St. Martin s Monthly

Transcription

1 St. Martin s Monthly June p The growing results of the Vicar s sock from the Junior Church 'Seeds in a sock' project to show how God-given life grows.

2 St Martin s Church, Hale Gardens, Acton W3 9SQ (Registered charity no ) Web: stmartinswestacton@btinternet.com Vicar Associate Vicar The Revd Dr Nicholas Henderson (also Chaplain to Acton Care Centre) The Revd Justin Dodd SS Associate Priest The Revd Bruce Barnett-Cowan Assistant Priest The Revd Canon Dr Alyson Barnett-Cowan Commissioned Lay Minister to the Japanese Anglican Church UK Mrs Yuki Johnson ( ) yukifunakawa@btinternet.com Parishes Secretary (9.30am 1.30pm weekdays) Parishes Office, 25 Birch Grove, W3 9SP (Fax: ) Reader Dr Margaret Jones ( ) Reader Emeritus Mrs Lynne Armstrong ( ) Churchwardens Lisa Ambridge ( ) John Trussler ( ) Director of Music Youth Group Magazine Editor Kenneth Bartram (c/o Parishes Office) Chris Kennedy (c/o Parishes Office) Clive Davis (clive.a.g.davis@btinternet.com) The Vicar is available for consultation and enquiries by appointment. Please ring the Parishes Office. Articles for the next month s magazine should be sent to Clive Davis ( clive.a.g.davis@btinternet.com) They should reach the Editor by 17 th June. The July magazine will be on sale by 30 th June.

3 Widening our horizons I was privileged to spend a few days during early May at our link parish of St Mary s, Arlington, Virginia in the United States. St Mary s is an Episcopal church, which means that it is an Anglican Church in our own tradition and in full communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury which is a definition of what it means to be part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The Rector of St Mary s, Andrew Merrow is an old friend and has visited us on a number of occasions over the years. I stayed with him and his wife Cameron and their three dogs! It is interesting to observe over the years how St Mary s has grown from small beginnings to having what is now a very large congregation. This is good news as some of you may be aware that the American Episcopal Church has had a lot of troubles in recent years as conservative factions have sought to break away and 3

4 found their own congregations. This is a problem that plagued the last Archbishop of Canterbury worldwide and may well trouble his successor too. In the United States churches are much more controlled by their congregations and less so than by the Bishop, there are obvious advantages in this as well as disadvantages. At this point I recall Churchill s famous dictum: "Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." (House of Commons speech November. 11 th 1947). Amusingly and in the same vein after he lost the first post war election and when the news came out, Churchill was taking a bath (was there ever a statesman who spent more time in the bath?) He remarked, "They have a perfect right to kick me out. That is democracy". Subsequently, when he was offered the Order of the Garter, he asked "Why should I accept the Order of the Garter, when the British people have just given me the Order of the Boot?". He did accept by the way. I have digressed at this point to make a point in that we are sometimes introspective to the point of being blinded to the wider world, the skills and examples of other Christians, and the support and encouragement that we can enjoy from links like St Mary s, Arlington, who pray for us every Sunday by the way. I am hoping therefore to renew and refresh the links that we have with St Mary s sometime next year and to create an opportunity for us to take a trip out West. Our many other Anglican links, which have included, Malawi, Brazil and our living link with Japan and the Diocese of Tohoku especially through the Japanese congregation that meets in St Martin s every third Sunday afternoon, have al served us well in this respect. We should cherish them as not only opportunities for fellowship but for widening and deepening our own faith. I have written this on the eve of the Feast of Pentecost (meaning fifty days after Easter) a celebration that takes place this year on Sunday 19 th May. I have suggested that everyone wears something red on the day as not only is it the colour associated with the Holy Spirit but it is a custom that we have inherited from St Mary s, Arlington and the Episcopal Church in the United States. At Pentecost as you can read in the second chapter of the Book of Acts in the New Testament after descending like tongues of flame on the heads of the disciples the Holy Spirit prompted them to rush out into the streets and start preaching the Gospel in a way that everyone regardless of their language could 4

5 understand. That event was the first real widening of horizons for the Church but it wasn t ever intended to be the last one that task remains with us today. Nicholas Vision at St Martin s Are you in the rather exclusive age range at St Martin s? If so do please confess the fact to the Vicar. We re concerned that we are under represented in this age group and would like to have your ideas as to why this might be the case? So 20-40s we re gong to book some tables in the Lanterna Restaurantt in the Uxbridge Road later this summer when you ll be given a meal in exchange for your views and ideas can t say further than that can we?! Nicholas Also don t forget in addition to our existing website: We re experimenting with a new one at: Why not take a look comments would be welcome. 5

6 The Coronation: I was There! It is, as you may have noticed, the sixtieth anniversary of the Queen s coronation this month. If you are under 55 it is probably simply a matter of history. That piece of history, however, will be relived this month in many grainy pictures on our television screens - even, perhaps, some in colour, from the cinema newsreels of the time. For those of us over that age, however, it is probably one of those memories - images, really - that you can never quite forget. In truth, it is part of our history. Millions, like me, sat in a crowded room and gazed at a tiny television screen on which black and white images appeared of the distant scene in and around Westminster Abbey. Up till then, TV had been largely a rich person s toy, but no one was going to miss the event of a lifetime. Aided by the entrepreneurial genius of Radio Rentals and other newly formed competitors, we watched on rented sets, or a neighbour s. Television suddenly became available to almost everybody. Indeed, I can t think of anyone in our very ordinary circle of friends in a London suburb who didn t watch the coronation as it happened. And that made a difference. Previous coronations had been great affairs of State, attended by the nobility, the great and the good, just a few hundred of them. True, the crowds could line the route to and from the abbey and cheer and wave flags, but once the real business began they were definitely outside. But now we were inside: indeed, we had a better view of proceedings than most of those distinguished folk who had got tickets for the abbey. This, like no other, was the People s Coronation, and the young Queen and her fair-haired sailor husband were the People s Monarchy, in a way none of their predecessors could possibly have imagined. When the archbishop placed the crown on her head, we were just feet away (or so it seemed). When he anointed her with oil, we could see it glisten. We could join in the prayers and the hymns, hear the glorious music and fanfares, share with the congregation in the abbey an occasion that was, after all, a vital part of the life of our nation and the Commonwealth. Time and again over those few days we sang Long live our gracious Queen, and she has done it. Long to reign over us, happy and glorious. Exactly. Canon David Winter, former Head of Religious Broadcasting at the BBC 6

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8 A minor courtesy Trevor Huddleston 100 years on When Desmond Tutu - famous South African archbishop and Nobel Peace laureate - was a small boy he was walking along the pavement in Sophiatown with his mother. She took in laundry and was carrying a load of washing. They were approached by a tall white man wearing a black cassock. They prepared to step off the pavement, as they were required to do by the apartheid conventions of the time, to make room for him, but before they could do so he stepped out into the road and doffed his hat to Desmond s mother. The tall white man was Trevor Huddleston, who was born exactly a century ago this month. He was the parish priest of the sprawling African township where the Tutu family lived. Raising one s hat to a passing woman carrying laundry might seem to us today a small courtesy, but for young Desmond it was a life-changing gesture. It told him that for some Christians, at least, race and skin colour were matters of indifference. He sought out Father Huddleston, who helped him with his education. More importantly, Desmond embraced the faith that lay behind that simple courtesy. Trevor Huddleston went on to became a tireless campaigner against apartheid, but also a passionate advocate of the Christian faith. Born in Bedford, with a public school and Oxford background, he happily immersed himself in the life of the people in Sophiatown, where he served for 13 years. The people gave him the nickname Makhalipilo - Dauntless One. His book Naught for your Comfort, published in 1956, became a world-wide call to address the evils of apartheid, and later, as a bishop in England (Stepney) and then of Masasi, he continued to protest that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, black nor white, but all are one in Christ Jesus. He retired as archbishop of the Province of the Indian Ocean in 1983 and died at Mirfield, the home of his Anglican Order, the Community of the Resurrection, in His ashes, however, were buried in Sophiatown, the place most dear to his heart. His simple Prayer for Africa became a world-wide call: God bless Africa; guard her people; guide her leaders. And give her peace. Amen. Canon David Winter, former Head of Religious Broadcasting at the BBC 8

9 St Columba brought us Christianity 1450 years ago This year sees the 1450 th anniversary of the arrival of Columba, and with him, Christianity, to the UK. This month is the anniversary of the death of St Columba, on 9 th June 597, who founded the monastery on Iona. Columba was born in Donegal, Ireland and entered the monastery of St Finnian as a young man, with the name Colum ( the dove ). He spent 15 years preaching and teaching in Ireland and founded a number of monasteries. He was skilled at illuminating Biblical texts and it was alleged that he made a copy of the Psalms from the edition belonging to Finnian. As a result of this dispute, a clan war broke out leading to a battle at Cooldrevne in 561. Consequently Columba was exiled to Scotland, to where he could no longer see his homeland. In 563, aged 42, he travelled to Scotland with 12 monks landing on the Kintyre Peninsula. He was granted land on the island of Iona to establish his monastery, which became the centre of his evangelising mission. The Iona community was characterised by their purity of life, love of God and loyalty to the monastic rules. (Venerable Bede). The monastery on Iona was fairly typical of the time; the monks lived in separate cells and spent time in worship and contemplation. They produced copies of the Gospels and worked on the land to support themselves and in providing hospitality to visitors. However, they also went out from Iona and evangelised much of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Columba s model for reaching people has a lot to say to us today. In contrast to our one-to-one evangelism, he used a team approach to reach people in a settlement. He would establish a community by inviting seekers to join, or by bringing them into a community of faith. Within this fellowship, those seeking faith could engage in conversation, ministry, prayer, and worship. In time, they would be invited to commit their lives to Christ. This approach is similar to courses like Alpha or Christianity Explored, which have proved very effective today. When Columba died in 597 AD at 76 he left behind a flourishing network of monasteries, giving Iona a central place in the Celtic Church, which continues today. 9

10 Be a bright flame before me, O God, a guiding star above me. Be a smooth path below me, a kindly shepherd behind me today, tonight, and for ever. Alone with none but you, my God I journey on my way; what need I fear when you are near, O Lord of night and day? More secure am I within your hand than if a multitude did round me stand. Amen. (St Columba). A pregnant woman was in a car accident and fell into a deep coma. Asleep for nearly six months, she woke up and saw that she was no longer pregnant. Frantically, she asked the doctor about her baby and was told: "Madam, you had twins! A boy and a girl. They are fine. Your brother, the new curate, even came in and baptised them." The woman thought to herself, "Oh no, not my brother, he's hopeless!" Expecting the worst, she asked the doctor, "What's the girl's name?" "Denise," said the doctor. The new mother thought, "Wow, that's not a bad name! I guess I was wrong about my brother." Then she asked the doctor, "What's the boy's name?" The doctor replied, "Denephew. 10

11 St Alban Britain s first Christian martyr Alban was the very first Christian martyr in Britain. His martyrdom took place in the amphitheatre outside the Roman city of Verulamium, which is now St Albans, in Hertfordshire. The church historian Bede, writing six hundred years after Alban s death, records that Alban was a Roman citizen who gave shelter to a priest who was being hunted by the Romans. During the priest s stay in his home, Alban was converted to the Christian faith. When the soldiers eventually tracked the priest down, they found Alban dressed in the priest s clothes, while their real prey escaped. Alban was arrested and condemned to death. He was taken into the amphitheatre, which still stands in the fields below St Alban s Abbey, to be put to death and buried nearby, on a site where a shrine was later erected. In the early fifth century two Continental bishops, Germanus of Auxerre and Lupus of Troyes recorded that in the year 429 they visited the shrine of Alban at Verulamium. Below is a photo of the Joint choirs festal Evensong for Pentecost at St Martin's Church, Sunday 19th May. 11

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13 Church Rotas... Coffee Rota June 2 nd Sara Miller & Pete Miller 9 th Emma Jones & Kim Shillinglaw 16 th Paul & Faith Debois 23 rd Sally Panayiotou & Gill Hull Flower Rota Until June 5 th Jill Hull June 7 th 19 th Jackie Nicholls June 21 st July 3 rd Lisa Ambridge Church Bookstall Have you looked at the books on the Church Bookstall recently? Talk to Gill Hull and see what books are available. Harvest Supper & Barn Dance (a joint event with CARA) Friday 4 th October, 8pm 11pm in St Martin's Church Hall, Hale Gardens, W3 9SQ Music by Scrape the Barrel Tickets and prices coming soon 13

14 Memorial Book The photograph shows the Book of Remembrance in its new location. You will find it positioned near the Holy Spirit Chapel where the old piano was situated. Norman William Roads We have recently received a donation from the family of Norman William Roads. He had been a choir boy, a server, a scout and cubmaster, and was also confirmed and married at St Martin s. Norman died last year, aged 74 years. 14

15 Some facts and figures about the Parish. You may or may not know that the Diocese absolutely loves data about its Parishes. Here is some of the latest data they have issued. The data was correct as at March The data was compiled by the Diocese from the National Census Here is a very brief outline of the information issued. There were 3,930 adults living in the parish and 1,038 children (under 18s). Of that about 7% were aged between (lower than Diocesan average); around 24% were aged and around 40% were aged (higher than Diocesan average). 51% (2,515) of parish are Christian, 17% (869) are "other religions" and 32 (1,584) refused to state their religion. Of the other religions (869 adults), around 10% are Muslim - much lower than the Diocesan average; about 3% are Buddhist (higher than Diocesan average); about 2% are Hindu (lower than Diocesan average). A smaller number were Sikh and Jewish. 2,168 (44%) said they were British; 2,800 (56%) said they were non- British. Of the 2,800 non British, 7% are western Europeans (higher than Diocesan average), around 7% are Polish (very much higher than Diocesan average), 5% are Japanese, about 5% are Indian. Of those in Parish that were not born in UK - 10% arrived in ; and 5% arrived in Those living in the Parish - 3,249 said their main language was English. Of those whose language is not English (1,553 adults): around 400 are Polish, around 260 were Asian. 64% of the Parish were in employment in March 2011, 12% were retired, 10% were students, 7% classed themselves as being at home, 4% were unemployed. Of those employed, around 14% are professional, around 11% worked in wholesale & retail, around 11% worked in Information and communications, around 9% worked in education, 8% worked in health. Statistically, 44% of the parish are defined as not deprived, 34% as low deprivation, 17% medium deprivation and 5% as high deprivation. Around 46% of the parish were single, 40% were married, about 7% were divorced. In March 2011, there were around 90 adults who were lone parent households with children. Of those around 45% were female (employed) and 45% were female (unemployed). 15

16 News from All Saints Congratulations to Jill Scott, churchwarden at All Saints who has been recommended by a Bishops' Advisory Panel (BAP) in order that she may proceed towards training for the Diaconate.... The Bishop of Willesden christened baby Gabriel on Saturday 27th April at All Saints Church. Here he is with his proud parents Justin and Jill. 16

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18 Thank you very much for giving the opportunity to give words to congregation when you had APCM. Some of them gave me warm greetings after the meeting. Some news/ information Sent to Let Us Walk Together Project run by NSKK after we managed to sell more than 600 tea towels and have collected some donation. Bishop Kato is a committee member of this project and sent appreciation to us. As you know the main purpose of the tea towel project was to spread awareness and prayer for victims. I will visit Tohoku (Fukushima, Sendai and etc. ) between May. Finished patchwork which will be delivered to St Paul Kindergarten, Koriyama, Fukushima see the photo. ( We always pray for you in Japanese) Some of our members attended the Memorial Service for 11th Mar 2011 at St. John's Blackheath. Mrs M Hall organized this service, kindly sold some tea towels. A half of collection during the service was given to NSKK. Bishop Michael preached. Photo: Virgin Atlantic Airway Japan hu/archives/1846 Now Mrs Hall and I are hoping that we can have the Memorial Service 2014 at Southwark Cathedral We may invite someone from NSKK s project to share stories with people here. i.e. visiting different churches (mainly those churches have supported selling tea towels Bromley, Bexleyheath and St. Martin) I am very delighted to hear Sam and Mikako s daughters will be baptized in August. It is really nice to see St. Martin s church has support these children too. I will attend the service. Many thanks for your support. from Yuki 18

19 We are very pleased to announce we have raised a total of for the Let Us Walk Together Project run by NSKK (Anglican Churchh in Japan) by selling 643 tea towels and receiving generous donations. Please keep praying for all victims of the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake. 19 Yuki Johnson Japanese Anglican Church (UK)

20 The Parish of St Martin Hale Gardens, Acton W3 9SQ (Registered charity no ) Usual Sunday Services 8am: Holy Communion 10am: Parish Communion 6.30pm: Evensong Our Sunday School meets in the Church Hall at 10am except when there is a Family Service. A non-eucharistic Family Service is held on most first Sundays of the month. Japanese Anglican Church UK meets every third Sunday of the month: (except July, August and December) 3pm Bible Study and Evening Worship in Japanese Every Tuesday: 8am Holy Communion Every Wednesday: 11.30am Coffee Club at 25 Birch Grove, W3. Youth Groups (run jointly with All Saints) Growing Saints School years 3-5 (aged 8-10) meets on Wednesday evenings, 6.30pm 7.45pm. Becoming Saints School years 6-8 (aged 11-13) meets on Wednesday evenings, 7.45pm 9pm. The Saints (aged 14 and over) meets on Thursday evenings, 6pm 7.30pm. each in All Saints Church Hall, Elm Grove Road, W5.