A TOTAL of £12,000 has been donated to local, national and international causes this year through St John’s Church’s annual charitable giving programme.

The congregation follows the biblical principle of giving away the first 10 per cent of its income each year in a bid to practice what it preaches. This year £12,000 was set aside for the church’s Mission Giving Committee to make decisions about where the money should go.

Over the past 14 years, St John’s Church has distributed £139,000 in charitable giving, with the committee receiving applications for funding and financial assistance from a range of organisations in the past 12 months.

Church leader, Rev Matthew Street, said: “This year we have been able to support international projects such as Christian broadcasters SAT7 and Flame International – an organisation that works with grassroots projects around the world to alleviate poverty.”

St John’s Church has also supported other local community-based projects such as The Hive Community Centre in Peasedown St John and the village’s popular Party in the Park festival.

Revd Street said:“The team here at St John’s feels extremely blessed to be in a position to donate this money each year. As we continue to move further into a culture of collaborative working, with grassroots organisations running services, the church can play an increasingly key role in supporting projects which in the past would have received their support from elsewhere.”

For more information about Mission and Giving in the St J’s Group contact the benefice administrator Rob Bubyer on 01761 300410 or email [email protected]

Alternatively, visit the website for the St J’s Group, www.stjsgroup.church, which includes details of future events, the church’s work in the community, activities going on during the week and live recordings of Sunday sermons.