The Prophet cometh!

For the last few months, our resident community choir Vox Holloway has been rehearsing hard for their latest extravaganza – and the time has come for the rest of us to enjoy the fruits of their labour.

On Sunday 7 July, Vox Holloway will be performing The Prophet by Harvey Brough, a major oratoria based on the bestselling book by Kahlil Gibran. This is the piece’s London premiere, for which the choir will be joined by a full band, and celebrated soloists Clara Sanabras and Irene Serra. Thanks to funding by the Arts Council, they’ll also be joined by choirs from Camden School for Girls and City of London School for Girls. Composer Harvey Brough will be conducting. (You can learn more about The Prophet at http://voxholloway.com/the-prophet/ )

Please join us on Sunday at 7.30pm for what promises to be an amazing performance. Tickets cost £12 (£5 concessions). If finances are tight, there’s also an opportunity to come along to a free open dress rehearsal at 4pm (mainly for local schools), or you can volunteer to help out with stewarding in the evening. Email voxhollowayn7@gmail.com or call 07970 785641 for details.

Vox Holloway is a community project that gives anyone from the local area (and further afield) the chance to join an enthusiastic group of singers and perform a wide variety of music. Rehearsals are held on Tuesday evenings at St Luke’s. To find out more, visit www.voxholloway.com

By popular demand: an evening with Nicholas Mosley - Part 2

STOP PRESS: You can now listen to Part 1 at https://soundcloud.com/revdavetomlinson/nicholas-mosley-in

Here at St Luke’s, we’re fortunate to have some extraordinary people in our congregation - and every now and then, we persuade one of them to share a little more of their lives and wisdom with us at a special event. One such person is Nicholas Mosley, award-winning novelist and screenwriter, decorated war hero, aristocrat, and son of the infamous politician Oswald Mosley.

By popular demand, on Friday, 28th June, at 7.45pm, St Luke’s is hosting a second evening with Nicholas. In conversation with Andy Harrison (actor and fellow member of St Luke’s), Nicholas will be sharing stories and insights from his long and fascinating life. Admission is free. The title of the evening, Efforts At Truth, is also the name of Nicholas’ acclaimed autobiography. Bring your questions, and enjoy a glass or two of wine at this rare opportunity to hear from the man himself. If you want to know more about Nicholas in advance, you need only Google his name – although you may want to set aside a few hours to read through the thousands of pages dedicated to his life and work!

£10,000 raised for the Not For Sale campaign

On Easter Monday, St Lukes’ resident community choir, Vox Holloway, delighted an enthusiastic audience with a programme of old and new spirituals. The concert celebrated the history of the Fisk Jubilee Singers, the first all-black choir in America, which was made up of former slaves. The concert raised an impressive £5,000 for the Not For Sale campaign, which works to end people trafficking and modern slavery. A generous anonymous donor stepped forward to match the money raised by the concert, so we were able to donate a fantastic £10,000 towards the charity’s Amsterdam project, which supports vulnerable women who’ve been trafficked into the city from around the world as sex slaves. You can learn more about Not For Sale at http://www.notforsalecampaign.org

Thank you and well done to everyone who makes Vox Holloway possible – singing, directing, working behind the scenes, and not forgetting the audiences who come along to enjoy concerts and raise money for important causes. Visit http://voxholloway.com to learn more about Vox Holloway, its upcoming events and how you can join (rehearsals are held on Tuesday evenings at St Luke’s).

The choir’s next big concert is a performance of The Prophet by Harvey Brough, based on the book by Kahlil Gibran, on 7 July. Put it in your diary!

‘Can we fix it? Yes we can!’

At St Luke’s, we’re privileged to have a wonderful, versatile building in which to meet and run our many activities – from Sunday morning services to youth clubs; yoga classes to concerts; toddler groups to self-improvement seminars; and church lunches to our winter night shelter for homeless people. Plus, it’s a gorgeous old building with a beautiful garden that the whole community gets to enjoy. On the downside, maintaining a 150-year-old building and keeping it in functioning condition requires a lot of work and effort (and yes, money too). In recent years, we’ve had the tower refaced, so you’re no longer in danger of being hit by falling masonry as you come to services. We’ve had the organ refurbished so it doesn’t fart shamelessly during solemn moments in the hymns. And we’ve completely remodeled the main space of the church to fit in the increasing numbers of people who join us on Sunday mornings – completely with swish new kitchen for preparing after-service refreshments and monthly church lunches. Plus there are all those health and safety requirements to make sure the people who use the space remain… well, healthy and safe.

Of course, the major work has to be undertaken by experts, and the cash to pay for it comes from fundraising, such as our annual auction, and various grants and charities. But for general maintenance and tidying up, we arrange occasional ‘work days’, when members of the church get together to tackle those miscellaneous tasks that have been building up – some decluttering here, a lick of paint there…

Our next work day is on 8 June, from 10am to 4pm. So if you can spare any time to help out, even if it’s just half an hour, your efforts will be much appreciated. Work days are vital to the running of the church, and they’re also a great way to get involved and get to know people better. So pack a picnic lunch and pop along to show off your DIY skills – or if you don’t have any of those, just exercise a bit of muscle power to keep the church looking beautiful and welcoming, and functioning as it should. Thanks!

New book by St Luke’s author: Jimmy: A Legacy of Peace

On the morning after his sixteenth birthday, Jimmy Mizen went out to buy his first lottery ticket. A few minutes later, he was dead – fatally wounded in an unprovoked attack in the local bakery. As calls for retribution began, his parents appealed for calm. Barry and Margaret Mizen chose to respond to Jimmy's death by rejecting violence and revenge. Instead, they now dedicate their lives to helping young people find a better way, through the Jimmy Mizen Foundation. Our own Justin Butcher – actor, writer and choir master at St Luke’s – got to know Jimmy’s parents through his involvement with the Papal visit, and has now co-authored a book with Margaret to bring their story to a wider audience. Jimmy: A Legacy of Peace is story of heartbreak, hope, forgiveness and courage, and has been endorsed by (amongst others) the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster and Kate McCann (mother of missing Madeleine).

“We need to understand [our young people] in order to find out why those who hurt others do what they do,” said Barry in a recent interview with the Guardian. “We don't need any more laws. We have the power to build the sort of communities we want to live in. It's down to us. We shouldn't need to wait for the police or politicians.”

Justin adds: “Through spending time with Margaret and Barry Mizen, and writing this book, I feel I have grown to know Jimmy, and to share in mourning his loss and celebrating his life. I’m grateful to his family for allowing me to become a part of their story.”

Jimmy: A Legacy of Peace by Margaret Mizen with Justin Butcher (£8.99, Lion Books) is available from all good bookshops, and from http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jimmy-A-Legacy-Of-Peace/dp/0745955797

Reaching out across the world

As a community, St Luke's places a high priority on charitable giving and supporting those less fortunate than ourselves, and one of the charities we've built links with is Umthombo in Durban, South Africa. There's a large population of children living on the streets of Durban, who have to fend for themselves in order to survive. Umthombo works to support and empower these street children, and to change the way society perceives and treats them. The team is made up of social work professionals and former street children, so it has a unique understanding of their experiences, and is able to build trusting relationships with them. (You can learn more about Umthombo at www.umthombo.org

St Luke's has supported Umthombo over the years through donations, fundraising events (for example, our community choir Vox Holloway raised over £6,000 for Umthombo in 2009), and visits by members of the church to work alongside the Umthombo team at events such as the Street Child World Cup.

Recently, a young man in Durban called Thutukani became the first former street child supported by Umthombo to gain acceptance at university. Unfortunately, he was accepted too late to apply for grants and financial support. In response to this, one of our young people at St Luke's, Grace Wroe, is currently trying to raise £500. Grace says: 'I'm attempting to raise this money to ensure that Thutukani's chance at further education (a chance many of us have enjoyed) doesn’t have to be forfeited.’

Grace has raised £375 so far (we’re proud of you, Grace!). If you can help boost the amount up to the £500 needed to send Thutukani to university and give him a chance of a better future, you can donate at www.justgiving.com/Umthombo-University. Thank you.

Get involved and make friends

Even in a church as bijou and friendly as St Luke’s, it can sometimes be hard to get to know people, especially as a newcomer. One of the best ways to make friends and start to feel part of the community is to get involved with one of the groups serving the church on a Sunday morning. You’ll spend time with your fellow volunteers – a great way to meet and get to know people – and it’ll give you more contact with the rest of the congregation as well. The coffee rota is currently in need of fresh blood, so if you fancy serving people their after-service refreshments once or twice a quarter (they’ll love you for it!), talk to Nina or email her on administrator@nbarnsley.demon.co.uk.

If that’s not your thing, you can find your niche in welcoming people to services, leading prayers, doing readings, running the sound desk, helping out with the Sunday school or youth group, or helping with practical tasks around the church. If you're interested in being involved with any of these, or you have other ideas about how you can help, just contact Pat at patriciatomlinson@mac.com. Many hands make light work, and you’ll soon feel like part of the St Luke’s furniture!

Another successful year for the St Luke’s Night Shelter

One of our most important projects at St Luke’s is our involvement in the Islington Churches Cold Weather Shelter (overseen by CARIS Islington). Every year, from January to March (the three coldest months of the year), we join up with six other local churches, each taking one night a week, to offer 15 homeless people a hot meal, a bed for the night, and a hearty breakfast. This year’s project was another great success. Dan Northam Jones, who manages and co-ordinates Night Shelter for St Luke’s, explains: ‘Around 70 volunteers from St Luke’s, Vox Holloway and the local community staffed 14 nights, providing hospitality and warmth to our guests. Due to the cold weather, the shelter was extended by an extra week. Our guests included Australians, South Africans, Moroccans, Zimbabweans, Bulgarians, Czechs, Irish, Scousers and Islington born-and-breds. Many guests who went on to find accommodation continued to join us for food and company, and some stayed for Sunday morning services and church lunches.’

As well as food, a bed and a warm welcome, Night Shelter aims to provide some entertainment for guests. This year’s activities included boxing coaching by Sam Hadfield, the founder of CARIS Boxing Club; and an evening of dance with Jason Rowe’s ‘Waves’ group – both of which were enjoyed by guests and volunteers. The final evening operated alongside our monthly choral evensong, and guests enjoyed the choir’s music and quiet service.

‘A huge thank you to all those who contributed this year,’ says Dan, ‘whether by volunteering for shifts, bringing food, donating money, washing linen, or chatting to guests. And thank you to the whole community of St Luke’s for helping to save Night Shelter. Last August, it looked like it might not be able to run this year, as CARIS was experiencing funding challenges. Thanks to donations from St Luke’s and other churches, enough funds were raised to allow the shelter to continue. If you’d like to fundraise or donate to this vital work, please let me know.’

Most of all, we’d like to thank Dan for his tireless work in organising our part in the project. It’s an enormous job to undertake on a voluntary basis, and Dan tackled it once again with tireless enthusiasm and energy. We couldn’t do it without you, Dan!

Sing your heart out at an all-day workshop

Here at St Luke’s, we’re very proud of our music. Our resident choir wow us with their angelic voices every Sunday morning, and at other services throughout the month. Meanwhile, choirmaster Justin Butcher also runs our community choir, Vox Holloway (www.voxholloway.com), which gives anyone from the local area (and further afield) a chance to exercise their lungs and join a group of enthusiastic singers rehearsing and performing a wide variety of music.

But it doesn’t stop there. This Saturday, 20 April, Vox Holloway is hosting an all-day singing workshop to help you brush up your vocal skills. From 10am to 5pm, there’ll be three workshops led by professional musicians, focusing on improving your singing technique; singing in harmony; and reading music. Lunch will be provided, when you’ll have a chance to meet and chat with other participants. You can also book a 30-minute individual singing lesson for an additional cost.

In the evening, from 6pm-8pm, there’ll be a social event to round up the day, when you can enjoy a special preview of a new work, ‘The Prophet’ by Harvey Brough (of Harvey & The Wallbangers fame). Wine and nibbles will be available.

‘You don’t have to be an experienced singer to join this workshop,’ says Justin Butcher. ‘It’s suitable for all levels, and anyone who loves to sing and wants to improve their skills is very welcome to come along.’

The whole day costs just £10 (£5 concessions), including lunch. One-to-one lessons cost £15, and are available on a first come, first served basis. This event is open to anyone in the community aged 16 or over. For further information or to book your place, email voxhollowayn7@gmail.com or call 07814 575373.

Looking back, moving forward...and time for a roll call

A visit by Trevor Huddleston (then bishop of Stepney) in early 1970s, with the vicar Bill Picton (on left) and Justin's predecessor poised at the organ (click on picture for bigger image).

On 14 April, St Luke’s has its APCM (annual parochial church meeting) after the 11am service – once we’ve had time to fortify ourselves with a coffee. The APCM is the church equivalent of an AGM, when we review the last 12 months and make plans for the upcoming year. If you think that sounds about as thrilling as watching paint dry, well… you may be right. But here at St Luke’s, we’ve managed to streamline the process into a quick jaunt through the year’s highlights and a chance to air a few issues. You can plough through the nitty gritty of the church accounts and building plans at your leisure (sounds tempting, doesn’t it?), as all the details will be in the annual report, available to pick up at services afterwards.

If you come along to the APCM, you’ll also be able to vote to appoint (or reappoint) church wardens and the PCC (parochial church council). These are the people who steer St Luke’s and help to keep it running smoothly throughout the year. If you’d like to consider standing for office, have a word with Dave or Pat.

To vote at the APCM, you need to be registered on the electoral roll. It’s now that time (every six years) when we have to renew the roll – so even if you’re already on it, you’ll need to re-register. As well as giving you the right to vote and hold office in the church, the electoral roll gives the Church of England an idea of how many people attend different churches, so it’s really important to St Luke’s that you’re on the list. It’s also a requirement if you want to be married at St Luke’s and don’t live in the parish. You don’t have to attend every week or live in the parish to be on the roll – you just need to identify yourself as a part of the St Luke’s community. You can even be on the electoral roll of more than one church (although you can only vote at one). If you’d like to add your name to the list, ask Dave or Pat for a form.