The Parish Magazine May 2024

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12 The Parish Magazine - May 2024 Please mention The Parish Magazine when responding to advertisements Providing a reliable service 365 days a year delivering tasty, nutritious meals 2 course hot or cold lunch Wide choice of daily menu Free delivery 11:30am to 2:30pm No long-term contracts Special diets catered for Breakfast/afternoon tea packs Bread and milk service Home from hospital service More than a meal – well-being check, help in emergencies, plating up service, sign-posting to other support services We understand every meal counts, our service will not fail you! Independent, family-run funeral directors serving Sonning since 1826. We are delivering to an expanding area in Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. Please contact us to find if we are now delivering in your area. Our compassionate and professional team are here to help you with everything related to a funeral from pre-planning to bereavement support. Local branches in Caversham and Henley-on-Thames. www.abwalker.co.uk | 0118 947 7007 Tel 0118 214 8318 Mobile 07592 652210 Email enquires@bridgeshomecare.co.uk Bridges Meal Delivery Service, Henson House, Newtown Road, Henley-on-Thames Oxfordshire RG9 1HG SPRING AT THE GREAT HOUSE Spring is here! Time to enjoy the river with friends, join us for a local event or host your own gathering. Check out the events on at The Great House @coppaclub | coppaclub.co.uk | @the_great_house
parish noticeboard —4 THE PERSECUTED CHURCH Bonded labour continues This month we focus on the plight of brick kiln workers in Pakistan, the third largest producer of bricks in South Asia, writes Colin Bailey. Pakistan's brick sector employs 4.5 million people producing 45 billion bricks per year in 20,000 brick kilns (data from a 2021 report). Bonded labour was outlawed in Pakistan decades ago but the practice has continued. This form of forced labour is considered to be modern slavery. Vulnerable workers become bonded labourers by taking loans from their employer and being forced to work to repay the debt. Any crisis such as an injury or health issue can contribute to a vicious cycle of debt. TRAPPED When his wife needed urgent medical attention, Majeed — an impoverished Christian brick kiln worker — had no choice but to take out a loan from his employer to pay for her care. 'The brick kiln owner started deducting money from my wages against my loan, leaving me disheartened and feeling hopeless due to the burden of debt,' said Majeed. This is the reality for thousands of low-paid Christian brick kiln workers in Pakistan. When faced with an emergency or illness, their only option is to take a loan from the brick kiln owner. These debts then keep them bonded to the brick kiln until the debt is repaid. They become trapped and cannot seek another job. Money is deducted from their wages to pay the interest. It becomes impossible for them to pay off the loan in full. FREE Thanks to Barnabas Aid — an international, interdenominational Christian aid agency based in Coventry, in the West Midlands, that supports Christians who face discrimination or persecution as a consequence of their faith — Majeed received funds to pay off his debt and set him and his family free. 'Gratefully', says Majeed, 'thanks to Barnabas Aid, I am now released from the weight of this loan.' Katkari children work in brick kilns. Daniel Buckles, Wikipedia Commons Rafique has worked in a brick kiln for 30 years, and his two sons work with him. He says he has struggled with debt for a long time, a legacy from his father. Debts are passed on to the next generation. Rafique’s sons also had to work to help pay it off. Their debt has also been repaid through Barnabas’s help. Rafique says, 'We found solace in Barnabas Aid. They have helped me to finally be curse-free.' Barnabas Aid has freed a total of 2,023 brick kiln workers since 2017 but long to do more. In the next phases, they hope to free another 200 Christian families whose debts range from £300 to £1,000. References and further reading Human Trafficking Search article ‘Ending Bonded Labor in Pakistan Brick Kilns’: https://humantraffickingsearch.org/ resource/ending-bonded-labor-in-pakistanbrick-kilns/ Reuters article ‘From sex trafficking to forced labour, what is modern slavery?’ https://www.reuters.com/article/ us-slavery-index/from-sex-traffickingto-forced-labor-what-is-modern-slaveryidUSKCN0YM1ZJ/ Barnabas Aid Appeal – Free Christian families from brick kilns in Pakistan: https://www.barnabasaid.org/gb/latestneeds/free-christian-families-from-brickkilns-in-pakistan/ To donate to Pakistani brick kiln workers please phone Barnabas Aid on 0179 374 4557, and mention project 41-1356, or visit: https://www. barnabasaid.org/gb/donate/?project=41- 1356&utm_medium=barnabas-aid&utm_ campaign=AP240405 The Parish Magazine - May 2024 13 From the editor's desk The poetry of my life During my school days and throughout most of my life, poetry was never of much interest to me. This came to mind while putting this issue of the magazine together which, like many previous issues, includes poems which I hope you will enjoy. In fact, I had little interest in the study of the English language as a child, or indeed in my teens. I did, however, enjoy books, and always enjoyed visiting an uncle who had a large library of books that lined the four walls of his front room. When I was about 12 years old I bought my first book at a jumble sale, a leather bound King James Bible. I still have it today, along with nearly 150 other Bibles that I have collected since! No, at school, I planned to be an engineer and work behind the scenes so science was my priority. The only arts subject I had much interest was music, not that I could sing — my music teacher threw me out of the class one day because I never sang in tune. It was an embarrassing incident that I still vividly remember and I still don't enjoy singing in public. I was also afraid of speaking in public and went out of my way not to take part in anything that required doing so. No, I was going to be an engineer working behind the scenes, although doing what, I had no idea. This is also why, in my early teens, I jumped at an opportunity to learn to play the drums — drummers are not expected to sing or speak. They just get on with their job sat at the back! So, how, 24 years ago, did I manage to become a licensed lay minister in the Church of England to lead worship and conduct funerals, and be a journalist and editor for the past 53 years? Answer: I put my trust in God. I like to think it has worked for me, so I am certain it will work for you!
Page 1 and 2: The Parish Magazine Magazine Parish
Page 3 and 4: Serving the communities of Charvil,
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Page 7 and 8: the parish noticeboard — 1 Easter
Page 9 and 10: Corinne's column The Lord has risen
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Page 15 and 16: feature — 1 EXPLORING The Parish
Page 17 and 18: feature — 2 FROM PAGE 15 Someone
Page 19 and 20: feature — 3 Why May 2024 is impor
Page 21 and 22: feature — 5 Maiden Erlegh Rotary
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Page 25 and 26: around the villages — 12 Where di
Page 27 and 28: around the villages— — 31 Inner
Page 29 and 30: FROM PAGE 28 HEALTH — 2 Compariso
Page 31 and 32: FASHION BY HARRIET NELSON A girl ca
Page 33 and 34: THE ARTS — 1 The Stabat Mater Rev
Page 35 and 36: THE ARTS — 2 Book Reviews Jesus a
Page 37 and 38: THE SCIENCES 'Pain that is not expr
Page 39 and 40: PUZZLE PAGE — 2 CROSSWORD 1 2 3 4
Page 41 and 42: CHILDREN'S PAGE The Parish Magazine
Page 43 and 44: Please mention The Parish Magazine

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