The Sunday Archive: The Pilot, July 1997 - Part 5
ST ANDREW
From
JOHN LAMERTON and DICK PARKER Churchwardens
BY the time you read this letter, we will have welcomed the Rev John Davies and his wife Joan. Sunday 22nd June was John's first service at St Andrew's and we have informed him that during his eight week stay with us, he will have two Baptisms and three weddings at least, on top of the normal services on Sundays and Thursdays. This will be no holiday for John, but we do hope that he and Joan will also have plenty of fun and joy and will be able to join fully in our fellowship.
We have been blessed with the services of the Rev Geoffrey Baker, the Rev Michael St John Nicolle, the Rev Paul Brooks, the Rev Michael Halliwell, Canon Clarence Schofield and Mr Neville Brooks during the last two months. All have been very helpful and put up with our different ways.
July 13th is Sea Sunday and besides having a special service — because we have a few people who enjoy "messing about in boats" like Ratty in Wind in the Willows — we will be decorating the church with nets, pots and other things associated with the sea. But we have stated very strongly that we must not have fresh fish. (We did one year!)
After the service we will be going along to a barbeque with the Sunday School followed by activities for the children. All will be welcomed so be sure to buy your ticket early so that the organisers will know how many to cater for.
On the Sunday before (6th July) part of the service will be led by the Youth Group and Senior Sunday School. They have already been preparing a sketch and prayers. They have in the past made us older people think again about our attitudes towards God and God's world.
Saturday 19th July is the date for our Summer Fete. Please make every effort to support this event. A lot of hard work goes into running the fete by many (or should we say a few!) people. But help is always needed on the stalls so if you do not already take part and would like to, please come forward.
Jersey Keswick 97 is from 3rd to 6th July in the marquee at Highlands Hotel, Corbière. We are sure that the people of St Andrew's will take advantage of going along and hear the Rev Dr Steve Brady. Please remember the event in your prayers.
CHURCH WEEKEND BREAK. This will be held at Highlands Hotel from 26th to 28th September and led by the Rev Tim Humphries, newly-appointed member of the Department of Faith Development in the Diocese. Booking forms are now available.
HOLY BAPTISM. 18th May, Katherine Frances Bennett.
HOLY MATRIMONY. 7th July, Lester Dean Pyatt and Lisa Marie Phipps.
FUNERAL. 15th May, Dorothy Ethel. Jepson, aged 76
From
JOHN LAMERTON and DICK PARKER Churchwardens
BY the time you read this letter, we will have welcomed the Rev John Davies and his wife Joan. Sunday 22nd June was John's first service at St Andrew's and we have informed him that during his eight week stay with us, he will have two Baptisms and three weddings at least, on top of the normal services on Sundays and Thursdays. This will be no holiday for John, but we do hope that he and Joan will also have plenty of fun and joy and will be able to join fully in our fellowship.
We have been blessed with the services of the Rev Geoffrey Baker, the Rev Michael St John Nicolle, the Rev Paul Brooks, the Rev Michael Halliwell, Canon Clarence Schofield and Mr Neville Brooks during the last two months. All have been very helpful and put up with our different ways.
July 13th is Sea Sunday and besides having a special service — because we have a few people who enjoy "messing about in boats" like Ratty in Wind in the Willows — we will be decorating the church with nets, pots and other things associated with the sea. But we have stated very strongly that we must not have fresh fish. (We did one year!)
After the service we will be going along to a barbeque with the Sunday School followed by activities for the children. All will be welcomed so be sure to buy your ticket early so that the organisers will know how many to cater for.
On the Sunday before (6th July) part of the service will be led by the Youth Group and Senior Sunday School. They have already been preparing a sketch and prayers. They have in the past made us older people think again about our attitudes towards God and God's world.
Saturday 19th July is the date for our Summer Fete. Please make every effort to support this event. A lot of hard work goes into running the fete by many (or should we say a few!) people. But help is always needed on the stalls so if you do not already take part and would like to, please come forward.
Jersey Keswick 97 is from 3rd to 6th July in the marquee at Highlands Hotel, Corbière. We are sure that the people of St Andrew's will take advantage of going along and hear the Rev Dr Steve Brady. Please remember the event in your prayers.
CHURCH WEEKEND BREAK. This will be held at Highlands Hotel from 26th to 28th September and led by the Rev Tim Humphries, newly-appointed member of the Department of Faith Development in the Diocese. Booking forms are now available.
HOLY BAPTISM. 18th May, Katherine Frances Bennett.
HOLY MATRIMONY. 7th July, Lester Dean Pyatt and Lisa Marie Phipps.
FUNERAL. 15th May, Dorothy Ethel. Jepson, aged 76
ST JOHN
From
ANDY THEWLIS Priest-in-Charge
1997 has been designated "The Year of the Seafarer" in the UK, and throughout the country churches are being encouraged to remember seafarers, their families and the Church's care for them through the work of the Missions to Seamen.
At 5.30 pm on Sunday 20th July, we meet at Bonne Nuit Harbour for our Ecumenical Open Air Sea Sunday Service. During this short act of worship we will celebrate all the good things associated with the sea, acknowledging our dependency as an Island community upon the sea, but importantly also to stop to remember the power of the oceans and its dangers, praying for safety and remembering those who have lost their lives at sea.
The St Catherine's Lifeboat will be in attendance and the service will conclude (weather permitting!) with a flypast by the Channel Island Air Search spotter plane, whilst the ministers of the St John's Group of Churches will board fishing vessels and pleasure craft in the harbour and bless the boats. A collection will be taken and divided equally between the Mission to Seamen, RNLI and Channel Island Air Search.
The month of July promises to be an exciting and fulfilling one, concluding as it does with the Sea Sunday Service and having begun with Jersey Keswick and Jersey Youth Keswick, two great opportunities for encouragement and spiritual refreshment.
The Rectory Garden Party is to be held on Saturday 12th from 2-5 pm; refreshments, stalls, children's games and good company guaranteed. Offers of help please to Angela.
The Sunday School Prize giving takes place on Sunday 13th, at 10.30 am. This is an important occasion in the life of the church as we celebrate the presence and contribution of our young people and children, so please make attendance a priority.
Finally, don't forget the St Helier Pilgrimage, which departs from the Town Church at 4.30 pm on the afternoon of the 13th. As last year I invite you to bring along a picnic and join me for tea after the service at Elizabeth Castle.
HOLY MATRIMONY. 24th May, Ray Sutcliffe and Janice Therin.
FUNERALS. 22nd May, Phyllis Irene Boschat; 27th May, Samantha Jane Falla.
From
ANDY THEWLIS Priest-in-Charge
1997 has been designated "The Year of the Seafarer" in the UK, and throughout the country churches are being encouraged to remember seafarers, their families and the Church's care for them through the work of the Missions to Seamen.
At 5.30 pm on Sunday 20th July, we meet at Bonne Nuit Harbour for our Ecumenical Open Air Sea Sunday Service. During this short act of worship we will celebrate all the good things associated with the sea, acknowledging our dependency as an Island community upon the sea, but importantly also to stop to remember the power of the oceans and its dangers, praying for safety and remembering those who have lost their lives at sea.
The St Catherine's Lifeboat will be in attendance and the service will conclude (weather permitting!) with a flypast by the Channel Island Air Search spotter plane, whilst the ministers of the St John's Group of Churches will board fishing vessels and pleasure craft in the harbour and bless the boats. A collection will be taken and divided equally between the Mission to Seamen, RNLI and Channel Island Air Search.
The month of July promises to be an exciting and fulfilling one, concluding as it does with the Sea Sunday Service and having begun with Jersey Keswick and Jersey Youth Keswick, two great opportunities for encouragement and spiritual refreshment.
The Rectory Garden Party is to be held on Saturday 12th from 2-5 pm; refreshments, stalls, children's games and good company guaranteed. Offers of help please to Angela.
The Sunday School Prize giving takes place on Sunday 13th, at 10.30 am. This is an important occasion in the life of the church as we celebrate the presence and contribution of our young people and children, so please make attendance a priority.
Finally, don't forget the St Helier Pilgrimage, which departs from the Town Church at 4.30 pm on the afternoon of the 13th. As last year I invite you to bring along a picnic and join me for tea after the service at Elizabeth Castle.
HOLY MATRIMONY. 24th May, Ray Sutcliffe and Janice Therin.
FUNERALS. 22nd May, Phyllis Irene Boschat; 27th May, Samantha Jane Falla.
GROUVILLE
From
GERRY BAUDAINS
Lay Reader in Training
HAVING offered to write this month's Parish Letter I found myself faced with a number of perplexing problems, which I feel sure all contributors to these pages face each month. Out of empathy for fellow writers, I thought it might perhaps be worth sharing some of the questions these problems have raised in my mind.
Firstly, who is the Parish Letter written for? Now this first question left me with a number of alternative thoughts:
The month of May was nearly as busy as Easter itself at Grouville, with many people being involved in lots of hard work and prayer. The Ascension of our Lord was celebrated with a morning service of Holy Communion. This was well attended by a group of pilgrims preparing for a visit to the Monastery at Le Bec Helloiun. There is an account of their visit in our newssheet for readers who would like to know more about this very special place of prayer.
As all good pilgrims know, May is the month for Christian Aid and Lorraine Determeyer and her team of collectors successfully raised the magnificent total of £2,345.50, well done to all who helped and thank you to all who gave.
May is also the month for the annual Ecclesiastical Assembly and this year we said a fond farewell to Alan Le Maistre who retired as Churchwarden after some 27 years, a quite remarkable record of service. I am sure that all would agree that the highlight of the meeting is undoubtedly the selling of the "fromant." (I assume that other Parishes have a "fromant" and I do not need to explain.) Newly elected Churchwarden Bruce Willing acted as auctioneer and I can't remember who actually bought the "fromant," but the treasurer looked somewhat embarrassed when the Rector pointed out that lie had purchased it in 1996 and there did not seem to be any record of payment!
For many, though, the month began with the final meeting for the Confirmation group, who had been preparing since the beginning of the year. On the course, there were twelve candidates from Grouville and one from St Martin, their ages ranging from 12 to adult. The Confirmation Service took place on the day of Pentecost and was preceded by a 24-hour prayer vigil, beginning at 8 am on the Saturday. This is the third year that we have undertaken the 24 hours of prayer leading up to Pentecost and each year the number of people taking part has increased. Despite the fact that some of our regular "night owls" were out of the Island (actually, they went AWOL!), I think we managed to cover the full 24 hours. However, more importantly, there is a growing feeling of peace and the presence of God within the church as our level of commitment to prayer has grown.
For the Confirmation Service, we were joined by two more candidates from St Paul's, and as Bishop Geoffrey reminded us, there could be no better day than the day of Pentecost to receive God's blessing of His Holy Spirit. The service was truly memorable, the choir were magnificent, the flowers were beautiful and the candidates' responses assured and meaningful. Each of them had shared their thoughts on Confirmation in our weekly new-sheet and it was very encouraging to see how they viewed the day as the beginning of their own personal journey with God.
With this in mind we have had to think very carefully about our provision for the younger members of the church. Sunday School caters very well for the huge number of under 12's, but bridging the gap between that and full. church attendance is very difficult. To this end, a new group for teenagers began at the end of May and was attended by 15 young people. The group will meet once a month for worship, prayer and Bible Study and will be an opportunity for young people to explore their spirituality and grow in faith. In addition there will be social activities and opportunities for art and drama. They have begun well, by performing some excellent dance and drama at our June Family Worship — well done to all who took part.
On reflection, May was a month which began with an end and ended with a beginning, and I am reminded of the good news of the grace of our God, who is the God of "new beginnings."
DIARY DATES FOR JULY/AUGUST
19th, Sunday School Outing;
20th, Sunday School Open Day and Presentation;
3rd August, Lammas Family Service, 10.30 at Les Pres Manor.
From
GERRY BAUDAINS
Lay Reader in Training
HAVING offered to write this month's Parish Letter I found myself faced with a number of perplexing problems, which I feel sure all contributors to these pages face each month. Out of empathy for fellow writers, I thought it might perhaps be worth sharing some of the questions these problems have raised in my mind.
Firstly, who is the Parish Letter written for? Now this first question left me with a number of alternative thoughts:
- Is the reader a churchgoer looking to reflect upon a past event, happy or otherwise?
- Or wanting to know what will be happening next month?
- Or is he/she a former churchgoer, who for whatever reason no longer attends regularly, but still longs to know what is happening?
- Or is the reader looking for some spiritual encouragement? Or a parishioner wanting to know what's going on down at the church, like who the new Churchwarden is and whose been baptised, married or buried?
- Or are they spies from other churches looking for new ideas?
- Or aliens from the planet Zigg?
The month of May was nearly as busy as Easter itself at Grouville, with many people being involved in lots of hard work and prayer. The Ascension of our Lord was celebrated with a morning service of Holy Communion. This was well attended by a group of pilgrims preparing for a visit to the Monastery at Le Bec Helloiun. There is an account of their visit in our newssheet for readers who would like to know more about this very special place of prayer.
As all good pilgrims know, May is the month for Christian Aid and Lorraine Determeyer and her team of collectors successfully raised the magnificent total of £2,345.50, well done to all who helped and thank you to all who gave.
May is also the month for the annual Ecclesiastical Assembly and this year we said a fond farewell to Alan Le Maistre who retired as Churchwarden after some 27 years, a quite remarkable record of service. I am sure that all would agree that the highlight of the meeting is undoubtedly the selling of the "fromant." (I assume that other Parishes have a "fromant" and I do not need to explain.) Newly elected Churchwarden Bruce Willing acted as auctioneer and I can't remember who actually bought the "fromant," but the treasurer looked somewhat embarrassed when the Rector pointed out that lie had purchased it in 1996 and there did not seem to be any record of payment!
For many, though, the month began with the final meeting for the Confirmation group, who had been preparing since the beginning of the year. On the course, there were twelve candidates from Grouville and one from St Martin, their ages ranging from 12 to adult. The Confirmation Service took place on the day of Pentecost and was preceded by a 24-hour prayer vigil, beginning at 8 am on the Saturday. This is the third year that we have undertaken the 24 hours of prayer leading up to Pentecost and each year the number of people taking part has increased. Despite the fact that some of our regular "night owls" were out of the Island (actually, they went AWOL!), I think we managed to cover the full 24 hours. However, more importantly, there is a growing feeling of peace and the presence of God within the church as our level of commitment to prayer has grown.
For the Confirmation Service, we were joined by two more candidates from St Paul's, and as Bishop Geoffrey reminded us, there could be no better day than the day of Pentecost to receive God's blessing of His Holy Spirit. The service was truly memorable, the choir were magnificent, the flowers were beautiful and the candidates' responses assured and meaningful. Each of them had shared their thoughts on Confirmation in our weekly new-sheet and it was very encouraging to see how they viewed the day as the beginning of their own personal journey with God.
With this in mind we have had to think very carefully about our provision for the younger members of the church. Sunday School caters very well for the huge number of under 12's, but bridging the gap between that and full. church attendance is very difficult. To this end, a new group for teenagers began at the end of May and was attended by 15 young people. The group will meet once a month for worship, prayer and Bible Study and will be an opportunity for young people to explore their spirituality and grow in faith. In addition there will be social activities and opportunities for art and drama. They have begun well, by performing some excellent dance and drama at our June Family Worship — well done to all who took part.
On reflection, May was a month which began with an end and ended with a beginning, and I am reminded of the good news of the grace of our God, who is the God of "new beginnings."
DIARY DATES FOR JULY/AUGUST
19th, Sunday School Outing;
20th, Sunday School Open Day and Presentation;
3rd August, Lammas Family Service, 10.30 at Les Pres Manor.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment