Congratulations to Elizabeth and Nicholas Watson for their 60 years of marriage. At the 09:15 service on Sunday Revd Ginni paid tribute to our happy couple by presenting them with a gift specially wrapped by Michael and Gordon. The only trouble was that their hands were tied (with a pink scarf!) and the wrapping was far from elegant!!
BIBLE STUDY GROUP
The Bible Study Group meetings will continue on Wednesdays 8thand 22ndMay. We are studying The Acts of the Apostles. Meetings begin at 2.30pm. at Oakhurst (behind Kingshott School) home of Margaret Edmonds. There are refreshments after the meeting.
New members would be most welcome so do come and join us. For further information please contact Margaret Edmonds (01462-452340) or Clare Larsen (01462-453541).
Clare Larsen
ST. IPPOLYTS PCC
Our PCC for the coming year will be made up of the following people:
The Reverend Ginni Dear - Vicar
Jane Veasey: Churchwarden
Michael Hooper: Churchwarden, Treasurer and
Deanery Synod Representative
Roger Cox: Secretary
Shelagh Cox
Howell Davies: Reader
Andrew Russell: Deanery Synod Representative
Jenny Sheach: Safeguarding Officer
Dee Soden (co-opted)
Anne Steel
COMMUNITY LUNCH
Our next Community Lunches will take place on Wednesdays 1stMay and 5thJune from 12.45pm. till 2.00pm. in St. Ippolyts Parish Hall. (Serving time 12.45pm. till 1.00pm.) Cost £4 per person. Everyone welcome.
CHRISTIAN AID WEEK - Sunday 12thMay to Saturday 18thMay
‘All Mums Should Live’
Sierra Leone is the world’s most dangerous place to become a mum. Every day 10 women die from giving birth. In Sawula district the community struggles with a clinic which has no electricity and only two delivery beds. This Christian Aid Week, together, we can make childbirth safe for mums and babies. Through our gifts and prayers we can help give the world’s poorest mums a chance to live.
The community in Sawula dreams of having a health centre that can meet their needs. Their current health centre is the size of a small bedroom. Operations, deliveries and baby check-ups all happen in one single room.
Please give generously when the familiar red envelope is delivered to your door. Thank you for your support.
Barbara Thomas
FRIENDS OF ST. IPPOLYTS CHURCH
THANK YOU
During Lent, we enjoyed a selection of delicious homemade soups with a variety of wonderful flavours. These were made and served by our loyal team of Friends. Thank you also to the 'setting out' and 'putting away' of tables and chairs team. We appreciate all the help offered to make these occasions come together. Thank you so much.
Our Lent Lunches raised the magnificent sum of £349 which will be divided between the USPG and the Motor Neurone Disease Association.
If you can offer any support for our church events, no matter how small, we would love to hear from you. Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
EASTER CELEBRATIONS
Thank you to Friends who always give time to make St. Ippolyts church look so beautiful and especially for our Easter celebrations. There were not as many arrangements for Easter this year but the church still looked wonderful. This was enhanced by Reverend Ginni's uplifting service supported by the 'Melodic Miracles' singing to their hearts content along with Howell Davies and Jeff Phillips.
The 'Melodic Miracles' is a group which meets and sings at the local nursing homes on the first Monday and Tuesday of each month. Would you like to come and lift the spirits of the elderly? We would love to see you. Please email Ginni Dear at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Dates of next meetings:
Monday 8thJuly - 2.00pm. - to discuss arrangements for the Flower
Festival.
Tuesday 10thSeptember - 10.30 for 11.00am.
Both meetings to be held at Little Almshoe House.
Frances Williams, Carol Scott and Joan Pinkstone
THE ALPHA COURSE
Food, Film and Chat - book your FREE place.
Starting on Wednesday 1stMay from 7.00pm., and over a series of weeks, you'll find out about the basics of the Christian faith. We'll catch up over a meal, watch a short video and then it's time to say what you think. It’s fun, relaxed and free, and you can ask anything you like.
The Alpha Course is for everyone and ALL are welcome. The course is being organised by Churches Together in Hitchin and is being held at Christchurch, Bedford Road. To book your free place or to find out more call or email:
Sulu - Tel: 07812-688446, Shirley - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
or Eddy - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., tel: 01462-619205.
Craig Bacon
PSALM 23 - A PARAPHRASE
When Reverend Don Dowling came to St. Ippolyts a while ago he introduced us to his paraphrase of the 23rdPsalm as follows:
‘The shepherd was a familiar figure in Bible lands and times. However, it is somewhat different for us. Most of us live in towns where we rarely see a sheep. And even in the country the practice of sheep rearing has markedly changed. Nowadays in Britain a shepherd is typically someone who herds sheep from a quad bike with dogs! Climate and topography are quite different too. Consequently I have tried to paraphrase the psalm in a way that is less dependent on images of sheep and shepherding. Whether it works you can judge for yourself.’
The Lord, I am safe with you;
You do not let me down.
You watch over me when I sleep.
You refresh me when I’m awake.
You are my provider.
When I am weary you sustain me,
When lost you put me back on track.
Constant in your loving care
You are my guardian and my guide.
At times the darkness would overwhelm me
Were it not for your presence, Lord.
You walk with me in the night of fear
So I don’t fall or stumble.
You are my protector.
When I’m threatened by danger on all sides
There you fill my cup of blessing to the brim;
Making me the guest of honour at your feast.
You are my gracious host.
All my life I will know your goodness
All my life I will experience your mercy,
For I will live as your child in your family.
You are my home and my Father.
3
HALLELUIAH ! CHRIST IS RISEN !!
By the time you read this, Easter will have come and gone and for those of you with young (and not so young!) children in the house, the only reminder will be the recycling bin overflowing with discarded Easter egg boxes!! This is the first year I haven’t bought my own children any eggs....I thought that at the ages of 22, 24 and 26 respectively, they had pushed the boundaries of childhood far enough!! It wasn’t a popular decision!!
It occurred to me as I was mulling over the last few weeks that we humans often think of things in terms of ‘deadlines’. We say, ‘let’s get Christmas out of the way and we’ll think about our holidays’ or ‘after the children go back to school, we can.....’ or ‘when the nice weather arrives....’ and so on. One of my clergy colleagues said that the church even has a new liturgical season.....it’s called ‘I’ll do that after Easter’ and it usually starts just after Christmas!! And here I am, starting my letter for PAX with a sentence that puts Easter firmly in the past!
But the thing is, that as Christians, Easter is always in the present. We are called to be ‘Easter people’, people with hope, every day of the year. Because of Jesus Christ that hope is with us always. There is no emotion we can feel, no height nor depth we can reach, no mountain we can climb or wilderness we can feel lost in, where Jesus hasn’t already been......and still he is with us, walking with us and offering to share the load. But how often do we fail to recognise that and what would our lives look like if we lived each day filled with the joy that hope brings us?
Now, don’t go looking to me for answers, I’m just the Vicar, but it is worth contemplating how we present ourselves to the world as Christians! (Note to self: remember to try to look more hopeful!).
And talking of hope....it’s looking like the weather is warming up in time for my annual holiday shenanigans with my mum!! We’re off to Norfolk again at the end of May, along with my friend Tracy and her mum Wendy so I should have some tales to tell you when I get back!! As you may recall, this holiday usually involves Tracy and I laughing a lot - at the expense of our mothers - but before you feel too sorry for them, remember that they do still insist on coming with us and I’ve got a funny feeling that they are planning a little revenge this year!! I’ll let you know what happens!
With love - Ginni
“The Annual Parishioners Meeting” (to elect churchwardens) and “The Annual Parochial Church Meeting of the Parish of St. Ippolyts” will be held in St. Ippolyts Church at 7.00pm. on Tuesday 9thApril. Everyone is welcome to attend but only those on the St. Ippolyts Church Electoral Roll may vote at the second meeting. The meeting is the Church’s AGM and there will be a review of 2018 with reports from the Churchwardens, our Treasurer, and St. Ippolyts School, as well as the appointment of officers, sidesmen and independent financial examiners. To make the evening ‘go with a flow’ there will be wine, soft drinks and nibbles available.
We are looking for new members of our Parochial Church Council. If you are interested in playing a key role in the future of our church please consider putting yourself forward for election, it is not a particularly onerous task! Those wishing to be elected can put their names on the election list at the back of the church. In addition we are still seeking a treasurer to take over from Michael. If you feel you could spare the time to play an important role in the life of our church please consider taking on this task.
Michael Hooper
FRIENDS OF ST. IPPOLYTS CHURCH
Lent Lunches
Lent Lunches continue from 12.45pm. till 2.00pm. in St. Ippolyts Parish Hall up to and including Wednesday 17thApril. A minimum donation of £2.50 per serving is requested, with donations for seconds. Proceeds will be shared between USPG and the Motor Neurone Disease Association. Come and enjoy our delicious homemade soups and fresh bread.
Easter Decorating
Please don’t forget to come and help us decorate the Church for Easter on Saturday 20thApril from 9.00am. Everyone welcome to bring flowers to arrange in the Church and pre-arranged baskets will also be appreciated. Tea, coffee and Hot Cross Buns will be served. Be sure to come and remove your arrangements and containers when the flowers have faded.
Frances Williams, Carol Scott and Joan Pinkstone
St. Ippolyts Church will be open for private prayer and reflection from
9.00am. - 6.00pm. each day during Holy Week. There will be reflective spaces set up within the church using art and poetry to create an intimate space for you to spend time in prayer.
MONDAY 15thAPRIL
7.00pm. Compline Little Wymondley
TUESDAY 16thAPRIL
7.00pm. Compline St. Ippolyts
WEDNESDAY 17thAPRIL
7.00pm. Compline Great Wymondley
MAUNDY THURSDAY - 18thAPRIL
7.00pm. Holy Communion with Washing of Feet St. Ippolyts
GOOD FRIDAY - 19thAPRIL
2.00pm. - 3.00pm. Liturgy of Good Friday St. Ippolyts
EASTER EVE - SATURDAY 20thAPRIL
9.30am. - 10.30am. Children’s Easter Workshop St. Ippolyts
Come and help make our Easter garden. Crafts, games and snacks too!
8.00pm. Easter Vigil Great Wymondley
ST. ALBANS CATHEDRAL
Maundy Thursday - 18thApril - 11.00am. - Chrism Eucharist
Many thanks to those of you who joined me at The Buck’s Head last month for our first Beer and Hymns service. What a wonderful occasion it was!
Tony, the lovely landlord, had kindly agreed to let us have the service in the pub and had set aside a room for us to use.....however, such were the numbers that we ended up filling the conservatory instead! It was wonderful to have such a crowd and, once our vocal chords had been loosened, we raised the roof with many of our favourite hymns. It was good to worship God with people from across the benefice and particularly encouraging to see some new faces and get to know other members of our community. We ended the service with prayers and a blessing and an invitation from Tony to ‘do it every month’!!!
I’m definitely planning another Beer and Hymns service....or maybe if the weather is warm, a Pimms and Hymns service......but it won’t be until after Easter so keep your eyes peeled for the announcement and please do come and join us.
With love - Ginni
Last month, I wrote about my intention to try to slow down a little bit in Lent or, at least to try and live a bit more in the present, taking time to notice what’s around me rather than just rushing on to the next thing. Well, I’d be lying if I said I’d cracked it and that I am now almost zen-like in my awareness but I have definitely improved!! I guess that I have been more aware of my intention through Lent and so have made an effort to create space rather than just make excuses as to why I haven’t.
One deliberate effort was to sign up for a Clergy Quiet Day at the Bishop’s house in St. Albans....the theory being that I was less likely to cancel on my boss!! It worked and I duly turned up at Abbey Gate House along with some other clergy colleagues and we spent the day in quiet study and reflection.
The theme of the day was Journeying with the Psalms and we reflected on three of them, Psalms 29, 22 and 51. Bishop Alan led us in a study of each of the Psalms in turn and then there was time for us to sit back and meditate on our thoughts in front of a rather splendid log fire in his
drawing room.
The theme of Psalm 29 was ‘Giving Praise to God’, Psalm 22 ‘How to pray when you are suffering’ and Psalm 51 ‘How to pray when you’ve messed up’. I was particularly taken with the last one, Psalm 51, and David’s total realisation of just how much he had stuffed up. The magnitude of the damage he had caused brought David to a place where he knew that there was no repairing what he had done, he just had to face it and trust that God would make something new and good come out of his place of brokenness.
I think that there is a lesson in that for all of us, that sometimes we don’t get things right and sometimes the consequences of our actions have very far reaching effects and there is little we can do to make amends. But that if we, like David, allow God to meet us in the depths of the mess we have created, and give up trying to dig our own way out, then God will help us to build up something new and good from the wreckage.
I got a lot from the quiet day, it was good to have the time and space to really reflect and it has encouraged me to keep on making the effort to carve time out of the day to day busyness. Mind you, I might just skip ‘reflecting’ in front of a log fire as there was a point when I lost a whole hour and was only awoken by my own very loud snore, which was only surpassed by the snores of another nameless vicar who was ‘reflecting’ in the other chair!!!
With love - Ginni
