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Nowadays the custom of 'giving the peace' during the Eucharist is central
to most Christian worship. Yet although it is among the most ancient of all
Christian customs, it has been rescued only comparatively recently and, when
it was reintroduced into contemporary Anglican liturgy, many folk had some
misgivings and even suspicion.
We need to remember how it is referred to in the New Testament. Clearly,
it was one of the most powerful and formative signs of fellowship among
Christians in the early Church. From the number of times the phrase appears
in the letters of both St Paul and St Peter, we know that 'Greet one another
with an holy kiss' was almost certainly a liturgical formula which was used
regularly in worship. Some scholars think this instruction helped to give
rise to the accusation of scandal and immorality among Christians at the
time. It may even have been the origin of the custom in some places of
segregating the congregation and arranging church seating to keep the sexes
apart on either side of the building!
By now, surely, we see things very differently. Most of us would feel
deprived if the custom of exchanging the Peace were discontinued.
Occasionally there is still hesitancy at this point in the service but most
people now appreciate the privilege of giving the Peace to one another. The
sign gives real and physical expression to our recognition and acceptance of
each person within the Christian family.
The position in the service is significant. Our Anglican custom follows
the Eastern Church where it comes after the intercession and is the first
act of the Sacrament itself. But if on television you watched the requiem
for Pope John Paul II or the installation mass of his successor you may have
noticed that in the Roman liturgy the Peace comes later in the service.
There, it takes place immediately before the communion reminding us
forcefully that exchanging the Peace is a sign of reconciliation and
forgiveness. 'If, when you bring your gift to the altar, you suddenly
remember that your brother has a grievance against you, leave your gift
where it is. First go and make your peace with your brother and only then
come back and offer your gift.' (Matthew 5:23-24)
These thoughts came to mind after Trinity Sunday when we said one of the
signs of the trinitarian nature of God is 'the fellowship of the Holy
Spirit'. God the Holy Spirit can only draw us closer to the Father by
drawing us closer to one another and if we make this a stumbling block
between ourselves it cannot help but obscure our vision of God: a rather
solemn yet joyful thought when we give it full consideration. Giving one
another the sign of Peace is as demanding and as creative as that.
Fr Paul
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Happy and relaxed worship continues each Sunday at Celebrate! in
St Mary's church at 9.30am. Do come, we would love to see you - lots of
people who have come have returned for more.
Some extra or special dates are -
- Thursday 16th June 7.45 for 8pm at All Saints Vicarage.
Where do we go from here? Open meeting for any adults interested to chat
about having the chance to meet to grow their own Christian faith and
voice dilemmas and questions. Come to air your hopes or feelings about
what would be most useful for you.
- Sunday 3rd July Celebrate! led by Prestbury youth.
- Sunday 10th July Celebrate! outside on the school field. Watch
for details.
- Sundays in August No Celebrate!
- Sunday 21st August 2-5pm games and picnic in Pittville Park.
Sue Read
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In the summer of 2004 a data projector was purchased mainly for the youth
groups in the team. It is also regularly used at Celebrate! to display the
words of the songs for everyone to follow. In an attempt to allow more
people to use it a special IT awareness morning was held at St Nicolas' Hall
on Saturday 7 May 2005. Andy Macauly showed those attending how to set up
the projector and connect a computer and a video player to it. Brian Wood
explained how to prepare a simple PowerPoint presentation and some of the
pitfalls to avoid. Ten people attended. Please contact us if you want to
find out more.
Have you ever sent anyone a computer file and been told it came out all
wrong or 'I can't open the file'? Yes, we all have. Brian is considering
holding another IT awareness day soon on avoiding problems associated with
passing information to each other. If you might be interested please contact
him on 515941 or mail to brian.wood prestbury.net
Andy Macauly and Brian Wood
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The latest craze to hit the internet is the 'Blog', and Bloggers are on
the increase, even in a seemingly respectable area like Prestbury - there
may even be some amongst you! A Blog is a bit like an online diary (a weblog
if we're being all posh and formal about it) and allows people to post
little write-ups and pictures about what they've been up to straight onto
the web for the amusement and delectation of the internet-surfing public at
large. So when Elevate decided to revamp their bit of the parish website
(still worth a look at in the new location
www.ppy.org.uk/elevate ),
our resident online guru, Brian Wood, suggested that we started blogging.
Blogs are a lot easier to maintain than traditional websites and ours
allows the whole group to put up more or less what they like (Fr Grant still
gets the final say) in a pretty informal way and anyone who checks us out is
able to see what we've been up to most recently first and then trawl back
through the archives as far as they like. The setup is pretty good for
keeping in touch with one another and supporting one another in prayer (a
really important part of being a truly Christian community and one the adult
congregations might like to think a bit more about!) but it's also good for
outreach - new people from Year 6 who might want to join us after half-term
can find out a bit about us before coming along for the first time and also
people just surfing the web and curious about Christianity in general might
come across us. Although still getting going, we're pretty proud of our Blog
so far and would like to say a big thank you to Brian for all his expert
advice and coming to help us set it up.
If you'd like to find out more about what we get up to and read what our
11-14 year olds think about life, faith, the universe and everything, why
not check out
www.elevate-stnics.blogspot.com? But be warned, anyone who mentions
anything to Fr Grant about the Gandalf get-up he had to wear will be in line
for a long penance of countless Hail Marys!
Fr Grant pp Elevate
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For many years we have approached our stewardship campaign in the same
way, with a letter and response slip. This year we decided we would like to
be far more 'social' in trying to raise our planned giving, which is
essential to keep our churches running. So we are planning a series of 'fun
events' and hope that each of you will be able to attend at least one of
them, if not more. The plan is for four events, at a reasonable cost, which
will raise awareness of our duty to make regular giving to God. The events
differ considerably and will, we hope, attract different people to different
events. They are:
- Parish Sunday Lunch at the Royal Oak on 21st August at 1.00pm.
Cost £11 per head for a 2-course meal.
- Cheese and Wine Evening at St Mary's Infant School on 10th
September, with entertainment.
- Pudding Evening at St Nicolas' church on 22nd October.
- Quiz at St Mary's church hall on 12th November.
We do hope that you will make a real effort to come to at least one of
these events, not only to enjoy yourselves but also to share in fellowship
with others from our church family.
For any further details please contact Marion Beagley.
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In his opening sermon Fr Philip North, the administrator of the shrine of
our Lady of Walsingham, spoke of the 'long journey many of us had made to be
at shrine'. That weekend there were groups from Essex, Yorkshire, Solihull,
London, County Durham along with our group from Gloucestershire. We were
pilgrims, some visiting for the first time others re-acquainting themselves
with England's Nazareth.
It was back in 1931 that Fr Hope Patten, the then vicar of Walsingham,
set about restoring the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, which had been
destroyed by Henry VIII in 1538. Fr Patten faced a lot of opposition and
persecution in those early years, but his vision and pertinacious belief
kept him going. And the shrine is his lasting memorial.
The thing that strikes you about Walsingham is the peacefulness; in the
early morning one is woken by the birds' chorus, but the stillness and
peacefulness makes you feel that you are in a holy place. After breakfast we
would meet as a group in the orangery to pray and discuss the items planned
for that day. This was followed by our first visit to the Holy House where
Fr Stephen celebrated Mass; in the afternoon after lunch Linda Biggs, the
Reader from Prestbury, led us in a bible study based on Job. In the
afternoon we had some free time so Brenda Lawson, Julia Hook and myself
walked the Holy Mile to the Slipper Chapel, which is the Roman Catholic
shrine. Unlike pilgrims of old we didn't remove our shoes to walk the mile
back to the to the Anglican shrine. For me the most moving service of the
weekend was the procession of Our Lady and Benediction, which was taken by
Fr Stephen. About 350 pilgrims with lighted candles and singing 'Ye who own
the faith of Jesus' processed from the shrine church around the newly laid
out gardens following the Blessed Sacrament, which was carried under a gold
umbrellina. We returned to the shrine for the blessing, after which we left
the church in silence. A very moving service indeed.
On the Sunday morning we attended the local Parish Church for Mass, the
place was over full and people were standing at the back. In the afternoon
there was the sprinkling of the water from the Holy well. In the evening
following supper we followed the stations of the cross which are laid out in
the garden, this was followed by the rosary and intercessions in the Holy
House. Following our last visit and Mass on Monday we departed for
Cheltenham. It had been a very moving weekend and quite a few said that they
would return next year.
On a lighter note, I am sorry to have to report that the party from All
Saints' let the side down so to say! Julia, Roger, Brenda and I arrived at
Walsingham too late to use the refectory for an evening meal so we all
trooped down to the Black Lion (one of five pubs in such a small village!).
There we were able to get something to eat and drink and met up with some of
the others from Prestbury. The four of us left just before 11pm as it had
been a long day. When the person I was sharing with arrived back from the
pub, he broke the horrifying news that we had walked out without paying for
our meal!! Julia was round the pub at 7am the next morning to pay up.
Many thousands of pilgrims come to Walsingham each year in search of the
presence of God, bringing the recognition of a need for healing. Walsingham
is about vision; it began with the vision of Richeldis in 1061 in which she
was shown Mary's house in Nazareth and was inspired to build a replica here
in England. Destroyed in the reformation and lovingly restored by Hope
Patten, it focuses our attention on Mary's vision and her perception of her
vocation to be the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps the most
profound and simple vision of Walsingham is a vision of Jesus seen here as
the child of Mary, the Word made flesh, in whom we find healing, joy and,
above all, peace.
Raymond Hunt
Snippets from Walsingham
Since our last visit to Walsingham, in May 2004, the Shrine gardens have
been sensitively re-designed; paths have been widened and re-surfaced. The
Processional Walk is edged with borders planted with clipped Box and groups
of 'Marian' flowers, the larger borders with roses, lavender and scented
flowering shrubs.
The glorious weather enabled us to sit in the garden and enjoy the
sunshine, the flowers and the bird-song - including a noisy cock-pheasant
which had dropped in for a few days.
All part of God's Gift and our Worship.
Sue Bolton
Walsingham
Arriving in the small village of Walsingham for the first time on a
sunny, warm, spring afternoon I felt a good deal of anxiety and trepidation
about what the weekend had in store. Fellow pilgrims and clergy had tried to
re-assure me before I had left home but faced with the reality it all seemed
quite daunting.
Were my fears justified? Well, in part yes because I found the weekend to
be an emotional roller-coaster where I found myself to be constantly
challenged about my beliefs but equally there was peace and joy and much
laughter. I discovered on the first day in the company of Linda Biggs and
Margaret Compton that a Holy Mile bears no relation to an imperial mile when
you are on foot so we returned to the Slipper Chapel by car the next day. I
also learned that when the technology of piped organ music fails, a priest
can fill in any gaps with a kazoo! Walsingham itself is a beautiful, Holy
place too.
Would I go again? Well, probably yes because I felt that Walsingham gave
me the opportunity to question myself and my faith and I am still reaping
the benefits of my pilgrimage but for anybody seeking a pleasant weekend
break then my advice would be 'don't go'! It really isn't a holiday.
Janet Waters
Walsingham
Friends - old friends, new friends, life-long friends, friends
for life.
Meals - wonderful food, eating together with friends and
strangers, strangers no more, breaking bread together, sharing in the Body
of Christ.
Worship - quiet meditation, intense grace, songs of joy, Parish
Church service, laying on of hands, prayer, the love of God.
Peace - inner wholeness, serenity.
Home - back to normal but not normal, better, refreshed,
renewed, excited about life.
Thank you Fr Stephen, thank you Colin, thank you Linda, thank
you St Mary's, St Nicolas', All Saints' friends. Thank you Father.
Catherine and Andrew Hemming
Julian of Norwich says it all for me (from In love Enclosed, Bound
together in love)
'When I think of myself and my fellow Christians joined together by love,
I have hope. From our shared love lies the salvation of all who shall be
saved.'
Margaret Waker
Russian Orthodox Easter at Walsingham
Our recent pilgrimage to Walsingham coincided with Orthodox Easter.
Within the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham there is a tiny
Orthodox chapel founded by Archimandrite Nicholas, who, as Charles Sydney
Gibbes, had been tutor to the children of the last Russian Tsar. Not far
from the Shrine stands the Russian Orthodox Church of St Seraphim of Sarov
and in Great Walsingham the Church of the Holy Transfiguration. It was to
this church we went for the Easter Vigil service which lasted from 9.45 pm
until well after midnight. During the Divine Liturgy for Easter each person
had a lighted candle and, after processing round the outside of the church
to symbolise the women coming to Jesus' tomb, everyone paused at the
entrance. After prayers and chants the doors were thrown open (as if the
stone to the tomb had been rolled away), the bells pealed and we entered the
church. The icon of the buried Christ had now been placed upon the altar
symbolising the Resurrection. The Litany and Eucharist continued, all the
time accompanied by the choir. During the fast Kulich (an Easter cake,
dome-shaped like heaven) and a sweet cheese are prepared and on Maundy
Thursday eggs are painted. All the food is then brought to the Easter Vigil
to be blessed with Holy Water. These are then enjoyed during the Great Feast
of Pascha (Passover) until Pentecost. The church was full of all ages,
including young well-behaved children. The joy of Easter was reiterated many
times with 'Christ is risen!' 'Risen indeed!' in Church Slavonic, English
and Greek. The whole experience was very powerful and spiritually moving.
And on Easter Day we were able to celebrate and share our Kulich with our
fellow pilgrims. It was a privilege and a joy to have celebrated Easter
twice!
Masha and David Lees
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The informal prayers in St Mary's at noon on Tuesdays are indeed very
informal. If you are the only person there, you do your own thing. If
someone else comes too, you may decide to pray together, aloud or silently,
or you may each still decide to do your own thing. If more people come...
There are set prayers available if you prefer to use them, or bring
something with you from home. The fifteen minutes allotted time is easy -
you start praying on the twelfth stroke of noon and stop when you hear the
quarter. Come and try it!
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Christian Aid Week -
15-21 May 2005
Many thanks to all of you who gave, collected and counted
contributions to Christian Aid Week. The amounts collected so far are
£4124.76 at St Mary's and £935.75 at St Nicolas', including £25 from the
sale of 'goat' biscuits by the Sunday Club. This brings the parish total so
far to £5060.51. An additional £166.50 was collected at the Ecumenical
Service in Holy Name Hall on May 8th.
We hope that many of you will feel able to send off the
red cards inviting you to vote for trade justice. As the cards say, 'Half
the world's population live on less than £1.50 a day. Justice in world trade
could change this.' Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could make poverty
history?
Paddy Spurgeon & Gill Ashman
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St Mary's Bakestall
The next bakestall will be on Sunday 19th June, when we
shall be pleased to receive contributions from members with surnames
beginning A-F. If you would like to join any of our baking teams, do please
contact one of us.
Margaret Waker & Linda Matthews
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Prestbury Mothers' Union
Our next meeting is on Tuesday 28th June at St Mary's,
starting at 7.30pm. The talk by Pam Staite is Around Mary Sumner House. All
are welcome.
Marion Beagley
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The Children's Society at St Nicolas'
Box-holders: I am earlier than usual this summer but would
now like to collect your boxes for opening. Please give them to me on a
Sunday morning or I will be glad to collect.
If anyone else in the congregation would be willing to
have a collecting box at home for this worthwhile charity, I shall be glad
to supply one.
Janet White
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There has been a really good response to this idea and
some twelve gardens are taking part. They will be open from 2-5pm on both
days and a £5 ticket will cover entrance to all gardens on both days. Cream
teas will be available in St Mary's church on both days from 3-5pm and a
competition will be arranged in each garden for the children. There will
also be plants for sale outside the church. Ice creams will be available,
with a children's play area and garden toys at one garden. Tickets are
available from 1st June from the parish office or from Marion Beagley. My
thanks to all who have taken up the challenge to open their gardens for the
church.
Marion Beagley
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Yes that's right, it's been 30 years since Rockers began! If you would
like to come along and join in the celebration on Thursday 7th July at 2
o'clock, please do. To be held at The Rectory, Tatchley Lane. If raining it
will be held in St Mary's church. All are very welcome.
Vicky Dunn
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Following on from last year we have organised another fete
on the scout field from 2-5pm on 16th July. There will be a variety of
stalls and sideshows, together with a grand raffle. Please give me your name
if you are willing to run a stall - a list is already being compiled but the
more help we get, the better the day will be! Last year we raised £3000,
which was fantastic - can we do better?
In the evening there will be a barn dance - further
details next month.
Marion Beagley
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Congratulations!
... to Tim Winder on being awarded his Ph D. |
