News News President's Blog - February 2024 Meeting Date Your National Executive Committee met to discuss the advancement of our religion on 10th of February on Zoom. A Welcome to new NEC members I am delighted to welcome two new members to the NEC. Pat Redmond will take up the post of Ordinary Director 2. Pat’s portfolio will be focused on volunteer and community engagement and she will look at how we can support our volunteers and how our Churches can better engage with the communities they serve. As President of the Manchester District Council, Pat understands our churches very well and their importance within our communities. It is also fantastic to welcome Sean Taylor, who has replaced Anne Marie Bond as Ordinary Director 3. Sean will continue the important work around Diversity and Inclusion. Sean is a valued member of the Scottish & Irish District Council and will build on the great work Anne Marie has already begun. Changes at the AFC At the Arthur Findlay College we welcome Dean Pascall, who has taken up the post of General Manager. Dean has a great track record with working both in hospitality and with religious organisations. Dean is already building a five-year plan for the future of the College to help us improve the College and ensure that it is fit for the future. Changes at Head Office We have said goodbye to Jane Mars, who has served the Union as Head of Governance. We are sorry to see Jane leave this important post but she has made the decision owing to family commitments. We wish Jane well for the future. We are delighted to say that we have welcomed Lisa Dawson as Jane’s replacement. Lisa is a lifelong Spiritualist with a wealth of experience in governance. The professionalising of our operations has been vital to futureproofing the Union and we will continue to explore other areas where this is needed. This will allow the NEC to focus on our core mission as a religious movement. Vice-President (Spiritual) The Ministers’ Development Committee continues to look at the improvement and advancement of our Ministry. Recently the Committee held a training weekend at the Barbanell Centre and it was a very successful and enjoyable weekend. Well done and thank you to all involved. It continues to review the PCC course and hopes it will be completed very soon. Fellowship of the Ministry Minister Colin Bates will hold a monthly Fellowship for our Ministry as a place to discuss their work and gain support and ideas from each other. Find out more Book Club The monthly Book Club is now happening every 2nd Tuesday of the month, click above to find out how to get involved. Spring Congress 2024 The ministry spring congress in 2024 is being held via zoom on Saturday 23rd march 10.00am to 12.30pm its important you RSVP regarding your attendance. Click above to find out how to reserve your place. Safeguarding Safeguarding continues to be a priority for the NEC and the Union as a whole. To this end, the Safeguarding meetings are continuing to be held to ensure that everyone is kept up to date with the latest information. Interfaith Work We were disappointed to hear the news that the government is not contributing to the funding of the Interfaith Network as it had previously promised to do. Unfortunately, this means that it is very likely that the Interfaith Network will be forced to close. We all know the great work it does, so please can I urge you all to contact your MP to voice your disapproval. Vice-President (Administrative) The Lyceum Union has seen a decline in numbers and we are organising a meeting with the Lyceum Central Committee to see how we can revamp this very important part of our Religion. I believe very strongly that it still has a very important role to play in our Churches and Centres and I am committed to its future. Amendments to Bye-laws The General Purposes Committee sits regularly to ensure that our Bye-laws are kept current and we are very grateful to Charles Coulston for his expertise within this area. The latest amendments to the Union's Bye-laws are now published on the SNU website. Barbanell Centre & Stafford Church The Barbanell Centre is having some repairs carried out on the roof and the windows; the roof also extends to Stafford SNU Church. This is scheduled to start at the end of the month; services will still be held for Stafford Church while these necessary repairs are carried out. Individual Members National Councillor As most of you will have seen on social media, Marie Lisseman OSNU was elected to the post of Vice-President and her role is an extremely heavy one to carry out. Marie has made the decision to hand over the role of Individual Members National Councillor to John Fitzpatrick. Marie knows that John will do an excellent job of engaging Individual Members and strengthening our membership further. SNU AGM We agreed at the last AGM to move the dates of our Annual General Meetings from July to September. This was to ensure that we give all of our members the opportunity to engage with the business of the Union. As a result, we have changed the dates for nominations, which will now be sent out in May this year. SNU Diary Four years ago members mandated the Union to use less paper and become more environmentally-friendly. We are actively working on this, with things like online voting, saving the expense and wastage of paper and envelopes but also postage. As part of this sustainable move, we will be asking members to vote on the continuation of the SNU Diary. Finance The NEC continues to be focused on balancing the books so that members receive the very best services from the Union. The demands on the Union’s finances are considerable. The Arthur Findlay College and the Barbanell Centre are desperately in need of repairs. We have recently replaced the boilers at the College after they stopped working. We are dedicated to ensuring that our teaching institutions are properly maintained. This commitment also applies to our churches; we must ensure that our churches are repaired or replaced for the future of Spiritualism. Recently the Union purchased a new building for Rhyl Church, which now has a permanent base for its committee and the community. We also continue to provide grants for our churches to ensure that repairs can be met more easily without stress. It is fantastic to see Churches and Centres applying to my President’s Fund to help them make improvements. Permitted Church Activities Jean Smart, our Council Director on the NEC, continues to do a great job in bringing together our National Councillors and DC representatives; this is an extremely important role our representatives play, as they are the voice of the DCs and churches. The last meeting was on Zoom on 3rd February 2024. One of the things we talked about was permitted church activities. We listened to the wishes of the churches, and as such we have now got a revised list that was ratified by the NEC. We know how difficult it is for our churches to fundraise in today’s world, and we were also mindful of not diluting our Religion. Everything on this list is part of our psychic sciences and what we consider acceptable for churches to run. Oracle Cards / Crystals Awareness Class / Fund Raisers Workshops (not platform) Photographs / Auragraphs Awareness / Fund Raisers / Specials Ribbons / sand / flowers Yoga / Pilates / Gong Baths Open to the Public / Workshops As a one-off or regular activity (Must have correct insurance and qualified practitioner) Seances / cabinet / table-tilting (specialists) Development circles / fund-raising (not platform) Community events Coffee and chat Jumble sales Discussion days/nights Book club All open to the general community either weekly or monthly Spiritualist Healing Workshops, open days, regular sessions Weekly / monthly Meditation sessions for well-being / relaxation All open for general community weekly or monthly Please note. None of these activities can form part of the Divine service, with the exception of Spiritualist Healing. Ordinary Director 1 Adam Berry has sent out a questionnaire to all members on our Seven Principles; we would like to reiterate that we are not planning to change our Principles but to discuss how they fit in today’s world and your views as members. We very much look forward to seeing the outcome of this survey and taking our members' ideas forward. Take the survey here Education & Exponents Committee Minister Richard Cuthbert has been very busy with the Education & Exponents Committee, the Healing Committee and SNUi. The training of our members is a very important aspect of SNU Spiritualism, ensuring that those who represent our churches and our religion have the highest of standards and knowledge possible. There will be updates soon from these committees on changes that are in discussions at the moment. I am very happy that the healing amnesty has been extended to allow more healers to come back. Our churches are desperately in need of healers who can ensure that this beautiful part of Spiritualism is available for all. The Healing Committee continues to be proactive in training future healers. The Future of our Union On 25th February the NEC will meet via Zoom for our first ‘root and branch’ discussion. This meeting will be an in-depth look at the Union’s structures and where we need to modernise, adapt or change. This is a chance for the NEC to be bold, to consider what the future of our Union requires and what the members need from a Union. This is a discussion point and we look forward to consulting with members on their views too. This Religion is a member-led movement and your views matter to us. As always, I want to thank all our Committees and volunteers who help to make Spiritualism the wonderful religion that it is. Minister Jackie Wright - President of The Spiritualists' National Union Our Promise We as your NEC continue to serve you and the churches Manage Cookie Preferences