The Secret Diary of a Roman Soldier – aged 43½

Friday: crucifixion duty again!! Why is it always me? Only three of them but it‟s so tedious, some of them take days to die. Why can‟t we throw them to the lions, it‟s much more fun? And we get the afternoon off.
I know those two. The streets will be safer at night without them around. That third one though… Jesus? I can see the lads have given him a good beating but he‟s not complaining – must be punch-drunk. It says on the docket he claims to be king of the Jews, that‟s a laugh! Oh, and he‟s the Son of God, yeah, what-ever!
Seems he was the one who caused trouble a week ago riding in a great proces-sion on a donkey! I ask you, what kind of king rides on a donkey? Aha, he didn‟t have a permit from the Chief Priests for that, no wonder he‟s in trouble, they‟re a mean bunch if ever there was one you; don‟t want to argue with them if you‟re a Jew. We Romans don‟t have to worry so much but they can still be a pain in the proverbial.
Later… We‟ve got the usual sweepstake on who dies first. I reckon it will be that Jesus; he couldn‟t even manage to drag his own cross up here so he must be weak. That‟s a nice warm tunic he had, I made sure I got the long straw when we drew lots for that. Strange though, when we nailed him up he didn‟t scream and curse us like the other two did, just said “Father forgive them for they don‟t know what they are doing”. Believe me, we know how to crucify someone! I thought the crown of thorns was a nice touch – shows he was a king!
Later… That eclipse was scary! I‟ve never seen anything like it nor want to again! It was so dark and cold, I was glad I had that extra tunic. Then right in the middle of it Jesus shouted out something, I grabbed one of the Jews and asked him what it meant; he said it was something like „Father, my spirit is in your hands,‟ I‟m sure he was innocent and maybe he really was the Son of God; there was definitely something about him.
Later… Thank the gods (or God) for the Sabbath! The Jews don‟t want this lot hanging around after sunset so we can speed things up a bit. Breaking their legs does the trick, I‟ve never known anyone last more than half an hour after that and it‟s usually a lot less. I think that Jesus bloke died during the eclipse, just after he shouted out. Had to make sure though and a spear through the heart certainly does that.
It‟s been a long day and I‟m glad its over. I must be getting too old for the army, I keep seeing Jesus‟ face, the way he looked at me even on the cross, so strange, like he could see inside me. Maybe I should retire to that little villa out-side Rome.
Les Brett


Christian Aid Week 11-17 May 08
Prayers and reflections for Christian Aid Week
Ever-present God,
Fill me with your Spirit,
And send me out to make a difference
To the voiceless; the powerless and the poor.
Help me to know that I stand with all who seek justice
And I go with the strength of your Spirit.
Take my prayers, my time and my envelopes.
Use them with others‟ to achieve amazing things.
For the sake of your people,
And to the glory of your name.
Amen.
Lord Jesus, you were anointed to bring good news to those who felt no good news, to proclaim freedom to those imprisoned by injustice, and recover health and wholeness to all the world.
You took up the cause of the oppressed.
You proclaimed the year of the Lord‟s favour.
At the heart of your ministry was action.
Remind us of the unlikely group of people you gathered around you to perform your work of love, and empower us to bring your good news so your kingdom will come and your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Amen


At the heart of the Christian gospel is an identification with all living beings, and a demonstration of a different way of transcending limits, not by rolling over them, but by embracing and transforming them. Jesus did not voluntarily seek out suffering and did not glorify it, but he chose to bear it rather than inflict it on others. The sign of the bread and the wine on the communion table are a re-minder to us, a bit like the rainbow is for God, that apart from all living beings we have no life, that we are creature not creator, and that what is given, and given up in love, is never lost or wasted.‟

From Sharing the Blessing, Kathy Galloway, SPCK/Christian Aid £8.99 Call 08700 787 788 to order a copy of this new Christian Aid publication.

As a woman, I now feel very good. I have learned to talk. I am confident. In my heart, I have weight. We used to gather water before in big pots, but I never used to put a net over them. We used to go to the toilet without wearing sandals. Now we wear them and we wash our hands with soap. Everyone in the family is happy because now we have good safe water for many months of the year.‟ Minu Basar from Bangladesh who had to cross a wide and sometimes danger-ous river and travel up to 10km to buy drinking water for her family. Since joining the village pani parishad (water council), she has learned how to safely gather and store rainwater. The pani parishads are supported by Christian Aid partner, Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies.

Ten things to know about Christian Aid

1 We believe in life before death – we are passionate about rooting out poverty.
2 We fund long-term development work, respond to emergencies, and chal-lenge the unjust systems that make and keep people poor.
3 We are the official development agency of 41 church denominations in the UK and Ireland.
4 We help people of all faiths and none.
5 We believe in helping people to find their own lasting solutions to poverty.
6 We work through more than 600 partners – local organisations – in nearly 50 countries.
7 We challenge those with power to change things that have an adverse effect on poor communities, such as international trade rules and climate change.
8 We don‟t give money to governments – we work directly with local organisa-tions on the ground.
9 We spend money where it‟s needed most. For each £1/€1.43 given in 2006/7, 83p/€1.19 was used for direct charitable expenditure. The remaining 17p/€0.24 was used to raise the next £1/€1.43.
10 You can find out more at www.caweek.org or www.christianaid.ie or by call-ing 0845 7000 300.

How your money helps transform poor communities
Emergencies – 30%
Long-term development – 40%
Campaigning, advocacy and education – 13%
Fundraising – 16%
Governance – 1%
© Christian Aid December 2007
UK registered charity number 1105851
Company number 5171525
Republic of Ireland charity number CHY 6998

When the red envelope comes through your door in Christian Aid Week please try to have it ready for collection next day. If you pay tax, you can boost the amount you give at the taxman‟s expense by filling in the Gift Aid form on the envelope. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Just a thought

Hello everybody, here I am again with another of my stories and I know you won‟t be surprised to hear that it‟s about my late wife Gracie, myself and our marriage. A marriage that I have often told everyone that I am sure was made in heaven.
When my Gracie died just over 3 years ago, I was completely devastated, I was a complete wreck and I needed help. That help was quickly forthcoming from Bishop Ridley church and from all its many caring members including our vicar at the time Rev Renee Durndell, all of which was gratefully received.
Many of my well meaning friends often said to me “Don‟t worry Bill, it will get bet-ter in time”. But I can tell you that it does not get any better. The pain and sense of loss stays just as strong. But I can tell you that it does get easier to cope with as time passes and I am coping a lot better now. I find myself thinking in differ-ent ways with a different perspective of life and death. Because I talk of my Gra-cie so much some of my friends have told me that I should let go and let her rest in peace. But I can‟t let go and. To be truthful I don‟t want to let go. I will try and tell you why.
Yes my Gracie has gone, she has left me physically but she is always here with me spiritually. She has never left me, she is always here in my heart, and she always will be as long as I live.
A niece of mine recently wrote to me and in her letter she said “Auntie Gracie hasn‟t really left you, Uncle Bill, she is only a thought away.” Those words made me think, and she was right. I had 62 years of married bliss with my dear wife plus some years before as childhood sweethearts. After all those years I have a lifetime of memories stored in my head, some that make me smile, some that make me laugh and some that make me cry. She is there with me in all those memories and they are only a thought away. I feel her presence in every room in the house, if I go shopping she is there because we often went together. Wher-ever I go most times I have been there with her. I see her face in my dreams, she is always laughing with her lovely eyes always dancing in merriment. No, she isn‟t dead, she is in heaven and telling me how happy she is. Knowing this makes me happy and makes it easier for me to cope with the fact that she is not with me in life. Yes, all I have to do is to think of all the good times we had. I lis-ten to music and think of all the times we have danced together. I play music on my organ and think of all the times I have listened to her trying to sing to it. She wasn‟t very good at singing but she enjoyed it and her efforts used to make us both laugh.
Oh yes, I have so many memories from those happy years so how can I “let go”. In those spiritual moments that we are together I know that she is happy, she is in God‟s care so I won‟t let go. If you read this story and know me, please let me know if you think I am right, or if you think I should let her rest in peace?
I thank God for all the wonderful years He gave us and for all the memories that he has enabled me to store in my mind so that I can bring them out at any time with just a thought.
God bless
Bill Clark


How often do we write in a birthday card or a label for a present: To A With love From B XXX
Looking at the image on the front of this magazine made me think there is an-other twist to the Easter story. When Jesus gave his life on the cross he was affirming God‟s gift to us – forgiveness of our sins and life eternal. The image of Jesus‟ cross plus those of the two criminals crucified alongside him seems like God‟s way of saying:
To you With love From God †††


Les’s Laughs

What do you call a mischievous egg?
A Practical Yolker

What‟s the most popular gardening magazine in the world?
Weeders Digest

What did the fireman say when the church caught fire?
Holy smoke!

Why don‟t ducks tell jokes when they‟re flying?
Because they would quack up

How did dinosaurs pass exams?
With extinction


50 years on!

The 27th January 2008 marked an important date in the life of Bishop Ridley Church. It was the culmination of events for the 50th Anniversary of the consecration of the church (well technically it was 25th January 1958) and was marked by a celebratory service led by the Bishop of Rochester the Rt. Rev. Dr Michael Nazir-Ali. On a bright, dry sunny winter‟s morning we were pleased to welcome the Mayor of Bexley, Nigel Betts together with his fellow councillors, Peter Catterall and Val Clark, past clergy and lay people associated with the church; head teachers from Bishop Ridley Primary School and Westwood Col-lege and of course members of the congregation past and present. We were particularly pleased to welcome Humphrey Newman, who in the 1950‟s and 60‟s was the vicar at St John‟s and whose vision and determination was the inspiration for the building of the church.
When you organise such events you never know exactly how many people will attend, in spite of the advertising, so it was gratifying to see some 200 people in attendance. Whilst it was a service to mark the 50th Anniversary the theme of the service was very much one of looking to the future and this was echoed by Tim Hatwell, our new vicar and Bishop Michael.
Before the service proper David Snow, with assistance from some of the chil-dren updated the congregation on the total raised during the past year in support of the Shelter Box charity, this being the charity nominated to benefit from the various fund raising events held. Each Shelter Box costs approximately £500 and is filled with essential items, tent, sleeping bags, cooking stove and utensils etc which can be shipped out anywhere in the world to assist people effected by famine, flood and other disasters. In excess of £3,000 was raised and the deci-sion was therefore made that money for five boxes would be sent to the charity and the remaining funds sent to Demelza House Children's Hospice towards the building of their new children‟s hospice in Greenwich.

At the conclusion of the service, which included participation from the Bishop Ridley School bell ringers, all the children were invited to accompany Bishop Michael and the Mayor to assist in the burial of two time capsules in the vicarage garden. Why two you may ask? Having purchased one and invited all groups associated with the church to contribute items for inclusion there was too much for one so a second was bought. And what were these items? A variety of badges and photographs from the uniformed groups and from the church groups photographs and other items which represented the life of the church now.
The task done the Falconwood Community Centre became the centre of activity as those attending were invited to a buffet lunch. Old friendships were renewed
with a little assistance where the ageing process had taken its toll and the next few hours, spent eating, drinking and talking, passed all too quickly.

It was a fitting way to mark this milestone in the life of Bishop Ridley Church, the past, present and future all coming together - for without the past there is no fu-ture.

Derek Sears

Bishop Ridley School handbell ringers

Bishop Michael helping to bury the time capsules

 
Bishop Ridley Church 50th Anniversary Appeal

Bishop Ridley Church has run a special appeal to help celebrate its 50th anniversary this year. The appeal, in aid of the Shelter Box Charity started in the spring of 2007 and finished on 27th January 2008 at the anniversary service attended by the Bishop Of Rochester. Shelter Box is a charity that gives hope to families all over the world affected by some kind of natural disaster such as a flood, famine or earth-quake. Boxes containing a tent, sleeping bags, cooking stove, blankets, tool-kit and much, much more are shipped out to support a family of up to 10 people that have lost their home because of such a disaster. Each Shelter Box costs about £500 and our initial hope was to raise enough money to buy at least one.
The Hawaii five – 0 theme for our fundraising events was very well supported as our appeal gained mo-mentum it developed into our very own BR 5-0 Theme.
A number of successful fundraising events took place over the year including a church sleepover, a disco and more recently a time capsule was buried in the vicarage garden. Everyone collected their loose change in old drinks bottles and this has helped our appeal „surfer‟ leap up the wave on our totaliser board. The cubs made and filled their own mini Shel-ter Boxes with loose change and lots of people have been wearing their Hawaiian shirts to acknowledge the appeal wherever they go out for the day.
Even „Ridley Bear‟ our church mascot from our Millen-nium Appeal made special guest appearances coura-geously flying down a zip wire from the church bal-cony during our October Parade Service. Very im-pressive if you realise the bear attempted doing this whilst carrying a bucket of cold water. He did soak a few of the congregation in pursuit of this challenge but it was all in a good cause and he raised some money for the appeal along the way. He was also fired from a rocket during the December service, not quite so successful this time when he bumped his head on the church ceiling! (Children don‟t try this at home!)
Our finale for the appeal was at the February Parade Service where some of our youth and uniformed leaders joined Sam Haughton to perform their own unique version of Riverdance with a Hawaiian theme.
The final appeal total has now reached an incredible £3200. Thank you every-one for your support and generosity, the money will buy 5 Shelterboxes for this very worthy cause. The rest of the money will go towards the Demelza House Children's Hospice Appeal.
Don‟t forget to check out the Shelter Box web page to find out more about their great work. www.shelterbox.org

Praise God for his guidance during the appeal and we hope the money will be used wisely for those most in need. Thanks once again everybody.

David


Quiz Answers
1. Jelly babies 2. Smarties 3. Quality Street
4. Polo 5. Humbug 6. Whispa
7. Week End 8. Roses 9. Gob Stoppers
10. Black Magic 11. Snickers 12. Bounty
13. Milky Way 14. Foxes Mint 15. After eight
16. Buttons 17. Terry‟s All Gold 18. Mars Bar
19, Bull‟s eyes 20. Mintos 21. Milky Bar
22. Dolly Mixtures 23. Twix 24. Opals


Times of Services

Sunday 9.00 am Holy Communion
10.30 am Family Worship
6.30 pm Dubsters - a group for 11-14 year olds*
7.00 pm 3 Dub a group for 14-19 year olds*
Monday 9.00 am Morning Prayer
* for details contact church office
Weekday activities
Monday 6.15 pm Brownies
Tuesday 6.00 pm Rainbows
Wednesday 10-12 Babes & Toddlers
2.00 pm Wednesday Fellowship
2nd + 4th in term time
7.00 pm Music Group practice


Leaders
Brownies Sue Davies 020 8301 5531
Rainbows Pat Waters 020 8304 6748
Babes & Toddlers Sam Bird via office
Wednesday Fellowship via office
Vicar Rev. Tim Hatwell 020 8298 0065
Church Wardens Adrian Haughton and Stan Tither via office
Lay Reader Fred Woodley 020 8303 7374
Verger Jack Woodcock 020 8303 1255
Church Office Clare Wooton 020 8303 9998
(Administrator)


The views expressed in this magazine are those of individual writers and may not represent those of the whole church.

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