Monthly Archives: April 2020

It is with deep sadness that the United Reformed Church (URC) announces the death of the Revd Bernard Thorogood, who died today peacefully in a Sydney hospital aged 92. He was General Secretary of the URC from 1980 to 1992, after which he retired to Australia. Prior to that he served as General Secretary of CWM from 1970 to 1980 (bringing CWM into being in its current form), and through most of the 1950s and 1960s he was a missionary in the Pacific islands – mainly in the Cook Islands. Read More … … Continue reading →

As in the words of a popular British children’s programme, why don’t you switch off the TV and do something less boring instead during this coronavirus lockdown? Read May’s edition of the United Reformed Church’s Reform magazine. This issue, the first produced under the lockdown, is jam-packed with news, comment, inspiration, and debate. Read More … … Continue reading →

United Reformed Church (URC) members in Chester are preparing freshly cooked meals for those who are vulnerable during the coronavirus crisis. The Revd Ruth Wilson, Minister of both Upton and Vicars Cross URCs, explained: “We wanted to help during this time, so contacted our local councillors to see how we could support others.” Read More … … Continue reading →

Children in St Helen’s, in the United Reformed Church’s (URC) Mersey Synod, have been delivering care parcels to the vulnerable in their community. Becky Taylor, a Christ Church Haydock URC Girl’s Brigade leader, explained that although the children weren’t meeting due to social distancing rules, they wanted to do something to help. Read More … … Continue reading →

The United Reformed Church (URC) General Assembly Moderators have joined anti-poverty campaigners in adding their names to an open letter about the “two-child rule” which limits benefit payments to families. Published in The Guardian newspaper, the letter, coordinated by the All Kids Count coalition, states that the tens of thousands of families who have had to claim Universal Credit (UC) in the past few weeks because of Covid-19, will discover that there is no support in UC for their third or subsequent child if that child was born after April 2017, when the ‘two-child limit’ policy came into effect. Only that child’s older siblings will be… Continue reading →

Thousands of community-spirited people have come forward to offer help and support to those in need in Surrey Heath. Surrey Heath Prepared, a community action group based at High Cross Church (a church partnership of the United Reformed Church (URC) and the Methodist Church), was set up in response to the Covid-19 crisis. Since the action group began, more than 3,000 volunteers have registered and more than 1,200 requests for help have been fulfilled by the army of helpers. Read More … … Continue reading →

Leaders from JPIT’s four denominations have expressed support for a Global Ceasefire, being called for in light of COVID-19. Read more about this campaign here. The following Prayer for Peace has been written by the Revd Steve Faber, Moderator of the URC … Continue reading →

Cheerful, trustworthy, hard-working, supportive, and honest were just some of the words used to describe Helen Munt who left the United Reformed Church (URC) for a new adventure on 9 April. Unable to hold a traditional farewell party due to social distancing restrictions, Church House staff gathered digitally to say goodbye to Helen who leaves… Continue reading →

The United Reformed Church Related Community Worker (CRCW) is a busy ministry. CRCWs respond to and challenge the issues facing in their neighbourhoods, work with a wide range of community groups and organisations, develop initiatives and projects to transform individuals, churches and communities. But life has dramatically changed since the coronavirus lockdown. Read More … Continue reading →

The 75th anniversary of the death of German Lutheran Pastor and noted theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, described by some as a “role model of true humanity in the spirit of Jesus Christ”, was remembered on 9 April. Bonhoeffer is remembered for his staunch resistance to Nazi dictatorship which led to his execution a few weeks before… Continue reading →