These are difficult, worrying times for us all. We are living in an unprecedented era of medical emergency so it’s completely understandable for people to be anxious, troubled, lonely and perhaps depressed.The Dunsfold Church Community is here to help you. Jesus taught us “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you looked after me.”Inviting people in may be off our agenda in the current coronavirus crisis but the sentiments remain absolutely correct. And as Jesus promised: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”Revd Ian Maslin is now living in the Rectory, Church Green, Dunsfold. We are setting up a network of support workers to help the people of Dunsfold in any way we can. That may be in running errands, helping with shopping and other practical tasks. Or, and this has already become evident, it may be in making regular contact through telephone calls and emails to people who are feeling lonely.If you want our help please do not hesitate to call the people whose numbers are listed below. As a community we can come together. If you are in isolation, or feeling isolated, you are not alone. We are here to help. Likewise, if you’d like to join our band of volunteers you can sign up by calling us.Finally, let us share in our prayers part of a very relevant collect for Lent. “Give us grace to endure the sufferings of this present time with sure confidence in the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen”Reverend Ian Maslin 200048 reviandunsfoldandhascombe@gmail.comSheila Jones Churchwarden 200204 sheilajones4@btinternet.comDavid Walker Churchwarden 201140 davidwalker2020@hotmail.co.uk
The Church continues to be alive and active - and more creative than ever - but our buildings must close in the Diocese of GuildfordHere in the diocese, we have already suspended public worship and are rapidly having to find new ways of living, worshipping and serving our communities.Following the announcement by the Prime Minister Boris Johnson of sweeping restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus, the Archbishops and Bishops of the Church of England have urged everyone to follow the instructions given by the Prime Minister to stay in their homes in a national effort to limit the transmission of the coronavirus (COVID-19).It means all Church of England churches will close with immediate effect in line with the Government’s instructions. There will also be no weddings or baptisms in churches, regardless of the number attending. Funerals at the graveside or in crematoriums can still take place, but only in line with the Prime minister’s Statement.All this is in the recognition that - should our attempts to distance ourselves physically from one another be ineffective - more people will die.In the light of this, the time has come for us in Guildford - in common with every English diocese - to close our church buildings entirely, given how important physical distancing is in saving lives. This includes all associated rooms, facilities, parish offices and halls. So as to counter any message that the church is simply giving up shop, we are also asking you to put up notices wherever you can fix them (e.g. on doors, noticeboards, websites and other social media channels) explaining ways in which people can continue to join with the church in worship and prayer remotely and without gathering, providing an emergency contact telephone number where you can.The doors of our churches should now be closed, even for private prayers. Celebration of the Eucharist by Parish clergy should be conducted in their homes rather than the church. Further guidance is expected today and we will share what is available at our 4pm brief. Our most profound desire remains to stand alongside our neighbours with the faith, hope and love that Jesus inspires within us, using every tool available from the humblest pen and paper to the cleverest of technological gizmos. We may well feel a sense of profound loss in all this, maybe appreciating the wonder of our normal church life all the more now that it's been temporarily taken from us. We may be discouraged, frightened or worried. But given all we're coming to understand about COVID-19, and in the light of our God-given commitment to love our neighbour (and especially our most vulnerable neighbour) there is really no other option. Although our buildings will be closed, the Church continues to be alive and active, and I for one have been massively impressed by the ways in which clergy and laity alike have adapted to such extraordinary changes, and at such a speedy rate. Please continue to commend tools for worship, bible study and devotion at home; please continue to live-stream as you are able (but please do this from your homes and not in the church, whilst also avoiding the need for more than 2 to gather - we'd recommend filming pieces separately and then editing them together) or find more traditional ways to teach, encourage and pastor all God's people; please check out the latest news and resources on our diocesan website; and please continue to pray for one another, and for us - as we do for you. Every Blessing,+Andrew
Church leaders in Britain and Ireland have urged Christians to support a National Day of Prayer and Action about the coronavirus on Sunday, March 22.People are asked to light a candle in their window at 7pm on Sunday “as a visible symbol of the light of life, Jesus Christ.”As well as calling for prayer for the Government and those working to contain the virus such as doctors, nurses, health workers and those who care for the aged and most vulnerable, the call to arms includes actions Christians can take.“Alongside your prayers, take the opportunity to telephone or email someone who is isolated, but some additional food for your local food bank or offer to deliver shopping to an elderly neighbour.”
Just 19 days ago Bishop Andrew was preaching to a packed Winn Hall in Dunsfold at the start of Lent. Nobody could have predicted how quickly our lives would change.Here's the letter Bishop Andrew has sent out to us all. We hope it will be of help to you and a source of inspiration going forward.Bishop Andrew writes...Dear Friends, The last few days and weeks have been a confusing and bewildering time for us all. A growing number across our communities have contracted the coronavirus, of whom a small proportion have died. A far greater number are now self-isolating, including many able-bodied men and women over the age of 70. Social gatherings have increasingly come to a halt. The economy is in freefall. And this week we all received the news that church services are to be suspended for the time being, so as to seek to contain the virus: another unprecedented move at a time when the very word ‘unprecedented’ is becoming almost a cliché. In all this there has inevitably been much talk of closures, cancellations and postponements, including the postponement of a visit of the Archbishop of Canterbury to our diocese, which was due to begin yesterday. Is the Church just shutting up shop, people might be wondering - to which the answer is a resounding No! For this current crisis is a time for Christians (including we clergy) to step up not give up: to let go of what’s less important so as to focus on what’s most important: to be not just the Church of England but the Church for England; to go deeper in our commitment to what Jesus described as the greatest commandment of them all: to ‘love the Lord our God with all our heart and mind and soul and strength, and to love our neighbour as ourselves’. So how might we love our neighbour at this time? Perhaps through committing ourselves to ten acts of kindness every day, especially in relation to those who are poorest and most disadvantaged among us: making sure that our Foodbanks remain properly stocked with provisions and volunteers; leafleting streets with offers to pray and to help; arranging for daily phone calls to those who are frail and housebound; joining in with local community initiatives (because Christians don’t have a monopoly on good ideas or compassion). Even the self-isolating can love their neighbour at the end of a phone-line, or in front of a computer, or by writing a good old-fashioned letter. How about expressing your appreciation of your Vicar, for example, at a time when she or he is likely to be feeling really pressurised? One of our churches has followed the Italian example in providing a little outdoor concert for those who are self-isolating in a block of flats in their parish. Another has taken round a hamper to their local GP surgery, to express their huge admiration and support of those on the frontline. Clergy will shortly be invited to join a diocesan Facebook group to share good ideas and learn from one another; and do please consult our diocesan website daily as we respond to the most pressing questions that are cropping up in our churches and our schools. Loving our neighbour is one thing, but how about loving the Lord our God when corporate worship is on hold? What might that look like? As you know, we’re in the season of Lent, 40 days and 40 nights in which Jesus went into self-isolation, to be tested, yes, but also to pray, to meditate on the scriptures and to deepen his sense of calling for the future. During that time he was echoing the 40 years that Israel spent in the desert before entering the Promised Land: a time in which there was no church or temple, but just a makeshift tent (the tabernacle) in which Moses used to meet with God day by day. So how might we meet with God over this time as we take time out to pray, to meditate on the scriptures and to reflect on our calling, now and in the future? What’s our tabernacle? Again parishes around the diocese are being really creative on this one, keeping their churches open where possible, providing spiritual resources for those who need them, making use of technology to help people feel connected, and above all praying, and calling others to join in. This coming Sunday the Archbishops have called us to a Day of Prayer, symbolised by putting candles in the windows of our houses and together lighting it at 7pm. And again there are some wonderful resources appearing on the diocesan website to help spiritually nourish us during this time in the wilderness. Loving God, loving our neighbours; and how important too, to love ourselves at this time: to be kind on ourselves as well as others, as we all adjust to a rapidly shifting landscape. And so finally to God’s Word through the prophet Isaiah: that ‘I will give you the treasures of darkness and the riches hidden in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by name’ (Isaiah 43:5). So what might be the treasures of darkness during this time? Perhaps a new togetherness as a nation, following the deep divisions of the Brexit debate. Perhaps a new connection between the church in England and the people of England. Perhaps deeper discipleship and new vocations arising out of those forty days and forty nights of self-isolation (or however long it lasts). Perhaps a new commitment to prayer, and above all a new recognition of the sheer wonder of the Christian gospel – that nothing (not even loneliness or sickness or death itself) can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. And, in recognition that the call to suspend public worship fell on St. Patrick’s day, a prayer from St Patrick’s Breastplate: Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger, Amen’. <span style="font-size: 1rem;">Every Blessings, </span>Bishop Andrew
