Church Life

2006

In January we began the process of reviewing the Elders election process. At first it seemed rather daunting given the huge amount of paper work, which was generated because we wrote to a number of Churches around the country to see how they approached the matter. But, by hard work and patience a system started to take shape after many hours of discussion. The principles were presented to the May Church meeting and a final form of words agreed at the September Church meeting. The whole process was then put to the test throughout October and November. Twelve Elders all chosen by the same new method were finally presented to Church meeting at the beginning of December. There have been a few comments, fed back to Elders for consideration, now that we have had the benefit of seeing a new system in operation. But in the main the system seemed to work. Let us hope that it stands the test of time. 

In February we performed another pantomime with a difference, “Pompei Panto”. Everyone worked hard and the script was a good one, but for some reason this production didn’t have the customers queuing all the way to the Broadway Hotel as in previous years. Maybe our adoring public didn’t expect Ancient Rome to be quite worthy of family entertainment, or maybe it was just one of those things. In any case, everyone connected had a good time taking part and the props and scenery department again left everyone speechless! 

This year, young people from Christ Church, attended National events. In January, Sam van der Lee and Rachael Cook attended FURY assembly at the Pioneer Centre, near Kidderminster and in July, Oliver Bruce and Lynne Wiggington attended General Assembly at Exeter. Even though officially, they attended as representatives of Lancashire District Council it is good for Christ Church that some of our young people are attending National events. 

On Sunday 25^th June this year, a very special occasion took place. Our Minister Emeritus Revd Roy Chapman celebrated 50 years of ordained Ministry and we were able to share the occasion with him in a service of Thanksgiving. Needless to say the tea afterwards was to the usual Christ Church high standard.  

In last year’s report I commented on Synod being held at Christ Church in March 2005. That event seemed to go well, but little did I know that the sequel, Synod 2 was just around the corner. Yes, they liked us so much that they came back again in November 2006! A good number of members helped out again and the day came and went without too much trauma. So I would like to say thanks again to everyone who made the day a success. Well, you might be able to guess what we could be doing again in the future! 

Sadly this year has seen the loss of some very faithful members of our congregation. They are all individually very special and have played their own important parts in the story of Christ Church over many years for which we are grateful to each one of them.

And yet despite our sad losses, our membership (in terms of numbers at least) at 31^st December 2006 is the same as it was the previous year. This year we have received new Members and therefore the membership roll still stands at 91. 

Throughout the year, we have seen a number of young families beginning to worship at Christ Church. The journeys that brought them through our front doors are varied and personal to themselves but we welcome them all and hope that they feel welcomed and valued. Our style of worship at the 9.30 am service is certainly intended for families and in particular those with young children hopefully feel comfortable during the service.  

As the year drew to a close we started to think more about the issues we have to tackle in order to take Christ Church forward. In the September Church meeting having approved Constitutional changes in respect of Eldership election. The meeting was then asked  “What sort of Elders do we want?” and “What sort of Church are we?” In the December Church meeting environmental issues were discussed more deeply than previously and members were asked to volunteer to review the “Roots and Branches” pack so that we can become more focussed on Green issues. 

In conclusion, while the secular world is keen to highlight the demise of Churches in this country, we have seen enough positive attributes at Christ Church this year. Attributes, which, if we continue to nurture, will not only see our survival but ultimately growth as well. We are blessed to have Jason for our Minister, as he has a vision for the future of Christ Church.

2005

Well what a year! It was certainly a “Game of Two Halves”. The year began as it had finished, celebrating 50 years of Christ Church. We had the Church Quiz and TV Games night to stretch our minds. We were treated to a rousing Mothers Day Service in which we sang our Top Ten Hymns and Easter was something special with “Jerusalem Joy” the first appearance for the Christ Church Singers. 

There was more than one occasion when we were crammed to bursting, notably the Jubilee service on May 29^th, but also Easter Sunday and Pentecost this year saw some serious crowd control requirements as we found ourselves having to smuggle large numbers of chairs out of the Chapel at the last minute in to the back of the Church. It might have been frantic but who would ever dare to complain about a full Church!

  Someone at Synod Offices noticed that it was the turn of Lancaster District to host the March 2005 Synod. Then someone had the bright idea of asking Christ Church to be host. Someone else had the even brighter idea of accepting, as it was our Jubilee year and all. And as the day approached it didn’t seem quite so clever. But we survived the invasion of 250 of the Northwest Synod’s finest minds. And the day seemed to pass without too much trauma. And afterwards, we got a very nice letter from the Synod Clerk praising us on our organisational abilities and saying how much they’d like to visit again. Oh dear! So to all those people who did such a good job of helping on that day, “Thanks!” 

There have been some changes round the place. Following on from the upgrade work that was done a few years back, the only recent building work has been essential maintenance of the Church and some refurbishment and repair to the Manse. There has long been a need to improve the outward appearance of Christ Church and following very generous donations of money and time the Stuart Avenue / Broadway corner has been re-landscaped. Also arising from a generous donation, there is a beautiful stained glass window that portrays the Jubilee Logo and can be viewed from the vestibule. Another lasting memorial to the Jubilee year is the banner that many have contributed to. OK so the idea was “developed” from the one created for the Synod Festival Day but each square was our own work.  These 3 items are permanent visible signs of this jubilee. 

In May,  the National Touring Company staged “Great Expectations” back to front (and you had to be there, to know what that means) and was an excellent performance. May Bank Holiday Weekend saw a full weekend of celebration, our Garden Party was on the theme of “Gold” which was no surprise, neither was the weather, yes it rained! The Sunday service saw many people connected with the history of Christ Church return to give thanks for the last 50 years On Monday there was an indoor party complete with variety show. 

And so the Jubilee “year” was over. We had a final Service of Re-dedication, 50 years to the day Christ Church opened. To finish off there was a Jubilee Ball at the Strathmore Hotel…… There was just one lasting memory to come and I’m trying to avoid mentioning it …you know what happened. Without doubt it was the morning after the night before. So began a slow recovery. At this point I realised just how much we owe to our forefathers who designed the premises with a Large Hall. It meant we could continue worshipping on Broadway through the summer. 

Make Poverty History was a highlight in those dark summer days. An excellent trip to Edinburgh for the Rally was reported by those who went as something really special. This had been preceded the day before by Christ Church being wrapped up in white linen as a symbol of the campaign. 

Autumn saw a return to worshipping in Church and a gradual return of all the damaged items. Something to celebrate again! The second half of the year had not been planned to be so busy but there was still an Autumn Fayre, Trip to Blackpool lights, Auction of Promises and a Bingo Night. 

The year has been a better one for Membership the final count on 31^st December being 91, which was an increase on last year. The New Year will see us continue our drive for increased membership. We also ended the year with a very passionate Church Meeting. Many more people were moved to speak than is customary and this has resulted in many of us examining our way of doing things. If this leaves us better placed to face the future then perhaps we really have experienced the Spirit at work.  

2004

It started just like any other year, well no, actually it didn’t. The first Elders’ Meeting was immediately notable for the absence of so many years accumulated wisdom as Barbara Clarke, Marjorie Dalgleish and Peter Johnson were no longer present at the meeting but making a welcome return was Ken Holt and a first appearance for Lisa Bruce.

The January Elders meeting was also Lisa Bruce’s last meeting because she married Kevin Toner at Christ Church on February 14^th which was a marvellous Church occasion and so Lisa Toner took her place at the next Elders meeting.

February also saw another epic Broadway production, this time “Cinderella” which again received rave reviews and there was such demand for tickets that an additional performance was necessary. It goes without saying that the props and scenery and Stage Crew yet again received numerous Oscar nominations.

In May the Golden Jubilee celebrations started. Not for us, a ceremony to mark the occasion, but a whole year of festivities. The celebrations opened outside our ancestral home of Clark Street with prayers and remembrance for those who served there. This was followed by a walk to Christ Church and a service of thanksgiving to commemorate the laying of the foundation stone 50 years previously. Three of our members who were present in Clark Street days: Janet Elliott, Jean Ward and Edna Watson were among those who gave thanks at the foundation stone.

The year has been punctuated by numerous events, many of them Jubilee Year themed and reported in greater detail elsewhere in the Annual Report but I refer to a few here.

The June Garden Party was the first I can recall for many a year where the weather tried to get in on the act. But in true Christ Church spirit, those shivering in grass skirts or shorts or even coconuts weren’t beaten they just continued indoors!

In August, Christ Church went on tour to the capital, where 2 shows, a trip on the London Eye, a river cruise and Communion in St Paul’s were enjoyed by all the participants. The journey home was in such a buoyant mood that the next trip was contemplated - a week in Disney World? - a cruise on the QE2? - swimming with sharks on the Great Barrier Reef?

In October the “Old” Young Ones got together for a weekend reunion. The shorts and pony tails were long gone but the Saturday evening was spent reminiscing and many were able to join in the Service on Sunday morning.

The Christmas Fayre (in December would you believe) was another occasion where Elder’s dress sense was tested to the limit as this time they paraded as clowns -no comment thank you!

On a sadder  note, the year has seen the passing of so many stalwarts of Christ Church’s past. The number of members we have lost this year is higher than usual and in this Jubilee year we are reminded of the significant contribution made by those who have gone before. We are truly indebted to every one of them as they have first created and then sustained Christ Church over the past 50 years.

Let us hope that the rest of the Jubilee Celebrations give us as many memories as we have experienced.