These are extracts from the Parish magazine, if you would like to read the full magazine it is available from church priced £0.50 or £5 a year.

Please note all articles published here are the full unedited versions, you may find that the version printed in the parish magazine is slightly different or have been shortened.

This magazine is the Parish magazine of the Parish of St Michael and All Angels, Abbey Wood. Material is not to be reproduced without permission of the copyright owners. Opinions expressed in this are not necessarily those of the Incumbent or the PCC and do not constitute an official opinion of the Parish.

October 2011

Assumptiontide at Walsingham

When I arrived at the Priory of Our Lady, Walsingham, on Wednesday for a three week stay everyone kept asking if I had been there for the Assumptiontide celebrations before, I had not.

On the Saturday afternoon Mother Teresa, Sisters Caroline Jane and Christina, another lady, Janine who is discerning her vocation, and I made our way down to the Parish church. When we arrived the floor had been scattered with herbs which made a wonderful smell as you walked on them and a statue of St Teresa of Avila had been placed on the Altar. We had come to listen to the Assumptiontide Lecture. This year, being a double celebration for the church of both the 950^th Anniversary of the Vision of Our Lady to Richeldis and also the 50^th Anniversary of the fire which destroyed the church, Fr Banks had decided, back in the autumn, not to get anyone in from outside; no Bishops or anyone important in to do the Lecture as is normal, but to do the Lecture himself. However, at that time he had no idea that God would have different plans and that he himself would now be Bishop of Richborough. The lecture was very interesting and was all about St Teresa of Avila.

Later in the evening we again set off for the Parish church. This time it was full, with some people having to stand. This was for an ecumenical service with a candle lit procession of Our Lady, stopping at three places. This year we were lucky to have all three of the flying Bishops, plus Bishop Lyndsay with us. The first station was at St Mary’s, the Parish church, the 2^nd at the RC church and the 3^rd in the grounds of the Anglican Shrine. Each had the theme of a different mystery of the Rosary. We started with the Annunciation at the 1^st station; having a reading, then a short homily followed by a decade of the Rosary. Our candles were then lit and we processed in a great long candlelit procession with the statue of Our Lady, to the RC church singing while we went. The format was the same at all three stations with the Mystery of the Wedding of Cana at the RC church and the Assumption of Mary in the Shrine grounds, here Sister Caroline Jane had been asked to lead the Rosary. After the blessing, given by Bishop Lyndsay, Bishop Banks and the RC priest there was a wonderful fireworks display.

Sunday Morning and it was back to a full St Mary’s for Parish Mass. Today we were lucky enough to have 4 Bishops again; the three flying Bishops and Bishop Martin Warner. At the end of Mass, the Altar party processed around the church with the statue of Our Lady, unfortunately the congregation could not join in as there were so many of us it would have caused chaos. The floor of the church was still covered in the herbs, so over coffee we asked Bishop Banks why, he explained that it is something they do on the continent a lot to give a sweet smell as you process with Our Lady, just as rose petals are put on the ground at Chorus Christi. It was lucky that we had asked as a member of the congregation came to ask us the same thing, obviously thinking that Sisters would know that sort of thing.

 I will be staying in Walsingham until the end of August when I will return to Abbey Wood and expect to the joining the Sisters as a Postulant, God willing, soon after the harvest festival.

Carol Stead

 Walsingham Youth Pilgrimage - click here for report

Lest We Forget - Part 8

So far my previous articles have been about men who fought in World War One but four of the men on our war memorial in church lost their lives in World War Two. Oddly enough it has actually been harder to find out the details of what these men were doing and where they were despite the fact that it was only sixty eight years ago that they died. All four of them died in 1943.

George Charles Bellman was the son of George and Winifred Rose Bellman who lived in Abbey Wood. He was in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and was a Flying Officer. Bomber Command was based in Norfolk at the time of George’s death and he was flying as a navigator in a Short Stirling Mk I or III in 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron. He died on the 3^rd February 1943 and he was 20 years old. Pilot PC Astrosky and Air gunner JT Bostock died on the same day with him and they are all remembered at the Runnymede Memorial. The view from the memorial is wonderful but don’t climb the hill to it as I did unless you are feeling very healthy…use the road.

Harry Eric Johnson was the son of Harry Edward and Muriel Johnson of Abbey Wood. He was a Sick Berth Attendant in the Royal Navy and was serving on the H.M.S. Harvester on the 11th March 1943. The Harvester was on convoy duty when she spotted U444, she used her depth charges and then rammed the U-boat causing major damage to her and the U-boat. She still rescued survivors from merchant ships that had been destroyed by the U-boat despite the damage but when the propeller shaft broke she was a sitting duck for U432 who put two torpedoes in her. The Harvester broke into two sections and sunk loosing 146 lives.  The navy stopped ramming U-boats as a result of what happen to the Harvester. Harry was 19 years old when he died and he is remembered on the Chatham Naval Memorial.

Charles Eric Cockayne was the son of George and Florence May Cockayne of Abbey Wood. He was a Private in the Royal Army Medical Corps. He died on the 13^th September 1943 aged 25 and is remembered on the Brookwood Memorial. Other than those basic details I have no more information on Charles at the moment.

The last of our four WWII men is Dennis Moseley William Whines, son of Joseph Robert William and Eleanor Annie Whines. He was in the 9^th Bn. Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). He is the only one of our four that has a grave and he is in the Naples War Cemetery with 1202 others, most of whom died in the military hospitals in the area. The war in Italy started on the 3^rd September 1943 on the Italian mainland.  Italy had made peace with the Allies then rejoined the war on the Allies side. The Germans who occupied Italy put up vigorous opposition and many lives were lost trying to take Italy including that of Dennis on the 5^th December 1943. He was 23 years old.

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know.

By Ann Veitch

Leaving

All being well, I expect my last Sunday in Abbey Wood before going to join the Priory of Our Lady in Walsingham to be October 16^th which is harvest. There will be drinks after Mass that day. Please keep me in your prayers as I start this new life as a Postulant at the Priory and I hope that some of you will come up to Walsingham on Pilgrimage and pop in to say hello.

If anyone would like to keep in touch with me my new address will be:

The Priory of Our Lady

Bridewell St

Walsingham

NR22 6ED

Or you can email me

Please give me your contact details if you wish me to keep in touch with you.

Carol Stead

Flowers in church

4th September Christine Fern sponsored flowers to celebrate her daughter Sarah's 40th birthday. Also to celebrate her son's marriage to Caroline on 2nd September.

18th September Michael Edwards sponsored flowers in memory of his father, Caradog

September 2011

Church Mouse

Church mouse noticed that some of our young people went on pilgrimage to Walsingham at the beginning of August but what is so important about Walsingham? and why go on pilgrimage there?

Pilgrimage is an essential part of life and living. Christians see life itself as a journey, from God and returning to God. A pilgrimage represents the journey of the Christian life from Earth to Heaven. Back in the middle ages Pilgrimages were very popular; it was not like going on holiday. Pilgrimages often took years and the journey was long and dangerous and many people died on route. They travelled in groups and would stay in monasteries or hostels on their way. Pilgrims undertook these journeys because they were important to their faith. If they had committed grave sins they believed that by going on pilgrimage they could show God how sorry they were. Sometimes they were sent on the journey by a Priest as a penance, others went for the healing of a physical condition.

There are several places around the world where we associate with people going on Pilgrimage; these include the Holy Land, Lourdes, Fatima, Rome, Canterbury, St David’s, and Walsingham. Often they are places associated with miracles and visions and have a well.

In the 11^th century Little Walsingham was a thriving village situated between Norwich (then England’s 2^nd city) and the wealthy town of King’s Lynn. Richeldis de Faverches was married to the Lord of the Manor of Walsingham Parva, he died leaving her a young widow with one son, Geoffrey. Richeldis was known to be a woman of deep faith and had a devotion to Mary; she also had a reputation for good works.

At this time there was a great deal of interest in the Holy land and people would take long and often dangerous pilgrimages there. In 1061 Richeldis had a vision; in the vision she was taken by Mary to the house in Nazareth where the Angel Gabriel had announced the news of the birth of Jesus. Mary asked Richeldis to build a replica of that house in Walsingham. The vision was repeated three times and Richeldis had the Holy House built. We are told that the sign to show Richeldis where she was to build this house was the springing up of water from the ground. Later a Priory was built around the Holy House and it became a focus of Pilgrimage. The water from the well has always been an important part of the Pilgrimage to Walsingham and today pilgrims can still receive water from the well as part of the Healing service.

If you have never been on Pilgrimage, perhaps you could give it a try, many people find once they have been, they wish to return year after year.

Winchester Music

Do you like “working” when on holiday?  This year Ros and I went on a Liturgical Music Course in Winchester for a week.  We knew the music to be sung before we went, some of which we had done before.  The course provided all the music and a CD which played the separate voice parts, enabling us to have a reasonable idea of what it should sound like.

It was with some trepidation that we set off, hoping we had done sufficient homework so we would at least not ruin the overall effect.  It was an intensive course, all rehearsals started with a warm up session, which exercised our vocal chords beyond their usual range.  Did we really get up to that top “A” with some ease?  All the sessions prepared us to sing Evensong and Matins in the Cathedral, which was a great joy, especially as we sang the Psalms to Anglican chanting.  Do you remember those days?

We enjoyed walking round the old historical city, founded by the Romans, who called it “Venta Belgarum”.  It has a main street entirely pedestrian, also we enjoyed the local eating places!

The Cathedral is dedicated to St Swithun, whom we learnt built a bridge for the people across the River Itchen.  He was very rich, and was renowned for his patience and dedication to the relief of the poor.  It was a real uplifting experience.  We felt we were joining in with all those other choirs who had given their best praise to God in the past.  Alleluia!

Repertoire:

Bairstow.  Save us O Lord.  Brewer in D.

Bairstow.  Mag abd Nunc in D.  Blessed City, heavenly Salem.

Bairstow.  I sat down.

Byrd.  Sing Joyfully

Bordoli.  Almighty and Everlasting God.

Bordoli.  Orbs of Light and Shade.

Bert Scofield (East Wickham Singers)

PAM WEBB 1945 – 2011

Pam’s funeral took place on Wednesday 17^th August 2011 at Falconwood crematorium (Eltham).

There must have been at least 100 people there.  A contingent of Scouts formed a guard of honour for the coffin as it arrived and entered the chapel.

It was a lovely service celebrating the life of Pam.  Alf Philpot gave an appreciation of Pam’s life on behalf of the Scout Movement.  Both her sons, Jim and Matthew, spoke of their mother, Jim and his family having come from Australia to be there.

Fr. David Sherratt presided at the funeral and he also gave an appreciation of Pam.

A reception was held afterwards at St. Michael and All Angels Church Hall.

It was requested that only the family should send flowers.  If you wish, a contribution can be made to Macmillan Cancer Support, as suggested by Pam’s family.

Marjorie Gillespie

LOSS OF MY GOOD FRIEND – Pam Webb

Pam first came to me to join her eldest son, Jimmy, (nearly thirty years ago), into our Cub Pack and at the same time asked if she could come along to Cubs to help run the Pack.  Of course, I said “yes please”.  But a couple of weeks later she came back to tell me she was pregnant, I thought at the time “what someone would do to get out of being a Leader”, but was pleased to say, after she had had Matthew, back came Pam a couple of weeks later with her brand new baby boy (only a couple of weeks old), to start helping out with the Cubs.   She put Matthew’s name down on our Cub waiting list at the age of two weeks old, (at the time the youngest boy on the list).  He did get into the Cub pack when he was eight.  Pam stayed with the Cub pack for many years and was an excellent Leader, did all her training and got her “Beads”, (what Leaders get when they are fully trained).

Then we needed another Scout Leader and Pam volunteered.  She took on the new challenge to become a Scout Leader, which she did for a few years.

Then came an opportunity to become a District Leader and she took on the role of A.D.C. Cubs, (Assistant District Commissioner for District Cubs).  We were sorry to lose her, but she was still associated with the 13^th Woolwich. If ever we were short of a Leader at any time, whether it be Beavers, Cubs or Scouts, we just had to give her a ring and she would come along to help out with whatever section needed her.  I always felt she was part of us, always came to our Open Evenings and A.G.M.s.  She will be sadly missed by the 13^th Woolwich Scout Group and also by District.  I personally will miss her because I have known her for so many years and she was such a good and faithful Leader.  God bless you Pam. 

Dot Ray (Group Scout Leader)

I like those cream cakes but you never have any of them in......

Is a comment I often hear in my local Marks & Spencers, along with “why are there never enough staff”. Well this week I sought about changing that and moved to the company's new flagship store at Stratford. Well I hope not to hear that again working here, it's a large store (over 150000sq ft) and has 4 floors with brand new stuff on them and looks nothing like any other store in the company. But don't take my word for it, come see for yourself. The store opens on the 13th September at the new giant Westfield Centre in Stratford (over the rusty bridge) and I'd love to see you, because I'm not going to know anyone over there!!! 

Chris Harper

ABBEY WOOD WOMEN’S INSTITUTE

We celebrate our second anniversary on Monday 12 September.  We meet every second Monday in the month at 1.30pm (doors open at 1pm) in St. Michael and All Angels Church Hall which is right next to the Church.  We either have a speaker or some form of entertainment and tea and cakes (home made of course) during the session, which lasts till 3.30pm.  The committee work very hard to see that we have a good time.

To date we have 55 members and there is a waiting list of potential members, some of whom we hope to absorb soon.

Various people on the committee arrange outings, theatre trips (usually local), lunch dates once a month (also local), needles and natter group and a book group.  We have visited the Heritage Centre on several occasions for talks on the history of Abbey Wood, Plumstead and Woolwich.

Marjorie Gillespie

Lest We Forget - Part 7

Life on the seas in the First World War was a very dangerous affair.  Many ships that were converted to war status were unsuitable and survival kits were very basic. Three of the men on our memorial died in terrible circumstances on the seas.

John Ambler was 34 when he died on the H.M.S. Vanguard on the 9^th July 1917. The Vanguard was a ship that had seen a lot of action and had emerged from the Battle of Jutland unscathed. John was among 850 crew that were having a rather quiet day in July in the Scapa Flow when an accident occurred that took all but 2 of the crew’s lives. Cordite was stored securely on the ship and for a reason unknown it exploded. The ship sunk almost immediately in this one of the largest accidental explosions in naval history. One of the 12 inch turrets was thrown ashore over 1 mile away. The crew had so little time to react it is not surprising that only 2 survived and they were badly injured.  John is remembered in the Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery, he left behind a wife, Ellen, who lived at 29 Crumpsall Street.

Albert Edward Dawes was 20 years old and was serving on the H.M.S. Louvain in the Aegean Sea in 1918.  The Louvain had been purchased by the Royal Navy in 1915 and had been formerly called the S.S. Dresden whilst it was in service with the Great Eastern Railway.  It was now an Armed Boarding Steamer which meant it was mainly used for boarding taken enemy vessels but on 20^th January in 1918 is was being used to transport troops.  It came to the attention of U-boat UC22 and was torpedoed. Reports from the U-boat state that the Louvain sunk very rapidly indeed and all but 10 of the 234 crew were killed. Albert was the son of Thomas William and Helen Dawes of 20 Fuchsia Street. He is remembered on the Plymouth Naval Memorial.

Albert Edward Perkins was 19 years old and part of the Armourer’s Crew on the H.M.S. Clan McNaughton. Pre war this was a merchant ship and had been hastily converted with heavy guns at the start of the war.  She was put on blockade duty with a mixed crew of young boys, merchant navy men, royal navy, reservists and many Canadians.  She headed out for sea along the north coast of Ireland and she radioed back at 3am that the weather was bad on the 3^rd February 1915.  She was battered by an Atlantic gale and was never heard or seen again.  Two weeks later some wreckage was found in the area where she had radioed from but not enough to confirm if it was the Clan McNaughton or what had happened to her or her crew. No other trace of her was ever found. Albert was the son of Robert and Ada Perkins of 16 Abbey Grove and is remembered at Chatham Naval Memorial.

All these men died in very different but very tragic ways on the seas.

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know.

By Ann Veitch

FLOWERS IN CHURCH

Flowers for Sunday August 7 were sponsored by the family of Kay Maddox for her birthday on August 5^th.

On 14^th August Marjorie Gillespie sponsored the flowers in memory of her mother’s birthday.

Sheila Owen sponsored flowers on 14^th August in memory of Pam Webb who died on 3^rd August.

SPONSORED CANDLES

On 24^th July, Phylis Lewis sponsored the 7 day Blessed Sacrament candle in memory of her husband, Leslie Lewis

August 2011

Church mouse

Every week we sit on them, but have you ever given the pew a second thought?

In the first Christian churches, and for over 1,000 years of church history, churches did not contain pews. In Anglo-Saxon churches and some early Norman ones, there was a stone bench running around the whole of the interior except the East end.  Congregations stood and were free to walk around and mingle with other church members. Church services were focused around community and personal interaction within the congregation.

The first pews were introduced in the 13th century when removable stone benches were placed against church walls. Until the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in 1517, most pews were not fixed to the floor, and many churches continued to have standing services only. The Protestant Reformation shifted the focus of church, making the sermon the most important activity during the service. Because most people during this time period could not read and did not have their own bibles, pews were introduced to allow people to sit and listen to someone preach. Due to this shift, pews became a popular feature of church architecture and permanent wood-backed benches began to replace the stone seating.

 Gradually pews came into existence and between 1600 and 1800, when everything was about social stature; pews were used to distinguish between the various social classes. Only the higher classes had the opportunity to sit closest to the pulpit. Box pews were owned by the richer families, they remained locked when not in use restricting seating.

 ‘Most parish churches of 1830 contained large box pews, lockable and controlled by a pew opener. Private seats for the middle classes thus filled the main body of the church and left the poor on benches at the back, in the side aisles, or in gallery. The box pews occupied many chancels, and their occupants inevitably sat facing the pulpit and with backs towards the altar.’ (Chadwick The Victorian church part 1, p520)

Box pews were often arranged so that the occupants sat around the outer edges of the pew facing inwards so that, if they knelt they often did so face-to-face. The high sides of the pews enabled worshippers to ignore their fellow members of the congregation and, if they wished, to ignore the service as well. In addition, indifference or irreligious practices could easily remain concealed from other worshipers.

J.M. Neale (1818 – 1866) identified four practises which lay behind the Puritan desire to have the privacy of high-sided pews. First, the pew sides concealed worshippers’ disobedience to Canon Law which required them to bow at the ‘Holy Name’ of Jesus. Second, whilst permitting the ancient custom of sitting during the reading of the Psalms, it enabled them to avoid the equally ancient custom of standing for the Gloria at the end. Third, it meant that Puritan worshippers could also conceal their unwillingness to bow to the altar; and fourth, when the sacrament of Holy Communion was brought to them in their pews, other worshippers never knew whether the occupants received it kneeling or not.

Pew holders used to furnish their area of the church according to their own taste which added to the social divisiveness of them. It also distracted from the general appearance of the church as sometimes all the pews were of different heights, shape, kind, and colour. In Ashbourne church a pew owned by Dr Taylor, a wealthy clergyman, was furnished with large shelves for bibles and books of devotion, he also had it upholstered with some velvet used at King George III’s coronation to show his status.

Gradually box pews were removed from churches and pews as we know them now were put in where they were free for all and everyone faces the Altar.

All Ages’ Walsingham!

A friend in North London who works part-time sorting stuff in a charity shop, recently sent me something he had come across, which he thought might interest me. It’s a thin, simply produced little book entitled Legende of Our Ladye of Walsingham, published 73 years ago, by Sydney Lee Limited at The Catholic Records Press, Exeter. It contains a poem, with simple illustrations, telling the story of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham for very young children.  There is a forward which reads: ‘This delightful book goes forth with our Special Blessing.  From its very attractive pages and easy words our little ones will learn the wonderful history of Walsingham’s Great Devotion.  Better still, this book will teach them to pray to Our Lady in their own simple words, as children were taught to pray in the days of long ago’  +  Laurence, Bishop of Northampton, Septuagesima 1938.  In view of our own love of Walsingham and our forthcoming Youth Pilgrimage to the Shrine, I thought readers of the parish magazine might like to read the poem – OK, so it is a bit ‘twee’ and sentimental, and ‘of its time’, but it still speaks of the great truths to which the Shrine of  Lady bears witness.  So enjoy!

LEGENDE OF OUR LADYE OF WALSINGHAM

FOR LITTLE CHILDREN

By a Benedictine

St. Mary’s Abbey Bergholt 1938

Fr. Derek

  My cricket day at the Kia oval

This spectacular event started when James Veitch found out that he was going to be the England cricket mascot on the 28th of June when England played Sri-Lanka.  James was told of this when his father, Mr Stuart Veitch called him to tell him that his dad had won a competition in the Evening Standard.

The story of this adventure began with a train ride to London Bridge and a tube ride to the oval.  He arrived at about 11:30 and was greeted by Francesca from Brit Insurance, who were that day’s corporate sponsors.  He was then taken into the ground and was given a small cricket bat and an England Team shirt to wear.

At 12:30, James was taken on to the pitch by Francesca along with a photographer and was introduced to all the England team whilst they were finishing their warm up.  His picture was taken with all of the players and they all signed his cricket bat for him.  Phil Tufnell, who was commentating for the BBC also came over and signed his bat too.

At just before 13:00, James joined both the team captains and the match officials for the coin toss.  Sri-Lanka won the toss and chose to field.  He then joined his father, who was by then very jealous, in the crowd to watch the game.  Unfortunately the British weather got the better of the afternoon, and play was stopped after only three overs until later on in the early evening.

James was asked for a comment on his experience and said simply “It was amazing!”

This was dictated by James Veitch and typed by Stuart Veitch.

 Lest We Forget  Part 6

On the war memorial in church there are three men on it who died within days of each other in August 1917.  They all lived within two miles of each other and we will probably never know if they knew each other well, but I think we can assume that their relatives met each other when the memorial was unveiled.  All three were in different units.  Two have graves and one was never found.

William Ransom was just 19 when he died in a foreign field.  Most of the men had never been away from home before let alone been abroad, so for many it started as a big adventure.  The paper was full of stories of heroic deeds and also lists of the dead and missing.  Mr G.T. and Mrs M.R. Ransom lived in Wallflower Road and would have scanned the papers to see any news of William’s unit the Somerset Light Infantry.  They would have read the news that the 3^rd Battle of Ypres had started but how long before they found out that their son had died within a few days of the start of that battle.  William was killed on 2^nd August 1917, his grave is in the bottom right hand side of the Outtersteene Communal Cemetery Extension, Bailleul.

Robert James Funnell was a rifleman in the 3rd Battalion Rifle Brigade.  He had already lost his father John when he went to war but his mother Rosina was left in Woolwich.  Robert wasn’t married and had no other family that I can trace and he was 36 years old.  He was also involved in the 3rd Battle of Ypres but he survived longer than William and died a few days later on 9^th August 1917.  Robert’s remains were never identified and his name is remembered on the Menin Gate in Ypres.  The Last Post is played at the gate every night at 8pm in remembrance of all the lost boys and men with no known grave.

A. Pryer is the last of our three this month and he is rather a mystery man. He was also a rifleman but he was in the London Regiment (Queen Victoria’s Rifles).  He died on the 15^th August and was in the same battle as the others.  I cannot find out how old he was, what his first name was, where he lived or who he left behind, but his body was found.  This mystery man is buried in the Birr Cross Roads Cemetery I am pleased to say, which may seem a strange thing to say but during my trips to Belgium in the past this is the one cemetery that I have always visited the most.  Why I do not really know as it is very similar to all the others dotted around the area but it has always seemed the most peaceful one to me.  A. Pryer is buried in the top right hand corner of the cemetery, with a wall covered in creeping greenery behind him.

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know.

  By Ann Veitch

 Two New Bishops

On Thursday 16^th June a small group of people from St Michael’s went with Fr David up to Southwark Cathedral for the consecration of the two new bishops of Ebbsfleet and Richborough (the two “flying bishops” who care for Resolution C parishes in the Province of Canterbury) , Fr Jonathan Baker and Fr Norman Banks. Fr Baker had been Principal of Pusey House, Oxford. And Fr Banks had been Parish Priest of Walsingham, Houghton and Barsham as well as a Chaplin to the Queen.

We arrived an hour early to ensure that we sat near the front of what was to become a full Cathedral. The service started with a procession of the clergy, the College of Bishops, and various other important people. The Mass was, on the whole, ordinary, except for the Ordination of the new bishops which happened after the Creed. The Hymns were “Come Holy Spirit” (sung during the College of Bishops laid hands on the candidates), “Jerusalem the golden” (offertory) “let all mortal flesh”, “Praise to the Holiest” (both during communion” and “joy to thee Queen! Within thine ancient dowry” (recessional).  All of which were sung with gusto by the congregation. At the end of the service the Archbishop of Canterbury presented the two new bishops with their Crosiers, which had been donated by Forward in Faith.

Later, at St Alban’s Holborn, which was a full church again, the new Bishop of Ebbsfleet presided at benediction, at the end of which they were re-presented with their crosiers by the acting Chair of Forward in Faith, Sr Anne Williams, and presented with Pectoral Crosses of the Society of the Holy Cross by the Master of the SSC. Benediction was followed by a reception.

We may be seeing the Rt Rev Banks soon, as our Diocese is within his area of care.

by Paul Stead

July 2011

Church Mouse

I have noticed that some people in church have a deep devotion to Our Lady and wondered why she is so important to them but does not seem to be to other people.

If you look at the statue of Our Lady, which is usually in the Lady Chapel but is moved to a position under the pulpit for festivals, you can see that Mary is pointing to Jesus, while Jesus is pointing upwards to God. Mary shows us the way to Jesus.

Often people complain that Catholics worship Mary and that much of it is not biblical. However, this is not true, Catholics ask Mary in intercede for them, much as you would ask a friend to pray for you, you can ask Mary and the Saints who have gone before us to pray for us.

Mary was more than just an eye witness to Jesus life. What she lacks in quantity of appearance in scripture she makes up for in quality. It was her ‘Yes’ to God at the Annunciation when the Angel Gabriel visited her which lead to her to give birth to the Son of God. Mary then visits Elizabeth, ‘Now it happened that as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of you womb’. ‘ (Luke 1: 41-42), The first part of the Hail Mary.

Mary then responses with the Magnificat, ‘ My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord…’, echoing the prayer of Hannah (1 Samuel 2:1-10) after she gave birth to Samuel. The Magnificat is said daily at Evening Prayer.

Mary was present, and indeed the instigator, of the first miracle that Jesus performed at the wedding at Cana when he turned the water into wine (John 2:1-11). She and other women are present at the cross, when the male disciples flee. It is striking that Mary is in the upper room at Pentecost -- the only woman present there who is named -- to receive the outpouring of God’s Spirit at the birth of the church (Acts 1:14). Her image in Revelation 12:17 as a woman clothed with the sun with a crown of stars in the agony of giving birth to a son who will rule the nations is, at the very least, impressive. Mary’s appearances in scripture are indeed limited, but they are tied to crucial moments in salvation history, without which there would be no church.

Mary’s interaction with her son on the cross is striking, since one of his final acts is devoted to naming John as her new son, and her as John’s mother. In this and other scenes she is depicted as an image of the church, the mother of believers thus becoming not only Mother of God but our Mother. Scripture presents a vision of Mary as one whose importance is not limited to the Annunciation and to Christmas, but extends into the life of the church.

 Lest We Forget -Part 5

The Thiepval Memorial is in France.  It is very impressive and can be seen for miles around as it is 150 ft high and its base is 123 x 140 ft.  In fact it is the largest memorial to the missing on the British Western Front.  When I was last there several years ago I found the name of a Fred Pook who died on 7^th July 1916 ( Pook was my maiden name ) but despite the rarity of the name I couldn’t trace him to my family.  Around 72,000 names are inscribed upon its high piers, all soldiers from the Somme battlefields from July 1916 to November 1918 who have no known grave.  There are men from 163 different units, 158 British, 4 South African and 1 West Indian Unit.  7 men on the memorial have won the Victoria Cross.  It is impossible to go there and not be moved as you wander around the piers staring up to the thousands of names carefully carved on the stone.

90% of the names at Thiepval are soldiers who died in the First Battle of the Somme from July 1916 to November 1916. A high proportion of those on the memorial died during the first day of battle, on Saturday 1^st July 1916.  One of those men was Frederick Gilbert Elms.  Frederick was a clerk before he had become a soldier in 1914, he joined the London Regiment (Queen Victoria’s Rifles) as a Rifleman. When he died he was 21 years old and his parents, James and Alice, lived at 15 Shieldhall Street. He was just one of the 19,000 that died on the Somme that day, 95 years ago this month.

On the 4^th May 1916, two months before Frederick Elms died, the son of Mrs E Townsend of 12 Abbey Grove landed in France.  His name was Walter and he was a Private in the Queen’s Own (Royal West Kent Regiment).  He made his way down to the Somme with his unit the 10^th Battalian and he survived the battlefields until the 15^th September 1916.  He was 27 years old and is not alone as 823 others in his Battalian are also named on the Thiepval Memorial with him. That day was also the first day that tanks were ever used in battle.

Frederick and Walter are just two of the names on our war memorials at the church and I am still looking for details of the others.  The names listed below are the ones that I am finding more difficult to trace so please have a look and see if you can recognise any of them.

J E Argent                                          S Baker

G B Burton                                          A B Farrell

P E Farrell                                           C Francis

L W F Gill                                            T F Griggs

A Rider                                                P J W Staniford

W A Tapsall                                         C Wright

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know. Thank you.

By Ann Veitch

Queen's Birthday Honours

We are delighted to tell you that Michael Macey, our organist and choir master, received the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours.

The citation reads -

For services to music and to the community in Welling, Kent

He will be going to Buckingham Palace to receive this.

Flowers in church

On 12 June flowers were sponsored by

Mary Robson in memory of her mother and brother

Also Michael Macey to celebrate his award of the MBE in the Queen's birthday Honours.

Sponsored Candles in church

The 7 day Blessed Sacrament Candle was sponsored by

Carol Stead in memory of her father, Alan Littlechild, in the week of 12th June

June 2011

Church mouse

I’ve heard recently that one of the members of St Michaels’ congregation hopes to be leaving soon and going to join the Sisters at The Priory of Our Lady in Walsingham which is part of the Society of St Margaret. This surprised me as, like many of you I’m sure, I assumed all Nuns and Monks were Roman Catholic and didn’t realise that there were any in the Anglican Church.

Of course we all know from our history lessons that Religious orders were dissolved by King Henry VIII when he separated the Church of England from the Catholic Church. We can easily see evidence of that in Abbey Wood with the ruins of the Abbey so nearby. With the rise of the Catholic Revival and the Oxford Movement in the Anglican church in the mid-nineteenth century, however, there was an interest in the revival of religious orders in England. Between 1841 and 1855, several religious orders for women were begun. Religious orders for men appeared later, beginning in 1866 with the Society of St. John the Evangelist (Cowley Fathers). Today there are approximately 90 Communities of men and women in England including the Community at Walsingham, a Benedictine Community at West Malling, Kent and the Community of the Sisters of the Church at Ham Common, Richmond  who you may have seen 2 Sisters from at the wedding for Prince William.

In 1855 John Mason Neale founded the Society of St Margaret. John Mason Neale was a very remarkable priest of great holiness and immense learning, but was of very poor health and considered too frail to be able to work as a parish priest. He had been appointed warden of Sackville College, a small group of Jacobean almshouses. From his study window he looked out over the countryside towards Ashdown forest, as area of great natural beauty. The picturesque cottages housed families living in great poverty and squalor, always under threat of fever, smallpox, cholera and other diseases. Dr Neale was moved by all the suffering and decided to form a Society of Sisters to meet this need.

John Mason Neale accomplished an unbelievable amount of work in his short life despite his ill health. He was strongly influenced by the Oxford Movement Tracts which had begun to appear in 1833 and marked the early stages of the Catholic revival in the Church of England. The Oxford Movement caused a tremendous upheaval in the Church of England, chiefly by reasserting the doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, and by restoring the practice of Sacramental Confession, due reverence and regard for Our Lady, and the use of vestments, and candles. Dr Neale was a fighter, and would never give in, he had to endure a good deal of opposition, including a fourteen years' inhibition by his bishop. He was once attacked and mauled at a funeral of one of the Sisters and from time to time unruly crowds threatened to stone him or to burn his house. Much of what is now loved and valued in the Church of England today is due to John Mason Neale and other heroes of his time.

He is probably best remembered today as a great hymn writer and translator, having enriched English hymnody with many ancient and mediaeval hymns translated from Latin and Greek.  The English Hymnal (1907) contains 63 of his translated hymns and six original hymns by Neale. Those of you who regularly come to Evening Prayer at St Michael’s will recognise several hymns of his which are sang; the Office Hymns ‘O Blest Creator of the light’ and ’ The Lamb’s High banquet we await’, (sung during Eastertide) are both translated by Neale. You will also recognise ‘Come, ye faithful, raise the anthem’, ‘The Day of Resurrection’ and ‘The day is past and over’ as well as many more.

On 1st June 1855 Neale founded the Society of St Margaret. The first house was in Rotherfield and a year later they moved into a house in East Grinstead. The Sisters lived a life of prayer centred on the daily Mass and would nurse the sick and care for the rest of the family for as long as was needed. In 1857 a group of orphans were put into the Sisters care and from there they got involved in many different types of work, both at home and abroad, including a number of schools and children’s homes.

The Community grew steadily in Dr Neale’s lifetime. He died in 1866 but the work of caring never ceased. In a changing world, the schools and orphanages have now closed. The Society of St Margaret now consists of four Autonomous houses in: Uckfield, Haggerston (London), Boston (USA) and Walsingham. The Uckfield house has branch houses in Chiswick and Sri Lanka, while the Boston House has branch houses in New York, New Hartford and Haiti. In Sri Lanka, where all the Sisters are now nationals, there is a convent at Colombo where the Sisters work among the poor and elderly, also helping in the parishes with counselling and retreat work. At Moratuwa, several miles away, the Sisters have a children’s home and a kindergarten for day children. The house at Chiswick is a residential and nursing home for the elderly and disabled, many of the Sisters spend their last years in this lovely home. Each of the autonomous convents is able to have its own Mother, Sisters and Novices and share a common Constitution and Rule. However, other things, such as whether to wear the traditional habit, are decided by each house.

Lest we forget - part 4

James Walter Pamplin and Celia Jane Pamplin had two sonns, Arthur James was the eldest and Sidney Herbert was 6-7 years younger than his brother.

Sidney joined the Kings Royal Rifle Corps and was a Sergeant in the 2nd Battalion. He was in Northern France when he was killed on the 4th November 1918 and he was 24years old. He is buried in the Le Rejet-de-Beaulieu Communal Cemetery along with 52 others, 45 of them died on the same day and 8 of them were in Sidney's Corps. The men buried in this cemetery all fell in the final advance to victory, all the dates of death are between 9th October - 19th November, 1918. As they were dying in the fields and canals the papers for peace were being written and rewritten. Just one week later the Imperial German Army was defeated and an Armistice on the Western front was agreed for 11.00 O'clock on 11th November. The guns finally fell silent and four years of warfare on the Western Front came to an end.

Arthur James joined the Royal Marine Light Infantry and served on the H.M.S. Chester. HMS Chester was one of two Town class light cruisers originally ordered for the Greek Navy in 1914 but in 1915 they were purchased by the British Government. The Chester was at the Battle of Jutland where 29 of her crew were killed and 49 wounded, many of the wounded lost legs due to the poor design of the guns. Amongst the gun crew fatalities was 16 year old John Cornwell who received the Victoria Cross for his dedication to duty even though he was mortally injured. Chester was offered for re-sale to Greece after the war but the offer was declined and the ship was sold for scrapping on 9 November 1921. The gun served by Cornwell is preserved in the Imperial War Museum in London. Arthur was on the Chester for most of the war and he died of 'illness' at the Royal Marines Headquarters on Sunday 4th January 1920, he was Corporal and was 31 years old. He is buried in Plumstead Cemetery where he was joined by his father James in 1929 and mother Celia in 1934. During the school half term I will be visiting his grave.

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know. Thank you

Ann Veitch

Flowers in Church

In May flowers were sponsored as follows:

On 15th by Peter Ludlow to celebrate his birthday on 20th May

On 22nd by Christine Fern to celebrate her father's 91st birthday

May 2011

Church Mouse

Mouse is very happy to now live in a nice warm church and have heard that this year we are celebrating the 400^th anniversary of the King James (or Authorized Bible). This made me start wondering about the origins of the Bible.

 At Mass we are used to hearing lots of bits of the bible; the readings, the Gospel, the Lord’s Prayer, and most of the consecration of the Eucharist are all familiar passages from the New Testament. But I was surprised to hear that the church was saying those words for nearly 400 years before there was anything like a Bible at all.

The first of the Jew’s sacred books (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) were written down in about 1250BC. These 5 books together constitute the written Torah. The Torah was kept but more and more books were written. That is how we got Joshua, Judges, and the Books of Kings and the Chronicles and also the prophesies of Ezra, Nehemiah and the others. These books kept pace with the continuous unfolding of God’s plan of salvation. However, the Israelites wrote lots of other books too. Then Ptolemy Philadelphus commissioned seventy Jewish scholars to come up with a standard canon of Jewish scripture. The collection of 46 books which they established in called the Septuagint and was still used right up to the time of Christ. It is the only scripture which he and the apostles used. To this day the Septuagint is the Church’s Old Testament.

Of course, Jesus himself never wrote a word of Scripture. All of the other religions of the time had their sacred scrolls or books and the people of the Roman Empire generally took it for granted that a religion would have an official holy book. So, as Christianity spread, dozens of writers rushed to write books about Christ. Suddenly, there were loads of books, some of these taught genuine Christian doctrine, others were less than reliable books like Acts of Paul or the Acts of Pilate, and others were forgeries or fabrications that included pagan fables disguised as Christian doctrine.

None of these books were ever taken seriously by the early church but at least these bad books prompted the creation of good ones to reinforce the church’s oral teaching.

However, only 5 of the Apostles (Matthew, John, James, Peter, and Jude) wrote any part of the Bible; and, like Mark, Luke and Paul, they wrote whenever problems came up, either to assist people’s memories or to address specific questions. None of them ever intended to produce a complete written account of Christ’s teachings.

Soon after they were written these books started to be read at the Mass. Writings from around 100AD show that the four gospels were read but there were also a number of other books which were read, different ones in different places, at the discretion of the local Bishop.

But then, in about 140AD the church fathers decided to clarify things by putting out a universal canon of the New Testament, including 22 or 23 of the 27 books now in the New Testament. However, in some parts of the Christian world, books like the Epistles of St James and St Jude, 2 Peter and 2 and 3 John were accepted as Scripture, but in others they weren’t. There were still questions about the epistles to the Hebrews and to Philemon, too. There were also still no fewer than 50 other ‘Gospels’, lots of other apostolic epistles, and hundreds of apocalypses. They had never received an official approval, but was it all right to use them liturgically or not?

The church decided to settle it once and for all. All of her great scholars concentrated on the question as never before and by 367AD St Athanasius of Alexandria published for the first time the definitive list consisting of the 27 books we know today.

The first thing written in many modern languages was often the Bible; that’s where written Slavonic, Gaelic and even German come from. Even things like putting spaces between words, making capital and lower-case letters, and using punctuation got their start with the Bible.

Mouse was upset to notice that the last magazine article I wrote (for the March magazine) was edited with only half of the article appearing in the parish magazine. If you would like to read the full article it can be found on the church web site at www.stmichaelsabbeywood.co.uk under magazine on line.

Lest we forget (part 3)

On the 24th June 1917 Second Lieutenant Cecil Clyde Marshall was killed in action with the 21st Siege Battery of the Royal Garrison Artillery. He was born in 1898 and received his commission into the Royal Artillery on 27th October 1915. He landed in France on 21st January 1916 and was 19 when he died. He had been a student at Strand School, King's College, London and at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. His father was Capt. H.C. Marshall of the Royal Army Ordinance Corps (RAOC) and his mother is just listed as Mrs Marshall. He is buried with 408 others in the Ferme-Olivier cemetery north of Ypres in Belgium. 

The above are the basic facts about Cecil Marshall, they do not tell us what colour his hair was or whether he liked his mother's cooking or if he had a girlfriend. What we do know however is that he was loved by his family or friends enough for them to ensure that his name was put on a War Memorial at our church so that he was not forgotten. During my research however I found that in 2007, on an auction site, a British War Medal and Victory Medal awarded to 2nd Lieut C.C. Marshall were up for sale. Its guide price was £50- £80.

I found this extremely moving that this piece of our local history was up for sale. Yes I know that they are just two disks of metal and that there are thousands of medals just like them but these two pieces of metal were sent to Cecil's mother along with a letter and Death Plaque. A lot of medals and plaques were put in drawers and never taken out because of the pain that surrounded them but as Cecil's name is proudly displayed in the church, I like to think that his medals were looked after until such unfortunate circumstances that meant that his family no longer held them. I have contacted the auction site with a vague hope that they still have them or that they can tell me that they went to a good home but in reality I probably will never know where they are. You are not forgotten though Cecil Clyde Marshall and on Friday 24th June 2011, 94 years after your death, I will remember you.

If you know any of the names on our War Memorial in church or have any other comments on this article or the others I have written then please let me know.

Thank you

Ann Veitch

Delivery day

The church Summer and Christmas fairs are our main fundraising events of the year and bring in much needed money to pay for the upkeep of the church.

Every year we print and deliver leaflets to every home in the parish advertising these events and

The fundraising committee need your help in advertising this year’s Summer fair.

On Saturday 18^th June we will be having a leaflet delivery day. On this day we want everyone to come and help. We will go out in small teams to deliver the leaflets.

Put the date in your diary and come and help

Time to be confirmed.

Malt chocolate cheesecake

Several people have asked me for the recipe for the Malt chocolate cheesecake which I made for the pre-lent dinner, so here it is:

Ingredients (serves 10)

200g malted milk biscuits, crushed to crumbs

100g salted butter

5tbsp caster sugar

2 x 300g tubs of full-fat soft cheese (e.g. Philadelphia)

300ml pot double cream

300g white chocolate, melted

200g milk chocolate, melted

2 tbsp malt or Horlicks powder

37g Maltesers

Method

1.       Line base and sides of a deep, 22cm to 23cm loose-bottomed round tin with baking parchment. Mix the biscuits, melted butter and 2 tbsp of the sugar: then press into base. Chill while you make the filling.

2.       Divide cream cheese and cream evenly between two bowls. Add the white chocolate to one, and the milk chocolate, malt and remaining 3 tbsp sugar to the other. Beat each with an electric whisk until smooth.

3.       Spread the milk chocolate mixture evenly in the tin. Spoon the white chocolate mix over the top and gently smooth. Decorate with Maltesers and chill for at least five hours until firm.

Carol Stead

Quiz night

On 2^nd April six teams gathered for the St Michael’s quiz night. On the tables were two sheets of photos, one with people from films and the other from TV shows which we settled down to complete before the quiz started. Looking through the list on the table there were 10 rounds ranging from history, literature, animals, to food and drink, and connections (which was not as Michael had hoped, all about train lines). Each team had a joker which they chose to use on what, they hoped, to be their best subject.

We chatted and had a good evening whilst listening to Peter reading out the questions for each round and watched as each rounds points were added up on the running total board. Our team, the smallest, of only 3 adults and one child, came in their traditional place of last, this despite, as Fr David pointed out, us having the highest percentage of graduates on our team.

The evening was a good evening with tickets costing only £3 and the bar open. If you haven’t been to one before, why not give the next one a try? Don’t worry if you think you don’t know anything, it’s about the taking part that counts and not the winning, and anyway someone will need to take my place of being on the losing team.

Carol Stead

Flowers in Church

Palms were sponsored by Hilary Gable for Palm Sunday

Flowers were sponsored on Easter Sunday by -

Pat Annettes in memory of her sister, Kay Maddox

Michael Edwards in memory of his mother, Gwen Edwards

Marjorie Gillespie in memory of her sister Kitty and of Mary Hughes, a long time member of St. Michael's church

Tosin Ogunyemi in memory of his Dad

Norma Simpson and Gabrille Ludlow also sponsored flowers.

The Easter Lillies were sponsored in memory of loved ones by -

Sheila Owen, Irene Brown, Ann Veitch, Christine Fern, Bill and Gwen Smith, Ann Carter, Barbara Callaghan, Carol Ludlow, Phyllis Lewis, Sue Harper, Mary Macey, Crimilda Jarrett, Gladys Williams, Penny and Nigel Parsons, Adela Johnson, Hilary Gable.

Candles for Easter

The Lectern Candles were sponsored by Mary and Gwen Bailey in memory of Thomas Bailey

The 7 day Sanctuary candle was sponsored by Tosin Ogunyemi in memory of his Dad. 

April 2011

A New Life

Some of you will have already heard the news that I may be leaving Abbey Wood at some time in the future. For some time now I have been in contact with the Priory of Our Lady at Walsingham having felt a call to become a Nun. I have now stayed with them on a few occasions, getting to know them and learning about Religious life and will be returning the week before Holy week for another weeks stay. This process of discernment takes time as we get to know each other and where we all explore whether we feel I really do have a calling to be a Nun and is still continuing. However, I hope, all being well, that I will be able to join them at some time.

The community at Walsingham as a small community consisting at present of 6 Sisters. They live in a large house with its own chapel just outside the grounds of the Shrine. They are a traditional community who wear the habit all the time and their day consists of 5 offices (the Office of readings, Morning prayer, Midday prayer, Evening Prayer and Night Prayer), the first being at 7am. They also have a daily Mass and each sister is required to do 1 1/2 hours of private prayer a day. The Angelus is also said at 7am, 12noon and 6pm. Silence is kept from after Night Prayer until after Breakfast each day, Breakfast and dinner are eaten in silence.

Apart from the prayer time and Mass the Sisters also help out around the Shrine; they go to the Saturday evening laying on of hands and also help in the visitor centre and go to the Rosary prayers in the shrine once a week. One of the Sisters helps in the Shrine shop while others do things in the Priory such as the washing and the Sacristy work.

At the moment I am what they call an Aspirant. When you first join the community you become a Postulant for 6 months, these wear a grey skirt, white top and veil. After 6 months, if you and the other Sisters still think you have a calling, you become a Novice for 3 years, these wear the grey Habit of the community with a white veil. After this time you take temporary vows for 2 years before taking life vows, these wear a black veil. It was described to me as being a bit like getting married, where first you go out together (Novice), then get engaged (temporary vows) and finally marriage (life vows). It is only once you take life vows that you are tied to the community, before that you are free to leave if you wish (or if the other Sisters don't think you have a calling).

No one at the community has any possessions, everything at the Priory is there for them all to use and share, however, you do keep any property and your bank account open until you take life vows in case it is decided it is not the life for you. Each Sister has a tiny bedroom, just big enough for a bed, sink and cupboard. There are 2 TV's in the Priory which they can watch on their afternoon off and on a Sunday they have Night Prayer early and then some of them watch a DVD together.

 The Sisters are encouraged to keep in contact with their family and friends, by letter, phone and email, and anyone is free to visit. All the offices and Mass are open to anyone who wishes to join them and I was surprised how there always seemed to be visitors, even when I went to stay in February. Each Sister has one afternoon off a week and one day in retreat a month and also has 4 weeks holiday a year when they can go and visit family and friends.

I would appreciate it if you could all keep me in your prayers during this time of discernment, as you can imagine leaving Abbey Wood, leaving behind my friends and family, to join the community will be a very big step to take.

Carol Stead

   Lest We Forget -Part 2

In my research for our War Memorial names, the ages of the men who did not return went from 17 to 38 years old. The youngest was a Signal Boy in the Royal Navy, the oldest a Private in the Scots Guards.

Alfred Walter George Warren, son of Mr and Mrs M J Warren of 87 Abbey Grove, was born in 1898. He was serving aboard HMS Goliath in May of 1915 in the Dardanelles and on 12th May 1915 the battleship was anchored in Morto Bay. At about 1.15 in the morning of the 13th, Muavenet-i-Milliye, a Turkish destroyer, was spotted by Goliath in fog, but it was too late, as three torpedoes were already discharged. All three hit the Goliath, one at the fore turret, the second at the foremost funnel and a third at the after turret. The battleship sank very quickly and very few of the crew below decks had time to escape, of 750 crew, 570 were killed.  Alfred was just 17 years old and his body was never found. His name is listed on the Chatham Naval Memorial on which is inscribed the following

 “In honour of the Navy and to the abiding memory of these ranks and ratings of this port who laid down their lives in the defence of the Empire and have no other grave than the sea.”

John James Keir was in the 1^st Battalion Scots Guards and was   part of the British Expeditionary Force on the Western Front. His father, also a John, lived at 28 Shieldhall Street but as yet I still have to trace where the younger lived before the war.  At the time John James died, on the 27^th September 1915, he was in the ‘Big Push’ of the Battle of Loos, he would have faced machine gun fire and heavy shelling from the enemy. At the end of this battle (24^th September - 18^th October) 61,000 men were killed and over half of John James’ battalion were gone. His name is on the Loos Memorial with over 20,000 others from that battle that were not found. John James Keir was 38 years old.

This boy and this man died within months of each other in different parts of the world, one on a sinking battleship the other sinking in the mud of a foreign field and yet their parents were living just five minutes away from each other praying that their boys would come home.

Alfred and John are just two of the names on our War Memorial in St Michaels, if you have any information on them or any of the others I would be pleased to hear from you.

By Ann Veitch  

 Pre-Lent dinner Click here for report

A 400th Birthday

You will probably have heard pr read that this year is the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, often, though erroneously, known as the Authorised Version or AV. It was never actually authorised by anyone!

Those of us who grew up with it often know whole passages by heart. Those who know it less may be surprised to realise the origins of the following -

the land of nod

as white as snow

fell flat on his face

by the skin of my teeth

be horribly afraid

I could go on !

With all this in mind, Father David and I have set aside Saturday and Sunday April 30th and May 1st for a small exhibition about the Bible. Apart from copies of the King James and associated items, which we already have, we are looking for copies of modern (20th Century) translations and for copies of Bibles or Testaments in languages other than English.

If you would be able to lend one or more of the above for this exhibition please ring me or speak to me in church. I hope to gather everthing together on Easter Weekend.

Thank you in anticipation

Rosemary Warner

British Gas has 'The Power'

When Sue's Mum went to live in a care home, we notified all and sundry including, of course, the utility companies - who sent their final bills. That should have been the end of it, so we were a bit irritated when British Gas sent a letter addressed to the old lady at her old address, saying, 'We are very sorry that you left us in September, but if you come back to us you could find that you'll be making a saving in more ways than one.... We'd like to welcome you back with lower energy bills and extra savings worth up to £138!' Obviously they were treating it as a case of somebody who had switched energy suppliers, and had not taken on board at all the fact that Sue's Mum had left her flat and gone to live in a care home - even though we had made it absolutely clear. Just another computer error, of course...

But what really takes the biscuit is a reader's letter to the editor which recently appeared in a national newspaper. It goes:

'Sir, in answer to my informing British Gas of the death of my Uncle, the company responded by writing to him, care of me, a letter headed:" We're sorry to see you go." The letter included the invitation :"If you ever want to come back, simply let us know." (Daily Telegraph, 18th February 2011)

So, British Gas has power to raise the dead! That makes the Church redundant, then!

Fr. Derek 

March 2011

Church Mouse

It’s so nice living in a nice warm house now and it was great to see so many turn up to help get the church clean after the new heating system was installed.

I’ve been thinking ahead to Lent which starts on Ash Wednesday on 9^th March and wondering what we do to keep Lent and why. Lent is kept with fasting, prayer and Alms giving, it was originally a time of preparation for people who would be baptised at Easter but gradually the whole congregation joined in the preparation.

Fasting during Lent was more severe in ancient times than today. In some places, all animal products were strictly forbidden, while others would permit fish. In most places the practice was to abstain from eating until the evening, when a small meal was eaten. Now it is customary to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday when only one meal, with no meat, should be consumed along with 2 light snacks. A custom that developed later was to also give up something a person “enjoyed” receiving or doing for the duration of Lent. Many Christians today will choose to give up something during the Lenten period.

But Lent is not just about giving up things it is also about preparing ourselves for Easter by taking up things. One of the things which we do at St Michael’s every Wednesday during Lent is to walk the Stations of the Cross. In the Middles Ages people would travel to Jerusalem on pilgrimage where they would visit the places where certain key episodes of the Passion took place. However, travelling to Jerusalem has always been dangerous and expensive. It seemed unfair that only those who were rich enough and strong enough to make the journey could go, so people started to build copies of the Holy Sepulchre (the Tomb) all over Europe so that the spiritual benefits of a trip to the Holy Land were made available to many more Christians who now had a chance to walk that sad route with Christ and to meditate on his Passion. But, after a while, even this wasn’t enough. There were thousands of peasants or sick people who couldn’t even make it to the nearest town. So the Franciscans took the next step in about the 14^th century. They began putting up wooden crosses in parish churches everywhere, each representing an episode in the Passion. The idea being that you could simply go to your parish church and meditate on each of the stations, so what began as a death-defying trip to the Middles East has become, over the centuries, a devotion that can be followed in your own church.

The Stations themselves are usually a series of 14 pictures or sculptures depicting the following scenes:

1.       Jesus is condemned to death

2.       Jesus is given his cross

3.       Jesus falls the first time

4.       Jesus meets His Mother

5.       Simon of Cyrene carries the cross

6.       Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

7.       Jesus falls the second time

8.       Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem

9.       Jesus falls the third time

10.    Jesus is stripped of His garments

11.    Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross

12.    Jesus dies on the cross

13.    Jesus' body is removed from the cross

14.    Jesus is laid in the tomb.

As we all walk from one station to another a reading, prayer and meditation (which varies each week) is read while we reflect on each station. These are short services held every Wednesday during Lent and it is really worth trying to come to at least one.

Another thing which we often do at St Michael’s during Lent is to have Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. This is a silent time of prayer when we can be still in the presence of God.

Of course, we also have the services during Holy week, I’m always surprised about how many people just turn up for the celebration  at the end on Easter Morning without first walking with Jesus over the last few days. On Maundy Thursday the Mass includes the washing of feet following what Jesus did at the Last Supper. At the end of the Mass all the candles, and candlesticks are removed along with the statues, crosses etc. The church is left in silence and in darkness. The reserve Sacrament is placed in St Michael’s chapel which has now been made into the Garden of Repose. A silent watch is kept here until 12 Midnight.

At 3pm on Good Friday we gather in the still silent church with no candles lit. After the readings, the crucifix is brought forward from the back of the church. Everyone is then invited forward to venerate the cross. The reserve Sacrament is brought from St Michael’s chapel and is used for communion. The church is then left again in silence.

Then at 5am on Easter Morning we gather for the wonderful Easter Vigil. The Pascal Candle is lit, gradually followed by all the other candles. During the Gloria party poppers are let off, bells ring and there is rejoicing as Jesus rises from the dead.

TEMPUS FUGIT…..

‘We may not be the young ones very long’.  That line from an early Cliff Richard number is one of the truest song lyrics I know!  Where do the years go? Recently I consulted my GP regarding various ailments troubling me, and the doctor – a clergy daughter with a good sense of humour, turned to Sue and said, ‘The trouble is, Sue, he’s getting old and wearing out. You need to get yourself a new one!’  I think she was only joking, and I am relieved that so far I have not detected any signs that Sue has taken her advice…..

By coincidence, I then read a poem which appeared in the newsletter of the old folks home where my mother-in-law is living. The poem was entitled ‘I’M FINE – THANK YOU’. It might not win any literary awards, but it is amusing and goes like this:

There is nothing the matter with me

I’m as healthy as can be.

I’ve arthritis in both my knees

And when I talk I wheeze.

My pulse is weak, my blood is thin

But I’m awfully well for the state I’m in.

Arch supports prop up my feet

Or I wouldn’t be able to walk down the street.

Sleep is denied me night after night

Yet every morning I find I’m alright.

My memory is failing, my head’s in a spin

But I’m awfully well for the state I’m in.

My moral is this (as my tale unfolds)

That for you and for me that’s growing old.

It’s better to say, “I’m fine” with a grin

Than to let folks know what a state I’m in.

How do I know my youth is spent?

Well my Get Up and Go just got up and went.

Old age is golden, I’ve often heard said

But sometimes I wonder as I get into bed.

Hearing aid in the drawer, my teeth in a cup

My specs on the table until I wake up,

Before sleep overtakes me I say to myself

Is there anything else I could lay on the shelf?

When I was young my shoes were blue

But still I could dance the whole night through.

Now I am old my shoes are black

I walk to the shops and puff my way back.

I get up in the morning and dust off my wits

Pick up the paper and read the Obits.

If my name is missing I know I’m not dead

So I have a good breakfast and go back to bed!

Fr. Derek

PS. The Preacher told me I should be thinking of the hereafter. I told him I do that all the time no matter where I am – in the kitchen, study, living room or upstairs. I’m always asking myself “What am I here after?”….. Remember we old folk are worth a fortune with Silver in our hair, Gold in our teeth, Stones in our kidneys, Lead in our feet and Gas in our stomachs…..Now I’ve become a little older I have become quite a frivolous old girl having two gentlemen with me all the time. Will Power helps me get out of bed – Arthur Ritus never leaves me alone!  Boom! Boom!

The Thrills of driving - beetle drive (click here for report)

Lest we Forget (part 1)

On Remembrance Sunday I stand there and think about my Great Uncle Len who was killed near Ypres in Belgium in 1915. Like many others of his generation who served and suffered in that war he died amongst unimaginable horror and his body was never recovered, so there is no grave, but his name is etched on the Menin Gate in Belgium. Whenever I have the chance I go there, with Len's medals in my pocket, and at 8 O'clock every evening The Last Post is sounded under the memorial. It is a very moving ceremony and it always makes me weep.

In Abbey Wood on cold November mornings when the Last Post is played at the act of remembrance, the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I an instantly taken back to Ypres. After the two minutes silence, Reveille and Kohima Prayer the wreath is laid at the memorial in the church and we all line up in silence to cast our poppies around the wreath and then return to our seats. How many of us look at the 39 names on the two shining brass memorials and wonder who they were and what they did and who they left behind? Well, prompted by two limes in the weekly notices a few months ago, I decided to try and find out.

There are two memorials, one for World War I with 35 names on it and one for World War II with 4 names. So far I have managed to trace basic details for 27 men, 3 possible traces and 9 that have so far eluded me. The information I have found includes nationality, rank, service, regiment, unit, age, date of death, cemetery, memorial and in some cases, relatives and place of birth. I am collecting this information in a booklet which will be available for all in the church in the near future and more information about the ones I have traced will be deatiled in later articles in this magazine.

However, I need your help to try and track down the 3 possible and 9 untraceable. I want all of these men not just to be remembered my letters on a brass plaque, I want them to be remembered as sons, hsbands, brothers, friends, local lads who went to war and to whom we owe so much. So please take a mement or two to look at the names listed below and any information that you can give me, however trivial it may seem, could help me reduce the blank spaces in my endeavour. All of the names below relate to men who were killed in the first was.

Thank you

J E Argent                                         S Baker

G B Burton                                        A B Farrell

P E Farrell                                        C Francis

L W F Gill                                        T F Griggs

A Rider                                            P J W Staniford

W A Tapsall                                      C Wright

By Ann V

Warm - at last

It was in November 2009 that the gas company turned off the supply as there were so many leaks in the pipes. Mind you, the heating radiators and pipes were about 100 years old. So - we have been without any heat in church for 15 months. During the recent cold spells and snow it was very cold: in fact it was colder inside the church than outside - congratulations to the members of our congregation, and it was most of them, who continued coming to church in spite of the extreme cold.

During December we were so excited when workmen arrived to install new central heating. It had been a hard struggle to get enough money to warrant a grant, but we made it.

The last week in January the work was completed and the heating was on. On Saturday 29th January a stalwart band of people arrived at the church to give it a thorough clean - and it needed it. Everywhere and everything was washed or dusted and polished and everything moved back in its place.

Sunday 30th January the church was warm. Invitations had been sent out and a great Thanksgiving Service was held. The Deputy Mayor of Greenwich, Jim Gillman and his wife attended, also the Mayor of Bexley, Val Clark. The boilers were blessed and then we continued with the Sunday morning Parish Mass.

After Mass a reception was held at which sangria, tea, coffee and a delicious variety of 'nibbles' were served. Members of the congregation were introduced to the VIP's and a very pleasant time was had by all.

So why don't you come to church one Sunday morning at 10am and experience the warmth for yourself.

Marjorie

Flowers in church

On  January 30th flowers were sponsored by Sheila Owen to celebrate her birthday and for the Central Heating Thanksgiving service.

February 2011

Christmas at St Michael’s

Christmas has now passed at St Michael’s and the new heating system will hopefully be finished by the time this magazine is printed. Although cold in church and the weather outside snowy and icy a small band of people worked extremely hard to clean the church, put up the Christmas tree, replace all the candles, set up the crib, change all the Altar frontals and linen and make the church look splendid with flowers so that Christmas could carry on as normal.

The first of the usual services was the Advent Carol Service. There was a large choir for this plus a couple of servers. The choir, servers and congregation all sat in the choir stalls. The service started in darkness with Fr Derek reading from the pulpit, the servers then lit the candles around the pulpit, with each reading and Carol more candles were lit; from the candles everyone was holding, the ones on the rood screen and finally the High Altar candles. This service led us from darkness into light.

The following week the Christingle service was held. Many families attended and got their traditional Christingle: an orange representing the world, with a red ribbon representing the blood of Christ, 4 cocktail sticks each with sweets on representing the fruits of the earth and finally the candle representing Christ, the light of the world.

Unfortunately, the traditional Carol Service was cancelled due to the bad weather and so was the Carol Singing which we do each year around the parish collecting money for different charities.

On Christmas Eve families gathered for the Crib service which finished with the children finding all the pieces for the Crib (sheep, shepherds, Mary, Joseph etc) and taking them and placing them in the Crib, which this year had been moved to the Lady Chapel. That is all except one lost sheep who ended up sitting on one of the lectern candle sticks until the Sunday morning when it finally found its way to the Crib.

Later that evening a few people started the Christmas services by joining Fr David saying the Office of Readings. This is a short service lasting only about 15 minutes consisting of Psalms, two readings, intercessions and the Te Deum. The choir then sang some Carols until the midnight Mass started at 11.30pm. At the end of Midnight Mass the Babino (the baby Jesus), who had spent most of the service laying on the Altar, was processed into the Lady Chapel and laid in the Crib.

The Christmas services continued with Mass on Christmas morning and then the feast of the Holy family on the Sunday.

The following Sunday was Epiphany. Three young boys had been chosen to be the Kings and joined the Altar party in processing into the church carrying the Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh which they placed in front of the Altar. The three boys then joined the servers for the Gospel procession. They also received the communion gifts and passed them to Fr Derek. At the end of the service Fr David blessed the chalk which is given to the congregation to take home to mark their homes with the symbols 20+K+M+B+11, bringing a blessing on the house and all that live there. The three Kings then collected their gifts and took them and lay them in the Crib.

Carol Stead

Church Mouse

I have been watching everyone being busy over the Christmas season. There was the usual small band of people getting the church ready for Christmas, although it was nice to see when help was asked to clean all the brass in church that an 8 year old volunteered (the only volunteer) – and he made a fantastic job of it.

While everyone is busy rushing around doing all the jobs that need doing, both at church and at home, it is sometimes easy to forget that we should prepare ourselves for Mass. Sitting quietly, hidden in my hole, at the back of the church I see all sorts of people rushing in to Mass. Some arrive early but then busy themselves doing all sorts of jobs such as getting the coffee ready (important things but not preparing themselves for Mass), others stop to chat with friends telling them about the week they have had, while others arrive just as Mass is starting and others arrive during the service.

It is very important to get into the right frame of mind before the service begins. Some old books used to recommend people to ‘recollect the presence of God’. That is good advice. But first of all we have to ‘switch off’: take out of our minds, as far as we possibly can, the concerns of every day, so that in the peace we can allow God to make his presence known. It is useful to remember, and to repeat silently to ourselves as we sit waiting the words; ‘be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10).

Very few people take up the opportunity of joining Fr David to say Morning Prayer. This is a short service, starting at 9.30am and lasting only about 15 minutes. It consists of a hymn (said, not sung), 2 psalms, a canticle, a reading, some intercessions and the Benedictus. It is a good way to put you in the right frame of mind for Mass.

But it is not only about what we do when we arrive at church for Mass, how many people take the time to prepare themselves beforehand? There are a couple of ways of doing this, firstly we should be fasting before Mass. Now we are only asked to fast for one hour before receiving communion, which isn’t really very much, especially when you consider that you will have been in church for nearly an hour before receiving anyway on a Sunday.

Another way of preparing ourselves is by examining our conscience. Fr David always advertises times when he is available to hear confessions during Advent and Lent and is also happy to hear them at any other time by appointment but I see very few people using the opportunity (and I promise I don’t listen in). Is this because people think it is only for Roman Catholics, or are embarrassed, don’t understand about it, or just don’t think they need to? I hear that one of the amazing things about the Walsingham Youth Pilgrimage is the number of young people who take the opportunity to go to confession, there are always lots of priests lined up to hear them and always long queues. 

But what is confession and why go? Sin is a fact of life.  Whether we’re guilty of the sins of the flesh (such as adultery, fornication, gluttony, drunkenness), sins of pride (anger, hard-heartedness, envy) or some other kind of moral failing, we all fall prey to sin, all sins separate us from God.

As the Bible reminds, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9).

But why the need for the Sacrament of confession when we can easily confess our sins directly to God?  Whenever we sin, our first response should be an immediate appeal to God for mercy and forgiveness. Repentance should be a regular part of the life of every human being, especially a believer. God is omniscient. Even when we repent in the secret of our heart, we are not telling Him anything that He doesn't already know. Rather, we are acknowledging our sin and taking responsibility for our actions and their consequences. The question that remains is whether or not this private, one to one conversation with God is enough. God does not need our repentance, we do. So God's gift of the forgiveness of sins is tailored to meet our needs.

 Jesus entered into this world to forgive sins. During His public ministry, Jesus preached about the forgiveness of sins: remember the parables of the Prodigal Son (Lk 15:11ff) or the Lost Sheep (Lk 15:1ff), and His teaching that "There will likewise be more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than over 96 righteous people who have no need to repent." (Lk 15:7) Jesus Himself forgave sins: remember the story of the woman caught in adultery (Jn 8:1ff) or the woman who washed His feet with her tears. (Lk 7:36ff) Jesus wanted this ministry of reconciliation to continue. On the first Easter Sunday evening, Jesus appeared to His Apostles, "breathed on them," and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive men's sins, they are forgiven them; if you hold them bound, they are held bound." (Jn 20:21-23) In this scene, Christ instituted the Sacrament of penance and made His Apostles the ministers of it.

 At the ascension, Jesus again charged His Apostles with this ministry: "Thus it is written that the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day. In His name penance for the remission of sins is to be preached to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of this”. (Lk 24:46ff) Clearly, Jesus came to forgive sins, He wanted that reconciliation to continue and He gave the Church a Sacrament through which priests would continue to act as the ministers of this reconciliation.

Regular confession is a healthy spiritual practice. Each sincere Christian needs to periodically—every month or two—do a good examination of conscience holding himself to the standard of Christ. Each person should reflect on how well he has lived a "Christ-like life" by following the commandments and the teachings of the Church.

Perhaps one's failures are not so much thing you have done as they are things you have not done. For all of these, we bring our soul to the Lord and receive forgiveness. The healing grace of the Sacrament of penance washes away sin and gives us the strength to avoid that sin again. The more we love the Lord, the more we are aware of the smallest sins and the more we want to say, "I am sorry. Please forgive me." One of the ways it was described to the young people one year at the Youth Pilgrimage was that it was like walking around with a stone in your shoe; you wouldn’t walk around all day with it but stop and take it out. In going to confession we do the same, I am sure this is why Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II went to confession weekly.

 Sometimes women are overly suspicious of their husbands..

When Adam stayed out very late for a few nights, Eve became upset.

"You're running around with other women", she charged.

"You're being unreasonable," Adam responded. "You're the only women on earth." The quarrel continued until Adam fell asleep, only to be awakened by someone poking him in the chest. It was Eve. "What do you think you're doing?" Adam demanded.

"Counting your ribs," said Eve.

Romance, love, marriage and all that stuff

- the way children see it...

How do you decide whom to marry?

No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and get to find out later who you're stuck with. - Kirsten, age10

What is the right age to get married?

23 is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then. - Camille, age 10

No age is good to get married at. You got to be a fool to get married. - Freddie, age 6

How can a stranger tell if two people are married?

You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to b yelling at the same kids - Derrick, age 8

What do you think your mum and dad have in common?

Both don't wnat any more kids. - Lori, age 8

Flowers in church

During December flowers were sponsored as follows:-

Christmas day - by Sue Harper in memory of her mother and nephew Andrew

Phillip Batt in memory of his parents, Rose and Frank Batt

Glenys and Jim Bartley to celebrate the birth of their granddaughter, Charlotte Millie on 21st October 2010, and also the birth of their daughter, Jane on 5th October

During January:-

16th by Adela Johnson in memory of her beloved husband, Samuel Robert Johnson

23rd by Christine Fern in memory of her mother, Daisy Arnold

Sponsored Candles

For Christmas

Carol Stead sponsored the candles for Our Lady's statue

During January

The 7 day Sanctuary Candles were sponsored

23rd by Sue Naylor in memory of her Mum and Dad

30th by Mary Mkali in memory of her Mum and Dad

December 2010 & January 2011

Church Mouse

I have been looking around and noticing how many candles you have in St Michael’s church. In these days of electric light why bother to still use candles?

Ceremonial lights have been used since the beginning of time, the Greeks and Romans, for example, burnt sanctuary lamps before their temples. Everlasting flames were kept in the sanctuary and on the Altar in the forecourt of the Temple in Jerusalem as a symbol if the Presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant.  

Christ calls himself the Light of the World (Jn 8:12, 9:5, 12:46) and at the Transfiguration his face ‘shone as the sun’ (Mt 17:2). At Pentecost the Holy Spirit appeared as tongues of fire (Acts 2:3). These events reinforce the idea that light indicates the presence of God.

 In the early days of Christianity the people continued to light candles at funerals and lamps in the catacombs, as symbols of everlasting lift, of hope, of rejoicing in a new life that had begun and as symbols of the presence of God. St Jerome laid the ground work for the customs that continue today. He said that there was nothing wrong if people light candles as a symbol in honour of martyrs and saints, if they feel like it. Liturgical candles, in other words, are not practical but symbolic, and as symbols they have a proper and valuable function.

After the fourth century there is lots of evidence of the Church’s liturgical use of lights; early writings record their use at funerals, baptisms, ordinations and at the Eucharist. To start with oil lamps were used but gradually, over the centuries, the use of oil lamps declined in favour of the wax candles we see today and it was already customary to place them on the altar itself to symbolise Christ’s presence in the Eucharist.

Candles are indispensable to any ceremony you can think of. By the fifth century Pope Gelasius I had already established the feast of Candlemas, the feast of the Purification of the Virgin, when a church’s candles for the whole year are blessed.

Protestants, however, rejected St Jerome’s guidelines and the ancient customs of the Church with regard to candles. In Britain and the northern countries of Europe, they abolished the use of ceremonial lights completely – officially, anyway. English Protestant authorities were scandalized by the presence of two lighted candles in the chapel of Elizabeth I, saying that ‘Candle Religion’ was nothing more than ‘Idolatry’. Later, some priests (including Fr Arthur Tooth, remember him from a previous magazine?) were actually arrested and tried for the ‘use of wax lights and tapers’ amongst other things, which they allegedly used in ‘superstitious ceremonies’. However, the symbolism of light was so ingrained that no political pressure was ever able to stamp out ceremonial lights completely.

Soon the ritual use of candles fell into different divisions, which still remain today. They may symbolize God’s presence, particularly the presence of Christ as the Light of the World or they may be offered as an act of devotion, as in votive lights. Around St. Michael’s you can see different candles. There are the 2 seven day candles; the Sanctuary Candle over the Nave Altar and one over the Aumbry containing the Blessed Sacrament, these are always lit to symbolise the presence of God. There are candles on the Altars. The number of candles on an Altar varies but usually come in combinations of 2, 4, or 6. As a rule of thumb the more candles on it the more important it is likely to be. Side and Lady Chapel Altars usually have 2, or maybe 4, 2 being lit for a low Mass, 4 on a high feast day. The High Altar can have anything up to 6 candles. There is also a Pascal candle, this is the candle which is lit at the Easter Vigil and is used to light the candles given to people when they are baptised.

 Then there are votive candles next to statues of Saints which are lit as an act of devotion and finally there are ones which the congregation can light and place in the votive stand.

Fr David led a very good Jubilate meeting a little while ago explaining to the children about lighting votive candles. He got the children to think of different ways in which we communicate with each other for example, talking, writing letters, emailing, giving gifts, and using sign language. He explained that we can also communicate with God in different ways; we may pray aloud or silently or use body language or symbols. Lighting a candle is used as a symbol that we have given our prayer to God; when we leave the candle burning in the votive stand it symbolises that St Michael (or Our Lady or who ever we have asked to pray for us) is carrying on our prayer even when we have left and gone on to do something else and completely forgotten about it.

P.S. don’t forget you can sponsor the candles in church for a special occasion or in memory of someone. The two 7day candles can be sponsored weekly at a cost of £5 each. The Altar, Lectern and other candles are replaced at Christmas, Easter and for our Patronal festival, the cost and list for sponsoring these is on the notice board at the back of the church.

COME, YE THANKFUL PEOPLE, COME! - Harvest Supper - for report click here

Flowers in Church

During November flowers were sponsored as follows:

11th by Peter Ludlow in memory of him mother Eileen Ludlow and his Aunt Peg Stevens

   also by Mary Robson in memory of her husband, Billy.

Christmas Fair

We would like to say a big thank you to all who helped at the Christmas Fair and made it a tremendous success. Also to everyone who came along and supported us and spent their money! We raised a total of over £2100.

November 2010

Church Mouse

Church mouse has been watching people during services, and has noticed that people do things at different times during the service, sometimes they sit, sometimes kneel, and at other times they stand, some may genuflect (bend one knee to the ground) or bow or make the sign of the cross and wondered why this is.

There are obvious times when we stand or sit; standing to sing a hymn or sitting to listen to a reading or the sermon but then we stand for the Gospel Reading and for the Creed and what should we be doing during the prayers?

 The early church adopted many of the rituals of the Romans. The Gospel takes pride of place in the Liturgy of the Word because the Gospels contain the words of Christ in a unique way. The book which contains the Gospels symbolises the presence of Christ and the church has always made this point visually. The book is often kissed ceremonially, it is accompanied by a server carrying a Thurible and by 2 others carrying lighted candles. All these are honours which used to be paid to Roman imperial dignitaries. A chair used to be the principle sign of official status, and only the highest ranking officials got to sit down during public ceremonies. When you stand you acknowledge your secondary status; standing is a sign of respect, like kneeing or bowing. That’s why is a civil court you stand when the judge comes in and why it’s considered rude to remain sitting when introduce to someone, it means you are pulling rank on them. So when the Gospel is read we stand to show respect to it. This is also true of the Gospel Canticles: the Benedictus, the Magnificat, and the Te Deum at Morning and Evening prayer.

 The congregation kneel or stand at the Eucharistic prayer as the priest repeats the words of Christ at the Last supper, first over the bread and then over the chalice, showing each to the congregation as they become the Body and Blood of Christ. Again, just as in any other imperial court, you stand (or kneel) out of respect for the monarch who has just come in; it is disrespectful to remain sitting at this point (unless of course you are old or infirm and incapable of kneeling or standing). I being, a mouse, always stand for all the prayers as my knees aren’t made for kneeling. We should then remain standing (or kneeling) for the Lord’s Prayer and while other people are receiving communion.

The Second Council of Nicaea drew the distinction between proskynesis and latria. Latria is the Latin word meaning the worship that’s owed only to God. Proskynesis is a polite gesture. Bowing, Genuflecting and making the Sign of the Cross are all a form of proskynesis, a gesture or mark of respect that you do to acknowledge a ruler, as they used to do for the Emperor. It is a ritual way that you courteously humble yourself. So we bow or genuflect when we enter and leave church or approach the Altar as a mark of respect (just like you would bow to the Queen). You may also notice the servers bowing to the priest. During Morning or Evening prayer we bow each time we say the Glory Be.

Sometimes people make the Sign of the Cross, by tracing the shape of a cross by touching the hand on the forehead, the chest then across the body from left to right. The Sign of the Cross is made by people upon themselves as a form of prayer. It is usually made during the introductory greeting of the service, before the Gospel reading, before receiving Communion and at the final blessing. It is also made upon entering the church, first dipping your fingers in the Holy Water stoop, to remind us of our Baptism.

Flowers in church

During October flowers were sponsored as follows:

24th by Peter Ludlow in memory of his father, Thomas Ludlow

31st by Marjorie Gillespie in memory of her sister Kitty's birthday on 6th Nov

Candles

22nd November Jeanette Harding sponsored the 7day Sanctuary candle in memory of her husband, Cyril Harding

October 2010

Hyde Park Vigil

In late July I was approached by Fr Richard from St Benet’s church and asked if I would like a ticket to see the Pope at Hyde Park, I was delighted to accept and later found out that they had also asked Fr David. Unfortunately due to other commitments that morning ( I was serving at the Forward in Faith Mass at Southwark Cathedral and Fr David had visits to make) we were unable to travel with the group from St Benet’s to Hyde Park but I collected our tickets the evening before and Fr David and I set off together at 2.30pm. When we got to Hyde Park I expected there to be long queues to get in but the doors had opened at 2pm and the queues had died down. The park was packed with thousands people of all ages, with lots of families and young people, who had settled themselves down for the long wait. We wandered around for a while to see if we could find the group from St Benet’s but it was like looking for a needle in a haystack so found ourselves a spot about half way into the crowd. Although the platform was a long way off and you could only just make out people on it everything was shown on giant screens around the grounds.

People were waving flags and being entertained by singers. Then a long procession began of representatives from each church carrying their banners into the platform and shaking hand with the English and Welsh Bishops.

Next several people got up and spoke about their faith this included a former drug addict, and an asylum seeker. As family of Jimmy Mizens  got up and spoke about the day their son was murdered the day after his 16^th birthday silence fell over the 80,000 crowd to hear them speak. We were then all asked to stand and they filmed us sending a message to the World Leaders meeting in America next week to end poverty.

The big screens then turned to the Popemobile making its slow journey to Hyde Park along roads full of people who had come out to catch a glimpse of him. Cheers went up from the crowd as we watched him approach. It was strange seeing him enter the park on the big screen but not being able to see the Popemobile, and then we caught a glimpse of him as he arrived in front of the platform.

Pope Benedict then took his seat on the platform and was welcomed. The atmosphere had now changed in the park from the party like atmosphere with people chatting to those around them to the quiet of a service. After an opening prayer, we had a reading from Ephesians; this was followed a cantor leading the singing of Psalm 119 and the Gospel from Matthew (the Beatitudes). The Holy Father then gave a Homily, explaining that the Vigil was to prepare for Sunday’s Mass in which John Henry Newman was to be beatified.  He reflected on the life of Newman, and reminded us that not far from where we were standing great numbers of brothers and sisters died for their faith and that ‘In our own time, the price to be paid for fidelity to the Gospel is no longer being hanged, drawn and quartered but it often involves being dismissed out of hand, ridiculed or parodied’ and that ‘there can be no separation between what we believe and the way we live our lives. Our every thought, word and action must be directed to the glory of God and the spread of his Kingdom.’ He went on to address the young people present telling how some are called to family life, some to teaching, some to religious life and some as priests, urging them to listen to God’s call for them. He then invited them to join him next year in Madrid for World Youth Day.

The Holy Father then lit the Pascal candle and the light passed to candles carried by representatives from the parishes as the Blessed Sacrament Procession began. As we chanted ‘Adoramus Te Domine’ the Monstrance was placed on the Altar. Kneeling amongst a silent congregation of 80,000 I could no longer see the platform but could see the Host displayed on the big screen.  We then prayed the Liturgy of the Sacred Heart before Cardinal Newman’s prayer Radiating Light was read, followed by Newman’s hymn Lead kindly Light and the prayer of St Francis of Assisi. We all sang  Tantum Ergo in Latin before the Holy Father, now wearing the Humeral veil, lifted the Monstrance and gave Benediction. As the Vigil ended there was an explosion of applause, cheering and waving of banners and flags as the Holy Father left the platform.

One lady from our congregation had remarked to me in the morning that she didn’t see the point of going to a large thing like that, you wouldn’t get to see the Pope and would be much better off watching it on TV but it wasn’t about seeing the Pope, it was a wonderfully moving experience to join such a large crowd in worship, and prayer celebrating our Catholic faith and hear the Holy Father speak and be in his presence.

Carol Stead

The church mouse

The summer has been a busy month in church with people coming and going. I’ve heard the choir have been singing in Dublin and there have been two pilgrimages to Walsingham; firstly a weekend staying at the Shrine, followed a couple of weeks later by a group of young people camping at the Youth Pilgrimage.

I heard some of those who went on the weekend pilgrimage talking about Fr Arthur Tooth who was imprisoned for, amongst other things, the use of incense. But what is incense and why do you burn it on a Sunday? It’s not just to make the church smell nice.

 Frankincense is a resin produced by a family of desert trees. These trees grow scattered across the deserts of southern Arabia. Patches of bark are scraped from the trunk and branches which stimulates a flow of milky-white sap that hardens into droplets of resin. These are weak in scent and usually thrown away. A second scraping gives a low-quality frankincense, but the third stimulates the flow of sap which dries to amber-gold crystalline lumps, which is the finest frankincense and is very expensive. Incense in made up of frankincense mixed with other less-expensive aromatics. At St. Michael’s different incense are used; Rosa Mystica is a more expensive incense which is used at Christmas, Easter and for the Patronal Festival, Basilica is used for other feasts, with Abbey used for most other Sundays.

Frankincense was used hundreds of years before the birth of Christ. God ordered Moses to set up a special Altar of Incense (Ex 30:1-7) and the Hebrews used it in their services in the Temples, incense was understood by the Hebrews to be a ‘pure offering’ pleasing to God. At the Nativity the Magi offered gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.

Christians never really adopted the Hebrew concept that the fragrance of frankincense pleased God materially, the way it pleases a human who smells it. Instead, Christians use it as a symbol of purification and of prayer. In the Apocalypse St John refers to an Angel ‘having a Gold censer; and there given to him much incense, so that he might offer with it….prayers...And with the prayers….there went up before God from the angel’s hand the smoke of incense.’ (Rev 8:2-4).

Incense has been used as a sign of purification by Christians from the earliest times. The oldest surviving book which lists the prayers to be said at Mass requires a deacon carrying a golden censor to precede the bishop as he enters the sanctuary, as a sign of purification of the church before Mass begins. For this reason too, incense was used at every Catholic High Mass, as well as Benediction and other ceremonies before the Second Vatican Council, it is now optional in Catholic churches.

Fr Arthur Tooth was prosecuted in 1876 under the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874. The Public Worship Regulation Act 1874 had been introduced as a Private Member’s Bill by the Archbishop of Canterbury to limit what he perceived as the growing ritualism of Anglo-Catholicism and the Oxford Movement within the Church of England.

Arthur was ordained in 1864 and in 1868 became vicar of St James, New Cross, a working class parish in South East London. His effort to renew the life of St James attracted large congregations. His approach combined capable preaching, the introduction of ritualist practices, and the establishment of parish organisations designed to help the more needy residents of the area. . He was charged with (among other things) the use of incense, vestments, and altar candles. Eventually in 1877 he was taken into custody and imprisoned for contempt of court. He wasn’t the only one to be prosecuted; many priests were, with four others also being imprisoned. Prosecutions ended in 1906. However, the act remained in force until 1st march 1965.

So, next time you smell the sweet smell of incense in church, remember that it has been used for centuries and remember those, like Fr Arthur, who were imprisoned for its use.

 Flowers in Church

During September flowers were sponsored as follows:

On 11th By Carol Stead for Lorraine's wedding

On 19th By Michael Edwards in memory of his father Caradog

On 26th By Norma Simpson

Candles in Church

On 11th the 7 day Sanctuary candle was sponsored by Carol Stead to celebrate the marriage of her daughter Lorraine to Donald Barron

On 11th Carol also sponsored the 7 day Blessed Sacrament candle to celebrate the birthday of her son, Paul.

September 2010

Jubilate

Gabija tells us about a treasure hunt Jubilate did earlier in the year.

When we did the treasure hunt we needed to get into pairs. It was really fun, because every time we found the sweets we got to have two of them because there were lots there. At the end of the game the winning team got two boxes of sweets, they weren’t all for you and your partner, it was one for you and your partner and one for the adult who helped you because otherwise the adult got nothing and you would get lots of sweets.

 By Gabija aged 11

Walsingham - click for report

Walsingham Youth Pilgrimage 2010 -click for report

Unfortunately due to lack of space The Church Mouse was omitted from this magazine but will return next month.

Flowers in church

Flowers were sponsored by:

 25th July - Michael and Janet Macey

 1st August - Pat Kennets and the family of Kay Maddox in memory of her

 8th August - Marjorie Gillespie in memory of her mother's birthday

 15th and 22nd August - Norma Simpson for the Assumption of Our Lady

August 2010

The Church Mouse

I’ve noticed that there is a lot of activity after the Sunday morning Mass. There is a table where you can get tea or coffee while you chat to each other, one where you can buy cards, another for cakes and a last one which sells different things each week. This table can be booked (by signing on the sheet on the notice board) by anyone in the congregation to raise some money for the church; however I have noticed that it always seems to be the same people booking it.  Sometimes they sell books, or bric a brac or religious items however, recently I noticed some of the young people with a tuck shop, selling canned drinks, sweets etc. and I hear a child has been busy painting stones to become door stops or paper weighs to sell. I’m sure there are a lot of other very talented people out there who could sometimes book the stall and wonder why they don’t.

Any way, I’ve noticed that when the religious items are on sale quiet a lot of Rosaries are sold. But aren’t they a Catholic thing? And what do you do with them? So I thought I’d ask the spiders in church to help me do some research and find out about them – they have access to the Web you know!

Tradition has it that the rosary was given to St Dominic in an apparition by the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1214 in the church of Prouille. The Rosary is a popular and traditional way of praying. It is divided into five decades each consisting of ten small beads and separated by one larger bead. The praying of each decade is accompanied by meditation on one of the mysteries of the Rosary; these are events in the lives of Jesus and his mother Mary.

There are four different sets of mysteries. The praying of the Rosary is dedicated to one set of mysteries, usually praying the Joyful mysteries on Mondays and Saturdays, the Sorrowful Mysteries on Tuesdays and Fridays, the Glorious mysteries on Wednesdays and Sundays and the Luminous Mysteries on Thursdays. Each of these sets of mysteries has five different mysteries to meditate on, one for each decade. For example, when praying the joyful mysteries you meditate on the annunciation in for the first decade, the visitation for the second, then the Nativity, the presentation of Jesus in the Temple and finally the finding of the child Jesus in the Temple.

To pray the Rosary you start at the crucifix by making the sign of the cross and saying the Creed. Next Our Father is said at the first large bead followed by 3 Hail Marys, and then the Glory Be. Each decade is then said by announcing the mystery then saying Our Father on the large bead, 10 Hail Mary’s on the 10 small beads and then the Glory Be. After the last decade the Rosary is completed by saying Hail Holy Queen.

But where does the Hail Mary come from? There are different classes of prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, for example, is a Liturgical prayer and comes straight from the Bible. The Hail Mary, however, is a devotional prayer and evolved from the practices of monks, nuns and lay Christians. The prayer falls into two parts: a salutation and a petition. Each of these consists of two smaller parts. The first sentence ‘Hail, Mary, full of grace; the Lord is with you,’ is of course Gabriel’s salutation to Mary at the Annunciation (Luke 1:28). The second part ‘Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb,’ is Elizabeth’s greeting to Mary at the Visitation (Lk 1:42).

The first part of the petitionary section of the prayer, ‘Holy Mary, Mother of God’ dates from the Council of Ephesus, in the year 431. Some scholars think that Mary lived out her days in Ephesus. In the fifth century some people were insisting that Mary was the mother of Christ, but not the mother of God. The people of Ephesus weren’t having any of this. They took to the streets and rioted whenever anyone tried to deny the title ‘Mother of God’. When the Council of Ephesus broke the news that they had decided that the title had always been proper for the Blessed Mother, the Ephesians took to the streets again, with torches, shouting, ‘Holy Mary! Mother of God! Pray of us sinners!’ giving us the other part of the petition.

The Rosary helped to win the battle of Lepanto. In October 1571, the Islamic Turks had swarmed across the Middle East and were now threatening the Christian kingdoms of the central Mediterranean. Pope Pius V called upon Europe to build a Christian fleet. Several countries joined to build a fleet under commanders of many languages but the Turks had one language, and one commander and they were already skilled in conquest and far out numbered the allied forces.

Pope Pius V wasn’t depending on earthly help alone. He was a Dominican, devoted to Our Lady and he called upon the Rosary confraternities of Rome and all over Europe to have special processions and public recitals of the Rosary. On the first Sunday of October the Christian fleet met the invading Turks off the coast of Greece. As Christians all over Europe recited the Rosary the Turks surrounded the Christian ships. But the European fleet broke through, at the end of the day’s fighting almost all of the Turks were driven shore or drowned. Europe was saved.

Have another look at the Rosary, if these prayers can turn back the Turkish fleet, think what they might do for you.

Jubilate

One evening we went up to Lesnes Abbey, first we looked at the toilets. Next we looked at the warming room and Father Derek read what it would be like to be a monk. Then we did a word search in the Undercroft. After that we went to the courtyard sat on benches, learnt more about monks then had a race. We then went to the kitchen and ate crackers with cheese and had water. Later on we went to the nave and sang a song all the way to the Lady Chapel; we carried banners, the Thurible and candles.

Our favourite part of the day was singing.

Seri & Conor (Aged 8 and 10)

Photos of our evening are displayed on the notice board.

10k Run

On Sunday 11^th July Paul and I were up bright and early to set off for our 10k run. We got the train from Abbey Wood to Charing Cross, as we went through each station we could see it filling up with other people heading for the run. We then followed the crowd to Waterloo Place where we were to leave our bags.

Although it was only 8.30am and the race didn’t start until 9.35am we had been warned to go down to the start at Hyde Park Corner early. There were 27,000 runners this year so to get near the beginning you had to be there early (the ones at the back took about 40minutes to cross the start line). We were being held on the left hand side of the road, the queue going up to the end of the road and back down with the start line on the right hand side of the road. At about 9.15 we could hear music heading our way, it was the band of the Blues and Royals marching, playing on their way up to the start line. They were followed by the mounted band a couple of minutes later. All the runners clapped as the bands went past. About 10 minutes later both bands came back down the road, this time we were lucky as the band on foot stopped and played a couple of pieces right in front of us. At 9.25 the Lord Mayor of the City of Westminster addressed the runners; unfortunately we couldn’t actually hear what he was saying. Then at 9.30am all three verses of the National Anthem were played.  The run was started with a cannon being shot at 9.35am.

Within a couple of minutes we could see the elite runners going past us on the other side of the road. We had a 10minute walk up to the start line, and then we were off. The pace started quiet fast (faster than I was planning to go) and Paul soon disappeared off into the distance. The run took us along Piccadilly and Pall Mall to the Embankment, up to Tower Bridge where we turned and headed back down the Embankment, cross over Westminster Bridge and back, down to the Houses of Parliament, along to Westminster Abbey then up to the finish in Whitehall. The route was crowded all the way round with us having to dodge other slower runners and faster ones overtaking us but a good pace was kept up.

 Unfortunately, having stood at the start line for 1 hour (and having had plenty to drink the day before to make sure I was suitable hydrated in the hot weather) I had to stop at the toilets at the 2km mark for a comfort brake which lost me a couple of minutes. I was wearing my GPS watch, so was able to keep check of my pace. My plan was to try to stick to 7min per km but found the pace of the others runners pushing me along at a much faster 6min/ km at the start. I kept the pace at about 6 ½ min/ km until we got to 7km when, with it now turning hot and the tiredness setting in, it dropped to 7 ½ min/ km. There were crowds of people all along the route cheering us on and soon the finish line was in sight.

Once you passed the finish line you were given a drink and had to walk back to Waterloo place to collect our bags and be given a medal and goody bag. Here I met up with Paul again and found out that he had finished in 1hour 9 minutes and 18seconds (a new PB for him), with me finishing in 1hour 12 minutes and 20 seconds. Although I was 2 minutes slower than I hoped I was well pleased with my time and was surprised when I got home to see from my GPS that it had recorded that I had actually run 10.5km, meaning that when it said I crossed the 10k mark I was actually 2 minutes faster than my previous PB.

Thank you to everyone who guessed who would finish first and by how much, the winner was Sue Naylor with a guess of Paul finishing 3minutes before me. We will be keeping our training up with us doing the Half Marathon again at the end of September.

Carol Stead

Flowers

During July, flowers were sponsored as follows:

on 5th July by the Jarrett family in memory of their son Julian Ojo Jarrett, the 2nd anniversary.

July 2010

The Church Mouse

Hi, it’s church mouse again. Isn’t it great that the weather is warmer and I have now been able to take off my gloves and hat? I hear that the plans for the new heating system are going well and they hope to have new heating in church in time for the winter. I’ve been looking at the new display of photos of St. Michael’s church family and can now put names to some of you but there are still plenty of people coming to church who I can not see on the display, it would be great if everyone could be on it so I can tell who you all are.

I love to watch people coming into church and see what they do. Sunday is the busiest day with lots of people turning up for Mass in the morning and some returning later for the evening service. Sunday morning starts with Morning Prayer being said at 9.30am. This is a short service starting with a hymn (which is said not sung as Fr David can’t sing), followed by 2 psalms and a Canticle and a short reading. The Benedictus is then said followed by intercessions, the Lord’s Prayer and a final prayer. It only takes 15minutes but I think it is a good way to prepare yourself for Mass rather then rushing in at the last minute.

 This is followed by a sung Mass at 10am. At Corpus Christi Fr David reminded us how important it is to come to the Mass prepared, that it is easy to just treat it is something we do, rather than preparing ourselves properly. Part of this is making sure you are in church to hear the Liturgy of the Word and not arriving after the gospel and still expecting to receive.

 Each Sunday of the month the evening service is slightly different; on the first Sunday of every month is the Four O’clock service. I love the Four O’clock service; it is a lively family service and is suitable for all ages. These services have a different theme each month such as Christian Aid, Deserts, and the Last Supper and I always learn a lot at them. The children get involved with the service and Jubilate lead the singing with the music group playing for it.

 On the second Sunday Evensong is sung at 6.30pm. The Book of Common Prayer is used for this and it includes hymns, a psalm, 2 readings, the Magnificat, prayers and a sermon. Every third Sunday this becomes Choral Evensong with the choir singing Anthems, this is often followed by an organ recital.

 On the last Sunday of every month Evensong finishes with Benediction. At the end of the service Fr David goes into the Lady Chapel and comes back in carrying the Monstrance. This is a tall vessel that holds a consecrated host so that it can be seen by the congregation. It has a base and stem like those of a chalice, but at the top it has a circular glass case for the host, usually surrounded by rays of glory. As soon as Fr David returns with the Monstrance everyone kneels down, this is as a sign of respect because Jesus, present in the consecrated host, has been brought into our presence. After some prayers, the humeral veil is placed over Fr David’s shoulders and he takes the Monstrance and makes the sign of the cross in silence over the kneeling congregation, giving them Jesus’ blessing.

Occasionally, especially during Lent, the church is open for 1 hour before a weekday evening Mass for Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. Here the Host is placed in the Monstrance which is placed on the Altar. People then come into the church in silence to sit in the presence of Jesus; they use this time to pray.

 Although Sunday is the busiest day in church you’d be surprised how much goes on in here during the week. There is a said Mass every day which several people come to. There is always a long queue of people to see Fr David after Monday’s Mass to book Weddings and Baptisms. On a Wednesday morning after Mass there is a group of people around busy cleaning brass and doing other odd jobs while an organ lesson goes on. The church door is open then for anyone who wants to come in to the church to look around, pray or come in for a chat and coffee is served, if I’m lucky they leave a few crumbs of biscuits for me.  The children’s choir, Jubilate, meet every Wednesday evening followed by the adult choir practise. There is also coffee served after the Thursday Mass. On Friday evening the church is busy with people cleaning it and every other week the East Wickham Christian Fellowship meet in the Parish Room. Saturday morning sees the flower arrangers come in to make the church look nice. On top of all this there are the many weddings Fr David takes during the week plus a few funerals and the occasional committee meeting. There are also the people who come in and out all week to lay out the priests vestments, clean the silver, make up the parish magazine, change altar frontals and to practise the organ. A little mouse like me has to really keep his ears open all the time to make sure he doesn’t get seen with all this coming and going.

Jubilate Choir

Hello were from Jubilate choir we sing, play games, do art and craft, have drinks and  we’re taught about church.  We meet every Wednesday at church.  Some of the songs we sing on Wednesday we sing at the Mass on Sunday and the family service. Sometimes we have parties like the bbq, Easter egg hunt and the Christmas party.  Sometimes we come to the church bazaars and sing in front of our parents and other people. We also earn points for coming to Mass and answering question correctly then we can spend our points at the Jubilate shop.

This week we have been learning about Corpus Christi, corpus means body and Christi means Christ. So this Sunday we celebrated in Mass the body of Christ, by eating bread and wine. At family service Father David told us the story of the last supper where Jesus gave his disciples bread and wine saying this is my body and this is my blood. So when we have bread and wine at church we remember about Jesus. Jesus also washed the feet of the disciples at the last supper and told them to love one other as you have loved me.

Anna and Henry

Dragons, smudging and really bad vestments.

On the 15^th May the Episcopal Church (USA) consecrated Canon Mary Glasspool and Diane Bruce as Bishop suffragans of the Diocese of Los Angeles.  Canon Glasspool  is an openly partnered lesbian and in consecrating her as a bishop the Episcopal Church openly defied the will of the Anglican Communion, but this article is not about the theological or moral problems with Canon Glasspool’s consecration; this article is about the consecration itself which I have watched via the internet.

The pre-consecration entertainment started (or at least the video started) with a group of native Americans standing on the stage praising “mother earth” and singing traditional Native American songs, at the end of their singing they proceeded to “smudge” the Diocesan Bishop of Los Angeles. Smudging involves the smudgee having burning plants wafted into his face. The point of smudging is, I am reliably informed, to enter into a relationship with the unseen powers of the plants. I’m not quite sure where smudging can be found in the Book of Common Prayer, but anyway...Next up were a group of Native American dancers who were not wearing a lot. The dance that they performed was very exotic, (to say the least). Following on from that was a Chinese dancing troupe who danced to what I think was an Irish folk tune.

At last we arrived at our first Christian act of worship (sort of) as a Mongolian 6-piece sang a Mongolian folk song based on Psalm 100, halfway through the song the conductor turned to the Congregation (or should that be audience?) and attempted to get them to wave their hands in the air; “brilliant”, I thought “a chance to engage the young people and liven up proceedings” at which point the camera panned to give a view of the audience, not only were the audience very mature but the venue was half full.

On stage walked a woman priest with a guitar who sang a song which has long been associated with the civil rights movement in America, the attempt here obviously to equate the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual (LGBT) agenda with the campaign against racial segregation (an attempt which is wrong on so many levels).

Next the choir sang a Hymn, which was followed by a procession, led by a Children’s band, of what I think were members of the Los Angeles House of Deputies (like diocesan Synod), by “procession” I really mean “leisurely stroll down the centre isle". After a short song sung by a children’s choir 2 Bishops processed in to a hip-hop/gospel/rap “worship song” (given the social make-up of the audience and indeed the bishops and the clergy such a song felt weird and out of place.)  Next came a Brass band with the clergy in toe, like the procession of the Deputies the clergy sauntered in and at one point a priest reached into the audience and gave some-one (I’m hoping it was a member of his own congregation) a hug. I’m not sure what the liturgical colour is for Consecrations but I can bet that whatever it is the clergy weren’t wearing it. The Bishops (for reasons unclear) were led in by 2 Chinese dragons (not real dragons) and a dog (a real life dog). The Bishops, like the Clergy, wore an assortment of mostly red or white Chasubles with various odd patterns on (one bishop looked like he had found Joseph’s technicolour dreamcoat), and so the service (finally) got under way.

Of the service itself, there was nothing remarkable (by Episcopalian standards), the sermon was predictable (self-congratulation mixed with language about “inclusiveness” and how “loving” the Episcopal church was because they were able to forget that homosexuality is a sin). The service was interrupted at 2 points as protesters (who I’m amazed managed to sit through the banal pre-service entertainment) called on the Episcopal Church to turn away from their sins. The protesters were escorted from the building.

 In the words of one commenter “This was a polyglot mishmash of absurdity mixed with heresy and apostasy, with an unhealthy dose of atavism thrown in for good measure.”

So what? You may be thinking, this is all happening in a far off and (quite clearly) strange land, how could this possibly affect us? Well, the truth is that this is where the Church of England will eventually end up if it continues upon its present course.

An unedited version of this article will appear shortly as well as a link to the video of the Consecration.

Paul Stead

Summer Fair - click for report

Sponsored Candles in church

The 7 day Blessed Sacrament candle was sponsored by Carol Stead in memory of her father, Alan Littlechild for the week of 13th June.

Flowers in Church

Unfortunately there were no sponsors for flowers this month but if you would like to sponsor a stand for only £15, please put your name on the list at the back of the church.

June 2010

The Church Mouse

Hello, I thought I’d introduce myself; I’m Church Mouse and I live with my family in St. Michael’s church. As I’m so small I can sit and watch what is going on in church without anyone noticing me.

I’ve been looking at the church diary and see that 6^th June is Corpus Christi and that some of the children will be taking their first communion that day.

I remember Corpus Christi from last year and am looking forward to it again this year. It is the celebration of the Body and Blood of Christ and is held on the Sunday after Trinity Sunday. At the end of the Mass, the Host is placed in the monstrance. A second Thurifer then joins the team of servers who are also joined by a couple of ‘flower girls’. The whole Altar party, with Fr David carrying the monstrance, and the ‘flower girls’ scattering rose petals, followed by the congregation, then process around the church and out to the church garden. Here they finish off with Benediction.

The day will be a very special day for some of the children I have watched grow up in the church, as they take their next step on their Christian journey. I’ve been listening in on their first communion lessons; they started off by exploring the Christian journey through life. This starts with their birth, then Baptism, followed by first communion and then confirmation. The following week was all about Baptism and there was a lot of squealing as the children got wet as Fr David ‘baptised’ each of them. In the next lesson they learnt about things used in church. Firstly, how the Eucharist is really a meal, with wine being given in a special cup called a Chalice and bread on a special plate called a Paten, both are made of silver; it is a very special meal so, just like at home, the best cups and plates that could be bought are used in church. Then they learnt about the robes the priest wears. Firstly he wears a cassock, over which he wears an Alb. This is white as we are all washed clean at baptism. Next he wears a Stole and a Chasuble. These come in different colours depending on the season. In Lent and Advent they are purple as they are sad times, at Pentecost or on a Martyrs day, red is worn as red represents blood or fire. Gold or white is worn for happy occasions such as Christmas and Easter, and finally green is worn on all the other days.

I’m looking forward to learning about the Passover feast with them and sharing in a Passover meal. Finally, they will learn about the last supper and then they will be ready to take their first communion on the feast of Corpus Christi.

Now, I must go and find something to eat, I hope someone left some crumbs after coffee on Sunday.

Church Mouse

The Piccolo

A few weeks ago we were staying with my mother for the weekend so attended a local church for Sunday Mass. We have attended a few times before and were greeted enthusiastically at the door with hugs and kisses and Paul was immediately asked if he would life to serve (some of them had seen us serving at Southwark cathedral).

 They were having their APCM after Mass and instead of the usual sermon the priest gave his Chairman’s address. This I found very interesting; of course a lot of it didn’t concern us – they’ve nearly got their new heating system (sounds familiar) and stuff like that. Then Fr Ian went on to thank everyone, he explained that he never mentions names when thanking people and went on to tell us a story.

One day a big orchestra were playing, they were in full swing, in the middle of a loud piece, when suddenly the conductor stopped them.

‘Where is the piccolo?’ he asked. The piccolo, being the smallest instrument of the orchestra, thought that no one would miss him amongst the other noisy instruments and had sneaked off to the bar, but with his trained ear the conductor could pick out that he was missing.

Fr Ian went on to explain that the church is a bit like that. There are people who we see doing lots of jobs very visibly (church wardens, choir, sidesmen etc. ) but that there are also piccolos amongst us; ones who do the quiet, unnoticed jobs and those that support the church in prayer. Although there may be a bit of both in a lot of us, we must remember that everyone in important to the harmony of the church. The violins and drums (churchwardens, choir…) do a very important job but so does the piccolo (the person spending their time in quiet prayer or doing some unnoticed job). We should never think that we are more important than anyone else in the church or look down on someone because they aren’t doing anything visible, the church needs us all.

I went away thinking that he had a very good point and that maybe we don’t always appreciate the piccolos amongst us, especially those who may be supporting us in their prayers (however we could also do with a lot more trumpets). Are we making everyone feel needed and welcoming them with open arms (maybe not quite so enthusiastically with hugs and kisses) or are we making them feel they are not needed by the church and so no one will miss them if they stay away?

Carol Stead

The Parish dinner - April 17th click for report

Jubilate

In the Jubilate choir, we have done various things such as: Stations of the Cross, which we acted out, which in our opinion, was really fun. We also learn different things in the Christian year, such as Epiphany, Saint George, Easter, Ascension Day, Pentecost and many other things.

The Jubilate choir starts at 5:45 and ends at 7pm. Normally, when we get to Jubilate we open our lungs and sing joyful and up lifting hymns and use various amounts of instruments. We also go to our refreshments and play quizzes. Our refreshments are provided by Gwen, who comes every week, and have parties. We also have BBQ’s and go to the church Summer and Christmas fairs, which sometimes we win prizes at.

We earn points for our hard work, joining in, getting questions right and working well in groups. We also earn these points by finding the number of a hymn first. Our points are 1, 5and 10. At the end of every fortnight, Janet organises the Jubilate stall, which is where our points come in handy!!  We can spend them on anything we like.

Some of us come to the 4 O’clock service which Father David leads. This service is held on the first Sunday of every month, which the Jubilate find really exciting because we can take part. Most children attend the weekly mass, which is held every Sunday. Some of us sing in the choir or sit in the congregation.

  Gabriele (aged 13) and Katie (aged 11)

Flowers in church

Flowers were sponsored as follows:

16th May Peter Ludlow to celebrate his birthday

23rd May Christine Fern to celebrate her father's 90th birthday

May 2010

A quiet weekend

It was Friday afternoon and I was on my way to my first retreat staying at Malling Abbey, an enclosed Anglican Benedictine order of Nuns. I was nervous, not knowing quite what to expect, but also excited. I arrived shortly before 3pm, just in time to be shown my room in the guest house then to be taken to the chapel for the Office of None. I was then met by Sister Mary Owen, guest sister, who showed me around; there was the chapel where we joined the Nuns for the Offices, the old Pilgrim chapel where you could go to pray quietly, the guest house, where we stayed and ate our meals, and the grounds with a labyrinth and a small stream, the rest of the Convent in enclosed and not accessible to guests.  Sister then took me back to the guest house in time for tea (with cake as it is Easter) and to meet my fellow guests. We were all introduced to each other and chatted for a while. The guest house is quiet small and sleeps only 10. A short time later and the bell rang for Vespers. The seven offices of the day (starting with Vigils at 4.30am, which guests were not invited to) are all chanted beautifully by the Nuns in a large modern chapel which I found surprisingly bare. The nuns all sit in the main part while the guests sit together in a small alcove to the side of the altar. There are 17 sisters at the convent plus a Novice and a Postulant (trainee nuns) with many of them being called Sister Mary (something). They wear the traditional black habit.

At 6.25pm it was time for supper which was self service and eaten in silence. All meals are take like this except lunch on weekdays when the meal is served and one of the nuns reads while you eat (I did not experience this as I was there for the weekend). The meals are all simple but there is plenty to go round. A kind old lady whispered to me and another guest who was there for the first time what to do at the meal and we all helped clear the table afterwards. Shortly after that the bell rang for Compline, the last Office of the day. As we arrived back in the guest house we had to tick our name off on a board so Sister could check everyone was back in before locking the door for the night at approximately 7.45pm. Silence is then kept until 10.30am.

I was up bright and early on the Saturday morning for Lauds at 6.50am, the only Office when they don’t ring the bell so as not to disturb the neighbours. This was followed by Eucharist at 7.30am during which everyone, guests and Sisters form a large circle around the altar for the Eucharistic prayer and to receive, the only time the guests cross over into the main part of the chapel. After breakfast, which was cereal and toast, we returned to the chapel for the Office of Terce. Guests are free to go to as many or as few of the Offices as they wish, a few of us went to all of them but some didn’t. Each Office consists of a hymn, 3 psalms and a short reading much like Morning Prayer we say before Mass on a Sunday, although they use their own version of the prayer book.

There was then plenty of time to explore the grounds, walk the labyrinth, pop down to the village, and to spend some quiet time in prayer in the old pilgrim chapel. Sext was at 12noon followed by lunch after which coffee was served in the lounge where the guests gathered and chatted until None at 3pm. Most of the other guests were Oblates. These are men and woman, married or single, who feel called to follow the Benedictine way in their lives outside the cloister. After a 2 ½ year period of training and discernment they make a promise of the conversion of their life. Their commitment is expressed in a personal Benedictine rule of life, which balances their personal prayer and worship with their responsibility to family and work.

After None the guests joined Sister Mary Owen for tea in the lounge. She originally came from New York; there are 4 American Sisters at Malling Abbey, as there are no contemplative Anglican communities in the states anyone who feels called to that life has to come over here! Soon it was time for Vespers after which I helped with the washing up from tea. The only jobs you are asked to do are to sign on a rota to wash up after tea (this rota was already full but I offered to help so that I would know where everything was another time I go) and to change the bed linen before you go. It is also a custom to pray for the person who made the bed for you and the person you are making the bed for. After supper it was off to Compline and another early night. It seemed strange creeping around to the bathroom in the dark at 8.30pm so as not to disturb anyone.

 Sunday morning and we got a slight lay in, I lay there wondering if 6am was too early to get up and have a shower in the silence of the house. Sundays are slightly different, starting with breakfast at 7.30am before Lauds at 8.10am. The Eucharist was then at 9am, this was longer than on the other days with the usual readings, sermon and the creed but with no hymns. By now there were only 4 guests left but we were joined by 5 others from the village who regularly attend Mass there. Visitors and guests then joined Sister Mary Owen and the priest for coffee in the lounge, here I found out the priest, who lives in the gate house at the entrance to the grounds knew Fr David from before he was ordained. 

There was then some time to go for a wonder to see the bluebells in the small woods in the grounds which I hadn’t found the previous day and for some quiet time praying in the pilgrim chapel. The grounds of the convent are large with the nuns keeping their own bees and growing their own vegetables but most if it is within the enclosure. Sext was at 12noon, by this time there were only me and the kind old lady left so we sat chatting in the lounge until lunch at 1.05. Today’s meal was a very basic roast dinner of roast beef, roast potatoes and lots of peas followed by strawberry mousse. I was surprised as this was the first time we had meat. We then sat in the lounge having our coffee before surprising Sister by doing the washing up for her, she arrived just as we were finishing and was very grateful. We then said our good byes and it was time to leave, having promised that I would return again soon.

I had a wonderful quiet, relaxing time and I would certainly recommend going to anyone who would like to spend some quiet time with God away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. It was interesting to get a glimpse of how the nuns live. It’s a good idea to take plenty of reading and some craft with you for the quiet times, especially in the evenings but there are books in the lounge which you can borrow to read while you are there. They do not charge you to stay at the guest house but appreciate it if you can leave a donation (this is slipped into a box in the doorway of the guest house so no-one knows if you have donated and how much).

Written by Carol S

Flowers in Church

During the month of April, flowers were sponsored as follows -

Easter Day     Gwen and Mary Bailey in memory of Tom's birthday

                    Pat Annettes and family in memory of Kay Maddox

17th            Michael Edwards in memory of his mother, Gwen Edwards

25th             Marjorie Gillespie in memory of her sister Kitty and friend Mary Hughes, a long time member of St. Michael's church

Lillies sponsored for Easter in memory of loved ones by -

Sheila Owen, Irene Brown, Ann Veitch, Christine Fern, Bill Smith, Gwen Yeadon, Ann Carter, Barbara Callaghan, Phyllis Lewis, Susan Harper, Ros Turner, Mary Macey, Mary Robson, Michael Macey, Crimilda Jarrett, Gladys Williams, Penny Parsons, Adela Johnson.

Sponsored Candles for Easter

Our Lady's candles were sponsored by Carol Stead

 April 2010

St. David's day in Wales

On a cold and frosty March 1st, I was up very early to catch the 5.30am train from Paddington to Swansea, and then the local train on to Haverford west, Pembrokeshire. Then after a short bus ride, I was joining the Welsh and English folk of the village of Roch, for a super celebration of St. David's Day!

Everyone dressed appropriately, some ladies in full Welsh national dress and some men with yellow ties etc. and most people sporting a daffodil, the flower of Wales! All the children from the local primary school looked resplendent, and they had spent the morning with their own Eisteddfod, as well as making 1000 welsh cakes, and learning more about St. David. They also produced an excellent display of their craft work on the theme, and very good it was too!

A team of ladies provided the adults with a very enjoyable celebratory lunch. Cawl (a Welsh soup) with bread and cheese, bread and butter pudding and custard, and Welsh cakes, washed down with tea or coffee, and all for a fiver!

After lunch each class from the school entertained us, and they were give tremendous applause, for their contributions were greatly appreciated. The school orchestra was first with three well known songs, followed by some violin solos and trios. The reception class recited a short poem in Welsh; quite an achievement for it is an English speaking school. Then the youngest infants class sang a song about healthy and unhealthy foods, complete with visual aids. The older infants went into action with "heads, shoulders, knees and toes", in Welsh, complete with percussion! The first junior class sang a brilliant song with quite a few characters, each acted out by pupils in fancy dress - very humorous! Quite a few of this class now sing in St David's Cathedral choir. The top class of the juniors proudly recited a poem in English on "What it means to be Welsh"; this was written by one of the teachers. entertainment concluded with some lively country dancing - great fun.

The whole event was a great success and it was good to see folk enjoying celebrating their patron saints day. The school and community all gave it their full support.

Let's hope that we can do as well in England on 23rd April - St George.

Written by Michael

The Argument against women’s ordination.

In last month’s magazine we answered the question “what is Anglicanorum Coetibus”? This month we will attempt to answer the question “why is Anglicanorum Coetibus needed?” Although not the only reason, the main reason as to why English Anglo-Catholics are disillusioned with the Church of England is the decision of the General Synod in 1992 to ordain women to the priesthood. The arguments against women’s ordination are long and numerous and could fill several parish magazines. In this article I will outline the main objections that Anglo-Catholics have.

Firstly and perhaps most obviously, none of the apostles were women, and when it came to choosing a replacement for Judas no women were chosen either. Instead the apostles through the Holy Spirit chose Matthias. Mary Magdalene was perhaps the most obvious choice, she was the “apostle to the apostles” and the first witness to the resurrection, but the Holy Spirit chose a man. Secondly there were no women bishops or presbyters (priests) in the early church, meaning that the church as a whole must have taken seriously St Paul’s commandment in 1 Timothy 2:12 “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, she must be silent”. Thirdly, at the Eucharist the priest stands as the person of Christ, a woman cannot represent Christ because his maleness tells us something about God, he is God the son, to have a woman representing him at the altar would be plainly daft. Furthermore, Christ is described as the bride-groom with the church as his bride it would be to fundamentally confuse these roles if the church ordained women. In pagan religions of old, priestesses stood to represent “mother-God” who gave birth to creation, Judaism and Christianity believe that everything was created by God, not of God. Ordaining women as priests would be a return to pagan religion.  Fourthly, God does not do U-turns, if the church has always taught that the ordination of women is unbiblical and unchristian then how can the C of E have the authority to sweep away 2000 years of theology? Simple, it doesn’t. Fifthly, if women’s ordination is a gift from God to his church why is it only the Reformed Churches (who make up at most 30% of all Christians) who have received this “gift”, why has God not given the same gift to the Roman and Eastern Orthodox Churches? The arguments for women’s ordination tend to rest on a priori arguments about “fairness” and “inclusivity”, terms which are fairly irrelevant in Christian theology.  There are no convincing theological arguments for women’s ordination.

Anglo-Catholics have been able to stay inside the C of E since 1992 because of the provision given to them by General Synod, the statutory transfer of Episcopal powers to a “flying bishop” (indeed Anglo-Catholic parishes have been the only part of the C of E that has grown in attendance since 1992). However in July 2007 the General Synod decided that it would consecrate women to the episcopate without any satisfactory provision for Anglo-Catholics, who were told that they could not have the provision that they wanted because it would not be the “catholic” thing to do (i.e. parishes would be out of communion with their diocesan Bishop) I suspect that these people felt rather stupid when the Pope announced Anglicanorum Coetibus. The message that the General Synod is sending to Anglo-Catholics is clear: Conform to our way of thinking or die a slow painful death. The General Synod legislative process is expected to be completed in 2014 and although there is still a chance that the legislation may be altered at the upcoming July meeting of Synod the question we must ask is: why would we stay in a church that is acting against the will of God and that does not want us anymore?

This is just a summary and not an exhaustive work. Forward in Faith has published a book on the subject called “Consecrated Women?” which I would recommend for further reading on the controversy.

Written by Paul

Thank you

A huge Thank you to the beavers for the collection they made in their 'little pots' towards our Church heating fund. The total raised was £43.69.

What are you doing to raise funds for the heating?

March 2010

Passing the Driving Test... - St. Michael's Beetle Drive

What is this Anglicanorum Coetibus?

 On 6^th February Paul and I attended the Southwark Forward in Faith Mass and meeting at Southwark Cathedral. The morning started with a well attended Mass for which we had been asked to be Acolytes. After the Mass we gathered in the library where the meeting was to take place, when we arrived we found that there were no spare seats and had to wait for more to be brought in – they had informed the Cathedral staff to expect about 40 of us, in fact there were approximately 60 in attendance.

Fr David Waller from the Diocese of Chelmsford had been invited along to talk to us about Anglicanorum Coetibus, Pope Benedict XVI’s offer to groups of Anglicans who wished to be in full communion with the Roman Catholic church, he started off by reminding us that discussions have been going on for years between the Anglican Church and the Catholic Church to bring them into full communion with each other. Indeed, the Pope, when he was Cardinal Ratzinger, was involved, back in 1992, in such talks which were, at the time, broken up by the English Catholic Bishops who were not in agreement, so we should not be surprised at his offer as he is in effect completing unfinished business. He then explaining that this had come about from requests from 2 areas; one was from the flying Bishops of Ebbsfleet and Richborough, the other from The Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC), a church which broke away from the rest of the Anglican Communion, it is very small in this country but large in places like Australia and American, as such Anglicanorum Coetibus can be seen as an international response to an international request. He also assured us that the flying Bishops had kept the Archbishop of Canterbury fully informed of all discussions with the Catholic Church.

Fr David Waller then went on to explain that Anglicanorum Coetibus makes provision for an Ordinariate to be set up for Anglo-Catholics, an Ordinariate is effectively a non-geographical diocese. It will be lead by an Ordinary; this may be a Priest or a unmarried Bishop. This is likely to be one of the Bishops of Ebbsfleet, Richborough or Fulham, however as all of these are married they could not be Bishops in the Catholic Church but could become the Ordinary as a priest. This Ordinary would be appointed by the Pope and would act, in effect, as a diocesan Bishop. He would not come under the English Catholic Bishops but directly under the Pope. Congregations who join the Ordinariate will be former Anglican congregations, joining with their own Priests, who would be allowed to carry on using Vatican-approved Anglican Liturgy.

 Fr David Waller then went on to explain that we don’t, at this time, know how all this will happen; discussions are ongoing between the Bishops and the Pope. He used the analogy of a sinking ship – we are on the sinking ship, usually you would have 2 kinds of life boats come to the rescue, the small dingy which would take you off the ship and the larger one from the land which would come out and take you to safety. At the moment we are on the sinking ship and have been given an offer of that larger ship but do not know how we are going to get from the sinking ship to the larger ship. As it stands, when converting individually, Anglican priests would need some additional training before being admitted into the Catholic Church. There are also a lot of questions about funding, buildings and other practical matters. It is thought that the first Congregations may join the Ordinariate in 18months, however it will be open ended and some congregations may not join for another 18years.

After a time of questions and answers the meeting continued with an update of what was happening in General Synod regards Women bishops. Synod, back in July 2007, voted in favour of women bishops with a provision for those opposed to women bishops in the form of a Code of Practice, this has now gone to the Revision committee stage, where it is to be debated and they will report back with their recommendations. It was hoped they would do this at the February General Synod meeting however they have not completed their work so will now go to Synod in June. However, it should be noted that it looks like those opposed to women bishops will be given no satisfactory provision.

There was concern at the meeting as to what would happen to those people who are opposed to Women’s ordination but who would not want to join the Ordinariate. As, under present proposals, the option to have Episcopal oversight transferred to a “flying Bishop” (which were set-up to give pastoral care for those opposed to women’s ordination) will be abolished and those who chose not to take the Pope’s offer but to stay in the Church of England could be forced to accept as their bishop a woman whose ordination and consecration they do not view as sacramentaly valid. Forward in Faith will continue to fight for satisfactory provision for these people.

Fr Andrew Stevens finished the meeting by reminding us that Lent was soon to start and we should be spending our time in fasting, prayer and study. He suggested that instead of reading the ‘fluffy’ books on Lenten observance written by the Archbishop of Canterbury we should all try to read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. If we are saying we all believe in one faith, we should make sure we know what we are saying we believe. He suggested we try to read 2 pages a day. He explained it is an easy read and can be read from cover to cover or picking out chapters as you wish. Paul was a little worried that we would only get to page 80, out of approximately 700 pages, at the end of Lent; at that rate it would take us about 18 months to read.

 Written by Carol S

Not Mea Culpa!

For the Ash Wednesday children's Liturgy, Fr David had prepared a little exercise based on and guided by the Lord's Prayer, encouraging the children in a little 'self-examination', and getting them to write down on a piece of paper all the things that they were sorry for. The pieces of paper they wrote on were, of course, private, and the children screwed them up before they were placed on a little bonfire behind the church, and went up in smoke. Symbolic, of course, of repentance and forgiveness.

The children took to the exercise with some relish, writing quite lengthy lists of things they were sorry for doing! One child, in particular, filled four sides of A4 paper! The writing was, however, large... which meant that careful though we were, the adults could not help but catch a glimpse of parts of what were written. The little girl concerned, is the middle child of three siblings, whom - changing the names to protect the innocent, we will call Grace, Charity and Mercy... And so, 'Charity' wrote on her piece of paper: JESUS, I AM SORRY THAT I AM SO MUCH BETTER THAN GRACE AND MERCY!

Written by Fr Derek

Flowers in church

On 24th January flowers were sponsored by Christine in memory of her mother

Sponsored Candles

On January 31st Carol S sponsored  the 7 day Blessed Sacrament Candle in memory of Rev Ian Kitteringham