I am writing to say Thank You to you for all your support over these past six months - your time, commitment, and money. Without your support, the work of our five Churches in our communities across our Benefice simply could not happen. It is tempting to think that somehow things always happen or ‘will be alright on the night’, the truth is that this is rarely the case. As a grassroots organisation with limited resources ‘stuff happens’ in our Churches because someone has kindly volunteered to step in to plug a gap be that from doing a reading during worship, helping out at our Foodbank, or sweeping the church floor. Voluntarily offering of ourselves to support the life of our shared ministry is an important part of Christian discipleship. But I want to emphasise that, in whatever way you support the work of our Churches, your contribution is not taken for granted. April and May saw four Annual Church Meetings taking place for our five Churches. Cottered and Throcking share a Joint Church Council so ‘share’ one Annual Church Meeting. A big thank you to those who have stepped down from Parochial Church Council committees this time around after many years of faithful service between them including, Harriet Roche (Ardeley), Lynn Spicer, Tony Williams (Benington), Alan Bennett and Rachel Edwards (Walkern). Welcome to new members Clare Baker (Benington) and Tom Nutley (Walkern). An extra big thank you to our erstwhile Churchwardens who have agreed to continue for at least one more year (!), Jackie Hayward (Ardeley), Kathy Cassells and Lesley Greensmith (Cottered & Throcking), Beverley Harlow and Maggie Hawkins (Walkern). I want to pay tribute too to our PCC Secretaries who shoulder much of the administration supporting our PCCs, Julie Tyers (Ardeley), Christine Brown (Benington), Kathy Cassells (Cottered & Throcking) and Miki Phillips (Walkern). Our committees have some vacancies, including for churchwardens at Ardreley and Benington. If you would like to consider one of these roles or would like more information on the work of any of our committees, please speak to me or any of the committee members. Being part of the structures that help our Churches to think through and develop strategies for moving forwards into the future can be great fun! You can read Annual Reports for each Church on the various websites at A Church Near You and at Churches Together in Benington and Walkern. The Coronation of King Charles III was a momentous occasion for all of our Churches and the village communities we serve. Alongside the deep spiritual significance of the occasion commemorated in all of our worship, much fun was had by all. A number of Coronation events including the Flower Festival at Cottered have taken place. A number of projects within our Churches are also underway. The new oak posts around the War Memorial at Ardeley look splendid. Well done Ardeley PCC for bringing this project to fruition! A new Coronation Hedge is being planned for St Mary’s Churchyard at Walkern and Benington PCC is thinking hard about commissioning a Royal Coat of Arms for St Peter’s. Future generations will be able to look back and take note of how their forbears marked this historic moment in time and the important part played by their own Parish Church. Over the last year much time has been given over to ensuring that each of our Church buildings is up to date with its quinquennial survey. It is the statutory responsibility of each PCC to make sure that the church building is surveyed by an architect appropriately experienced and qualified to survey such historic buildings. We hold within our care some amazing ecclesiastical gems which both inspire with their great age and design as well as being sacred places for many for solace and quiet meditation. Each Church now has an active Fabric Committee in place and each of our five Churches is currently in the process of undergoing some degree of essential repairs. At Ardeley plans are afoot for major works to low-level masonry and stained-glass. After many years of debate, Benington is close to completing essential repairs to the Chapel. Cottered and Throcking are having some roof repairs effected whilst at Walkern the Chancel Roof is all set to be re-tiled. Apologies for any disruption these works may cause. We manage five building sites! £6 000 has been spent on quinquennial reports over the last little while, which sounds like a lot, however, these very detailed reports mean that we can develop clear strategies for works moving forwards. St Mary’s, Walkern will have its next quinquennial survey done sometime later this year. A particular joy this past Easter was to see three members of St Mary’s, Walkern Confirmed by Bishop Richard, the Bishop of Bedford, in St Albans Cathedral. I know that the journey of faith has been profound for each of them, and it is our particular privilege to continue to walk together beside them as they each find their place within the life and place of God’s Church. If you think the Church can be of any help to you, don’t hesitate to be in touch! God Bless, Mark Photo: Repair works to the Mortuary Chapel at St Peter's, Benington.
The Revd Writes… “All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small…” The words of the much-loved Victorian hymn have continued to inspire down the generations for its depiction of the natural world. The words capture the awe and wonder of God’s creation from ‘the purple headed mountain’ to ‘the tall trees in the green wood’, from ‘each little bird that sings’ to ‘the ripe fruits in the garden’. I’m very much hoping that having experienced a chilly April and May, June will see the advent of ‘the pleasant summer sun’! Growing up for most of my childhood and youth in Africa I learnt very quickly of the dangers that taking your dog for a walk across the South African veld could bring. In fact, walking with a dog was a good way of protecting yourself. Dogs make a noise, and their constant toing-and-froing helps to warn off poisonous snakes and aggressive baboons. Always carry a stout stick. And never forget that where there are baboons, there are often leopards. Big game was something I took for granted, smaller creatures only ever entered my consciousness if their sting or bite could prove to be lethal. Never reach up with your hands without being able to see what is there – scorpions, black widow spiders etc. This past Lent I took on the challenge of restoring a much-neglected pond in The Rectory garden. I’ve never had a pond before but was encouraged by our good neighbours Mags and Terry to bring back to life an overgrown derelict site that I soon realised was leaking! It has taken a good many hours to complete, including the need to reline but I was assured that the fruits of my labour would be more than amply rewarded. How true that has proved to be. I had not appreciated before the importance of ponds as a natural habitat. Frogs and toads I knew about however ponds as an important breeding habitat for newts has been a revelation. I now know that the area in which we live is a favoured habitat of one of Europe’s endangered species, the Great Crested Newt. The population of Great Crested Newts has declined significantly in recent decades due to the deterioration in pond provision. Newts need ponds in which to breed; without them, we are at risk of losing an important part of our biodiversity. At The Rectory we are still in the early days of fostering pond life, but we do now have a corner of our garden that has become a haven for a myriad of insects, a toad has been spotted. And recently, two Great Crested female newts appeared as if from nowhere… I’m learning to appreciate some of God’s smaller creatures. A trip to the pond never fails to excite. Creepy crawlies and slimy amphibians are finding a new home and I’m glad to be able to help. If you’ve ever been tempted to have a pond in your garden but never quite got around to it. Take the plunge. Lots of little creatures will be grateful. The ‘bright and beautiful’ are waiting to be discovered right on your doorstep. God Bless Mark
The Revd Writes… Jesus said, ‘Whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant…’ Matthew 20:26 As we come together within our village communities this month to celebrate the momentous historic occasion of the crowning of King Charles III it is worth reminding ourselves of the purpose of our Head of State. From biblical times, monarchy has always been viewed as functioning best when the Crown has served as a focus for national unity. We live in a diverse country - multifaith, multicultural and multilingual. In recent decades we have learnt, rightly, to celebrate our differences with mutual respect and patient tolerance. We have increasingly come to acknowledge that as a nation we are a community of communities, each with an identity of its own, celebrating traditions both religious and secular that act as reference points in keeping alive different histories and different ways of being. ‘Difference’ is not something restricted to large urban conurbations and cities but is often profoundly and quite intensely apparent in small rural communities often with the local parish church being the focus for loyalty. “This is our Village and our Church. And the Bishop can think what he likes but we are not going to travel to any other church or village for worship.” Such is a common expression of upholding difference as an important trait of local identity. Alongside celebrating difference, nation states and their economies flourish where a certain amount of competition is encouraged. Meritocracy promotes those who can over those who can’t. Everyone benefits when those with skills step forward and take up the challenge to move things onwards. This helps to regulate the marketplace. It also helps with providing necessary facilities for everyone and promotes the common good. I use the gifts and skills that God has given me. You use the gifts and skills that God has given you. Competition brings to the fore those best able to lead us into the future. Sadly, these utopian ideals highlight that many have little access to shine and many of those who do so seem to fall by the wayside having compromised their own integrity. Difference and competition bring both joys and exhilaration, but also stresses and strains that pull and jostle peoples who live alongside each other as a nation. It is in this mix that we are blessed with a modern-day constitutional monarchy whose task it is to hold together when sometimes it seems the emphasis is all on pulling us apart. This is a servant role, determined not by the King but by his subjects. It is a difficult task, requiring much wisdom and very careful judgement. Yet the benefits are great. It means we can stand shoulder to shoulder, whoever we are, wherever we live, in this United Kingdom. God Bless and Save the King. And God Bless You. Mark
The Revd Writes… For a number of years, I served as the Special Needs Governor of a large secondary school. The school served a number of large housing estates with significant pockets of deprivation resulting in an above-average intake of students facing particular challenges on a number of fronts. I can still remember one particular visit when I was asked to go and see a PE lesson taking place. Thirty fifteen-year-old boys were all lined up in two rows. One row was composed of quiet, studious-looking types who wanted to please and get on with the lesson. The other row was made up of boys who were laughing and joking, making it clear that they did not want to be there and longing for the day when formal education would be behind them. The PE teacher had his hands full trying to enthuse the whole class with the idea of cross-country running and keeping fit as part of a healthy lifestyle. The Vicar's presence didn’t make life any easier for him when it came to containing adolescent subversive behaviour. I was on the point of leaving, thinking this would be the most helpful thing that I could do when the Headteacher appeared. The Headteacher ruled the school with an iron rod and a jolly sense of humour, much respected by staff and students alike. Silence fell upon the PE group. Order was quickly restored as one teacher quietly acknowledged the Head’s support. The Head turned to me and said, “I’m not worried about the boys who are larking about. They are learning an important life skill, how to get by with charm and humour. Most of them will be fine. They have the gift of the gab. It’s the other lot, the academic types I worry about. Will they survive the system?” And then he said something I have never ever forgotten. “Always expect to be surprised by a child. Just when you think you’ve got them all worked out – they surprise you!” Gerard Hughes, a Jesuit, and writer on spirituality published a book in the late 1980s titled God of Surprises. It sold widely and is now recognised as a spiritual classic. Hughes, who struggled with depression, writes of his learning to encounter God in the everyday. It is a God of surprises who breaks through the gloom and chaos of a dysfunctional world, bringing relief and a new sense of purpose and life just when you think all is lost. Easter celebrates this God of Surprises. The crucified Jesus walks out of the tomb of death, to embrace the world with a universal love that transforms and rekindles the broken. Faith is the surprising gift of God to those with the courage to seek food for the soul in the day-to-day. New life emerges often from quite unexpected quarters. In the words of my Headteacher friend, ‘Always expect to be surprised by a child.’ And in the words of Gerard Hughes, ‘Always expect to be surprised by faith in God.’ Happy Easter God Bless Mark
