Today/Crèche at St Martin’s. For the 0-4 age group, with trained childcare leaders, takes place in the Austen Williams Room every Sunday. Please ask a steward to show you where to go.

Today/Children’s C-Club Programme, 11.30am, Dick Sheppard Chapel. We will be beginning a journey through the Book of Acts, from the Ascension of Jesus to the beginnings of the Church.

Today/Confirmation Preparation/12.15-1.15pm, Benenson Room. Adult confirmation classes continue today and 28 May in church. The Confirmation service is on Wednesday 29 May at 6.30pm with the Bishop of London.

Today/Theology Group/12-1pm, Austen Williams Room. Theology Group is an opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of the day and questions of forever with Revd Dr Sam Wells. All are welcome. Subsequent date: 16 June.

Today/New discussion group at St Martin’s. After Theology Group finishes on 19 May, we will be considering how we form a new group at St Martin’s, to meet on a Sunday morning after coffee, to discuss theology, faith and spirituality, in a more relaxed and open way, facilitated by the Sheppard Scholar. Please do come along to theology group and stay afterwards, if you would like to hear more and contribute to the forming of this group.

This Week/Christian Aid Week. For more than 70 years, with the help of its amazing supporters, Christian Aid has been helping change the lives of people of all faiths and none living in poverty around the world. It tackles the root causes of poverty so that women, men and children the world over are strengthened against future knocks, and helps with immediate disasters. This year Christian Aid focused on maternal health projects in Sierra Leone post-Ebola. For every one maternal death during childbirth in the UK, there are 150 in Sierra Leone. Envelopes will be available today for a retiring collection. Please give generously and gift aid your donation on the envelopes provided.

This Week/Great Sacred Choral Classics: Faith, Hope and Love – Faith/Monday 20 May, 6.30pm. Join the Choral Scholars of St Martin-in-the-Fields directed by Andrew Earis and led by Revd Dr Sam Wells in a free hour-long exploration of Faith, including Britten Te Deum and Dvořák Credo from Mass in D. All are welcome. A retiring collection is taken to support the work of St Martin-in-the-Fields.

This Week/Reading Theology/Wednesday 22 May. We will gather to read With the End in Mind by Kathryn Mannix, after Bread for the World, from 8-9.30pm in the Tutu Room. Next dates for the diary are 31 July and 20 November.

This Week/The Connection at St Martin’s 29th Annual Pilgrimage to Canterbury, 24–27 May. The Pilgrimage launch is on Friday 24 May at 10am in the church portico. All are welcome to send the pilgrims off – and also to join the Pilgrimage Thanksgiving Service in Canterbury Cathedral at 6.30pm on Monday 27 May. For any enquiries, please e-mail eugene.ling@cstm.org.uk or phone 020 7766 5555. Please sponsor the Sunday International Group. This year 11 of our guests from different countries of the world are walking with us. Can you help us to raise money for the Connection and as we walk these 74 miles together? https://pilgrimage2019.everydayhero.com/uk/international-group Thank you all so much for your support.

Meditation Group meets on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month at 6.30pm in the DSC. All are welcome.

Next Week/Ascension Day Eucharist/Thursday 30 May, 8pm, BBC Radio 4. We are delighted to welcome as our preacher the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Chelmsford. The music includes the premiere of Bob Chilcott’s Samba Mass, and is sung by the BBC Radio 4 Daily Service Singers and St Martin’s Voices, directed by Bob Chilcott. The service will be led by Revd Dr Sam Wells. Congregational admission is by ticket available from the vergers after services or from the Box Office. Please arrive in plenty of time for the service (doors open 7.00pm) and be seated in church by 7.40pm or tune into BBC Radio 4 at 8pm.

Coming Up/Disability Advisory Group/Sunday 2 June, 12-2pm, Austen Williams Room. This termly open meeting gathers people with insight or experience of physical, sensory, cognitive or mental health issues to help shape our vision and work. All are welcome to join us, including for our renowned bring and share lunch! If you’d like to know more, please speak to Fiona MacMillan or Jonathan Evens, or email disability@smitf.org

Coming Up/Joint event with our Chinese Congregations/Thursday 6 June 2019, 6.30pm, St Martin’s Hall – talk (in English) followed by drinks reception. Yi Chen will speak on Pots and thrones: ritual bronze vessels of the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Free tickets from https://bit.ly/2LgyMpT or phone Jonathan Evens on 020-7766-1127 and leave your name and phone number.

Coming up/Revd Paul Lau’s retirement as Associate Vicar for Chinese/Sunday 9 June. Rt Revd Andrew Chan will be our preacher as we thank Paul for his 19 years of ministry among us. We would like to give Paul a sending-off present on that day. If you would like to make a contribution, please hand an envelope to the vergers or send a cheque to Harriet Rabin, Church Coordinator. The Chinese Church Annual Meeting has voted unanimously for the Chinese Church to join with the PCC and become one church from September. We very much look forward to the growing partnership between our congregations.

Coming Up/Friends of St Martin’s Festival – Save the Date/Saturday 15 June. The Festival will be held in St Martin’s Hall, starting with the AGM at 10.30am where the future development of the Friends will be part of an open discussion. This will be followed by Eucharist at 12 noon and lunch at 1pm. The afternoon session from 2pm will include contribution from our new Associate Vicar for Ministry, Revd Sally Hitchiner, and Katy Shaw on the Building Futures project. All are welcome to share in this exciting day in the life of St Martin’s.