"And shepherds were in the same district in the field fold, and maintaining watches at night over their flock. And lo! A messenger of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of God shines about them, and they were afraid with a great fear. And the messenger said to them,'Fear not, for lo! I am bringing you an Evangel of great joy which will be for the entire people, for today was brought forth to you a Saviour, who is Christ, the Lord, in the city of David. And this is the sign to you: you will be finding a babe, swaddled and lying in a manger.'
"And suddenly with the messenger there came to be a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,'glory to God among the highest! And on earth peace, among men, delight!" (Luke 2: 8-14).
Dear Brethren,
Ebenezer Scrooge, prior to his dramatic U-turn on the institution, was perhaps fiction's most hostile critic of Christmas. No doubt Scrooge had his real-life contemporaries, but they might have had a different take on the season had they been anticipating it in 2025 rather than 1843.
A necessary pre-Christmas ritual for online shoppers now is the constant deletion of shoals of emails from retailers big and small promoting bizarre bargain deals - pick a number between, say, 15 and 70 and you've probably had an email reducing prices by that percentage every day since the start of October, if not earlier.
The evidence that Christmas is nothing more than a blend of commercialism and hedonism accumulates year on year. Those who want further arguments against its celebrations can find them in the facts that Christmas is never mentioned in Scripture, and that the date of Christ's birth isn't known but is very unlikely to have been December twenty-fifth. Nevertheless, for the believer inclined to mark it, Christmas still has a meaning which transcends any of the world's fleshly blandishments and distractions. Its season sprawls longer each year, but its worldly traditions eventually perish yet again.
We have been blessed with the knowledge of salvation by God's Grace through Christ Jesus, a realisation which, once gained, sustains us forever.
Nineteen of us gathered for our annual conference in early September. For the fifth successive year, we met amidst the tranquil beauty of the Lake District at The Thornleigh Hotel, at Grange Over-Sands. It was the usual mix of edifying talks and fellowship, supported by the warm and attentive hospitality from Thornleigh's very friendly staff.
There were four addresses: John Doe considered the question, Eternity: how did this word get into scripture? Hugh Jenkins asked: Why are we all here? Patrick Fitzpatrick's address was entitled: Salvation: its origin and consummation, and I spoke on The Sovereignty of God.
On Saturday evening, I chaired a panel of Douglas Faulds and Patrick Fitzpatrick for our usual conference question time session.
Thornleigh 2025 was (including our lockdown-induced virtual gathering of 2020) our fiftieth consecutive annual conference. In honour of this, we met on Saturday afternoon for a convivial afternoon tea and a quiz, compiled by Jan, on the last half-century of annual gatherings. In the same vain, on Sunday evening we assembled for an evening of reflection on past conferences and to remember the part played in them by beloved saints no longer with us.
As always, on Sunday morning we gathered for a time of praise and worship, led again this year by Patrick Fitzpatrick.
God Willing, we will meet at Thornleigh again in 2026. Don't send bookings or money yet. We'll send out forms with the next Newsletter a few months into 2026, but it's always worth saving the dates of the most enjoyable or important upcoming events in life - and this surely ticks both boxes.
So the details are:
Sunday night accommodation will again be available for those who are able to extend their stay into Monday morning. Most participants do so and it's marvellous to be able to extend our fellowship.
For details of the Conference venue,
visit the Thornleigh Hotel website or click on this link:
We are a small and scattered body of believers and our opportunities for gathering for these precious occasions are painfully rare - so if you haven't joined us at a conference for a while, please prayerfully consider doing so next year. We need to cherish the gatherings we do have, and if you have ideas for further opportunities for fellowship, please do let us know.
Two beloved members of our fellowship have departed this life since our last Newsletter:
On fifth July Noreen Heath went to sleep in The Lord, aged ninety-six. Noreen was unarguably an institution in our fellowship. She attended every conference and Leedham's meeting for many years until her health declined. She was our long-time pianist at conferences, occasionally singing a solo to her own accompaniment. God inspired Noreen to bring forward Linda Pengelly to succeed her at the keyboard, for which we are profoundly grateful to God, Noreen and Linda.
On Third August, Alasdair Baxter passed away, aged eighty-nine. A man of deep faith, he had suffered health problems for many years but continued to attend gatherings until 2024. We remember Christine as she steps out on the new path God has taken her to after many years of devotion to Alasdair.
Regular readers will know that the December issue of this publication brings with it a tradition of its own - if not an overtly Christmassy one: around the turn of the year, Jan pays over the subscriptions to Unsearchable Riches Magazine for those of you who have sent a cheque for the required £14, A number of readers have already sent us their subscriptions. If you wish to add yourself to the list, please send us the money by the end of this year and Jan will transfer the money for you.
And so ends another CBS Newsletter and hard upon it, another year.
However you feel led to understand this season of the year, we pray that God will richly bless you during it, and throughout the year to come.
God bless,
Malcolm and Jan.
Contact Details:
Malcolm and Jan Ferries, Flat 5, Redholme Court, Red Hill,
Stourbridge, West Midlands, DY8 1ND
Landline: 01384 379531 Mobile: 07763187876
Email: sumo@honyaku.co.uk Website: concordantbiblesociety.uk
Andrew Maclarty is the editor of Grace & Truth magazine,
3 Bishops Farm Mill, Witan Way, Witney, OX28 4DG
Landline: 01993 706848 Mobile: 07722693096 Email: gracetruth@outlook.com
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