Manchester Synagogue Attack
Thursday 02 October 2025
Dear Friends
The London Methodist District stands today in grief, shock and solidarity with our Jewish sisters and brothers as we hear of the appalling attack on the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Manchester.
Across London, Methodist churches and people work and live in close and mutual relationships of love and respect with our Jewish neighbours and their faith communities. Today, we reaffirm and recommit ourselves to those friendships and to deepening our common life. We ask all London Methodists to pray for all who mourn and who are in fear; and we encourage all Methodist churches in their varied and diverse contexts to continue to work and witness for peace, justice, harmony, respect and building up the common good.
On your behalf, we will reach out to Jewish leaders across London. With them, we believe and proclaim that as God’s love continues to make and remake us, hatred shall never have the final word. The great ‘Shalom’ of our Creator, in which all creation is blessed and renewed, remains our vision and our goal, by God’s grace.
Every blessing
Faith and Jonathan
(Joint District Chairs)
Harvest Festival
Our service of celebration of Harvest is on Sunday 5th, October at 10.30am and will be led by Tony Loft. As is our custom, members of the congregation are invited to bring gifts of food and clothing to the service for donation to one of our supported charities. This year, that charity is Faith in Action. Please visit their website Faith in Action (Merton) where their current list of urgent requirements may be found.
Paul’s letter
When we were driving home from the Greenbelt festival at the end of the August Bank Holiday weekend, we were surprised to see flags hanging from motorway bridges. We rather naively assumed that this might be connected with the Women’s Rugby World Cup. It was only when we got home, emerged from our festival bubble and reconnected with the outside world, that we discovered the close links between the “Operation Raise the Colours” movement, anti-migrant protests and the targeting of hotels housing asylum seekers. As much as I usually love to see flags flying, the sinister undercurrent to this recent display of so-called “patriotism” leaves an unhealthy taste in my mouth.
The Methodist Church is committed to being an inclusive, justice-seeking and evangelistic church. We have a story to tell – one that centres on the good news of God’s love for the world and its people – and we can only tell that story well if we live it out. To find out what that story is, please read the whole of Paul’s letter.
Our Community
For an updated list of activities offered by groups meeting on our premises, please visit our Community page
The Open Table
Wednesdays 11:30am - 2pm
A friendly welcome awaits you at The Open Table, a place where you can relax, enjoy a cuppa and a chat, read a book, take advantage of free WiFi and charge your phone. You can also enjoy a hot meal prepared by our team of excellent cooks. Our food comes from greengrocers and supermarkets whose surplus but in-date food would normally go to waste. However, as we don’t know what nor how much food we are getting until the day before we cannot guarantee how long it will be on the menu. So come early for best choice. We open every Wednesday at 11.30am for coffee and serve food from 12 noon. Last orders are 1.30pm and we close at 2pm.
It is for everyone, so come along and help stop food going to waste. It is free although donations are welcome. Also we have recently gained a coveted “5 Star” rating for food hygiene from the Food Standard Agency. For further details please email opentable@martinway.org.uk
Lunch Club
Fortnightly on Fridays 12.00pm - 2.30pm
Our Lunch Club is taking a summer break but will be back on Friday, 5th September when you can come along to enjoy the company of others whilst eating a two course meal comprising a main dish and dessert, followed by cheese and biscuits, washed down with tea of coffee for a very reasonable £5. We are open from 12 noon and food is served at 12.30pm. Again, all are welcome, especially the elderly and those who live alone. For further details please email lunchclub@martinway.org.uk
Community Garden
It’s been a long time in the making but with dedication by our team of gardeners, what was once a weedy, uneven apology for a patio has been transformed into a garden for all, producing vegetables for the church activities and the community. It is not finished yet (what garden ever is?) but we have now had laid a safe, all-weather surface so that the outdoors can be enjoyed without fear of tripping up. We have also installed new outdoor furniture to provide safe seating and at the same time adding a splash of colour. Regular “Bring & Share Lunches” are held on a Sunday after church enabling people to meet, eat and do a spot of gardening.
Slides of the transformation may be watched here. For more information, please email community-garden@martinway.org.uk
Open Church
Tuesdays 10.30 - 12 noon
During the week, our church will be open on Tuesday mornings from 10.30 to 12 noon for prayer, reflection or just for someone to talk to. Afterwards, why not pop along to our Coffee & Chat to meet others and have a cuppa. There may be cake on offer too!
Coffee & Chat
Tuesdays 10.30 - 12 noon
If you are feeling lonely, want a chat or cup of coffee, or simply want to take the weight off your feet for a few minutes then pop in. There will be all sorts of friends ready to make you welcome.
Services at Martin Way
Our services are usually broadcast live on our Facebook page. However, if you are able, please come and join us in person. We would love to see you and a warm welcome is guaranteed. To watch a service again or even for the first time, just click on the high-lighted preacher’s name in the table below. Note that videos are only available for 30 days from the date of the service.
| Date | Time | Preacher | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 03Aug | 10:30 | Sally Rush | Morning Worship |
| 10Aug | 10:30 | Revd Paul Timmis | Holy Communion |
| 17Aug | 10:30 | Revd Dawn Canham | Morning Worship |
| 18:00 | [Revd Paul Timmis] | Holy Communion | |
| 24Aug | 10:30 | Revd Chris Morley | Morning Worship |
| 31Aug | 10:30 | Revd Paul Timmis | Cafe Worship |
| 07Sep | 10:30 | Tony Loft | Morning Worship |
| 14Sep | 10:30 | Revd Paul Timmis | Cafe Worship |
| 21Sep | 10:30 | Viv Newitt | Morning Worship |
| 28Sep | 10:30 | Richard Graham | Morning Worship |
| 05Oct | 10:30 | Tony Loft | Harvest Festival |
| 18:00 | Revd Emma Cusack | Holy Communion | |
| 12Oct | 10:30 | Revd Paul Timmis | Holy Communion |
| 19Oct | 10:30 | Brenda Cannon | Morning Worship |
| 26Oct | 10:30 | Revd Paul Timmis | Cafe Worship |
Take 5
The Revd Chris Morley, who has led worship at Martin Way on a number of occasions, started a venture, called “Take Five”. Each daily thought is a suggestion for how each of us might grow spiritually and come closer to God by reflecting that day on a particular theme. He is inviting people to Take Five minutes each day to join him, either on YouTube or Facebook.
The Building of Martin Way Methodist Church
A video has come to light showing the building of our church. It was original film on 8mm film and has been transcribed via VHS tape to an mp4 video which may be watched here. It is 22 minutes long, grainy and there is no sound but it is a fascinating piece of archive history.
On our Facebook page you can keep up to date with what is happening in our church family and also view our streamed Sunday morning services. It can be accessed by clicking on the small blue Facebook logo wherever it pops up on this site or by visiting https://www.facebook.com/martinwaymethodist or by searching for @martinwaymethodist in a browser or on Facebook itself.
