The Old Age Fund, the Presbyterian Women's Fund and the Indigent Ladies' Fund exist to aid aged or infirm men and women of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland who are in need of support. The Old Age Fund was established by the General Assembly in October 1906. After this, further bequests for this purpose were added and legal sanctions gained, with the result that the Presbyterian Women's and the Indigent Ladies' Funds came into being to be disbursed by directors.
The Presbyterian Women's Fund is for the benefit of indigent women: the Indigent Ladies' Fund is for the benefit of women in the Republic of Ireland only.
During 1999, the directors responded sympathetically to people with problems and needs. They gave a special gift of £100 to every beneficiary before Christmas last and gave one-off donations, as needed, to assist in particular cases where immediate financial aid was more appropriate than annual grants.
Directors reported recently that during 1999 there were 142 beneficiaries (37 Old Age Fund, 79 Presbyterian Women's Fund, and 26 Indigent Ladies' Fund). The total disbursed was over £126,000 sterling.
The directors wish to thank all who either by gift or bequest have made possible the continuance of this vital Christian service. They ask ministers to keep in mind the possibility of help for the needy in their congregations from these funds.
Referring to the call of the Orange Order for peaceful protests during the past week, the Moderator of the General Assembly, the Rev Dr Trevor Morrow, said that "the position of the Presbyterian Church was very clear and has been expressed on a number of occasions". Dr Morrow reminded all of a resolution of the General Assembly of the Church in 1999, "that in the matter of contentious disputes between residents' groups and those who wish to parade, the General Assembly calls upon all concerned to treat one another with generosity, understanding and respect, and further encourage them to discuss their disagreements with one another; to co-operate fully with the Parades Commission, and, in the event of no agreement being reached, to abide by the lawfully taken determinations of the Parades Commission".
Dr Morrow expressed his concern that the dispute between Portadown district of the Orange Order and Garvaghy Road Residents' Coalition continues unresolved, with its potential to disturb the stability of society. He hoped the disputants would fully co-operate with the Parades Commission and the South African lawyer, Brian Currin, in his attempt to resolve the conflict. He thought the Parades Commission's ruling on marches and their routes must be obeyed.
Commenting on "street politics", Dr Morrow said: "They can become uncontrollable, exploited by paramilitary groups, tend to promote intimidation and escalating attacks on the security forces, and cause great inconvenience and the denial of the rights of people to go about their lawful business". Where the foregoing are the results of organised protests, Dr Morrow said, "the organisers cannot escape responsibility".
"Women were intentionally omitted from Christianity's version of itself," writes Dr Mary T. Malone in the first volume of a planned three-volume series in Women and Christianity, Columba Press, £9.99 sterling IR£11.99.
Dr Malone was, until recently, a professor in the Toronto School of Theology. The volume contains a comprehensive history of women in the first thousand years of the Western Christian tradition and is timely when the ordination of women is much discussed, and often in contention.