What's Easter About?

Easter is the spring-time holiday associated with chocolate eggs and bunny rabbits. For Christians it is also the anniversary and celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.
Easter gets it's name from the Saxon goddess of spring called "Eostre". This goddess had a hare's head, or a hare companion, which makes sense when you remember that pagan worship centred on nature and fertility, and hares and rabbits breed like....well, rabbits!


This is also the origin of the Easter Bunny, and strangely, Easter Eggs (what? no chickens?!) - all life was thought to have originally come from an egg, and eggs were another favoured symbol of fertility. The "spirit" Easter Bunny/Hare was supposed to lay its eggs in the grass, and people would go searching for them - the fore-runner of modern day Easter egg hunts.



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

Our Safeguarding Policy

Standard 6 - Organisations should ensure that workers know how to talk with, listen and relate to children with whom they come in contact.
Standard 7 - Workers must develop awareness of the issues surrounding abuse, be able to recognise possible signs and symptoms and respond appropriately.
Standard 8 - Organisations should ensure pastoral care and support is available to all those affected by abuse.
Standard 9 - Organisations must supervise and manage those who pose a risk to children.
Standard 10 - Organisations working in specialised areas, culturally diverse settings or through partner organisations or agencies must ensure appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures are in place.

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

SAFEGUARDING POLICY

The Churches Child Protection Advisory Service, which Richmond Park Church is a member of, has Ten Standards that all of its members must adhere to:

Standard 1 - Organisations should adopt a formal, working safeguarding policy.
Standard 2 - Organisations must develop safeguarding awareness and provide training.
Standard 3 - Organisations should adopt a formal recruitment policy for both paid and voluntary workers.
Standard 4 - Workers, paid and voluntary, should be appropriately managed, supervised and supported.
Standard 5 - Organisations must ensure they adopt safe working practice.

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

January greeting

I personally must have read verse 12 hundreds of times over the years but even as I type I have been once again struck by those words “take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”
Have you got it? You and I have been “taken hold of” by Jesus Christ!! Amazing truth for the “born again” believer…. Wow and double Wow!!

One personal reflection about “pressing on”. Way back in my youth when running in Cross Country races and I might add, occasionally since, when running to catch the bus!!! I developed stitch and quite often wanted to stop and give up but discovered that the best course of action was, in the words of a 70’s pop song, to “keep on running” and thus press on towards the winning post or bus stop!

So, if during 2012 you or I are tempted to give up, let’s make sure we “press on” in the clear understanding that the Lord is with us.

Have a good year………

Dave

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

New Year's Message from Dave

The first month of a new year always presents an opportunity to take stock and to seek to align ourselves to the purposes of God both individually and corporately, so consequently as we search our hearts there are doubtless a number of things that the Holy Spirit prompts us with……the major question is, and always will be,
are we open to allowing the Lord to lead and direct us in the year ahead?

My prayer would be, that the answer to that question is a resounding “Yes!!” and the Bible text that comes to mind is Philippians 3 verse 12 “ Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” ( I suggest you continue reading verses 13 and 14 as well.)

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

Christmas: How It All Started, part 6

The 25th of December was announced as the official date for Christmas by Julius 1st who was pope from 337 to 352AD. It was a blatant attempt to replace various forms of winter pagan worship with something Christian-centred and was observed by the "Western" churches in Italy, France, Spain and Britain. However, the "Eastern" churches in Greece, Turkey, Israel and Egypt were being run from Constantinople (modern day Istanbul), not Rome, and chose their own date -the 6th of January- to be Christmas Day. By the beginning of the 5th century East and West had coordinated their practise, holding the 25th of December as the date of the birth of Christ and the 6th of January as the anniversary of the visit of the wise men, or Magi (also known as "Epiphany", the revealing of Jesus to the non-Jews). A difference arose again in the 18th century when the West adopted the Gregorian calendar, which led to an adjustment of 12 days, while the East retained the old calendar.

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

Christmas: How It All Started, part 5

So why the 25th of December?

Few, if any, early Christian celebrated the birthday of Jesus. There was no precedent for celebrating birthdays in Judaism or Christianity. None of the birth dates of any of the important figures in the Bible are known -not Adam, or Soloman, or Moses. Only two birthdays are mentioned in the Bible, those of Pharoah (Genesis 40:16-22) and King Herod (Matthew 14:6-10 and Mark 6:21-27) and celebrating birthdays was considered to have pagan overtones. Those who did commemorate his birth (not knowing when it actually was) chose to do so in spring as it is the time associated with new life. Though the evidence is very sketchy, for some reason tradition holds that Christ's birthday has been celebrated since 98AD and in 137AD the Pope (possibly Pope Hyginus) ordered that Christ's birthday should be celebrated as a solemn feast. Solemn, as in, reverent and respectful, not just an excuse for a party.

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