As Christmas approaches once again, many people celebrate the season as a time of happiness and fun and presents, and the chance to be with family members as we go around wishing everybody, “Happy Christmas!” However, for some, Christmas is not a particularly happy time. It seems to bring out in many of us a particular sadness and poignancy as we often remember loved ones who are no longer with us. There may be people who have meant so much to us who have died in the past year, or they have been gone for many years; regardless of the time scale, the memories can still be very powerful and painful. With this in mind, we would like to offer you a service of Thanksgiving and Commemoration for loved ones on Wednesday 18th December 2024 at 10.00am. A highlight of this service will be the opportunity of coming forward and lighting a candle as a mark of respect and love for the person concerned. If you would like to attend the service and light a candle, please let me know in advance the names of the people you wish to have recognised and I will be more than happy to read them out just before we begin lighting the candles. Please either send them to me via our Get in Touch page on this website, or you are welcome to write them on a piece of paper and pass them to me at church. I will add each name to the list. If you have any further questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch via our website’s Get in touch page or St Mary’s Church Facebook page. Thank you. Revd Robert Legge
We have a range of services throughout Advent and into Christmas - something for everyone! • The Christingle Coffee afternoon is on Saturday 7th December @ 2.00pm in our church hall. Families are very welcome and you can let us know that you're coming on our Facebook page. There'll be tea, coffee and cake as well as a chance for you and your children to make a Christingle that they can take home as a reminder of what they've learnt about Jesus' love for them and their family. A fun relaxed time for the whole family! • The Christingle Service is on Sunday 8th December @ 5.00pm in St Mary's Church. It's a family service and you are invited to bring along your Christingle to this special time when we remember God's love for us. • The Carol Service is on Wednesday 18th December in St Mary's Church @ 7.00pm. A time of song and worship, readings and prayers - a chance to listen and marvel again at the Christmas story. Afterwards, we'll have tea, coffee and mince pies! • The Christmas Eve Crib service is on Tuesday 24th December in St Mary's Church @ 2.00pm. This is a special time for children and families to gather and hear the retelling of the Christmas story and what it means for them. • There will be a Midnight Holy Communion service on Christmas Eve, Tuesday 24th December in St Mary's Church starting at 11.30pm and taking us past midnight into Christmas morning. Why not come along and join in the celebration of Jesus coming down to earth from heaven? There will be carols, prayers and readings as well as Holy Communion.• Everyone is invited to come and celebrate with us on Christmas Day, Wednesday 25th December! We will be having our Holy Communion service in the church at 10.00am, with carols, songs and prayers. Bring the whole family to celebrate the birth of Jesus that changed history. For more information about our services, why not check out our Facebook page? St. Mary's Church Blackpool | Blackpool | Facebook
It's coming up to that time of year when the weather turns and the leaves start to fall. Also, in farms up and down the country, the farmers are bringing the harvest home. Here at St Mary's Church, Blackpool, we are looking forward to holding our annual Harvest Thanksgiving celebration service to thank God for His provision of another harvest. Date: Sunday 6th OctoberTime: 10.00amVenue: St Mary's Church, Blackpool All are welcome. The food that is donated will be going to the foodbank at Holy Cross Church and to Streetlife - both charities helping the most vulnerable people in our community. We also have some special guests appearing - our little crocheted mice will be visiting! All donations will go to The Salvation Army in Blackpool, who bring the harvest bounty to those struggling in our community.
We love learning more about our faith at St Mary's Church Blackpool. This series of 'How To' guides takes us back to the basics of what we believe. Covering topics such as 'How to read the Bible' and 'How to pray', these simple guides refresh and extend our knowledge as well as equip us to get the most out of our Christian life each day as we follow Jesus. This monthly series starts in June 2024 and will continue over the next 7 months (longer if you can suggest other topics that you'd like to see covered!). To get your copy, simply pick one up in St Mary's Church entrance hall. If there are no copies left, just ask the warden or the vicar. Check out our monthly newsletter on the "News and notices' tab for the details of each new guide.
