Rising Dawn

Sign from above for city club (From York Press)

A CHURCH has used the renaming of a refurbished York nightclub to put out its own message.

A poster outside St Edward’s Church on Tadcaster Road declares: “SALVATION… more than a nightclub.”

But the marketing people behind Club Salvation – formerly Nexus – in George Hudson Street reckon God moves in mysterious ways.

Following my earlier rant about Salvation - the club - placing a promotion outside The Salvation Army it’s good to see another York church getting in on the act. But it’s one of those eternal dilemmas. At what point are you just creating more promotion for the event you object to. Two sayings come to mind. Imitation is flattery and All publicity is good publicity. 

The fact still remains Salvation is not found in a Night Club.

Scotts butchers closes after 130 years From York Press

ONE of York’s oldest butchers has closed its doors for the final time, citing council red-tape and corporate customers’ debts for the decision.

Scott’s Butchers has been at its Low Petergate home for 130 years.

What sad news. This was The Place to buy good meat and pies. To my mind no one matched Scotts, but I have to confess I rarely bought anything there. I guess I contributed to its demise - in a very small way. It looks as though bad debts and poor access were largely to blame for the closure of the business.

Dodging the traffic

Originally uploaded by Dawnriser

My usual start in York. The unpleasant ride along Gillygate. This
morning there are three buses in a row and a truck on front of them.
It’s at this point I wished I’d opted for the cycle track through Bootham
Park.
I’m setting off for a route on the west of York circling round through
Tockwith, Whixley, Linton on Ouse and back to York. About 35 miles.

No by pass for training today

Originally uploaded by Dawnriser

Just time for a short ride this morning so I’m heading out towards
Stockton (on the Forest not Tees) this my usual stop to stretch my
tight muscles before circling the city to Haxby or Skelton.

This is all for a sponsored ride to raise money for Palestinian
students coming to the Riding Lights Summer School. Link for donations
below

This building and collection of old railway carriages was once a top class restaurant called “The Sidings”. It’s now an Italian restaurant. It’s name has been changed, the old semaphore signal at the entrance is rusting and the carriages look neglected.

You can stand and watch the high speed trains shoot past on a wooden platform at the back of this building. The experience is sensational. Travelling at anything up to 125mph they don’t stop to let customers off - it’s just a viewing point.

I did a series of stretches here. I could feel my muscles tightening and some numbness in my fingers and toes. The result of a few hours in the saddle and leaning on the handlebars. 

I travelled through Alne (pronounced Orne) and Tollerton to get here on the edge of Shipton by Beninborough. The main A19 passes nearby but it’ll be some miles before I join it. I turn off in a few yards to Overton and then to Skelton for the three miles home alongside the main road on a series of variable cycle tracks..

One thing I notice entering any town or city. The road surface deteriorates. So I judder my way into Eboracum or Jorvik, now known as York. Time for a shower and tea. 

One day and 38 miles closer to my sponsored ride in the Yorkshire Dales next month in aid of Palestinian Students attending the Riding Lights Summer School.

To sponsor my Yorkshire Dales ride click here

  The chief executive at the prayer breakfast

I had breakfast with Bill McCarthy,  the Chief Exec of the City of York Council. I joined about 40 leaders from churches in the city for one of their occasional prayer breakfasts in The Spurriergate Centre organised by One Voice York. Key leaders from the city are invited to talk frankly about their expectations of the churches and we spend time praying in response.

This morning Bill McCarthy appealed to us to welcome the strangers and the disadvantaged into the city. While only four percent of York’s population is from outside the UK, it’s the fastest growing sector. He said it was important to integrate these new people into York and he asked for our help. There were leaders representing a broad range of churches from Independent Pentecostal to Roman Catholics, Mr McCarthy’s own persuasion.  There’s a longer report about the event on the One Voice site.

Nestlé Jettisons Rowntree Name (from York Press)
A MAJOR link with York’s past has been severed with news that Nestlé is all but abandoning the Rowntree name.

Almost 20 years after it acquired Rowntree, the company has revealed its Nestlé Rowntree confectionery division will now trade under the name Nestlé Confectionery (UK).

This huge international company may leave the name off their letterheads and factory signs, but it will take a bigger operator than Nestlé to remove the legacy of Rowntrees from York. The work that this family did contributed significantly to modern social science. Today the Joseph Rowntree Foundation still funds significant research into social issues.

As far as I am concerned the Kit Kat will always be a Rowntree snack. It’s still the world’s most popular chocolate bar and I eat far too many of them!

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
from Morning Prayer

Despite forecasts of bad weather and earlier snow the baptisms went ahead in the open air.

Making A Splash (from York Press)
CROWDS watched as the Archbishop of York performed open-air baptisms in the city as part of an Easter Sunday celebration.

In the specially-erected pool outside the church of St Michael-le-Belfry, next to York Minster, Dr John Sentamu welcomed 25 people into the Christian faith in a ceremony.

Outside it’s white over. Heavy snow fell in the night. So Easter Day in York starts with a chill.
New Christians are being baptised in the city today. It was to have been an open air event, but the church leaders have decided to move it indoors.

Easter Baptisms in York 2007

One Voice York
As Britain braces itself for predicted wintery weather, we have made the decision to move what was to be an open-air event to St Michael-le-Belfrey next to the Minster.

Candidates from many York churches are being baptised and you are invited to join the celebration with us at 3pm.

The York City Gospel Choir will be performing and Archbishop Sentamu will be talking as part of this lively unique event.

It’s a day to celebrate Christianity’s greatest event - its dawn. I know many find the fact of Christ’s resurrection from the dead hard to believe, but without it there is no faith. “If Christ is not risen we are of all men most miserable”