Bexley Team News for second Sunday after Trinity

 

Bexley Team News

 

St Barnabas, Joydens Wood

St James, North Cray

St John the Evangelist, Bexley

St Mary the Virgin, Bexley

 

13^th June 2021 Issue 65                                                                 Second Sunday after Trinity

 

The church buildings will have been thoroughly cleaned. As usual, face-masks MUST be worn (unless medically exempt) hand sanitiser will be used and social distancing of 2 Metres MUST be observed at all times. Do not attend if you or a member of your household is shielding or vulnerable.  The church doors will be open for ventilation, so dress accordingly.

 

 

 

St Mary’s                    10.00 am  Holy Communion

                                   3.00 pm Messy Church in church grounds

St James                      9.30 am  All age Worship

St Barnabas                10.45am Holy Communion and Patronal

St John’s                      8.00 am  Holy Communion

                                    10.00 am  Holy Communion

                                      Wednesday  10.00 am Holy Communion

Friday 10.00 am  Livestreamed Holy Communion: www.facebook.com/stjohnsbexley

                       

                                                                Team Zoom Services and Worship material

Saturday 12^th June at 5.30 pm                                                          Saturday Nightwatch Zoom Service

A reflective service at the end of the week

Sunday 13^thJune at 10.00 am                        Sunday Zoom Service

A Service of bible readings and prayer. See the final sheet of the BTNews for the songs.

Invitations to the above Zoom services are being emailed. If you haven’t received the link, or are having problems, please contact any member of the Team Clergy. Dial in option is available.

 

Bexley Team Children’s Church

The next Bexley Team Children’s Church will be sent out for Sunday 4th July. For other great resources and ideas please visit Diocese of Rochester | Family Worship in the Home (anglican.org)

 

Bible Readings  Ezekiel 17 v22-24  2 Corinthians 5 v6 – 10, 14-17     Mark 4 v26-34                     

The Collect: Lord, you have taught us that all our doings without love are nothing worth:  send your Holy Spirit  and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love,  the true bond of peace and of all virtues,without which whoever lives is counted dead before you.  Grant this for your only Son Jesus Christ’s sake, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

The Additional Collect: Faithful Creator, whose mercy never fails: deepen our faithfulness to you and to your living Word, Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Rev’d Edward writes-

A

s regulars at our Midweek and Livestreamed services will attest, I love a Saint’s Day – and what could be better than the average Saints Day than a Patronal Festival?

It can be very easy for us to encapsulate our thinking into the allotted spans of space and time in which we live our Earthly Lives, but if we do so we can miss the fact that the Christian Church can only be boundaried by the limitations of God who, being eternal, has no limits and so we the Christians of the Here & Now (the Church militant here on Earth, if you will) are part of one communion with all those who have journeyed with Christ in the past and all who will come to do so in the future.

 To know that the Church extends beyond history in this way leads to some rather lovely logic: As Christians we pray for one another. As Christians we believe in the Life Everlasting. This means that in the Christian Church the living pray for the departed and so too the departed pray for us.

We may see this in the structure of our intercessions in Church on a Sunday, when we pray for the dead and unite our prayers with those of the saints. It’s even clearer in November when the pairing of the invocations of All Saints and the memorials for All Souls line up in sequence to remind us that as we pray in Christ, even the veil between the living and the dead may dissolve to near-nothing.

 As we may find a certain reassurance when we hear that certain people are praying for us: Our friends, those in our churches, faraway acquaintances, so too we can find a particular affinity with certain saints –our patrons.

 It may be we have a name saint: For me this would be St Edward Barlow (also called St Ambrose), martyred in Manchester in the 17^th Century, but I also have a soft-spot for St Edward the Confessor, not least after attending some glorious Patronal Festival services and devotions at Westminster Abbey. Alternatively we may feel connected to a Saint through the date of their feast; a friend of mine, in the absence of a ‘St Graham’ is utterly devoted to St Bernard whose feast falls on his birthday. We may feel connected to the patron of something we do either professionally or as a past-time (I know several choir members at St John’s make time to observe St Cecilia’s Day) or because a story or legend of a saint resonates with us (Ask me another time about St Bride’s Bath of Beer!)...

And then come the patrons of the churches, our spiritual homes. Across the Team St Barnabas’s feast is the most imminent, being on the 11^th June, and whilst St John won’t be observed until the 27^th of December, we don’t have long to wait until St James on the 25^th July. Whilst there are a sizeable handful of Marian Feasts, the Church of England principally dedicates the 15^th August as the Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary which, in an odd curve-ball for Archbishop Cranmer’s ideas of a Reformed Church has long been held as the Feast of the Assumption. As an ecumenical aside, our Roman Catholic neighbours at St John Fisher will celebrate their patron on the 22^nd of June.

 So across our local area we have a range of Saints with whom to unite our prayers with and a range of Patronal Feast Days on which to offer a special prayer for one another. I’m aware that across the team, plans for patronal observances are underway and I’m looking forward to joining in prayer and celebration with our fellow churches here in Bexley and the Communion of Saints (perhaps the ultimate Team Ministry?) in God’s wider eternity.

Saints of God in Glory,
Be with us, rejoice with us, sing praise with us,
And pray with us now.

Zoom Services within the Bexley Team

 Over the last year lots of us have enjoyed engaging with worship online and for many it has been an invaluable lifeline in times of isolation. As our church buildings are now open (almost) fully, the clergy team have been considering carefully how we might move forward with our Zoom services. Currently we have a weekly 'Nightwatch Service' which meets at 5.30pm every Saturday night. We also have been meeting at 10.00 am each Sunday morning. As we move towards a time of fewer restrictions we are mindful of striking a balance between offering online content for those that still wish or need to engage that way, and juggling the practicalities of leading services in five locations (four church buildings and one virtual!)

Therefore from Sunday 4th July we will have our Sunday morning service at the earlier time of 9.00 am. This will allow a regular pattern of Zoom worship for those that want it, whilst also allowing the clergy team to lead in person services on a Sunday morning. The Nightwatch service will continue to be at 5.30pm weekly. 

We will not be holding a Sunday morning Zoom service on the 27th June due to lack of availability of leaders. The Nightwatch service on Saturday 3rd June will not take place because Rochester Cathedral will be live streaming a farewell service for Bishop James at 3.15pm that afternoon, and we warmly encourage you to engage with that. So, the pattern for Zoom services for the forthcoming period is:

 

Saturday 12th June - Nightwatch at 5.30pm

 

Sunday 13th - Sunday Service at 10am

Saturday 19th -  Nightwatch at 5.30pm

Sunday 20th -  Sunday Service at 10am  

Saturday 26th -  Nightwatch at 5.30pm

Sunday 27th - NO SUNDAY MORNING ZOOM

Saturday 3rd July - NO NIGHTWATCH (Bishop James's farewell service)

Sunday 4th - Sunday Service at 9.00 am (new regular time)

The live streamed Holy Communion services from St John's will continue to be available each week on Friday mornings (and still available on a Sunday too).

 

Canon

A huge thank you to everybody for their good wishes, gifts and prayers for me last Sunday, as I was installed as an Honorary Canon at Rochester Cathedral. Lots of people have said to me – Congratulations, Ren, but what does a Canon do? And, are you leaving? And what should we call you?

So probably worth a few words of explanation. First, my duties as a Canon are in addition to my calling as Team Rector of the Bexley Team, so no, I’m not leaving anytime soon!

There are two sorts of Canon at Rochester Cathedral. The Residentiary Canons are responsible for the day-to-day worship of the Cathedral, taking daily services and Sunday worship. Honorary Canons have a different role and the bishop gave the official explanation of what an honorary Canon does. This is taken from the service:-

“Canons are called to be committed and faithful disciples of Jesus Christ in their daily lives, and to give particular support to the Cathedral as a centre of worship, prayer and mission. Canons are to be counsellors and advisers of the Bishop in holy things. They are to be students of sacred learning, and of all such matters as tend to establish and confirm the truth of the Gospel and the discipline of the Church; to be diligent in prayer for God’s blessing upon our labours and those in this Diocese, especially for those of this Chapter; to maintain Christian fellowship and hospitality as far as in them lies; to be zealous for the beauty and service of this Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, and to remember with thanksgiving those who have gone before in this place in the confession of God’s holy name, particularly the Founders and Benefactors of this Cathedral Church.”

Canons usually wear a black cassock with red piping and red buttons, traditionally 39 of them to symbolise the Thirty-Nine Articles, the defining statements of the Church of England, forming part of the Book of Common Prayer, after the Reformation. My cassock was only long enough to accommodate 29 buttons, so I have 5 on each sleeve as well. The problems of being short! Canons are also entitled to wear the badge of the diocese on their black preaching scarf. So I am thankful to my dear friend Mary who sewed the badges on, but thankfully didn’t have to tackle all those buttons.

As to what to call me, just carry on calling me Ren! Officially my title in full is Reverend Canon Ren Harding.

I know some of you had the chance to see the service online, particularly enjoying the contribution of the voluntary choir and as at the time of writing the whole service is still available to view on www.rochestercathedral.org/worship-online

 

Archdeaconry Representative on the council of Friends of Rochester Cathedral. The Cathedral is looking for someone to take on this voluntary role – for a term of three years (about five meetings a year).Speak to Ren if you would like to find out more.

 

thirtyone:eight are seeking a Disclosure Service Advisor. More at https://thirtyoneeight.org/about-us/jobs/

 

Bexley Interfaith Forum: The next meeting of the Bexley Interfaith Forum will be held on Zoom on Tuesday 27^th July at 7.30pm on Zoom. The Speaker will be the Anglican Bishop of Tonbridge, the Rt Rev’d Simon Burton-Jones on the subject of Challenges facing Religious Communities following the lockdown and the Covid pandemic.ZoomLogin: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83092088701?pwd=VitFNEkwaGowM3oyYW9qbkZ4MklyUT09

Meeting ID: 830 9208 8701 Passcode: 407069. A further meeting is being  planned for 7.30pm on Wednesday October 20^th on the topic of Mental Health.

 

 Housing Justice - The Medaille Trust in Kent-  webinar  Wednesday  16^th June, 4-5pm.The Medaille Trust exists to provide refuge and freedom to victims of modern slavery – supporting them as they rebuild their lives. The Moving On Project reaches out to female survivors living in the community, providing support to those who might not have access to such services, regardless of their status in the National Referral Mechanism. Find out more about the Trust and the work of Miranda Cassidy, Local Coordinator 'Moving On Project' in Kent Register athttps://mailchi.mp/housingjustice.org.uk/webinar-from-the-medaille-trust-in-kent?e=[UNIQID]

 

Pilgrimage: Clive will be leading a holiday to Austria and Oberammergau including the Passion Play 22-29 June 2022. If you would like to consider joining the group printed  and e-copies of the holiday/pilgrimage brochure are available-  please let Clive know.

FINANCIAL GIVING TO THE TEAM CHURCHES

For St Barnabas Any contributions can be dropped off at the Treasurer’s house or at the Vicarage. Or you can give by BACS transfer. In all cases, if you are a taxpayer please “Gift Aid” your giving.  If you have any questions regarding this please contact, David Peters on 01322 529796 or by email  davidpeters45@hotmail.co.uk

 

For St James, North Cray Contributions can be dropped off at 91 The Grove, or made by BACS transfer, contact Suzy Higgs on 07799072548.Please make cheques payable to St James, North Cray PCC.

For St John's   You can give to the continuing upkeep and ministry of St John's via our Just Giving page: www.justgiving.com/stjohntheevangelist-bexley

For St Mary’s  If you ordinarily make your financial contributions in church but, in the present circumstances, wish to contribute by cheque then please make your cheque payable to St Mary’s Bexley PCC and send it c/o C. Lee 11 Holmesdale Road, Bexleyheath, DA7 4TJ. Your continued support is very much appreciated.

 

Each week the musicians at St James North Cray offer links to a selection of songs and music for us to enjoy. These can be found on our website www.stjamesnorthcray.org.uk/welcome/music/

 

St John’s Sermons are posted each Sunday at fatheredwardbarlow.wordpress.comSocial Media - engage with us via Facebook (/stjohnsbexley), Twitter (@stjohnsbexley) and Instagram (@stjohnsbexley)

 

THE BEXLEY TEAM CLERGY

Team Rector: Rev’d Ren Harding     renharding@hotmail.co.uk                 01322 528923             07836644782

Associate Priest: Rev’d Sue Twynam           susantwynam@btconnect.com           01322 559501             07952 468127

Team Vicar: Rev’d Edward Barlow   fr.edwardbarlow@gmail.com                        01322 521786

Team Vicar: Rev’d Clive Wood         revclivewood@gmail.com                  01322 270942             07982 392809

Team Curate: Rev’d Matt Hodder    matthodder10@gmail.com                                                    07889873125

 

 

 Hymns for our Sunday 10.00 am Zoom Service