BOWDON CHURCH NEWS FEBRUARY 2006
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THE TIME OF OUR LIFE
Who started pushing the merry-go-round faster and faster? How has the technology which was supposed to give us more time made it feel as if we have less?
Who coined the phrase ‘cash rich but time poor’ to describe the way of life for many people today? Stress is one of the maladies of our age, and one of the causes of stress is a feeling that we don’t have enough time – there are just too many things to do and too little time to get them done. Surely we are made for a different rhythm to our lives than this. If we believe that we are made in God’s image then perhaps there’s something we can learn from Him about time. He who created all things rested.
“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.”
Genesis 2: 1 – 3
Reflecting God’s wisdom in labour and leisure, in creation and recreation, God’s people kept that day of rest as the Sabbath. Keeping the Sabbath became the fourth of the Ten Commandments, observed in the Jewish and Christian faith. It’s sad that its keeping could be taken to extremes and could seem life-denying and not life-affirming, which is the very thing it should and can be. Sabbath is a gift, and rediscovering ‘Sabbath’ in the sense of rediscovering a life-balance between work, rest and play is so important for our frantic world today. Our Pathways groups this Lent will look at this issue and see what we can learn for our daily lives. The five sessions will look not just at Sabbath as Sunday, for Christians, but the idea or practice of Sabbath in a wider sense: Sabbath days, not necessarily Sunday, Sabbath moments in a day, Sabbath attitudes and Sabbath seasons. Lent is a particularly appropriate season to pause and take stock, and so a particularly good time to look at this theme.
Below you will see the Pathways home-groups which will be running during over five weeks. If you are interested in joining please ring the number of the host for the group which suits you, or simply turn up. If going to a home-group is new to you and you’d like to know more, please ring me on 928 2468.
The groups are suitable for anyone. Though the theme is about the busyness of life and finding a life-balance, it doesn’t necessarily have to do just with people who ‘work’. Many people increasingly work hard but may not be salaried. We are all caught up in other people’s busyness and the 24/7 world we live in. So give yourself a break and join a home group this Lent.
With every blessing
[signature of KH]
LENT HOME GROUPS 2006
ALL BEGIN WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 6 MARCH
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MONDAY |
TUESDAY |
WEDNESDAY |
THURSDAY |
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* St Luke’s Church 9.30 am Tel: 929 6849 Children welcome |
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** St Luke’s Church 1.00 pm Tel: 928 5051
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5 Churchfields 8.00 pm Tel: 928 4735
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12 Stanhope Rd 8.00 pm Tel: 928 7933
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8 Winton Rd 8.00 pm Tel: 927 7469
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3 Chomlea Devisdale Rd 8.00 pm 929 9931
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* The Thursday morning group is particularly suitable for those with young children
** The Thursday lunchtime group is a ‘Soup Group’ – beginning with a soup lunch and then a time together of reflecting on ‘Sabbath’ and ‘Life-Balance’.
REPORTING ON PROGRESS
This month will see the first of a series of Progress Suppers at various venues in the parish. Each Supper will give the Fund-Raising Team, on behalf of the Church Council, the opportunity to thank those who have contributed to this project by giving an update on progress and setting out the next phase of the fund-raising. At the same time it will give the Team the opportunity to encourage anyone who is still considering making a donation: they will have the chance to see how they could help us move closer to the time when we can start building.
The giving remains a matter of confidentiality, so you may receive an invitation as someone who has given or as someone still considering doing so. In either case, I do hope you will accept this invitation to the Supper (which is free of charge).
THE CHRISTMAS TO EASTER CHALLENGE
EVERY DOANTION MADE NOW WILL BE MATCHED BY A FURTHER 10%!
A member of St Mary’s has made a generous personal donation and now wants to encourage others to do the same by offering to match any donation with a further 10%. This will apply for any donations made between now and Easter. So, if you give £100 this will be matched by £10 ... if you give £10,000 it will be matched by £1000! And beyond! This is a real inspiration and encouragement. . . and we are grateful to this Church member, who, like so many of us, wants to see this vision become a reality. If you are still considering making a personal donation I am sure this will encourage you to give generously, knowing that the amount you give will be met by a further 10% and, of course, if you are a taxpayer, there will be a further 28% from gift-aid. So your donation can go a long way towards Building for Bowdon.
For further details on how to make a donation, please contact the Appeals Secretary David Manning on 928 1472
The Laing Trust
It was encouraging to hear recently that the Laing Charitable Trust has made a grant of £10,000 to what it views as, in its own words, “clearly a very necessary project.” We are grateful for this support and the Fund-Raising Team continues to seek funding from other sources. If you are able to offer any advice in this area through your own contacts, or through corporate matching grants, please contact Sue Sinagola on 928 3082.
Fund-Raising Events
Our thanks go the Scout group for their Christmas gift-wrapping service which raised over £300. The Monday morning Keep-Fit Group continues to run and raise funds. Look out for a ‘Pamper Evening’ in the Spring and a Car-Boot Sale is in the planning too.
A WINE-TASTING EVENING: Thursday 2 February at 8 pm in the Johnson Hall
John Lambie and Andrew Fishwick will be presenting an
evening of wines from the Languedoc. John and Andrew have travelled the
region and have got to know the wines well. Places will be limited, and
admission will be by ticket only. There is no charge for the ticket, but
donations are invited to the Parish Appeal. There will be the
opportunity to make this donation on the evening.
It promises to be a popular evening, so to book your ticket please call the co-ordinator for the evening, Alexia Hine on 928 2468 or alexiahine@hotmail.com
[Demand for tickets has been high. There are very few left. Call now to avoid disappointment – Editor]
AN EXHIBITION OF PAINTINGS
There will be an Exhibition by Val Lines and Prue Wallis Myers at Hale Library from Monday 6 March to Saturday 11 March
(closed on Wednesday).
Sales of the works on display will be in aid of
The Building for Bowdon Appeal for the Parish Centre
If you have ideas for a fund-raising event for the Parish Centre please contact me on 928 2468 or the Appeal Secretary, Sue Sinagola, on 928 3082. We welcome ideas but of course we will need to coordinate the events.
“TO HAVE AND TO HOLD, FROM THIS DAY FORWARD”
On 12 February
(as near as we can get to St Valentine’s Day) the Evening Service, at 6.30 pm,
will focus on Marriage through the hymns, anthems, readings and organ
music. This is an ideal opportunity for those planning to be married this
year, but also for anyone who wishes to give thanks for marriage. Of
course the music is worth hearing for its own merits, so it is a service for
anyone and everyone, but it is also a time to pray with and for those preparing
for marriage. Coffee will be served after the service, with the chance to
meet with the clergy and the Director of Music and the Organist
A BRIEF LOOK BACK
Thank you to all those who helped to make Christmas so special at St Mary’s and St Luke’s. It was good to open the doors to so many, from our School carol services, the Trekkers with their Christmas presentation to the Christingle and the Nine Lessons and Carols. It was good to be able to share some our blessings too: the Christingle service, including gift-aid, raised over £1000 for the work of the Children’s Society, and a large number of brand-new toys were taken to the Partington Family Centre in time for Christmas. They were very much appreciated. The staff at the Booth Centre were delighted to receive contributions of food as well as gloves and hats. Thank you on behalf of all these organisations to you for your generosity.
SUNDIALS
In our November issue we featured an
article on the Church clock. Not many of our readers will know that a
much more ancient method of telling time, a sundial, stands in the Churchyard.
Sundials are thought to have been used to mark the passage of time from the
very earliest man. As early as 3500 B.C. the Egyptians began building
slender, tapering, four-sided obelisks which served as timepieces. The moving
shadow of the obelisk formed a type of sundial, and markers arranged about the
base separated the day into divisions as well as indicating the longest and
shortest days of the year.
Have you ever noticed on a sundial that the shadow thrown by the stick, its proper name is a gnomon, only goes half-way round the circle, unlike the hands on a proper clock? As the sun only moves from east to west its shadow can only move in that one direction also, which will be therefore only be 180 degrees. The shadow will always move clockwise – which is where we get that expression from.
Before mechanical clocks began to be commonly used in the fifteenth century many churches had a sundial on the wall to show when the ‘Mass’ would take place. They were constructed differently and vary in form, size, detail and position in the many ways. But they all have a central hole in which the gnomon or style was fixed and from which lines, if any radiate. One line is usually marked better than the others – the usual hour of the mass in that church. In Medieval days the walls of churches were coated with a form of cement and lime washed both inside and out. Mass or Scratch dials were then painted in the scratched lines near the main door or the priest door at about four to five feet above the ground. Since then many churches have had parts rebuilt or porches added, so the mass dial can end up almost anywhere inside the building, even on a north wall.
The one in St Mary’s is now listed and stands just to the south of the church building
BARBARA HOGG: IN LOVING MEMORY
Last month many people gathered at St Mary’s to give thanks for the life of Barbara Hogg, who died peacefully on 14 January. She had been for so many years a devoted and hard-working member of the Church and the community. Barbra spent her early years in Surrey, and it was there she met the man she was to marry. It was his work in the family business in the cotton industry of McIntyre Hogg Marsh which brought her to this part of the world, firstly to Dunham and then to Bowdon. Barbara and her family became involved in the life of the parish. She was a founder member of the 4th Bowdon Cubs, which of course still thrives to this day as part of the 4th Bowdon Scout Group; and the Sunday School, firstly ‘on the top of the hill’ and then at St Luke’s. Under her and the other leaders the Sunday School grew and thrived. I meet adults in Bowdon today who still speak fondly and gratefully of their time in ‘Mrs Hogg’s Sunday School’. She was key member too of the Martha Guild, the group which works hard to keep St Mary’s so clean and welcoming. In recognition of her service she was given the freedom of the Parish.
As well as her hard work in the parish and the community Barbara was a devoted and loving wife and mother and sister. She will be very much missed by her sister, her three children and their families. We all remember her commitment to God’s Church, her faith, sense of humour and kindness.
“Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter now into thy Master’s rest.”
PRISON VISITING.
“I was in prison and you visited me” Matthew 25: 36
A member of
the congregation at St Mary’s is secretary of the National Association of
Official Prison Visitors at Manchester Prison [Strangeways.] There are about
1,200 prisoners in HMP Manchester and at present only 5 OPVs, and there is a
real need for new visitors. If you think you might be able to give a few
hours weekly or fortnightly, afternoon or evening, to visit a prisoner who
has no other visitors, please ring Ann Ford, 928 0996, for further details.
The motto of NAOPV is Time to Listen, Time to Share, Time to Care.
BOWDON BROWNIES welcomes enquiries about joining the Pack.. For further details please note that the contact is now Ms Jo Deadman on 941 4223
A NOVEL APPROACH TO JESUS
If you still haven’t spent that token from Christmas you could well try Walter Wangerin’s new book. His much-acclaimed retelling of the Bible as a novel, The Book of God, has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. He now turns his attention to the life of Jesus Christ in this gripping novel. The story starts with the young Jesus attending Passover in Jerusalem, where his mother tells him about the extraordinary events surrounding his birth. The focus then moves to Jesus’ ministry - his miracles, preaching and parables - and his interaction with a wide range of people before he starts the journey to Jerusalem for his final Passover, culminating in his crucifixion and resurrection. Faithful to the gospel accounts and expertly retold, this is an engrossing read for all intrigued by the person of Jesus.
Jesus: A Novel by Walter Wangerin £14.99 ISBN: 0 7459 5202 X
Registers
Baptism We welcome into God’s Church family
Oliver Davies
Funerals We commend to God
Frances Blackburn Barbara Hogg
Weddings We congratulate
Jonathan Dutton and Catherine Higgs
Bulletin Board
Bowdon History Society
Monday 13th February at 8 pm at Bowdon Downs Church.
Mrs Rosemary Marsh “The Red Rose Guild.”
The Sixty Club
Monday 6th February 7.30 for 8 pm at The Bowdon Rooms.
Speaker:- Peter Worrell “Music, Sir John Barbirolli and the Hallé Orchestra.”
Enquiries Dr. B. Shaw 928 3699
St Mary’s Guild Coffee Morning at Larkhill, Heald Road. Friday 10th March, 10.30 am to 12 noon. Proceeds for Guild funds and Building For Bowdon. Admission £1.00
An Illustrated Talk on travelling the West Coast of South America, in aid of the Parish Project by John and Molly Barrat on Thursday 2 March at 8 pm in the Johnson Hall
Calendar for February
Morning Prayer is said in St. Mary’s at 8.45 am
Monday to Friday. Entry through the vestry door.
1 (Wed) 11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
2 (Thu) 10 am St. Luke’s, Holy Communion (BCP), with Mothers’ Union.
10.30 Coffee drop-in at St. Luke’s.
8 pm Wine Tasting Evening
5 Fourth Sunday before Lent
(First Sunday in February)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Holy Communion.
10.40 am Trekkers.
10.45 am Holy Communion, (Order One).
Oblations: The Gardeners.
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Choral Evensong.
8 (Wed) 11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
8 pm A Service of Healing.
12 Third Sunday before Lent
(Second Sunday in February)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Holy Communion.
10.45 am Family Service.
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Evening Service “To Have and To Hold From This Day Forward” - a service focusing on Marriage.
13 (Mon) 2.30 pm Bible Reading Fellowship meeting at 34 Bow Green Road.
15 (Wed) 11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
7.30 pm PCC Meeting in the Johnson Hall.
16 (Thu) 2 pm First Steps.
19 Second Sunday before Lent
(Third Sunday in February)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am Said Matins.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Holy Communion.
10.40 am Trekkers.
10.45 am Holy Communion, (Order One).
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Evening Prayer (BCP).
22 (Wed) 11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
2.15 pm St. Mary’s Mothers’ Union. Methodist Speaker at The Methodist Hall.
26 Sunday next before Lent
(Fourth Sunday in February)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Morning Worship.
10.40 am Trekkers.
10.45 am Holy Communion, (BCP).
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Evening Praise.
March
1 Ash Wednesday
11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
8 pm Holy Communion and Liturgy of Healing for Ash Wednesday.
2 (Thu) 10 am St. Luke’s, Holy Communion (BCP), with Mothers’ Union.
10.30 Coffee drop-in at St. Luke’s
8 pm Illustrated Talk on West coast South America in aid of the Parish Project.
5 First Sunday of Lent
(First Sunday in March)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Holy Communion.
10.40 am Trekkers.
10.45 am Holy Communion, (Order One).
Oblations: The Choir.
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Evening Prayer. (BCP).
8 (Wed) 11.30 am Holy Communion.
12 noon Lunch Club.
8 pm A Service of Healing.
10 (Fri) 10.30 am to 12 noon St Mary’s Guild Coffee Morning at Larkhill, Heald Road. Proceeds for Guild funds and Building for Bowdon. Admission £1.00
12 Second Sunday of Lent
(Second Sunday in March)
8 am Holy Communion.
9.30 am St. Luke’s Holy Communion.
10.45 am Family Service.
followed by coffee at the back of the church.
6.30 pm Choral Evensong.
Each week we pray for people living in the Parish.
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We pray for those living in |
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5 Feb |
Birch Tree Close. |
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12 Feb |
Fletcher Drive, Weaver Close and Thatcher Close |
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19 Feb |
Huxley Terrace, Brickkiln Row, Edale Close and Priory Court. |
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26 Feb |
Primrose Cottages, Primrose Bank, Robinsway and Bailey Walk. |
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5 Mar |
Vale Road, Ledward Lane and Ashworth Close. |
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12 Mar |
Apsley Close, Apsley Grove and Bollin School. |
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