleanup activi-

ties after the great Tsunami in the

northeast of Japan. The contact was

created through Chie’s church in To-

kyo. One team was organized by To-

kyo's Grace City Church; the other by

United Church of Christ Tohoku Dis-

aster Relief Center in Sendai.

With both teams we went to Ishi-

nomaki, one of the hardest hit cities

both in terms of inundation and loss

of live. Arriving very early one

morning, from a top of a hill we

could overlook the coastal plain. We

saw that in the formerly densely popu-

lated area, almost all man-built struc-

tures had completely vanished hun-

dreds of meters inland up to the point

where the land started raising into the

hills.

The clean up effort has already

progressed far ...removing debris and

leaving just the bottom plate / the

foundation of the homes; vegetation

growing over open areas; landscape

which was still filled with personal

belongings of those who had lost eve-

rything.

Further inland, some houses which

are still standing are so completely

filled with debris that they will have

to be torn down over time.

The activities of the volunteer

teams focused on those houses that had

no substantial structural damage but

had been filled with mud and water.

To make them fit for habitation

again, they needed thorough cleanup

and disinfection with bleach.

One day the volunteer team also

organized an afternoon activity with


Our Church Overseas

Devastated coastal plain of Ishinomaki

Opened floor in living room of a house that can be salvaged


about 30 local residents with BBQ

and some social activities, giving resi-

dents the opportunity to meet up.

There is good local coordination,

so even if volunteers come for shorter

periods they can quickly be guided in

how to help with various essential

tasks. The government at all levels has

already accomplished a lot, not just

with direct search and rescue activities

after the disaster, but also finding

places for those who lost their homes

and communities, as well as rehabili-

tating infrastructure.

Nevertheless, my impression was

that the volunteer teams contribute a

lot to restoring homes and social co-

hesion in the affected communities,

assisting people in getting on with

their lives. These three volunteers in

protective gear cleared mud from the

basement of a house of an elderly lady.

I saw another volunteer team that

had built a traditional Japanese pub-

lic bath in a huge tent to help those

who were staying in temporary hous-

ing.

The tasks ahead are enormous.

The healing will perhaps take a long

time. Support to the volunteer teams

sends important signals in a very di-

rect way that we care about those af-

fected”

Good News from Ekwendeni

Life has been getting more diffi-

cult in recent months for our Mis-

sion Partners in Ekwendeni, with

political unrest and high inflation

making its effects known. So it is

particularly pleasing to be able to

share good news from there.

Stalin Mughandira, a young man

our congregation employs to run

the AIDS Resource Centre, has

been studying for two years for a

level 2 Diploma in Community

Development.

This has been a huge challenge

as he continued to oversee the work

of the Centre, lead a Church Choir

and many other things, not to men-

tion looking after his wife Mary

and two young girls.

He was un-

derstandably

proud to be

able to travel

to the capital

city of Li-

longwe in Oc-

tober for his

graduation

ceremony, and

he sent us this

message and

pictures.

I am so happy to tell you that the graduation was so wonderful in Li-longwe last week on 25 October 2011. Mary was also there to witness it. Thank you very much for your sup-port, and for your best wishes which encouraged me so much. We really appreciate for the contribution to-wards my education. This has been so helpful in our family.

May God bless you and continue helping all those who need help. It’s our hope that we shall meet again.

Greetings to all our friends in Ge-neva.

God be with you, Stalin and Mary

For we are fellow workmen with and for

God; you are God’s garden and vineyard

and field under cultivation, God’s building.

According to the grace of God bestowed on

me, like a skilful architect and master

builder I laid foundation, and now another

is building upon it. But let each be careful

how he builds upon it,

For no other foundation can anyone lay

than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:9-11


Lalagdh Hospital Tap, tap, tap…. Tap, tap, tap….

on the window pane… It’s the mid-dle of the night!! My heart’s in my mouth… someone’s trying to break into our little bungalow in the grounds of Lalagdh Leprosy Hospi-tal. I’m on the verge of elbowing my husband, Dougie, in the ribs and demanding he wake up and deal with the burglar outside our window… Fortunately – for Dougie – I engage brain before elbow!! It’s the local woodpecker who’s an early riser!!

Brain still trying to get into gear, I remember we flew down from Kathmandu to the Nepalese-Indian border just yesterday to meet up with Graeme and Meena, to better understand the tremendous work they have been putting into this hos-pital. The only place in hundreds of kilometres where men, women and children suffering from leprosy can go and receive help.

Graeme writes incredible updates of the work of this leprosy hospital (www.nlt.org.uk). Many of you re-ceive these missives direct, others access them through the Church of Scotland Geneva website (www. churchofscotlandgeneva.com), but I wanted to give you a different per-spective of their work…

Arriving in Janakpur airport on the Terai plains, we’d forgotten how utterly draining such a humid envi-ronment can be – and we’re only there for a couple of days, not sev-eral years like Graeme and Meena!! An hour later, we arrive at Lalgadh and meet up with the Clugstons who, as members of the Church of Scotland Geneva, we’ve known for many years.

We settle into a little bungalow on the grounds of Lalagdh Lunch

has been delivered which we eat hungrily. Dal Bhat (pulses and rice) is the main staple food in Nepal, and it is delivered - together with various accroutements - to our bungalow in neatly stacked tiffins for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

We tour the hospital marvelling at ongoing work to build a new in-tensive care wing for leprosy pa-tients, but also a maternity ward—the first in the area. Supported by our Church congregation in Geneva, the hospital will be able to offer bet-ter ser-vices and help more patients then be-fore.

Look-ing at all the fantas-tic work that has been done, nevertheless both Dougie and I see how much more needs to be done / could be done, if only they had the funding.

That night we attend a prayerful gathering of members of the Lalgadh hospital staff. We feel accepted right away.

Tap, tap, tap…. Tap, tap, tap…. For a second, my heart’s in my mouth again then I remember the woodpecker, and once again Dougie’s ribs are safe! After more Dal Bhat we join Graeme, Meena and other members of the hospital (who all live there, some with fami-lies, some without) walking past rice paddies, as we go to their local church about a mile away.

During the joyful service, our presence is noted with words of wel-come (Graeme translating every now

and then). We join in with the songs (humming as we don’t know the words), and feel privileged to be a part of the congregation. Men sit on mats on the left and women on the right, happily there’re a few chairs along the back wall, as I don’t think our creaking western joints could handle too long on the floor!

We eventually leave them to con-tinue the service—which lasts a lot lot longer than our own back in Ge-neva! And wend our way back to the hospital.

In the afternoon we gather in one of the wards to share the colourful cards made by the Church of Scotland Geneva Sun-day School children

Being a national holi-day, there were only three children: ten-year old Neelam, 13-year old Gudu and

Ajay who is 18 but looked so much younger. Each one has been affected by leprosy but, thanks to Laladgh hospital, their future will be brighter than it would have been.

That evening, Graeme dusts down his bagpipes and we are treated to some great pipe music!

Tap, tap, tap…. Tap, tap, tap…. on our third morning, I just roll over and sleep whilst the wood-pecker works diligently away. The sounds and sights of Lalagdh are be-ginning to become familiar, but sadly our short visit is over.

We only had a glimpse of the work going on in Laladgh, but we were proud that our Church is sup-porting it, and hope our connection with them will continue a long time.

Suzanne Murray-Jones


Lenten Studies 2012 Ash Wednesday 22 February – Easter Sunday 8 April

Every year, during Lent, the English-speaking churches in Geneva offer an opportu-nity to take part in ecumenical study groups. This year, the groups will look at the York Course material written by best selling author, Canon John Young, entitled “Handing on the Torch – Sacred words for a secular world”.

In five sessions we will look at Christianity as the largest movement our world has ever seen; how it continues to grow at an immense pace – especially in Asia (including China), Af-rica and Latin America; yet at the same time, Christianity in the West struggles to grow and – perhaps – even to survive. In this course we consider some of the reasons for this and what it might mean for individual Christians, for churches and for Western culture, in a world where alternative beliefs are increasingly on offer.

A CD or audio tape is provided to guide the discus-sions, as well as a study booklet for each participant.

Leading Christian thinkers provide input to the dis-cussions within the groups:

∗ Clifford Longley JP, a Roman Catholic Journal-ist and broadcaster;

∗ Rachel Lampard, who is responsible for the Methodist Church engagement with political issues;

∗ Archbishop Sentamu, 97th Archbishop of York, and

∗ Bishop Graham Cray, Archbishops’ Missioner and Leader of the Fresh Expressions team.

If you would be interested in hosting and/or leading a study group during Lent, or just taking part, or simply for more information, please contact:

Janet Askew

022 758 14 45 ; [email protected]

More information about the study groups – where and when they will meet – will be available shortly

Caring for One Another

"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way..."

We will soon be ringing the Christmas bells once again, as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Christmas is, for most people, a happy time – even if it often comes with its full share of stresses and strains brought on by the pressures of preparing for the "Big Day" with the shopping, the gifts, the baking, the cooking, the travelling, etc., etc.!

But for some people Christmas is not such a happy time. For some, Christmas brings with it a sense of dread: perhaps because they don't have the financial resources to be able to "splurge" as others seem to do – and expect; perhaps because it brings back too many memories of

the past – happy memories of times spent with family or friends who are no longer there, or less happy times which they would rather forget but which keep coming back to mind as this special anniversary rolls around again.

Christmas is, of course, the anni-versary of Christ's birth. As the busyness of Christmas preparations come ever closer, please take time to reflect on the reason for the celebra-tion – and keep a mindful eye and ear open for those around you who may not be sharing in the "joy" of Christmas as much as they could and for whom a special smile, a word of welcome or an invitation over the holiday period would be a very spe-cial gift.

Within the congregation, we will once again be hosting what has now become our traditional Christmas Day Reception and Lunch in the

Salle following the service in the Auditoire.

If you would like to attend the lunch – or help in any way – please let Jim Sharp know as soon as possi-ble. Copies of the invitation will also be in the Orders of Service on the Sundays before Christmas.

If you're looking for ideas for how to celebrate Christmas in a dif-ferent way this year, visit www.alternativity.org.uk for re-sources which will help you to re-member 'Just God, Simply Christ-mas'.

And finally, the members of the Caring for One Another core group wish you all a Blessed Christmas.

The Caring for One Another core group: Terry Angleys, David Asbury,

Janet Askew, Christine Bunn, Ian Manson, Jean Murray, Jim Sharp,

Eleanor Strittmatter, Rosaleen Walker


Welcome to Rosabelle Jeffrey, 23 Octo-ber, daughter of Mark and Beth,

baptised into our church

Caring Cards from

Sunday School Children

Warmest Greetings from us all here at Lalgadh Leprosy Hospital, Nepal!

Both Lalgadh Hospital and the Community Outreach Programme are rather quiet at the moment because we have just finished Dashain – the main Hindu festival in Nepal (and India too), and we are now in the middle of the three-day Diwali Festival (Festival of Lights). It’s the main festival season of the year – the Hindu equivalent of Harvest Festival, Christmas and New Year all rolled into one.

Many of our patients – at least the ones that were well enough - went to their homes (if they have one and are welcomed of course), because this is the main family get-together/blessing time.

Suzanne and Douglas Murray-Jones came to visit us here – what a thrill to see them here, and to feel such tangi-ble huggable fellowship with our church family in Geneva

But a really major thrill from their visit was all the fabulous cards that they brought from the Church of Scotland Sunday-School children. Some 20 lovely hand-drawn and col-oured cards, each one with a special caring messages inside from the Sun-day-school children to the leprosy-affected children here.

This, on top of the Bake Sale the Sunday-School children did at the be-ginning of October...... Woweee! Aren’t they terrific! Here are beauuuuutiful cards from Estelle, Mar-cos, Ruben, Max, Charlotte, Emily, Beatrix, Max, Shona, Oscar, Morven and others too.

We only had three leprosy-affected children in hospital (because of the festi-val) when Suzanne and Doug-las brought the cards from the Sunday-School. So we called the children together and spread out the cards on the main Nurses Desk.

But of course many adult patients crowded around too. They had never seen anything like this and were all quite amazed to imagine that anyone would send cards and caring messages, and especially from chil-dren so far away in Switzerland... (most kids who come here don’t know where Switzerland is.... is it further than Delhi, India? one of the children asked me).

The children carefully looked at all the cards and we read out the words on the cards, messages and then they selected one card each. In coming weeks when other children are admit-

ted to hospital they too will choose a card for themselves.

Neelam who is 10 chose a lovely card with a horse and rider from Morven. Gudu chose a super card with pine-trees on it from Oscar, and Ajaya in his wheelchair chose a beautiful card with three hearts on it from Shona. They were so very happy.

Although it was rushed because Suzanne & Douglas were leaving the next day, the two boys, Gudu and Ajaya drew and coloured their own “Thank you Cards” to go back to Oscar and Shona. Neelam took a bit longer with her “Thank you Morven” message, so we’ll send it back to you in Geneva shortly by mail, when we next get up to Kathmandu.

The Nursing Staff send a “Big Thank you” to all the Church of Scot-land Sunday-School children, as well as to the whole Church of Scotland family in Geneva, for so much con-

tinuing interest, sup-port, thoughtfulness and encouragement.

Grame and Meena Clugston


Keeping an eye on the Bookstall . . .

In trying to come to terms with a watershed in my life in 1982, I attended Sunday service in the Auditoire. Although I didn’tt see any-one I knew, I did see a table with paperbacks stacked in a couple of banana boxes and I was drawn to a lady there with a kind face (Dorothy Huber, our church’s first woman elder) who asked if I was new to Geneva.

In those days, English book were still rather limited and pretty pricey, so Dorothy’s initiative – then in its infancy – to recycle paperbacks and raise a little money for the church was beginning to take off. Also on offer were specially commissioned CofS notepads and mugs, both of which continue to be items in demand at the Bookstall today.

I found solace in the church’s sermons, and discovered reading material that didn’t cost the earth. Then, on my third visit, Dorothy announced she had urgent business to attend to and would I mind keeping an eye on the goods. My plea that I didn’t know all the prices was brushed aside with ‘charge what you’d pay yourself’ with which she disappeared for what seemed ages. Still, on her return I was able to report that I’d taken 10 or 12 francs, at which she beamed.

Well, she might, because the following week she invited me to be her assistant refusing to take ‘no’ for an answer. Then a few weeks later, Dorothy declared that now the Bookstall was in my good hands (!) she could concentrate on lots of other matters that needed her attention.

And that was it. Keeping an eye on the Bookstall for half an hour one Sunday had become an assignment, my assignment. To this day, I’m still

perplexed as to how everything seemed to fall into place, but it did. There were one or two unexpected strings attached to the verbal ‘job description’ though. Accounting was a foregone conclusion, but I hadn’t bargained for regular contributions to the Newsletter or membership of the Congregational Committee, recruitment for the latter being handled by the ever persuasive gentleman who is the Committee’s current Secretary!

Slowly, our selection broadened, with many items being suggested by members of the congregation, e.g. very successful Auditoire tea towels and the best-selling ‘I Love Calvin’ T-shirts. Introducing birthday cards prompted requests to mark other occasions and, inevitably, Christmas and New Year. That led to the Stall being represented at what was then called the “Saint Andrew’s Fair”.

But our Bookstall wouldn’t have evolved without the support and hands-on help of many other people. Two of the earliest to come forward, Margaret Gopaldas and Pat Fairbrother, are sadly no longer with us. Their successor was a youngster called ‘Jonathon A.’, who loved taking the money. He’s now, naturally enough, a successful entrepreneur in Sydney.

Next to appear, was a newcomer to Geneva and the congregation: Jim Sharp. Someone up there had been keeping his eye on us and sent the right man at the right time. Soon after, Anne Bovet joined the team which she served with typical steadfast devotion and care, which I still miss.

As Jim moved on to the many other roles he now fulfils for both Geneva and Presbytery, Mary Couper brought her skills and humour to the pitch. Once again, the timing couldn’t have been bettered.

Originally, ‘keeping an eye on the Bookstall’ had been figurative joke. However, four years ago I begin losing sight in first one eye then the other, and now keeping an eye on anything is a no-go.

So 29 years of contributing to this Newsletter and meeting the annual budgetary target must draw to a close.


Contact List

Brigadoons Betty Morris 022 734 2450 [email protected]

Caring for One Another Jim Sharp 022 786 48 47 [email protected]

Choir Director Lucie Goodman 0767 07 60 82 [email protected]

Church Flowers Janet Askew 022 758 1445 [email protected]

Church Fair Lesley Reddy 0033 450 368 881 [email protected]

Congregational Committee Arthur Askew 022 758 1445 [email protected]

Crèche Kathryn Moreno 0033 450 431475 [email protected]

Cursillo Eleanor Strittmatter 022 796 2956 [email protected]

Diary Coordinator Carleen Knowlton-Winch

00334 50 426569 Carleen.knowlton @rocketmail.com

Fiction Bookstall Mary Couper 022 776 3840 [email protected]

Free Will Offering Jurg Strittmatter 022 796 2956 [email protected]

Fabric Sub-committee Douglas Murray-Jones 0033 450 948250 [email protected]

Mission Projects Eric Gerelle 022 771 3389 [email protected]

Newsletter Suzanne Murray-Jones +93 791 990 255 [email protected]

Session Clerk Alice Tulloch 0033 450 411723 [email protected]

Sunday Coffee Rota Terry Angleys 0033 450 948153 [email protected]

Sunday School Freda Craeye 0033 450 64 91 40 [email protected]

Treasurer Han Broere 0033 450 203 492 [email protected]

Ushers Arthur Griffiths 022 776 9636 [email protected]

Woman’s Group Carleen Knowlton-Winch / Christine Bunn

00336 7539 8924

/ 022 732 1589

Carleen.knowlton @rocketmail.com [email protected]

Website Eric Gerelle 022 771 3389 [email protected]

Youth Group Lidian Sharp 022 784 6050 [email protected]

I did so hope to make it 30 years, but it wasn’t to be.

Mary is taking over and I am sure you will extend your fellowship and support to her as you so kindly did to me. I am indebted to you all, because I’ve really had a wonderful time keeping an eye on the Bookstall.

Ritchie Panetti

As you have just read it is with con-

siderable trepidation that I am

now “keeping an eye on the book-

stall”. Ritchie has been a very

committed leader and has served the

bookstall with grace and devotion for

many years faithfully womaning the stall

Sunday after Sunday.

She will be a hard act to follow. I feel

very privileged to have been asked to

take on this massive task but I will need

your help!

As I travel a great deal I cannot com-

mit to being present one hundred per

cent of the time. It is my intention, there-

fore, to ask some of you to volunteer and

I shall set up a rota. If you think this is a

way for you to serve the church I would

be very glad to hear from you.

A very big thank you once again to

Ritchie. The good news is that although

she is finding it difficult to be wholly in

charge she will be around to support

whoever volunteers for this fulfilling role

in the fellowship of our church.

Mary

If you have any news / articles of interest for the Church of Scotland Geneva newsletter, please do send it to the Editor, who would be happy to include it.

Suzanne Murray-Jones, [email protected]


newsletter church of scotland geneva · on christmas day, saturday 25 december from 12.00 to 15.00...

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