The President is calling on the Connexion today, to make the crisis on our farms a focus for our prayers both personally and in our congregations.

The Rev David Turtle has said:

We have all been aware of issues with flooding across our island and beyond over the past 9-10 months, and the serious difficulties that have arisen for many families and businesses as a result.

Whilst it has received some media attention, it seems that many people are relatively unaware of the crisis faced by our agricultural industry, which of course has family farms as its cornerstone. I have been speaking with farmers on my travels around the Connexion and now is the time to pray for a deepening calamity on our farms.

The volume of rain falling has been bringing disruption and loss to farmers since right back in July last year. This has meant huge losses for both livestock and crop producers.

A large proportion of vegetables and potatoes were unable to be harvested last autumn, and these same producers now have no opportunity to plant this year’s crop. A much lower area of winter cereals than usual was able to be planted in the autumn, and a proportion of what was has since failed. Even in traditionally ‘dry areas’ it has been too wet to plant spring cereals during recent weeks.

Due to the wet autumn, many livestock were housed several months earlier than usual, placing pressure on supplies of winter fodder. The continuing level of rain this spring means that stock are already very late to return to grazing, and reserves of fodder have been exhausted right across the UK and Ireland

All of this means that farmers and their families are facing huge financial, emotional and mental pressures.

How can we respond?:

1. I would ask that (at the very least) each of our congregations meeting this coming Sunday would include prayers in their services, seeking God for the rain to ease, and also asking for resilience and grace for our farmers and their families. Please also pray for understanding and appropriate response from government, companies who are part of supply chains, and consumers on the ground.

2. I know that at least one circuit has organised a special prayer meeting with this crisis as the single focus for that gathering. Could I ask that you also consider that possibility in your context?

3. Finally, that you would personally pray, but also actively seek opportunities to offer support and understanding to the farmers within our congregations and communities who are facing these immense difficulties.

Rev David Turtle
President of The Methodist Church in Ireland