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Events & Notices

For Diocesan news and events see the News and Events pages on the Diocese of Peterborough's website, including the Diocesan News (pdf) pages.

EVENTS

Quiet Day of Preparation for Fan the Flame
Saturday 10th May 2008, 10am - 4pm

Heavenly Father,
who in our baptism gave us the fire of your Spirit
surround us with your love and warmth
and fan the flame of our faith,
that we may respond to your call
to be a pilgrim people
encouraging each other
and welcoming all in your name,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Our week of mission, Fan the Flame, is now drawing closer. As you will be aware, the week in which we celebrate both our Patron's day and the Dedication of our church, has been chosen as our Fan the Flame week. This is the week of Sunday 21st to Sunday 28th September, 2008.

Our two missioners have been chosen and have accepted the challenge! Some of you will already have met Father Mark and Father Derek, who joined us for our Feast before Fast celebration just before Lent. They are already praying regularly for us, including using our Fan the Flame prayer, which is becoming more familiar to us all as we say it together week by week in the Eucharist. They hope we are also praying for them!

As part of our preparation together for Fan the Flame, we have arranged a Quiet Day on Saturday 10th May in church. This will be led by Father Derek on a theme taken from our Fan the Flame prayer:

'Fan the flame of our faith that we may respond to your call'

Fr Derek will give his addresses in church. However, you are invited to coffee in the parish centre from 10am in order to start in church for 10.30am. We will be finished by 4pm. Lunch and a cup of tea will be provided during the day. We will give a more detailed programme in the next magazine.

We do hope you will be able to join us for this quiet day of preparation. The following day will be Pentecost - so we can celebrate the work of the Spirit in us and with us as we continue our preparations for Fan the Flame.

There will be no charge and all are welcome for any part or all of the day. If you would like to know more, please ask Mary Wallis or any member of the Coordinating Group.

See you there!
Fan the Flame Coordinating Group

Taizé Evening
Saturday 17th May 2008 at 6.00 pm in the Lady Chapel
This is a short service of Taizé style worship lasting about half an hour.

The Ministry of Healing
We are currently looking at ways through which we may develop and refine this important aspect of our parish life. The monthly Healing Mass on the first Monday evening draws a modest though consistent number of worshippers, the quarterly afternoon intercessions before the Blessed Sacrament has been less well supported.

Now that we have begun offering the sacrament of anointing and laying on of hands in the Lady Chapel on the fourth Sunday we are taking the opportunity to revise our Monday evening pattern. In future, the monthly Healing Mass will be abbreviated to incorporate Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Pastoral Team intercessions for the sick. This will bring these two aspects of our current provision together in one act of worship, and we hope that a greater number of worshippers will feel able to join us.

NOTICES

Thank you
I would like to thank on behalf of you all those who have worked either behind and scene or 'front of house' to make our observance of Holy Week such a memorable and spiritually deepening experience. Though we may not always have the opportunity to say so, your efforts are very much appreciated by us all.

The Need to Make Economies
I should like to reiterate my thanks to all those who have responded positively to our recent Stewardship Renewal. The increase of our stewardship giving by something like 40% is welcome and encouraging news, and will reduce significantly any future shortfalls. It is also a telltale sign of commitment. However, even this achievement is substantially less than the sum required to balance our accounts, and we need to go further. The PCC has, therefore, been actively considering ways of bringing our regular income and expenditure closer together.

To be good stewards - in the fullest sense - it is not enough simply to ask for ever greater monetary giving. We also need to give of ourselves, our time and talents, and demonstrate that all such giving is used wisely. In our present situation in particular we need to take all reasonable steps to help ensure that waist and avoidable expenditure is kept to a minimum.

For example, and in order to reduce our sacristy expenses, the number of candles used in church on the high altar, nave pillars and elsewhere have been reduced or removed entirely. Typically these may be considered 'non-liturgical candles' whose purpose is simply to beautify the church environment rather than to indicate religious meaning or significance. I have received several generous and well-intentioned offers to pay for these; however, I think to accept these would be to miss the point. To pay for unnecessary candles, and in so doing to give the outward appearance of prosperity whilst in reality we are running an unmanageable deficit, is not to be good stewards. We must provide for the essentials first and be mindful of the virtue of making do or going without. (Fr Nicholas)

Mass on Weekdays
One of our most significant regular expenses is the gas consumption associated with heating the church. From Wednesday 2nd January, weekday services will be held in the Parish Centre so reducing the need to heat the entire church building for several hours for a thirty minute act of worship attended by a relatively modest proportion of our congregations. We envisaged that this will continue throughout the winter months.

Mass on Fridays
Beginning of Friday 4th January, and for an experimental period of six months, Mass will be held at the later time of Midday. A simple lunch will be offered for worshippers afterwards. We hope that this new arrangement will attract not least those who find getting going in the mornings difficult, who would value some fellowship during the day, or who are quite understandably not keen to venture out in the dark evenings. Please do come, and let us have your feedback.

'Can we afford a Curate?'
By now most of you will be aware that Paul Armstead, who is currently in training at St Stephen's House, Oxford and who completed a months placement with us last summer, will be coming to St Matthew's as our new assistant curate in June. He will be ordained deacon at Petertide, and be with us for not less than three years.

I understand that some of you have expressed concern over how we might, in our present financial circumstances, afford the presumed additional expenditure associated with this appointment. In the past St Matthew's provided and maintained a house for curates in Brookland Crescent. This property was sold approximately five years ago and the money raised used to meet the expense of the much needed rewiring and relighting of the church. At the time, the PCC was assured by the Diocese of Peterborough that the system associated with the provision of curates had in certain respects changed, and that the sale of this property would not hinder the placement of curates at St Matthew's in the future.

The responsibility for identifying, purchasing and maintaining a suitable house now rests with the diocese, although we 'on the ground' can help with the search. It is also the case that our parish share, or quota, which is approximately £60,000 p.a., will not be adversely affected for having a curate. The formula by which the quota is calculated takes into account the training of the newly ordained. In other words, we along with all other parishes are already making a contribution towards the training of clergy generally. As a result of recent changes to this formula our quota is set to decrease slightly this year.

The PCC will be responsible for meeting the curate's working expenses. However, this is in my view handsomely offset against the many potential benefits to the parish - in terms of ministry and mission - of having another full-time serving priest. As a community we should also consider what a privilege it is to play our part in the shaping and formation of a priest at the beginning of his ordained ministry. Properly and prayerfully carried through, many of the experiences (good and bad) gained during a curacy nourish and inform the ministry to follow. If you like, it is the difference between cost and value.

I hope you find this background information helpful. If you have any further queries please do not hesitate to speak with me. (Fr Nicholas)

New Intercessions Board
Our thanks are due to Zena Williams and the members of her family who have provided the recently introduced intercessions board which has been fixed to the wall situated between the north Quire passageway and the Lady Chapel screen. The board has been given in memory of Ron Williams.

Constructed of English oak, the board has been cabinet made to the highest standards by Penny's Mill, Marlborough, and is a splendid addition to the existing arrangements at the front of the Nave. The wood is intended to match the colour and finish of the communion rails, and the red baize backing material complements the floor quarry tiles. Please do take a look if you have not already done so.

At the time of writing the board will be dedicated on a day yet to be fixed when Zena's family are able to be present together. We hope that the board will be a much used focus for prayer, purposefully cited next to the votive candle stand and within sight of the Reserve Sacrament. May it also be a point where friends and well-wishers remember the gentlemanly and faithful worshipper who inspired it. (Fr Nicholas)