11 November 2011
Before the tree, before the cake, comes A Gift of Christmas
At a time when many homes may be feeling the pinch, the
Methodist Church is asking people to share the spirit of Christmas
in their communities by giving away A Gift of Christmas, the latest
booklet in their popular series.
For the first time ever the Church has also made available a free
ebook for people to preview the printed version, or just to use
themselves. The 2011 edition of A Gift of Christmas is the third
with a festive theme, following Christmas In Your Pocket in 2009
and the first A Gift of Christmas in 2010.
The new A Gift of Christmas celebrates the nativity story with
verses from the new Methodist hymn collection, Singing The Faith,
along with Bible passages and stunning images. People will find
quotes from the likes of Edward Caswall and John Bell in this new
version of the booklet.
Ruth Pickles, Vice President of the Methodist Conference, said: "A
Gift of Christmas is an exceptional gift. This pocket-sized booklet
contains enough good news to bring joy to anyone who receives it.
Slip one into any other gift you may be giving, or through your
neighbour's door. In beautiful illustrations and familiar words, it
tells the story of a baby born in Bethlehem - born to be our
saviour."
The ebook
edition is available in the epub format that can be used on
many ebook readers. Dave Webster, Internet Communications
Coordinator, said: "Ebooks have really taken off this year. We hope
that the A Gift of Christmas ebook will show people how stunning
the printed copy is and help them in their personal devotion at
this special time of year. The booklet is a great way to share the
meaning of the Christmas story with friends and neighbours, and the
ebook version offers another way to do this."
A Gift of Christmas is designed for churches and individuals to
give away and is also ideal for small-group and personal
reflection. More than 100,000 copies of the second edition of the
book were sold last year.
It can be purchased from www.methodistpublishing.org.uk
at the price of £5 for 50 copies plus postage and packaging. A free
PowerPoint presentation of the booklet is also available to
download.