Monday, 30 November 2009

What does the ADVENT WREATH represent?

The circle of the wreath reminds Chrisitans of God, His eternity and endless mercy, which has no beginning or end. The green of the wreath speaks of the hope that Chrisitans have in God, the hope of newness, of renewal, of eternal life. Candles symbolise the light of God coming into the world through the birth of His son, Jesus. The three purple candles in the Advent wreath symbolise hope, peace, and love.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Sunday, 29 November 2009

Where do our Christmas traditions come from?

Why do we have ADVENT CALENDARS?

They were designed to help children focus on the coming of Jesus by having a "window" to open each day from December 1st to December 24th with a picture behind it of something related to the nativity. "Jesse Trees" were used in this way too - see Christmas Decorations and Christmas Tress. But modern day Advent Calendars are often a countdown to Christmas devoid of anything to do with Jesus, and instead have pictures of cartoon charaters and contain chocolates.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Saturday, 28 November 2009

He also plays harmony on his trombone in church worship. Outside of church life, Mike runs a special needs hostel. Mike lost his first wife to pancreatic cancer in 2006, but is now married again, the Lord having brought him a lovely Christian wife.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Friday, 27 November 2009

Deacon Mike Bryan became a Christian as a university student in 1965, giving his life to Jesus at a Billy Graham Preparation rally in Sheffield, and was baptised in the Spirit at a Full Gospel Business Men's dinner here in Bournemouth in 1981. Mike became a founder member of the house group that grew into Richmond Park Church, and is now a Deacon and Chairman of the Trustees.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Thursday, 26 November 2009

His vision and passion is for people to know Jesus and his prayer is simply to know and do God's will in his life. He also leads the Boscombe East Care Group with his wife, Jan, and co-ordinates, and often preaches at, the family services.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Wednesday, 25 November 2009

Deacon Geoff Pollard became a Christian in 1983 after arriving back from Australia. He went to church to meet people as he did not know anyone, and there met Jesus! He has been a part of Richmond Park Church since November 1986.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Tuesday, 24 November 2009

Roger and his wife Marilyn are also regular helpers at the International Student Meal Evenings. They have 3 children and 9 grandchildren. Read Roger's Story of how he became a Christian.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Monday, 23 November 2009

Elder Roger Tancock joined Richmond Park Church in October 2005 after retiring from missionary work in London. Roger regularly preaches at our Morning Service, and is an enthusiastic supporter of making use of "modern technology", promoting the benefits of having a church website and upgrading from OHP to Power Point projector for our song lyrics, for instance.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Sunday, 22 November 2009

Dave's passion is to see people becoming Christians and then going on to follow Christ in a daily life which glorifies God. He is very ably supported by his wife Hae Sook who is from South Korea and has four daughters and three grand-daughters. Dave enjoys most sports, gardening and generally relaxing yet his great desire is to "finish the race well" and to see other Christians do the same.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Saturday, 21 November 2009

Pastor Dave Holland has been on the road with Christ since 1967 having become a Christian through the ministry of Lansdowne Baptist Church. Since then he has been involved in a number of roles: Youth Ministry leadership, Deacon, and latterly Elder and Pastor. Richmond Park Church was founded in his home in 1981 and eventually after a number of stages moved to the present location in Boscombe.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Friday, 20 November 2009

Leadership Who's Who

Our leadership team is made up of our Pastor, David Holland, Elder Roger Tancock, and Deacons Geoff Pollard and Mike Bryan.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Thursday, 19 November 2009

You can email us at rpcbournemouth@gmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Thank you!

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Wednesday, 18 November 2009

Also, if you are in contact with anyone who was previously at Richmond Park Church who may have something to share, please pass this message on to them.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Tuesday, 17 November 2009

On Saturday 27th March 2010 we are going to be celebrating David's time as our pastor and would love to hear from people who have been blessed by David's ministry and can share testimonies and tales for us to recount.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Monday, 16 November 2009

The date for the Induction Service in the Church for Washington is Saturday 24th October at 3pm, and will be followed by light refreshments.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Sunday, 15 November 2009

Changes from September 2009

Our current Pastor, David Holland, is going to step-down from his post in to semi-retirement and will be replaced by Washington Gwenzi (formerly the pastor of Church for All Nations). Washington's first official Sunday with Richmond Park Church will be on the 6th September 2009, and then David will be fully handing over the reigns in March 2010.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Saturday, 14 November 2009

[A full list of sources used to compile this article can be found under Links - Acknowledgements for Halloween information]

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Friday, 13 November 2009

What all this means is that Richmond Park Church has never regarded Halloween, even in the guise of All Hallows Even and All Saints Day, to be a real Christian festival. However, as Halloween is a popular excuse for many to party, and we ourselves enjoy a good party, we see it as a great time to give children and families an opportunity to celebrate Jesus the light of the world rather than celebrate the darkness that the popularist Halloween represents.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Thursday, 12 November 2009

And another more generous interpretation of the traditional church's actions is that they were trying to proclaim the supremacy of the gospel over the superstitions of ghosts, but even if this is true, their attempts to "Christianise" Halloween failed because All Hallows Day and All Hallows Even continued the theme of focusing on the dead (not the risen Jesus) and it was easy for people who didn't want to give up the perceived mystery and excitement of Samhain to merge the old and the new, which the church encouraged by keeping the dressig up and parades.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

However, some Christians use the Biblical definition of all Christians being saints, and then choose to celebrate All Saints Day to remember the example and strengths of past Christians and thank the Lord for the work done through them.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Tuesday, 10 November 2009

We believe in the Biblical definition of a "saint", that all Christians are saints, not because of anything great we've done, but because we have Jesus living in us. We don't believe that the church has the authority to declare some people saints, and therefore we don't celebrate "saints days".

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Monday, 9 November 2009

Considering All Hallows Even and Day, although Anglican and Catholic churches still follow the "church calendar" that was developed in the six hundred years following the death and resurrection of Jesus, many non-denominational churches, such as Richmond Park Church, don't follow all the old church traditions, preferring to try and be more like the church as described in the New Testament.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Sunday, 8 November 2009

They point out we will not be bolstering the kingdom of Satan by joining in, and we have nothing to be afraid of with Jesus on our side!

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Saturday, 7 November 2009

However, other Christians argue that Halloween is a rare time of year when you actually get to meet your neighbours -taking the kids trick or treating, or opening your door to neighbour's children- and that Christians should use it as a "meet and greet" opportunity instead of remaining aloof from this community activity.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Friday, 6 November 2009

It can be very intimidating, and is definitely not something Jesus would do! It's the same with dressing up as ghosts and witches, and carving pumpkins -it was part of Samhain and it's focusing on fear and can be intimidating.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Thursday, 5 November 2009

You can see from the history where the practise of "trick or treating" comes from -leave out a treat or risk having a trick played on you by those from the other world- but we don't think it is nice to threaten people with pranks unless they hand over sweets.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Wednesday, 4 November 2009

There is NOTHING in Halloween of the peace and love of God, or the saving power of Jesus, or the fact that Jesus has conquered death and sin. The Bible says "fear not" 366 times! God doesn't want us to be scared or afraid.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Tuesday, 3 November 2009

What do Christians today think of Halloween?

Hmmm...there are mixed views!

Most non-Christians and some Christians view Halloween as "a harmless bit of fun". However, Halloween's pagan Celtic origins revolve round placating, and trying to hide from, the roaming dead and evil spirits - in other words, Halloween is about FEAR, over-emphasising evil and telling people they have to save themselves by dressing up in disguise and offering gifts.

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Monday, 2 November 2009

Because of it's Celtic history it is only popular in the UK, and the USA and Canada, taken there by the Irish who emigrated to America in their tens of thousands after the 1845 potato famine.

So now you know!

What do Christians today think about Halloween?

[A full list of sources used to compile this article can be found under Links - Acknowledgements for Halloween information]

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.

Sunday, 1 November 2009

The date was chosen on purpose to rival Samhain and involved similar traditions, including dressing up as a saint, an angel or a devil and joining a parade, with the aim of weaning people off of the pagan festival. By the 9th century, Samhain traditions were still going strong, so the church tried to take-over the evening of the 31st of October itself by making it another feast day, "All Hallows Even" (evening) and this and Samhain (remember, it's pronounced something like "sow-een") merged to become "Halloween".

richmondparkchurch.org.uk an evangelical pentecostal church in Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset, UK.