celebrating life and faith · 10.00 mattam family communion* hew 16: 13-20 morning prayer (youtube)...
TRANSCRIPT
Celebrating life and faith
Return to All Saints! Sunday 12 July
Rector’s Letter
As I write this, we have just begun the process of re-opening the two church buildings in the parish. Sunday services have been held at All Saints and both our buildings, Keedwell included, have been open at set times during the week for people to drop in for a private moment of peace, quiet and reflection. Many people have availed themselves of those opportunities, whether regular churchgoers or not. If you were among them, I hope you have felt safe and welcome, and have found whatever it was you were seeking. On the one hand, this can be seen as a step on the way back to ‘normal’ but, of course, as welcome as it has been for many of us to be back in our sacred spaces, there’s not much ‘normal’ about taped-off pews, fellow worshippers at (more than) arm’s length, no congregational singing and no coffee! At the same time, we’re realising we have actually enjoyed many of the ‘abnormal’ aspects of the virtual worship of the last four months: unusual settings and backdrops, including the unadorned beauty of creation as well as various front rooms which help to locate faith in daily life; the contributions of folk from across the benefice we might not normally have met; imaginative and inspiring forms of liturgy and music. As one parishioner wrote to me: ‘Although I have missed being in the physical buildings I would say that we have 'attended' more services and engaged more fully as a family throughout lockdown. It has been fabulous to feel the support of the church family even from our living room… and we have had some really great family discussions.' Psalm 29 gives us a definition of worship: ‘ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendour of his holiness.’ Perhaps, after all, what we’ve learned of late is that God’s holiness is less concerned with what we might call ‘normal’ and his splendour can be experienced in a variety of very ‘abnormal’ settings.
Yours, in Christ, James
Sunday Services in August The Parish of Long Ashton
2 August Eighth Sunday after Trinity Isaiah 55: 1-5
10.00 am Family Communion Matthew 14: 13-21
‘Elevenses’ for young families (YouTube) Morning Prayer (YouTube) 9 August The Transfiguration Dan 7: 9-10,13-14 10.00 am Family service* Luke 9: 28-36
Morning Prayer (YouTube) 16 August Tenth Sunday after Trinity Isaiah 56:1, 6-8
10.00 am Family Communion Matthew 15: 21-28 Benefice family service (YouTube) 23 August Eleventh Sunday after Trinity Isaiah 51: 1-6
10.00 am Family Communion* Matthew 16: 13-20
Morning Prayer (YouTube) 30 August Twelfth Sunday after Trinity Romans 12: 9-21
10.00 am Family Communion Matthew 16: 21-28 Morning Prayer (YouTube) Each Sunday one of the church services in the Benefice (marked *) will be filmed for YouTube and made available as soon as possible afterwards, once editing can be completed. There will also continue to be dedicated online offerings via YouTube each month (marked in red). The YouTube channel is The CofE in Long Ashton, Flax and Barrow. It can be accessed from our parish website www.allsaintsla.org.uk
Midweek Services in Long Ashton
Keedwell Communion
We are considering recommencing the Friday morning Communion service at
Keedwell. If you would value this, please contact the Parish Office to resister
your interest.
Midweek prayer
There are two opportunities to meet for prayer this month using the Zoom
videoconferencing app. Details of how to join the Zoom meeting from your
PC, laptop, tablet or smart phone will be in the weekly newsletter emailed to
everyone on our parish list - or do contact the Parish Office if you are unsure.
COME ASIDE
Tuesday 4 August at 2.30 pm
As last month, the Zoom meeting will open and close with prayer, there will
be a Bible reading and a guided meditation with short silences. Do join the
meeting if you can.
HOLDING THE WORLD IN PRAYER
Thursday 27 August at 2.30 pm
Please come prepared to pray for whatever is on your mind, wherever in the
world it is, so we can all pray for it. TV and Radio news bulletins, newspapers
and magazines can all provide sources for prayer. All are welcome.
Barrow Gurney and Flax Bourton
The worshipping community will celebrate a Patronal Festival - the Blessed Virgin Mary - at the 10.00 am Communion service at
Barrow Gurney on 16th August
Readings: Galatians 4: 4-7 and Luke 1: 46-55
This service will be filmed for YouTube
BISHOP’S LETTER
Time for a rest I’m tired! I don’t know about you? And yet I am getting up later and going to bed earlier
than I was accustomed to before the pandemic struck. I’m travelling less, indeed I still
have an almost full tank of petrol and have had to call out the AA three times because the
battery has died! I’m at home principally, but my working day has got fuller and more
demanding as time has gone on.
So, I’m planning a holiday! A retreat and some study leave. Having been ordained 24
years I have yet to have a period of sabbatical and I’m looking forward to it! It is not going
to take the form I would have planned. There will not be the opportunity of a trip
overseas or a residential conference to attend, but there will be plenty of time for family,
rest, reading and reflection.
What about you? I know some of you might be feeling that our children have had one big
holiday at home since lockdown but I can assure you that they, their parents and their
teachers have all been working hard to ensure that learning can continue even though the
normal patterns have been disturbed. Whether we have been working from home,
furloughed or feeling alone in isolation, each of us will I expect have experienced
something of the sense of weariness that heightened anxiety, change of routine and
uncertain expectation brings.
So I want to encourage you to take some time off. There’s a fabulous little children’s story
called, Jesus’ Day Off, which you might like read as an example of the need for even the
Creator to re-create. The example of Sabbath rest which our Creator God offers us in the
opening chapters of the Bible, speak to us of the need for taking time to put down the
tools of work and take space to reflect and rest.
We have spent the past few months in lockdown in order to keep ourselves physically
healthy. Let’s make sure that in these next few months we attend as much to our spiritual
and emotional health, by discovering sabbath rest!
With every blessing
Bishop Ruth
The Right Reverend Ruth Worsley, Bishop of Taunton
Random Reflections Jill Watkins
Recently I have read two books, both very different but both have kept me so
engrossed that, on several occasions, I have gone to bed later than intended.
One, “Wilding” by Isabella Tree is the account of how the writer and her husband,
who inherited the Knepp Castle Estate, West Sussex in 1987, were failing to make
any profit despite intensive farming so in 2000 they sold their dairy cattle and
farm machinery, and put out the arable land to tender. In 2001 they embarked
on a rewilding project, not just because of a vague interest in wildlife but because
of losing “an impossible amount of money” and of meeting Ted Green, the
consultant of the Crown Estates at Windsor. It was an epiphany, the beginning of
a new way of looking after their Estate. They were further enthused by visiting
Frans Vera at Oostervaadersplassen, one of the most extraordinary Nature
Reserves in the world – 23 square miles of species-rich land which a few decades
before had been under water.
When the use of
pesticides, herbicides
and artificial
fertilisers stopped the
difference was
amazing. New
species arrived, both
plant and animal,
many of them very
rare in this country.
A soil survey found a much-improved soil structure, more air, better drainage,
more nutrients, more mycorrhiza (essential fungi), more necessary bacteria and
nineteen species of earthworms, an extraordinary and very beneficial happening.
Perhaps the greatest result of rewilding has been a 51% rise in carbon capture
mainly from neutral grassland and broad-leaved woodland and it all depends on
the soil, that thin skin enclosing our planet.
Most of us do not have acres of estate but many of us do have gardens or
balconies suitable for plants in pots. If we all do our best to encourage a wide
range of plants and good care of the soil, what a difference it will make to carbon
capture, the consequent slowing of rising temperatures and climate crisis. Happy
gardening!
My Faith and my Hairdressers 4 Stewart Gimber
In 1993 we moved 300 miles to West Cumbria, requiring us to find a new
home, new schools for the children, new doctors and dentists and of
course new hairdressers. For these there were obvious selection criteria.
The reasons behind the choice of church are more complex. Accessibility,
the range of services and choice of liturgy are important. A cold,
uncomfortable, colourless church without music will deter many. On
attending a service for the first time the nature, language and values of
the celebrant and the warmth of welcome from all matter greatly.
Is this an inclusive church? Will this church see our 3 small children as a
delight or a distraction? Does this church look outwards and live and work
at the heart of the community or is it an adjunct? Even with these
questions answered there will always be something intangible.
This January I returned to Cumbria and went to worship again at St
Bridget’s C of E church in Brigham. On stepping through the porch I felt
instantly at home and at peace. There was Brian with a firm handshake
and a broad smile; Mary asking immediately about Caroline; Derek
showing me proudly the beautifully restored Victorian painted roof which
his relentless fund raising had made possible; the congregation of 12
singing their hearts out; heartfelt prayer and intercessions and above all
that sense of a Christian community rooted in place and time.
I also went to visit my hairdresser, Kennedy. I remember vividly my first
ever appointment. He was grieving for his wife but was determined to
sustain the dignity, pride in his professional skills and deep and sincere
interest and care for his customers which over the next 20 years I came to
admire and treasure. He gave my son Hugh his first haircut and over time
became a great friend of our family. I found headship very difficult but a
haircut and a long craic with Kennedy would restore morale.
In 2013, settled in Long Ashton, I remember fondly our first visit to All
Saints, particularly the warmth of welcome and the lady who rushed up to
us after the service, carrying coffee and a beaming smile. “Are you new,
have a biscuit, it’s lovely to meet you and would you like to cut the grass
at Keedwell?” she said without drawing breath. Then we didn’t know her
name but now Angela we can tell you a secret. That morning we were
sitting in the car on the main road reflecting on your lovely welcome when
you drove through our wing mirror!
One task I didn’t face on returning south was to find a new hairdresser. It
was straight back to Mr Swanton’s in Clifton. One of the great delights in
life is to visit there in winter, fire lit, a test match in some warm clime on
the television, and spend time dissecting the world with Phil. The
appointment time is more a guideline than a deadline. Superficially
irascible; sometimes delightfully and deliberately controversial; always
kind, warm-hearted, laughing at life and super-skilled.
I started this reflection on faith in March as an antidote to the doom and
gloom of lockdown but ironically Covid 19 leads me to my conclusion.
With Mr Swanton’s closed the kitchen is now the salon, Caroline the
barber. As in life, so in lockdown, she is my greatest support. She ordered
the instrument shown, a replica of a tool of
torture used in the Spanish Inquisition.
Caroline offers a trim but I choose the full
Torquemada, the tool scraped across my
head until I scream whereupon she stops,
brushes the hair off the floor and stems the
flow of blood.
And similarly in church. The online services are great but it is people I miss
most. I was inspired hugely by Ann Sargent, specifically by her
determination and conviction to view every aspect of every day through
the prism of her faith. But at All Saints today I am surrounded by people
who share that gift, their unshakeable faith guiding every action they
make, every decision they take. My journey has been one of osmosis,
absorbing little bits of knowledge, inspiration and belief from those whose
deep faith and utter goodness I could never emulate.
So when Covid allows I look forward so much to catching up with Phil in
Clifton and if I can do that, and worship together again with the everyday
saints in Long Ashton, I have an outside chance of reaching old age with
my faith….and a parting.
Parish Profile – Robin and Anne Ellison When the Ellisons moved into their newly-built home in Highlands in the summer of 1966, they were immediately visited and welcomed by existing villagers: Janet Davis and son Ben, and the Westmacotts (Revd Ian was then Vicar), thereby laying the foundations of a relationship with church and community which has now lasted over half a century. ‘That has been Long Ashton for us ever since,’ says Robin: ‘a community of love in action.’ Over 50 years later, Robin and Anne delight to see the loving, supportive spirit of the village and parish being adopted and expressed afresh by new generations - through the LA Covid Support Network, for example, or through seeing children and families featuring in the benefice YouTube worship. Robin and Anne met on Boxing Day 1961 in the Lake District when, as Anne recalls, ‘the man of her dreams’ crossed the room to introduce himself at a drinks party. Both from clergy families, Anne’s father was then Vicar of Cartmel Priory and Robin’s parents had recently retired to the same village, his father having served as Vicar of Langdale. Born in the East End of London, Anne then spent her formative years in the parish of Ingatestone in Essex - where she still considers her roots to be. Childhood memories include Sunday school processions of 30 children singing and marching around the room, taking it in turns to hold aloft the banner proclaiming ‘God is Love’; and her father kneeling by the bed at night to pray ‘Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord…’
Robin’s education took him to various boarding schools around the country from the age of five. He then experienced what he describes as his ‘Great Liberation Day’ aged 18, when he was called up for the adventure of two years’ national service with the Gurkhas in Hong Kong before a modern history degree at Oxford. Anne similarly embraced the freedom of life in London while studying for a music degree at the Royal Academy of Music and making full use of the free entry to concerts which her scholarship afforded her. Working life began for Robin in Nottingham, with Imperial Tobacco, while Anne taught music at Bedford High School, where the regular visits of a flashy green TR3 caused great excitement among Miss Foulerton’s young students. Marriage in 1963 was followed by the arrival of David and Helen in Nottinghamshire, before a move to Long Ashton where Robin continued his career at the company’s Bristol site, and Peter and Rachel were born. There are few areas of church and community life in Long Ashton which have not benefited from the Ellisons’ enthusiastic involvement ever since including: music groups and lessons, the Mothers’ Union (including a pioneering community care scheme which Anne led for 13 years), the PCC, the Scouts, the Parish Council, LACCA and Northleaze School. Through this full and eventful life, what has been consistent about God? For Robin, it has been countless examples of love in action, and the capacity of faith to encompass doubt and question; for Anne, an enduring sense of God’s palpable presence even in times of sorrow and sadness. And now, they see lockdown as a time to enjoy a simpler and slower pace of life with time to pause and appreciate just how much they have been given. Long Ashton would surely say they have been the givers in so many respects. The village is blessed by their being among us.
August Animals Elizabeth Mumford
Challenge 1:
The animals in the pictures below were all photographed in and
around Long Ashton. Can you identify where they were found?
Challenge 2:
The Bible is surprisingly full of animals. Try to see how many times
animals are mentioned in just one book of the New Testament.
We recommend either:
St Luke (read chapters 2 - 22)
or St Matthew (read chapters 3 - 26)
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CLASSES IN BALLET (RAD)
MODERN JAZZ & TAP DANCING
Church House, Long Ashton Road
For children from age 2.5 years
FREE TRIAL LESSON
EXAMS, SHOWS, COMPETITIONS!
Tel. 0117 9655660
www.344danceschool.com
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Please note that during the Lockdown these events are not taking place
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1st Saturday of the month from 9.30 am
Long Ashton Village Hall, BS41 9DP
Locally Sourced Food and Crafts
Café serving Fairtrade tea/coffee
Cakes
www.longashtonvillagemarket.co.uk
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Richard Muxworthy RIBA
Chartered Architect
• Wide range of experience
• New build
• Extensions & Conversions
• Housing -
Commercial and Industrial
Phone: 01275 394314
Mobile: 07821335 870
Email: [email protected]
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HOLIDAY BUNGALOW
EAST DEVON
AREA OF OUTSTANDING NATURAL BEAUTY
• 3 bedrooms
• Sleeps 6
Overlooking the sea
between Sidmouth & Branscombe
Near the South West Coast Path
NEXT TO THE DONKEY SANCTUARY
Cliff & Val Bond, tel. 392148
www.stoneleigh-holiday-park.co.uk/cornerstone
Paul Martin BDS
Martin Smith BDS
Jon Moore BDS
Adam Kolaczkowski BD PG.Dip
Chestnuts Dental Practice
www.chestnutsdental.co.uk
11 Lovelinch Gardens
Long Ashton, BS41 9AH
01275 392297
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Woodcarver
HOUSE NAME PLAQUES
HAND CARVED IN OAK
Open to commissions. To discuss, and
see examples call 07587211171
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We have been handcrafting classic and contemporary jewellery in our workshop for over 30 years.
Come and discuss your bespoke commissions in the studios and view our exquisite range of bangles and cufflinks.
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Home Farm, Barrow Court Lane,
Barrow Gurney – 01275 464030
Town & Country
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Tel: 01179 638779
Mobile: 07850 617565 Mobile: 07775 991869
email: [email protected]
1a Melvin Square, Knowle, Bristol, BS4 1LZ.
Police (non-emergency) 101
Long Ashton Doctors Surgery 01275 392281
Chestnut Dental Practice 01275 392297
Long Ashton Pharmacy 01275 392289
Parish Council 01275 393551
Library Service 01934 426060
Bristol Royal Infirmary 01179 230000
Bristol Royal Hospital for Children 01179 230000
Southmead Hospital 01179 505050
South Bristol Community Hospital 01179 643300
NHS Non-Emergency 111
Electricity cut 105
Gas leak 0800 111 999
Bristol Water Leakline 0800 801 011
Wessex Water 0345 600 4 600
Useful Telephone Numbers
Nailsea District Leg Club
We’re looking forward to getting together again and seeing lots of familiar faces. At
present this unlikely to happen in the near future and adjustments will have to be put in
place in order to ensure it is safe for members and volunteers. In the meantime the nurses
are keeping up their good work looking after the clinical needs of our members: hopefully
those that can, are able to keep up the walking and/or exercises.
Some good news is that Nailsea District Leg Club has been selected as one of the featured
Love Local causes between July - September 2020 by Tout’s Budgens, Nailsea. The Pink
Tokens are out of action for now so they will ask Signature members to vote for the charity
via a poll sent out in the monthly e-newsletter. At the end of September, £150 will be split
between two charities depending on the amount of votes received in the online poll. So
please vote! And if you’re not already a Signature member, sign up online – it’s free and
you get lots of good offers.
PARISH CHURCH FLOODLIGHTING
Floodlighting
13 August Loving Memories of Gwenda Hynam.
With much love from husband Mike, sons Ian & Liz, Paul &
Sophie and granddaughter Jess x
Floodlighting may be booked to celebrate a family event, a special occasion,
in remembrance etc. for a donation of £5 to church funds. If requested, an
entry may be made in the magazine Floodlighting Diary. Enquiries to the
Parish Office please. Forms also available in All Saints Church.
Parish Church Notices
We would like to thank Stewart and Caroline Gimber and
Clive Conolly for delivering all the weekly information and
service sheets for those who are not online.
CONTACT US…
Rector The Revd James Harris
The Vicarage, Church Lane, Long Ashton BS41 9LU
Telephone: 01275 602331
James’s day off is usually a Saturday: please do not contact him on that day except in an emergency
Parish Office Carolyn Conolly (Parish Administrator)
Church House, 74 Long Ashton Rd, BS41 9LE The office is closed to visitors during the current Lockdown; Carolyn mostly works from home Tel: 01275 393109. Email: [email protected]
Web site: www.allsaintsla.org.uk For Baptisms and Weddings, contact the Parish Office
Other staff The Revd David Mumford (Deacon) 14 Clifton Vale, Bristol BS8 4PT
Tel: 0117 9272221. Email: [email protected] Janet Turp (Reader) 25 Copford Lane Tel: 01275 392954. Email: [email protected]
Jill Watkins (Reader Emeritus) 1 Rayens Close Tel: 01275 393282. Email: [email protected] The Revd Richard Greatrex (Benefice Associate Priest) Tel: 01275 461179. Email: [email protected]
Other useful contacts
Churchwardens Stewart Gimber 01275 392602 Fiona Cunningham 07503174668 [email protected] Treasurer currently vacant
PCC Secretary Carolyn Conolly 01275 393109 Organist Colin Smith 07742742073 [email protected] Choir Heather Jenne 0117 9733451 Sunday School Elizabeth Mumford 0117 9272221 Bell Ringers Fiona Harper 01275 393651 Flowers Wendy Gibb (All Saints) 01275 394124 Angela Chorley (Keedwell) 01275 392777 Social Committee Angela Neale 01275 392336 Scouts Marc Stickley [email protected] Guides Gill Gay 01275 462575 Sisters of the Church Liaison Shena Garland 01275 392195 Safeguarding Officer Gill Miles 07484 157658 [email protected]
Parish Magazine
Editorial team: David Mumford, Sheila Crabtree,
Ian Skerratt & Victoria Cobley
Distribution:
Commercial advertising: Carolyn Conolly 01275 393109
Please submit material for the magazine by the first day of the month prior to
publication to [email protected]. If you would like your magazine
delivered to your home, please contact Carolyn Conolly.
This month’s cover photo is by David Mumford
Other photo credits: Stewart Gimber, Mike Crabtree
CHURCH HOUSE
Ideal location for all Social Occasions
Excellent facilities which include a well-equipped kitchen
with dishwasher.
Hall licensed for 100 and can
comfortably sit 80 to dine.
Contact 01275 393109 for more details
Please see our Web Site
www.allsaintsla.org.uk