WHAT’S ON IN MAY?
SUN	1	EASTER 6 Commissioning of PCC at 9.30 Eucharist
Mon	2	Bank Holiday. Church open
Tue	3	Magazine Panel meets at 2 Peaks Hill	10.00 am
		Bible Discussion Group at 14 Nairn Court, Elgin Rd	8.00 pm
		Public Hustings meeting organised by Churches Together at	8.00 pm
		Wallington Methodist Church Hall
Wed	4	St Mary’s Guild meets. Jean Kimber talks about ‘Bells’	2.30 pm
Thu	5	Ascension Day. Sung Eucharist	7.30 pm
SUN	8	EASTER 7 Baptisms	11.30 am
Tue	10	Bible Discussion Group at 14 Nairn Court, Elgin Rd	8.00 pm
Wed	11	Swearing-in of Churchwardens and PCC at	8.00 pm
		Croydon Parish Church
Fri	13	Licensing of Selwyn at Weston Longville, Norfolk	7.30 pm
SUN	15	PENTECOST Start of Christian Aid week
Mon	16	PCC meeting. Church Centre	8.00 pm
Tue	17	MU Festival Services at Southwark Cathedral:
		Eucharist	11.00 am
		Evensong	8.00 pm
		The first Peel on our re-hung bells.	4.00 pm
		Bible Discussion Group at 14 Nairn Court, Elgin Rd	8.00 pm
Wed	18	MU Corporate Eucharist	10.00 am
Thu	19	MU&OG. Speaker to be advised. Church Centre	8.00 pm
SUN	22	TRINITY
Tue	24	Bible Discussion Group at 14 Nairn Court, Elgin Rd	8.00 pm
Sat	28	Flower Festival
		‘A Musical Posy to Celebrate Spring’. Concert	7.30 pm
SUN	29	CORPUS CHRISTI
		Flower Festival
Mon	30	Bank Holiday. Flower Festival. Bell Tower open.
Tue	31	Bible Discussion Group at 14 Nairn Court, Elgin Rd	8.00 pm

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Churches Together in Beddington and Wallington are arranging a public hustings meeting at Wallington Methodist Church Hall, Beddington Gardens, on Tuesday 3 May from 8 to 9.30 pm. This is your opportunity before the General Election to put your questions to the candidates standing for the constituency of Carshalton and Wallington.

There will be an additional Sung Eucharist for Ascension Day at 7.30on Thursday, 5 May.

Sunday, 15 May - Pentecost. Christian Aid Week begins - you can read more about this on pages 12 and 13. If you can help with collecting, contact Jane on 8395 8821.

Why not take a late afternoon/early evening stroll in Beddington Park on 17to listen to the progress of the first Peal on our newly re-hung bells? Scheduled to start at 4.00 pm, it should keep going until around 7’clock. See the article on page 16 to find out more about what is involved.

After much hard work, planning for the Flower Festival is now in its final stages. Volunteers are still needed for various activities over the Bank Holiday weekend of 28-30 May (helping with refreshments, meeting & greeting, etc) so offers of help will be welcomed. More details about the Festival and the accompanying concert can be found on pages 10 and 11.

On Sunday, 29 May, Corpus Christi, we will have the annual ceremony when we thank all those who have a regular part to play in the Sunday morning Eucharist and commission them all for their work in the following year. So, if you are a server, lesson-reader, intercession leader, Sunday School leader, minister of the chalice, etc, please be sure to join us at the 9.30 Sung Eucharist in order to take part.

Celebrants in May

Sunday 1 May

Easter 6

8.00 am Ven Dennis Ede

9.30 am Ven Dennis Ede

Thursday 5 May

Ascension Day

7.30 pm Rev Canon Adrian Esdaile

Sunday 8 May

Easter 7

8.00 am Rev Christopher Wheaton

9.30 am Rev Christopher Wheaton

11.30 am Rev Christopher Wheaton (Baptisms)

Sunday 15 May

Pentecost

8.00 am (to be advised)

9.30 am (to be advised)

Sunday 22 May

Holy Trinity

8.00 am Ven Dennis Ede

9.30 am Ven Dennis Ede

Sunday 29 May

Corpus Christi

8.00 am Ven Dennis Ede

9.30 am Ven Dennis Ede

Christian Aid 2005

Last year 12 collectors from St Mary’s raised just over £900 for Christian Aid. In the next few weeks I will again be asking members of the congregation to help raise money for this year’s campaign.

Two-thirds of the money raised by Christian Aid comes from the house-to-house collection. This involves delivering envelopes to a number of homes and then returning a few days later to collect them.

If you can give just two hours of your time during the week 15th to 21st May, you can help

Many thanks.

Jane Seymour

This is how your donation can make a difference this

Christian Aid Week

£5 buys five chickens, helping to restore a family’s livelihood in Mozambique.

£6 maintains one girl at the Bridge School in India for a month, giving her a chance of education that otherwise would not be available.

£66 will pay for the internet connection for a computer school for children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in the Democratic Republic of Congo. £11 will buy the network card to access the internet, so students can train in computer programming.

£112 buys a water tank for a Peruvian village. This means that the villagers can get water without having to walk to the nearest stream which could be over 2km away.

When making your donation don’t forget about Gift Aid! Gift Aid is a government scheme that allows Christian Aid to claim back the tax paid on any donation made by a UK taxpayer. If you are a UK taxpayer then all you need to do is fill in the declaration on the red CAW envelope and your gift is worth 28 per cent more to Christian Aid. If everyone does this it will raise at least an extra £1 million for the world’s poorest communities.

To find out more, visit www.caweek.org or call 08080 006 006.

Prayer for Christian Aid Week

For our incapacity to feel the sufferings of others,

And our tendency to live comfortably with injustice,

God, forgive us.

For the self-righteousness which denies guilt,

And the self-interest which strangles compassion,

God, forgive us.

For those who live their lives in careless unconcern

Who cry ‘Peace, peace’ when there is no peace,

We ask your mercy.

For our failings in community, our lack of understanding,

We ask your mercy.

For our lack of forgiveness, openness, sensitivity,

God, forgive us.

For the times we were too eager to be better than others,

When we are too rushed to care,

When we are too tired to bother,

When we don’t really listen,

When we are too quick to act from motives other than love,

God, forgive us.

Daily prayer topics in May

Sun 1 Our new Parochial Church Council

Mon 2 Seminaries and schools of theology that train clergy and laity

Tue 3 The Diocesan Board of Finance AGM today

Wed 4 All who work with their hands, labourers, craftsmen, artists

Thu 5 Praise Christ our Ascended and Glorified Lord

Fri 6 Our new government and local MPs

Sat 7 That we may use our gifts and talents in the service of others

Sun 8 All being baptised at St Mary’s today and their families

Mon 9 Parishes with vacancies and those involved with the appointment of clergy

Tue 10 The Southwark Diocesan Welcare Service with parents and children

Wed 11 The housebound because of illness or disabilities

Thu 12 Our Deanery Synod meeting tonight

Fri 13 Selwyn being inducted at Weston Longville today, and Cassie

Sat 14 The ministry of faithful pastors and teachers

Sun 15 Thanksgiving for the gift of the Holy Spirit

Mon 16 Our PCC meeting tonight

Tue 17 The MU Festival Services at Southwark Cathedral

Wed 18 Generosity in giving to Christian Aid

Thu 19 All who serve in the monastic life

Fri 20 Doctors and nurses, surgeons and anaesthetists

Sat 21 Asylum seekers and refugee families

Sun 22 Praise God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Mon 23 The Anglican Communion and the Anglican Consultative Council

Tue 24 The Methodist Church

Wed 25 All scholars and historians

Thu 26 The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams

Fri 27 Our Flower Festival this weekend

Sat 28 Thanksgiving for all things bright and beautiful

Sun 29 Thanksgiving for the Holy Communion

Mon 30 Our Link Dioceses in Zimbabwe: Manicaland, Matabeleland and Central Zimbabwe

Tue 31 Thanksgiving for the Mother of our Lord

STILL SMYLE-ING

This has been a busy year for SMYLE. As well as activities we have enjoyed at our meetings, we have also tried to help other groups with their activities.

At our meetings we have enjoyed origami, fitness sessions, talks by guest speakers, cake making and decorating, making paper dresses, making paperweights, games evenings and tending the garden. We also spent two meetings trying to put ourselves into the shoes of a visually handicapped person - sandwich-making proved our biggest challenge and made us realise:

1. how lucky we are to be able to see what we are doing;

2. manufacturers could help by making goods more easily recognisable by touch.

In addition to meeting on Sundays we have also been on various outings: we supported 3rd Beddington Guides and 1st Beddington Guides at their pantomimes, we saw “Wind in the Willows” and “Aladdin” at the Secombe Centre and in August we swam in the rain in Pam’s garden. (There is a swimming pool too!)

SMYLE has also helped to raise money for three main causes this year: we held two cake sales, one in aid of the Blue Peter appeal which raised £28 and another for Children in Need which raised £49.50. At the Christmas Fair we ran a soft toy tombola which raised £80 for church funds and we would like to thank everyone who donated goods for sale or washed cuddly toys for us.

We have enjoyed helping with other church groups and activities. We made the Guy for our parish Bonfire Party, we helped at the Pancake Party and also at a number of Families Group events, including mounting a pantomime at very short notice!!

At the end of November we abandoned the children’s Sunday School group for a morning so that we could support Stephanie, Rachael and Matthew as they made their first Communion.

We would like to thank everyone in the congregation who has helped and supported us throughout the year. We are very grateful to you all. We are now looking forward to another interesting year ahead and would welcome new members, aged 11 or over. We meet on Sunday in the Church Centre from 4.30 – 6.30 pm.

Esi Adams, Hazel Crone, Rachael Hardwidge, Maeve Hickey, Charlotte Love,

Matthew Love, Laura King, Stephanie Pope, Katy Seymour.

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RINGING CELEBRATIONS

This year the Surrey Association of Church Bellringers is celebrating its 125th Anniversary. The idea of an Association had been discussed by Beddington ringers in the 19th century in the King’s Head public House in Carshalton (sadly, destroyed by enemy action in WW2). The first meeting of the newly-formed Association was at Beddington on May 17, 1880. It seems very appropriate that the first peal on our newly-rehung bells, should be on the actual date of the founding of the Association, to commemorate that first meeting.

So what is a peal? People say a church has “a peal of bells” but strictly speaking, it’s a ring of bells. A peal is a special piece of ringing, which must consist of a minimum of 5,000 consecutive changes, taking around three hours to ring. No stopping is allowed and no substitutes may take over!

A change is a numerical row of bells, eg. 1234 and in “changeringing” every row is different, viz. 1234, 2143, 2413, 4231, 4321, 3412, 3142, 1324, 1234 until the bells are back where they started. No row should be repeated. The pattern the bells move in to make this happen is called a method, not a tune. These methods are given names such as Grandsire, Stedman, Plain Bob and Cambridge to signify which particular pattern is being used.

The different changes available on a given number of bells, is calculated by multiplying all the numbers together, so on four bells it is 4x3x2x1 = 24, on five it is 120, on six it’s 720 and so on. To make a peal a worthy achievement, it was decided that the extent on seven bells would be the benchmark for a peal. That comes to 5,040, so that is the minimum number of changes for a peal on seven or fewer bells. After that, because there are obviously more changes available, 5,000 or more must be chosen. As the extent on eight bells is 40,320 and would take a whole day to ring, this is not considered. (It has actually been done - once!)

We have 10 bells in St Mary’s and to ring the extent on all 10, which is 3,628,800, would take 105 days, so the neighbours will be pleased to know we are sticking to the three hour option on May 17th! The peal will start about 4 o’clock and, with luck, should be over by 7 o’clock. The early start is to enable the band to make a further attempt should the peal break down. It is considered vital to the Associations celebrations that the peal be rung that day. Let’s hope they are successful and that local bedtimes are not interrupted!

The first Quarter since the rehang has already been rung. It was “advertised” in the previous magazine and was indeed successfully completed on Easter Monday afternoon. A Quarter peal is exactly what it says - a quarter of the number of changes in a peal. We rang 1,260 of a method called Grandsire Triples. This was rung on eight bells and took 45 minutes. It was conducted by Nick Kimber. Please don’t get a vision of him standing with a baton in his hand - he’s using both hands to hold the rope! The conductor, in the tower, is the person giving necessary instructions as to when to make a slight alteration in our pattern to produce some more, different changes.

Here endeth the first lesson on the language of ringers. There could well be a second and we will be testing you over the coming weeks!

Jean Kimber

A week (plus a day or two) remembered

We need to cast our minds back to Holy Week - that week at the end of March which now seems a distant memory, but was in reality only a few short weeks ago.

During that week I think most of us experienced a whole range of emotions - solemnity at the service for the Stations of Cross; the amazing feeling of true companionship that came across at the Passover Supper; the sadness of the Good Friday service with its moving hymns and readings and the image of Selwyn kneeling at his prie dieu - and all the while thinking and knowing that we were taking part in all this for the last time with Selwyn as our Rector.

Then - the triumphant joy of Easter morning! A packed church, beautiful flowers, Pam Akhurst doing amazing feats on the organ (in the absence of Andrew Wilson who regrettably had to “call in sick”). Every one of us experienced a mixture of so many feelings. During the recessional hymn, Selwyn plucked Cassie out of her pew and they walked down the aisle hand in hand - phew!!

A lot of folk might have then thought, “So that’s it” once the excellent breakfast that was served after the 9.30 Eucharist was over. But no! In no way was it all over. Easter Monday evening once again saw a packed church, but what a different atmosphere - a Parish Concert as a farewell occasion for Selwyn and Cassie. We had a variety of ‘turns’: handbells, an MU choir doing the honours with Joyce Grenfell’s and Donald Swan’s “Joyful Noise”, the poignant memory of the late Les Cozens tickling the ivories for us one last time, lovely performances from members of ‘Chimes’, and many more too numerous to mention. There followed the presentation of two huge parcels (one each for Selwyn and Cassie) from ‘Chimes’ which turned out to be music stands - a most appropriate gift.

The evening came to a close with us all repairing to the Centre for yet more refreshment and a distinct feeling that this really was the end of Selwyn’s ministry at St Mary’s. Those of use able to journey to Norfolk on 13 May will, I’m sure, carry greetings from us all, and thanks for those twelve years of his ministry.

Mary Tapp

LESLIE ROY COZENS

2 June 1922 - 8 April 2005

Les's long life touched so many others and Jackie has eloquent testimony to that fact in the many cards and letters that have arrived at St Mary's Court.

Les is an irreplaceable member of the local music scene. There are a great many churches, not least St Mary's, which will miss his many talents as will any number of groups of very diverse natures which will find it also very difficult to replace a man of so many varied abilities.

Les was born in Southwick, Sussex and his talents became apparent at an early age - he was only four years old when he played for the first time in public. After leaving school he was kept busy with various seaside orchestras but still found time to set up his own band. When the war ended he moved to London and became a full-time professional musician, playing both classical and popular music. Working for the BBC gave him the opportunity to play on all sorts of occasions, one of which was Coronation Day, and his music was broadcast worldwide.

Les and Jackie’s paths first crossed in 1947 when she was singing in a concert at which he was playing. Jackie hoped to join his band and went for an audition - she didn’t get a singing role but was proposed to instead!

With the rise in popularity of pop music came the gradual demise of live music and Les diversified into computerized wages systems - which brought him to Thornton Heath and from there he discovered St Mary’s …. and Beddington Cricket Club!

Beddington Cricket Club played a large part in Les's life as indeed he did in its. He always spoke very winningly of going to watch the cricket on a Saturday or a Sunday. People talk of "the terrific evenings at Beddington when Les played just as an important part in the life of this club as any cricketer did on the field," and some record "memories round the piano when Les played for hours non-stop." It wasn't only the cricket club that benefited from Les's hard work. Jackie and Les were involved for a long time with the Youth Club.

The cards and letters that Jackie has received uniformly speak of a gentleman of affability, modesty and honesty. Selwyn and Cassie both spoke of the latter two qualities in the card that they sent. They also spoke of a "lovely man and a great performer" and go on to say that he is so much missed by people who love music. The last time most of us heard him play was at Selwyn and Cassie’s farewell concert; he insisted on coming along even though by this time he was very frail.

He wore his skills very lightly and never made musicians of lesser ability feel small. He was generous both with his time and his advice and was full of ideas for including as many people as possible in music making.

It is a great tribute to the man that so many people remember him in the context of entertainment: his influence on so many lives was joyous. He will be much missed.

A MUSICAL POSY TO CELEBRATE SPRING

SATURDAY 28 MAY 7.30 pm

Peter Medhurst - Bass and Piano

Hannah Ockendon - Soprano

Richard Rowe - Tenor

Linda Howarth - Flute

The programme will include music by Handel, Delibes, Bernstein, Gilbert & Sullivan and Berlioz

Tickets at the door £6; students £3; under 12s free (includes light refreshments)

Easter Vestry and Annual Parochial Church Meeting

13 April 2005

Rev Christopher Wheaton, Area Dean, was welcomed as chairman of the meeting by Ian Akhurst.

The Easter Vestry Meeting saw Pat Kingsbury and Ian Akhurst being re-elected as churchwardens for the coming year.

Moving swiftly through the Agenda for the Annual Parochial Church Meeting, Jenifer Davison, Heather Cosgrove, Jean Kimber and Ian Akhurst were elected as our representatives to the Deanery Synod. There had been seven nominations for the five vacant places on the PCC therefore all attending the meeting were required to vote. However, as two postal votes had been requested, it was not possible to announce the results at the meeting.

Ian explained that Hugh Crozier had been appointed Assistant Treasurer the previous month and will become our new Treasurer. In the absence of Hugh, Ian ran through the financial statement which showed St Mary’s accounts as being in a strong position overall, but emphasised that there was no room for complacency. It was a little ironic that having rid ourselves of the mortgage, the level of our shopping list hasn’t reduced. There were very good reasons for this, not the least of which was an increase in our Fairer Shares contribution.

Various reports were received: Deanery Synod from Jenifer Davison; Churches Together from Carolyn Churchyard; Social Committee from Jane Seymour; Tower and Bells from Jean Kimber; and Churchwardens by Ian Akhurst. (Although SMYLE weren’t present this year, a report of their activities can be read on page).

The Easter Vestry and APCM meetings are surprisingly jolly affairs and give an excellent overview of what has been going on during the past year. Why not make sure you are there at next year’s?

Chris Morgan

What happens next? …. since we last wrote

The April magazine included a brief paragraph about the Churchwardens’ Questionnaire. We would like to repeat our thanks for all your thoughtful comments. We are also grateful to the many people who have talked to us - and this includes thanks to both SMYLE and the junior choristers.

The answers have been summarised and presented to the PCC. This whole exercise has given a clear snapshot of how the congregation sees St’s now and what its hopes are for the future. Appreciation of the music and its place in our worship; the important place occupied by young people and their families, and the wish for the church to deepen and develop the pastoral side of its life were the common themes.

Our Archdeacon, Tony Davies, presided and preached at both Eucharists on 17 April. The Patron, Lady Nairne, was here on the same day and many people had an opportunity to talk to them both over coffee. The Archdeacon and the Patron will both be members of the short-listing and interviewing panels for the new Rector. In preparation for this, the first draft of the ’Person Specification’ has been written with much care and thought - and taking serious account of the views expressed in the questionnaire.

Meanwhile, back at The Rectory, one of the Diocesan Building Surveyors has met with the Churchwardens and the Archdeacon to arrange for any necessary building and decorating work to be put in hand during the next couple of months. We were delighted with the generosity of the Dioceson Grant for this work and for the speed with which all the ’routine admin’ is going ahead.

Pat and Ian

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Diocese of Southwark

SUMMER SCHOOL

16 June - 19 July 2005

The Summer School is designed to offer further learning opportunities to those involved with a great variety of ministries in Southwark Diocese. Some modules will appeal to those who are training for, or already in, licensed ministry (clergy, readers, SPAs). Others will appeal to people who serve the church in different ways. Overall, the modules aim to strengthen and equip us for ministry, and develop our understanding of the communities we serve.

Modules offered are as follows:-

The artist, the Bible and me!

The Bible at large!

A brief guide to urban regeneration

Christianity in multi-faith Britain

Facilitating adult learning

God in the garden

How do churches REALLY work? And how could they work better?

Leading small groups

The Psalms - a witness to prayer and praise

Prophets of Justice vs Profits of Injustice

Spirituality - food for the soul

Ways of being Church of England

Worship: Bridging Spirituality and Theology.

The contribution to costs for each module is £12.50 (£8 for the unwaged). Each booking covers a complete module which generally consists of more than one session. A variety of venues throughout the Diocese will be used. If you are interested in any of the above, please contact Jenifer (020 8773 2004) for more details and a booking form.

Beddington Boys’ Brigade

The 1st Beddington Boys’ Brigade Company is celebrating its 20th Anniversary in July. If you were a leader, helper or young lad in the first year (1985) of the Company, or if you know the names of some who were, the Company would love to hear from them.

Please contact Mike Kingston on 07879 652322, or leave contact details with Holy Trinity Church office (8647 7605)

From the registers

Baptisms

27 March Annabel Louise Lilian Willoughby-Jones

10 April Amy Louise Lodge

Weddings

28 March Emma Patricia Jean Howland and

Dominic John Bovington of

Funerals

12 April Caroline Eliza Hales-Owen, aged 88,

21 April Leslie Roy Cozens, aged 82,

The Little girl & Grandpa

A little girl was sitting on her grandfather's lap as he read her a bedtime story. From time to time, she would take her eyes off the book and reach up to touch his wrinkled cheek. She was alternately stroking her own cheek, then his again. Finally she spoke up, “Grandpa, did God make you?"

"Yes, sweetheart," he answered, "God made me a long time ago."

"Oh," she paused. "Grandpa, did God make me too?"

"Yes, indeed, my dear," he said. "God made you just a little while ago."

Feeling their respective faces again, she observed, "God's getting better at it, isn't he?"

Winning elections

A candidate came home in the small hours and gave his wife the glorious news: “Darling, I have been elected?”

She was delighted: “Honestly?!!” she cried.

He laughed in an embarrassed sort of way. “Oh, why bring that up

The problem with Ministers

If he visits his flock, he's nosey;
If he doesn't, he's a snob.

If he preaches for longer than ten minutes - it's too long;
If he preaches less than ten minutes, he hasn't prepared his sermon.

If he runs a car he's worldly;
If he doesn't, he is always late for appointments.

If he tells a joke he's flippant;
If he doesn't, he's far too serious.

If he starts the service on time his watch must be fast;
If he's a minute late, he's keeping the congregation waiting.

If he takes a holiday he's never in the parish;
If he doesn't, he should get out more.

If he runs a gala or bazaar he's money mad;
If he doesn't, there's no social life in the parish.

If he has the church painted and redecorated he's extravagant;
If he doesn't, the church is shabby.

If he's young he's inexperienced;
If he's getting old, he ought to retire.

But –
When he finally goes mad or dies of exhaustion;
There's never been anyone like him!

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Readings for Sundays and Festivals in May

Saints in May

Evensong in May

Evensong will take place every Sunday in May. Anthems and Motets from the following will be sung:

The latest Seven Deadly Sins

Celebrants in May

Christian Aid 2005

Prayer for Christian Aid Week

Daily prayer topics in May

STILL SMYLE-ING

RINGING CELEBRATIONS

A week (plus a day or two) remembered

LESLIE ROY COZENS

A MUSICAL POSY TO CELEBRATE SPRING

SATURDAY 28 MAY 7.30 pm

Easter Vestry and Annual Parochial Church Meeting

13 April 2005

What happens next? …. since we last wrote

Diocese of Southwark

SUMMER SCHOOL

Beddington Boys’ Brigade

From the registers

The Little girl & Grandpa

Winning elections

The problem with Ministers