LLANDUDNO CHURCHES TOGETHER
CYTÛN NEWSLETTERS 1 – 18
August 1996 – February 2001
EGLWYSI LLANDUDNO GYDA’I GILYDD
Newsletters
Volume 2 Nos: 19 – 30 (May 2001 – June 2004)
Please click on the link to go direct
to the Newsletter or article:
Newsletter No 18 – February 2001
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD FRED HALSTEAD
Newsletter No 17 – November 2000
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD FRED HALSTEAD
Newsletter No 16 – August 2000
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD FRED HALSTEAD
THE PRESIDENT
WRITES – THE REVD PHILIP COUSINS
Newsletter No 14 – February 2000
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD PHILIP COUSINS
Newsletter No 13 – November 1999
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD PHILIP COUSINS
Newsletter No 12 – August 1999
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD PHILIP COUSINS
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD E. R. LLOYD-JONES
Newsletter No 9 – October 1998
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD E. R. LLOYD-JONES
JUST
A THOUGHT – THE REVD F. HALSTEAD
THE
PRESIDENT WRITES – THE REVD KEITH V. GARNER
Newsletter No 3 – February 1997
FROM
THE PRESIDENT – MRS. BETTY MILLS O.S.L.
THIRD
THURSDAY EVENING PRAYERS
Newsletter No 2 – November 1996
FROM
THE PRESIDENT – MRS. BETTY MILLS, O.S.L.
THE
WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTlAN UIITY.
FROM
THE PRESIDENT – MRS. BETTY MILLS, O.S.L.
Most of the extracts reproduced below were electronically scanned and transcribed from printed copies of the Cytûn Newsletter. Numerous transcription errors have been corrected, but a few may have escaped detection – for which my apologies. I will be pleased to receive emails drawing attention to any remaining transcription errors and I would also like to receive information concerning missing newsletters. Email: Noel Walley Webmaster.
The New Year has
gone, the week of prayer is completed, the season of Lent is fast approaching
and then comes Holy Week and Easter. The Christian year moves on apace with
many celebrations and rituals reminding us of the life and work of our
Saviour. The
biggest danger, however, is that we get so accustomed to all these that we
become blase as to their real significance, not only to the church but most
importantly to us as individuals.
The promises of a
new beginning for many people have been filed in memory banks or discarded in
the metaphorical rubbish bin as unsuccessful attempts to be different land yet
in all the Christian 'events' so far there has been a call for each one of us
to be just that – different. What has been your response? Has it all been a waste of time – a series of
'hoops' that have to be jumped through, as it were, with no real purpose? Did
the week of prayer hold no encouragement or blessing for you? Was there no
sense of oneness as we joined together in the various churches using both
languages and experiencing different traditions, even if there are some aspects
to be overcome? Christ's prayer was that the disciples should be one as He and
His Father are one. Let us be certain that that is still His Prayer today.
Now what about
Lent. Will this be a time of frivolous denial, the cigarette, the glass of
wine, one meal a week given up to be followed by a binge the day after. Will Lent
be another time of superficial response from us? Jesus went into the
wilderness to
contemplate on His own life, to come to terms with the realisation that He was
called to be different, to weigh up the costs of His difference, to prepare
Himself to do the work of His Fathter, and to conquer the temptations of
popularity, power and self-indulgence. He went into the wilderness to pray, to
build a close relationship with His Father, but above all to prepare Himself
for the tasks and the lifestyle to which He had been called. What right have
we, therefore, if we subscribe to the name of Christian, to treat Lent so
lightly. We, too, need to prepare ourselves for the work to which we have been
called. Let us, therefore. use the time of Lent to examine ourselves, assessing
our own characters, and weaknesses and strengths and our motives through prayer
and contemplation.
Holy week was
simply the time when Jesus went into Jerusalem, lost His temper a bit, kicked a
few traders out of the Temple and cleaned it up, bad a party with His disciples
and somehow got Himself arrested, charged, tried and executed like a common
criminal. Then He mysteriously went out of the tomb and somehow turned up
again. Let me remind you that Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Let me remind you too
that Paul said that our bodies were the Temple of God and Christ came to
cleanup this temple and weeps over our Jerusalem (Llandudno) too. Familiarity
can rob us of the beauty, sacredness, blessedness, and holiness of the
celebrations of this period. Let us all look closely at where we stand in
relationship with Him. Jesus meant business, His disciples meant business too,
and in spite of their many failings and weaknesses, they went out in His
strength and power, and turned the world upside down. Let us all look closely
and objectively at our relationship with Christ and seek to discern whether or
not we can indeed count ourselves as His disciples.
In Him, FRED
In future Cytûn
Prayers will be held on the SECOND SATURDAY of each month from 7 am to 8 am at
Emmanuel Christian Centre. Lloyd Street.
During the hour do come and go as you wish.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
– As a result of our collections last year, £ 185 has been sent to the United
Church Theological College, Rarongo near Rabaul, PNG
The next COUNCIL
MEETING will be on TUESDAY 24th APRIL at 7 pm at the ENGLISH PRESBYTERIAN
CHURCH.
The ANNUAL
GENERAL MEETING OF CYTUN will be on TUESDAY 16th MAY at 7 pm at STELLA MARIS.
PART OF THE
LATEST REPORT FROM GAVIN MART - WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON - September to December
2000
MISSION HOUSE has
become a fantastic asset to local youth work and the community. It caters for
many needs and hobbies of interest to young people such as - a large screen
play station dance workshops, cinema nights, social evenings and drop in. The
young people are asked what they would like to use the facilities for - a
growing demand means more
help would be
very welcome.
SCHOOLS WORK
opportunities have overwhelmed us in this first term. We have worked in Howells
Girls School, Denbigh, SDC, Ysgol Aberconwy, Prestatyn High and Ysgol John
Bright Llandudno – lessons, assemblies, lunch times shows, after school clubs,
etc – work we hope to continue in the future. The response from the young
people has been of
willingness and
enthusiasm, and we quickly gain credibility and respect to talk meaningfully to
groups and individuals about Jesus.
NEXT TERM - Mimi
and Gav will concentrate on the regeneration of Fractual Edge, including
fund-raising and housing, which means less full team activity and a more
concentrated effort to prepare for next year. The rest of the team will
concentrate on continuing the work which has been started, and concentrating
more specifically on their individual roles.
The work load
needs to be lightened as people have been overworked so far -
The
responsibilities at The House need to be shared out evenly, and its future will
be looked into.
Days off will be
more carefully arranged. They will look into working with young offenders.
A decision will
be made regarding whether to continue trying to raise CHURCH SUPPORT .
At our recent
Council meeting we were reminded that the title of our group included the words
Llandudno Churches together, and without doubt that is true. The sentiment in
those words is tremendous, all embracing, and far reaching. When churches work
together for a common cause which is Kingdom directed and Kingdom orientated
then the common cause will succeed. To some extent it is like a bank, the more
we put in, the more interest is created, and ultimately the more we get out.
Unfortunately it is the last little bit which falls down or does not ring true
in this case. The interest which we
seek is not
necessarily for our benefit but for the benefit of those for whom the Gospel
means nothing, for those who have no idea who Jesus is, and for the unchurched
families and children of our town and nation. If we want to stay within the
comfort zones of the familiar, if we want to maintain the status quo, if we
want to pursue our own ends as individual churches (both large and small), if
we want to simply plough our own furrow then our organisation is incorrectly
named and little more than a club.
Jesus told His
disciples "Push out into the deep" and when they obeyed a great catch
of fish was caught. Perhaps our failure to catch a whole host of fish is due to
the fact that we are not listening, not obeying, scared of taking the risk, too
taken up with our own interests, goals or routines, or simply lacking in vision
and faith.
But we say that
we cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel. We do not know all the
pitfalls, the risks and snags, the costs -and we do not know all the blessings
along the way either because we do not or will not take risks. Perhaps we are
blinded to the calls, or commands of the Holy Spirit to move forward into new
and hitherto untried fields of service or pioneering work by the busyness of
maintaining routines or traditions of our various denominations or churches,
and because of it we are missing the opportunities which the Lord presents to
us.
Let us remember
that the Lord does not always lead or speak in the ways which we expect Him to.
Many revelations of His will have come to His people through highly unexpected,
untrained and untried sources. Let us not limit or inhibit His ingenuity, but
rather let us examine ourselves and throw out any accumulated clutter and
prepare to go in unexpected directions.
Finally, let us remember
also that the Lord does not only speak through Minister, Elder, Deacon, for all
their qualifications, experience or expertise but also through the Samuels
amongst us who simply hear and respond. I pray that Llandudno Churches Together
will be prepared to respond "Master speak they servants hear.
Jesus said to His
disciples "Push out into the deep" Are we His disciples?
In Him, Fred
on WEDNESDAY 15th
NOVEMBER, SPEAKER – IAN WHITE Sheffield
District Evangelism Enabler
SUBJECT – LIFE IN
WONDERLAND – THE CHURCH, THE GOSPEL AND CHILDREN
at ST DAVID'S
METHODIST CHURCH HALL Craig y Don - 7 pm for 7.30 pm
A collection for
the United Church Theological College at Rarongo, Papua New Guinea.
Cytûn Prayers
will be held on the SECOND SATURDAY of each month from 8 am to 9 am at Emmanuel
Christian Centre. Lloyd Street. During
the hour do come and go as you wish.
I feel that I
must at the outset of this letter and also of my period of presidency record
here a tribute to two men recently called home, who have left their mark in
various ways upon the people ofLlandudno and the work of the church
within the town.
I refer of course,
to Bruce Elder and Ron Colligan. Both men had one prime object in their hearts
namely "the advancement of Christ's Kingdom" and, whilst working in
different spheres, their whole hearted commitment to that object shone like a
beacon lighting the way not to themselves but to the Master. Their talents were
many and varied and yet in humility they' showed us how we should put into
practice the teachings of Jesus. Concern for theindividual was important and
evident not just in the family of the church but in their respective families
and this was seen in the way in which they kept a compatible tension between
both. They presented us all with an example which we will do well to follow,
that of service, care and love for God and fellow man.
I must also record
here my very sincere thanks for the willingness of Revd Keith Garner and the
members of St David's Methodist Church for allowing me to have my Induction
Service in their premises. Thank you, also, to the members of Zion for their
encouragement, help and support and to all who took part in the service by
reading, singing, playing the organ, preparing and serving refreshments,
washing up, or in an other way, or just be being present – a heartfelt Thank
you.
But now what
about "Pushing out into the deep". At the recent Cytun Council
meeting many items were raised for thought and prayer and action. There items
included consideration of our corporate prayer life, various forms of outreach,
and an opportunity to support the initiative of Youth for Christ in the area.
Some of these are radical and need careful consideration and a strong
dependency on God. Some ofus were rightly apprehensive and wanted reassurance
before setting out on a journey which could be hampered by pitfalls, and we
agreed to "TIllNK AND PRAY" between now and our next meeting in
October. Can I encourage you all to do that. Our success as Cytun (and indeed
as churches} depends on our inspiration from God detennined by constant and
fervent prayer and our willingness to respond in faith by action and
determination to succeed even if we are apprehensive of pitfalls on the way.
The disciples of old responded in this way, some suffered as a result of their
response but the world was turned upside down. Are we lesser mortals than they?
There are many circumstances and situations in our town which need turning
upside down. Let us therefore, think, pray and push out into the
deep together
with God as our inspiration and helper.
FRED
MATTERS FOR OUR PRAYERS:
Cytun Prayer Hour – The
form it should take and its content in order to be most helpful to us,
to
all the churches, the town and the Kingdom.
Our President, Revd Fred Halstead –
Who
has the difficult task of taking over the presidency
at
short notice and in very emotional circumstances.
Youth for Christ – The
new initiative being undertaken by Revd Tim Hall, Chaplain of St David's
College
and Gavin Mart - a long term project of bringing enthusiasm for Christ
into
the lives of young people.
Easter People in Llandudno – 2001
This
has become, over the years, an interdenominational gathering of joyful,
Christians
With an enthusiasm for Christ themselves which they wish to spread
abroad.
It has become too large for one venue, so will in thee parts of the country,
one
of which is Llandudno. This will be a great opportunity for us to help or to
join in.
On returning from
the CYTUN Council meeting in April I turned on Classic PM for a bit of
relaxation. I was delighted to hear that they were about to play Rossini's
delightful Overture to William Tell. Now this is a long overture - it runs for
about eleven minutes - and it begins very quietly and meditatively, almost. You
think you are never going to get to the interesting bit (the tune that
everybody knows). Then suddenly, after about seven minutes, there is a blast of
trumpets and there it is!
It struck me
forcibly that that is almost a parable of many of our concerns as churches.
You've gotta be patient! At the Council meeting that night we had heard several
important issues raised. Bi-lingualism, the care of the homeless and relations
with local government were just three of these. We did not solve them at the
meeting. ..
In other words,
there has to be faith, perseverance, proper homework, and - yes - prayer before
we can see results. But we
can get there in
the end. As far as the above three issues are concerned, we do really want to
find the right language balance
between Welsh and
English, we do really want to do something for the homeless in our town, we do
really want to co-operate with the Town and Borough Councils for the good of
all.
However, these
things take time and we need to beaver away in faith and take the long term
view. We will not find magic
solutions
overnight. "Be patient, therefore, brethren" wrote St James (chapter
5, verse 7) and you will be quick to complete his phrase - "unto the
coming of the Lord. " Well, without being cynical, you see what I mean. ..
So we carry on
and, as my year of office draws to a close, I want to say what a privilege it
has all been and what a job to have worked with so many dedicated Christian
people, regardless of denomination. We are getting there slowly but surely and
I know you will give the same co-operation to my successor. Please keep Bruce
in your prayers, as, at the time of writing, he was in hospital and facing an
operation.
May God bless us
and use us in His service now and always.
PHILIP
We have been
through quite a lot since I last wrote, haven't we? There has been all the
excitement of the Millennium activities, followed shortly afterwards by a very
satisfying Week ofPrayer for Christian Unity. I would like to review some of
these in my letter now.
After a lot of
anxiety - and, to be honest, much hidden prayer - the Millennium in Llandudno
was truly marked in a thoroughly Christian manner. The twin peaks of the
observance, I would say, were the Candles and the Theatre. But the bells, the
carol singing, the open churches, the services on New Year's Eve and New Year's
Day, not forgetting the display of photographs (and here we must thank Gwilym
Davies for his painstaking and skilled supervision of this) all added to the
"specialness"
of this historic moment.
Thanks to an army
of willing volunteers, thousands of candles were delivered to practically every
household in the town and here we owe an enormous debt of gratitude to Arline
and David Griffiths for their masterly organisation of the
assembling and
distribution of these candles. We had many pleasant encounters on doorsteps and
people were really able to witness the churches (plural) acting together to
show goodwill in the name of Christ to the community at large.
Then what can one
say about the night of January 2od at the North Wales Theatre? So many
complimentary remarks have been made about that memorable evening. Some 950 people
came together to share that moment and very sincere thanks go to everybody both
on stage and back stage who helped to make that celebration run so smooth1y. It
really was evidence of the churches and the civic authorities acting in concert
- and from what the Mayor has told me this was the exception rather than the
rule in the country as a whole, so Llandudno led the way.
Every one of our
member churches played their part in these great events and bless you all for it.
I felt very privileged to be the President of CYTUN at such a time and I
couldn't help thinking of the old Coverdale translation of Psalm 16 verse 7:
"the lot is
fallen unto me in a fair ground; yea I have a goodly heritage."
After a brief
(and necessary!) respite we then launched into the Week of Prayer for Christian
Unity. For the first time, I managed to attend all seven of the weekday
services and enjoyed the sense of purpose and solidarity that is so evident
among us. I
estimate that the attendance each day never fell below 35 and several .times
exceeded 50 (1 also reckon some 200/0 each day were men by the way!).
I genuinely felt
that the momentum generated by the Millennium was being maintained and I want
to thank Keith Jones for the gracious way in which, on the last day of the Week
of Prayer, he so ably summed up what we have achieved in CYTUN and are
continuing to achieve, by the grace of God.
Before I end, I
would like to record our joy at the way in which the Welsh chapels have now
joined together in weekly joint worship and also at the merger between Salem
Court and Zion Baptist. We send our brothers and sisters prayerful good
wishes as they
embark in faith on these respective ventures. So, as the year 2000 gets under
way, let's maintain that momentum and keep praying and working together.
PHILIP
(ALL AT 7:30 PM)
1st February at
Christ Church led by Women's World Day of Prayer
16th March at St
Goorge's Church led by Our Lady Star of the Sea
11th May at Gowerdale
- Christian Aid
Janet and I have
just come back from a holiday in Egypt. We were staying in a church guest house
in the very same block of flats in Cairo where we ourselves had lived for five
years in the mid-1980' s. Needless to say, it brought back many memories, most
of them happy ones. Although it was ten years since we had left, Janet actually
said she felt as if we had never been away. The recent past had remained very
real.
Nostalgia for
one's past is a natural human emotion, isn't it? Here in Wales it is a very
powerful emotion, especially for those who have been away from the Land of
their Fathers for a long time. We even have a beautiful word for it -
"hiraeth" - the significance ofwhich I am now beginning to appreciate
at long last.
However,
nostalgia needs to be kept within reasonable bounds, I feel. Too much harking
back to the past can be unhealthy and indeed can inhibit progress. It can be a
danger in Christian circles, eg, I still hear lovely people recalling the days
when you had to
get there early in order to get a seat at Evensong in Holy Trinity - but they
don't come now With the year 2000 almost upon us - and nothing can stop it
coming! - we surely need to face the future as well as recalling what has been
good in the past. Society is very different now from what it was like say,
when] was ordained nearly 40 years ago. It is infinitely harder now to present
the Gospel message in an effective way, or even to live it oneself with
conviction.
But that's no
excuse for burying our heads inthe sand (sorry I used that metaphor in my last
letter!)and thinking only ofpast glories, Golden Ages and the like. We musts
face the future with courage as Our Lord would undoubtedly have us do. I pray
that the thoroughly Christian observances which we have jointly planned for the
Millennium will both put new heart into us in our churches and chapels and at
the same time touch the hearts of many other people beyond and outside those
hallowed walls of ours.
If you would like
a text for the new Millennium let me offer you one of my favourites from the
King James Version. It's Philippians 3 verse 14 and it truly is
forward-looking:
"I press
toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus"
May God bless our
worship and witness in these coming days.
PHlLIP COUSINS
SUNDAY JANUARY 16th 3.30 pm St Paul's Revd K Garner (speaker)
TUES JANUARY 18th 10.30
am English Presbyterian
WED JANUARY 19th 10.30
am Our Lady Star of the Sea
THURS JANUARY 20th 10.30
am St David's Holy
Communion
FRI JANUARY 21th 10.30
am Tabernacle
SAT JANUARY 22nd 10.30
am Emmanuel
SUNDAY JANUARY
23rd 6.00 pm Holy
Trinity The President
MON JANUARY 24th 10.30 am Zion Baptist
TUES JANUARY 25th Christ Church
Since my Induction
I have had occasion to travel to London on no less than three separate
occasions. Each time I have
been forcibly
reminded of the slogan I gave you in my Induction address. MIND THE GAP seemed
to be engraved on every other Tube station platform - so much so that it's now
engraved on my heart. Incidentally. on one of these recent trips I
had the privilege
of meeting Canon Ivor Smith-Cameron, the man who famously first used those
words in his Milton Keynes
sermon a year or
so ago. I thanked him for the idea and he seemed genuinely pleased that
somebody else had developed
the theme
further. He was very gracious about it.
Well. writing as
I do with just 157 days to go to the so-called Millennium. I am more than ever
conscious of the "gap" we
Christians have
to "mind" between our beliefs and the world outside the Church. Let's
not bury our heads in the ample
sands that
surround our lovely town, but rather - I am addicted to mixed meaphors - seek
to straddle that gap. like the great
bridges that
Telford and Stephenson threw across the Menai Strait. Keep in touch with that
often alien. and sometimes
hostile world.
but not -and here comes another mixed metaphor - letting ourselves get sucked
into it ...
Here, I believe
our Millennium candle project offers an immense opportunity to do something
practical about the Gap.
Keith Garner and
I are really impressed with the response that the vast majority of our member
congregations have shown to this project. The money has come in and the candles
have arrived - it's all systems go. As Christian neighbours we are simply going
to go to the households in our community with this gift and greeting from their
local Churches to mark this significant turning-point in world history. It's a
goodwill gesture that may bear, who knows what good fruit in the future. I do
commend also
those other congregations in our fellowship who have conscientiously decided to
mark the occasion in other
ways, eg by the
distribution of Gospels, and we wish them well. We are all in this together.
Because we are
all in this together, let us remember one another in prayer as the weeks go by
and (in the words of the writer to the Hebrews) "not forsaking the
assembling of ourselves together. "
May the Lord
bless you in all that you do in His Name.
PHILIP COUSINS
at 7:30 pm
16 SEPTEMBER HOLY TRINITY led by Christchurch
21 OCTOBER ST JOHN'S METHODIST led by Llanrhos Parish
18 NOVEMBER OUR LADY STAR OF THE SEA led by St John's
WEDNESDAY 10 NOVEMBER 1999
7 pm for 7.30 pm
at the
BODLONDEB CASTLE HOTEL, CHURCH WALKS
Speaker - BISHOP KENNETH CRAGG
of OXFORD
who worked in Kenya
with our President
and is a
World Authority on Islam
WEDNESDAY 1 DECEMBER 1999
7 pm for 7.30 pm
BUFFET MEAL AND ENTERTAINMENT
at the
NEWLY REFURBISHED HOLY TRINITY HALL
Lionel Philips will cater for this event again
INCLUSIVE TICKETS £9
My year as Llandudno
Cytun's President is drawing to a close, and I would therefore thank all the
Churches for having me as their President. I would also thank the officials and
secretaries of various Cytun agencies for their work which has ensured the
continuation of the ecumenical testimony. When I came to Llandudno in 1972 it
was the time of 'The Llandudno