Still on a Congolese theme - can I point you to this story of hope.

There doesn't seem to be much good news. Yesterday as a result of Woolworth's administration 100 drivers have been laid off from the their local distribution centre and those who work in the Rochdale Call Centre as well as the retail stores are also wondering if they will have a job beyond Christmas. Also yesterday the local Renault dealer ceased training and as I drove past earlier today they were moving all the cars away. These are going to be hard times for many people including many in our churches. Further afield we have seen the events in Mumbai and wondered what can lead people to set out with such destruction in mind; DR Congo continues to be a humanitarian crisis that seems a million miles a way from the vibrant Congolese people we know here; Yesterday on World Aids Day we were reminded that 33 million people are living with HIV - and many of them are children; the report into the death of Baby P was also announced; another report released yesterday shows that the Uk has become a lonelier place to live.

This is a world in need of good news.

"The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" announced Mark's gospel and then proceeds to tell a story that has changed the world and has the potential to change the world again. The good news that Mark tells is of Jesus confronting and binding the powers in his world, changing the way people think about God and themselves and therefore changing the way they think about the world in which they live. And that is still the good news of Jesus Christ - a different way of living from the way the powers-that-be would bind people to. We are told that there is no other economic system than free market capitalism and yet Jesus said "go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me". We are told that the rich and the powerful are the wisest and the greatest yet Jesus said “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” and on and on it goes a radical different way of living life, of setting priorities, of approaching God.

In the Nativity stories that will be our focus in the coming weeks we see that attitude at the fore - God comes to us as vulnerable as Baby P; as poor as those struggling to survive in the Congo; in a world as filled with debt and financial mis-management and disease as our own and begins the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God"

DR Congo is a confusing place. It should be one of the richest countries in the world, it has vast natural resources yet years of Civil War have led to a humanitarian crisis and appeals for financial support. It seems that its potential wealth is in many ways a curse - with corruption, power struggles and ancient conflicts coming to the fore. Many are dead and many have fled - hence here in frozen Rochdale we have a significant Congolese community some of whom have formed their own church at worship at St. Andrew's on a Sunday afternoon. They are a wonderful vibrant people, who don't say much about the situations they fled or the methods by which they escaped. They appreciate the opportunity to make a new life here and are working hard to make the most of it. Pastor Andre is now a British citizen and much prouder of that status than I am - but then he had to work for it. Those who have been given leave to remain support those whose immigration status is more insecure - helping each other through the asylum/refugee/immigration process; teaching people English and something of the culture; collecting food - which we help with; creating hospitality and reasons to celebrate. 

Lets pray for DR Congo and all its people, those facing the fear of poverty, hunger and civil war; and those who have made new lives in strange foreign places like Rochdale.

"Rejoice during your festival, you and your sons and your daughters, your male and female slaves, as well as the Levites, the strangers, the orphans, and the widows resident in your towns." Deuteronomy 16:14