SUNDAY 10 JANUARY: EPIPHANY 2 - CHURCHES TOGETHER IN BENINGTON AND WALKERN - Churches Together in ...
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CHURCHES TOGETHER IN BENINGTON AND WALKERN
www.ubbw.org.uk
SUNDAY 10 JANUARY:
EPIPHANY 2
News from St Mary’s Walkern
This year, our New Year starts with unwelcome news. As the infection rate
increases dramatically in Walkern and Stevenage, the PCC have taken the
decision to close the church for worship for the next few weeks. The decision
was taken on the same night that the government announced the new
lockdown rules, so we feel that it is the right thing to do.
It’s a difficult decision to close a church,
especially at this time of Epiphany. Our
service last week was celebrating this
festival which continues the Christmas
celebrations through to February. The
theme of Epiphany comes from the story
of the Three Wise Men who came from distant countries. A star shone in the
sky for the whole world to see. As we sometimes speak of a ‘Eureka moment’
when we suddenly understand something, so an ‘Epiphany moment’ is that
occasion when an idea is revealed to a large number of people. Perhaps we
today would say it ‘goes viral’.
So, as the church building is closed, the message of
Christmas can still go viral. The work of the Food Bank
will continue on Wednesdays; we can share the good
news of Jesus with our friends and families. We can
show God’s love and care in our concern for others by
prayer, phone calls and words of encouragement to
anyone we meet.
Even when the decorations have been taken down,
Christians continue to celebrate the message that is so
important to us at this time: “You will call his name
Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins;
and they will call him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us’”
With best wishes,
Beverley and Maggie
Another chat from Guy…
The Centre Candle - The Light of the World.
The people of Christ's time, even the highly educated like
Nicodemus (John 3:3&4), were not used to metaphor. So
when the Redeemer declares 'I am the Light of the World'
(John 8:12) many would have been baffled and in need of His
help to understand what He meant. It is most likely that Jesus
said these words in the Temple during the Festival of Lights,
the great winter feast of Hanukkah, when the courts and
porticos were ablaze with lamps, including the great
golden Menorah, the nine branched candelabra,
progressively lit during the festival to give thanks to
God for the rededication of the Temple. It was in the
year 165 BC that the Temple had been desecrated by the Greeks and used,
among other unspeakable things, for the selling of slaves. That touched a
raw nerve for the Jews with their memories of captivity in Egypt. The Jewish
hero Judah Maccabeus, known as The Hammer, rose up and led a
successful revolt. The Temple was taken back into faithful hands, swept and
scrubbed for eight days, cleansed, censed, re-consecrated
and re-dedicated with prayer and great rejoicing.
For Our Lord to stand almost two centuries later at the great
Menorah when the final light was lit to signify the cleansing of
the great Sanctuary itself, and to say these wonderful words,
would have been a trumpet call for those who listened with
their hearts, a call for the need of light,
freedom and courage in a darkened world. Years later, in
70 AD, the Temple was utterly laid waste by the Romans.
Saint Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth 'Don't you
know that your body is a Temple for the Holy Spirit who
lives inside you, whom you received from God?' (1
Corinthians 6:19-20) The Festival of Lights was a reminder of deliverance.
So too the Advent Crown that we complete on Christmas day is a
reminder of our Salvation story, mankind brought back from the
brink and paid for by Christ's sacrifice. The Temple now stands
again, yes, but in the heart of every follower of Christ, and in this
living Temple, newly cleansed and dedicated, He dwells as the
Light of the World. The media is saying Christmas is cancelled!
What the Lord is saying is 'You are light for all the world . . . let your
light shine before the people, so that they may see the good things
you do and praise your Father in heaven.' Matthew 5:14-16.
Thank you Guy
St Mary’s: no services
Because of government regulations and the high
infection rate in our area, St Mary’s PCC have
taken the decision to suspend church services for
the next few weeks.
We will announce any further news in the
newsletter and by poster at church.
If you wish to contact the church, please email or phone the
churchwardens: Maggie Hawkins margaret15a@hotmail.com /01438
359500 ; Beverley Harlow bevharlow16@gmail.com / 01438 225365
Thursday Coffee Mornigns are closed
while we are in Tier 4.
Please keep in touch during lockdown.
Olga 861754 Maggie 359500
WALKERN FOOD BANK
We will be operating a food bank for those in need
in Walkern at church on Wednesday mornings,
10.30-11.30am, starting on 11th November.
Initially we will only be taking/offering dried or
tinned food and toiletries such as soap, toothpaste
etc.
Three collection points: as well as the church
(between 10.30 and 11.30am on Wednesdays), there are three other
collection points: outside the shop, at No 100 High Street and at the back of
No 32 High Street.
If you know of anyone who could benefit from receiving some help please
contact Beverley Harlow on 07881588662 or bevharlow16@gmail.com
If people feel unable to come to church to either donate or pick up items we
will arrange collection/distribution. Thank you – Beverley and Maggie
Are you a star gazer...? What was the Star of Bethlehem? Sky-watchers had an end-of-year treat. What has become known as the “Christmas Star, or Bethlehem star” was a vibrant planetary conjunction easily visible in the December evening sky as the bright planets Jupiter and Saturn came together looking like a single bright object in the sky. It’s been nearly 800 years since the planets passed this close to each other in the night sky, so in December 2020 nearly everyone around the world could witness this fantastic astronomical event is known as the “Great Conjunction.” In fact, some scholars have theorized that the original Christmas star, known as the Star of Bethlehem, might also have been a great conjunction. According to Christian tradition, a bright light in the sky led the Three Wise Men to the location of Jesus's birth. The BBC “Sky at Night” Christmas special programme came up with two important pieces of Astronomical evidence for the star of Bethlehem; interesting astronomical records that date from the time of Jesus birth. Babylonian clay tablets have been discovered on which astronomers recorded in detail an event in 7BC when planet Jupiter and planet Saturn both moved into the constellation Pisces. This rare triple conjunction seems to be a good contender for the star of Bethlehem. Archaeologists have also found Chinese records that carefully describe an interesting comet: in March 5BC a very bright comet appeared in the constellation of Capricorn, it lasted for 70 days and was sui-hsing (had a long tail). This comet also seems to be a good contender for the star of Bethlehem. Historians say we should search records dating from 7BC to 4BC because Herod died in March 4BC (Matt 2:19-21). Secondly that Joseph registered for the census of allegiance to Caesar Augustus during Passover April 5BC. Therefore, Jesus must have been born between 7BC and 4BC In 7BC the Wise Men (Magi) were amazed to see the triple conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in the constellation of Pisces. The planets had meaning: Saturn = Divine Father; Jupiter = Son of the Divine Father; the constellation of Pisces = Israel. So, this awesome sight meant to them, as Astrologers, that a messiah king will be born in Israel. Then in 5 BC: the three-way conjunction of Saturn Jupiter and Mars (= powerful and mighty one) which was a message - that a powerful king will be born in Israel. That same year in March 5BC a very bright long tailed comet in the constellation of Capricorn suddenly appeared with the startling message that a very great king is about to be born and it’s immanent! A comet in the east
signified a rapidly approaching event. This bright long tailed comet was a
spectacular signal that these events were immanent. So, on seeing the comet
the Magi immediately set out to discover this new born king.
A Comet has plenty of properties that qualify it as a candidate for the star of
Bethlehem: Comets are bright and can be seen clearly with the naked eye.
They move day to day across the sky. Comets can have a long tail that
appears to point. They also appear to rise in the morning in the East as the
sun rises and “stand over” the horizon. They often last for about 2 months.
The Magi travelled from their home in Persia to Jerusalem, where they thought
the new king of Israel would be born. The journey going west was about 500
miles which was about a month’s journey on good camels. So, during that
month long journey the comet progressively moved due south.
So, this evidence seems to indicate that the star of Bethlehem was a
conjunction of planets as well as a comet.
Meanwhile, in April 5BC, Joseph and Mary travelled from Nazareth to
Bethlehem for the census. When they arrived there no room in the inn
because April was also the time of Passover feast. Meanwhile the shepherds
were out “in the fields watching their flocks” because it was Spring and the
lambing season. In April 5BC Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Coincidentally, in
April 5BC, the Magi arrived in Jerusalem to speak to Herod. His chief priests
informed the Magi that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem. So, the Magi set off
from Herod’s palace in Jerusalem to travel the six miles to Bethlehem which
was due south. The Magi were overjoyed when they looked up into the
southern morning sky and saw the long-tailed comet that “went ahead of
them” and was “standing over” the town of Bethlehem.
Matthew 2 9-12
And so, the Magi left, and on their way, they saw the same star they
had seen in the East. When they saw it, how happy they were, what
joy was theirs! It went ahead of them until it stopped over the place
where the child was. They went into the house, and when they saw
the child with his mother Mary, they knelt down and worshiped him.
They brought out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and
presented them to him.
The Magi were learned men who studied astrology and astronomy, they were
the scientists of their day. They were also men of faith who may have known
about some of the Jewish scriptures from the exile. They were the first great
link between science and faith and used their scientific knowledge, and
scripture, to discover God.
Laurie Hawkins
Hymns, Readings and Prayers
SUNDAY 10 JANUARY: EPIPHANY 2
Hymn
for the week
Paul Cobb has offered this hymn for this coming Sunday. It’s number 71
from Hymns Old and New:
Brightest and best of the sons of the morning
Paul says:
“We are now in the season of Epiphany, and this hymn by the anglican
bishop Reginald Heber in 1811 really catches the mood. The Wise Men
bring their gifts to the infant Jesus and the light of Christ starts to spread
from Bethlehem to the whole world.
The hymn is based on the prophesy of Isaiah in chapter 60 verses 1-6,
which include the words
For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross
darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee,
and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles
shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy
rising.
It is a great message of hope at a time when we need hope.”
If you would like to listen and maybe sing along, just click on the blue link
below or copy and paste it into your internet browser (eg Google).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5ACL94B4rM
Thank you Paul
Reading
for the week
Reading: Ephesians 3:1-12
This week the Church celebrates the Feast of Epiphany. Epiphany
comes from the Greek word for revealing, and we are celebrating Jesus
being revealed as the Son of God to the whole world.
A significant event that we think of at this time is the coming of the Three
Wise Men to the child at Bethlehem. The arrival of these visitors from
foreign lands bearing gifts that signify the royalty (gold), divinity
(frankincense) and healing mission (myrrh) of Jesus, shows that the
baby is a gift from God for the whole world and not just the Jewish
people.
In our bible reading this week, the Apostle Paul writes about his mission
from God to take the good news of Jesus out to the world, and it’s
because of Paul’s great missionary journeys, where he suffered
beatings, imprisonment and even a shipwreck, that we today can be part
of God’s family.
Belonging to this family gives us comfort and support for today and great
hope for tomorrow. Just what we need at the moment!.
Paul CobbPrayers
for the week
COLLECT
Creator of the heavens,
who led the Magi by a star
to worship the Christ-child:
guide and sustain us,
that we may find our journey’s end
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Please join us in saying the Collect at
12 noon every day.
on Sunday at 11
I know that many say the Collect at 11am on a Sunday in the
knowledge that their friends are doing the same thing. You may like to
join me on Sunday for an informal Zoom meeting to sing Barbara’s
hymn, hear the reading and say the prayers together.
The information for this meeting is:
Topic: Sunday at 11
Time: Jan 10 2021 11:00 AM London
Join Zoom Meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83536611269
Meeting ID: 835 3661 1269
If you need some help getting started with Zoom, click this link for a
useful YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsy2Ph6kSf8&list=PLKpRxBfeD1
kEM_I1lId3N_Xl77fKDzSXePrayers Beloved Father, At the outset of this New Year of Grace 2021, we come before you to ask your blessing on ourselves, our people, our world. A Blessing on ourselves because we know your sublime love for us wills that we should surmount all the challenges and threats that have pursued and troubled us in the year just gone, so that we can emerge, humbler but ever stronger, to face all that life presents to us for good or ill in time to come. Blessing on our people of Britain, so that, by your healing mercy, we can counter and suppress the malign and relentless spread of the many viruses that attack the body and soul of our land: not merely the cruel, shape-shifting COVID, but all the greed, the uncaring, the irresponsibility and the self-seeking waste that angers and disfigures our public life. Bring us to a better and broader understanding of the common good, and a renewed passion to change and establish fairness and justice for all our people. A Blessing on a world still wide of its good; to hasten reconciliation between nations embroiled in destructive wars and struggles within and between every quarter of the world. We beseech you, dear Father, to protect the millions of victims suffering so grievously from the mindless clash of races and peoples as they struggle for the limited and diminishing resources to supply populations that continue to grow and compete for space. And we ask your pity for all who have suffered and died in these sad times, and your comfort to all who have lost hope, lost loved ones, and lost their confidence in the future. Give us the courage to spread the broad, encompassing love that Jesus our Master has enjoined upon us, so that, more and more as the years move on, we can be part of the solution and not the problem. Lord, in Your mercy Hear our prayer Merciful Father, We ask a Blessing on schools at this time, and especially on our Benington Primary School. We pray that the children who have suffered such disruption from the lock-down, are able to look forward to recouping
the time they have lost while absent from the enlargement of their
learning, the familiarity of friends and teachers. May they soon be taking
joy in the intermingling and the competition that is the essence of school-
days, discovering with their comrades, sharing their fun, replenishing
their understanding of the world and absorbing the standards we live by.
We pray for their parents and guardians, on whom the burden of home
teaching and finding diversions for young minds has fallen. Thank you
for their care and devotion. May they soon find rest from their duties, a
renewal of normality, and may they be reassured by the hope of a new
and more kindly Spring.
Lord, in Your mercy
Hear our prayer
Finally, Loving Father,
We give thanks for the great ray of hope that has been conceived and
delivered to us by the development of the Oxford vaccine. Thank you for
its effectiveness, its potential flexibility against the virus, and for the
elegance and cheapness of the solution which will give relief over
coming months to so many hundreds of thousands worldwide. Thank
you for the generous impulse of the developers who will be offering the
vaccine to millions in under-developed countries at a minuscule charge.
We return your blessing for the scientists and academicians who have
devoted their days and nights to the life-saving conception that we have
so desperately needed; and for the wave of optimism that will grow and
warm us in the mercy of your good time. Is there a balm in Gilead? Yes,
Father, there is a balm, and we surely know Who has sent it!
Merciful Father,
Accept these prayers for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus
Christ.
Amen.
Colin Bailey
A prayer during vacancy
God our Father, at this time of change, send your Holy Spirit to fill us with
vision, energy and faithfulness in prayer, that we may be true to our calling
to bring new life to our community. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AmenPRAYER REQUESTS
Named requests for prayer will be included on the notice sheet for at least one month.
If you would like a name to be included for our intercessions, please contact the
Parish Office ubbw@hotmail.co.uk or 07407 630159 or Maggie Hawkins (359500) for
Walkern or Rita Plumb (869731) for Benington. (Names from the prayer board in
St Mary’s Church will also be included in the intercessions in that church.)
Prayer is regularly offered for all the sick and needy in our community.
FOR OUR PRAYERS THIS WEEK
Those who live in our villages: This week we pray for all who live in Brockwell Shott,
Walkern and Three Stiles, Benington.
We pray for those in our parishes or friends and family members who are
housebound, unwell, receiving treatment or recovering from operations:
Bruce Standing and David de Boinville.
We also remember those who have died and their families and friends, especially
John Ridley and Stephen Lowe.
CHURCHES TOGETHER IN BENINGTON & WALKERN: CONTACT NUMBERS
MEMBERS OF ECUMENICAL MINISTRY TEAM
Methodist: Revd Malcolm Peacock (01462 646562), Mr Brian Burgess (237748,)
Mrs Brenda Davies (227293);
URC: Revd John Walker (01462-895481), Mrs Mary Miller (861289),
Mrs Olga Ginn (861754);
Roman Catholic: Mrs Rita Healy (861098);
St Peter and St Mary: Revd Norman Plumb (869731),
Mr Paul Cobb, Reader (869348), Mr Laurie Hawkins, Reader (359500),
Mr Steve Mason, Reader (360847),
Mrs Jenny Cobb (869348), Mrs Rita Plumb (869731).
TO ARRANGE BAPTISMS, WEDDINGS OR FUNERALS, CONTACT:
Church clergy: United Reformed Church: Revd John Walker (01462 895481)
Benington Methodist Church: Revd Malcolm Peacock (01462 646562)
St Mary’s and St Peter’s: Benefice Administrator ubbw@hotmail.co.uk
FOR OTHER PASTORAL HELP, CONTACT:
Benington Pastoral visiting team c/o Mrs Rita Plumb (869731)
Walkern Pastoral visiting team c/o Mrs Maggie Hawkins (359500)
St Peter’s, Benington Churchwardens:
Mrs Christine Brown (869468) & Mrs Clare Wood (869674)
St Mary’s, Walkern Churchwardens:
Mrs Beverley Harlow (225365) & Mrs Maggie Hawkins (359500)
FOR ADMINISTRATIVE ENQUIRIES, CONTACT:
Benington Methodist Steward: Mr Brian Burgess (237748)
Walkern URC Secretary: Mrs Olga Ginn (861754)Funnies
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