Fight poverty by shopping smart

After the factory disaster in Dhaka earlier this year, we’re all a little more aware of the grim conditions faced by workers in developing countries. Not only that, but people are often paid next to nothing for their labour, thanks to powerful price control from the West, so they remain trapped in poverty and unable to support their families. A decent standard of living is little more than a dream.

‘Fairtrade’ is all about ensuring better wages and working conditions for farmers and workers in the developing world. If a product bears the Fairtrade logo, you know the producers are paid a decent price for their products and labour. This helps to fight poverty and give people more control over their own lives.

There are over 3,000 Fairtrade-certified products on sale in the UK – and quite a few of them find their way into St Luke’s on a Sunday morning, via our Traidcraft stall. Open every week after the 11am service, you can pick up basic groceries such as rice, pasta, sugar, cereal, dried fruit and chocolatey treats. Do check out the Traidcraft stall next time you join us and get into the habit of picking up your groceries there.

With Christmas fast approaching, now’s the time to check out the selection of gifts, advent calendars, cards and wrapping paper. You can browse a catalogue or look online at www.traidcraftshop.co.uk, then place an order with Rachel Blackamore and collect your items at church (saving on postage and packing costs). The final deadline for Christmas orders is Sunday 8 December.

Rosie Sheldon, who currently oversees the stall, would also like to hear from extra volunteers to run it. “It’s designed to be easy, and people quickly pick up the ropes,” says Rosie. “So if you’d like to join the rota, please let me know.”

Vox Holloway raise their voices for Syrian refugees

Don't miss the latest extravaganza by our community choir, Vox Holloway, this Sunday, 1 December, with all profits going to help Syrian refugees.

The event, entitled Songs Of Exile, will include music from around the world, and performances by two world-class soloists. You can read all about it here: http://www.saintlukeschurch.org.uk/2013/10/08/vox-holloway-raise-their-voices-for-syrian-refugees/

Since it was founded in 2009, Vox Holloway has raised over £50,000 for charities around the world. We’re very proud of the choir’s amazing achievements, and are looking forward to enjoying its latest performance. See you there!

Dancing into Christmas

If you’re looking for a magical way to kick off the festive season for your family, you’re in luck. On Friday 29 November, Springs Dance Company will be performing its acclaimed Christmas extravaganza, Journey Of The Magi, right here at St Luke’s.

Church member Naomi Cook (that’s her, in the pink tutu) is assistant director of Springs, and is also performing in the show. It’s an exciting opportunity to see our friend Naomi showcasing her talents in a sparkling production of dance, theatre, song and poetry.

Springs is a highly respected contemporary dance company, which performs shows and runs workshops in theatres, schools, colleges, churches and prisons around the UK and abroad. It aims to explore, through dance, issues of life and faith from a Christian perspective. (Visit www.springsdancecompany.org.uk to learn more, or to book the company for a workshop or event).

‘Journey Of The Magi, based on the T S Eliot poem of the same name, will catapult you into the excitement of Advent and Christmas,’ says Naomi. ‘Look out for my favourite parts: the comic shopping scene, and the beautiful “otherness” of the dream. This evening of dance theatre is a treat for all the family.’

David Bintley, Artistic Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet, agrees. ‘Springs Dance Company’s Journey Of The Magi is the best Christmas show I’ve ever seen!’ he says. ‘It looks beyond the tinsel and trappings to reveal the real meaning of Christmas. I was touched, amused and moved to tears.’

High praise indeed! So don’t miss your chance to see this entertaining and compelling show at 7.30pm on Friday 29 November (doors open at 7.20pm, as the show is preceded by a talk on Springs’ work for invited guests). As a gift to the community, tickets are a bargain £3 for adults, £1.50 for children, so you can afford to round up friends, family and your children’s playmates for a special evening out. Tickets are available from Naomi after Sunday services at St Luke’s, and on the door. However, spaces are limited, so to be sure of getting a seat, email info@springsdancecompany.org.uk and say you’re from St Luke’s.

Bad Christian out in paperback

Here at St Luke’s, we reckon we can boast more authors than any other church in the country (although we admit we haven’t done the research). Our vicar, Dave Tomlinson, has written a number of popular volumes on spirituality. In fact, some of us found our way to St Luke’s after reading his ground-breaking book, The Post-Evangelical, which caused a stir in the wider church during the 1990s.

Dave’s latest book, How To Be A Bad Christian… And A Better Human Being, has been a big hit – and not just within the church. After a year of the hardback hovering around the top of the spirituality book charts, it recently came out in paperback. To support the new edition, Dave has lots of speaking engagements around the country. (If he’s not speaking in your area, you can get in touch to discuss booking him for an event.) You can learn more about How To Be A Bad Christian at www.badchristian.co.uk

As if that isn’t enough to keep him busy, Dave is also working on his next book, How To Reinvent God (And Other Modest Proposals). As members of the congregation, we get to enjoy advanced snippets from the book when they make their way into Dave’s sermons on Sunday mornings.

If you haven’t yet read How To Be A Bad Christian, we recommend it – and not just because we love Dave (although we do). Leading spiritual thinkers from around the globe have also enthused over the book. You can buy copies direct from Dave on Sunday mornings, from his website at http://badchristian.co.uk/bookstore/ and from all good bookshops. Your life may never be the same again.

Remembering those we’ve loved and lost

Many people find their way to St Luke’s through the saddest of circumstances –planning a funeral for a loved one. Others have found comfort in the love and support of people at St Luke’s during the dark time after losing a friend or family member. As a church, we often include opportunities during regular services to remember and give thanks for people we’ve loved and lost – perhaps through lighting a candle, saying a prayer, or the shared experience of communion, which symbolically gathers together all people, both living and dead.

However, once a year there’s a special service dedicated to those who’ve departed this world. All Souls Day (also known as the Commemoration of All Faithful Departed) falls on 2 November. St Luke’s will be holding its All Souls service the next day, on Sunday 3 November, at 4pm. It’s an opportunity to pray for departed souls, give thanks for those we’ve loved, and light a candle in their memory. Their names will be read out as part of the service.

The service is particularly popular with people who’ve attended funerals at St Luke’s in the preceding year, but anyone is welcome to attend, and some people make the journey every year.

If you’d like the name(s) of your loved one(s) to be read out at the service on 3 November, you can fill in a form (which you’ll find at the back of the church) and pass it to Pat Tomlinson. Alternatively, if you’re not a regular at St Luke’s, you can email your request to patriciatomlinson@mac.com. We look forward to welcoming you to the All Souls service to remember those you’ve loved and lost.

Getting Lyrical

If you were impressed by the acts at the brilliant Speakeasy last week and would like a chance to enjoy them again – or you’ve heard what a great event you missed and wish there was another opportunity to see some of the performers – then you’re in luck!

Lyrical is a lower-key event this Sunday 20th October, when you can hear some of the top acts from last week performing in a more intimate, acoustic setting. There’ll be music and poetry from the likes of Rick Leigh, Martin Wroe, Dust Jackets and Rhian Roberts, and an appearance by acclaimed singer-songwriter Iain Archer, all live and unplugged.

So for a relaxed and inspiring evening of ‘acoustic words and spoken music’, head to St Luke’s this Sunday at 7.30pm for Lyrical. Tickets cost £8 (£4 concessions), including first drink. Money raised from the evening will go to the Women@TheWell safe house and drop-in centre for vulnerable women in Kings Cross, and the work of St Luke’s in the community.

soulspace

An autumn meditation followed by a glass of wine - you're welcome!

Vox Holloway raise their voices for Syrian refugees

It's easy to feel helpless in the face of a humanitarian crisis, such as the horrors currently taking place in Syria. St Luke's community choir, Vox Holloway, has decided to take positive action by donating all profits from its next concert to help Syrian refugees.

The choir is currently rehearsing hard for its performance at St Luke's on Sunday 1 December – an event entitled Songs Of Exile, which will include music from around the world, and performances by two world-class soloists. The audience will get to hear a brand new composition, Cry Palestine, written and performed by Palestinian musician Reem Kelani. Catalan musician Clara Sanabras (whose work regularly appears on film and TV soundtracks, including the second The Hobbit film) will be performing a new choral setting of songs from her latest album, Scattered Flight: Songs of Spanish Exile. Arrangements and musical direction will once again be provided by British composer Harvey Brough, and Justin Butcher, Vox Holloway’s founder and artistic director. It's a unique event, and not to be missed – so put the date in your diary, and invite friends and family to join you.

All the profits raised by the event will go to the charity Hand In Hand For Syria, which was featured in Panorama on BBC1 last week. You can see the programme at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03c7m8s/Panorama_Saving_Syrias_Children/ and learn more about the charity at http://www.handinhandforsyria.org.uk/

If you feel inspired to join the choir yourself, there's still time (but only just) to sign up and perform in the big event. The choir is especially keen to hear from tenors and basses (in other words, men – or women with very deep voices!). There are no auditions and you don't need to be able to read music. Most songs are in English, with a few easy-to-learn sections in Arabic, Spanish or Catalan (transcriptions and recordings are provided). However, you do need to commit to weekly rehearsals at St Luke's every Tuesday, 7.30pm-9.30pm, between now and the concert. Singers are also asked to make a voluntary donation (if they can) of £30 to pay rehearsal costs, and £15 for sheet music. If you're interested, please get in touch as soon as possible by emailing voxhollowayn7@gmail.com

Since it was founded in 2009, Vox Holloway has raised over £50,000 for charities around the world. We're very proud of the choir's amazing achievements, and look forward to enjoying its latest musical extravaganza on 1 December.

The Speakeasy is back!

Here at St Luke’s, we love a party. We’re also blessed with some amazingly talented people in our congregation, from singers and musicians, to actors and comic writers. Once a year or so, the two come together in the form of our much-anticipated Speakeasy.

The Speakeasy is the brainchild of Crispin Holland, who describes it as, ‘Fifty per cent cabaret, fifty per cent variety, and fifty per cent singalong’! On past form, we’ll certainly get that extra fifty per cent in fun!

What can you expect from a St Luke’s Speakeasy? First, you’ll walk into the church to find it’s been transformed into a twinkling candlelit cafe, with the stage set for the show. There’ll be a bar in the kitchen, and nibbles to snack on while you relax among friends and enjoy some top-class musical performances, sketches, cabaret acts and a few surprise moments. Plus there’ll be a house band to lead a singalong we can all join in with. Crispin will, as usual, be our master of ceremonies.

So put the next Speakeasy in your diary for Friday 11 October, 8pm - 11.30pm. Tickets cost £5, or £2 concession, and the event is only open to those aged 16+ (no exceptions!). As well as a chance for us all to get together and have some fun, it’s also a great opportunity to invite friends, family and neighbours along for a relaxed evening out. So get your gladrags on, brush up your vocal cords and get ready for a great night at St Luke’s!

(Photo: www.stefanocagnoni.com)

A second volume of ‘The Gospel According To Everyone’

‘What if the Gospel wasn’t a book but a person? The one sitting next to you. What if the gospel truth was found in the honest faith and doubt of a life like yours?’ If you’re a regular at St Luke’s services, you’ll occasionally hear a very different kind of Gospel reading: the gospel story of a member of our community. It might be the story of the sister who lost her brother to cancer… the artist whose journey through mental illness became a kind of blessing… or the atheist who realised one day that he’d become a believer. It was Martin Wroe who came up with the idea of using our own stories of everyday faith in our services. ‘Someone said that the church is the fifth Gospel,’ says Martin. ‘Every week, we hear a reading from the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke or John, but I wondered what a Gospel reading from the fifth Gospel would be like? The Gospel according to the church, according to you and me. The Gospel according to everyone?’ Martin, who makes a living as a writer, set about recording the stories of people at St Luke’s – stories of hardship, hope and faith. Two years ago, he published them in a book, The Gospel According To Everyone, and we’ve got to enjoy many of these stories in our Sunday services. Through them, we’ve been moved and inspired, and learned more about the people sitting alongside us every week. Martin has now published a second volume of The Gospel According To Everyone. Once again, it’s illustrated with portraits by acclaimed artist Meg Wroe, and it’s been endorsed by the Bishop of London, Richard Chartres, who describes the stories as having, ‘an eloquence that exceeds most of the sermons I have preached and heard.’ You can sample a story from the first volume of The Gospel According To Everyone here: http://www.saintlukeschurch.org.uk/2012/10/15/the-gospel-according-to-sam-murphy/ and one from the new volume here: http://www.saintlukeschurch.org.uk/2013/03/03/the-gospel-of-gary/

You can buy copies of both volumes of The Gospel According To Everyone (£5 each) at the next few Sunday morning services, or online at http://martinwroe.com/books/. An iBook and Kindle version are coming soon. Thank you for everything you do for St Luke’s, Martin – and please keep inspiring us with your wonderful stories.