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church : revd jo's letter : may 2006 added 24/04/06 In Church terms, May is a busy month. It’s traditionally the month of Mary, and we recall the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, on May 31st. Another old tradition is the keeping of Rogationtide – a time to pray for good weather and a blessing upon crops and livestock. We shall observe this on May 21st. And lastly, it’s the month of the Holy Spirit; on Thursday 25th we mark the Feast of the Ascension, the end of the times when the risen Christ appeared to the disciples, and ascended to heaven, leaving the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, to be with us here on earth. Details of our services appear in the service rota. On Sunday 14th, at 11.00 at Careby, we are holding a Pet Blessing service. Animals, whether wild, pets or farm animals, are all part of God’s wonderful creation, and we are enjoined in the book of Genesis to cherish them. Those of us who are pet owners know very well what a source of joy and comfort they are, and those of us who watch wildlife programmes, or maybe go bird-watching in our leisure time, know how enthralling it is to see these creatures. So you are all warmly invited to bring your animals to church on that day. If they are very large, they can be accommodated in the churchyard. Smaller ones will be welcome inside. All I ask is that you don’t bring any animal which will be distressed by the occasion; if this is likely, bring a photograph or picture, or just its name, and we will bless it in absentia. Dogs should be on a lead, and smaller creatures in a secure container. At my last pet blessing, at Exton, we had ponies, sheep, caterpillars and stick insects as well as dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea-pigs. Maybe you can better that. Later that day we shall baptise Amber Lily, daughter of Emma and Nick Jones of Little Bytham. We welcome her warmly into the family of the church. Fundraising is a constant activity in churches, but we have two special projects at present. We need an amplification system, so that those who read at our services can be heard clearly. In particular, I should like the children to read at family services, but without a sound system, this is difficult. So that is our first fundraising project. The second is sets of new hymn books at both Castle and Little Bytham. Our old Ancient and Moderns impose considerable limitations on our worship, and we have agreed to raise money for the purchase of sets of either Hymns Old and New, or Common Praise - both have the best of the old hymns and of the new, and will give us much greater flexibility. If you can help with either project, we should be very grateful. It had been my intention to keep our churches open during the day after Easter, but having sought the advice of the Lincolnshire Crime Prevention Officer, we do need to consider the risks very carefully. We shall be doing this at the next meeting of our PCCs. And finally … it is my custom to mention by (Christian) name during our Sunday services anyone who is ill or in any kind of trouble, and who would like to be supported in this way. Starting on May 17th we shall be saying Morning Prayer in Castle Bytham church on Wednesdays at 10.00, and this will include a time of prayer for particular people and situations. Do come and join us; it will last about half an hour, and will conclude with coffee and biscuits. Come along just for the refreshments, if you prefer! With every blessing Jo |
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