Saint Michael’s Church
Serving God and Bishop’s Stortford since 673
Clergy Letter For July 2008
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CLERGY LETTER FOR JULY 2008 |
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The Revd Toby Marchand writes....
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We are half way through the year and as the summer holiday season approaches I want to draw your attention to some of the plans and projects on the church’s calendar. Come September there are events planned that require some attention now. The first is that we hope to run another Alpha Course. This will be on Thursday evenings from September 4th. If there is anyone you know who would like to join an Alpha Course I would be glad to hear for them as soon as possible. If there is anyone in the church family who has completed an Alpha course, and would like to help with this next one, again please let me know. We need to get a team together to run it. Ideally we need two leaders and two assistants, and of course a catering team for the meal times. Then there is Shine. This is a festival for the whole church in Bishop’s Stortford (all denominations). The idea is to make an impact on the town both physically, by engaging in some clearing up work of an area of town that is neglected, and spiritually, by doing something that could be of service to our community. At St Michael’s we have three ideas under consideration. The first is to establish a pattern of worship services at Elmhurst, the council home for older people off the Great Hadham road. The second is to explore the possibility of putting on some act of worship for people with learning disabilities. The third is to engage with many other churches in the diocese in what is being called “Back to Church” Sunday. The idea is that on September 28th we should endeavour to invite people to church whose attendance may have lapsed for whatever reason, or who may simply need an invitation from someone they know to return. There are no strings attached to this. It is purely and simply an invitation to come back with no awkward questions being asked. Please start thinking whether there is anyone you know who would like to receive a simple invitation to come back to church on September 28th. It will be our Patronal Festival (our Patron being St Michael the Archangel) and our guest preacher that day will be Canon John Kiddle, who is heading the Back to Church Project for this Diocese. The other part of Shine is a Get to Know your Neighbours weekend. We are all being encouraged to invite the neighbours in for tea or coffee, have a street party, or to organise a progressive supper, or to do anything that will help neighbours to know each other. It’s not so easy nowadays to know your neighbours, so here is a chance to make it happen. As Christians we are to love our neighbours and let the light of Christ shine around us. That event is meant to happen over the weekend of 27/28th September but any other time in the fortnight would do. The plans for the Parish Centre, with St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, have been stalled by the Planning Committee of the East Herts District Council wanting to have more details about the removal of some trees on the site and on access to the site when building begins. Those issues have been addressed and a re-submission is being made at the beginning of July. I really hope that the Autumn will see the project finally get started on the ground. Finally may I remind you that during the month of August we shall not have a Parish Praise service nor will we have a full sung evensong. The services in the morning on each Sunday will be at 8.00am and 10.00am and Evensong will be said in the Lady Chapel at 6.00pm on each Sunday except the first. The choir will be on holiday. I hope you all have a good summer and that those of you who will be going on holiday have a safe and refreshing time. There will be plenty to get on with in the in the early Autumn. With love and prayers, Toby. |
Office Address:
Saint Michael’s Church
Windhill
Bishops Stortford
Hertfordshire
CM23 2ND