Prayer time for school and college chaplains - online each morning at 8.30am

The Centre for Chaplaincy in Education would like to invite school and college chaplains to a prayer meeting, held each morning at 8.30am for half an hour.

Topic: Prayer Room for Chaplains
Time:Daily  08:30am GMT

Join Zoom MeetingMeeting ID: 227 482 842

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Here are some words of encouragement, inspiration and comfort from The Centre for Chaplaincy in Education:

We are all very aware of the daily changing nature of the current world crisis. I, like you I am sure, have been very humbled, challenged and inspired by the desire of so many to support the vulnerable as well as saddened by the fear and angst that is causing so many to struggle with sourcing food and items they need. I am stating the obvious in saying we are in unchartered waters and yet as leaders within the communities whom we serve we need to be showing a different way:

The desire of the Father is that all know His love;

The way of Christ is that of loving service of others;

The Spirit leads us into the heart of love so that WE may know His peace that passes understanding and when we know this, take this to others.

Amen

(photo courtesy of Casey Horner at Unsplash)

Prayer time for school and college chaplains - online each morning at 8.30am

The Centre for Chaplaincy in Education would like to invite school and college chaplains to a prayer meeting, held each morning at 8.30am for half an hour.

Topic: Prayer Room for Chaplains
Time:Daily  08:30am GMT

Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 227 482 842

——

Here are some words of encouragement, inspiration and comfort from The Centre for Chaplaincy in Education:

We are all very aware of the daily changing nature of the current world crisis. I, like you I am sure, have been very humbled, challenged and inspired by the desire of so many to support the vulnerable as well as saddened by the fear and angst that is causing so many to struggle with sourcing food and items they need. I am stating the obvious in saying we are in unchartered waters and yet as leaders within the communities whom we serve we need to be showing a different way:

The desire of the Father is that all know His love;

The way of Christ is that of loving service of others;

The Spirit leads us into the heart of love so that WE may know His peace that passes understanding and when we know this, take this to others.

Amen

(photo courtesy of Melissa, a 15 year old Gateway college student)

Cultivating patience...

Ah, cultivating patience… I wonder how our patience may have been tested in new ways in recent days. I wonder if we have discovered unexpected channels of patience in ourselves? When we consider the definition of this word, we find it means the “quality of being willing to bear adversities, calm endurance of misfortune, suffering.” Certainly something that is necessary in these strange times, but one that we can also develop and strengthen, through prayer, increasing self-awareness and sharing honestly with others.

A prayer activities sheet, which has been designed for use by families at home, is on the theme of patience… it begins…

“Christians believe that we should practice being patient. This can sometimes be difficult when we are waiting for something or being annoyed by someone. It means we need to be quiet rather than complaining and smile when we might not want to. But being patient can also bring us and the people we know and love... peace.”

BePatient: BeSpace activities to bring a sense of peace and calm to your life…

By way of background for FCG: As part of our partnership work for the Free Church Education Committee, we are members of the Pray for Schools network, working alongside lots of other dynamic and engaged Christian organisations. One of the other groups who are also on the Pray for Schools network is BeSpace… BeSpace is a Christian charity who encourages churches to work together to see prayer and reflection spaces happening in all areas of the community. Their vision to see every child, young person and adult connect with God in their daily lives from the school into the home.

(photo courtesy of Bekir Donmez at Unsplash)

'Coffee and cake' meet up for school and college chaplains...

The pattern of meetings and our ability to get together in person has changed much over the last few weeks. - so we are pleased to share that the Centre for Chaplaincy in Education will be hosting a ‘Coffee and Cake’ chaplains’ chat each Friday at 4pm.

Friday Coffee 'n' Cake (bring your own!) for Chaplains in Schools and Colleges 20th April 2020

From this Friday (24th April) and every Friday for the foreseeable future, Maggie Everett, the Centre’s Lead Development Officer, will be hosting a ‘coffee and cake’ hour on Zoom, for all chaplains in schools and colleges. Come and join in with others, (sorry you will need to bring your own coffee and cake!) and have a chat about what’s happening with you, your community/ies and the wider world. Invitation:

Topic: Coffee and Cake

Time: Apr 24, 2020 04:00 PM

Join Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 829 0639 4114

Password: 780537

Sarah Lane Cawte, our Free Church Education Officer, has been working closely with this group and other partners over recent months and there are some exciting developments in the field of chaplaincy in education which you can read about here.

(photo courtesy of Jess Bailey at Unsplash)

Free Church Education paper just published - Religion on Campus...

Since 2014, the Free Church Education Committee has had a working group dealing specifically with Higher Education. There are a wide variety of reports and papers for your further reference as well as pamphlets which churches and students can download to share with their communities. You can check these out HERE.

Over the last few months, the Free Church Education Committee and

the HE Working Group have been researching and finalising

a paper about Religion on Campus.

Universities shape the lives of millions of people in the UK. Nearly half of all our young people attend universities, and their impact reaches into the wider community. Religion is also a life-changing force in today’s world. More than 80% of the world’s population identify with one religion or another. Understanding how universities and religion relate is therefore vitally important. This paper, from the Free Church Education Committee’s Higher Education Working Group, explores the issues about the role of religion in university life, drawing on Free Church principles and recognising contemporary realities. It is intended to help those working in this area to think through issues relating to faith on campus, and to inform their approaches and priorities.

You can find out more about the background the the FCG’s work in this arena here.

(photo courtesy of Green Chameleon at Unsplash)