Category: Vicar’s Blog
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Summer into Autumn
Summer has passed and we are now moving into Autumn. The tradition of celebrating Harvest Festival in churches as we know it today began in 1843, when the Reverend Robert Hawker invited parishioners to a special thanksgiving service for the harvest at his church at Morwenstow in Cornwall. Victorian hymns such as “We plough the…
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One Year On
I have been Vicar of St Mary’s for one year. In many ways it is such a short period of time and yet at the same time it seems like I have been here forever. We celebrated (or commiserated) in the Church Hall with a 3 course meal kindly cooked by Chef Tom Reid and his able Sous Chef, Lizzy Wilkinson.…
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Reflection on the recent events in Manchester
No-one could have failed to see the media coverage showing the events in Manchester last week when one person decided to take his own life along with the lives of many others by becoming a suicide bomber all in the name of his faith. We live in a multi-cultural and multi-faith world and our local…
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Vicar’s Report
This is my first ever Vicar’s report so here goes. I have now been at St Mary’s for 8 months and the very first thing I would like to do us to pay tribute to all those who shouldered the burden and workload during the Interregnum. The Wardens, Pastoral Minister and PCC should be congratulated…
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The Easter Story
Everywhere I look there are signs of spring emerging from the ground. The daffodils and snowdrops are lovely in the graveyard. The sun has appeared on a couple of days and it has even been warm (or warmer!). Now not to get too carried away, we are still in the midst of lent, a more…
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Light Through the Darkness
As we approach Easter, Christians, are preparing to make a journey to Jerusalem with Jesus. This period of time is called Lent. It is a time we’ll hear hard truths about the nature of faith commitment and self-sacrifice and sometimes we find this too much to bear. But God wants us to persist, hang in…