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Some of you will remember the "Pass it on" envelopes which
the church sent out a few years ago. Since that time there has been
a change in many things - not least in the residents of the village,
but also in the way we spend our Sundays. I hope therefore you will
understand the reasons why, during the month of May, similar envelopes
and questions asking for your response will be delivered to you under
the title "Helping Hands".
What I wrote before is still true -
"For well over 1000 years one tree has seen the village move
and the church grow - has seen young feet, old feet, dancing and weary
feet, sorrowful and joyful feet make their way to the special place
which is truly at the heart of village life in Helmdon.
It is the spot which has marked for hundreds of years the rites of
passage of the people of Helmdon - the births, marriages and deaths,
the joys and sorrows of the generations. It is a place which belongs
to us all, and the church that stands there now belongs to every one
of us. A place of community, a place of welcome, a source of inspiration,
a place of worship, a witness to a living faith in God."
But for all this history, we are nevertheless in a period of great
change and the church is not immune to it. We have seen the kitchen
and toilet built into the church, some pews have been removed and
others made movable so that we can accommodate a greater variety of
groups and services, recently of course the Baptist Chapel has been
closed.
I am not for a moment imagining that the whole village is in some
way responsible for the running of the church, but I do believe that
by being part of the village community, by "buying into it"
if you have recently moved here or by staying here if you have been
here a long time, you are demonstrating your belief in what the village
has to offer - school, community, pub - yes and the church.
There are many ways in which "many hands can make light work"
and which can enhance the life of the whole village. I would urge
you to consider carefully the envelope when it comes and see whether
there is anything that you can do that hopefully will be a joy and
not simply another task to be "done".
John Roberts - Rector
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Mothers' Union - Astwell Group
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| Thursday 25th March |
Lady Day Service at Chipping Warden. 11am Eucharist;
then Soup Lunch and Quiet Afternoon led by Rev. Tim Oakley (Rural
Dean).
Come and support Bee as she will be appointed Deanery Leader
at this service. |
| Wednesday 28th April |
Speaker Judith Perkins on "The Family"
St Mary Magdalene Church at 8pm |
| Thursday 13th May |
10.00 - 3.00 pm
Trip to Coventry Cathedral - guided tour by art expert Bob Pell.
Lunch at Benedicts Refectory.
Lifts available - see Bee or Ann Smith |
Bee Aczel 01295 760816 Ann Smith 01295 760684
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Friends of Mary Magdalene Church
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Thank you to all who supported our Wine Tasting event and the Words
and Music evening in December. We are delighted to say we raised
£243 and £244 respectively which will go towards the
fabric of the Church.
Saturday 13th March (probably!) Old Time Music Hall Evening 7.30pm
The Reading Room, Helmdon (£5 to include ploughman's Supper).
Will any willing participants who are keen to tread the boards please
contact Vanessa (01295 760477) or any committee member...... Come
dressed appropriately!
Our May event will be a folk singer from America - please look out
for further information or contact Vanessa.
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Christian Aid Week, May 9th-15th
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Christian Aid is given to communities in need whatever their religious
beliefs, and spent in co-operation with the local people to meet
their needs, whether for water, education, agricultural or industrial
resources or skills, health care, peace, or temporary relief after
disasters.
Helmdon's contribution has increased every year, and most is raised
by the house-to-house collection. I shall be very grateful for offers
of help in that.
On May 2nd, in church after the Family Service, we shall have our
Christian Aid lunch (simply bread and cheese and coffee or tea,
and talking together, of course), for which we hope people will
pay more than its market value, as if they had brought a friend
or two from the millions who normally feed far less well than we
do.
Jean Spendlove (01295 768196)
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On the Five Mondays in March
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I invite you to join in a study of the three readings set for Holy
Communion that day. The three will come from a Psalm, another Old
Testament book, and a gospel. Each time we shall look for the connexions
which made the makers of the lectionary select just this group of
passages, and consider how far the New Testament one rests on those
from the Old, and how far it goes beyond them. We shall be very
conscious that Jesus was brought up on the Scriptures which we call
the Old Testament, and hope to see some ways in which their influence
affected him. Looking at them all now, I see they offer food for
thought on our own account.
The time is negotiable, but I suggest 8-9 pm. If the reading is
done by everyone beforehand, a mere hour gives the scope for discussion.
We'll meet at my house, 7 Field Way, but move on if we find ourselves
too crowded.
The first group of readings is:
Leviticus 19, verses 1-2 and 11-18.
Psalm 19, verse 7 to the end.
Matthew 25, verse 31 to the end.
Use whatever translation you like.
Jean Spendlove (01295 768196)
Ckers youth group will continue to meet regularly in spite of us
being, sadly, unable to use the Chapel in the future. The younger
group, for school years 5 to 7 , meet on 2nd and 4th Sundays from
6.30 - 7.30pm. The older group, for school year 8 upwards meets
on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month at 7.30pm. Please phone
one of us to find where we will be meeting as this may vary from
month to month.
For further information contact Jane Barnes (01295 760444), Phil
Drage (01295 768690) (older group). Kathy Quiney (01295 768168),
Louise Stothard (01295 760518) or Verity Thorne (younger group).
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