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Dear friends This is the final Christmas message of the year, and a bumper edition to cover Christmas and the New Year period. I’m writing this now amid school carols and end-of-term occasions, and preparation for Christmas celebrations in our church community. Yet it’s still been a very distinctive Advent for me. Something about arriving and having lots of things planned already, and having excellent ministerial support from Phil, Chris, Steve and Anne has given me more time than I normally would to savour the season of Advent. It's taught me something about pacing. If it’s anything, Christmas is a story—a ripping yarn, you might say. And good storytelling relies on good pacing. This year, Advent has helped me to pace myself, and to take each moment of the season, each lighting of a candle on the Advent wreath, at closer to the pace it deserves if it is truly to serve as a preparation for the festival of the incarnation of Jesus to come. Because it is still to come; it’s still not here yet! Yes, I might have sung Away in a manger a good few times already—although I have dodged any mince pies so far!— but at this point we are still waiting and letting the anticipation build. And the virtue that this has revealed to me this year is that of simplicity. Christmas is plagued by complexity. We’re surrounded by ever more busyness, ever-increasing expectations, and ever more frenetic activity. Much of it happens around families, but some of it related to church. But really, church is where we can hold up a big stop sign to all of that activity, and return to simplicity. The God whom we worship is simple—it’s our attempts to understand, explain and elaborate that complicate things. In the 4th century a Bishop of Constantinople, John Chrysostom, wrote: ‘What shall I say? And how shall I describe this birth to you? For this wonder fills me with astonishment. The Ancient of Days has become an infant. He who sits upon the sublime and heavenly throne now lies in a manger. And he who cannot be touched, who is simple, without complexity, and incorporeal, now lies subject to the hands of men.’ This Christmas, let us return to God’s simplicity in Jesus, kneel in adoration at the manger throne as awed and wondering children of God, and give him our hearts. With joy and blessings Sam
Dear friends, I hope you are well and have enjoyed the beginning of Advent! We had a fantastic first Sunday of Advent with Revd Anne preaching for the first time at St Martin’s, some inspiring advent carols and of course our wreath made its first appearance as we lit the first of our five candles. Both Sam and Anne encouraged us to take time to slow down where we can this advent. To try to find still and prayerful moments as we consider the themes of repentance, judgement and look towards the coming of Jesus at Christmas. Many of us have been doing just that, firstly with a BCP evening prayer and then the following evening at the new Stations of the Crib. For those of you who haven’t yet heard of or experienced Stations of the Crib, I highly recommend it. We take some time each Monday evening during advent to focus in on small parts of the Christmas story. As with Stations of the Cross, which we do at Lent and Easter, there is singing, reflections all focused around artwork to help inspire and contemplate the depths of the emotions, fears and courage shown by the biblical characters in the events that led to Jesus’ birth. Join us at 7:30pm for 50 minutes of prayer, reflection and discussion. If you aren’t able to make a Monday evening then the Advent Quiet Morning will have a similar focus as Revd Anne leads us through reflective stillness 10-12pm Saturday 13th. There are so many great events coming up, with something for everyone at St Martin’s this Christmas. Our annual Christmas Bazaar is this Saturday, the perfect place to buy some gifts, win stock for your Christmas drinks selection and generally get into the Christmas spirit with our whole community. 10:30-14:00 Saturday 6 December. Finally, we are really excited for both our carol events, each with a distinct flavour. Singalong Carols provides a relaxed, informal atmosphere to enjoy all the classics over a glass of your favourite tipple (BYOB) with a Christmas quiz and plenty of me for laughter! Friday 12th 7:30-9. Then our ever-so-popular Nine Lessons and Carols offers a beautiful candlelit traditional space to rehear the Christmas story accompanied by our very own choir and followed by mince pies and mulled drinks. 6pm Sunday 21st. That takes us right up to the week of Christmas, check out our Facebook page for details of our 4 Christmas services, again – something for everyone there! However this advent finds you, however you feel about this coming Christmas, know that St Martin’s is hear for you. Whether you are in the mood to party or feeling a little lost, bouncing with excitement or experiencing loss, there is room for you with us. Come and reflect, come and be inspired, come and worship and meet your community. Enjoy the traditions and help us make new ones! All the best, Revd Phil
Dear friends, What a week we have had so far! Our Remembrance Sunday service was a moving, and inspiring time. Thank you to all who contributed to the display at the front, the music and of course, to our wonderful children who took part in the service. The theme of conflict, how we engage well with conflict in order to bring about peace and healthy relationships, has stayed with me into this week and I would love to hear your thoughts on it if you fancy a chat. We also celebrated St Martin’s day which was a great success. The lantern making and storytelling were an inspired addition to our evening, thank you to Laura for making that happen! As the children paraded around the church with their lanterns we sang about being lights in our community and you will be able to look at what they wrote and drew about that on our wall of light at the back of church on Sunday. The whole evening really felt like family time with so many people joining in with preparing and serving food and cleaning up after, just like a family get-together at home. Special thanks to Joan Bailey for making delicious lasagna for us to share. Following this season of remembrance we look towards advent which is fast approaching. Do look out for Christmas dates and some special services during advent including three new events and gatherings. Throughout advent we will be journeying around the church to visit stations of the crib – just like stations of the cross but for Christmas. I will lead our usual reflections at each station and there will be opportunity for quiet reflection or group discussion as you prefer. Also new for this year is Sing-along-carols, a relaxed event with a Christmas quiz and BYO drinks. It will be a perfect event to invite your friends to who don’t usually come to church, to have a laugh and enjoy the festive season. For anyone not in the mood for that type of Christmas for whatever reason we are also introducing a Blue Christmas service, an opportunity to mark Christmas without the tinsel. We know that people don’t always feel full of joy and excitement at this time of year so this will be a quieter, more reflective space to acknowledge the difficulties this year can bring for so many of us as we miss loved ones, struggle with difficult family dynamics or whatever else might make it hard for us this year. As well as these new events we will have all the usual favourites including our Christmas Bazaar, traditional Nine lessons and Carols and Christmas eve services – the Crib and midnight service as usual. Do think about what you might like to come to and who you might like to invite! Grace & peace, Phil
