the bridge - 4u

The BridgeThe FREE magazine of All Saints Church Marlow

Lent 2015 www.4u-team.org Lent 2015

Thank-you Marco!

“We are ordinary people led byan extraordinary god, whose loveinspires us to welcome everyone, serve our communities and grow

as we follow Jesus together”

THE BRIDGE Lent 2015

Dave Bull

Roles & Responsibilities

Choose seven from among you who are known to be full of

the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word. This proposal pleased the whole group.” Acts 6.3-5

“The reason I left you … was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you” Titus 1.5

Ever since the earliest days of the church, Christians have had to work out how to organise themselves. Like a human body, the church is designed both to be highly organised and to grow organically. Both of these things should go hand in hand. If there is no organisation (for example if a new ear starts growing out of your leg) or if there is no growth (for example if your cells stop renewing themselves) it is a sign that something has gone badly wrong! So it is with the church also.

Fortunately, God has given us plenty of guidance about how we should organise ourselves. The first step is that each member of the Body of Christ needs to work out where they fit in the body. “You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12.27 – read the whole chapter for a beautiful description of how the church is supposed to work).

Do you know where you fit? The booklet we recently produced, called “What is my part?” was designed to help you find out, if you don’t already know. It is available on our website. The second step is that – as the body grows – the way it is organised needs to grow with it. Think of the skeleton and the body. The skeleton may not be visible, but it’s very important it grows at the same rate as the body!

In the book of Acts, the early church saw a time of exponential growth. It wasn’t long (chapter 6 in fact!) before the church saw that although “the number of disciples was increasing” there were complaints that things weren’t being properly organised (v. 1). The disciples therefore appointed more leaders, delegated tasks to them and the result was that, once again, “the word of God spread and the number of disciples … increased rapidly” (v.7). A few years later, the letter to Titus was written to help establish godly order among the elders appointed in the church planted in Crete.

One of the ways I am here to serve you as Team Rector is to ensure the skeleton is growing. We don’t grow the church, that is God’s job, but I need to make sure we are growing in a healthy way. As you will know, we are enjoying a period of significant growth. I thank God every day for the way his Spirit is moving

to rebuild and renew the church of All Saints Marlow. Without God we can do nothing. The Holy Spirit is also moving in very significant ways in our sister churches in the 4U team, in the other churches in Marlow and indeed across the whole church in our country. It is an exciting time to be a part of the church!

I believe we stand on the brink of seeing some extraordinary growth here. What we are seeing is only the beginning. We have an extraordinary God who is inviting ordinary people like you and me to be part of his growing church. Please come and join in! Don’t miss out on an adventure that you will look back on at the end of your life and say – “I was part of that!”.

To organise this growth – and to enable further growth in the future – it is time for us to ‘grow our skeleton’ in All Saints Marlow. We are therefore introducing a new team, which we are calling the ‘Church Leadership Team’, which together will lead the day-to-day running of the church. Overseen by our Church Council (the DCC), these eight people will be responsible for all areas of church life.

The roles and responsibilities of this team are set out on the chart printed overpage. I hope it is self-explanatory. Six of the roles already exist: Rector, Curate, two Wardens, Director of Music and

“


Treasurer. Two of the roles are new. The Church Council has given the go-ahead to appoint a Children’s Worker and the role will be advertised in the coming weeks.

We have also appointed Muriel Reynolds to the (unpaid) role of Church Operations Manager. Those of you who know Mu know that she is a prodigious organiser of anything and everything. In other words, she is exactly what we need to help

us get organised as the church grows. She will be responsible for the smooth running of Sunday worship, communications, IT and anything else she gets her hands on! Please pray for her as she starts this new role from 1st March.

My prayer is that this team, which I will be leading, will serve our church to resource the growth we are currently seeing and expand it into the future. Please pray for us as we work together, as we will

be praying for you. And please let us know those things we are doing well, and those things we could be doing better.

Finally – a date for your diary. Our church Annual Meeting will be held at 10.30 am on Sunday 19th April. It will be the only morning service held that day. At it we will elect our new leaders and you will be able to hear about where I think God is calling us to go as a church together. Please don’t miss it!

What do all the vicars do?

Dave Sarah Graham & Sami Wendy Gabrielle John Mieke /

StanMarlow Weddings Civic life

Bisham Little Marlow Discipleship Baptism

Marlow Bottom Evangelism

ASM 1059 Alpha

ASM 8 & 9.15

Bereavement Healing

ASM 6.30

Pub ministry

Sundays Funerals

In more detail:

Church / Leader(s)

Area of ministry

Marlow Dave, Wendy, Gabrielle, John

Marlow BottomGraham & Sami

Little Marlow Sarah

Bisham Sarah

Church planting n/a n/a Evangelism

Graham & Sami Team mission strategy Churches Together mission Discipleship

Sarah Small groups Baptism ministry Confirmation Schools Sandygate & HT Burford Little Marlow Bisham Team‐wide leadership

Dave Wedding ministry Marriage Preparation Civic Life (including trusts) Bereavement ministry Gabrielle Healing service Alpha Wendy Tea and Theology Open Church n/a Pub ministry John n/a Sunday services, baptisms, weddings, funerals All

Retired ministers: Mieke Gaynor (Anglican) and Stan Jones (United Reformed)


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During the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, all the

meetings were well supported. At the United Service held at the Methodist Church, a congregation of over 60 people was enthralled by Roy Crowne’s inspiring address based on Jesus’ healing of the paralysed man, who was lowered through the roof by his friends. He likened the friends to the visionary, the planner, the worker and the supporter, all coming together in God’s service. Young people from Activate participated in the service, and £250 was collected for ‘Love Marlow’.

Over 80 people gathered at St Peter’s School for the Unity Supper to enjoy good food and fellowship, and hear Phil Evan’s talk on the work of Christian Aid. An average of 20 people took part in each of the prayer meetings, and the week ended with a service of Healing and Reconciliation at Christ Church attended by 24 people.

Pancake Day was celebrated again at the Methodist Church.

Tony Threlfall

Churches Together in Marlow

Even more people than usual came to enjoy delicious soups and pancakes, and £600 was raised for Marlow Lighthouse in the summer. Provisions for making the pancakes were provided by Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.

Three ecumenical groups have been formed to follow the York Course, Praise Him – Songs of praise in the New Testament during Lent. Four church groups will also be using the material.

On Good Friday, the annual Walk of Witness will start from Quoiting Square at 11 am and

THE BRIDGE

The Bridge is published four times a year. The next edition is Summer, June - August 2015. Please submit copy to the Editor (as a ‘Word’ or ‘Open Office’ document) by May 29th with a copy to the Producer.

Editor: Stanley Jones 01628 485463 e-mail: [email protected] Producer: Derrick Southon 01628 487588 or 07501 128605 e-mail: [email protected]

This edition, together with previous editions of ‘The Bridge’ are available as colour PDF files on the Church website: www.4u-team.org

end with an open-air service in Higginson Park. This is a wonderful opportunity to show that our faith matters by walking behind the cross of Christ. The walk is intended to be a solemn procession and everyone is encouraged to maintain a dignified silence.

The ‘Love Marlow’ planning group is working hard to ensure that the week leading up to and including the Town Regatta will not go unnoticed. So far, some 20 organisations including churches, shops, pubs and clubs have agreed to take part. There will be united church service in Higginson Park on Sunday 14th

June.

To whet your appetite, go to www.lovemarlow.co.uk and look out for the promotional video coming soon.


Music MattersMartin Seymour

After fifteen months we have said a sad farewell to Marco

who has done an excellent job of accompanying our choirs and working with singers across all the groups. It hardly seems any time at all since the unassuming German flew over to chat to the churchwardens and myself, with a view to spending a year here. As it turned out he spent somewhat longer in Marlow with the help and thanks to the Music Trust. Marco became an integrated member of our community and gave much pleasure to those in the church during the week whilst he was practising.

Finding a replacement for Andrew Horton and subsequently Marco will not be easy. Although we have many positive elements to attract an experienced candidate, travelling from London or the Oxford area could be an issue along with the constraints of the budget in which we have to work. Our youth outreach programme which now attracts fifty six treble choristers and five young gentlemen to the choirs drawn from fifteen schools doesn’t come cheap! However, to

support all these peoples’ efforts and others we need to continue to look for the right person to be sitting at the organ. Please keep spreading the word as we want to be able to maintain our ability to lift the worship of the church to the extent that we currently do.

It was great to see nine girls being inducted into the girls’ choir a few weeks ago and there are another three to come! It was lovely to see their parents being welcomed in the parish hall afterwards too as we aim to make one unified community. By the time you have read this we will have had a similar occasion for five new boys taking the numbers in the boys’ choir to nineteen.

At the time of writing we will be off to Southwark Cathedral in a few days time to sing Choral Evensong. This will be the second visit we have made, having been there in 2013. A beautiful building to sing in and special to be part of an ongoing living tradition where music has led the worship for centuries. Why not take a look at the choirs’ Facebook page for some photos

of the occasion?

Our trip to Budapest in October is starting to take shape We are taking thirty-seven trebles and sixteen men along with support staff. This is a huge undertaking but one that is hugely worthwhile and will be remembered by the participants for years to come. Truly international outreach! We have our local twinning association on board who are being helpful with arrangements in Budapest itself. The tour is being funded by the individuals and their parents who are going along with some fundraising events and an opportunity for you to sponsor a chorister! Watch this space for more info! There are other opportunities for you to get involved in the music of the church too. There are always vacancies in the worship band at the 10.59 service, the Occasional Singers (who sing once or twice a month) and in the men’s choir if you are a tenor or bass with some experience and music reading ability. Why not contact me via the parish office or email for further info? [email protected]

Good News!

It is with great delight that I tell you that after the OFSTED Inspection just before half-term, the decision was that Little Marlow School no longer required special measures and it is now judged to be good in all areas. This is excellent news and is testament to the amount of work that has gone into the school by Mrs Best, the previous Headteacher, Mrs Lock, the present interim Headteacher and all the staff at the school since the previous inspection two years ago. The children at the school are now in very safe hands and I am sure the school will go from strength to strength. We owe a great debt of gratitude for the hard work and professionalism to all the staff at the school. Pam Fawcett, Chairman of the Governors


FarewellMarco Lemme

I came to England in September 2013 with the prospect of

staying for about three quarters of a year in order to experience the English church music and improve my language skills.

I’m still here and I am staying for some further time as I will be starting as the organist at King Edward’s School Witley in April. I’m looking forward to work and live at an English boarding school with a strong music department, where my duties include teaching all sort of ensembles as well as classes.

I am very grateful to DoM Martin Seymour, the ASM clergy, the members of ASM choirs and to the congregation for the warm welcome back in 2013, as well as for the support and interest in my person from your side. And above all I have to thank my host families for their great generosity, all of them made me really feel at home!

I’ve had a fantastic time in Marlow, I’ve made a lot of friends; I’ve learned a lot (music, liturgy, English) and I also travelled pretty much across England in order to discover its beautiful landscape with great historic places and stunning cathedrals. It’s time to say farewell now although I’m sure I’ll come back once again to meet friends or play the organ. I wish all the best to all members of the congregation of ASM and I say thank you again!

The Rotary Club of Marlow

Concert by two Youth Orchestras & Choir

Saturday March 14th 7.30 pmAll Saints Church, Marlow

Proceeds donated to the Chiltern Music Academy and charities supported by Rotary

www.marlow-rotary.org.uk 01628 521635

Adults £10, Under 18’s £5Tickets from Marlow

Information Centre or at the door


Church Fabric UpdateRichard Powell

Did you know that in 1888 the Church leaders declared

that it would no longer heat the Church in the winter other than on Sunday mornings as the Church funds were £39-3s-6d in arrears!

Did you know that in 1835 the cost of building the current church was just over £12k. It has recently been re-valued at £15 million!

Church Fabric and Fittings

In recent months a number of changes and improvements have taken place in the Church. We trust that you have found them helpful as we worship together and take forward our vision to be welcoming, serving and growing.

Pulpit Our G W Street pulpit is considered to be a fine example of his work and was introduced into the church in 1863. It was subsequently relocated to its current position during re-ordering work in the 1880’s.The pulpit had become unstable due to loosening of the joints and was at risk of collapse if the structure was pulled or rotated. It was agreed that there was a need to resolve this by dismantling the upper half of the structure and re-building it with added reinforcement. The work was carried out successfully last autumn by A J Jones stone

mason from Reading. Two grants were obtained for the work and this covered nearly 50% of the cost which totalled £8,000 including the strengthening of the handrail. The balance was covered from a church fund held to support work on the fabric of the building.

Sound Desk

In October 2013 the sound desk was struck by lightning that also caused considerable damage to the organ. Following extensive investigations a new desk was installed in the autumn along with new speakers and amplifier for the choir and chancel area. We were blessed in our choice of consultant to have John Bowen working with us. He has given us a huge amount of support and advice and is totally sympathetic to the vision of the church, being a member of St Marys Maidenhead. The cost of £5,000 was met by a combination of an insurance payment and church funds.

Screen and projector

A new permanent screen and projector installation was carried out prior to Christmas. It has improved the quality of projected images, reduced set-up time and enables the technology to be used without obstructing the chancel area. It offers much greater flexibility and the future opportunity to use it for other services and events. The cost of £13,500 was met primarily by gifts given specifically for the installation with a small balance being met from church funds.

Emergency Lights

Emergency lights have been installed at key locations in the church. This is to ensure that in the event of a power failure there is sufficient light to take necessary action. In the event of the need for an emergency evacuation they will guide people in the appropriate direction. The emergency torches are being retained in the cupboard with the first aid kit!

Lighting

A number of the lighting units in the church have been changed, on a trial basis, to LED lights. A faculty has now been obtained to change the remaining lights over and this will happen in the near future. The LED lights will hopefully remove the need for regular replacement of the


halogen tubes which is a high risk task needing use of a long ladder. The new lights have a long life guaranteed and an additional benefit is that they will significantly reduce the amount of electricity required to light the church.

The new lights are not dimmable but the view of your church council was that the safety benefits outweighed the loss of dimming. This is only seen as an interim measure and a full replacement of the existing lights is planned in the future. The work is being fully funded by a generous donation.

All of the above work has only been possible due to generous giving and specific gifts. We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that has played a part in this.

The lighter sideThe new vicar had just finished his sermon for the day and proceeded toward the back of the church for the usual greetings and handshaking as the congregation left the church. After shaking a few adult hands he came upon the seven year old son of one of the Church Wardens. “Good morning, Jonathan,” the vicar said as he reached out to shake Jonathan’s hand. As he was doing so he felt something in the palm of Jonathan’s hand. “What’s this?” the vicar asked. “Money,” said Jonathan with a big smile on his face, “It’s for you!” “I don’t want to take your money, Jonathan,” the vicar answered. “I want you to have it,” said Jonathan. After a short pause Jonathan continued, “My daddy says you’re the poorest preacher we ever had and I want to help you.”

A missionary was walking in Africa when he heard the ominous padding of a lion behind him. “Oh Lord,” prayed the missionary, “Grant in Thy goodness that the lion walking behind me is a good Christian lion.” And then, in the silence that followed, the missionary heard the lion praying too: “Oh Lord,” he prayed, “I thank Thee for the food which I am about to receive.”

A Bishop and a Priest were involved in a car accident and it’s a bad one. Both cars are totally wrecked, but amazingly neither of the clerics are hurt. After they crawl out of their cars the Bishop, who was casually dressed, sees the priest’s collar and says, “So you’re a priest. I’m a Bishop. Just look at our cars. There’s nothing left, but we are unhurt. This must be a sign from God. God must have meant that we should meet and be friends for the rest of our days.” The Priest replies, “I agree with you completely. This must be a sign from God.” The Bishop continues, “And look at this. Here’s another miracle. My car is completely wrecked but this bottle of whisky didn’t break. Surely God wants us to drink this whisky and celebrate our good fortune.” Then he hands the bottle to the priest. The priest, who is very shaken, agrees and takes a number of large swigs, and hands the bottle back to the Bishop. The Bishop takes the bottle, immediately puts the cap on, and hands it back to the priest. The Priest asks, “Aren’t you having any?” The Bishop replies, “No ... I think I’ll wait for the police.”


of Steeplekeeper. The two churchwardens (both male, of course!) were Mr. J.K. Carless of ‘Naseby’ Cromwell Gdns. and Mr. J.W. Hawkins of 53 Glade Road.

There were 14 Sidesmen at All Saints and 3 at Holy Trinity Church – including, in the latter, Mr. D.G. Sawyer known to many of us as a Funeral Director in the town and a regular worshipper at the 8 am communion service at ASM following the closure of Holy Trinity. The Parochial Church Council consisted of two ex-officio members (the Churchwardens) and 23 elected members all of whom are listed. The P.C.C. consisted of 15 ladies and 10 gentlemen. The Church Hall Hon. Secretary was Mr. C. Toller, who with his wife, lived at the Old Vicarage, High Street; they both served on the P.C.C. (Is anyone able to tell me the location of the Old Vicarage?)

The Church Schools at the time were: The Boys’ School, (now Holy Trinity) in Wethered Road whose headmaster was Mr. W.E. Hazleby (also a P.C.C. Member); The Girls’ School in St. Peter’s Street, Headmistress Miss Webber, B.A. (another P.C.C. Member) and the Infants’ School, Oxford Road (now the Marlow Language Centre aka The Booth Building) whose Headmistress was Miss Dawson. The N.F.U. Correspondent was The Rev. I.R. Turnage. Services were held at

the Parish Church (All Saints) as follows:-

Sundays: Holy Communion at 8 a.m. (also at midday on the first Sunday in the month). Morning Prayer & Sermon (except on the fourth Sunday) at 11 a.m. Sung Eucharist & Sermon (on fourth Sundays only) at 11 a.m. Children’s Instruction at 2.30 p.m. Baptisms were at 3.15 p.m. The day finished with Evening Prayer & Sermon at 6 p.m.

Weekdays: Holy Communion at 8.a.m. (every day) plus a celebration on Thursdays at 11 a.m. Evening Prayer at 5.30 p.m.

At Holy Trinity Church there were, of course, far fewer services:Sundays: Holy Communion (2nd Sunday) at 9.15 a.m. On the 3rd and 4th Sundays Communion was celebrated ‘as notice is given’. Morning Prayer was at 11 a.m. and Evening Prayer at 6 p.m. No mention of Sermons! The notices for January (1951) were listed for both the Parish Church and Holy Trinity Church.

The Vicar’s contribution to the Magazine consisted of four pages which make interesting reading. Amongst other matters, he wrote about the flourishing Youth Fellowship, led by Rev. Turnage, the Marlow Choral Society, the Marlow Rotary Club and the Urban District Council who were responsible for setting up ‘a

Recently, I was lent a copy of the ‘Marlow Parish

Magazine’ dated January, 1951 - clearly produced long before the Team was established. It’s a piece of social history which, if like me, you are an historian or interested in history - particularly the recent history of Marlow - you might find some of the facts I’ve extracted from the magazine of interest.

The Clergy were The Rev. D.J. Amies, B.D., MTh. who, of course, lived in the Vicarage (Telephone 660). He was the Rural Dean and Surrogate for Marriage Licences. He was assisted by The Rev. I.R. Turnage, B.A. of 56 Glade Road. (Telephone 155). I know, for sure, two members of our congregation who will remember these two clergymen – Meg Saint and Joan See who have worshipped at All Saints since, I believe, the 1940’s. There are probably others in the congregation, from whom I would like to hear.

The Organist was Dr. S. Bath, D.Mus., F.R.C.O., L.Mus., T.C.L., L.R.A.M., Hon. R.C.M. who served in that capacity for 48 years. There is a memorial tablet to him on the South wall of the church. The Assistant Organist was Mr. C. Plumridge (a local surname) and the Foreman of the Belfry was Mr. L. J. Young who lived in Little Marlow Road; a close neighbour, Mr. R. Dean, held the position

John Bustin

The Parish of Marlow in 1951


great Christmas Tree just by the War Memorial’. He continues, “..... carols were sung round it on the Thursday before Christmas. A great crowd of people came. The singing was accompanied by the Marlow Town Band”.

An article about the Marlow Church Fellowship follows and the magazine finishes with ‘The Marlow Register’ of Baptisms, Marriages and Burials during November and December, 1950. Among the names are Barr and Farey (both of whom were baptised on Christmas Eve, 1950), Tugwood and Hester (Marriages) and Swadling, Rixon and Sandalls (Burials). The average age of those whose burials took place was 69.

The Magazine, as the Rev. Amies mentions in his contribution, depended a great deal on the advertisers – known, I am sure by many Marlovians. Among them were: Y.J. Lovell & Son, (Builders etc), Morgan’s (ladies and gentlemen’s tailors) supervised by Mr. W.M. Saint, and R.J.E.Platt (Motor and Radio Engineer). Presumably the advertising revenue met the production cost of the magazine and, as there is no cover price. I assume it was a ‘freebie’.

Finally, money of course! The totals collected for the weeks ended 26th November to 25th December were, in pre-decimalisation money: All Saints £67 5s. 9d (£67.29p)

of which £30 15s.11 (£30.80p) was collected on Christmas Day.

Holy Trinity £15 4s. 1d (£15.20p) of which £ 4 0s 4d. (£4.02p) was collected at the Christmas Day Services.

I’m reliably informed that £1 in 1950 would equate to c. £31 today so that the above totals would have been: All Saints £2,086 and HT £471. Not bad......

An insert ‘The Sign’ was included consisting of six pages with the principal article contributed by the Bishop of Wakefield. I will photo-copy the relevant pages of the magazine so if you would care for a copy, please let me know.

The installation in the Lady Chapel during Advent

and over Christmas focused on Christ coming into the world as the light of the world. The focal point was a candle in the lantern on a white plinth below which was a circular base covered in white pebbles.

Four candles surrounded the central lantern and the text from John 1:1-9 “The Word Became Flesh” was displayed on either side. At Christmas vases of lilies were added to the display.

This installation was created to provide a focus for prayer and contemplation.

Lent/Easter 2015

This year we are planning a number of small installations to be displayed in the Lady Chapel

during part of Lent and Easter.

The aim is to use ‘The Purpose Driven Life’ as inspiration for four themed areas.

Linda Scott

A Light Shining in Darkness


‘

A termly community newsletter published by the Governors of Marlow C of E Infant School Spring Term/March 2015 www.marlow.eschools.co.uk School Office 01628 483983

Marlow Church of England Infant School

Sandygate News

The Great Fire of London

In January, Sandygate was transformed into 17th Century

London. The Year 2 children spent the day immersed in history and were fascinated to explore the artefacts and participate in workshops about life in Stuart London.

From candle making to dressing up in clothes made to look like those from the era, the day was jammed pack with learning. In lessons the children have

investigated why the Fire of London was such an important event in our country’s history, answering questions such as where the fire started, why it spread so fast and what caused it to go out.

They have written diaries from the point of view of Samuel Pepys and in art, each class has made a display of a Thameside scene of burning houses.Certainly a topic to remember!

A Celebration of Javanese Culture

This is the fifth year that Aris Daryono has come to Sandygate to work with

the Year 1 children. Aris is a Javanese musician who has been working with the children; teaching them to play his Gamelan instruments, sharing stories from his homeland and creating some fabulous shadow puppets with them.

Learning about the volcanoes on Java, the traditional batik patterns, the animals as well as the popular foods that are eaten on the Indonesian island were among the other topics covered.The culmination of the learning about Java was a fabulous puppet show.

Can you see that Dinosaur?A visit to the Natural History museum was an exciting adventure for the Reception children at Sandygate. They went in search of T-rex, Stegasaurus and Triceratops to support their learning about dinosaurs and they weren’t disappointed! Their hunt also led them to discover a large variety of mammals too.

The Dinosaur topic has allowed the children to find out all sorts of interesting facts about dinosaurs and they have made their own fossils. They have even created models of dinosaurs using clay and invented new dinosaur names for their creations.

Each class in Year 1 had written their own version of a traditional Javanese tale, adding char-acters and a plot.

The children then made shadow puppets for the characters and used them to put on a performance of their traditional tale to their delighted parents.

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