The Revd Tim Meadows, Minister of Allerton and St Stephen’s Wavertree in Mersey Synod, has now begun his moderatorial year as General Assembly Moderator 2024-2025..

Following the Mersey Synod meeting on 9th March, a Synod Eco Group has been formed to help churches fulfill our commitment of caring for God’s Creation and to exchange information and experiences on ‘green’ issues.

Why do bad things happen to good people? Doesn’t religion just cause wars? How can we as Christians respond to these challenges the world is facing today? This event with the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics (OCCA) will help us all to engage with the big questions of our life and faith.

A call to worship and a prayer for Pentecost from Revd Murray George, Ministering to the churches of Mersey Synod South Cheshire Pastorate of the URC.

Bringing together people from across the Synod, the Mersey does Mercy event took place at Hoole URC on Saturday 11th May. Church members found out more about supporting global justice and what that might look like in our local churches.

Every Christian Aid Week people across Britain and Ireland raise funds, act and pray for their global neighbours in a celebration of hope for a fairer world. Please read this article for resources to support Christian Aid Week.

Mods Plod Log.

Day 4. Warrington.

Matt 26:41

Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Maundy Thursday marked the final day of the Mod’s Plod and it was also the shortest only being five miles.

Steven Mitchell, Children and Youth Development Officer, URC Mersey Synod, spoke to three churches about the work they do with schools and how they got started. The video is a way of encouraging churches to make the step to reach out to their local schools.

Mods Plod Log.

Mods Plod Log.

Day 3. Wirral.

Matt 21:12-13

Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer.’

Today we left Liverpool early for a ferry across the Mersey and found ourselves on the banks for the Wirral at Seacombe.

Mods Plod Log.

Day 2. Liverpool.

Psalm 150 –

Praise the Lord.

Praise God in his sanctuary;

praise him in his mighty heavens.

Praise him for his acts of power;

praise him for his surpassing greatness.

A 12.5 mile prayer walk that couldn’t have been more of a contrast to yesterday if it had tried. The route today took us from Crosby through to Waterloo and over to Seaforth.

Mod’s Plod Log.

Day 1. Southport.

Psalm 100 - Know that the Lord is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his,

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

The day began with drizzle and a chilling wind as the intrepid pilgrims set off from Churchtown Village URC and headed across Southport to Lord Street West a URC/Methodist LEP.

During Holy Week, our Moderator, Revd Geoff Felton, will be prayer walking the Synod. The walk will take him from Southport to Formby on 25th March, Crosby to Allerton on 26th March, Seacombe to West Kirby on 27th March and finally from Thomas Risley Church to St. Johns Warrington on 28th March.

Our theme at the March Synod Meeting, held at Trinity URC Wigan, was ‘Talking Faith, Talking Creation’ and we looked at how faith informs our approach and attitude to the environment. We also celebrated the news that URC Mersey Synod has achieved both the Bronze Eco Synod Award and the Bronze Eco Church Award Certificate.

In Mersey Synod we’ve been trying to encourage one another to Talk Faith and be more courageous when it comes to responding to current day issues. Please see a letter from Revd Geoff Felton published in the March 2024 issue of Reform, outlining and explaining Mersey Synod’s Talking Faith initiative.

Built in 1976, the Ormskirk Street United Reformed Church has been a part of St Helen’s town centre for almost five decades and has grown to offer much more than religious services. A local newspaper recently highlighted the work the church has done to bring the community together.

Sixteen ministers and the Mersey Synod Children and Youth Development Officer (CYDO) recently gathered at Foxhill House and Gardens to share ministries and support one another. Led by Mission Tutor, Ian Macdonald, "Play in Ministry: What it enables, what it reveals", used LEGO® to promote theory and practice through creativity.

The Mersey does Mercy event on Saturday 11th May 2024 at Hoole URC is a perfect opportunity to renew your engagement with global justice. But what does that mean for churches across Mersey Synod and what will happen at the event to support this?

The United Reformed Church, Christian Aid, other humanitarian agencies and global church leaders have urged the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak MP to call for an end to fighting in Gaza.

Want to make 2024 a ‘greener’ year for your church? Here are 10 New Year eco-resolutions with links to further sources of information