#495 At the going down of the sun and in the morning
No one has ever thought that I am particularly ferocious. As a church mouse, I know my job is to be friendly and welcoming to everyone. But I did have a moment this week imagining a different life for myself this week, when I read about the town that lived in fear of a lion that turned out to be Mouse…
This week is Remembrance Day, of course, and from my vantage point in the choir, I look out at the church and I think of days past, and of the people who sat in these pews who went to war, of those who did not return, of those who stayed at home praying. We will remember them.
Fr Sam writes
Remembrance Day is always a profound moment in the year, with the solemn fixing of poppies to the lapel, the laying of wreaths, the silence, the Last Post that signalled the close of life’s day for so many. For me it calls to mind those members of my family who served in the wars of the twentieth century, my friends who serve in the military today, and those thousands caught up in wars around the world right now.
For Christians, remembering is never solely about the past. In each celebration of the Holy Eucharist, we remember the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, but it is not only memory: we take part in that sacrifice and make it part of our own lives. To remember the past is to allow it to change our present.
So as we remember this Sunday, let us pray that we may be changed, and that we and all the world may discover anew the peace that passes all understanding.
This Sunday
This Sunday, our readings tell of the coming Kingdom of Heaven. In our epistle, St Paul writes to the church in Thessalonica to tell them to hold fast to their calling even in times of uncertainty and fear. In our gospel, the Sadducees attempt to trick Jesus, and he tells them about the Resurrection and the promise that, to God, “all are alive”.
Services this Sunday
| 9.30am | St Paul’s | Parish Mass | Fr Sam Tanna-Korn |
| Organ prelude: ‘Nimrod’ from Enigma Variations – Edward Elgar Anthem: Eternal Rest – James Whitbourn Voluntary: Pièce héroïque – César Franck | |||
| 10am | Woosehill Church | Morning Worship | Revd Wes Hampton |
| 11am | St Nicholas’s | Community Eucharist | Revd Judi Hattaway |
| 3pm | All Saints’ | Civic Service of Remembrance | Revd Hannah Higginson (Fr Sam preaching) |
Autumn Bazaar
This Saturday 8 November is the Autumn Bazaar in the parish rooms between midday and 3pm.
Come along and bring all your friends and family!
Is it curtains for you?
The parish owns a house in Brook Close that usually houses the parish’s curate. Since we don’t currently have a curate, it is going to be rented out. However, we need someone to take care of the curtains: they need to be sorted and re-hung (and some may need replacing). This needs to happen in the next couple of weeks so the house can be put on the market.
Might you be able to take on the curtains? Please contact Lyn (lyn.austen@spauls.co.uk) if you are able to help with this job.
Time for some Health and Safety
The PCC is looking for someone who might take on the job of Health and Safety officer for the church. Might you be able to help with this task? Here’s the role description.
If you are interested, please email Fr Sam (rector@spauls.co.uk).
This week’s calendar: I am the soldier of Christ
11 November, as well as being Armistice Day, is the feast day of St Martin of Tours, one of the most significant saints of the early Church.
Appropriately, St Martin was a soldier in the Roman army, until his Christian conversion led him to the conclusion that he could no longer fight the Emperor’s wars. He said, “I am a soldier of Christ: it is not lawful for me to fight.”
St Martin ended up as Bishop of Tours in modern-day France. Among many stories, he is famous for his encounter with a beggar at the side of the road: he cut his own cloak in half so the man could clothe himself. He dreamt that night of Jesus, who told St Martin that he had been the man at the side of the road. St Martin was baptised immediately.
