Greetings lovely people of All Saints and St Mary’s,
Yet again this week we find ourselves making sense of a new ‘roadmap’ about how our lives will be shaped in the coming months by the Covid pandemic, hopefully with some renewed optimism. It is encouraging to see a direction of travel with some dates we can hopefully look forward to as the restrictions ease. Perhaps, like me, you’ve been looking at how those dates match up with your own dates for holidays, birthdays and other occasions and wondering how much you can plan for some long-overdue time away or get-togethers!
As we gradually emerge from being closed for public worship, this Sunday 28thFebruary sees us return to a more familiar pattern as we look forward to safely celebrating a simple, said service of Holy Communion at each church. These will be at:
8.00am at All Saints
or
10.00am at St. Mary’s
As with recent weeks, the service from All Saints will be broadcast - or watchable later if 8am is a bit early for you – from our YouTube channel here https://youtu.be/-h2mwNJf8TI
You are very welcome to attend either service if you feel comfortable doing so, although we appreciate too that some of you may still feel safer joining in online for the time being. We are together in spirit, even when not in person! If you do decide to come along, please bear in mind we’re still in the realms of face coverings, track & trace, hand sanitiser and social distancing, all of which have become part and parcel of our gatherings over the course of the last season!
Attached to this email are the Roots at Home sheet and the Roots Activity sheet as well as notice sheets.
In the week ahead, we have a wonderful selection of opportunities to pray and grow in faith together:
Monday 1st March
Morning Prayer at 8.15am (on zoom), hosted by Carla. Please email stanneseastville@gmail.com if you would like to be added to the circulation list for the link.
Wednesday 3rd March
Celtic Morning Prayer at 9am - (on zoom), hosted by Mark. Contact Mark on 0117 951 8419 for details.
Private Prayer All Saints - open from 10am-11am
Lent Group at 7.30pm (on zoom), where we continue our exploration of ‘The Joy of the Gospel; by Paula Gooder, a book which “… enables individuals and groups to rediscover the joy of encountering the good news of Jesus and the transformation that is possible when we communicate the good news to the world today.” Details to join the Group are: https://zoom.us/j/99516938516?pwd=UlZZaVgyZzVCZXhjQlQ2ZXlwM2d2dz09
Meeting ID: 995 1693 8516 and Passcode: 136387
Thursday 4th March
Private Prayer St Mary’s - open from 10am-11am
Friday 5th March
Evening Prayer for Lent at 6.30pm (on zoom), hosted by Sharon. You can log on Zoom with these codes: Meeting ID: 929 4208 7697 and Passcode: 872238
Next Sunday 7th March
We are looking ahead to have two services again – a 10.30am and All Saints and a 6.30pm at St Mary’s. Details to follow.
Today (Saturday 27th) the church commemorates George Herbert, a priest and poet of the 17th century. I thought it might be an opportunity to share some of his poetry to reflect on during our Lenten journey. Since it’s been so cheering to see the little carpets of snowdrops and crocuses springing up in the churchyards at All Saints and St Mary’s in the last couple of weeks, what better poem than ‘The Flower’. Enjoy! The Flower By George Herbert How fresh, oh Lord, how sweet and clean Are thy returns! even as the flowers in spring; To which, besides their own demean, The late-past frosts tributes of pleasure bring. Grief melts away Like snow in May, As if there were no such cold thing. Who would have thought my shriveled heart Could have recovered greenness? It was gone Quite underground; as flowers depart To see their mother-root, when they have blown, Where they together All the hard weather, Dead to the world, keep house unknown. These are thy wonders, Lord of power, Killing and quickening, bringing down to hell And up to heaven in an hour; Making a chiming of a passing-bell. We say amiss This or that is: Thy word is all, if we could spell. Oh that I once past changing were, Fast in thy Paradise, where no flower can wither! Many a spring I shoot up fair, Offering at heaven, growing and groaning thither; Nor doth my flower Want a spring shower, My sins and I joining together. But while I grow in a straight line, Still upwards bent, as if heaven were mine own, Thy anger comes, and I decline: What frost to that? what pole is not the zone Where all things burn, When thou dost turn, And the least frown of thine is shown? And now in age I bud again, After so many deaths I live and write; I once more smell the dew and rain, And relish versing. Oh, my only light, It cannot be That I am he On whom thy tempests fell all night. These are thy wonders, Lord of love, To make us see we are but flowers that glide; Which when we once can find and prove, Thou hast a garden for us where to bide; Who would be more, Swelling through store, Forfeit their Paradise by their pride. Every blessing, Janey _______________ Rev. Janey Hiller
Curate and Pioneer Minister All Saints & St Mary's, Fishponds 01172390625 07594917121 www.theriveruk.wordpress.com www.justcallmejaney.wordpress.com @Mthr_Kerfuffle