1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity
3. catholicism

The United Benefice of
Foots Cray with North Cray
PARISH MAGAZINE
November 2014
50p
All Saints,
Foots Cray
St James,
North Cray
Website: www.allsaintsandstjames.org.uk
PARISH STAFF
The Rector:
Telephone
Churchwardens:
The Rev Ann Uphill, The Rectory, Rectory Lane, Sidcup
DA14 5BP
ann.uphill@uwclub.net
Tina Hewett (St James)
tina.hewett@btinternet.com
Ted Rowlands (All Saints)
ted-rowlands@hotmail.co.uk
Sally Schepke (All Saints)
sallylizschepke@aol.com
Pastoral Assistant:
Sally Schepke
Secretaries:
Janet Setter (All Saints)
Suzy Higgs (St James)
Treasurers,
Freewill &
Covenant Secretary
Gift Aid Officer:
Director of Music:
Sacristans:
Bothy Bookings:
Vacant
8300 7096
01322 273104
8289 3853
8302 5847
sallylizschepke@aol.com 8302 5847
8289 3853
suzyjhiggs@gmail.com 8302 5719
(St James)
Sam Edwards (All Saints)
samwe@tiscali.co.uk
Suzy Higgs (St James)
(email as above)
Reg Boulton
reg.boulton@btopenworld.com
Stephen Hills (St James)
Sandra Cochrane (All Saints)
Jackie Pentland
01689 838566
8302 5719
01322 614260
8302 7236
8300 1204
8300 4820
Churchyard Superintendent: Please contact the Rector for Churchyard matters.
All Saints Churchyard: Ray & Francine Gull
Parish Safeguarding Rhonda Collins (St James)
Officers:
Tricia Lyall (All Saints)
Editor:
8302 4061
01322 527352
Steve Blake
sblakemagazine@ntlworld.com
Sunday Services
9.20am
Sunday School - All Saints (except 1st Sunday)
9.30am
Parish Eucharist - All Saints (except 1st Sunday )
11.10am
Sunday School - St James - The Bothy (except 2nd Sunday)
11.15am
Parish Eucharist - St James (except 2nd Sunday)
All Age Services
9.30am
All Saints (1st Sunday );
10.30am
St James (2nd Sunday )
On the 5th Sunday in the month Joint Morning Services will be held alternately at
All Saints and St James. Venues, and amendments, will be announced in the diary.
Joint Midweek Service
Thursday
10.00am
Holy Communion - All Saints (1st and 3rd Thursdays)
- St James (2nd and 4th Thursdays)
If there is a 5th Thursday in the month, the service will be held alternately
at All Saints and St James. Venues will be announced in the diary.
ST JAMES CHURCH and THE BOTHY
020 8300 9377
Our Rector has her day off on Mondays, and it would be appreciated if you did not contact her
unless it is an emergency on that day.
2
SEAS OF RED
Of all the events that have been held so far this year for the
Commemoration of the First World War, I think the most
memorable and stunning are the poppies in the moat at the
Tower of London, entitled "Blood Swept Lands and Seas of
Red" by ceramic artist Paul Cummins and stage designer
Tom Piper. We first saw the installation on our TVs on 4th
August and it has continued to grow since then – the target
being that over 800,000 poppies (888,246 to be precise) will have
been ‘planted’ by 11th November to commemorate those who died
during World War I. Each poppy represents a British or Colonial
military fatality during the war and I think the whole idea was a stroke
of genius.
The fact that so many people have volunteered to help ‘plant’ the
poppies over the months between August and November I think just
shows how many the project has touched, and I think part of the
reason it’s touched so many is because of the sheer visual impact of
the installation. If you haven’t seen it, it’s well worth a trip to the Tower
of London to do so. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the scale of the losses
in that war depicted so graphically, not even in the battlefields of
Northern France, moving and breathtaking though they are in scale.
It’s very easy to talk about numbers, but somehow seeing all those
poppies massed together, each representing a life lost really brings
home the sheer scale of it all. All those who died were someone’s
husband or son or brother or father, wife, mother, daughter or sister.
These deaths were not just an abstract idea, these were human lives
that mattered to their families and friends and the communities from
which they came. And of course many communities lost many of their
young men; many families lost more than one member: we only have
to look at the names on our war memorials to know that they mattered
to those close to them. But they mattered to all of us as well.
On Remembrance Sunday of course we don’t just remember those
who died in World War I, but in World War II and other conflicts,
although this year the focus has been on World War I because of the
centenary commemorations. And when you think of the scale of
human suffering and loss those wars involved, it seems obvious to me
why we should never allow ourselves to forget them.
Ann
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The following poem was written by a friend of mine, who has given her
permission for me to share it with you.
Ann
Reflections after a visit to the Battlefields of the Somme
Little poppies dancing, dancing in the fields.
Dainty scarlet petals flicker,
By the soft stalks of grain,
Burgeoning milky ears of wheat,
Swelled by the gentle rain.
Little poppies singing, singing in the fields.
Their silent song borne on the breeze,
Ruffling whiskery heads of corn,
Eddying waves of bayonet leaves,
The horizon of no return.
Little poppies weeping, weeping in the fields.
Petals drop as a thousand tears,
Blood splashed in a muddy furrow,
A soul consumed by a million fears,
A waiting heart with sorrow.
Little poppies dying, dying in the fields.
The time is ripe, the harvest calls,
The nation demands its bread,
The living wheat defenceless falls,
Its roots the dreamless dead.
Little poppies laughing, laughing in the fields.
They raise their heads towards the sky,
A century of summers past
Fields of stones, a sword on high,
We stand with awe at death’s repast.
With countless others we wonder why
those men and boys were doomed to die
Little poppies glowing, glowing in the fields of death.
E P M Verlander
4
Tea in the Bothy Garden – Sunday 20th July
1st North Cray Guides - Switzerland 2015
The Guides would like to thank everyone who supported them
at the Tea in the Bothy Garden event in July. It was very well
attended with many different types of cake available and
many stalls, including the home made fudge and the
personalised pencil cases. It raised over £500 towards the
girls fundraising.
The next event is a Race night which is being held at the
Scout and Guide hall in Eden Road, Joydens Wood. Please
see flyer for details. Your support would be most welcomed
5
ALL SAINTS CHURCHWARDENS NEWSLETTER
Remembrance Sunday, on 9th November, is the day
we traditionally put aside to remember all those who
have given their lives for the peace and freedom we
enjoy today and the nation pauses to reflect on the
sacrifices made by our brave Service men and
women. On that day, after our 9.30am service, we will
file from the Church to the War Memorial on Rectory
Lane to commemorate Remembrance Sunday, and
all it stands for. The Police will close Rectory Lane to traffic during our
Act of Remembrance. Everyone is welcome to this event. Our thanks
go to Ray Gull who organises our Remembrance Sunday
commemoration each year, and to the Metropolitan Police for their
support and understanding.
Thank you all for your generous Harvest gifts, which were warmly
welcomed at the Bexley Foodbank in Sidcup. Each year we donate
our Harvest gifts to the food bank, and we also donate throughout the
whole year. There is a black plastic bin in the Lady Chapel and you
can put your donations in it on a regular basis, but do make sure that
your donations have a long shelf life. The Sidcup Foodbank has a
constant demand for food and household items, and we are pleased
to support their work.
This is Ann’s last month at All Saints and we are all going to miss her
immensely. Her final service is at 9.30am on 30th November, here at
All Saints. It would be lovely if the Church was full to say a final
farewell and to wish Ann well for the future. With regard to the future
we are still unclear what it holds for us. One thing we do know is that
All Saints has an excellent future. Ann has put in place cover for our
services until the end of February, by which time the way forward will
have been determined. Over the next few weeks we will be having
several baptisms, as people realise that Ann is retiring and they want
her to baptise their children.
On 4th October we had a visit from Bexley Archaeological Group’s
junior section. They are always welcome, and they had a great time
6
identifying items of archaeological interest in and around the Church.
The young people had an excellent feel for the history of our lovely
Church.
Well that’s about it for this month, folks.
God bless
Ted & Sally
SEPTEMBER QUIZ NIGHT
On September 13th we hosted another quiz night which although not
quite as well supported as our previous one was very much enjoyed
by all who were there. Our thanks must go out to our Question master
Burt for all his hard work and also to Mike for allowing us to use the
Bexley and Sidcup Conservative Club.
We had a table quiz which consisted of cryptic clues for the names of
towns in the UK. This caused great hilarity - whoever has thought of
Blackpool as dirty water !
We managed to raise £160.00 for our church funds. Thank you for
supporting this event.
FUND RAISING IN NOVEMBER
There is lots of fund raising happening in November. Plans are well in
hand for the Elvis night and I have already sold 100 tickets which is
incredible. If you want to come please get your tickets as soon as
possible. This really is a major fund raising event and should be a
really great night out.
We are also selling tickets for the Christmas Tombola - £2.50 a ticket.
Every ticket wins a Christmas themed prize. All prizes can be
collected from the Bothy on November 29th which will be open from
11.00am to 3pm. Coffee and mince pies and homemade soup will be
available for people to enjoy.
Sally
7
All Saints Church in the Past
1500-1675 (Part 3)
Like many other Churches, All Saints had the tradition that
Cromwellian soldiers stabled their horses in the Church. It is doubtful
if this is true, but the Church was badly damaged in the early years of
the Commonwealth. It is known that the outer West door and the
armorial stained glass windows depicting the arms of the Abel and
Warner families were badly damaged or destroyed and that the inner
door case along with the fabric and fittings of the nave and chancel
were also damaged.. Sadly, also the De Vaughan altar tomb was so
badly vandalised that all that now remains is the base and the top with
the defaced effigies of Sir Simon and his wife. A period of neglect
followed and it is recorded that concern was expressed as to the
ravages to the Church caused by the weather being let in due to the
damaged roof and the missing windows and doors.
In 1650 a government enquiry established that the benefices of Foots
Cray parish had been granted to a Master May (or Wray?) who was
acting as preacher and that he had the use of the Rectory House and
seven acres of land.
By 1656 it seems that some efforts were made to repair the damage
caused by the early excesses of the civil war. The West inner door
was repaired and a new outer door fitted. A further sign of a return to
normality was the interesting iron stone grave slab (of the type
normally only found in the Wealden iron working areas) being erected
in the graveyard to commemorate Martin Manning and his wife,
Barbara.
With the restoration of Charles II to the throne in 1660 the
dispossessed Rector, John Rowland, returned from exile in Holland to
reclaim his church and the Parish records started to be kept again.
However the Walsingham family were considered by the
Parliamentarians to be Royalist by association, and they had to keep
a low profile during the Commonwealth, spending much of this period
8
on the Continent. Upon their return they soon re-established
themselves as one of the leading local families. The local people were
unaware that nothing would ever be the same again due to the Civil
War – they viewed the restoration as a return to the “Good Old Days”,
and that this return to what they considered normality was welcomed
by the local parishioners cannot be doubted, for in 1662 they raised
the sum of £12, which would have been a considerable sum of money
in those days, for repairs to the Church windows and books.
The repairs to the Church continued, and it is recorded that in 1666
the nave was extended and repaired, (although there is no visible
evidence for the enlargement of the nave during this period) and the
arch into the north chapel blocked up. It is more probable that during
the repairs the nave was internally remodelled to enlarge the available
space for the congregation’s use. At the same time the space under
the arch supporting the North wall of the chapel was cleared and
extended outside the Church to create a niche to accommodate the
remains of the vandalised De Vaughan altar tomb. In the same year it
is recorded in the Church register, that on 26th August Cornelious
Vanderlain of the Hague was buried in the North chapel. Alongside
this entry written in a different hand it states: “Buried in the chantey
belonging to the Walsingham family”. It is also recorded that on 1st
June 1673 Osmond Walsingham was “buried in the chapel belonging
to his house”. (The North chapel). It has been suggested that Pike
Place had its own family chapel, though this is highly unlikely. Further
repairs were made to the Church in 1670, when the Churchwardens,
Nicholas Manning and Stephen Firth authorised £12-5s-4d for works
in the chancel and north wall to be undertaken. This work included the
enlargement of the windows in the chancel and rood loft stair well,
also the adding of light buttresses to the eastern chancel wall in an
attempt to alleviate the problems caused by the weight of the roof.
Ted Rowlands
With acknowledgement
www.bag.org.uk
to
Bexley
9
Archaeological
Group.
Book Mark
The Wilderness Within - meditation and modern life
By Nicholas Buxton, Canterbury Press, £12.99
The Wilderness Within offers an original approach to the what, the why,
and the how of practising meditation today. Meditation is not a form of
'spiritual technology' to help us achieve our personal goals, but simply
sitting quietly before God. It is not a means to an end, but an end in itself.
Though it can be learnt in a few minutes, it is likely to take more than a
lifetime to master. Drawing extensively on the teachings of Jesus and
other biblical narratives, The Wilderness Within takes a deeper look at
what meditation really is and what it actually involves. It emphasises the
need to create a positive and balanced spiritual discipline in our lives.
Ultimately, it is about becoming more fully who and what we really are.
Christians in the Firing Line
By Dr Richard Scott, Wilberforce Publications, £5.90
What do a doctor, an electrician, a beautician, a magistrate, a nurse and
a counsellor have in common?
These are just some of many
professional people who have encountered serious problems at work
because of their Christian faith. Some have even lost their jobs.
Marginalisation of Christians in Europe is becoming more common. This
book tells the stories of 13 people who have been warned, blacklisted,
suspended or dismissed for refusing to compromise their biblical
principles in the face of the new ‘god’ of political correctness and
secularism.
Hear My Cry
Various Contributors; Bible Society, £3.99
Here is an excellent stocking filler to mark the Centenary of the start of
WW1. Hear My Cry is a beautifully illustrated collection of over 40 Psalms
interspersed with poetry, personal stories from the war, archive photos
and pictures, prayers and hymns. The majority of the personal stories
are drawn from original research among families whose ancestors fought
or died in the War. Many of the soldiers' Bibles have survived, some with
dramatic evidence of the part they played. Sister Wendy Beckett provides
a commentary on paintings by Pieter Bruegel and John Nash, and the
moving words of poets such as Wilfred Owen, Eleanor Farjeon and
Siegfried Sassoon are represented alongside other voices from the war
years. Hear My Cry also features a Foreword written by General the Lord
Dannatt, Chief of the General Staff 2006-2009.
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Electrical Testing Installation & Repairs
General Electrics
Lighting
Security
Re- Wires
Fault Finding
Garden Electrics
Security Alarms and Cameras
Fuse Boards
Telephone Points
Plumbing and Gas
Maintenance and Repairs
Domestic & Commercial
11
News and Issues
Poverty cannot be tackled without fighting climate change: new
report
As world leaders recently met in New York at a summit convened by
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to discuss the global fight against
climate change, a new report highlighted the crucial role a new set of
Sustainable Development Goals must play in meeting the challenge.
It says the goals, to be agreed next year, offer a vital opportunity for
the international community to tackle the way that climate change is
driving people into poverty.
Written by CAFOD, CARE International, Christian Aid, Greenpeace,
Practical Action and WWF-UK, it says it is now clear that without
action to tackle climate change, efforts to eradicate poverty will be
severely compromised.
The report, The Right Climate for Development: why the SDGs must
act on climate change, says rising sea levels and the increasing
frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as typhoons
and floods – all the result of global warming – are claiming lives,
damaging and destroying homes and infrastructure, reducing crop
yields, and ruining employment prospects.
These impacts will only increase, it warns, if action is not taken to cut
carbon emissions and support is not given to the most vulnerable
countries to adapt to the changes that they are already experiencing.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the expected
successors to the Millennium Development Goals which expire at the
end of 2015, must therefore include a stand-alone goal on tackling
climate change
New lead bishop for cathedrals and church buildings
The Bishop of Worcester, the Rt Revd Dr John Inge, has accepted the
invitation of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to succeed the
Bishop of London as the Church of England’s lead bishop for
cathedrals and church buildings with immediate effect.
Bishop John will become the lead bishop for cathedrals and church
buildings. He will support the Cathedrals and Church Buildings
12
Division, ChurchCare, and all who help to maintain the Church of
England’s 16,000 parish churches and 42 cathedrals.
Bishop John said: “Our Cathedrals are breath-taking spaces of awe
and wonder with a rich history offering beautiful and vibrant worship.
Together with the parish churches of our land they are an unparalleled
treasure. They provide space for people to meet, reflect, pray and
engage with the heritage of our nation – as well as serve their
communities in all sorts of ways.”
Listening is crucial first step to tackling poverty, shows new
national pioneering project
Networks of relationships with family, friends and others in the
community are vitally important to people struggling to make ends
meet, a pioneering church project in Birmingham supported by Church
Urban Fund, the Church of England’s poverty charity, has found.
The process was carried out using the Listen Up! Project designed by
Sheffield Diocese and Church Action on Poverty. The project helps
church groups to hold in-depth conversations with people in their
community aimed at understanding their livelihoods and the way they
use the resources at their disposal to sustain a living. The programme
aims to have a transformative effect both on people living in poverty
and on church congregations by forging new relationships. Details at:
www.church-poverty.org.uk
13
Canon David Winter ponders the history of a famous locomotive…has
anyone in your church have memories of it? Would they like to share
them with your readers?
THE FLYING SCOTSMAN
Eighty years ago this month, on 30th November 1934, to be precise, a
scheduled express train, pulled by a locomotive called the ‘Flying
Scotsman’, broke a notable rail-speed record. On its journey
northwards from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh Waverley it
touched 100 miles per hour. I was a bit too young to see that journey,
but a few years later, perched after school on a wooden fence just
north of Wood Green station, I would often watch spellbound with my
friends as the same train sped past, a mere matter of yards away from
us, belching steam and deafening us with the roar of its wheels and
engine. Sometimes the driver or the fireman would wave to us, but the
privileged ones in the dining car, already addressing their late cooked
breakfast, were oblivious of our envy. It was a highlight of our
Saturdays and an unforgettable memory.
To us boys, it was all about noise and power and speed, a magnificent
piece of engineering but above all something that had never been
done before. These new streamlined locomotives were built for speed,
and speed was what they offered. A century earlier people wondered
whether it was truly safe to carry passengers in the first steam trains
at 60mph. Could the human frame survive at such speeds? It could,
though a few who were not seated safely did blow off the uncovered
carriages in the slipstream! Now we could see that 100mph was
perfectly possible on land (it had already been done in the air) - and
who could imagine what speeds human beings might be able to travel
at in the future? The great race for speed, to knock minutes or hours
off journey times, had begun
It has, of course, gone on. We can now travel vast distances by air,
getting from London to New York in not much longer than the ‘Flying
Scotsman’ took to get to Edinburgh. We move heaven and earth to
save five minutes (and often pay a small fortune for it, as well) and
then wonder what to do with the time we’ve ‘saved’. Since those
exciting days back in the thirties, I wonder what our obsession with
14
speed has truly added to the sum total of human happiness? Yet I
have to admit that there was something special about that great
clanging monster, just as there was about the elegant sight of
Concorde on its supersonic way across the Atlantic - and I must also
admit I would never choose a slower train for a journey.
I suppose it’s not so much ‘saving time’ that matters, as what we do
with it when we’ve saved it. Now there’s a thought for the 80th
anniversary of a land-speed record!
Rachael Farmer
Mobile Hairdresser
Shampoo and Set, Blow Dry, Cuts,
Colours, Foils and Perms
Tele: 020 8303 1395; Mobile: 07961069743
David Hemsley
Building Service and Property Maintenance
Internal & External Painting & Decorating
Fencing • Block Paving • Crazy Paving • Decking
Walls • Paths • Patios • Drainage
Qualified Plastering Service Available
Free Estimates
Insurance Work Undertaken
24 Hour Call Out Service
Tel: 020 8303 9459
Mobile: 07710 431 956
15
DATES AND
NOTICES
2014
Saturday, 8th November - 7pm - Scout and Guide Hall
A Night at the Races (see p.23 for details)
Thursday, 13th November - 2pm - The Bothy
Fun & Fellowship
Saturday, 15th November - 7.30pm - Foots Cray Social Club
Elvis Night
Sunday, 14th December - 10.30am - St James, North Cray
Grand Christmas Draw
16
ALL SAINTS
SUNDAY SCHOOL
SUNDAY SCHOOL IS HELD
HELD
EVERY SUNDAY DURING
TERMTERM-TIME
EXCEPT THE FIRST SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH
AT 9.30AM
ALL SAINTS CHURCH
EVERYONE AGE 22-9
ARE
WELCOME
CONTACT SARAH PALLETT
ON 01322 555765
FOR MORE DETAILS
DOORS AND DESIGNS
By Specialist Glass Co
INTERNAL – EXTERNAL
UPVC COMPOSITE – OAK – HARDWOOD – PINE
STAINED GLASS – BEVELS – SANDBLAST
General glazing and repairs
Call for a free quote
Tel; 0208 309 5678
Email; info@specialistglassco.co.uk
HOLLYTREE PHARMACY
OPEN 9.00am - 7.30pm
MONDAY - SATURDAY
Free Prescription Collection & Delivery Service
COMPREHENSIVE RANGE OF PHARMACEUTICAL SERVICES INCLUDING:*Domiciliary Oxygen Service* Pregnancy Testing* Surgical Supplies-Colostomy,
Urostomy, etc.* Appliances etc for the Elderly and Disabled*
Ask an Expert - Ask your Pharmacist for Advice
AZIM ADATIA BSc (HONS) MRPHARMS
Telephone: 020 8300 6857
2 Hollytree Parade, Sidcup Hill, Foots Cray
17
DIARY FOR NOVEMBER
2nd November
All Saints Sunday – All Saints
4th Sunday before Advent – St James
9.30am All Age Worship
11.15am Parish Eucharist
Thur 6th
All Saints
St James
10.00am Holy Communion
7.30pm Churchwardens’ Meeting
8.15pm United Benefice Council
9th November
All Saints
The Rectory
The Rectory
Remembrance Sunday
9.30am Parish Eucharist
10.00am All Age Worship
Both services will include an Act of Remembrance at 11.00am.
Please note earlier start time for the service at St James
Thur 13th 10.00am Holy Communion
2.00pm Fun & Fellowship
Sat 15th
7.30pm Elvis Tribute Night
16th November
All Saints
St James
St James
The Bothy
Foots Cray Social Club
2nd Sunday before Advent
9.30am Parish Eucharist with Baptism
11.15am Parish Eucharist with Baptism
All Saints
St James
Tues 18th
8.00pm All Saints PCC meeting
The Bothy
th
8.00pm St James PCC meeting
The Bothy
Wed 19
th
Thur 20
10.00am Holy Communion
23rd November
Christ the King
9.30am Parish Eucharist
11.15am Parish Eucharist
Thur 27th 10.00am Holy Communion
Sat 29th 11am- 3pm Christmas tombola prizes to be collected
30th November
9.30am
All Saints
All Saints
St James
St James
The Bothy
1st Sunday of Advent
Joint Benefice Eucharist
18
All Saints
EARLY DECEMBER
Thur 4th
10.00am
Holy Communion
All Saints
Please note that during the interregnum, and until further notice, there will be
only one midweek service of Holy Communion each month: at All Saints on
the 1st Thursday of each month, except on 1st January.
On the third Thursday of each month, there will be a service of Morning Prayer
at St James at 10.00am
7th December
Thur 11th
Second Sunday of Advent
9.30am
11.15am
3pm-6pm
2.00pm
14th December
9.30am
10.30am
Toy and Christingle Service
Parish Eucharist
Afternoon Tea and Carolaire
Fun & Fellowship
All Saints
St James
The Bothy
The Bothy
Third Sunday of Advent
Parish Eucharist
Toy & Christingle Service
All Saints
St James
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19
The Way I See it
By Canon David Winter
How do we ‘Remember’ what we’ve never known?
This has been a year of ‘remembering’. Up and down the land, local
events and national commemorations have reminded us again and
again of the Great War which cast such a dark shadow over Europe a
hundred years ago - a shadow which spawned a second and equally
destructive conflict barely twenty years later.
The problem with remembering is that in the end we can’t. What I
mean is, we can’t remember what we’ve never experienced, whether
that’s a song, a person or a place. Nor can we, in a literal sense,
‘remember’ events which happened before we were born. And that, in
a nutshell, is the problem of having a Remembrance Sunday (as we
do this and every year) or being urged to ‘remember’ those who died
on the battlefield of Flanders and the Somme a century ago. I can,
personally, remember my father, who was there, but I can’t possibly
remember what he went through fourteen years before I was born.
Yet oddly enough every Sunday millions of people all over the world
go to church specifically to ‘remember’ an event that took place not a
hundred but nearly two thousand years ago, the death of Jesus Christ
on the cross. ‘Do this’, he had said, ‘in remembrance of me’. And in
his memory bread is broken and wine shared, exactly as he
commanded, in order to evoke and represent the profound
significance of what he did. We ‘remember’ not because we were
there and saw if happen, but because (like the dark shadow of war)
the event itself still matters, still changes things, still touches our lives.
That kind of ‘remembering’ demands a response. We should not
simply remember the horrors of two world wars as phenomena of the
past, but as challenges to us to change the future. To remember and
do nothing is not really to remember at all. True remembering
changes us, and in changing us it may, please God, eventually
change the world.
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THE BOTHY
Are you looking for a small hall for a function?
The Bothy (in St James Church Grounds) has all the facilities
you need and can seat 35 people.
If you need further information please contact
Jackie Pentland on 020 8300 4820.
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23
NOVEMBER CROSSWORD PUZZLE
Across
1 and 20 Down ‘Lord of all — , Lord of all — , whose trust, ever
child-like, no cares could destroy’ (11,3)
9 Moses’ question to a fighting Hebrew labourer: ‘Why are you —
your fellow Hebrew?’ (Exodus 2:13) (7)
10 Acclaimed cellist who contracted multiple sclerosis at the height of
her fame, Jacqueline — (2,3)
11 ‘At even — the sun was set, the sick, O Lord, around thee lay’ (3)
13 A descendant of Gad (Numbers 26:16) (4)
16 ‘Do not leave Jerusalem, but — for the gift my Father promised’
(Acts 1:4) (4)
17 Clambers (Jeremiah 48:44) (6)
18 Peter’s response to questioning by the Sanhedrin: ‘We must —
God rather than men!’ (Acts 5:29) (4)
20 Christian paraplegic author, artist and campaigner, — Eareckson
Tada (4)
21 Bird partial to the nests of other birds (6)
22 ‘Such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and
sat — — ’ (Matthew 13:2) (2,2)
23 Infectious tropical disease (4)
25 Tree (3)
28 ‘No fear of me should — you, nor should my hand be heavy upon
you’ (Job 33:7) (5)
29 For example, to Titus, Timothy or Philemon (7)
30 Week beginning with Pentecost Sunday, according to the
Church’s calendar (11)
Down
2 ‘O Jerusalem… how — I have longed to gather your children
together’ (Matthew 23:37) (5)
3 Way out (4)
4 Exhort (Romans 12:1) (4)
5 Done (anag.) (4)
24
6 Highest of the four voice-parts in a choir (7)
7 Concerning the study of God (11)
8 Uniquely, it has Abbey, Cathedral and Chapel (11)
12 Admonish (Matthew 16:22) (6)
14 Frozen (3)
15 Established form of religious ceremony (6)
19 Inscription often found on gravestones (7)
20 See 1 Across
24 Behaved (Joshua 7:1) (5)
25 Time (anag.) (4)
26 Lists choice of meals (4)
27 ‘For the wages of sin is death, but the — of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Romans 6:23) (4)
(Solutions on page 32)
25
ST JAMES THE LEAST OF ALL
On why the C of E should never combine parishes
The Rectory
St. James the Least
My dear Nephew Darren
I suppose it had to come, but combining parishes is now firmly on the
agenda for our villages. I had always wondered what the first Earl of
Stowe was trying to prove, building a church here in 1347 to
accommodate 800 people when the total population has never
exceeded 250. In the short term – which in this village is measured in
centuries - it seems to have been to house the tombs of his 13
successors. I now realise it was to make uniting with adjoining
parishes in the twenty-first century more difficult. Clearly the first Earl
had formidable foresight. None of our neighbouring churches seem
too keen to share their reserves to help maintain our cathedral-sized
building.
The threat of the closure of St. Herve the Bard has, inevitably, caused
outrage – not so much from its regular congregation of three, but from
all those in the village who would never think of attending. People do
so like to have a church not to go to.
St. Bregowine, built by a wealthy parishioner in the 19th century
because she did not like the high church practices of the parish
church of St. Iwig, is refusing to re-unite, even though the two
churches stand only 100 yards apart, in a village with a diameter of
300 yards. If only they could get over the trauma of seeing the
incumbent putting water in the wine on Easter Day in 1894. Although it
must be conceded that the Bregowinians were equally affronted that
when the daughter church opened in 1895, they found that the Iwigers
had provided no brass troughs at the end of the pews for umbrellas.
That they have subsequently refused to install them has only
compounded the offence.
Meanwhile St. Plegmund is in discussions with the Church of South
India as a way of avoiding uniting with anyone. Should it happen, I will
26
be interested to see what travelling expenses the new incumbent
claims. It will be difficult to tell when the present incumbent resigns, as
he has not been seen at a clerical meeting for the last 30 years. Some
of my colleagues suspect he is mythical, that a bloodless coup took
place in the 1980s and that the church is now entirely run by the
Mother’s Union.
The church of St. Maximus of Constantinople in our nearest town has
rather grandly offered to take all of our churches under its wing, but as
a parishioner has pointed out: how could we possibly consider joining
with a parish that fought on the other side at the Battle of Bosworth.
In the meantime, we will serenely carry on, as we seem to have done
for the past six centuries; parish mergers and reductions in numbers
of clergy seem to be of less interest than debating the suggestion that
we change the brand of coffee served after Services.
Your loving uncle,
Eustace
27
The Rev Michael Burgess is surveying works of sacred art that can be
found in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The image can be seen by
googling the title of the painting and the artist
GOD IN THE ARTS
‘He gave us eyes to see them’: The Ten Weepers
When Isabella of Bourbon, the wife of Charles, Duke of Burgundy,
died in 1465, she was laid to rest in St Michael’s Abbey, Antwerp, in
an imposing tomb surrounded originally by 24 bronze figures. They
were lost in the iconoclasm of the 16th century, and then ten of them
reappeared in Amsterdam in 1691. Today they are in the
Rijksmuseum: attributed to Renier van Thienen in 1476, they are
known as the Ten Weepers. They are arrayed in different costumes of
the Burgundian court, but the death of a loved one has united them
into a group of mourners who represent the sorrow and sense of loss
of all who are bereaved.
In this month of November we remember the departed at All Souls,
and in this anniversary year of the First World War, we remember
particularly those who gave their lives in that conflict. Many who
enlisted in August 1914 imagined they would be home by Christmas,
and their families were no doubt proud to see them depart for the war
front. But pride turned to sorrow as the conflict went on for four long
years, changing the face of Europe, claiming the lives of over 9 million
combatants, and bringing sadness and loss to families on both sides
of the war.
Memorials in villages and towns mark out these deaths and the impact
they made on their communities. These ten figures gathered around
Isabella’s tomb to weep and mourn stand for those grieving families,
just as they stand for all of us when we are bereaved. Death unites us
because we each have a story to tell of loved ones - parents, partners,
children, friends – taken from us by death.
There is an ancient story of a young woman who gave birth to a baby
boy. The child grew sick and died, and the mother went mad with
sorrow. She went from house to house begging for a medicine that
would bring her dead baby back to life. Eventually someone sent her
to a holy monk nearby. ‘Yes,’ he told the mother. ‘I know of a
medicine. It is the ordinary mustard seed.’ Her heart leapt when she
28
heard of the remedy. But the monk continued, ‘You must get it from a
house where no son or daughter or parent or slave has ever died.’
The mother set out to find such a seed. But wherever she went, she
could find no house free from death. Silently and sadly she went into
the forest and buried her child. When she returned to the monk, he
asked, ‘Have you found the mustard seed?’ The mother replied, ‘No,
master, but I have found the medicine. I have buried my sorrow in the
forest and now I am ready to live in peace.’
Sadness and sorrow are part of the human lot. The Ten Weepers in
the Rijksmuseum tell us that, just as war memorials and family graves
do. The mother in that story felt alone in her sorrow, but as she
travelled from house to house, she drew comfort from the well of
sympathy offered by those who opened their doors to her. For in
death we can lean on each other for support and strength that will
help us to see that death is part of the human pilgrimage. In the
company of ten weepers or a hundred, we can find peace and hope
as we realise the human pilgrimage here reaches out into the arms of
our heavenly Father, whose love and life are eternal.
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29
This poem is based on the story of one soldier, Alexander Rae,
who died near Overloon in Holland on 12th October 1944, at the
age of just twenty.
A Distant Grave
A distant grave, a foreign land
Kept neatly, with respect
Though not at all what he’d have planned
Yet what he did accept.
The Yorkshire lad, from Rotherham
Just twenty short years old
Like thousands of his fellow men
Fought up a beach, named ‘Gold’.
And he survived, though many died
He fought his way through France
And, though quite likely terrified
To Holland he advanced.
Then ‘Market Garden’ – a quaint name
For brutal deeds of war
But none heard those brave troops complain
In darkest forty-four.
And there our soldier met his fate
His life cut short too soon;
A shell fell close, to detonate
At far-off Overloon.
And so he lays, so far from home
So far from kith and kin
But he, with fallen comrades showed
The way to fight and win.
For none of these have died in vain
He and his fellow men;
They died – but we have freedom gained
We must remember them.
By Nigel Beeton
30
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31
17th
Gregory of Tours (539 – 94) - charity and compassion
in dangerous times
Danger of torture, assassination, lootings, floods, famines and
epidemics… life in France in the 6th century was as turbulent and
violent as many of the world’s hot spots are today. In the midst of all
this Gregory was born into a senatorial family who lived in the
Auvergne. He grew up seeing how the Church responded to all this
social chaos at first hand: his family numbered several bishops, as
well as saints (the two are not necessarily the same thing!). In due
course Gregory decided to devote his life also to the Church, and was
ordained deacon in 563 and elected bishop of Tours in 573.
Gregory should be the patron saint of anyone who climbs to a
powerful and privileged position – and then uses it in order to do great
good. As a bishop of Merovingian Gaul he became an expounder and
defender of the Christian faith and of public morality. He practised
charity and compassion on a large scale. He repaired churches,
including the great Tours cathedral, destroyed by fire, and built new
ones. He restored the tombs of martyrs and saints. He visited
monasteries and nunneries, and founded schools.
In addition to all this, Gregory was a prodigious author of books. His
ten volume History of the Franks is his most famous work, but he
wrote on saints as well. He had an advantage on other medieval
historians such as Bede in that he had first-hand experience of the
court-life of his time. Courts were treacherous places, and Gregory
had to deal with four civil rulers of Tours during his 21 years as
bishop. He must have earned their respect: he was sent on
diplomatic missions to other Frankish kings.
Gregory made the most of every opportunity he had to bring Christian
standards of living into those dark days in France. He was greatly
loved, and long remembered.
SOLUTIONS TO CROSSWORD PUZZLE
ACROSS: 1, Hopefulness. 9, Hitting. 10, du Pre. 11, Ere. 13, Ozni.
16. Wait. 17, Climbs. 18, Obey. 20, Joni. 21, Cuckoo. 22, In it. 23,Yaws.
25, Elm. 28, Alarm. 29, Epistle. 30, Whitsuntide.
DOWN: 2, Often. 3, Exit. 4, Urge. 5, Node. 6, Soprano. 7,
Theological. 8, Westminster. 12, Rebuke. 14, Icy. 15, Ritual. 19, Epitaph.
20, Joy. 24, Acted. 25, Emit. 26, Menu. 27, Gift.
32
CROSS PURPOSES
There are many different types of
cross in pictures. Do you know
what these are called?
COVENTRY’S CROSS
1.
The people of Coventry will always
remember the dreadfully long night
of 14th November 1940. It was the
longest air raid of the World War II
and when the light dawned the next
morning, Coventry was in ruins. So
many people were dead, injured or
homeless; there wasn’t a person
who had not suffered during that
night.
The medieval cathedral was a burnt
out shell. Two of the burnt roof
beams were tied together to make
a cross and this makeshift symbol
was set up where the altar had
been. A cross was also made from
the 14th century iron nails that had
held the roof together and this
Cross of Nails still remains today as
a symbol of sympathy, forgiveness
and reconciliation. Copies of the
Cross of Nails have been
presented to countries round the
globe as a reminder that love and
understanding bind us together and
that we need to remember the
horrors
that
happen
when
people
forget that.
33
3.
2.
4.
6.
5.
7.
8.
What’s green and hairy and drinks
from the wrong side of the glass?
A gooseberry with hiccups.
What's the most common owl in this
country?
The Tea Towl (ouch!)
Answers: 1.St Peter’s 2.Celtic 3.Papal
4.St Andrew’s 5.Jerusalem 6.Russian
FROM THE REGISTERS
All Saints
Baptisms
Weddings
27th September
Robert Baines and Jade Michaelides
Renewal of marriage Vows
Funerals
15th October
Samuel James
Interment of ashes
20th September
Martin Morris
St James
Baptisms
21st September
Amy Louise Fawcett
Ella Rose Fawcett
George William Fawcett
Weddings
28th September
Ashley Wilson and Tina Evans
Funerals
7th October
Peggy Cook
Interment of ashes
-
Year’s mind for November 2013
12th
Irene Patricia Bradley
34
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Advertisers and readers should be aware that an advertisement in
this magazine does not imply the Church recommends or endorses
the services being advertised.
ACCESSIBILITY NEEDS
If you are going to attend our church and you have accessibility needs
please let us know and we will be happy to make arrangements for
you. There is level access to both churches and the Bothy and we
have a sound loop system and large print orders of service.
Please feel free to telephone the churchwardens who would be happy
to discuss the matter with you.
All Saints: Ted Rowlands - 020 8289 3853
Sally Schepke - 020 8302 5847
St James: Tina Hewett - 01322 273104
CHOIR
Director of Music: Reg Boulton
Practices Tuesday 7.45pm - 9.15pm
Venue alternates, see magazine
or church door
BELLS
Captain of Bells: Ros Farmer - 01689 857311
Practices Wednesday 8.00pm - 9.30pm
YOUTH AND CHILDREN
The Cross Crew:
Pam Sanders: 020 8304 8339
Sunday School:
Sarah Pallett (All Saints)
Articles for publication to be e-mailed directly to the editor or forwarded to the
Rector. Please submit copy by 2nd Sunday
35 of each month.
36