It was a relief to many when the 1995 General Assembly of the Church of Scotland endorsed the view of its Board of Social Responsibility “that participation in the National Lottery would be contrary to the Church’s opposition to all forms of gambling.”
However, there is the danger that this decision may yet be overturned. The report of the Church’s Board of Procedure and Practice is calling for the establishment of a commission to reconsider the Assembly’s ban on Church congregations and organisations receiving lottery funding.
Added to this is the disgraceful fact, according to the Rev George Cowie of Kirkcaldy, that Kirk elders, members and ministers are among those in the 95 per cent of households who participate in the lottery.
Those in the Church who are opposed to gambling are having an increasingly stiff fight on their hands. □
African Mission News
THE Rev A. Ndebele’s health is continuing to slowly improve. He has been able to take some short services at Insiza and Gadade outstations, and one service at Ingwenya. We hope and pray that the improvement will steadily continue.
It is expected that Rev. P. Mzamo and Mr L. Ndlovu will attend the annual Synod in Inverness in May, God willing, as the representatives of the Zimbabwean Presbytery, after they have visited Holland.
The new classroom for commercial subjects is now complete and all that remains to be done is the installation of equipment and furniture. □
Kenya
IT was with the greatest relief that the people in Sengera saw the rain come at the beginning of April. No longer will they have to transport water: the tanks on the compound are filling steadily. So torrential has been the downpour that the tanks at the homes of Mr Goldby and Dr de Jong filled within four days.
The staff are looking forward to the arrival, on 23rd April, of Mr George MacAskill, Inverness, a qualified mechanic who is to spend four weeks at Sengera doing maintenance work on the Mission vehicles on a voluntary basis. □
Eastern Europe Mission News
THE journey of Rev Donald Ross and Mr Edward Ross from this country to Kiev went well, apart from having to travel through a snowstorm in Ukraine for 250 kilometres. They were able to conduct services, as was hoped, in Borispol on Sabbath 30th March and in Odessa on Sabbath 6th April.
However, they had a very difficult time at the hands of the Customs officials in Kiev. Evidently, the customs regulations have been changed yet again, a fact they were not informed of by the Ukrainian Embassy in London although it was fully appraised of their purpose in visiting Ukraine. The Kiev Customs Service made the unprecedented demand that they pay a very large amount of tax on the humanitarian goods. After nine days and many meetings with government officials, the demand for tax was waived and they were able to distribute the Bibles, literature, medicines and clothing.
The return journey through Ukraine to Hungary was far from easy. Not only did they have some mechanical trouble but also the roads were covered by hard-packed snow and were very slippery. Numerous trucks were stuck along the way. At the time of writing (9th April) they are safely into Hungary, weather conditions are now good, and they are proceeding homewards.
May the Lord bless our efforts to render help, especially of a spiritual nature, to those who are very much less favoured than we are. ☐