24T H J A NUA RY 2016
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UNDER THE ROOF Vicar’s Blog
Stand up in church this Sunday and have a look around you at either the 10.30am or 4pm congregation. (Perhaps don’t do this during a hymn or song as people might think that you’re a bit weird.) I expect that you will see people that you don’t know. Most Sundays I see and meet new people, and I am very grateful to be leading a church that seems to be incrementally growing. If anyone is praying for explosive growth could you please stop right now – we’re the Church of England after all. And although I deliberately have no idea at all as to who gives what financially, I do sit down with our Treasurer regularly and count the beans. After a number of stable years, in 2015 our regular gift-aided giving increased by 9%, to which the government adds a further 25%. (We’ve invested that increase into Children’s’ & Youth ministries.) Each
month new people are generously committing to the mission and ministry of the Abbey and I am profoundly grateful for this sign of healthy discipleship and our ability to pay the coffee bill. Less healthy is our roof, which ironically looks quite splendid on the front cover. Every 5 years we get an architect’s report that sets out our agenda for caring for the whole Abbey for the following 5-10 years; both the smaller works and the big scary items. Because of this we know that we are facing two scaries: a big roof project in 2017 and significant work on the West End in about 2020. We know that the 2017 roof work will cost £165,000, and this is obviously an item so large that it can’t come out of our everyday budget, unless I give up coffee. The good news, yes honestly(!), is that if we apply in the
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next few weeks we have a very real chance of obtaining a government grant of £100,000. Combine that with some support locally from trusts and we may have the far less scary challenge of raising £35,000 from our congregation and the local community. That seems an achievable price tag for a roof on a 12th century building. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t mind putting a new roof on a building as long as there is committed prayer and imaginative ministry going on beneath the roof.
A B B E Y D I A RY THIS SUNDAY: January 24th 9am BCP Communion 10.30am Holy Communion 4pm Informal Worship & Junior Church 6.30pm Choral Evensong THIS WEEK EACH DAY 9am Morning Prayer WED 27th 10.30am Communion THUR 28th 10.30am Time for Chat 7pm Choir Practice th SAT 30 10am The Meeting Place
So why are you bothering us now vicar? It’s simple really. We need to be able to demonstrate in our grant application next month that the £65,000 we would pay is already pledged from trusts and individuals.
NEXT SUNDAY: January 31st 9am BCP Communion 10.30am Holy Communion 4pm All-age Communion
So we are not asking for a penny now; but a signed form indicating what you will give to this project on January 1st 2017. It might be £100, £1,000, £5,000; we’ll each have an idea of how the Lord might want us to chip in, appropriate to our income. Please don’t rush out and sell a kidney, but please also don’t recycle this and dismiss this as buildings stuff and not Christian ministry. God is doing something under the roof.
HOLY WEEK ADVANCE DATES Mar 14th Garden Labyrinth begins Mar 16th Late Night Glory! Mar 19th Ben Holder Quartet & Rosie Archer st Mar 21 Anthony Hammond: Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde Mar 22nd Riding Lights: Crosslight (Passion Play) Mar 23rd Royal Academy of Music Mar 25th Abbey Choir Mar 26th BBC Wiltshire Service
LU K E 4 : 1 4 - 2 1 14
Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15 He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18
‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ 20
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’ Additional Reading: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10
NEXT SUNDAY: Luke 2:22-40. Signs: The Prophecy
DISCIPLESHIP 1. Read the Luke passage through and then compare with Isaiah 61:1-2 and Isaiah 58:6. What differences do you notice and what might be the significance of this? 2. These passages speak of Jesus being the Messiah. Look at Revelation 5:1-7 and discuss how this relates to our passage. 3. How would you have felt going back to Nazareth in Jesus' position? 4. The Jews would have understood the acceptable year of the Lord in relationship to the year of Jubilee (see Leviticus 25:13-17, 39-41.) What does this mean in relationship to Jesus' declaration? 5. Within your context, in what ways are you able to communicate the good news of Jesus?
D A I LY R E A D I N G S Monday: St Paul Psalm 67 Acts 9:1-22 Matthew 19:27-end Tuesday Psalm 36 Genesis 13:2-end Matthew 26:17-35 Wednesday Psalm 46 Genesis 14 Matthew 26:36-46 Thursday Psalm 47 Genesis 15 Matthew 26:47-56 Friday Psalm 65 Genesis 16 Matthew 26:57-end
REGULAR GIVING If you would like to give regularly to the mission and ministry of the Abbey as part of your discipleship, please e-mail alan@malmesburyabbey.com. m
A S H W E D N E S D AY
SMALL GROUPS
Lent, a 40-day season of reflection, fasting and spiritual renewal, begins on Ash Wednesday, February 10th. There will be two services of Holy Communion with Ashing that day at the Abbey, at 10.30am and 7pm. Led by Neill, with a short reflection from Revd Linda Sullivan, this will be an opportunity to re-commit yourself to Christ for the season ahead.
Over 150 people at the abbey are connected to a Small Group. If you would like to join one, particularly in time for Lent when we are asking all small groups to meet weekly and share a meal together, please contact Neill who will try and connect you to one in the coming weeks.
CHORAL EVENSONG
W ELCOM E P IZ ZA
Our Choral Evensong moves to its new home, on the 4th Sunday of the month, this coming weekend. At 6.30pm a service of beautiful choral music by JS Bach, Stanford & Paulus, with ancient prayers and Bible readings. Led by Neill, with a reflection from Catherine Price, and conducted by John Hughes and Becky Saunders. Join us.
For those new(ish) to the 4pm congregation there will be a Welcome Pizza at the Abbey at 6pm on Sunday 7th February, shortly after the 4pm service. A chance to get to know a few new faces and meet some of the leadership team. Please contact Rachel Robertson, our 4pm Families Pastor, to let us know if you’re planning to be there: rachelr356@hotmail.com
Small Group Pastors, there is a training session from 8pm-9.30pm on Monday 1st February in the Parish Office.
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NOTICEBOARD N E W PA R I S H S A F E G U A R D I N G O F F I C E R As a church we are committed to ensuring children and young people are safe from abuse and their wellbeing is enhanced. Deborah Poneskis is our new Parish Safeguarding Officer for children and young people. Deborah is available for anyone to speak to regarding concerns about a child or young person and will ensure we are working to the very highest standards. She can be contacted on 07903 898609 / safeguarding@malmesburyabbey.com.
L I T T L E S TA R S Little Stars is the Abbey’s new baby and toddler group which will be meeting in the Abbey on Mondays from 10am-11.30am. There will be free-play, craft activities, refreshments, story time and action songs. The group will start on Monday 22nd February (£2 per family).
L I T T L E S TA R S H A L F - T E R M S P E C I A L To launch Little Stars in the community we will be bringing in a Bouncy Castle and Ball Pit for our little people during half term. There will also be free-play, craft activities, refreshments, story time and action songs. Everybody with babies and pre-school children can just turn up and enjoy the fun on Monday 15th and Tuesday 16th February, 10:30am-12:30pm (£3 per family). If you have a baby or pre-school child but have older children with you because of half term, they are very welcome to come with you, however please be aware that the space will be set up for younger children. Please pick up a flyer from the back and hand them out to anyone you know who has a young child and start spreading the word about Little Stars! For more information please contact Andrew Beebee, our Children’s’ and Youth Minister: andrew@malmesburyabbey.com.
CONTAC T
ABBEY OFFICE
ABBEY KITCHEN
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