Welcome to the website of the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket, Hamburg.

The new Church Council and Church Wardens will be elected during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on the 18th of April 2010. All those on the Electoral Roll are entitled to vote (see above), but all are welcome to attend. It is really important for the life of the church that as many people as possible support this event.

The AGM will take place directly after the Eucharist on 18th April. Please note the date and make the effort to be in church. The meeting itself will be short and will be followed by a shared lunch. A great social opportunity in other words!

If you are not on the Electoral Roll, and have questions about this please contact Birte. Other questions relating to the AGM can be addressed to the members of the Council. All are contactable via the (confidential) email on this website.

The freeze-thaw conditions in Hamburg is taking its toll. The winter scenic charm is wearing a bit thin: for most of us the concentration required to not slip and fall when walking along Hamburg's pavements is just too much. Oh for a thaw!
It has even defeated the Wanderers who walk in all weathers, but not on all surfaces. Given the icy conditions, the walk planned for 13 February has reluctantly been cancelled.

Next walk is 13th March. A volunteer is sought to arrange this. Hopefully by then the ice will have cleared!

The Arbeitsgemeinschaft Christlicher Kirchen in Hamburg ACKH (Churches Together in Hamburg) invite all to a eucumenical service on the anniversary of the death of St Ansgar (3 Feb. 865) to be held in the Hauptkirche St Petri on Wednesday 3rd February at 19:00.
The service will combine the traditions of the West and Eastern Churches. There will be much music including singing by the Bach Choir of St. Petri, the Roman Catholic Schola Cantorum and the choir of the Russian Orthodox Church of St Johannes von Kronstatt. Bishop Gerhard Ulrich will preach.

Saint Ansgar was an Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. Through his "Mission to bring Christianity to the North", he became known as the "Apostle of the North".

For further information (in German) click here.

The Church of England has released the preliminary statistics for church attendance in 2008. From the table given it seems that the Diocese in Europe has 11,900 people of all ages attending Sunday services, with 10,700 on the Electoral Roll. This is up slightly from 2007, when the equivalent figures were 11,600 and 10,300 respectively.

On the subject of Electoral Roll, if you are a regular worshipper at St Thomas Becket, please do ensure you are on the Electoral Roll which will be open 14th February until 21st March. Being on the ER entails no onerous task other than being allowed to vote at the AGM. And it boosts the statistics!

Bishops Geoffrey and David invite the congregations and people of our diocese to support the needs of the Haitian people by donating generously to the Christian Aid Appeal for Haiti.
See article on the Eurobishop Blog.

Jonathan LLoyd, the Chaplain of St Alban's Copenhagen, was collated as Archdeacon of Germany and Northern Europe on 20 January. Further information available on Eurobishop Blog.
We wish 'the Venerable' Jonathan Lloyd all the best, our prayers and support.

The first 2010 Young Adults Group meeting takes place Friday 22 January 20:00 (note new time) for a good solid discussion on dealing with enemies. Friends and enemies welcome! Please refer to Young Adults page under "Activities" button for further details.

Haiti - a country that is amongst the poorest in the Western hemisphere - has suffered yet another natural catastrophe. Aid is urgently required to assist the many affected by a major earthquake that struck the country 12 January. Thousands of people are feared dead and countless have been left homeless.
Christain Aid has launched an emergency appeal, the details of which you can find here.

Please also take a look at Bishop David's blog entry on Haiti. The link is on this page above.

The Winter 2009 Edition of the Diocese in Europe quarterly magazine "The European Anglican" is available in church or directly from the Diocesan website here.

The purpose of the magazine is to inform about the scope and depth of ministry and mission by the various churches that make up the Diocese in Europe. It is a colourful and readable publication.
This edition contains a backpage feature on websites!

The Diocesan Prayer Diary for January-June 2010 is also available from the Diocese in Europe website. Click here to access.

Issue 41 of Becket News with news from near and far is available for downloading here.
Our thanks to the editor for putting this together over the Christmas break!

In his BBC New Year Message the Archbishop of Canterbury sets out that in this global society we now inhabit "risk and suffering are everybody's problem, the needs of our neighbours are the needs of the whole human family."
The full text and video of the message can be accessed here.

The Archbishop concludes his message expressing hope:
'Above all, it's about not losing our hope for change and our love and respect for the dignity of everyone. In a world where risk and suffering are everybody's problem, the needs of our neighbours are the needs of the whole human family. Let's respond just as we do when our immediate family is in need or trouble. We may be amazed by the difference we can make.

Christian Aid's income has been seriously affected by the recession and they do not currently have enough funds to cover all their planned activities in 2010. Unless circumstances change, on 19 February decisions about priorities will have to be made and who to stop helping.
Therefore, they have put out an urgent appeal for donations.

If you can support this and their important work for justice for the world's poorest, please click here.

The outcome of two years of preparation, and two weeks of negotiation has been a bitter disappointment for all who care about justice in this world and our responsibility to future generations. If we don't sort this mess out we will all be the losers. But it is important not to give up campaigning or hope as Sarah Spinney, Christian Aid's climate change campaigns manager suggests here.
Bishop David's BLOG contains a letter from Elias Crisostomo Abramides, the World Council of Churches' head of delegation to the Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen expressing a similar determination.
And in a BBC Radio 4 Thought for Today the Revd. Colin Morris suggests that faith communities have a significant role to play.

We can do better than this! We must do better than this!

Bishop Geoffrey's Christmas Message 2009 posted on the Diocese in Europe website can be accessed here.

One of the mission projects supported by St Thomas Becket is a NGO - Bountiful Harvest Rural Development - dedicated to bettering the lives of the local people on the Island of Palawan, Philippines. Simon Gill, who was a member of St Thomas Becket Church in the early 90's and his wife Jinky, are providing a "holistic ministry" i.e. addressing basic human rights, transferring agricultural skills and combining this with a 'quiet witness to Christ' to the rural community on Palawan. (See 'Mission Projects' page)

Their latest Newsletter can be accessed here. If you think the weather to be challenging here in Hamburg - read the newsletter!