Christ Church Sowerby Bridge is pleased to announce that it has completed two important maintenance projects. The north wind may blow this winter, but the roof repairs to the South porch of the Grade II listed church are now complete. This was 50% funded by a grant of £700 from the National Churches Trust matching the church’s contribution from the Fabric Fund. Members of the church have also thanked the Rushbearing Committee, Community Giving Stream of Nestlé Halifax, and individual donors who have so far raised £1500 towards refurbishing the toilet area to make it warmer and more welcoming. Main informationThe work, which took place in October and November involved specialist repairs to ensure the wind and weather could not damage the stonework above the main entrance. In the toilet area damp penetration has been addressed, LED lighting responsive to a motion sensor has been installed and re-decoration is complete apart from the final floor covering due in the new year. Peter Henry Church Warden said “We are conscious that Christ Church is a key Victorian building in the centre of the conservation area but it is a challenge to keep it comfortable for use today. These two projects are small but important to ensure the church is in good order as we head towards our 200th anniversary in 2021.” In the four years since Sowerby Bridge was hit by floods the church has worked hard to ensure the building is better equipped and available for more community use. Today it is not only used for services but also as a space for community group meetings, seasonal events and exhibitions and, from 2020, as a concert venue.Recent Community events This Christmas the church has hosted visits from four local schools: Trinity Academy Sowerby Bridge, Tuel Lane Infant’s, Bolton Brow Primary, and its own Christ Church VA CE school for their end of term Christmas services in addition to its traditional parish carol service. At the annual Christingle service, (which raises funds for The Children’s Society) we gave out 150 Christingles and the church was filled with candlelight. This year the Community Development Board for Sowerby Bridge have installed a Christmas tree in the churchyard and several community groups including Sowerby Bridge Snails and the Fire and Water Community Choir met around it to sing carols. We have also collaborated with Happy Days and our local Tesco store to host an evening drop in for those needing food in our community.
Christmas at Christ Church would not be the same without the annual Christingle Service. Many feel that this is the start of Christmas, I know I do.Christingle starts on the Friday evening, when our Children Society representative goes and collects the oranges and sweets. It's always a guess on how many we need, this year she ordered 180 oranges.Saturday we had a team of people making the christingles, so they are all ready to hand out, at the end of it, they had made 179 christingles, one orange was bad.Sunday at 4pm was the start of our service, carols were sung, and this year for the 2nd year on the trot we have the Calypso Carol, may have to have little donkey next year.This was our first Christingle Service following the completion of the lighting project, the lints were lit low. People collected there christingles and we lit them all as the church lights were turned out, we then sang away in a manger by candlelight.This is a wonderful service as you watch the children's faces, holding the light of christ in there hands. This is why Christingle is special at Christ Church.</span>Note for next year, maybe 200 christingles will be required!</span>
For years Sowerby Bridge use to have 2 trees in the middle of the town, but for quite a few years there has not been a tree,, people have tried, with little trees in small areas so that there was something.This last year has seen the Sowerby Bridge Development Board come to life and one member of the board felt that Sowerby Bridge deserved a Christmas Tree.The following is taken from Gaza's wall on FacebookI and many others saw the feedback and comments with regards to the Christmas tree and lights situation in Sowerby Bridge in December 2018 and agreed with many that it was not good enough.I think the street lights this year are very much improved but I have always thought we could do better with a tree in the centre of Sowerby Bridge.Calderdale Council have donated a tree which is currently in the small park in Bolton Brow/ bottom of Gratrix Lane and will be relocated to a central location in the New Year for planting to grow appropriately for December 2020 and beyond.In the meantime, I have taken it upon myself to arrange a Christmas tree which is now firmly secured and displayed in the grounds of Christ Church at the bottom of Tuel Lane in Sowerby Bridge.There are a number of messages of thanks to those that have helped to get the tree in place:Cilla, Andrew & Dawn Denham and their family from Tommy Topsoil of Hubberton who have kindly donated, free of charge, an 18 foot Christmas tree;Sowerby Bridge Rushbearing Association (of which I am Chairman) for their kind sponsorship of the lights;Sowerby Bridge Development Board (our Town Board, of which I am also a Board member) for also sponsoring the lights;Chris & Shaun from The Hogs Head public house for their kind sponsorship of the installation of the tree socket at the church grounds, which we will be now able to use annually;Angela Dick, Peter Henry & Helen Pedley from Christ Church who have helped with the installation and dealing with insurance and other queries;Andrew Murray for his time and effort to ensure a timely pre-Christmas installation of the tree and socket at short notice;Richard Robertshaw and Dave Clay from Calderdale Council for their help and support with regards to various Christmas tree related queries; andLumalite of Mytholmroyd for providing the lights at a discounted price and Robert Whitaker of Norland for his help with installation.I hope you all agree with me that the tree is in a prominent location and is of size and scale appropriate for our town.The lights have been installed this morning and now just need checking in the dark for positioning later this evening. I have some additional light sets to add on if and when required.There are a number of events at the church over the next two weeks and Fire & Water community choir are planning a “carolling around the Christmas tree” event and invite the town to join them. Whilst the date and time is still to be confirmed, the provision date is Monday 23 December at 18:30.Should anyone else wish to contribute to the cost and ongoing running costs involved, please do get in touch as all support would be greatly appreciated.Thanks again to all that have supported.Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.Gaz BaigentAt last Sowerby Bridge has a Christmas Tree
On Sunday 20th October, we started a short series following the introductory booklet ’The Pilgrim Way: A guide to the Christian Faith’. Everyone received a copy of the booklet. Today’s focus tied in really well with the lectionary readings in that when we wrestle with things in life or feel like we’re hitting a brick wall we must do all we can to persist, persevere and stay on the Pilgrim Way following Jesus.Part of being a disciple, or follower of Jesus, is knowing what we believe and why? Being a disciple comes with the remit to be able to share our faith naturally and without awkwardness. It means loving the benefits of being a follower of Jesus so much that we want others to have the same assurance, security, comfort, hope and joy we experience in knowing Him. o Do you know what the Apostles Creed is about?o Why do we have baptism?o Why be a member of a church?o Why pray the Lord’s Prayer day af-ter day?o How are the ten commandments relevant today in our messed up world?o Why read the Bible?o What are the Beattitudes?Have you got all this stuff ‘sussed’ out? Are you stumped by any of the above? Then don’t miss this upcoming series on a Sunday morning when we will focus on these aspects of our faith to learn to-gether and be confident in our faith. There will be a free booklet available to help us on the journey.October 20th1. The Pilgrim Way – Introduction.October 27th2. The Apostles Creed – What we be-lieve.November 17th3. Baptism and the ChurchNovember 24th4. The Lord’s PrayerDecember 1st5. Holy CommunionDecember 8th6. The Bible and the Ten Command-mentsDecember 15th7. The BeatitudesWe still have a few booklets in church if you would like a copy
