If someone asked you what it’s like to be part of Thanington Parish Church, what would they say?A lot of people start with the warm welcome we have received, or the sense of community which makes it feel like being part of a bigger family. Some people emphasise being connected to the past, through our historic church building and the faithful worship and service which has been offered here down the centuries. Others talk about the things we do to reach out to our community- for example, Messy Church. And we all want Thanington Parish Church to have a future. We have tried to sum this up in a simple vision statement: We are Thanington Parish Church: A community of worship, welcome and witness to Christ, who are learning from the past, living in the present and looking to God’s future. Learning from the pastWe can value the past and learn from the past, as for example we do each year at All Saints Day and Remembrance Sunday services. But we cannot live in the past. We can only live in the here and now. One thing that connects us to the past is the St Nicholas Church building, which is grade II* listed. However, an historic building also brings challenges. It needs repairs, redecoration and improvements to the facilities. We are working on that one step at a time as we find the funds we need. At the moment, repairing the roof is the top priority and we currently have £30,000 of the £50,000 needed to start that work. (If you would like to make a donation towards this, our giving page will tell you how to do that.) Living in the presentWe are a small but growing church, in a varied parish, with a growing population. We are being encouraged to worship God wholeheartedly, to pray persistently and to learn together from the Bible and work out what it means for us to follow Jesus in our everyday lives. We do all this with the help of the Holy Spirit, God's presence in the present moment. As well as worship on Sunday mornings, we offer a monthly lunch called CAMEO which brings people together and is popular with pensioners. On the third Sunday of the month we run Messy Church, which is great for families with primary school children. We lead a service of holy communion at our local nursing home, Lark View Care. We also have a couple of bible-study groups, one which meets in the daytime and one which meets in the evening. We can’t do everything, but we do what we can with the people and resources we have. As Jesus blessed and multiplied a few loaves and fishes to feed a huge crowd of people, we are trusting God to bless and multiply what we offer for the good of our local community. Looking to God's futureBut we must also look to the future – God’s future. When we say the Lord's Prayer, we pray ‘your kingdom come, your will be done.’ Thanington Parish Church are currently in a process of trying to work out what that looks like for us, so that we can focus on playing our part in working towards God's futre. We want to increasingly be a church in which people find a place to belong, to be noticed, to be known. We want to be people who follow Jesus who are growing in faith, hope, joy, and love. We want to care for one another, for our community, and for God's creation.We want to see the church continuing to grow in number and to grow younger (on average!). We want to grow leaders and eventually to create new worshipping communities around the parish. We want to see all of this so that more and more people can experience God's forgiving love and God's transforming power. What about you?Do you live in or around Thanington? Would you like to be a part of this? If want to get involved and find out more, please get in touch for more info.Rev Nick White (vicar)We are Thanington Parish Church: A community of worship, welcome and witness to Christ, who are learning from the past, living in the present and looking to God’s future.
Back by popular demand ... Easter Fun for Everyone will take place on Saturday 19th April, 2 - 4:30pm.Join us for Easter crafts and an Easter egg hunt for the kids. There will be stalls and a chance to explore the churchyard together. Enjoy cakes and drinks and the chance to chat in our beautiful church setting. It all starts at 2pm and at 4pm we will come together for a short act of worship to celebrate Easter. This will be planned with people of all ages in mind and all are welcome.The event is FREE entry but you can make a donation to the church using our card reader or with a cash donation. There will be a small charge for the tombola and to buy items from the stalls. Step-free access into the church is available through the hall at the back. See you there!
Come and pray for Thanington!We sense a growing call to join with other Christians, regardless of denomination, topray together for God's kingdom to come and God's will to be done in Thanington as in Heaven.We are inviting you to gather for an informal time of prayer on Sunday 8thSeptember from 6pm - 7pm, at St Faiths Hall, in New House Lane. This is acomfortable space which overlooks Thanington and the City of Canterbury. Ourintention is to make this a regular gathering on the second Sunday of every month.We all have other responsibilities too. Therefore, we will honour the timecommitment to pray together for 1 hour only, recognising that prayer will be ongoingin our personal lives and in our congregations.We hope you can join us. It would be encouraging to know if you plan to come. Butyou are also welcome to just turn up!For more details, contact Rev Christa Brodie-Levinsohn and Rev Nick WhiteThanington Parish Church.
You’ve loved your Lychgate!After a huge community effort we are now pleased to say the rebuilding of the Lychgate is complete. Thank you to all who sponsored a tile, and to grant funders who made this possible. As a church we have been so aware of the importance of this local landmark to many people, who were baptized, married or had a funeral of a loved one here. Lychgates are historic parts of some churchyards; for some they mark the entrance into consecrated ground. In reality they served a practical use in the past: corpses for burial were often waiting here until the time came for the funeral. The shelter proved an important spot to wait with loved ones; hence the seating underneath. Now that the work is complete, we will be having a Grand Re-Opening of the Lychgate on Sat 30 March at 2pm, as part of our Easter Fun for Everyone event. Everyone is welcome and we will be joined by Archdeacon Will Adam and Councillor Roben Franklin, who will be helping us mark the occasion with style. The Easter Fun for Everyone event will continue until 4pm with crafts, an Easter egg hunt, story trail, refreshments, stalls and a chance to try ringing the church bells. We look forward to seeing you there.
