St Mary’s Parish Magazine – September 2003
Advance notices for your diary
Daily prayer topics in September
Music at Evensong in September
Readings for Sundays in September
A Quiet Day At St Mary's Abbey
Our Patronal Festival will as usual be celebrated on the first
Sunday in September.
The annual Confirmation shared between ourselves, St Michael’s
and St Paul’s takes place this year at St Paul, Roundshaw, on Sunday 14
September at 10:30 am. No doubt many people will want to be there to rejoice
with our six friends who are taking this important step on their individual
Christian journeys. However, as even
the new St Paul’s is not huge enough to hold a large contingent of
well-wishers, there will still be the usual Sung Eucharist here at 9:30 am that
morning - but we may cut a few corners in order to allow those attending both
services to get from one place to the other on time. Please continue to pray for our candidates - Pat Gaiger, Brenda
Wielzorek, Penny Willoughby, Kay Hallam, Maud Adams and Emma Thompson - as they
approach their big day.
The Eucharist will additionally be celebrated on three Mondays in
September, at 9:30 am each time: on 15th, to celebrate Holy Cross
Day; on 22nd, for St Matthew the Apostle; and on 29th,
for St Michael and All Angels.
Saturday and Sunday 20th and 21st September mark
this year’s celebrations for Harvest Thanksgiving - more info here.
The Bible study group re-commences on Monday 22 September,
meeting weekly at 8:00 pm at 23 Mortlake Close. We begin again at Acts, chapter 14.
On Sunday, 28 September at 3.00 pm there will be 'A Celebration of
Marriage' service. More details here.
Our Dedication and Friends’ Sunday will as usual be the first
Sunday in October. If not already up
and running by then, it is hoped that the restored floodlighting will be in
place by the previous evening, to mark the occasion.
Planning continues for the choir's 'Grand Tour' on 11
October. In case you missed last
month's article, details are included again here.
The Guides and Brownies will be playing a major part in the Sung
Eucharist on Sunday 12 October.
Our annual observance of All Souls’ Day will happen this year on
Friday 31 October - hence this earlier-than-usual announcement for your
diaries. This is in fact also a day
earlier than previously advertised. The
occasion will be marked by a Sung Eucharist including a near-complete
performance of a setting of the text of the Requiem by the choir. This year’s will be the Requiem by
John Rutter. Please note that the
service will begin at 7:30 pm, or a very few minutes later, to allow for any
confusion-time necessary between the start of the service and the end of the
Families Group’s Alternative Hallowe’en Party!
This begins in the Centre at 5:30 pm - full details from Carolyn or
Helena - and is so timed to allow anyone enthusiastic enough to consider
attending both events to do so, and to make the gear-change and change of venue
as quickly and quietly as possible.
|
Mon |
1 |
Magazine Panel meets
at 35 Vanguard Way |
6.00 pm |
|
Tue |
2 |
Parents &
Toddlers Group meets in church |
10.00 am |
|
Wed |
3 |
St Mary's Guild
outing to Aylesford Priory |
|
|
Thu |
4 |
MU&OG. 'At Home' at 241 Croydon Road |
8.00 pm |
|
Sat |
6 |
Bell Ringers' Outing |
|
|
SUN |
7 |
BLESSED VIRGIN
MARY. Patronal Festival |
|
|
|
|
Last
pre-Confirmation Group meets in Church Centre |
11.30 am |
|
SUN |
14 |
TRINITY 13 |
|
|
|
|
Confirmation at St
Paul, Roundshaw |
10.45 am |
|
|
|
Baptism |
3.00 pm |
|
Mon |
15 |
Holy Cross Day. Eucharist |
9.30 am |
|
Tue |
16 |
Worship Group meets
at Rectory |
8.00 pm |
|
Wed |
17 |
MU Corporate
Eucharist |
10.00 am |
|
Thu |
18 |
Churches Together
meet at Wallington Methodist Church |
7.45 pm |
|
|
|
MU&OG. A talk by Dorothy Bradford about the
'Samaritans' |
8.00 pm |
|
Sat |
20 |
Harvest Supper. Church Centre |
7.30 pm |
|
SUN |
21 |
HARVEST THANKSGIVING |
|
|
Mon |
22 |
St Matthew. Eucharist |
9.30 am |
|
|
|
Bible Study Group
meets at 23 Mortlake Close |
8.00 pm |
|
Wed |
24 |
PCC meets. Church Centre |
8.00 pm |
|
Sat |
27 |
Families Group. Latin American Evening. Church Centre |
6.30 - 9.30 pm |
|
SUN |
28 |
TRINITY 15 |
|
|
|
|
Celebration of
Marriage service |
3.00 pm |
|
Mon |
29 |
Michael and All
Angels |
|
|
|
|
Eucharist |
9.30 am |
|
|
|
Bible Study Group meets
at 23 Mortlake Close |
8.00 pm |
Mon 1 Those who serve God through a life of
prayer in solitude
Tue 2 Give thanks for friends who give love and support
in times of need
Wed 3 Board of Church in Society meeting tonight
Thu 4 For Tom and Nick, our Bishops
Fri 5 The Church
Army and its work of evangelism
Sat 6 The South
American Missionary Society
Sun 7 Give thanks for the birth of the Blessed
Virgin Mary
Mon 8 Our link dioceses of Manicaland,
Matabeleland and Central Zimbabwe
Tue 9 The Board of Finance meeting tonight
Wed 10 St
Mary's staff meeting tonight
Thu 11 For
young people as they look to the future
Fri 12 For
our local schools as they begin a new term
Sat 13 Woolwich
Area Council meeting tonight
Sun 14 All
those being confirmed at St Paul's Roundshaw today
Mon 15 All
martyred for their faith
Tue 16 For
the Church of Scotland
Wed 17 Give
thanks for the lives of mystics and visionaries
Thu 18 Croydon
Area Council meeting tonight
Fri 19 For
Rowan our Archbishop
Sat 20 Give
thanks for the Harvest and the diversity of the earth's fruits
Sun 21 Give
thanks for the Church in Papua New Guinea
Mon 22 Our
Bible Study Group restarting today
Tue 23 For
those whose lives have been damaged by addiction
Wed 24 Our
PCC meeting tonight
Thu 25 The
Bishops' Council meeting tonight
Fri 26 The
work of non-stipendiary clergy
Sat 27 The
Archdeacon of Reigate
Sun 28 Deacons
being ordained in the Cathedral today
Mon 29 The
Diocesan Directors of Ordinands
Tue 30 The
work of the General Synod
Sunday 7 September
Canticles: Arnold
in A
Anthem: Through The
Night - Morley
Sunday 14 September
Canticles: Stanford
in G
Anthem: O Saviour
Of The World - Goss
Sunday 21 September
Canticles: Stanford
in A
Anthem: O Be Joyful
All Ye Lands - Britten
Sunday 28 September
Canticles: Stainer
in Bb
Anthem: The Lord
Bless and Keep You – Rutter
MA, MB, B Chir, FRCS, FZS, FRSocMed
24 October 1908 - 1 July 2003
Kenneth Bond, Patron
of Beddington parish from the 1970s until very recently, was, to many folk, a
shadowy figure living in far-off Suffolk.
Some of the older members of the congregation remember him as the
dashing and handsome Rector’s son, off to glorious Cambridge to become a
medical practitioner at a time when the world was still colonial. He delayed graduation for three months to
take a course in psychiatry, (an optional extra in those days). In later years he would put this knowledge
to interesting use, carefully watching people in the street, in church and
elsewhere, making very perceptive comments about their body language.
The medical course at
Cambridge included much comparative anatomy.
This increased Kenneth’s interest in the animal world generally and
especially reptiles, of which he had a particular knowledge. During his time in Bungay he had at least
two pet snakes; actually they were part of the excess stock from London
Zoo. He exercised a twelve foot python
on the front lawn to the amusement of his noisy geese (that he kept as guard
‘dogs’ - much better than dogs, he said, although he also had a huge Alsatian,
Kaydee). Passers-by were somewhat less than charmed by the appearance of the
very large and lively reptile so close to the town centre! The Royal Zoological Society rewarded
Kenneth’s interest in reptiles with a Fellowship in 1950.
Kenneth had a
distinguished career as a surgeon.
After war service as a Colonel in the RAMC he worked for many years in
India where he invented several instruments that are still in use for
colo-rectal surgery. He was a superb
cook but it was slightly disconcerting to watch him cut up liver and bacon with
tonsillectomy scissors.
In the early 1980s he
took exception to the parish’s proposal to build additional accommodation as a
mezzanine floor in the outer North aisle.
He preferred an underground room for the Sunday School, which would not
alter the appearance of the church.
Even in latter years he maintained that this would have been the best
solution to the need for more space, notwithstanding a vast amount of evidence
that it was not possible in engineering terms.
Whilst the mezzanine floor was probably not the correct answer, it was
regrettable that the so-called ‘heritage’ lobby, including members of the
Diocesan Advisory Committee, the Victorian Society, the Council for the Care of
Churches and the Society for the
Protection of Ancient Buildings, used Kenneth’s position as Patron to ‘front’
their own objections. This harmed his
relationship with the parish. The
matter got worse when he withdrew his objection at the last moment leaving the
parish with a traumatic Consistory Court; but his enthusiastic support for the
successful scheme, notwithstanding the underground proposal, and his cheerful
attendance at several parish events thereafter, restored his credibility in
Beddington.
Kenneth was no
stranger to ecclesiastical controversy, for he became a leading light in the
famous ‘Battle of Bungay’ in Suffolk when some hundreds of people rounded on
the vicar because he unlawfully removed and sold six fine medieval choir pews
without a faculty.
Kenneth was extremely
good company. His many memories of
Beddington from the middle of the First World War to the end of the Second
World War were always interesting. He
recalled his mother riding between Beddington and Ewell on one of her horses
and always referred to Carew Manor as Beddington Place - its proper title until
very recently.
Kenneth’s father, Edward Vines Bond, was appointed Rector of
Beddington in 1925 and he maintained, correctly, that his father’s booklet was
by far the best history of the church.
Kenneth took his
duties as Patron seriously, travelling considerable distances to meet
prospective candidates and interviewing a number of clergy at his house in
Bungay. He maintained a close interest
in both Beddington parish and Peterhouse,
his Cambridge College. He was delighted
to appoint Selwyn Tillett, also of Peterhouse, to the incumbency.
Kenneth developed his
lifetime love of Wagner into a particular expertise. He was a frequent visitor to Bayreuth, though on his last trip he
nearly died in a very serious car accident.
In churchmanship
Kenneth was more at home with the ritual of All Saints, Margaret Street, than
Beddington and, when the opportunity arose, even higher, with bells and
smells. He disliked the trends of
modern liturgy and said so vociferously.
Kenneth lived life to
the full; he was twice married and twice widowed. He had a wide circle of friends with an even wider range of
interests.
He did everything well,
including gardening and painting. He
liked things done well and properly for him, though his slightly colonial style
occasionally raised an eyebrow or two.
Kenneth was the last
connection with the old parish. May he
rest in peace.
Barry Williams
Could you? Would you?
…. be able to spare the odd Sunday evening between 5.30 and 6.30 to help
facilitate the St Mary's Youth Group. It's
not a disco/youth club type of thing, but more debate, faith questions,
whatever the members want really. After
the meeting we will go with them to Evensong where we hope they will begin to
get involved in the service - reading, etc.
Full briefings will be
given prior to the group sessions.
The group is hoping to
start in early September and we would love to hear from any willing volunteers.
We will need two people for each session and the more we get the less the rota
commitment will be.
If you are interested
please speak to anyone in the lead group:
Pat Kingsbury, Marion Martin, Pam Akhurst, Carolyn Churchyard, Jane
Seymour or Alan Dutfield.
And speaking of
'Yoof', congratulations to St Mary's choir member James Pedrick who won
the London Mozart Players prize for his
'cello playing in the Strings class at the recent Croydon Music Festival. Twelve year old James has been playing the 'cello since he was
seven and also plays the piano.
On Saturday evening, 20 September, there will be a Harvest Supper in the
Church Centre with food from around both this country and the world. Rice,
jacket potatoes, green salad and bread will be provided and we hope you will be
able to provide dishes that show the variety of culinary delights on offer from
other parts. The food will be offered
buffet style and perhaps as you sample a little of the many dishes, your taste
buds can travel the world. Lists are
available in church (under the tower and in the Centre) where you can sign-up
if you are coming - remembering to bring family and friends - and indicate what
dish (sweet and/or savoury) you can offer to bring. Tickets will be available shortly at a cost of £5 for adults
(negotiable if you are providing food), but no charge for young people.
On Sunday morning, 21 September, we will be giving thanks for the many
riches we receive from knowing people of other cultures and faiths. The preacher at the 9.30 Eucharist will be
Eric Dearman. Eric was a missionary in
India and Papua New Guinea for many years before retiring to Beddington; he was
a Reader at St Mary's and now lives at St Leonards-on-Sea.
Why not come in 'ethnic dress' to the supper and to church?
We will be giving our harvest gifts to the two local charities that we
have supported ever since I visited them, among others, as part of my SPA
training over 7 years ago! I realised
then how important their work was for some of the unfortunate people of our
area and how little financial support they received.
Croydon Nightwatch takes soup and
sandwiches, friendship, support and help to the homeless in the Croydon area
and to those who are finding life very hard in bed-sits or overnight
accommodation. They also provide clean, new underwear when needed, soap, a
towel and a razor and clothes if a client has a job interview. Also when a
person with nothing is given some accommodation they try to help with basic
things; maybe a bed or a cooker, a chair or a cot There is also an advocacy
service which was set up about 18 months ago promoting the welfare and the
rights of Rough Sleepers.
People become homeless for a variety of reasons, but a significant
number are ex-servicemen and women. As military activity has again been
prominent this year, it is depressing to reflect how many Nightwatch clients
are former servicemen. All who have
served the country speak with pride of their service in such conflicts as the
Falklands and the first Gulf War.
Now let me quote from the Nightwatch Chairman’s Annual report:
“The government is now talking of reinvigorating the vagrancy laws which
were actually brought in after the Napoleonic Wars to police the thousands of
demobilised servicemen who had fought those wars which ensured the peace and
prosperity of Britain through the nineteenth century. When the wars were won,
there was little further interest in the soldiers except to condemn them as a
nuisance. It will be a sorry statement on our lack of progress as a society if
in two hundred years all we have to offer former servicemen in trouble is more
vagrancy laws. Government agencies and the armed services themselves could be
doing more to ensure that discharged servicemen have a safety net. We should
not be seeing them on a soup run in the Queen’s Garden” (in the centre of
Croydon).
The gifts Nightwatch need are tins of food, soup (which will be heated
and taken out every night of the year), tins of sandwich fillings which will be
made into sandwiches every day, small tins of vegetables, fruit and meals to be
made into 'new home' packages. Please
let me stress TINS as it is only gifts of tins that can be stored. Money is always welcome so the volunteers
can shop for necessities. Volunteers have formed good relationships with a
number of local retailers and they make money go a long way.
Some 500 volunteers are involved in running Nightwatch, fundraising for
the project, going out at about 9.30 in the evening whatever the weather,
collecting donated food from local retailers, making sandwiches, and manning
‘base camp’ especially - when the harvest gifts are brought in.
The other charity we
support is Sutton Welcare which is run as a contact centre where
children can meet estranged parents on neutral and safe ground. When there is a
breakdown in family relations some children are cut off from one of their
parents and grandparents and they may have heard bad things about the missing
parent. Meeting again after a few weeks
or many weeks can be a traumatic time for the child as well as a worrying time
for both parents.
Welcare provides a
place where meetings with the children can take place safely even if the
parents do not want to meet. There are
toys and games to play, computers to find out about together, and drinks and
biscuits to share. Therefore they need jars of coffee, packets of tea, bottles
of squashes and packets of biscuits as our harvest gifts. Again money is always
welcome to replenish the stocks and to buy the milk.
Heather Cosgrove
Wed 3 Gregory the Great, Bishop of Rome,
Teacher, 604
Sat 13 John
Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople, Teacher, 407
Mon 15 Holy
Cross Day
Tue 16 Cornelius
and Cyprian, Martyrs, 258
Wed 17 Hildegard,
Abbess of Bingen, Visionary, 1179
Fri 19 Theodore,
Archbishop of Canterbury, 690
Sat 20 All
the Martyrs of Korea and the Pacific
Mon 22 Matthew,
Apostle and Evangelist
Sat 27 Vincent
de Paul, Founder of the Congregation of the Mission (Lazarists), 1660
Mon 29 Michael
and All Angels
Tue 30 Jerome,
Translator of the Scriptures, Teacher, 420
Sun 7 Sept
Blessed Virgin Mary
Isaiah 61: 10-11 (page 1122)
Galations 4: 4-7
(page1124)
Luke 1: 46-55 (page
1124)
Sun 14 Sept
Trinity 13
Isaiah 50: 4-9a (page
676)
James 3: 1-12 (page
677)
Mark 8, 27-38 (page
678)
Sun 21 Sept
Harvest
Thanksgiving
Joel 2: 21-27 (page
1162)
1 Timothy 2: 1-7 (page
1163)
Matthew 6: 25-33 (page
1164)
Sun 28 Sept
Trinity 15
Numbers 11: 4-6, 10-16
& 24-29 (page 688)
James 5: 13-20 (page
691)
Mark 9: 38-50 (page
692)
Our new area bishop,
Nick Baines, spent the whole day in St Mary's parish on Monday, 14 July. His personal report on the day, written very
late that same night, has been adopted by the PCC as the official record of the
day and is printed in full below. The
PCC has also begun to prepare a new 'Mission Statement' on the basis of some of
the long-term questions identified during the bishop's visit - and the whole
congregation will have the opportunity to take part in the "seven marks of
a healthy church" exercise on a Sunday morning in October. Watch this space!
Diocese of Southwark
Croydon Episcopal Area
BEDDINGTON, St Mary
Episcopal Visit - Monday 14 July 2003
Programme
The visit was based
around the following programme:
10.45 Arrive at Rectory and tour parish
12.30 Lunch with Rector, Wardens, SPA, Reader,
Treasurer at Rectory
13.45 Beddington Park Primary School: open Sports
Day
14.30 Sherwood Park School assembly
15.15 St Mary's Almshouses: preside at Eucharist
16.00 Ministerial Review with The Revd Selwyn
Tillett
17.30 Evening Prayer in church
18.30 Reception for congregation in church centre
20.00 Meeting with PCC
Preamble
This visit was well
thought-out and thoroughly prepared, giving me a good insight into the nature
and scope of the parish and introducing me to some of the people and
institutions. This is a large parish
comprising diverse housing stock and some light industry/commercial
property. The church is a beautiful
building set in beautiful grounds - historic and attractive, but away from the
residential centre of the area. This in
itself raises questions about its mission possibilities.
I was pleased to visit
two schools, one catering for children and young people with special
needs. Attending Sherwood Park School's
assembly brought home the reality of what songwriter John Bell calls the
greatness of the small, recognising that the celebration of (what to many
people would be insignificant) achievements speaks of the nature of the kingdom
of God. I was greatly touched by the
generosity of spirit and warmth of welcome offered by schools, the almshouses
residents, church and PCC members.
Observations
Rector The
Rector has had to work a parish which presents unique challenges. The church finances (building-related) have
been a heavy burden for all the church for ten years. The Rector has led this with resilience and determination to see
it through. He has also managed to
maintain the spiritual and devotional life not only of the church, but of
himself. This is no mean
achievement. Clergy get ordained for
theological reasons and can easily be squashed, daunted or distracted by
serious challenges arising from buildings or finance. The Rector and his wife are to be commended for the way in which
they have sustained themselves (with generosity and humour) and others under
the serious pressures which have dominated the parish for more than a decade.
Mission The
PCC had an interesting look at the seven marks of a healthy church, marking how
they felt St Mary's measured up. This
led on to a realistic and stimulating discussion about the future ministry and
mission of the church in this parish.
Several issues emerged: (a) The church must prioritise what it can do,
not simply regret what it can't do.
This means that the location of the church itself might indicate the
sort of ministry that can be offered in this area (building on its
history, recreation in the park, etc), inviting creative ideas for reaching out
to people visiting the park for leisure, those wanting good music or a soak in
historical nostalgia! (b) The church
should consider how its spirituality might allow people to open up to the
'outsiders', energising ordinary Christians to articulate their faith and thereby
to evangelise. (c) The potential for
growth, especially from children and younger people, will be realised at cost -
change is always costly and the church needs to realistically appraise how
change can be managed appropriately and with vision. (d) The financial efforts should be resolved by the end of 2004,
thus allowing the PCC and congregation to turn their attention to other
ministry and mission matters. However,
the achievement of concrete goals (raising money and meeting financial/building
targets) might well create justifiable pride and euphoria, but then lead to a
feeling of let-down. What does the
church now concentrate on? Establishing
a mission policy will be harder (in one sense) than sorting out buildings. The resources of the Bishop's Office
(archdeacons, Diocesan and Area advisers) are available to help the parish work
this through.
Future
Developments The PCC must begin to consider now how it will
grasp the nettles identified by the 'seven marks'. Having a strategy in place in 2003-04 will help avoid the
potential for 'let-down' at the end of 2004!
Identification of leadership (OLM/NSM, Reader, SPA, etc) will be
important in looking ahead to the next ten years.
Questions
How can the PCC begin
to prepare for the time (2005) when the finances and building are sorted out?
What areas of mission
might be opened up by proper appraisal of location, opportunity and people's
gifts?
How might the PCC lead
the congregation in creatively addressing questions of spirituality, worship
cultures and evangelism? How does this
affect the question in 'seven marks' about being 'energised by faith'?
Concluding remarks
This has been a very
stimulating visit. I am grateful to so
many people for the time they gave to me.
I am particularly grateful to Selwyn and Cassie for their openness and
generosity of spirit. I think the
church has been heroic in the way it has handled these daunting challenges of
recent years. I gained an enormous
amount from this very full and enjoyable visit. I came away encouraged, yet more aware of the task faced by
parish churches and clergy in a rapidly changing world. The parish can be assured of my prayers and
support in its future life and development.
The Rt Revd Nick
Baines
Bishop of Croydon
The parish Quiet Day
was held at St Mary's Abbey, at West Malling, Kent. About a dozen of us gathered
at church at 8.30 am for morning prayer and our timetable showed that this was
to be the first of five services that day, not to mention two periods of
individual silent contemplation.
The Abbey, although
only a short walk from the High Street, seemed much further away, with its
quiet and tranquil atmosphere. It is an Anglican Benedictine convent, with
cloistered nuns and frequent monastic services.
Jennifer, who knows
the Abbey very well, led us to the visitors' area of Pax House, where we settled
down with coffee whilst she explained how to go about the first period of
silent contemplation. She suggested several words and phrases we could
consider, such as "Jesus" or "Peace" or "Be still, and
know that I am God". We were then to go outside, individually choose one
or several which appealed to us, and quietly contemplate it or them for some 20
minutes, followed by several minutes silent prayer for the world. For me, this
time passed very quickly indeed. After about half an hour we gathered in the
small Pilgrim Chapel for a communion service, presided over by a priest living
near the convent.
Shortly after that, we attended the midday service of Sext
(from the Latin for sixth) in the main church. We sat in the visitors' side
chapel, away from the cloistered nuns. The service books covered the seven monastic daily services, and I noticed
that the words of the Lord's Prayer printed in them differed slightly from any
of the modern versions given in Common Worship.
After these two
services, we gathered in the shade of the many trees on the sun-dappled lawn,
ate our packed lunches, and talked. Another visitor to the Abbey grounds that
day was a snake, identified by one of our number as a viper from the markings
on its head. We watched as it moved away across the short grass, and then dived
into the small stream running near to the Abbey church. It followed the stream
through a grating in the wall, and vanished to safety.
For the second period
of silent contemplation, Jennifer gave out lists of seven suggested passages
from the bible, and explained that we could read one or more of these, and find
something that stood out to us. Then we were to think about that particular
detail for a while, as long as we chose. It was a lovely, sunny day, and the gardens
and lawns round the Abbey were very calm and inviting. So we quietly scattered
round the grounds, settled down, peacefully read our bibles and found something
in the stories to think about. I read several of the passages before psalm 23
claimed my attention.
At 3 pm we were
summoned by the chiming of the Abbey's one large bell to attend the
mid-afternoon service, called None. This name comes from the Latin for ninth,
as 3 pm was at one time known instead as the ninth hour of the day.
Returning to the Pax
House, we had a welcome cup of tea
before Jennifer led us in evening prayer. We gave thanks for a very enjoyable
and rewarding quiet day in such a tranquil place. Having tried this the once, I
would definitely like to participate again next year, whichever abbey is
chosen.
Bill and Margaret
Brueton
At the August meeting,
members of St Mary's Guild heard the Revd Margaret Engler speak of her work as
chaplain of Highdown Prison. Before Highdown she had trained for a year at
Wandsworth Prison, followed by some months at Wormwood Scrubs.
For the last 200
years, the law has stated that every prison must have a governor, a doctor and
a chaplain - a Church of England chaplain. Today, provision is made for nearly
every faith - not only Christian denominations but also Hinduism, Buddhism,
Islam AND paganism.
A prison chaplain has
to care for ALL in the prison - at Highdown that means not only the 750
prisoners but the 500-odd staff as well, so happier duties can include taking
baptisms and weddings.
Margaret pointed out
that most prisoners are ordinary people and, for many, the reality of a
custodial sentence comes as a terrible shock, and one of the first things the
chaplain looks out for is the presence of suicidal feelings. Besides the middle-class English prisoners
sentenced for driving offences, there are numbers of Caribbean or South
American youngsters caught as drug couriers and bewildered by lengthy sentences
for activities which do not carry the same stigma in their own country. The
prison tries to 'match' prisoners who have to share a cell to minimise language
and culture difficulties, and one heartening aspect is the support some
prisoners give to others. The disheartening aspect is the number who return to
prison again and again - those handicapped by poor schooling, broken homes, an
upbringing where stealing is the norm, and those with mental problems for whom
prison is a safer place than the world outside.
The chaplain is not expected
to provide services of worship, but they are offered. Margaret said the men
have many reasons for attending - to escape from cells or meet friends - but
once any who come to disrupt have been removed, worship does take place and,
especially, she said, "You can hear a pin drop during prayers."
Asked for any
'enjoyable' aspects, Margaret said "Giving news of a birth", (to
which one Guild member riposted "He's been in less than 9 months?")
Chaplains are trained
that there are up to 17 ways of breaking free of any physical hold a prisoner
might try - but officers always tell them "You have one weapon more -
they'll be struck dumb if you swear at them". And Margaret could vouch for one incident
where this had worked!
The Guild were impressed
by the needs revealed and by the way in which they were addressed. A memorable meeting.
Margaret Freeman
The PCC met on 1
August, and gave its attention to the regular up-dates of on-going matters, before
moving on to consider more ‘weighty’ items.
With regard to the
re-wiring project, we learned that, with the necessary finance coming along
nicely, it was hoped that the work would commence around mid/late October, with
completion anticipated in time for the Advent carol service.
Cassie’s financial
report revealed that it continued to be a case of budgetary ‘swings and
roundabouts’. The weekly targets for Housekeeping and Re-wiring were more or
less being achieved, and a Gift Aid tax rebate was expected in the near
future. There was also a report on the
outcome of the Fairer Shares interview, at which Selwyn and Cassie had
presented St. Mary’s case, based on our ‘parish profile’. Although regular congregation numbers had
increased since the last re-assessment, aggregate incomes had fallen, with the
result that our Fairer Shares assessment for 2004 was expected to be slightly
down.
Mike Morgan, Convener
of the Tower & Bells Committee, joined the meeting and presented a progress
report on the project. He gave details of the quotations his committee had
obtained from three foundries for the
necessary work to re-hang the bells, and the PCC was happy to accept the
committee’s recommendation. Although
all the necessary funds were not yet to hand, the committee would now put the
faculty application process in motion with a submission to the DAC.
The PCC looked again
at the possibility of making full use of the ‘Upper Room’ of the Centre. On
investigation of the fire regulations, however, and having taken advice from
the local Fire Brigade, it became clear that until such time as the staircase
fire escape, which was included in the original plans for the Centre, can be
installed (at some considerable cost), the Upper Room could not be insured for
public use. The position will be reviewed when the mortgage has been cleared.
We then turned our
attention to Bishop Nick’s visit to the parish on 14 July, and reflected in
particular on his meeting with the PCC that evening. Several ideas had arisen
from that meeting, not least the results of an exercise members had undertaken
entitled “Seven Marks of a Healthy Church”. Members were not unduly surprised
at the outcome, but it did make for some uncomfortable reading. The results of
this exercise, together with various topics outstanding from the earlier parish
Mission Statement, will be worked on by the PCC over its next few meetings, and
will form the basis of a new Mission Statement for presentation to next year’s
APCM. There was a suggestion that it would be helpful if the congregation also
tackled the questionnaire - but more of that anon.
Finally the PCC
considered a report on ‘Cohabitation’ recently published by the Diocesan Board
for Church in Society. We felt that the report was rather too weighted towards
the abstract and theory, and not sufficient thought had been given to pastoral
practice. Selwyn and Heather shared with us their experiences of dealing with
St. Mary’s wedding couples, many of whom, for a variety of reasons, are already
living together. Members were of the opinion that the issue of cohabitation
before marriage was being handled at St. Mary’s in a sensitive manner, and in
accordance with ‘best practice’. The views and opinions expressed during our
discussion will be borne in mind by our representatives when the document is
debated at Deanery and Diocesan Synod.
The PCC next meets on
Wednesday, 24 September.
Diana Harries -
Secretary to the PCC
July 6 Alex
Christopher Shirley and Megan Alice Shirley,
both of
36 Beeches Walk, Carshalton Beeches
(by
permission of the vicar of The Good Shepherd, Carshalton Beeches)
July 13 Isobel
Ann Reed
of 22
Rookwood Avenue, Wallington
July 13 Elliot
Alan Brandon