Reps Circular

Dear ALMA Reps and Friends,

Real sorrow accompanies this circular, which begins in the same way as the last one – by asking you to join with our partners at a priest’s funeral: Lebombo holds the funeral of Fr Juliao Mutemba on 27 May. There is a tribute to him in our News section.

We have also just heard from Revd Helen Van Koevering, our Niassa Link Officer, that Padre Mukoko (Metangula) died in Lichinga hospital after an operation on 21 May. May he rest in peace and rise in glory. Please remember too Deacon Lucas who broke his leg cycling home to Chiuanga (on the outskirts of Lichinga) and is waiting in pain for the X-ray machine to work.

1. Diary Dates

6 June launch Capital Vision 2020 – London’s  diocesan plan for the next seven years

8 June ‘Enough Food IF campaign Service & Walk of Witness (see section 4 - wider issues for full details)

11.30 Interdenominational Service Westminster Central Hall

13.00-14.00 Walk of Witness:  Westminster to Hyde park

14.00-16.00 Hyde Park event

10-24 July Bishop André Soares, Bishop of Angola, is visiting the UK with his time divided between ALMA and MANNA

13 July MANNA AGM at St John’s Waterloo

Sunday 14 July ALMA Reps Meeting and afternoon tea with Bishop André  3.30 - 5.30 pm at St Vedast Church Hall, 4 Foster Lane, London, EC2V 6HH very close to St Paul’s Tube station. Entrance to the hall is through the courtyard. It will be very convenient to leave St Vedast and walk together to the Cathedral for our ALMA Sunday Celebration. Please RSVP to attend. Offers of help would be greatly appreciated.

Sunday 14 July 6 -7 pm ALMA SUNDAY CELEBRATION SERVICE with Bishop André at St Paul’s Cathedral.  All welcome –do bring your friends, family and congregation!

Tuesday 16 July ALMA Angola Link Priests & Headteachers’ Lunch with Bishop André 12.30 -2.00 Main Hall London Diocesan House.

2014 ALMA REPS MEETINGS Advance notice!

Tuesday 25 March 2014 5.30 -8 Main Hall

Tuesday 18 November 2014 5.30 -8 Main Hall

2.News from our Partners

a) Angola

• We join the Angolan church in giving thanks for five new priests and praying for their ministries:

  Two were ordained at St Philip's Uige on 5th May: Revd Julieta Fernando (second ordained woman in Angola) and Revd. Mario Mateus

  Three were ordained at Pentecost in Luanda: Revd Lindeza Fonseca, Revd Maria Domingos, and Revd Filomena Teta who are now the third, fourth and fifth female priests in Angola!

• Bishop André is currently visiting the District of Lukunga Loge, staying at St. Barnabas Parish with the Venerable Kazailawoko.
• Angola features in the Us prayer diary for the week 21-27 July with the article and prayers written by Revd Maria Domingos.

b) Lebombo

• Many of you have emailed with your tributes to Fr Juliao and there is one, from a visitor to Maputo in 2011, I thought you would like to share: ‘Juliao: a man whom it was impossible to discourage'.
• Last circular we mentioned that Maciene School is undergoing some reconstruction and refurbishment using re-designated funds from the 2008 Lent Appeal (after the government built a school in the original village). Work is proceeding apace and it has been good to receive an update and some photos of the work from Dean Carlos Matsinhe. Hopefully we will soon have these as jpegs to share with you. It will be a delight to see this important school updated for a new generation of students and teachers. It is also good to know that the link between Maciene School and Twyford goes from strength to strength with visits in both directions this summer.

c) Niassa

• There has been encouraging news of ministry developing. Helen Van Koevering, our Link officer in Niassa, has shared:
  • news from Deacon Jaime in Messumba: ‘he says the teaching on the Environment, through both this course and the 'Foundations for Farming' focus of the Equipa da Vida, is having good effect around Messumba with some tree planting and veggie production. He has 6 groups studying 'Rooted in Jesus', for confirmation prep and otherwise, and is now up to Book 4. Discipleship is what folk are yearning for. One-off mission teaching days and distribution of Bibles etc are always well-attended (as missionaries always find, and a recent conference missionary showed), but discipleship-in-community hits home, literally. For everyone who attends a discipling programme, there is the ripple effect of taking the teaching home to families and neighbours, and the large church turns 'small' church as news is chatted on....
  • News from Hilario, community priest candidate from Chiure near Pemba ‘in archdeaconry of Lurio (Nampula/Cabo Delgado): this rainy season has seen not enough rain and there has been cholera (the parish MU president died with cholera amongst others). He tells me nearly 1,800 are ready for confirmation by the Bishop next time he goes, and all on the 3rd book of 'Rooted in Jesus', which speaks to me of a deep discipling movement going on there. Mark has just visited, and tells me that they have bought (decided not to build due to the urgency) a lovely little vicarage* for a priest to take up asap (i.e. when a clergy family move can be paid and arranged) which will shift the parish focus from Pemba to Chiure’.

    *(During Lent the three London parishes linked with Pemba-Chiure — Ss Peter & Paul Teddington, St James Hampton Hill and St Mary with St Alban Teddington — raised funds for this vicarage notably by holding an African evening with African food)

• As well as the loss of the Pemba MU president to cholera there have been other sadnesses: Micael, the adepto for Lichinga/Mandimba, was in Zambezia on the second phase of the flood relief programme when his wife, Helena, gave birth prematurely to twins last week. Sadly one of the babies has died. And Albertina (of Milange), a seminarian, lost her 11 month old baby. Her husband is in Maputo, her two year old with her at her mother's house in Namialo. Please hold these families in your prayers.
• This week was the eleventh anniversary of Rebecca Vander Meulen’s arrival in Niassa –a time to give thanks for the community development work and the work of all the Equipa da Vida and Adeptos. What a team!
• Next week Dinos Kousoulou, from St Andrew’s Enfield and ALMA Strategy Group member responsible for our systems and structures, is returning to Niassa  where several years ago he helped set up regional hubs.

3. London News

• Warm wishes to Revd Jenny Welsh on her new post at St Mary Abbot. Jenny was previously Chaplain at UCL and at St Pancras from where she visited their link parish of St Mark’s Cuamba in 2011.
• ALMA Reps met at the end of May spending time in prayer for the familes of Fr Nunes and Fr Juliao and for our partner dioceses. ALMA Rep Paul Hunneyball from St John’s Greenhill paid tribute to Fr Juliao. 
  • Fran Chandler updated people on the big IF campaign event in London on 8th June.
  • Images from Easter around all ALMA dioceses were shown and also a power point of the progress on the building of Johanna Abdullah church in Lichinga.
  • The last section of the meeting was rather different with singers from two St Paul’s - one from East London and one from West London - teaching two Taizé songs which we will be singing on ALMA Sunday. Everyone was encouraged to take these back to their church too! (If you missed this MP3 files and copies of the music are available-please email)
• Twford School has held a Mozambique Project: Year 7 Enrichment Day

  The aim of the Mozambique enrichment day was to raise awareness about our link school Maciene, Mozambique, and to develop a range of key skills.

  Year 7 were off timetable for the entire day and participated in specially chosen activities relating to life in Mozambique, culminating in a showcase for the whole year group in the afternoon. The activities encouraged students to become Independent Enquirers, Creative Thinkers, Reflective Learners, Team Workers, Self-Managers and Effective Participators. The activities included: African Poetry, Living without Technology, A New House System for Maciene, Making the most of renewable Energy, Back to basics: Mud/Clay art, Understanding the Weather and its impact on life in Mozambique, The Making of Mozambique and Creative Craftsmanship in Africa.

  As well as developing their academic and creative skills, it is our aim to ensure students gain a full awareness of our link with Maciene School so that the fundraising that we carry out on our annual Sponsored Walk day (this year 24th May) is more meaningful for them.

  In the last two weeks of June the new Head teacher from Maciene school and two students are visiting Twyford School. In July, Revd John Seymour, (Twyford Chaplain and ALMA Schools Twinning Officer), two other members of staff and several Twyford students will be visiting Maciene School.

• In the run up to the launch of Capital Vision 2020 there has been a 24-7 prayer vigil at St Paul’s cathedral to pray for our city and the church in the city which we were encouraged to visit and also to join remotely.  There was prayer of every sort- from Celtic to a power point taking us through the Lord’s prayer, and from a prayer tree to a finger print prayer.

4. Wider Issues

Saturday 8 June Enough Food IF Campaign

11.30-12.30 Interdenominational Service, Central Hall Westminster

This is the main event of the day for Christians who will be joining together in prayer and worship with many of their church leaders and includes a message from the Archbishop of Canterbury.

13.00-14.00 Walk of Witness, Westminster to Hyde Park

Following the service we are invited to walk together under the Diocese of London’s Global Development Group banner, especially our ALMA link and Fairtrade Churches. Assemble on the grass outside Central Hall after the service. We shall be walking in solidarity with the 1 in 8 people around the world who go hungry.

14.00-16.00 Hyde Park event

Here we will join together with thousands of other IF campaign supporters. The day will include inspiring speakers and performances from famous artists.

Do look on face book and the internet to see the many updates — stories and film clips — from the IF campaign. Hunger is a reality for our partners with high childhood malnourishment which permanently affects intellectual development.