Dear Church family

In response to the Government's advice that we will be moving to Alert Level 2 as of 6am on 28th Feb 2021, we have had to make changes to our planned activities for tomorrow.
The combined service time will be occurring at 9am. However:

• The AGM and Parish Picnic will be postponed. Date will be confirmed later this week.
• People at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 are encouraged to take additional precautions when leaving home.
• Children will go straight into their programmes from 9am. Parents and guardians are encouraged to join our Children's ministries (First Steps - Intermediates - 0 years - 12 years) to see what your children have been learning.
• Contact Tracing will be occurring in all programmes, including the main service.
  
• There will be no morning tea served following the service.
• All Level 2 Health and Safety protocols will be observed.
  

We will be LIVE STREAMING tomorrow's service from 9am at our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/nativitychurchblenheim for those who prefer to remain at home.

We thank you for your understanding at this trying time.

Blessings,

The Nativity Team

Religious leaders warn of dangers in poorly drafted End of Life Choice Act
 
Some of New Zealand’s most prominent religious leaders say New Zealanders need to be aware of the considerable harm that the End of Life Choice Act could do and are urging them to vote No in the referendum at this year’s general election.
 
“We acknowledge the importance of freedom of choice, however there are significant weaknesses and dangers in this Act which will fail to protect the most vulnerable,” says Archbishop Philip Richardson of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa New Zealand.
 
“In our caring roles we support the dying and their families, and we understand just how vulnerable people are at the end-of-life, including, often, the feeling of being a burden. That experience has given us real insights into how the End of Life Choice Act will work in the real world. Our concerns are about the unintended consequences for the most vulnerable people.”
 
The leaders’ letter focuses on the risks and dangers associated with the Act itself. Included in the letter is a strong critique of the Act because it fails to include key safeguards present in overseas laws, including no mandatory stand-down period - under the Act, a person could be dead less than four days after diagnosis; weak processes for detecting if people feel pressured; and that the Act does not require a patient to discuss their decision with a family member or other significant person.
 
“Our communities include doctors and nurses who work at the front line of end-of-life care and we have listened to their concerns. We have also listened to the concerns of lawyers who understand how laws work and who think that this law is badly drafted and lacking critical safeguards present in other overseas laws.
 
“Our opposition to this Act reflects our compassion for those who will experience a wrongful premature death because of the dangers of this Act; in particular those who will feel coerced into an early death, whether because of their own feelings of being a burden or because of overt pressure from others.
 
“As we note in our letter: Even those who favour some form of assisted death have many reasons to Vote NO to this Act. We are simply adding our concerns about how the Act will operate in practice to the expressed concerns of many other New Zealanders.”
 
 
 
Media contact:
Chris Wikaira
0274522472
 
The letter and full list of signatories is attached.

On September 19th, the New Zealand public are going to vote in both a general Election and at the same time on two binding referenda: The End of Life Choice Act, and the Legalisation of Recreational Cannabis.  Of these two highly important pieces of legislation, this presentation by Rev. Dr Graham O'Brien will focus on the End of Life Choice Act (EOLC), to explain what the EOLC Act means to inform our voting, its consequences, and the reasons people might consider to vote YES or NO.
​
The evening will include a 45min presentation followed by an opportunity for questions and answers regarding both referenda topics.
 
Rev Dr Graham O'Brien, is the ministry education coordinator for the Anglican Diocese of Nelson, Co-Chair of the InterChurch Bioethics Council, and committee member for the national "Vote No" campaign.

Dear Church Family

We have had a last-minute change to our service for this week.
We have been invited to join Bishop Steve as he hosts a Nelson Diocese Live service. All are welcome to join us in worship. 

From the website, people can watch the livestream, and there are also links provided to go directly to YouTube or Facebook streams.

NATIVITY SERMONS

END OF FINANCIAL YEAR DONATION RECEIPTS
If anyone has not yet received their End of Financial Year Donation Receipt from Nativity, please contact me at admin@nativity.org.nz and I will organise this immediately.
For those of you who provided Nativity with an email address, you should have received yours last Friday evening. Otherwise hard copies have been posted.


And don't forget that the Nativity Staff are available to answer your queries. You can contact us either via email or phone - CONTACT US.

Blessings,

The Nativity Team

Dear Church Family

It has been an exciting week and, while changing to Alert Level 3 hasn't made a significant difference for many of us, it provides us with a glimmer of hope of being able to meet together in the not too distant future.

ALERT LEVELS
The Diocese has provided us with some clarity regarding what we can and can't do at each alert level through the diocesan 'Alert Level Plan' (see Diocesan Alert Level Update). There are some items that are yet to be confirmed and we will advise you once these have been clarified.

Associated with this plan is the 'Pastoral Care Bubbles' policy for Alert Level 3. Please note that if you wish to expand your 'bubble' with the church context, you must speak with Nativity's Pastoral Care Coordinator (Jane Sheat) or Parish Nurse (Raewyn Parkes) first as they are responsible for keeping a register of 'bubbles' and for ensuring that people within these bubbles are doing so safely.

FAMILY SERVICE THIS SUNDAY
This week, our Family Service team are looking at the story of Joshua from a uniquely Covid-19 angle. What to know more? Join us this Sunday from 8am to find out!
Visit www.nativity.org.nz/online-services

NATIVITY FOODBANK
The Nativity Foodbank supplies have been transferred to the Marlborough Foodbank at this time so that they can be utilised by those in need.

Our Nativity Foodbank will not be operating as it has in the past, therefore we would encourage you to donate directly to the Marlborough Foodbank at your local supermarket so that we can help make a difference for our community.

MISSIONS NEWS
We have an update on our mission partners now available on our website: https://www.nativity.org.nz/news-and-events/missions-update-april-2020

PRAYER CHAIN
Our prayer chain is still active. Please contact Raewyn Parkes or Jane Sheat if you have prayer needs, or leave a message on the church phone or via email and it will be passed on.

STAYING CONNECTED
Notices and pew sheets can all be accessed via our News and Events tab on our website www.nativity.org.nz. 
There are also many other resources for study or worship at home and some wonderful reflections from our parishioners under the COVID-19.

BUFFERING ISSUES
If you have been watching our sermons online and experience buffering issues, please advise me at admin@nativity.org.nz. We are experimenting with which file type provides the most seamless presentation online and your feedback is valuable in making our decision.

And don't forget that the Nativity Staff are available to answer your queries. You can contact us either via email or phone.
https://www.nativity.org.nz/contact-us.html

Blessings,

The Nativity Team

Dear Church Family

It has been an interesting week for us as we both farewell Richard Dyer as Priest-in-Charge and welcome our Regional Deans, Susan Howarth and Joe Keighley, as our new Priests-in-Charge.

We are also preparing for the different ways that church will 'look' at each of the different levels as we have increasing options available to us.

Therefore Sue Howarth's sermon this Sunday - 'Changing Lives in the Midst of Changing Life' - is even more poignant. Join us online from 8am to hear from both Sue and Joe, as well as seeing other familiar faces.
www.nativity.org.nz/online-worship

NELSON ANGLICAN NEWSLETTER
Issue 4 of the Nelson Anglican Newsletter can be found HERE. It has some very helpful information about what moving to Level 3 will mean for church, as well as thoughtful reflections from Bishop Steve and others.

AT HOME WITH BISHOP STEVE
Many of you will know Zane and Karen Elliott, who used to be members of our parish and are now serving in Indonesia. This week, Bishop Steve interviews Zane about what they have been up to. Check out the interview here:
https://nelsonanglicans.com/updatesblog/zaneinterview

ANZAC DAY
As we prepare to celebrate ANZAC day tomorrow, you might like to consider reading some of the reflections from our parishioners on this very topic. Special thanks again to our own Rose Francis for her beautiful tributes:
https://www.nativity.org.nz/daily-reflections

GOOD MENTAL HEALTH
Once more may we remind you that there are some wonderful resources available to you if you, or someone you know, is struggling during our time of lockdown. Being isolated is difficult for many of us. The Health Flyer located on our website is an excellent resource that provides simple and clear advice for all aspects of wellbeing.
https://www.nativity.org.nz/covid-19-resources/nelson-marlborough-health-flyer

NATIVITY PRAYER CHAIN
Our prayer chain is very much active during this time. If you have anything you would like prayer for, or if you would like to join with others in prayer, please contact either Jane or Raewyn.

And don't forget that the Nativity Staff are available to answer your queries. You can contact us either via email or phone.
https://www.nativity.org.nz/contact-us.html

Have a blessed weekend!

The Nativity Team

Hi Church Family

We have a lot of things on as we lead up to the Easter Weekend.

We would like to highlight the work of some of our own parishioners, including:

• Barry Struthers who faithfully contributes a devotion each morning in our 'Daily Reflections' blog. Click on the tag 'Feeding Between the Lines' to read these.
  
• Jacinda Thompson's thoughtful article 'Did God Create Covid 19?' which provides a scientific and biblical perspective on the virus.
  
• Rose Francis' collection of stories, reflections and encouragements found in both our 'Resources' and 'Daily Reflections' blogs.
  

We are very blessed to have such talented people at Nativity. Please email us if you have something you would like to share with our church community.

May we also encourage you to keep checking our church website and Facebook pages for updates and new resources. These are added to daily.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

Blessings,

The Nativity Team

Hi Nativity Family

Just letting you know that the Marlborough District Council now has an eNewsletter that you are able to sign up for. Simply visit www.marlborough.govt.nz/your-council/council-enewsletter to register your email address and receive ​an electronic version of the Council news published in Marlborough's newspapers and on its website each week.