Sorted Magazine

Category: Faith Matters

  • Gemma Hunt: “Christmas is about Jesus, the light in the darkness.”

    Gemma Hunt: “Christmas is about Jesus, the light in the darkness.”

    The Cheeky Pandas has released a pack of free resources, including a special Christmas episode, The Best Present Ever. Featuring CBeebies’ star, Gemma Hunt, there’s a special message for kids; Christmas is really about a person called Jesus, who is the best present of all.

    In The Best Present Ever Christmas preparations are falling apart for the Cheeky Pandas. Milo is sad at the lack of snow, Rory and Benji are fighting over which Christmas lights to use, and CJ’s cooking is less than perfect (pies in the kettle and turkey in the toaster!). Lulu just wants everyone to be happy. Every panda has a different idea about how Christmas should be. When the pandas get a special gift from the Pandaroo Delivery Service, will it remind them who Christmas is really about?

    The Christmas episode and song are both available on YouTube and The Cheeky Pandas website. The downloadable activity pack contains questions, prayer points, craft activity and a super-easy recipe (no ovens or mixers required). A free assembly plan will also be available for use in schools and a new Cheeky Pandas book The Best Present Ever accompanies the Christmas episode.

    CBeebies star Gemma Hunt said: “It’s an absolute joy to be a part of The Cheeky Pandas family. The fun, free Christmas resources that they are providing for children this year to remind them of the life-changing message of Jesus, the greatest gift this world has ever seen, is great! In the aftermath of the pandemic, as we face a cost-of-living crisis and a world that often feels in turmoil, children and families are more in need than ever of hope that can’t be taken away from them. Through this year’s Cheeky Pandas Christmas episode, song and bumper pack of crafts, recipes and activities, they have a timely reminder that Christmas is about Jesus, the light in the darkness.” 

    Access The Cheeky Pandas Christmas episode and song here

  • News: Survivors of modern slavery safe, supported and seen

    News: Survivors of modern slavery safe, supported and seen

    What bird do you associate with this time of year? For most people, the answer is the robin. But for the team at Hope for Justice, at Christmas especially, they think of the bird in their logo, the swallow. Tim Nelson, Chief Executive at Hope for Justice explained: “Over winter, swallows travel an incredible 6,000 miles from the UK to South Africa and Namibia. It takes them six weeks, and as well as coping with extreme weather conditions, they run the risk of starvation and exhaustion. But, despite their long migration, swallows nearly always come back to the same colony, and almost half have been found to return to the exact same nest.”

    This process has close parallels to the work at Hope for Justice. As well as rescuing people out of exploitative situations, they work to safely reunite survivors of modern slavery with their families. Many of the survivors they work with have been trafficked across continents. Even more feel worlds away from the person they once were and the life they once had.

    Tim said: “No matter where someone is on their journey, we walk alongside them so they feel safe, supported, seen. And our greatest joy of all comes when we step back, and watch them fly. This Christmas, you can help a survivor feel like themselves again. You can help a survivor return home. And you can be the reason they can soar to their full potential.”

    Thanks to a generous match-donor, whatever you can give to Hope for Justice this year will be doubled, meaning you can have twice the impact. Please donate here.

    Main photo credit: Julian at Unsplash

  • News: Churches campaign for women’s safety

    News: Churches campaign for women’s safety

    Christian campaigners are highlighting the realities of violence against women during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. Red chairs are being placed in churches, businesses, train stations and schools to raise awareness that, globally, a woman or girl dies at the hands of an intimate partner or family member every 11 minutes.

    The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an annual campaign that begins on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs through to International Human Rights Day on 10 December.

    The Red Chair Project began in French churches, but now through the Christian Network to End Domestic Abuse, is being replicated throughout the world by Christian organisations who want to galvanise the church to speak up and do something about violence against women and girls.

    The Red Chair Project involves reserving an empty chair in a public place with a sign in red highlighting facts about domestic violence. The empty chair also serves as a visual symbol of the lives lost to gender-based violence. The colour red reminds us all of the violence faced by millions of women in war zones, on city streets, and also in their own homes. The sign is available in French, English, Spanish, Hindi, Romanian, Hungarian, and more.

    Bekah Legg, CEO of Christian charity Restored says; “At Restored, we speak up about violence against women 365 days a year, but this is a great opportunity for everyone to do something simple. Violence against women is such a pervasive problem, that most people don’t know where to start, but this project makes it easy to make a difference and start to change a culture which normalises violence against women.”

    Restored will be sharing pictures of Red Chairs around the country on their social media over the 16 Days of Activism. If you would like to get involved and set up your own Red Chair in your community, find out more and download the resources at www.restored-uk.org/redchair.

  • Sleeping on the streets

    Sleeping on the streets

    London City Mission (LCM) is challenging Christians across the UK to spend a night on the streets in its Big Winter Sleepout on November 19th.

    Anni Uddin, Field Director for homeless and marginalised at London City Mission, said: “The reality of homelessness in this country is heartbreaking and it’s likely to be significantly worse this winter.”

    “The Big Winter Sleepout is a powerful way to step into the life of those on our streets, experience what they face, and hopefully stir our hearts to engage with them in our daily lives. This is beyond just donating money; it is giving time and effort to change your perceptions about homelessness as you help make a change in the lives of people who are homeless.”

    This winter, it’s estimated that 1.2 million households in the UK are at the risk of becoming homeless. After a decrease in homelessness from 2021 to the summer of 2022, this forecast would mean the undoing of the efforts of so many who have been supported out of homelessness.

    Funds raised from the Sleepout will go towards the charity’s Webber Street day centre in Waterloo. Webber Street is a place where those struggling with homelessness can go to during the day and receive hot breakfasts, clean clothes, help with finding accommodation, career advice and a chance to hear the good news of Jesus shared to them lovingly. Last year, Webber Street provided more than 10,000 breakfasts, 2,000 showers and hundreds of clothes and toiletries. The centre is also home to the Corner House, a short-term accommodation home, where mid-term housing is provided for four men at a time.

    Sign-up for the Sleepout here: lcm.org.uk/sleepout. Participants can complete the sleepout at the Webber Street day centre or it can done in a back garden, balcony or doorstep.

  • The church that rocks

    People who attend Methodist churches aren’t usually associated with living life on the wild side. But that all changed during the height of the Covid pandemic when one minister used heavy metal music to reach out to his online congregation.

    Such was the impact, the story has now become the subject of a three-part video series.

    Available on social media platforms Facebook and YouTube during the lockdown, the service was created by Methodist minister, James Morley. Dubbed Metal Compline, it consisted of liturgy and music – heavy rock style!

    A NORMAL SUNDAY: a typical Methodist congregation gathers for its weekly service.

    The electronic evening service was made available to his own flock, and other people who needed to find peace and reassurance. One key supporter was Barrie Morley, a resident of the Methodist Ministers’ Housing Society (MMHS), which provides housing for retiring Methodist church staff. Barrie, who is also an ordained minister, also happens to be James’s father.

    “During the first big lockdown, I thought, ‘What would a heavy metal compline look like?’” said James, who looks after three churches in Derbyshire.

    James shares the story of his innovative style of church service – with Barrie also contributing – in the latest edition of Roof ‘n’ Roots, which is distributed to MMHS residents across the UK. Their interview has also been made into a video series.

    FATHER AND SON: James and Barrie discuss spiritual matters – and heavy metal.

    “It did draw folk,” said Barrie, “particularly when there was no physical ‘being together’. It was very important.”

    The first part of the video series Dad, Lad And Distorted Guitars can now be viewed on the MMHS website. Click here to gain access.

    The Methodist Ministers’ Housing Society is a national charity providing rented houses and flats at special rates for retiring Methodist presbyters and deacons of limited means, who meet established criteria. It also supplies housing for their widowed partners, and for ministers retiring on health grounds.

  • A feather in their CAP

    A feather in their CAP

    According to the Bank of England, the average Briton is sinking under a pile of debt – estimated to be more than £30,000 – racked up while staying afloat during the pandemic and paying for events like Christmas.

    The Bank’s latest research also shows less than 10% of UK households are debt-free. This is a staggering statistic, for slowly but surely, it would seem most of us are heading for a day of financial reckoning sometime in the not-to-distant future.

    Yet there are organisations out there who want to help. No strings attached. No hidden agendas, only a desire to offer support and relieve suffering.

    WEIGHED DOWN: couples aged over 55 are among the most indebted people in the UK.

    Christians Against Poverty (CAP) is one such organisation.

    The charity, founded in Bradford more than 20 years ago and with a very visible link to the Christian faith, has supported more than 20,000 people through their debt problems since its formation. And it is now stepping up its efforts to reach even more people in need throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

    CAP clients often say they feel like they are a failure, therefore kept their debt problems hidden for years, forever placing a ‘sticking plaster’ over them. Their solution was to take out yet another loan or go without meals in order to pay the rent or buy new shoes for the kids. 

    Its most recent client survey supports this assertion, revealing most people live with the escalating problem for two years before going to CAP for help.

    THE NEVER, NEVER: credit card spending just exaggerates the scale of someone’s debt problems.

    “Feelings of despair, shame, guilt, hopelessness all adds to the challenge,” commented a spokesperson. “In a strange sort of way, living with unmanageable debt can become the norm, meaning that many cannot imagine living without the weight of missed payments, spiralling costs, demanding creditors, going without meals, etc.

    “People fall into debt for all sorts of reasons – unemployment, illness, relationship breakdown to name but a few. [This] could happen to any of us, but not all of us have the ‘margin’ or ‘resilience’ in our lives to weather the storm.”

    CAP’s non-judgemental support allows its clients to open up and share their stories – and then get practical help to gradually resolve things.

    MEETING A NEED: there are 300 Christians Against Poverty debts centres around the UK.

    There are many debt counselling charities and organisations offering their services to potential ‘customers’. But CAP’s service is one wholeheartedly recommended by Sorted – because it is free of charge and accepts everyone who asks for help.

    It is professionally regulated and has almost 300 local debt centres across the UK, all of them located within church environments. But if a client doesn’t want to go into a church building, that is also okay. In these situations, CAP counsellors happily visit people in their own homes, where they often feel more relaxed and secure.