St Andrew's and St Anne's celebrating together

On Sunday 21st July, adults, young people and children from the congregations of St Anne's and St Andrew's came together to celebrate St Anne's Day.   

Vicar Mother Christine and Curate Felicity Scroggie lead the service with Reverend Maggie Hindley.   It was a happy occasion with praises for kids' attendance, appreciation for adults contributing to the life of the church, joyous youth band and then..... to their great surprise, Viola and Trish were awarded the Order of St Mellitus by the Bishop of London in recognition of their outstanding contribution to St Anne's as Churchwardens.

Afterwards, in Mother Christine's back garden young people and adults came and shared their memories and stories.

St Anne's Day Service with the congregations of St Anne's and St Andrew's

From L-R, Reverend Maggie, Vicar Mother Christine and Curate Felicity

Afterwards in the Vicar's garden ~ a pot luck BBQ beneath warm sun and blue skies.

Young people chatting about church.

St Andrews

Meeting members of St Andrew's congregation.  After Sunday Service, members sit down to share food that they have made and brought to the Centre.  Many members have Ghanian roots and Rev. Maggie is wearing a gift brought back especially for her.

Exhibits taking shape at Al-Khoei Mosque

An exhibit showcasing existing or historic stained glass windows in the Mosque.  Two images on the right show the artist working on the new window, inscribed with Allah, that replaced the Synagogue's six pointed Star of David.

An exhibit of heritage stories.  Young people asked their parents about their relationship with the mosque and their first impressions.  

Learning about the Al-Khoei logo

Students at Al Sadiq school were interested to find out that the Al Khoei logo had been specifically designed for the Foundation.  They decided to reproduce a large version of the logo and explain the different components in English and Arabic beneath the image, so that members of their community could also share in the learning.  

Here the students speak about the white book, the yellow sun and its rays and the blue arch, the 'Mihrab'.

Meeting the Minister . . .

Reverend Maggie Hindley, Minister of the United Reform Church - St Andrews, Brondesbury Park - and some very large marshmallow hot chocolates. Thank you Maggie!    

In the coming weeks, we will begin to work together to gather the stories from St Andrew's congregation, a congregation with mostly African roots.

Maggie is also Director of The London Inter Faith Centre, our partner on this project.

Exhibits in progress at Al-Khoei Foundation

Students at Al Sadiq and Al Zahara Schools have been busy during the holidays creating models of the Mosque, reflecting on their first or best experiences of the Mosque and finding out about its history.

Shree Swaminarayan Temple

All wrapped up: the Temple facade under restoration in preparation for the Jubilee celebrations in July, while inside the carpets are being replaced and the ceilings repainted and gilded in between daily worship.