Our Lent Course takes place each Thursday in Lent at 7.30pm in the Lady Chapel in church. It is based on #LiveLent: Care for God's Creation, the Church of England's Lent campaign for 2020. The weekly themes are shaped around the account of creation in the first chapter of Genesis and explore the urgent need for humans to value and protect it. Inspired by the Archbishop of Canterbury's 2020 Lent Book, "Saying Yes to Life" by Ruth Valero, each week the course will look at at a different aspect of creation. There will be a reflection on a reading from the Bible, points for discussion and time for prayer. There will also be suggested actions to help us live in harmony with God, our neighbours and with nature. The themes will be:Week 1 - Light and energyWeek 2 - WaterWeek 3 - Land and plantsWeek 4 - Stars and seasonsWeek 5 - Creatures of sea and skyWeek 6 - Humans and other animals
Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent and is an important moment in the church year. There will be two services of Holy Communion on Ash Wednesday (26 February). The 11am service will be a said service without music and the 7.30pm service will have hymns and music. At each service, there will be an opportunity to come forward and have a cross of ash marked on your forehead. This is not compulsory and you are welcome to come to the service and not do this.Image: CC from The Church of England.
It was wonderful to welcome Rt Rev'd Anne Hollinghurst, Bishop of Aston to our morning service on Sunday January 12th when we celebrated the end of the long-standing project to re-roof the Church Hall. There are one or two final touches to be managed but we have at last basically reached the finishing line.Bishop Anne and the Vicar, Rev'd Canon Priscilla White led the service ably assisted by Readers and others in the congregation. Bishop Anne preached and led us in rededicating the Hall and ourselves to the service of God.(The order of service can be seen below)
The Queen has nominated the Right Reverend Stephen Geoffrey Cottrell, MA, the Lord Bishop of Chelmsford, to the See and Archbishopric of York, in succession to the Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dr John Tucker Mugabi Sentamu, MA, Lord Archbishop of York, who retires on 7th June 2020.Stephen was educated at the Polytechnic of Central London and trained for ministry at St Stephen’s House, Oxford. He served his title at Christ Church and St Paul’s, Forest Hill in the Diocese of Southwark and was ordained Priest in 1985. He studied for an MA with St Mellitus College which was awarded through Middlesex University.In 1988, Stephen was appointed Priest-in-charge, St Wilfrid’s in the Diocese of Chichester with the additional role of Assistant Director of Pastoral Studies and Tutor in Apologetics at Chichester Theological College. In 1993, Stephen was appointed Diocesan Missioner and Bishop’s Chaplain for Evangelism in the Diocese of Wakefield and in 1998 he took up the role of Springboard Missioner and Consultant in Evangelism. In 2001, Stephen was appointed Vice Dean and Canon Pastor of Peterborough Cathedral. Stephen was appointed Bishop of Reading in 2004 and took up his current role as Bishop of Chelmsford in 2010.Stephen is married to Rebecca who is a potter. They have three sons.
