April Newsletter 2024
Services for April
7th April: Local Arrangement
14th April: Revd Deborah Cornish
21st April: Revd Elizabeth Rundle
28th April: Revd Deborah Cornish
Reminder of Easter Services
Maundy Thursday 28th March 6pm for 6.30pm: Revd. Deborah Cornish. Please note this service and meal is fully booked.
Good Friday 29th March: Walk of Witness- begins at St John's Church in Leigh Road at 10.30am, passing the Catholic Church, the Baptist church and our church and the Minster. It ends on Willow Green at 11am and is followed by a service finishing at 11.30a.m. Join at any point of the walk.
Sunday 31st March, Easter Sunday 10.30am: Revd. Deborah Cornish – Holy Communion
Please bring flowers to decorate the cross.
Easter Celebration – Monday 8th April
We will be holding our 'Easter Celebration' on Monday 8th April commencing at 2.00 pm. This is an afternoon of fun for all ages to include tea and finishing at 4.00 pm. Several of you have attended our 'Celebrations' on previous occasions and we would encourage you to come and share this with us and see the outreach that is going on in our Church. Jan and Joy
Film Night Friday- 26th April at 7pm
This month's film is Fisherman's Friend a story of the Cornish sea shanty group finding fame with recordings and on film. This is a light hearted family evening. Coffee and ice cream available. Donations only.
General Church Meeting
The important General Church meeting will take place over a soup and roll lunch on Sunday April 14th after morning worship. The meeting is an opportunity for you to be involved in conversations about the church and its work and to read reports from the various groups that make up the life of the church. We will also be talking about the direction of travel for the church as it considers its focus and mission for the coming years. Please make this meeting a priority.
Circuit News
Hallelujah and praise the Lord we now have a venue for our May 9th Ascension Day service.We shall meet at Holtwood Methodist Church at 6-00pm. and avail ourselves of the spacious grassed area around the church. Remember to bring your picnic tea, sufficient drinks for the evening and of course a chair or a blanket to sit on. Should it rain, we shall use the church. Thankfully there are no issues with access to toilets.
The Circuit Leadership look forward to seeing as many folk as possible from around the circuit
coming together for food, fellowship and worship on this special day in the Christian calendar.
Joyce Wild, Lead Circuit Steward
Blessings,
Linda Bennett on behalf of the Stewards.
N.B. Will all contributors please ensure they have changed my contact details to: linda.bennett176@gmail.com
Deborah's letter to everyone in March
Dear Friends
We are rapidly racing through Lent and heading towards Holy Week and Easter Day, so I thought the simplest way of keeping you touch with events during this time would be to write to you all.
Thank you to everyone who has attended the Lent Conversations as we consider the Holy Habits of the early church, as recorded in Acts 2. I hope you are enjoying these conversations as much as I am. It's been lovely to be joined by so many of you, all prepared to have something to say.
Those of you who have been able to attend worship on Sunday mornings, will have noted that at the beginning of each service we have brought items to the Cross, to help us reflect on various aspects of Jesus ministry. On Palm Sundaywe will be giving out the traditional Palm Crosses, but I would like you all to bring a photograph of yourself (it can include others) to place along the step of the raised area in front of the communion rail. These photographs help to depict the community of disciples and followers of Jesus within our congregation. You can take them home with you afterwards.
Tuesday 26th March, 7.30pm at St Catherine's Church: There will be a Service of Lights, now in its 45th year. This service gives an ideal opportunity to reflect on the events between Palm Sunday and Easter Day. It is an unusual service in that the congregation sit in the church in silence for an hour, with no lighting as dusk falls. There are eight cycles of a reading, which is normally a commentary on some aspect of Jesus' passion, followed by a minute's silence and then music from a choir. The central focus of the service is time for peace and reflection. The service involves all the Wimborne churches and is open to all.
Maundy Thursday 28th March, 6pm for 6.30pm: A meal in the upper room. The response to this has been amazing and we were fully booked by the end of worship last Sunday. If you would like to add your name to a waiting list, should anyone drop out then I can contact you to fill that space. To cover the cost of the meal, I'm asking for donations on the day. The meal will include a starter (hors d'oeuvre), the main course will be lamb (though a vegetarian option is available), and a pudding. During the meal we will reflect on the story of the early escape from Egypt, and will end with bread and wine. Everyone is to leave in silence, as we remember the night on which Jesus was betrayed.
Good Friday will be the traditional walk of witness, bringing together all the churches of the town and surrounding areas. The walk begins at St John's Church in Leigh Road at 10.30am, and proceeds towards the town centre, picking up the congregations of the Baptist Church, St Catherine's, The Methodist Church and the Minster. Those wishing to participate can join at any point. The walk will end on Willow Green at 11am, where there will be a service concluding at 11.30am. It would be lovely to see as many of you as possible join us.
Easter Day morning worship will include Holy Communion as we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. Please bring flowers to transform the cross. (Thank you to Gordon who made the cross and did the sign-writing).
Monday 8th April:Jan and Jenny are planning an Easter Celebration, an extension of Happy Faces, to which everyone is invited.
Sunday 14th April:following morning worship we will hold the General Church Meeting. There will be written reports from the various groups that are part of the life of the church. The meeting itself is an opportunity for you to be involved in conversations about the church and its work. We are seeking people to take on the role of church steward as we have three people standing down from this role. The nominations are for a twelve month period, with an option. Please think prayerfully about whether this is something that would be of interest to you, or whether you can think of someone who might like to be considered for the role. If in doubt have a conversation with me, or one of the current church stewards. We will also be talking about the direction of travel for the church as it considers its focus and mission for the coming years. This is very important as during the summer months the profile for a new minister will be prepared by the Circuit Invitations Committee, ready for the autumn when the process of seeking a new minister will begin in earnest.
Finally, I would like to thank everyone who responded so positively to my January letter. It has been a joy to have conversations with people who want to know how they can help in the lift of the church. Also, thank you to those who have considered their financial contributions and made positive changes accordingly.
As we continue to journey through Lent, I pray God's blessing upon you.
Grace and Peace
Deborah
Newsletter March 2024
Sunday Services for March at 10.30am
3rd March: Revd Elizabeth Rundle – Holy Communion
10th March: Revd Deborah Cornish
17th March: Mr Colin Besant
24th March: Revd Deborah Cornish – Palm Sunday
Easter Services
28th March: Maundy Thursday 6.30p.m Holy Communion.
This service will include a meal so please see the Stewards for a ticket if attending (necessary for catering purposes)
31st March: Easter Sunday, Revd Deborah Cornish 10.30a.m. Holy Communion
Lent Conversations reminder
These continue every Thursday in Lent from 12.30pm-1.30pm in the Fielding room. Bring your own lunch (drinks available) and share in conversation on the theme of Lent led by our Minister, Deborah.
Circuit invitations
Holtwood Methodist Church Sisterhoodare holding an afternoon event at 2p.m. on Wednesday March 13th with entertainment by Colin Besant and the Open the Book team. All are invited and will receive a welcome. Tea, coffee, cake and a chat are all guaranteed!
Mary Marsh, Church Steward
Colehill Methodist Church are holding a coffee morning on Saturday 2nd March 10am-12md. All welcome. Homemade cakes and goodies!
Churches together
Christian Aid Lent lunches are being held in our church every Tuesday in Lent. Remaining dates February 27th, March 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th. Come any time between 12.30pm-1.15pm for bread, cheese and fruit. Brief thought for the day will be presented around 1pm. There is no charge but donations gratefully received.
Christopher Howell, Christian Aid rep.
Eco Church
Wimborne Methodist Church has signed up to becoming an Eco Church. The Methodist Church voted to reach Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2030. The Southampton District and Learning Network of The Methodist Church asks, 'But how do we do it? What actions should we take against climate change? What actions are within our budget? Which ones can we make time for in our schedules? What actions today will our children and grandchildren thank us for? '
They host open webinars on Zoom: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/cc/southampton-eco-district-events. The next one takes place on Monday, March 11, 2024 at 7pm. Please see the poster on the noticeboard. To register for the webinar go to: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/so-what-should-we-do-about-climatechange.
If you are interested in helping to make progress on this, even if you cannot attend the webinar, please speak to one of the Stewards.
Wellness
tine Niven, a qualified practitioner in holistic wellness, uses our church office for her therapy sessions on Wednesdays and Thursdays. She describes the welcome she receives from our church community as a true blessing and is offering the congregation a special discount of 12% on acupuncture, herbal medicine or wellness classes. If you are interested in her services or would just like to know more, please see her letter of introduction on the noticeboard in the lift lobby.
Joy Morling
Editor's note – reminder
Please will you delete my old Yahoo e-mail address from your address/ contacts folder and ensure that any information coming to me is sent to my current e-mail address:
Thank you.
Linda Bennett on behalf of the Stewards
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Newsletter February 2024
February Services
4th February: Revd. Deborah Cornish – Café Church and Holy Communion
11th February: Mr Rob White
18th February: Revd. Elizabeth Rundle
25th February: Revd. Deborah Cornish
Lent Conversations
These will start on 22nd February from 12.30 to 1.30 approx. They will follow the format of the Advent Conversations led by Deborah. Fuller details are in Deborah's letter attached along with this newsletter.
Ascension Day Service – message from Joyce Wild, Lead Circuit Steward
It has been suggested that on Thursday May 9th, 2024, at 6-30pm the Circuit come together for an Ascension Day Service. This will be an open-air service at a suitable central venue, possibly in or close to Ringwood (if the weather is inclement, it will take place in a church).
Before the service at 6-00pm you are invited to bring a deckchair and your tea and share fellowship with those gathered.
What a great opportunity to openly profess our faith and witness to those in the vicinity this would be.
Further down the line we will be looking for musicians, singers, and readers but initially we would like to know if there would be support from the congregations for this venture.
If you think you would attend this service, please let any Steward know by March 20th.
Circuit Steward vacancies
From March 14th there will be one or two vacancies for Circuit Stewards. Any local church member may stand as a Circuit Steward but need to be nominated and seconded by two members of the Circuit Meeting. Our representatives at these meetings are David Kendall and David Morgan. If you are interested in the role of Circuit Steward, please contact one of the Davids by Thursday 22nd February.
District Events
Saturday 3rd February – Church for Change, Woodfalls MC, Salisbury circuit
Exploring 300 years of Methodist Social Justice
The Salisbury Circuit Justice and Peace Group hosts a screening of "the best bits" from this superb conference that took place at The Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History in November. Join us to watch video highlights and share refreshments and conversation, 10am-2pm
https://sdmc-web-01.azurewebsites.net/calendar/church-for-change/
Saturday 27th April – Quiet Day, Wisdom House in Romsey 10am-4pm
Sing Along to G&S
A musical, fund-raising event is to be held at St. Mary Magdalene's church in New Milton on Sunday February 11th. The event is a Sing Along version of HMS Pinafore, with soloists from Christchurch Gilbert and Sullivan Society, and maximum participation by those attending as the chorus. People are also welcome to come and listen. This is an all-age event, with free entry. Donations received on the day will go to church fabric funds and to charities supported by Christchurch G&S Society. Start time is 3.30pm and we expect to finish by 5.00pm. Word sheets and music will be available on the day.
Kindest regards,
Linda
On behalf of the Stewards
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