CREDO 1

Page 2 ………. May Diary; Thought for the Month;

Page 3 ………. Our Vicar Trystan Writes

Page 4 ………. Vestry Meeting; Obit; Church Family

Page 5 ………. Messy Church; China; Ukraine; Who’s Who

Page 6 ………. God in the Arts: Syria Crisis

Page 7 ………. ‘The Church….; Pentecost

Page 8………. Coming Events

Page 9………. Norma’s Ghana Project

Page 10……… Our Page

Page 11……… Crossword; History of Pentyrch

Page 12………. Notice Board

60p

The Parish Magazine of Christ Church, Roath Park Lake Road North, CARDIFF CF 23 5QN

Annual Subscriptions for 2015

£6.00 to Molly Hughes in envelope marked “Credo”

With your full name & address on the back of the envelope

Please note that articles for the June 2015 edition of Credo

NO LATER than 17th May 2015

Handwritten or on a named memory stick in RTF with a printed copy please, or email (contact Editor)

Volume 22 Issue 4

Christian Aid Week 10th - 16th May 2015

This year's campaign focuses around people like Loko,

praying as she walks to collect wood and water.

Please be the answer to Loko's prayers and help collect in the

envelope collection or attend a local Christian Aid event.

Sat. 9th May - PLANT SALE at Llanishen Baptist Church

Tuesday 12th May - COFFEE MORNING at St Faith's

A list of streets is on the notice board, if you wish to do a partic-

ular street(s) please print your name next to it/them and I will ar-

range for you to have envelopes etc. otherwise envelopes will be

available on Sunday 10th for collection from church porch.

Judith Hill

Loko’s story Loko dreads collecting firewood, but has no choice. To earn

enough money to feed her children one small meal a day, she

needs wood to sell. In the Borena community, girls are expected

to fetch and carry wood and water to provide for their family.

Denied a good education and the respect of their community,

women are trapped in a life of poverty.

The price of being a woman ‘I pray to God as I walk, asking him to change my life and lead

us out of this.’ With your help, we can provide cows to vulnera-

ble women in Ethiopia – just £150 is enough to buy a cow and a

promising future for someone like Loko.

How a cow changes everything Two years ago, Adi was the poorest of the poor. Then Christian

Aid provided a cow which gave her family nutritious milk. Adi

churned butter and made money. It gave her a position in the

community where her opinion is valued. Her dreams have turned

into plans and she now has enough money to build a small shop.

Add people like Loko and Adi to your prayers

and help this Christian Aid Week

May 2015

Sunday 24th May PENTECOST

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10.00 am Parish Eucharist & Funky Church

6.00 pm Evening Worship

CREDO 2

MAY DIARY

Sunday 3rd EASTER 5

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10. 00 am FAMILY Communion Service

6.00 pm Evening Worship

Tuesday 5th 10.00 am - 12.00 noon Church open for PRAYER

Sunday10th EASTER 6 - ROGATION SUNDAY

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10.00 am Parish Eucharist & Funky Church

6.00 pm United Service (Churches Together) for

Christian Aid Week at St Isan Church

No Evening Worship at Christ Church

Thursday 14th ASCENSION DAY

9.30 am Eucharist . (tea & coffee to follow) Sunday 17th EASTER 7

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10.00am Parish Eucharist &Funky Church

6.00 pm Evening Worship

Thursday 21st 9.30 am Holy Eucharist (tea & coffee to follow)

Sunday 24th PENTECOST

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10. 00 am Parish Eucharist & Funky Church

6.00 pm Evening Worship

Sunday 31st TRINITY

8.00 am Holy Eucharist

10. 00 am Parish Eucharist & Funky Church

6.00 pm Evening Worship

Prayers for Healing 10.00 am

every Wednesday in Parish Office

Other services & activities as announced

in the newsletter

Thought

for the Month

;Prayer at Election Time

Heavenly Father,

We need your wisdom at this

Election time. There are so many

issues, so many voices clamouring

for attention, clamouring for votes,

clamouring for power.

Thank you that you give your

people a different sort of power,

the power of your Holy Spirit, who

leads into all truth.

Help us Lord to receive your Spirit,

to listen to him, so that we make

good decisions on Election Day -

and every day of our lives.

Thank you for the wonderful gift

of your Spirit,

In Jesus name.

Amen. By Daphne Kitching

Join in the

VE Day 70th Celebrations!

Following the General Election on

7th May, there will be a national

three-day commemoration for the

70th anniversary of the end of the

Second World War in Europe. On

Saturday 9th May, communities are

encouraged to organise street par-

ties and at 11am churches and ca-

thedrals are being asked to ring

their bells, as they did in 1945.

Beacons will be lit from coast to

coast, and on Sunday, 10th May, a

Service of Thanksgiving will be

held at Westminster Abbey, fol-

lowed by a parade of Armed Forces

personnel and veterans from the

war. Parish Pump

See page 8 for St John’s Cardiff

Buildings Renewal Fund Update: the latest tally of contr ibutions (61 so far)

is £11,896 (including £2,021 in collections at 5 events) plus the tax refunds so

far received on Gift Aided donations £1,082, making a total of £12,978.

Thank you to those who have recently added to this fund. Further donations

or enquiries are welcomed in favour of Christ Church, Roath Park to Gerald

Bradnum or Treasurer, John Hodgson.

Various events have so far raised £3,054 incl. garden produce, books &

'Cross in my Pocket's £212.

Up to 23rd April:- Grand Total Received: £16,244

minus Expended -

(architect: plan, show, pre-Application Council: £7,490 & existing hall roof

re-covered 03/15: £3,700): £11,190

Fund Balance in hand £5,054

CREDO 3

Dear friends

It has been an upsetting and tragic

month for our community here at

Christ Church, with the passing of

three much-loved members of our con-

gregation – Louise Lucas, Mary Smart,

and Joyce Rice. Easter was particularly

difficult, coming only a few days after

Louise’s accident. We were all grief-

stricken at our Easter service, and

many of us wondered whether Christ

Church’s Easter “celebration” should

be postponed for this year. Easter,

though, was able to teach us two im-

portant things about what we were go-

ing through.

First, Easter reminded us that God

knows what it’s like to suffer, and

therefore stands with us when we

suffer.

The holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel

tells a harrowing tale of a young Jew-

ish boy executed by the Nazis. ‘Where

is God now?’ asked one onlooker.

Wiesel replied, ‘He’s hanging there on

the gallows’, implying that God is

dead. The theologian Jurgen Molt-

mann, though, claims that Wiesel had

touched upon a more fundamental truth

– that God is present in our suffering,

that the crucified Christ stands with all

of us when we suffer. God is certainly

no distant onlooker in times of distress

and pain. He has already experienced

real suffering first-hand. Not only did

he suffer through his Son on the cross,

but he also suffered because he lost his

only son in this terrible way. At the

point of his death, the film The Passion

of Christ follows a raindrop falling

from on high, all the way down onto

the cross. It is as if God is crying tears

from heaven for the loss of his son.

God knows what it’s like to lose a

child, and so he stands alongside us

when we lose someone we love.

Each one of us, of course, has suffered

in different, terrible ways – losing

someone we love, illness, disability,

broken relationship, losing a job. Each

of us bear the marks of everything we

have done or touched or known or suf-

fered. The last few weeks have brought

that home to us, as we stand along-

side the Lucas, Payne, Smart, and

Rice families in their grief.

But Holy Week and Easter teach us

to trust that, whatever we’re going

through, God is with us – He knows

what it’s like to suffer, so He stands

by our side through our pain and

miser

The second thing that Easter

teaches us, though, is about resur-

rection and transformation; it

teaches us about changing despair

to hope.

In the context of this life, the resur-

rection reassures us that God re-

deems even the most dreadful situa-

tions. I remember one March I

looked out of my window on a dark

afternoon and my whole lawn was

covered with snow. It then rained

overnight, and when I looked out the

window on the next day the lawn

was covered with crocuses. Out of

the cold and dark winter, Spring

burst forth. From a stormy, cold be-

ginning, life bursts forth. Easter Sun-

day holds on to the fact that morning

will break through, no matter how

long, and no matter how dark, is the

night. Many of us will, in time, be

liberated from our present darkness,

whatever we are going through per-

sonally, and find ourselves trans-

formed in the light of the new day.

‘The cross we bear precedes the

crown we wear’, claimed Martin Lu-

ther King.

But even when it seems to us that

there really is no light at the end of

our tunnel in this life, the resurrec-

tion still guarantees us hope in the

next life. So, for those who were

special to us who we have lost, East-

er Sunday guarantees the sure and

certain hope of eternal life. No mat-

ter what their theology, Christian

contemplative thinkers all agree on

one thing – that, in the end, all will

be well. Although we experience

grief, pain, and suffering, in the con-

text of eternity, all is well. In Oscar

Wilde’s poem ‘The Doer of Good’,

Jesus sees a man crying at the road-

Suffering and Hope side and recognises him as someone

who, a few days earlier, he had

raised from the dead. He naturally

asks him why he is crying. He an-

swers with these words: ‘I was dead

once, and you raised me from the

dead; what else should I do but

weep?’

As Christians, we must hold on to the

sure and certain hope that the awful-

ness of death is not the end, and that

the next life is not only real, but

means we are reunited with God in

an state of total peace and love.

Yes, we live in a beautiful and uplift-

ing world, and we should always val-

ue the wonderful gift of life and

grieve for those we love who lose it,

but that shouldn’t blind us from the

wonder of the next life. So, when we

are grieving inside, we do cry, but

we also rejoice – we rejoice with

gratitude for what our loved ones

brought to our lives and we rejoice

because we know they are now being

held in the arms of our loving Father

God.

And so, on Easter Sunday, we still

sang hymns of joy – Thine be the

Glory and Sing of the Lord’s Good-

ness – as they express a wonderful

truth that runs counter to what

many of us were feeling.

After all, because of Easter Sunday,

because of the resurrection, we can

all look forward to the time when, to

use the words of St John, ‘God will

wipe every tear from our eyes, and

there will be no more death or

mourning or crying or pain, for the

old order of things will have passed

away.

And he who is seated on the throne

will say, “I am making everything

new!”’

Yours in Christ,

Trystan

CREDO 4

Around the Church Family

Our Good Wishes & Prayers to:

Hilary Morgan, wife of Bishop Barry

Members known to us from our congre-

gation who are in poor health or unable to

attend Church

Our Sympathies and Prayers to:

Gavin Lucas,

whose wife Louise

was killed so trag-

ically in Swansea

and to her chil-

dren, Grant, Olivia

and Lloyd

Mary and Geoff Payne, her parents,

Robert, her brother and his wife Karen

and their children, Thomas and Siwan

the family of Mary Smart who died on

10th April - see opposite Obituary

Helen, Andrew and David Rice, whose

mother Joyce, our Reader at Christ Church,

died peacefully on 16th April

Home Communions take place once a month, usu-

ally on the first Tuesday - if

you know anyone who would

like to receive Communion at

home please inform the

Parish office or Gerald.

Sick Visiting Requests Please complete the book,

kept on the Lady Chapel al-

tar, if you wish to request a

pastoral visit for someone who is sick.

It is checked weekly.

Annual Vestry Meeting - Sunday 19th April

Our A.G.M. (called a 'Vestry') was held in church straight after a short service of evening prayer, attended by 31 parishioners. The entire event was overshad-owed by the pending funerals for Louise Lucas, following her tragic death, also for Mary Smart and for Joyce Rice, our Reader. Vicar Trystan began by speak-ing and praying movingly about and for them and their families, and about exer-cising our valuable bonds as parish members and friends to these families.

The prescribed agenda for a Vestry was followed, the main business commenc-ing with presentation of his Vicar's report by Rev'd Dr Trystan Hughes and of the Churchwardens' report by Haydn Hopkins. John Hodgson, Treasurer, then presented both his Finance Committee report and the Parish's detailed overall 2014 accounts. He explained the 2014 deficit of £6,761 as arising mainly from the expenditure in that year upon the new audio-visual installations of £6,390 from legacies received earlier. He also mentioned the large increase of £588 (66%) in the hall insurance premium, and his intention to query this with Ecclesi-astical Insurance Co. and consider exploring alternative insurers. The meeting unanimously approved the Accounts, and the reappointment of Morgan Hart as independent examiner. Copies of the Annual Report including these reports and accounts are available in the porch.

The necessary fresh Electoral Roll had been prepared by David Alexander as its new officer; he thanked his predecessor Judith Hill for her help towards this, and advised 144 as the current parish Roll, with a further 9 recorded as fully acknowledged congregation members in all other respects. Colin Francis re-ported briefly upon Church Fabric matters.

For the year ahead Haydn Hopkins was announced by Trystan as his Vicar's Churchwarden, and Colin Francis was unanimously re-elected People's Church-warden (the 2nd year for both). The following were duly re-elected as Parochial Church Councillors:- Linda Alexander, Gill Barker, Gerald Bradnum, Lynn DuFeu, Sue Hurrell, Howard Kilvington, Karen Payne, Malcolm Rayner, Jane Song and Julie Waller. Dominic DeSaulles, as Reader in the parish, would now join the P.C.C. Judith Hill and John Hodgson agreed to continue respectively as Secretary and Treasurer. The vicar closed the meeting with prayers.

Obituary: Mary Smart.

Christ Church has sadly lost one of its faithful members with the

death of Mary Smart after a prolonged illness that in recent years pre-

vented her attendance at our services as often as she would have

wished. Mary was a quiet and rather self-effacing member of the

congregation known only I suspect to a rather small circle of her

friends, but her commitment to the church and her faithful witness

over many years nevertheless means that we have lost another of the

circle of that group of faithful communicants that sustained Christ

Church in all in vicissitudes.

Mary, who lived for many years in Rhydypenau Close before she

moved to Pegasus in the Village came from a family of dedicated An-

glican adherents in Aberdare, her father having been for many years a

church warden in one of its parish churches. She read Geography in

Aberystwyth in the 40’s and had a distinguished career in secondary

schools in South Glamorgan, latterly in Barry. Mary never lost her

intellectual curiosity and in latter years devoted much time to the

University of the Third Age.

Her loss will be keenly felt by her friends in our worshipping family

in Christ Church, and our community as a whole has lost one of its

faithful communicants that contribute so much to maintaining our life

of witness. John Walrond

CREDO 5

WHO’S WHO

at Christ Church

Lake Road North

Cardiff CF23 5QN

Priest in charge:

Rev.Trystan Owain Hughes

Tel: 20758588

Parish Office & Hall Enquiries

Tel: 20763151

Email: chr istchurch-cardiff

@tiscali.co.uk

Web site:

www.christchurch-cardiff.org.uk

Church Wardens Haydn Hopkins Tel: 20621280

Colin Francis Tel: 20751773

Reader

Dominic de Saulles

Parochial Church Council

Secretary

Judith Hill Tel: 20758080

Treasurer

John Hodgson Tel: 20764485

Gift Aid Secretary

Gerald Bradnum Tel: 20751177

Electoral Roll Officer

Judith Hill Tel: 20758080

Magazine Editor John Griffiths Tel: 20754370

Sacristan

Len Bowker Tel: 20758493

Assistant: Haydn Hopkins

Tel: 20621280

Organist /Choir

Julie Waller Tel: 20615007

Funky Church

Karen Payne Tel: 20408265

Sandra Tel: 20758588

Flower Rota Organiser

Sylvia Dowell Tel: 20408265

Churches Together Julie Waller Tel: 20615007

MESSY CHURCH on

GOOD FRIDAY

We had a most successful time with children and their

mums and dads. We had around 48 children attend and all enjoyed the crafts and games

relating to Easter. We made a hand painted green hill and I must say it was very satisfy-

ing to have your hand covered in green paint and splodge it down. Speaking personally it

was very therapeutic for the adults as well as the children! Some of the men went on a

rock hunt and came up with a most authentic tomb which was on display in the porch.

We had two Easter egg hunts, made Easter nests, and painted lovely wooden crosses

with the Easter theme amongst other things.

We ended by having an

Easter talk by Trystan in

church which was lively

and informative.

Then we all enjoyed a

meal together. We were

around 70 and managed to supply all those attending with fish fingers, chicken dippers

and curly chips followed by hot cross buns. Tea and coffee for the adults so we were a

happy lot. Thank you to those many helpers who generously gave their time and energy.

Look out for details of our next messy extravaganza which could be even more messy. Linda Alexander

A TASTE OF CHINA WITH JANE AND FRIENDS

A small number of us joined Jane

as she explained more about life in China. It was a great

opportunity to further understand their calligraphy, cus-

toms and food. Jane went to a lot of trouble to make

both evenings a great success and we all learnt a lot. Realising that Chinese food

is much more interesting than we have been led to believe was a real eye opener.

We are all hoping to go to a Chinese Restaurant as a group in the near future to

test our newly acquired understanding of the menus. Will we order in Manda-

rin…… I’m not sure were ready for that yet awhile.

Jane also shared a beautiful video of sand painting which presented the Gospel of

Jesus in a most unusual way. Perhaps she might share this with the wider church

at another event. Thanks to you all. Linda

Ukrainian Christians face persecution

One year since the annexation of Crimea by Russia, Ukrainian Christians say they are fac-ing persecution by separatists. 'Paul', a pastor who's planted many churches in the former Soviet Union, reports that separatists have accused evangelical Christians in the Ukraine of spying for the West, and have then confiscated their church buildings. He also warns that the situation can only get worse if the separatists gain more ground.

Release Chief Executive Paul Robinson says: “There has been a steady decline in religious freedom across the former Soviet Union in recent years. Separatists have killed Christians in the Ukraine, and events in the Crimea under Russian annexation paint a disturbing pic-ture of the future for Christians in Russian-controlled territories.

“‘The idea that Christians who do not belong to the traditional Orthodox Church have em-braced some form of pro-Western religion and could even be American spies is nonsense. Russia must respect freedom of religion for all faiths and restrain separatist groups from attacking churches and Christians in the Ukraine.”

Release International supports persecuted Christians in more than 30 countries around the world. Parish Pump

CREDO 6

In the 17th century the name Arcadia

evoked an earthly paradise that was

celebrated in art and literature as an

idyllic place of peace and harmony

where humanity and nature were at

one. To live in such beautiful sur-

roundings was to find heaven on

earth. We often have that feeling

when we are out in the countryside

amid the hills and woods, the valleys

and lakes. The sun shines benevolent-

ly down on the scene, and we feel

nothing can destroy that happiness

and sense of unity we have with crea-

tion around us.

That is the mood shown to us when

we first look at this month’s painting,

‘The Funeral of Phocion.’ It is by the

Baroque artist, Nicholas Poussin,

who was born in France but spent

most of his working life in Rome,

where he died in 1665. In the dis-

tance are friendly hills, and then clos-

er at hand we see the trees and bush-

es, a winding river, the shepherd and

his sheep, a couple walking and talk-

ing, and the farmer and his cart.

There are also signs of civilization –

it is the city of Athens with its temple

and buildings, a place where harmo-

ny and reason rule. Poussin presents

us with a calm, ordered

landscape. But in the

foreground we see some-

thing that jolts us out of

this reverie. Two slaves

carry off a body for buri-

al. It is Phocion, an

Athenian general. He was known

as ‘Phocion the good,’ admired for

his honesty and integrity and for

his simple way of life. In the 4th

century BC Phocion argued for

peace when the city around clam-

oured for war with Macedon. His

enemies won the day and they in-

trigued to have him condemned. As

a traitor, Phocion was denied a bur-

ial in Athens, and so his body is be-

ing taken outside the city.

The world of civilization and the

world of nature seem oblivious to

this tragedy of a moral life cut

down by others. In this month of

Eastertide we can think of a similar

scene of nature and civilization.

The garden of Joseph of Arimathea

where a body is brought for burial

– someone, who like Phocion,

stood out for goodness and peace,

but who fell victim to the forces of

God in the Arts Series by Rev Michael Burgess CNS

‘He gave us eyes to see them’:

Poussin’s ‘The Funeral of Phocion.’

hatred and jealousy within the city

walls of Jerusalem.

Poussin painted a second canvas

where the ashes of Phocion are re-

turned to his grieving widow – a sad

end to a good life with no hint of

hope for a better future. In this sea-

son we rejoice in a different end to

the story of Jesus. On Good Friday

His body is laid to rest in a tomb.

Two days later the Lord of Easter

walks again in that garden to tell a

grieving Mary Magdalene that there

is hope for her future. There is the

promise of transformation – a new

creation and a new world where eter-

nal life is triumphant. In such a

world, the human heart within, the

dwelling places of people and the

countryside around can never be the

same again. The Easter Alleluia rings

out to embrace them all. Parish Pump

Syria crisis: the human cost of four years of fighting

As the Syria conflict entered its fifth year this Spring, the largest humanitarian crisis since World War II continues

to escalate. The need for the international community to redouble its efforts to bring about a political solution could

not be greater, says Christian Aid.

Over 200,000 people have been killed inside Syria and half of the population has been forced to leave their homes.

More than seven and a half million people are internally displaced and a further four million have fled to neigh-

bouring countries.

It is estimated that more than 12 million people inside Syria, and millions more refugees across Lebanon, Turkey,

Iraq and Jordan are now in need of humanitarian assistance as a result of the conflict. The UN has described it as

‘the worst humanitarian crisis of our time’.

Frances Guy, Head of Middle East at Christian Aid said, “It’s hard to ignore the relentless turmoil of the

Middle East these days. But whilst all the UK headlines are dominated by the terror of the so-called Islamic State

there is a danger we forget the millions of Syrians, Iraqis and Palestinians, who have been forced to flee their

homes. Families are living in cramped and overcrowded conditions in countries struggling to cope with the over-

whelming number of refugees. Inside Syria itself, millions of people have been displaced from their homes, trying

to seek sanctuary in safer parts of the country.”

Within Syria Christian Aid is responding through its ACT Alliance sister agency, the International Orthodox Chris-

tian Charities (IOCC), to reach people with food, bedding, water clothes, shelter, healthcare and education. To date

they have reached over 2 million people in need. Parish Pump

CREDO 7

Words for Church originally

used in the Bible.

Ekklesia; Greek root ‘people

called out..’ used 115 times

Kuriakon ‘dedicated to the

Lord, temple, Kirk/ circle Greek

root ‘master’, ‘power’, used twice

And changed in King James

translation to Church

What is Church?

A time of miracles or meeting God

in the generation of Jesus and

beyond.

The church and FUN, ART,

MUSIC……

Worship and liturgy…those amaz-

ing…awesome…awful songs…

psalms….

Ceremonies and rituals.

Going TO church or

going OUT as church

A club with a joining set of rules,

membership and expulsion?

Teaching and growth… or getting

FAT…

1879 the Cadbury family planned to

move their chocolate factory to a

new site in a Greenfield setting and

created Bourneville village. 313 and

more dwellings, looking to offer

healthy accommodation and keep a

fit work force.

A quaker family with social con-

science?

As the body of Christ we are called

to speak for those without a voice,

the poor the down trodden, the

world

But has the church been hi-jacked

by secular goals.

Near-Eradicated no longer

RADICAL.

Newbigin saw in the UK on return

from years in India as a missionary,

a lost culture who had lost connec-

tion with the spiritual.

The Other.

A whole new Mission field on his

doorstep.

? Are we the church Triumphant

The church redundant.

And what is our mission today.

And the greatest

commandment is this…

Love the Lord your God with all

your heart, mind and strength

and your neighbour as your self.

The Church - What does this mean to YOU? Report by Julie Waller of the Churches Together Lent Study Groups 2015

Andrew Boyd of Release International urges us to remember the Persecuted Church worldwide this Pentecost

Laying down their lives at Pentecost As you celebrate Pentecost, pause for a moment to ask yourself one question – how is it that you are standing here, as a Christian, on this day in 2015?

It’s because somebody told you about Jesus, right? But who told them? We’re all links in a chain that stretches back to Pente-cost, when Peter emboldened by the Holy Spirit, first told others about the faith. He, and countless others since, paid the ulti-mate price, so that you might live.

Christians are still laying down their lives around the world today for their faith. They are persecuted under authoritarian states, in communist and post-communist countries, under Hinduism and even under Buddhism. But today, few face persecution more severe than that suffered by Christians under extreme Islam in the countries which first heard the gospel after Pentecost.

At the first Pentecost, 3,000 devout Jews had gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the giving of the Law. They returned to their respective nations bearing an even greater gift – the Gospel, which spread like wildfire. Yet today, 2,000 years later, that Christian presence is dwindling to the point of extinction.

Take Iraq, ancient Mesopotamia and the birthplace of Abraham, where today Christians are being driven from their land by Islamic State. “Are we seeing the end of Christianity?” asks the Vicar of Baghdad, Canon Andrew White. “We have had people massacred, their heads chopped off. It looks as though the end could be very near.”

Further north, in Erbil, Chaldean Archbishop Bashar M Warda, ponders the same question. “Since 2003, half the Christians have left the country,” he says. “The attack has been immense. We were above 1m, now you hardly find 300,000.” He, too, fears the exodus of Christians may be unstoppable.

The one beacon of hope is Iraqi Kurdistan, which has flung open its gates to the persecuted, and claims to be the only region in the Middle East where the Christian population is growing. The Kurds understand persecution. They were gassed by Sad-dam. And these Kurds who are remembering Christians in their hour of need are Muslims.

May our own memories be not so dulled by the freedoms we take for granted that we fail to remember our persecuted Christian family this Pentecost.

Release International supports persecuted Christians in 30 nations. Release is working with partners in Baghdad to keep

the flame of the gospel alive, and in Kurdistan to help refugees – some of whom are coming to faith in Christ.

CREDO 8

Prayer Link 2015 Churches Together in Llanishen & District

Saturdays 10.00 - 11.00 am

2nd May Christ the King (R C) Newborough Avenue, Llanishen

6th June Llanishen Methodist

Melbourne Rd, off Fidlas Rd.

ALL WELCOME

Altar Kneeler Project Stitching sessions

Tuesday morning (weekly)

Elizabeth & Derek’s house, 46 Farm Drive

Thursday morning & afternoon (weekly)

Posy’s house 182 Lake Rd East &/ Mandy’s house.

Monthly Saturday at Christ Church hall

30th May 2015 & 27th June 10.00am -12.30pm

Come and see how we are progressing!

CHATTERBOX For babies and toddlers with

parents/grandparents Thursdays 1.30 pm - 3.00 pm

in Christ Church Hall during term time

Contact Gill Barker - 20747464

Plant Sale and Coffee morning

Saturday 9th May

from 10.00 am in Christ Church Hall

Tickets £2 from Gloria. Tel:

20751930

Or Shirley Tel: 20754230

For Church Hall Funds

Advanced date

Saturday 13th June at

7.00 pm at Christ Church

ABER VALLEY Male Voice Choir Founded in 1959 by David John Evans, the present

choir has 58 members from the Senghenydd and

Abertridwr area conducted by J Geraint Evans

Further details to follow Gloria 20751930

Christian Aid Week

10th–16th May Support the events in our area - see page 1

VE DAY ANNIVERSARY - 70 Years At St John the Baptist, Cardiff City centre

Friday 8th May 2.30 pm

Commemoration Service with 2 min. silence

Friday 8th May 7.00 pm

Poetry, prose & Music of WW11 (FREE)

Saturday 9 May 11.00 am

National Ringing of Bells

Sunday 10th May 10.00 am

Holy Eucharist with Act of Remembrance

ELIJAH

An Oratorio composed by Felix Mendelssohn in 1844.

Dramatic, telling the story of Elijah’s prophecy of

drought in Israel, prediction of rains, his sojourn in the

desert and his disappearance in a fiery cloud.

Excerpts performed by Cardiff Philharmonic Choir

plus Bizet’s Te Deum & Nes Clwo’r Byd by Eric Jones

Saturday 9th May 7.30 pm

in Dewi Sant, St Andrew’s Crescent Cardiff

TICKETS on the door or Adr ian.wilson129@talktalk.net

EASTER FLOWERS

Thanks to everyone for their support which pro-vided us funds to purchase such a range of flowers. We hope you enjoyed them. On Easter Saturday it was lovely to have so much help in arranging the flowers and very encouraging to see some of our new ladies being involved. Sylvia Dowell

CREDO 9

Norma’s Ghana Project

Many from Christ Church

are aware of the support

that Norma Ash has given

to Ghana since 1999 with

the generous support of the

congregation here.

We were reminded in the

May edition of Credo how

it all began and since 1999

Norma has provided

£17,524 with regular re-

ports of how the money

has been spent to greatest

benefit.

Following

Fr. Jeremiah’s letter of

the 15th April (copy

printed left) and thanks

to your "Lent Giving"

and purchase of greet-

ings cards, marmalade,

etc, Norma was able to

send £500.

Below is an excerpt

from the letter of thanks

from Fr.Jeremiah.

I want to acknowledge that I withdraw the money safely from Money Gram Bolga. Mama Norma I will

sieze this opportunity to express my unlimited sincere gratitude to you and your parishioners. I will use

some for Solomons first admission fee, Joel third year admission fee and Rachael, secondary school fee.

Best regards to you all, Your son in Christ.

ALTAR KNEELER PROJECT MAY 2015 The very successful coffee morning in February raised an amazing £643. Your

continuing support is wonderful. The crewel yarn we use is thin but very strong as we use 3 strands per needle to give strength and

depth to the finished texture. You may have noticed some stiff backs and the odd bandaged wrist amongst the stitching group recently

due to concentrated periods of stitching but it is very therapeutic when the needle flies up and down, largely thanks to the needle

threaders and yarn sorters. We continue to meet on Tuesday mornings at Elizabeth and Derek’s home and on Thursdays at Mandy’s

and my house. Please tel. me for Thursdays 07907 628 212 or email maryroseakande@yahoo.co.uk See the work in progress in the

Hall on Saturday 30 May 2015, 10 – 12 ish. Helpers always welcome to join the Project. Posy Akande

CREDO 10

CREDO 11

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ACROSS 1 ‘Therefore let us — passing judgment on one another’ (Romans 14:13) (4) 3 ‘I — — these persons here present’ (Marriage service) (4,4) 9 According to a prearranged timetable (Numbers 28:3) (7) 10 Group of eight (5) 11 The cell into which the Philippian jailer put Paul and Silas (Acts 16:24) (5) 12 — Taylor, pioneer missionary to China (6) 14 Otherwise known as the Eucharist, Breaking of Bread, the Lord’s Table (4,9) 17 ‘So that after I have preached to others, I — will not be disqualified for the prize’ (1 Corinthians 9:27) (6) 19 Attend to (3,2) 22 Approximately (Acts 4:4) (5) 23 Tea rite (anag.) (7) 24 Rule of sovereign (8) 25 Test (anag.) (4)

DOWN 1 The name of the street where Judas lived in Damascus and where Saul of Tarsus stayed (Acts 9:11) (8) 2 ‘The playing of the merry — , sweet singing in the choir’ (5) 4 ‘We have been saying that — — was credited to him as righteous’ (Romans 4:9) (8,5) 5 Dr Martyn — Jones, famous for his ministry at Westminster Chapel (5) 6 Port at which Paul landed on his way to Rome (Acts 28:13) (7) 7 Observe (Ruth 3:4) (4) 8 Minister of religion (6) 13 ‘I am — of this man’s blood. It is your responsibility’ (Matthew 27:24) (8) 15 ‘Greater love has no one than this, that he — — his life for his friends’ (John 15:13) (3,4) 16 Archbishop who calculated that the world began in 4004BC (6) 18 ‘No one can — the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit’ (John 3:5) (5) 20 Establish by law (5)

21 Product of Gilead noted for its healing

properties (Jeremiah 46:11) (4)

ACROSS: 1, Stop. 3, Call upon. 9, Regular. 10, Octet

11, Inner.12, Hudson. 14, Holy Communion.

17, Myself. 19, See to. 22, About. 23, Iterate.

24, Monarchy. 25, Stet.

DOWN: 1, Straight. 2, Organ. 4, Abraham’s faith. 5, Lloyd. 6,

Puteoli. 7, Note. 8, Cleric. 13, Innocent. 15, Lay down. 16,

Ussher. 18, Enter. 20, Enact. 21, Balm.

CHRIST CHURCH SOCIETY - 25th February 2015

HISTORY OF PENTYRCH by Don Llewellyn

The speaker is a man of many talents and during the 30 years he spent in the tele-

vision industry he was awarded, among other distinctions, a BAFTA in Wales

and a gold medal at the New York International Film Festival.

His compelling interest in the local history of Pentyrch, where he was born and

still has his home, was his subject. In relating this his sense of humour was ap-

parent from the beginning.

Encompassed within the region of Pentyrch are indications of early settlements including a stone-age burial cham-

ber and a bronze-age burial ground. Furthermore in 1965 an Iron Age metal works was discovered. Significant

artefacts recovered include a Roman coin, depicting the last Roman emperor to come to Britain, and an enamel

decorated terret (a chariot harness ring), thought to be about 2000 years old. Both are now in the National Museum

of Wales.

He also referred to the continued existence of the 1500 year old St. Cadoc’s Well and to the loss of all but three of

the many ancient farms. We saw pictures of numerous other historically noteworthy old buildings which have

been destroyed in recent times to make way for redevelopments. Further references were made to some of the old

houses and their distinguished owners, some of whom promoted iron works and stone works. Among the most

interesting was William Evans’s General Store. He supplied for the needs of many over an extensive geographical

area, from general groceries, cloth and hardware to a range of highly flammable substances, such as paraffin and

pitch which, in today’s world, are controlled by the necessary but inconvenient Health and Safety Laws.

It was in the stable loft of this building, during its demolition, that Mr. Llewellyn discovered a commodious and

carefully sorted stash of papers accumulated between 1850 and 1899. They were carefully filed on a spiked holder

reflecting the business at that time and how it related to all aspects of village life. These he regards as his most im-

portant discovery. They are also in the National Museum.

The excellent buffet which followed enhanced the feel good factor of this most enjoyable occasion. Wilf and Peggy Ingamells.

CREDO 12

WORSHIP AT CHRIST CHURCH

Sunday

8.00 a.m. The Holy Eucharist

10.00 a.m. The Parish Eucharist

6.00 p.m. Evening Service

Weekdays Thursday 9.30 a.m. The Holy Eucharist

(Saints’ Days and Festivals: See Parish Diary)

MINISTRY OF HEALING

Prayers for Healing are said in the Office,

Wednesday, 10.00 am

Eucharist for healing

with anointing and the laying on of hands as announced.

Holy Communion is taken to the sick and housebound,

and anointing as requested.

Please inform the Vicar in cases of sickness, bereavement or distress.

OTHER SERVICES Please arrange with the Vicar

for baptism, confirmation, marriage and funerals.

The Vicar is happy to arrange times for the

Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) or for counsel.

From the Registers Communicants

April

Sundays 5th (Easter) 156

12th 105

19th 103

26th 95

Weekday communicants 98

Communions of the ill

& housebound

at home 2

at ‘Cartref ’ 13

Funeral Services

23rd Mary Kathleen Smart 114

24th Louise Mary Lucas 394 &

multitude outside

RAINBOWS

Tuesdays at 5.00 p.m.

Emma Lane 20750675

BROWNIES

Mondays at 6.00 pm.

84th SCOUT GROUP

Group Scout Leader

vacant

Group Committee Chairman

Geoff Payne 20756577

Enquiries to Caryl Roach 20754463

BEAVERS

Thursdays at 5.30 p.m.

Stephanie Hill 07962012910

CUBS

Wednesdays 6.15 p.m.

Simon Rimell

SCOUTS

Wednesdays 7.30 p.m.

Simon Broadley

CHATTERBOX

Thursday 1.30 - 3.00 pm

during Term time

Gill Barker 20747464

Mary Payne 20756577

FUNKY CHURCH

Karen Payne 20765428

Sandra 20758588

YOUTH GROUP

(11-16 year olds) Meet monthly

Rev. Trystan Hughes 20758588

CHOIR

Thursdays at 6.30 pm

Julie Waller

Tel: 20615007

CHRIST CHURCH NURSERY

Every Weekday 9 am -12 noon

Anna Brancazio 07941266169

or 029 20623097

GOOD COMPANIONS

Tuesdays at 2.00 p.m.

Norma Ash 20754835

CHRIST CHURCH SOCIETY

4-5 times annually

Howard Kilvington 20317301

LADIES KEEP FIT GROUP

Mondays at 7.30 p.m.

Jill Kilvington 20317301

FELLOWSHIP & BIBLE

STUDY GROUPS

(see newsletter for details)

Haydn Hopkins 20621280

Linda Alexander 20759704

SERVERS’ GUILD

Sunday morning and as announced

Gerald Bradnum 20751177