Calendar of Events

Upcoming events at the House of the Open Door Community

The Community hosts many events throughout the year, using some of the facilities in our Retreat Centre; we list those coming up in a calendar below.  

Our Tithe Barn is sometimes reserved for guest groups but is at other times is an ideal event space for meetings or conferences hosted by the community such as our Friday night Fellowship meetings, or those visiting for discipleship.  Smaller meetings such as craft retreats take place in our Craft Studio.

If you are visiting for one of the events it may be possible for us to cater for you in our Dining Room; during your visit you are welcome to spend any spare time in our Retreat Centre Gardens

To subscribe to this calendar click “Subscribe” bottom right and choose your calendar type e.g. Google Calendar

Aug
4
Fri
Jenny Baker First Friday – “Living in the Spirit, in the 21st Century”
Aug 4 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Jenny Baker will be speaking at our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for August.  

Jenny will be speaking on “Living in the Spirit, in the 21st Century”

Join us as we seek the Lord together – All welcome

See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates

_____________

As Regional Coordinator for the Celebrate Catholic Charismatic Events,  Jenny spends much of her time travelling to the many weekend conferences to support the regional teams.  She has served the Celebrate leadership team since 2006 and previously worked within the Catholic Church presenting and producing Catholic Faith Exploration (CaFE) DVD resources.

She also speaks across the UK and beyond in parishes and at conferences.

She is Vice Chair of the English National Service Committee (NSC) for Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

Apr
6
Fri
CANCELLED – April First Friday
Apr 6 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

We have had to cancel our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for April.

We hope to invite our planned speaker Ian McDonald at a later date.

See the Calendar of Events for future events

May
4
Fri
May First Friday – Jane Holloway
May 4 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

The speaker for our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for May is Jane Holloway. 

Jane will speak on the theme “God on the Move – partnering with Him in prayer

Join us as we seek the Lord together – All welcome

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates

_____________

Jane Holloway has been working to equip and encourage prayer across many denominations, organisations and churches for the past twenty five years. 

For the last 12 years she has been the National Prayer Director at the World Prayer Centre (Birmingham, UK) enabling her to travel and connect widely across the British Isles regarding prayer and mission.

She lives in West Oxfordshire, goes to a local Anglican church and loves to enjoy God’s creation, walking, gardening, playing tennis and hanging out with friends – when she is not working!

Nov
2
Fri
November First Friday – Rabbi Richard Harvey: “Jews for Jesus”
Nov 2 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Richard Harvey’s visit to HOD in March was cancelled due to poor weather, but we are very pleased to announce that it has been rescheduled for this November…

The speaker for our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for November will be Rabbi Richard Harvey, speaking on the theme “Jews for Jesus“.

Richard is a UK based-Jewish believer in Jesus (Yeshua) who has served with the Church’s Ministry among the Jewish people (CMJ) and as UK Director of Jews for Jesus. He became a believer in Jesus in 1974 from a Liberal Jewish background. His and his wife’s story are told in “But I’m Jewish!”
In 1997 he joined the staff of All Nations Christian College, and left there in 2011 to become Senior Researcher with Jews for Jesus. His work involves writing and researching Messianic Jewish Theology, and also teaching, training and mentoring in the UK, Israel and worldwide. In 2013 he presented a paper at the World Congress of Jewish Studies at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem on the subject of Messianic Jews, and gave a Bible reading at the Lausanne Global Leaders Forum, Bangalore, India. He is presently working on books on Martin Luther and the Jews, a systematic theology of Messianic  Judaism, and an introduction to Supersessionism. His blog “On this day in Messianic Jewish history” traces the experiences of Jewish believers in Jesus from the days of the early church up to the present.
More information may be found on Richard’s website www.mmjt.eu

Please come and join us for a very interesting and informative evening. No need to book – just turn up! The evening concludes at 10pm with refreshments.

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates

_____________

Richard is a UK based-Jewish believer in Jesus (Yeshua) who has served with the Church’s Ministry among the Jewish people (CMJ) and as UK Director of Jews for Jesus. He became a believer in Jesus in 1974 from a Liberal Jewish background. His and his wife’s story are told in “But I’m Jewish!”

He taught Hebrew Bible and Jewish Studies at All Nations Christian College, UK, and was Academic Dean and Director of Postgraduate Studies. He is a past President of the International Messianic Jewish Alliance (IMJA). His PhD was supervised by Rabbi Dan Cohn-Sherbok and is published as Mapping Messianic Jewish Theology: A Constructive  Approach (2009). He is now Senior Researcher with Jews for Jesus, and spends his time writing, teaching, training, mentoring and drinking coffee in UK, Israel and around the world. His most recent book “Luther and the Jews: Putting Right the Lies” (Wipf and Stock, 2017) is a timely contribution to the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation.

He is married to Monica, who is also a Jewish believer in Jesus, and has two children and three grandchildren. His website www.mmjt.eu and academia.edu page has many of his articles, presentations, power-points, etc. 

 

 

Apr
3
Fri
April First Friday – Sister Hyacinthe Defos du Rau
Apr 3 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Sr Hyacinthe Defos du Rau, O.P.

The speaker for our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for April will be Sr Hyacinthe Defos du Rau, O.P, who will be speaking to us in the run up to Holy Week.

Sister Hyacinthe has known community many years, since before she joined the Dominican Sisters of St. Joseph

She speaks and writes in catechesis, and is Head of Formation for the Mission Team for Portsmouth Diocese.  She is a gifted communicator of the truths of Christian faith especially with the young, and uses the new media in her work (webinars and podcasts such as Sunday Gospel Podcasts). 

Please come and join us as we seek the Lord together.  The evening concludes at 10 p.m. with refreshments.

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

____

Sr. Hyacinthe Defos du Rau, OP is a member of the Dominican Sisters of St. Joseph in Lymington, UK, which she joined in 2000. She has been an associate member of the staff of Maryvale Institute, Birmingham, UK, since 2007, and is one of their MA student supervisors. She is the author of the Anchor resource for adult faith formation. Since 2007, she has been translating from French the Come, follow me catechesis.

Nov
12
Fri
Friday night Fellowship meeting – Yoofi Clarke (at HOD)
Nov 12 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm

We are restarting our live Friday Fellowship Meetings, and on Friday November 12 our speaker (joining us remotely) will be Yoofi Clarke.

Yoofi coordinates Praise Fest, a Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group in Milton Keynes, and is a member of the Charis service team (CDSC) for the diocese of Northampton.

Yoofi will be speaking on the theme “Standing your Ground”

Our fellowship meeting will be in the Tithe Barn at HOD for those who live locally. We had hoped to livestream this on Youtube live but will not be able to, apologies.

The recording of Yoofi’s talk will be posted afterwards on our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCelO052TL4FCFqG9OjtIj6Q

Please join us as we seek the Lord together.  

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

____

Yoofi Clarke serves the Lord as Coordinator of Praise Fest, a vibrant Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group in the cluster of St. Barnabas parishes in Milton Keynes.
 
He served as a member of the Diocesan Service Team for Northampton Diocese for over five years and was recently appointed as the interim Coordinator of the new Charis Diocesan Service Committee.
 
Yoofi has been involved in Catholic Charismatic Renewal for over 27 years and desires to see unity in the Body of Christ, and for us to live our faith outside the walls of the church building by developing a deeper relationship with the Holy Spirit and being attentive to His voice in our daily activities.
 
He lives in Buckingham with his lovely wife Pep and their 2 amazing children.
 
Feb
18
Fri
Friday night meeting – “The Beauty of Selflessness”
Feb 18 @ 7:45 pm – 9:45 pm

Our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for February will be on Fri 18th Feb.

John Trimming will speak on the theme “The Beauty of Selflessness”, exploring the parables in Luke chapter 15.

Join us live if you can – in the The Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship. 

We plan to share a recording of the talk afterwards on our YouTube channel.

See our Calendar of Events for a number of other Friday night speakers planned for other dates in 2022.

Mar
4
Fri
March First Friday: Fr Simon Penhalagan: “Living the Great Commandment”
Mar 4 @ 7:45 pm – 9:45 pm

Fr Simon Penhalagan will be the speaker at our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for March 2022.  

Fr Simon will speak on the theme “Living the Great Commandment”, joining us in The Tithe Barn at HOD for live worship and the talk. 

Those near enough are welcome to join us.  We hope nearer the time to share details about a livestream, if possible.

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates

_____________

Fr Simon Penhalagan is a Catholic priest of the Northampton diocese, ordained in 2008, and now a parish priest in Luton.

He is a long-term member and former president of Sion Catholic Community for Evangelism, where he has been involved in many aspects of evangelisation, discipleship and leadership formation.  Having his roots in youth ministry, he now has oversight of the youth ministry office of his home diocese.  This is part of his wider remit as Episcopal Vicar for Mission, seeking to enable the parishes of the Northampton diocese to share the love of God with the wider community.

Fr Simon is also the Deputy Coordinator of the CHARIS National Service of Communion, serving Catholic Charismatic Renewal in England and Wales.

Apr
1
Fri
April First Friday – Iris Riemersma, “The Joshua Generation and the Great Commission”
Apr 1 @ 7:45 pm – 9:30 pm

Iris Riemersma is the speaker for our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for April 2022, leading us on the theme “The Joshua Generation and the Great Commission“.

Iris is an intern at Water from the Rock, a ministry based locally to HOD.  Having met Iris recently, we invited her to speak as we felt she was inspiring about sharing the Gospel, particularly with younger Christians.  From Iris’ profile (see below): “I hope to work towards bridging the gap between the older generations that have gone before us in faith, and the new generation of Christians that is rising up.

Join us if you can – in the The Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship. 

Details TBC nearer the time:  There may be a live stream on YouTube, but if not, we hope to share a recording of the talk afterwards on our YouTube channel.

See our Calendar of Events for a number of other Friday night speakers planned for other dates in 2022.

_____________

Iris Writes:

My name is Iris Riemersma, I’m 23 years old and from the Netherlands.

I have had the privilege to grow up in a Christian family with parents who love the Lord, and because of that I never doubted His existence.  However, I only started my personal walk with the Lord in my late teenage years. 

From a very young age I was very aware of, and broken for, the brokenness of this world, especially when it comes to orphans and the Fatherless. When I was 17 years old, I joined Youth with a Mission (YWAM) where I did a discipleship training school and a Children at Risk school, later staffing on both.

For the last six months I have been with a ministry called “Water from the Rock”, in England.

I hope to work towards bridging the gap between the older generations that have gone before us in faith, and the new generation of Christians that is rising up.

Jul
20
Wed
Daniella Stephens (Gateway Youth conference 2022)
Jul 20 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Daniella Stephens will be speaking at HOD as part of HOD’s Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2022.

The Conference is on the theme “Gateway” – opening the Gates and Doors of our lives to make way for the King of Glory.  Expand your horizons – connect with God and others in new ways…

Daniella is an inspirational speaker with a passion for the Gospel and prayer ministry.  We look forward to welcoming her speaking to us all and encouraging all of us, especially those at HOD for Gateway or the wider Discipleship Course 2022.

Join us in The Tithe Barn at HOD for live worship and the talk. 

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates

_____________

Daniella is from Manchester and in full-time ministry as a Catholic Speaker. She is passionately committed to the urgent task of proclaiming and teaching the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Daniella has always been a practising Catholic but after a deeper encounter with Jesus at 17, felt a powerful call to share the Gospel, particularly the goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and mercy of God!

For the past 10 years she has been formed in speaking, evangelisation, catechesis & prayer ministry. In 2018, she graduated from the Maryvale Institute with a First-Class Honours Ecclesiastical Bachelor of Divinity and has received much of her formation through the Prince of Peace Community and New Dawn Conference Walsingham, founded by Myles Dempsey.

She speaks to people of all ages at prayer groups, youth groups, parishes, retreats, and conferences both nationally and internationally.

Jul
26
Tue
Br. Loarne Ferguson evening 1 (Gateway Youth conference 2022)
Jul 26 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Brother Loarne Ferguson will be speaking at HOD on two July evenings (26 and 28) as part of HOD’s Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2022.

The Conference is on the theme “Gateway” – opening the Gates and Doors of our lives to make way for the King of Glory..  Expand your horizons – connect with God and others in new way…

Gateway week 2 focuses on Discipleship and Mission. Brother Loarne’s teaching on these evenings will focus on these areas, and be addressed especially to those at HOD for Gateway or the wider Discipleship Course 2022.

Brother Loarne has been a long-term friend of HOD, helping the community and those we serve in a number of ways, from the spiritual to the very practical – In 2021, he led a project to build us a new Apiary, using ecological methods and recycled material (see our blog post – The Apiary at HOD).

More details about Brother Loarne below.

Join us in The Tithe Barn at HOD for live worship and the talk. 

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

_______________________

Br. Loarne Ferguson

Br. Loarne became a member of the Capuchin Franciscan Order 30 years ago. He is now 53 years old and lives at the Friary in Chester with six other religious brothers. For 14 years he has helped to form small groups dedicated to discipleship and evangelisation while holding various other posts.

Key Christian interests:

Divine change management for individuals and communities; prophetic ministry; equipping for mission; contemplative life.

Key human interests:

Creativity & culture; arts & crafts; relationships, ecology & music.

Jul
27
Wed
Esther Price (Gateway Youth conference 2022)
Jul 27 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Esther Price will be speaking at HOD as part of HOD’s Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2022.

The Conference is on the theme “Gateway” – opening the Gates and Doors of our lives to make way for the King of Glory..  Expand your horizons – connect with God and others in new way…

We have invited Esther to speak during Gateway week 2, which focuses on Discipleship and Mission.  We are sure she will speak inspiringly in these areas due to her  passion for evangelism and life given in service of the Gospel.  Her teaching will be addressed especially those at HOD for Gateway or the wider Discipleship Course 2022, but is open to all.

More details about Esther below.

Join us in The Tithe Barn at HOD for live worship and the talk. 

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates

_______________________

Esther Price
God called Esther to full-time missions in her early 20’s, working with Youth With A Mission for 3 years.  However, just as she was ready to do cross cultural missions, God told her to go back to Hereford.  

After a long break away, God drew her back to missions and she went on her first trip with Blessed To Be A Blessing (BTBAB) to Peru in 2014.  She has since been on a further 8 short term mission trips, worked in various co-ordinator posts for the organisation, lived in Thailand for 4 months and became the National Director in April 2022.  

Esther is called to work with broken women, walking alongside them to see Gods healing and restoration in their lives.  

Jul
28
Thu
Br. Loarne Ferguson evening 2 (Gateway Youth conference 2022)
Jul 28 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Brother Loarne Ferguson will be speaking at HOD on two July evenings (26 and 28) as part of HOD’s Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2022.

The Conference is on the theme “Gateway” – opening the Gates and Doors of our lives to make way for the King of Glory..  Expand your horizons – connect with God and others in new way…

Gateway week 2 focuses on Discipleship and Mission. Brother Loarne’s teaching on these evenings will focus on these areas, and be addressed especially to those at HOD for Gateway or the wider Discipleship Course 2022.

Brother Loarne has been a long-term friend of HOD, helping the community and those we serve in a number of ways, from the spiritual to the very practical – In 2021, he led a project to build us a new Apiary, using ecological methods and recycled material (see our blog post – The Apiary at HOD).

More details about Brother Loarne below.

Join us in The Tithe Barn at HOD for live worship and the talk. 

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

_______________________

Br. Loarne Ferguson

Br. Loarne became a member of the Capuchin Franciscan Order 30 years ago. He is now 53 years old and lives at the Friary in Chester with six other religious brothers. For 14 years he has helped to form small groups dedicated to discipleship and evangelisation while holding various other posts.

Key Christian interests:

Divine change management for individuals and communities; prophetic ministry; equipping for mission; contemplative life.

Key human interests:

Creativity & culture; arts & crafts; relationships, ecology & music.

Oct
7
Fri
First Friday for October – Community speaker
Oct 7 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
First Friday for October - Community speaker
Our First Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for October will have a speaker from the community.
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Nov
4
Fri
First Friday for Nov 22 – Gae Trimming, “Being prepared”
Nov 4 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Gae Trimming from community will be our First Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for November 22.
 
Gae will speak on “Being prepared“.
 
Matthew 25:13…  “Keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour…”
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we often upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  For certain evenings we hope at some point to livestream speakers’ talks on the YouTube channel, if appropriate.
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Dec
2
Fri
First Friday for December – Community speaker
Dec 2 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
First Friday for December - Community speaker
Our First Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for December will have a speaker from the community.
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Feb
3
Fri
First Friday for February – Community speaker
Feb 3 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
First Friday for February - Community speaker
Our First Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for February will have a speaker from the community.
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Mar
10
Fri
Friday Fellowship meeting for March – Alysen Merrill, “The call to love in communities of faith”
Mar 10 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for March 2023 will be on the second Friday of the month, March 10th.
 
Our guest speaker will be Alysen Merrill (more about Alysen below)
 
Alysen will speak on “The call to love in communities of faith“, from Philippians 2.
 

“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind…”
Philippians 2:1-2

 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
 
______________
 

Alysen Merrill is passionate about people, the local church, discipleship journeys, organisational culture and really good curries!  She was born in the states and would say it’s been her privilege to live and serve in England the last 18 years, currently being based in Oxfordshire. She desires to be an encouragement to friends and strangers alike and likes to help individuals be attentive to God.

She has worked with numerous churches in England and currently works for a youth charity as well as helping people and teams flourish in her role as a Strengthsfinder coach.

Apr
14
Fri
Dr Chloe Lynch – HOD Friday Fellowship meeting for April
Apr 14 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for April 2023 will be on April 14th, the second Friday of the month.
 

Dr Chloe Lynch

Dr Chloe Lynch will be our speaker.

Chloe is Lecturer in Practical Theology at London School of Theology.  After practising as a City lawyer, Chloe spent ten years working in church leadership.  Now, alongside her teaching and writing work, she mentors leaders and offers spiritual direction to those who want to grow in prayer.  Her book, Ecclesial Leadership as Friendship, was published by Routledge in 2019 and she blogs very occasionally at http://theartofsteering.wordpress.com.
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
 

The art of steering blog

 

 

 

May
12
Fri
Fr Columba Jordan CFR – HOD Friday Fellowship meeting for May
May 12 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for May 2023 will be on the second Friday of the month, May 12th.
 

Fr Columba Jordan CFR

Our guest speaker will be Fr Columba Jordan CFR.

 
Fr Columba is a well known and inspiring writer, blogger and conference speaker, often speaking on prayer, healing, evangelism and service of the poor.
 
He is a member of the Franciscans Friars of the Renewal since 2001. He was ordained in 2011 in New York and then was stationed in Derry Northern Ireland as the superior of the friar’s house there. He now lives in Bradford England at St Pio Friary where he is the rector of St Patrick’s church, the friar’s European vocation director, serves the local poor, does spiritual direction and a lot of preaching.
 
Fr Columba has also been providing weekly video teachings to Called To More, an online Catholic formation ministry for young adults on YouTube. 
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
 
 

 

 

Jun
9
Fri
Matt Blair – HOD Friday Fellowship meeting for June
Jun 9 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Matt Blair from Gas Street Church in Birmingham will be our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting speaker for June 2023, on the second Friday of the month, June 9th.  Matt will speak to us on The Cross.

Matt is Operations Coordinator (GS South) and Associate Student Pastor for Gas Street Church in Birmingham, which describes itself as “compelled by a Jesus-centred vision to be ‘Light for the City’”.

Matt hails originally from San Francisco, California and is the Operations Coordinator (GS South) and Associate Student Pastor for Gas Street. His assignment since joining Gas Street has been to build up the new Gas Street South location. Since January 2023, he has been working in the Student ministry and now looks after that alongside his Operations role. 

Matt has over a decade of experience as a Worship Director and Worship Pastor and over two decades of experience working as a professional actor on stage and screen working alongside household names like Judi Dench and Matt Damon.

His passion is to see people radically transformed by the Holy Spirit and live lives wholly seeking the Lord and His Kingdom. He resides in Birmingham with his wife of 17 years and their two amazing children.

 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
 

 

 

Jul
26
Wed
Jamie Price – speaker for Gateway 2023
Jul 26 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Jamie Price from Elim Limitless will be our speaker on 26th July, as part of our Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2023.

Jamie is the Director of Ministries for Limitless (Elim’s National Youth and Children’s ministry) and on the Limitless Pioneers team, helping churches with no youth ministries, start new youth ministries. He lives in Birmingham with his wife Debs and sons Jude and Ezekiel. In his spare time, he loves to run and read.

Join us if you can – 8pm in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Jul
27
Thu
Allegra Mutanda – speaker for Gateway 2023
Jul 27 @ 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Allegra Mutanda will be our speaker on 27th July, as part of our Gateway Summer Youth Conference 2023.

Allegra is a lay woman in full time ministry in the Catholic Church. She is originally from the DR Congo and a native French speaker but has been living in the UK since 1995. 

Allegra has extensive experience both in evangelisation and parish ministry having been involved in evangelisation since 2005. For 12 years, she was part of Sion Catholic Community for Evangelism whose charism is to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Her primary work there was in parish renewal and missions and in that time, worked with over a hundred Catholic parishes across the UK. 

Since 2020, Allegra has been working for the Parish of St Peter and the Winchester Martyrs as their Director of Evangelisation and Leadership where she is helping the parish fulfil its vision of bringing people closer to Jesus Christ in hope and joy.  

Allegra is passionate about evangelisation and helping people go deeper in their relationship with Jesus. She says, ‘my own faith grew and developed with the help of so many people along the way and still does. If I can play even a small part in another’s journey of faith, helping them fall in love with Jesus, grow closer to Him, and in their turn, start helping others along that road, then I am responding to my baptismal call’.

Join us if you can – 8pm in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
For those who can’t come in person on the night, we sometimes upload recordings of talks after our meetings to our YouTube channel.  
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
Nov
3
Fri
Friday night meeting – Yoofi Clarke
Nov 3 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Yoofi ClarkeOn Friday November 3 2023 our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting speaker will be Yoofi Clarke.  Yoofi coordinates Praise Fest, a Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group in Milton Keynes, and is a member of the Charis service team (CDSC) for the diocese of Northampton.

Last time Yoofi spoke for our fellowship meeting he joined us remotely for an online meeting in 2021, so it will be a joy to welcome Yoofi in person this time.

Our fellowship meeting will be in the Tithe Barn at HOD for those who live locally.  All welcome.

(We sometimes post recordings of our Friday night speakers afterwards on our YouTube channel).

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

____

Yoofi Clarke serves the Lord as Coordinator of Praise Fest, a vibrant Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group in the cluster of St. Barnabas parishes in Milton Keynes.
 
He served as a member of the Diocesan Service Team for Northampton Diocese for over five years and was recently appointed as the Coordinator of the new Charismatic Diocesan Service of Communion for Northampton.
 
Yoofi has been involved in Catholic Charismatic Renewal for over 27 years and desires to see unity in the Body of Christ, and for us to live our faith outside the walls of the church building by developing a deeper relationship with the Holy Spirit and being attentive to His voice in our daily activities.
 
He lives in Buckingham with his lovely wife Pep and their 2 amazing children.

 
Dec
1
Fri
Fellowship Friday 1/12/23 – speaker Chiara
Dec 1 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Our First Friday Night Fellowship Meeting for December will have a speaker from the community.
 
Chiara Pelazza from community will share an update from Charis from a personal point of view, especially following the conference in Rome “Called, Transformed and Sent” which she attended in November 2023.
 
Join us if you can – in the Tithe Barn at HOD for worship, the talk, prayer and fellowship – All welcome.
 
See the Diary for Friday night speakers on other dates: Calendar of Events
 
Feb
2
Fri
Fellowship Friday 2/2/24 – Sister Hyacinthe Defos du Rau OP
Feb 2 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Sr Hyacinthe Defos du Rau, O.P.

The speaker for our First Friday Fellowship Meeting for February 2024 will be Sr Hyacinthe Defos du Rau, O.P.

Sister Hyacinthe has known our community many years, since before she joined the Dominican Sisters of St. Joseph in 2000.  She has spoken at Friday nights to our Fellowship before.

Sr Hyacinthe speaks and writes in catechesis, and leads the Dominican Sisters’ apostolate of Faith Formation lay adults and catechists, Light of Truth .  She is a gifted communicator of the truths of Christian faith especially with the young, and uses the new media in her work (webinars and podcasts such as Sunday Gospel Podcasts). 

Please come and join us as we seek the Lord together if you can.  The evening concludes around 9.30-10 p.m. with refreshments.

We sometimes upload recordings of our Friday night speakers to our YouTube channel youtube.com/@houseoftheopendoor

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

Mar
1
Fri
March First Friday – Martin and Margot Hodson from A Rocha
Mar 1 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

On Friday March 1 2024 our Friday Night Fellowship Meeting speakers will be Dr Martin and Rev Margot Hodson from A Rocha

A Rocha UK is a Christian charity working to protect and restore the natural world and committed to equipping Christians and churches in the UK to care for the environment.  Martin and Margot will speak about A Rocha and its work during their talk.  

Both Martin and Margot are knowledgeable and passionate speakers, and have published widely together on Christianity and the environment, and have several books including A Christian Guide to Environmental Issues published for the Bible Reading Fellowship.

We look forward to Martin and Margot sharing with us.  Our fellowship meeting will be in the Tithe Barn at HOD for those who live locally.  All welcome.

We sometimes post recordings of our Friday night speakers afterwards on our YouTube channel.

See the Calendar of Events for Friday night speakers on other dates.

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Dr. Martin Hodson is a plant scientist and environmental biologist. He teaches at both of the universities in Oxford and has over 100 publications, mostly in international science journals. Martin is also the Principal Tutor for the distance learning course, Christian Rural and Environmental Studies (CRES).

Revd. Margot Hodson is Theology and Education Director for the John Ray Initiative (JRI), an organisation connecting Environment, Science, and Christianity. She is also a Vicar in the Oxford Diocese. The Hodsons have published widely together on Christianity and the environment, and have several books including A Christian Guide to Environmental Issues (BRF, 2nd ed. 2021).