Reps Circular
From Sheenagh Burrell, ALMA Co-ordinator
almacoordinator@london.anglican.org T: Tuesdays: 020 7932 1231
Dear ALMA Reps and Friends,
Thank you so much for your generosity and response to the devastating flooding along the Limpopo River basin and the town of Chokwe, and also in support of the flood relief work along the Zambezi. You will be pleased to know that, in addition to the £2000 ALMA sent to Lebombo in January, this week we are sending the funds you have donated to Niassa and Lebombo in response to the Bishop’s Appeal. So far the appeal has raised £3780, and we will send more flood donations in our regular transfer at the end of March.
Throughout January we have used the ‘ALMA London’ facebook page to provide regular updates on the floods - why not have a look, become a Friend and ‘Like’ our page! It is also good to know that both ACSA (Anglican Communion of Southern Africa) and MANNA are raising funds to help with flood relief too.
It was good to see so many of you at our ALMA Reps and Friends meeting at the end of January, to be able to pray together for our partners and the floods, and to share ALMA Life in January 2013 which, apart from the floods, included:
And in February
Again and again we learn what it means to rejoice with those who rejoice, (as we do with the church at T3 in Maputo who now have a roof and a completed church), and to mourn with those who mourn, (we join the family of Revd Mendes Firmone priest at Holy Innocent Mokuba Angola and his congregation who mourn this much loved priest).
Tuesday 5 March is the ACSA synod where decisions on multiplication will be made
First and second weeks of March, Rebecca Vander Meulen (and later Mario Muromua) will be in Luanda teaching on Tearfund’s 'Churches, Channels of Hope training' on HIV awareness. Great to see other inter ALMA visits and exchanges!
End April/early May ALMA Reps meeting tbc
25 May National Day of Prayer in Mozambique
In the next circular we will have news of Bishop André’s itinerary in July. He will be in the UK 10-24 July with ALMA and MANNA sharing the time and fares between us.
13 July MANNA AGM St John’s Waterloo
14 July ALMA Sunday service St Paul’s Cathedral 6pm
1320Kb) and “Jornal o Mensageiro” (St Joseph’s, Rocha Pinto) (3775Kb)‘Four weeks later the life in Chókwè it is not total returned, some shops still closed, banks and some other services not working; many people still in Chihakelane as well as the local government. The schools were three weeks stop. The church lost some goods like vestments (albs, altar covers and chasubles) and some furniture. Needs to be repaired the floor, to paint the house was more damaged because the windows was closed and the water moved so hardly inside; and is the second time that house was affected by floods on 2000 and this January.
There are many things to be done, to replace the goods that we lost, to repairer the houses, churches, some people lost everything’s even their houses was completely destroyed, field inundated; are now busy to rebuild their houses with the few materials that remained there. New congregation must be found in Chihakelane because we are sure some people will fix their new residences there. These are challenges that floods brought for us.’
Bishop Michael Colclough, Canon Pastor of St Paul’s Cathedral, has announced that he will retire with effect from 30 September 2013.
(Bishop Michael is chair of the ALMA Strategy Group.)
This invites students to consider the MDGs and the post 2015 development framework. Twyford was chosen because of its international schools projects:
‘Year 9 students at Twyford were proud to show off the work which they had undertaken building links with a partner school in Maciene in rural Mozambique. The visit concluded with a live Skype session with Senior staff from the school in Maciene.’ Read more:
Please do share news from your links and visits –and join ALMA London on facebook if you can.
Sheenagh Burrell
ALMA Co-ordinator
Tel: 020 7932 1231 Tuesdays Diocese of London, London Diocesan House 36, Causton St, London SW1P 4AU.