Overseas Church Links Group

A number of overseas missions and charities are supported by Little St Mary's through the Overseas Church Links Group, which was established by the PCC in March 1998. The following are the charities currently supported:

Each year, the PCC allocates 5% of the parish's ordinary income to be distributed to our overseas links in accordance with a recommendation by the Group. In addition, the proceeds of an Overseas Box, and special collections made during the year, are given.

While financial support is important, it is only part of the story. Each member of the Group is responsible for maintaining personal contact with one of our overseas links. News and information is provided through a notice-board in the church, reports to the PCC, and a newsletter. Personal visits by supporters are particularly appreciated, and these visits have proved an enriching experience for a number of people from Little St Mary's. There is a pressing need, also, for work on the ground, if only of a mundane administrative or clerical nature, and we are keen to encourage school or university leavers, or people who have recently retired, to consider a period working with one of our overseas partners.

We are sometimes fortunate to be able to entertain visitors from one of our overseas links at Little St Mary's to talk to us. A riotous and joyful visit by two bishops from Papua New Guinea was unforgettable, and, more recently, we were treated to an inspiring talk about the work of the Anglican Church in Peru by the missionaries, Dan and Pam Caldwell.

In addition, of course, Little St Mary's, and our overseas links, support each other in prayer.

The missions and charities we support are:

The Cathedral Relief Service in Calcutta (CRS):

CRS was founded in 1971, in the aftermath of the Bangladesh war, to deal with the flood of refugees. Today, CRS works in 16 of Calcutta's teeming slums, as well as in a number of the poverty-stricken outlying villages, providing primary education and health care, and running women's self-help groups. The emphasis is on self-help, to enable the people to establish viable communities. We support CRS through the Friends of CRS in Britain. For more information, please see the websites here and here.

The Papua New Guinea Church Partnership:

The people of Papua New Guinea are among the poorest in the world. The country is comprised of high mountain ranges and tropical forests, with few roads. Most of the population depend on subsistence farming, particularly in remote settlements which are difficult and hazardous to reach. To a large extent, health care and education depend on the Christian churches. The Anglican Church in PNG has a pressing need for people who are medically trained, or who are prepared to work as administrators. We support the work of the church in PNG through the Papua New Guinea Church Partnership whose website can be found here.

The Borneo Mission Association:

The Association supports the work of the Church in the Dioceses of Kuching and Sabah. Little St Mary's has, in particular, supported the House of the Epiphany in the Diocese of Kuching, which is a theological seminary, training candidates for ordination, and running refresher courses for local clergy and lay readers. The website for the Diocese of Kuching is here.

The Makeni Ecumenical Centre in Zambia:

MEC offers an opportunity to the destitute in township slums to train in agriculture and be resettled on land of their own in rural areas. Some 6000 acres of land, supporting five villages, have provided support for hundreds of families. The Centre provides primary, secondary and adult education courses in a variety of vocational subjects, and medical clinics. There is also an AIDS education programme, and an AIDS orphanage which, in the past, has been supported by Little St Mary's.

The mission at Makeni was founded by Father Pierre Dil who died of cancer in 2006, but the work is continued by his widow, Wenda, and other members of his family, as well as local workers. There is an informative website here.

St Cyprian's, Sharpeville:

St Cyprian's is a parish in the Diocese of Christ the King which covers an area to the south of Johannesburg, including some southern suburbs of the city itself. Sharpeville was the African township which grew up near the town of Vereeniging. Sharpeville became internationally notorious in 1960, when police fired on an unarmed crowd protesting against the pass laws.

In 2007, the present Rector of St Cyprian's, Archdeacon David Dinkebogile, was on sabbatical in Cambridge, and attached to Little St Mary's. He told us about St Cyprian's, the problems its people face, and his own life and background, and the link between the two parishes was forged. Money was raised towards building a room for a Sunday School, and we hope to be able to support St Cyprian's with other projects.

St Cyprian's has a website here.

Peru/USPG:

We have for some years supported the work of the USPG, but recently asked whether we could direct our efforts towards a particular project. In response, USPG asked us to support the work of Dan and Pam Caldwell, who were USPG funded missionaries working in Peru. The Caldwells have since returned to England, but inspired by them, we have asked USPG to let us continue supporting the work of the Anglican Church in Peru, an exciting and expanding church under the leadership of Bishop Bill Godfrey (see this website). We also continue to support the work of USPG worldwide.

Christian Aid:

We support Christian Aid during Christian Aid Week, and hold special collections when they have a crisis appeal.

The Additional Curates' Society:

The Additional Curates' Society proclaims the Gospel to the people of this country by supporting assistant clergy in poorer parishes, and encouraging vocations to the priesthood. It assists us in providing for a Lay Pastoral Assistant at Little St Mary's.

For more information about the Overseas Church Links Group, please get in touch with either the Chairman, Gillian Beard (01223 871351), or the Secretary, Clive Brown (01223 467616).