Sunday 19th April, The Third Sunday of Easter9:30am Parish Eucharist4pm Civic Service for the Mayor of Durham, at St. Helen’s KelloeSunday 26th April, The Fourth Sunday of Easter9:30am Parish Eucharist12:30pm Interment of AshesFriday 1st May 2:30pm Funeral of Sylvia Kemp RIPWild Church: Attached are the Spring Term Wild Church services and Eastertide worship resources.Deanery Confirmation: The Confirmation Service this year will be on Saturday 6th June at 6pm at St. Nic’s Durham. Please let Peter know if you would like to be Confirmed or indeed Baptised and Confirmed at this service. It will be taken by Bishop Frank White.Church cleaning: takes place on the second Tuesday in the month at 10am. It takes about an hour depending on how many people come. This can vary from 2 to 7 people depending on peoples commitments. Many thanks, Margaret ChartersTrip to Lindisfarne: Durham Churches Together is hoping to organise a day trip to Lindisfarne, on Saturday 6 June this year, similar to those run, pre-Covid, by Churches Together in Elvet & Shincliffe. A decision depends on enough participants at a price not exceeding £20 per head for the coach. If you would be interested please let Boyd Sims-Williams or Stevie Taylor know as soon as possible. (boydsimswilliams@gmail.com, gsktaylor@outlook.com).Foodbank: St. Mary’s is now making a weekly collection for the Foodbank:The foodbank still needs longlife milk and fruit juice, tins of potatoes, vegetables, rice pudding, fruit and spaghetti. We always need household cleaning materials and toiletries Many thanks for all your support, it is so much appreciated.Friday Friends at 10am (FF@10) All are very welcome to join us; tea, coffee and cakes will be provided - all free of charge!’The Rector Writes…My daughters have often urged me to take up an exercise like Pilates as I age so that I can cope better with the experiences that can happen with ageing such as falling over. I had no thought that the fall I was to experience was to be from some ten foot up off a climbing frame. That certainly put a sudden check on what had been a very joyful Easter. Thankfully, I seem to have sustained no serious injuries and have been straight back to work, albeit walking a bit gingerly at present.In the Easter Gospel we hear that “the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.”; but it was not until he had shown them his hands and his side that they had known it was him and were therefore glad. His words and general appearance were not enough. They realised it was Jesus only when they saw the wounds he had taken. But why were the wounds so emblematic we might wonder? why not his face or his voice? St. John tells us: “the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord”. It might be that they were glad as they sensed the aptness of the Lord being the one who carries wounds. In the wounds the roundedness of human experience is seen; the full range of joy and sorrow is held. In Jesus’ wounds the roundedness of humanity is seen. The humanity of God our Saviour.I must thank our team at St Mary’s for all they did to make Good Friday and the Easter Sunday Baptism and Eucharist so joyful. Stephen as churchwarden oversaw the whole, and David added so much to the feel of Easter through his accompaniment on the organ.with all Good Wishes, Peter
Friday Friends at 10am (FF@10)All are very welcome to join us; tea, coffee and cakes will be provided - all free of charge!’
