Readings
for Sundays in February
Saints and Commemorations in February
2005
- a year of trials for Zimbabwe
Reports
from the Diocese of Central Zimbabwe
Computer
for Mother's Union worker
Chad
Gandiya shares his impressions:
Bishop
of Southwarks Lent Call for 2006.
Projects
in Central Zimbabwe will feature in the Bishops Lent Call for 2006.
World
Church continues to grow
Churches
Together Christmas Lunch
National
Nest Box Week 14 21 February
To
all the kids who survived the 1920s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s
Daily
prayer topics in February
Whats on in February? |
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Wed |
1 |
Magazine Panel meets at 35 Vanguard Way |
11.00 am |
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Wed |
1 |
St Marys Guild meeting. |
2.30 pm |
|
Thu |
2 |
MU&OG. Croydon Palace - a talk by Mrs Yvonne Walker |
7.30 pm |
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SUN |
5 |
4TH BEFORE LENT |
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Mon |
6 |
Sutton Deanery Synod meets at St Marys, Beddington |
8.00 pm |
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Tue |
7 |
Bible Discussion Group meets at 14 Nairn Court |
8.00 pm |
|
SUN |
12 |
3RD BEFORE LENT Guides and Brownies attend the 9.30 am Eucharist |
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|
Wed |
15 |
MU Corporate Eucharist |
10.00 am |
|
Thu |
16 |
MU&OG. Crime Prevention - a talk by Bill Margetts |
7.30 pm |
|
SUN |
19 |
2ND BEFORE LENT |
|
|
Tue |
21 |
Bible Discussion Group meets at 14 Nairn Court (last meeting before Lent) |
8.00 pm |
|
Sat |
25 |
Pancake Evening in the Centre |
7.30 pm |
|
SUN |
26 |
NEXT BEFORE LENT |
|
|
Mon |
27 |
PCC meeting. The Centre |
8.00 pm |
|
Tue |
28 |
Shrove Tuesday |
|
There will be plenty of ringing to be heard on Saturday, 11 February.
A visiting band will be ringing around midday, and at 3.00 pm there will be a peal rung in memory of the late David Parsons, a past Master of the Sts Ringers and brother-in-law of Gerald England.
Sunday
5 February
4th Before Lent
Isaiah 40 : 21-end
1 Corinthians 9 : 16-23
Mark 1 : 29-39
Sunday 12 February
3rd Before Lent
Readings to be presented by
Guides and Brownies
Sunday 19 February
2nd Before Lent
Proverbs 8 : 1, 22-31
Colossians 1 : 15-20
John 1 : 1-14
Sunday 26 February
Next Before Lent
2 Kings 2 : 1-12
2 Corinthians 4 : 3-6
Mark 9 : 2-9
Every Sunday we pray for people living and working in two or three roads in the parish.
The roads in February will be:
Sunday 5 February
Iberian Avenue
Goidel Close
Sunday 12 February
Queenswood Avenue
Queen Elizabeths Walk
Sunday 19 February
Royston Avenue
Sandhills
Sunday 26 February
Crichton Avenue
Rookwood Avenue
Wed 1 Brigid, Abbess of Kildare, c525
Fri 3 Anskar, Archbishop of Hamburg, Missionary in Denmark & Sweden, 865
Sat 4 Gilbert of Sempringham, Founder of the Gilbertine Order, 1189
Mon 6 The Martyrs of Japan, 1597
Fri 10 Scholastica, sister of Benedict, Abbess of Plombariola, c543
Tue 14 Cyril and Methodius, Missionaries to the Slavs, 869 and 885
Tue 14 Valentine, Martyr at Rome, c269
Wed 15 Sigfrid, Bishop, Apostle of Sweden, 1045
Wed 15 Thomas Bray, Priest, Founder of the SPCK and the SPG, 1730
Fri 17 Janani Luwum, Archbishop of Uganda, Martyr, 1977
Thu 23 Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, Martyr, c155
Mon 27 George Herbert, Priest, Poet, 1633
27 December Aaron Stephen Tye Blackman and
Nicola Jane Rayward
15 January Finley Michael Thompson
Wednesday, 1 March
ASH WEDNESDAY.
The normal Eucharist will take place at 10.00 am, with a further Eucharist at 7.30 pm,. Both services will include the imposition of ashes.
Friday, 3 March
Womens World Day of Prayer (see details below)
Saturday, 11 March
A Coffee Morning Plus. Details to follow.
Saturday, 18 March
Ringers Quiz Night (see details below)
Saturday, 1 April
A showing of the vintage silent film King of Kings. Details to follow.
Mary, Alan and Paula, Christine and Mike the family of Pat Ross -would like to extend their immense thanks to all at St. Marys Church who made sure the arrangements in church went to smoothly on 19thDecember.
We particularly thank Betty Walker for taking the service, as she had for our father, George Ross, in 1996 - Betty had known both Mum and Dad personally, it was very special for us.
We were pleased that some of the beautiful flowers were able to be incorporated in the decorating of the church for Christmas.
Mary Ross
The Introit by the choir, exhorting us to be joyful in the Lord, set the scene perfectly for the service to come. A packed church was there to welcome the Reverend Justine Middlemiss as our Priest-in-Charge. About 30 robed priests, the Mayor, the local MP, representatives from other denominations, visitors from near and far, all joined our congregation to set us out on our new journey of faith.
The hymns provided a good sing for everyone, the Bishop preached a very apposite sermon, Justine reaffirmed her vows and the congregation was commissioned to serve the living God in faithfulness and fellowship, as a new chapter begins in the life of our parish.
Justine was allowed to give out the notices and she reminded us of the procedure for the aprs-service party and informed us that next Sundays services would be as usual (well - maybe not quite!)
Everything went so very smoothly that Justine must have felt extremely relieved. As we sang Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord, everyone surely felt that the Lord had indeed showed his greatness to us all. The celebrations afterwards went on and on. The wine flowed, there was more that sufficient food (maybe 12 baskets left over) and everywhere was happy, lively conversation.
It was good, not only to see all Justines family there supporting her but to see so many friends from St Margarets there to wish her well. Its usually a good sign when ones former parish appears not to want to let go!
We all now have new challenges to face. Things will not be the same either for Justine or for us. We have to learn to work together, to build on what is good and to change what is not. Deciding which is which, may need Gods help.
We all hope she and Guy will be very happy in their new home and amongst their new friends. Wednesdays joyful occasion was certainly a good start.
Let us join with Justine and say,
Take our lives and let them be
consecrated, Lord to thee.
Jean Kimber
At their AGM on January 5, the ringers all felt that the past year must been one of the most momentous for as long as anyone could remember. A complete re-hang only occurs once in a lifetime. We had worked so hard for this and at last our project had reached fulfilment.
It had been a most educational experience for many of us too. (Even aspects of the re-decorating had been novel to a few members!) Those of you who saw the bells at close range on the church floor, together with the many tons of steel frame, must have been a little awed at the scale of everything. And the fact it all fitted was a miracle!
We have gradually got used to the feel of everything and have increased our numbers to 16, with four new recruits. This is encouraging and we would be pleased to welcome more up our stairs. Why not make a New Year resolution to try something different?
Looking back over the year, the re-hang wasnt the only item on our agenda. We held a couple more fund-raising events, the Prohibition Evening and the Annual Quiz Night, both of which were most successful, and our trip to the Foundry was a great day out.
We did well in the Association competitions, coming second (by half a point) in the Six-bell competition and, having entered two teams, came first and third in the Call Change competition. To come second by two marks in the Association Quiz was both good and frustrating.
As reported in earlier editions of this magazine, 2005 was the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Surrey Association, here in Beddington. A special peal was rung to commemorate this and Nick Kimber took part in it to fly the flag for Beddington. A Dinner was held in Croydon on St Georges Day and was attended by several of our members and a special service and AGM took place at Southwark Cathedral in May.
Our different outing this year to the Ringers Roadshow was a great success. There was so much to do and see and so many friends to catch up with, that one day seemed hardly enough. The horrendous thunderstorms on the homeward motorway journey didnt really dampen the enjoyment of the day.
Chris Kimber had spent much of the spring and summer making recordings of 20 more Surrey towers in celebration of the 125th anniversary. The CD takes the form of a journey from rural Surrey, with the six bells of leafy Leigh, to the grandeur of the metropolis at Southwark Cathedral. It shows how very varied the Diocese of Southwark is and gives lovely descriptions of the churches visited. Non-ringers would find it interesting and I recommend you speak to Chris and get yourselves a very different CD for your collection.
Our Christmas Meal was held in the Dukes Head on December 15 and was voted a great success. We were looked after really well and it was considered good value for money. (It was probably a lovely Silent Night for the MU too!) We were very busy ringing over the Christmas and New Year period - and possibly fitter, having climbed the belfry stairs 11 times in two weeks!!
We are looking forward to new challenges this year, encouraging our recruits and attempting to live up to the standard our new Priest in Charge has been led to expect.
Hope to see you all at our Quiz Night on March 18.
Jean Kimber
Constantine Mutikani, a Zimbabwean resident in this country, gives a personal overview of the state of the nation over this past year:
'The past year has been Zimbabwe's worst since 1980. It has witnessed a government onslaught, through the destruction of people's homes and livelihood, and the demise of the health sector, with aids drugs beyond the affordability of the common people. Inflation has reached500%. The envisaged economic growth of 6%, revised to 3,in reality recorded minus 3.
Major cities have had problems in providing clean water, electricity and refuse removals. Items which are joining the luxury list include: tea, bread, eggs, milk, sugar, cooking oil, rice. New farmers have been left waiting for farm inputs: seed and fertilizer. There is not enough to go around. The rains have started off very well for the 2005-06 season - the only positive news so far.
Unfortunately the list of negatives continues. Fuel shortages have been the worst, with people abandoning their cars in queues for weeks on end, just in case something comes up. Even the national airline was grounded for a day!
The opposition party is in disarray with two factions jostling for the control. Instead of finding solutions to the country's economic collapse, the ruling party's conference was full of delegates praising President Mugabe and lambasting the West for the evils that have befallen the country.
The Churches have been outstanding in helping people affected by the government's clamp down on informal traders and destruction of their homes, with some clerics outspoken in their criticism of injustice. We have seen people going out trying to help themselves (a good example being the hospital project at St Patrick's).
We pray for abetter tomorrow and that the people's determination for the good and the betterment of all will triumph.'
The world-wide grants committee of the Mothers Union has recently agreed a grant towards buying a computer for MU worker Constance Nherera, based in the Diocesan Office in Gweru. The MU is a very well-supported organisation and a powerful force for good within the diocese. Constance does all the central admin as well as overseeing conferences and the distribution of materials and sale of work for fundraising. She also acts as an adviser for work with young girls, teaching them practical skills such as cooking and sewing, as well as how to walk in the Christian way.
Pray for Constance Nhereraand all the members of the Mothers Union. May the women of Zimbabwe be a powerful force for goodness and spiritual values in the land.
Chad Gandiya of USPG visited St Patrick's in October and reports his impressions:
St Patrick's clinic is functioning well. The staff are taking care with drugs given by donors.
The diocese is developing work with people with HIV/Aids but drugs are in short supply. It is hoped that USPG may be helping to fund this work as of 2006.
There is a lot of excitement about building the hospital 'There's no turning back now.'
The clinic and St Patrick's school are working to further develop their water supply and have brought in specialist help on this.
Church members are very committed to diocesan projects. 35% of harvest giving went to the diocese.
Details of projects in the Lent appeal will appear in next months magazine.
The world Christian population continues to grow. It stood at 2,140 million people in the middle of 2005, the latest published figure, some 140 million more than five years earlier. This is one-third, 33%, of the world's population, which stood at 6,450 million in 2005.
Furthermore the increase in Christian numbers is growing slightly faster than the population generally, 1.3% per annum against 1.2%. This is because of the huge continuing growth in Asia and Africa (respectively growing at 2.6% and 2.4% per year). It is only in Europe where the numbers are decreasing.
However, although they have smaller numbers overall, the Muslims and the Hindus are growing faster than the Christians. There were 1,310 million Muslims in 2005, growing at 1.9% per year, and 870 million Hindus, growing at 1.5% per year, but it will be many decades before these overtake the number of Christians!
The charismatic independent churches are growing the fastest (2.4% per year), something which is also seen in the growth of the charismatic black churches in the UK.
Dr Peter Brierley, Christian Research
Friday, 3 March 2006
Morning Service
10.30 am St Pauls, Roundshaw
Speaker : RevdTina Turner (to be confirmed)
Evening Service
7.30 pm Wallington Baptist Church
Speaker: Mrs Brenda Ford (Moderator)
All Welcome .. Refreshments will be served following both services
Saturday, March 18 is the date for the Ringers Annual Quiz Night
It will take the usual format. Come in teams of up to six. The all-inclusive evening - fish and chips (or alternative), tea and coffee, entertainment - will be provided at a cost of 6 each. Please pay your team leader, who then pays the ringers!
Doors will open at 7 oclock - no earlier - and the first question will be at 7.30.
This is a very popular event, so book early to avoid disappointment.
Ring 020 8660 4254 to book, or speak to a ringer in church.
As the ringers Project is completed, proceeds will go to Church Funds this year. Come and support us.
A thin, flat cake, made of batter and baked on a griddle or fried in a pan, the pancake has a very long history and is featured in cookbooks as far back as 1439.
The tradition of tossing or flipping them is almost as old: "And every man and maide doe take their turne, And tosse their Pancakes up for feare they burne." (Pasquils Palin, 1619).
1931 - 2005
An Appreciation
Many of the St Marys family may not have known Rosemary. I was privileged to meet her when she joined our Mothers Union branch, although worshipping at her parish church of St Michaels and All Angels, South Beddington. We were yet to realise how fortunate we were to have her in our midst.
Rosemary had not been with us for that long when the post of branch treasurer became vacant and she offered to take the job on - with not a little trepidation! Although not trained in any way to work with figures, Rosemary applied herself to the task with great determination and made an excellent job of it all.
Whenever she was able she would come to the Mothers Union Wednesday morning monthly corporate eucharist - a familiar figure with her trademark rucksack firmly in place on her back! More often that not she had walked from her home in Milton Road - quite a distance.
I was also lucky enough to have Rosemary on the Wallington branch committee of the Womens World Day of Prayer organisation. I remember clearly that the year she joined it was the turn of St Michaels to host one of the two services held each year. Although at first completely dismayed at the thought, she nevertheless tackled the task and produced an excellent service.
Rosemarys talents were much valued at St Michaels Church too. She was persuaded to stand for the PCC and within a year was asked to consider the post of warden. She was very surprised when elected - but no-one else was.
I realise now, regretfully, what an awful lot there was that I didnt know about Rosemary: for instance, that she had read history and geography at Keele University in the 1950s; had worked as an academic secretary at Bedford College, University of London; and was the Principals secretary at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. She also had a huge interest in family history and her family were of great importance to her - her husband, Michael, her sons, Timothy and Christopher, their wives and children.
At Rosemarys funeral the Revd Patrick Grant ended his address with these words, I shall greatly miss this humble, compassionate, wise, dutiful and loving woman and we can rejoice that we have known her. Rosemarys son completed his eulogy thus, Let the last words be those of a child (his daughter) I wonder what colour halo Gran will be wearing?. Whatever colour, it will shine brightly.
God bless you Rosemary. Rest in peace.
Mary Tapp
...too late for inclusion in last months magazine, but too good an event to let pass without mention:
What a good time everybody had at St Michael's Church in Wallington.members of St Mary's helped on the day with jobs varying from hosts, waiters, cloakroom attendant, car parking supervisor and drivers.
80 guests were expected but in fact, with hosts, over 100 people sat down to enjoy their traditional Christmas fayre.began arriving at 11.45 and were offered wine, sherry or fruit cup before lunch was served at around 1 pm.
In the true spirit of Christmas, when a family of five (including three children) arrived totally unexpectedly from Essex, Frances Drake, who heads up the Churches Together Committee, was completely unruffled and immediately provided an extra table, including all the trimmings of miniature Christmas tree plus crackers, before serving them their lunches.turned out that they had travelled to Wallington especially for the morning service at St Elphege's Church and had been brought over to lunch by Father Hough.
Those helping towards the success of the day included 25 drivers involved in ferrying guests to and from their homes, 26 other helpers, three cooks plus two professional cooks who just turned up out of the blue!
Father Christmas arrived with presents of shortbread for all.Everyone enjoyed the Queen's Christmas Day message and entertainment was provided by St's Church Warden, followed by everyone joining in the singing of carols.
Guests departed around 3.45 pm and were each handed a pot of spring bulbs as they left as well as choosing a gift from a selection of items generously donated.
Jean Delahunty
What do children know about love? When questioned, some four to eight year olds came up with the following:
When you're born and see your mum for the first time. That's love.
Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.
If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who hates you.
Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.
I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.
You have to fall in love before you get married. Then when you're married, you just sit around and read books together.
I let my big sister pick on me because my mum says she only picks on me because she loves me.
Love goes on even when you stop breathing and you pick up where you left off when you reach Heaven.
Love cards like Valentine cards say stuff on them that we'd like to say ourselves, but we wouldn't be caught dead saying it.
When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.
National Nest Box Week begins on St Valentine's Day, the traditional date for birds to pair up for the new breeding season.
The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) aims to urge everyone with nest boxes to clean them out and check that they are in tip-top condition for the coming breeding season. This is also the very best time to put up new boxes.
Nest Boxes are important for birds and other wildlife - including mammals like bats and hedgehogs and insects like bumble bees and hornets - because modern habitats are often very short of the holes and cavities they need to nest and roost safely.
The best boxes for an ordinary garden are those for tits - they have a very good chance of being occupied. In many gardens, particularly those in modern developments, these nest boxes are the only places for these birds to nest safely.
Making Boxes: The design and materials of a nest box are important since it needs to be well insulated and of the correct dimensions for the birds to be successful. Unfortunately some boxes are not well made and many do not last long. Making boxes is easy and an excellent family activity. Details of how to make standard tit boxes, and how and where to erect them, are available free-of-charge from: NNBW, Freepost 1155, CANTERBURY, Kent CT3 4BR. The same address can be used to order the 'Official Nest Box' and to find out about others that are available for birds, bats and even insects!
First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us.
They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.
Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paints.
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when
we rode our bikes, we had no helmets; not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.
As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.
We shared one soft drink with four friends from one bottle, and NO-ONE actually died from this.
We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soda pop with sugar
in it, but we weren't overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.No one was able to reach us all day. And we were OK.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down
the hill, only to find out we had forgotten the brakes! After running into the bushes
a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable TV, no DVDS, no surround-sound, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or Internet chat rooms.........WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.
We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!
This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever. The past 50 years have seen an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!
And YOU are one of the survivors! CONGRATULATIONS!
Heather Cosgrove
Wed 1 The Anglican Diocese of Belize
Thu 2 Thanksgiving for Christ the Light of the World
Fri 3 The people of Denmark and Sweden
Sat 4 The Gilbertine Order
Sun 5 Thanksgiving for the wonders of creation
Mon 6 The Deanery Synod Meeting tonight
Tue 7 Marriage and all that strengthens family life
Wed 8 The General Synod meeting this week
Thu 9 The West Papuan Christians
Fri 10 Benedictine Religious Communities
Sat 11 Tearfunds international staff working in volatile situations
Sun 12 Our Guides, Brownies and Rainbows
Mon 13 Young people learning new skills in work experience
Tue 14 The Diocesan Board of Finance
Wed 15 Bishops Council meeting tonight
Thu 16 Our farmers and all who work on the land
Fri 17 The people of Uganda
Sat 18 All suffering from human rights abuses
Sun 19 Thanksgiving for all who share their wisdom with us
Mon 20 Our local schools and colleges
Tue 21 Children at risk and their protection
Wed 22 Play groups and nursery schools
Thu 23 The World Health Organisation
Fri 24 Our local hospitals, doctors and nurses
Sat 25 All attending our Pancake Evening
Sun 26 Action against poverty
Mon 27 The people of Zimbabwe especially the hungry and homeless
Tue 28 Trauma counsellors and support groups