Thanks to the generous giving of church members across the area, the three ‘St J’s Group’ parishes have given away £8,500 this year to local, national and international causes.
St John’s Church in Peasedown has adopted the biblical principle of giving away the first 10% of their income each year in a bid to practice what they preach.
This year £7,500 was set aside for the church’s Tithing Committee to make decisions about where the money should go.
In the past 12 months the committee has received applications for funding and financial assistance from a range of organisations.
Church Leader, Revd Matthew Street said: “This year we have been able to support international projects such as Flame International and People Against Poverty – an organisation that works with grassroots projects around the world to alleviate poverty.
“St John’s is part of the child sponsorship scheme where we support a child in a less well off part of the world to go to school and have opportunities they wouldn’t have otherwise.
“The overseas projects we support often have a personal link for our church so we can receive regular feedback on how our donations are being spent.
“We are also extremely pleased to be supporting local initiatives such as the Timsbury-based charity Bibles for Children and the Filling Station – an initiative which takes the Christian message to people in a more relaxed and informal manner.”
Meanwhile, St Julian’s Church in Wellow, and the united parish of St Julian’s Shoscombe and St James’ Foxcote, have given £1,000 away between them to Bibles for Children, and the Red Cross.
Revd Street added: “All of my churches feel extremely blessed to be in a position to donate this money each year.
“As we move more into a culture of collaborative working, with grassroots organisations running services, the church can play an increasingly key role in supporting projects which in the past would have received their support from elsewhere.”
For more information about Mission and Outreach giving in the St J’s Group contact the benefice administrator Hywel Carr on 07881 921018 or email [email protected].
