TUESDAY 27th DECEMBER

 

Lord Jesus, Light of light,
you have come among us.
Help us who live by your light
to shine as lights in your world.
Glory to God in the highest!

                                                                          Gifts


So how was your Advent?  What went well in your life? What would you have done differently? A lot of water will flow under all our bridges in the next year. How will you approach Advent 2017?


As a present, we wanted to leave you with lovely Benjamin Zephaniah's 'Talking Turkeys' but we couldn't get permission to reprint in time, so if you want to remind yourself about Benjamin's very funny seasonal poem, you'll need to Google it yourself. Here's a vegetarian alternative...

A Very Happy New Year to all readers!


Sprouting for boys (and girls)

Raise three cheers, give up a shout
For the humble, hardy, Brussels sprout.
Be you Brexin or be you Brexout,
They're cool.

Let's have a British Board of Veg to tout
The merits of the buttery, nutty Brussels sprout
If Brussels objects, then dare to flout
Their rules.

Gregg Wallace says that there's not much doubt
Of the vitamin value of the Brussels sprout.
If you say different then you learned nuffink (or nowt)
At school.

Some folk rave over sauerkraut
But cabbage simply pales besides a Brussels sprout
Serve al dente with lardons round about
And drool.

Stave off the 'flu, ward off gout,
With iron-rich good-for-you Brussels sprout
You'll never be obese (or the least bit stout)
Sprout fuel!

Kids will moan, kids will fuss about
Something, so let it be the Brussels sprout.
Tho' it make them sigh, tho' it make them pout,
Sprout Yule!

                                             Vince Cross: December 2016.

SATURDAY 24th DECEMBER

                                                                 The Crib: St. Peter's

God our Father
Tomorrow the Saviour is born
And those who live in darkness will see a great light.
Help us, who greet the birth of Christ with joy,
to live in the light of your Son
and to share the good news of your love.
We ask this through Jesus Christ,
the light who is coming into the world.
Amen

Are you ready?

I said:

Are you ready?

Let me hear you one time..:

Are you ready?

Look, enough of the James Brown shtick, you know what we're trying to say. Yes, the turkey, yes, the presents, yes, the tree, yes, the inevitable Christmas 'flu, but we know you won't forget the reason we do this stuff. The waiting is very nearly over. God becomes incarnate, reaching out to humankind to bring us home to his Kingdom. Make time for Him too.

If you have been, thank you for following this blog throughout the Advent season. We hope it's been a blessing to you: informative and if we've done our job, sometimes thought-provoking.

We'll leave the blog up, certainly to the middle of January, but then it will disappear like the winter snow. There's a New Year to be experienced: new challenges to be faced. We move on with Christ as our companion on the road.

There'll be one last post (lol) on Tuesday 27th.

                                                        Happy Christmas, St. Peter's!

Theotokos

She is greater than you could possibly imagine.
She is less than you demand she be.

She is the construct
Of a handful of words
A myriad paintings
An infinity of divines
Working out their purposes
On her person.

How could it be otherwise?
For she is the mother of God.
A single point of view,
A particular, partial understanding
Could never comprehend the truth.

Love her. Love her son.
Everything else follows.

                         VC


People of God: shout and sing!
Tell the good news of peace on earth.
Lord, bring us today into Christ's peace
All God's people shout:
Amen!

Angels dance
and the bright star shines.
All creation bows to the Lord of all.
Lord, bring us today into Christ's light.
All God's people shout:
Amen!

One with us,
yet born to save,
he will show us the way to God.
Lord, bring us today into Christ's love.
All God's people shout:
Amen!

People of God: shout and sing:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Amen!

FRIDAY 23rd DECEMBER

                                          Churchwarden Phil learns how to knit Christmas


People of God: prepare!
God, above all, maker of all,
is one with us in Christ.
Maranatha!
Come, Lord Jesus!

God, the mighty God,
bends down in love to earth.
Maranatha!
Come, Lord Jesus!

God with us, God beside us,
comes soon to the world he has made.
Maranatha!
Come, Lord Jesus!

We are God's children,
we seek the coming Christ.
Maranatha!
Come, Lord Jesus!

Much that we'd all like to happen at St. Peter's wouldn't happen without the support of Cathy in the church office. So here's a big thank you on behalf of the Advent Team and everyone else for what she does, efficiently, enterprisingly, and with a smile! Thanks Cathy!



The Christmas Eve Services:  ***TOMORROW***TOMORROW***


At 15.30 and 17.00 the Crib Service. An active all-age service for children, their parents, grandparents and carers. Choose the time that suits you best. Enormous fun.

At 22.15 there's forty minutes of your favourite carols (Come and Sing Carols). And then why not stay on for the service with the extra tingle as at 23.30 we gather to greet the birth of Jesus at the very first moment of Christmas Day. It's a special experience!

And so that the church looks wonderful throughout Christmas, Rosemary and her rota team of thirty-six (yes, thirty-six!)  cleaners will have been through to sweep, vac and polish the carpets and pews. We're not going to go all 'Oscar-nomination' on you, but when you're around the church some time, just look at the number of people who help make this place welcoming and lovely. You're probably one of them, so please feel appreciated. And if you're not, then why not? (Sorry to be quite so pointed!)


Stop Press! from our Foodbank Correspondent...


Lorraine Bewley-Tippler has sent us the following note:

'One of the congregation who had been at ADVENT SOUP talked afterwards to Councillor Stephen Legg about the needs of the Emmanuel Coffee Shop which were discussed at the lunch. He promptly made contact with the trustees and offered them a grant of £400, which they have been delighted to accept.

'And at OPEN HOUSE last Saturday, Rev. David was given a hamper to raffle. The total raised was £76, which he gave to me on Sunday for Foodbank. By midweek the money was being used. Foodbank opened on Wednesday and gave parcels to 27 needy families. By the end of the day we had run out of tins of meat and fish, but the hamper money was used to replenish the stocks for Thursday, when another 8 parcels were made up and given. About 120 people had food for Christmas. Thanks be to God for blessings which are spread.'


Joseph on his death bed

One regret?
Always the outsider, me.
Mary and the boy
Like twins.
A family within a family.
Knew what the other was thinking
Before it was ever said,
And me alone on the edge of the room,
Or passing through with a nice piece of wood or two,
Looking in on their world,
Private and mysterious.

It went way back.
I didn't know her
(silly, coy word)
Until after he was born.
Thereafter dutiful intercourse
And so along came James and Joses 
Jude and Simon.
But no, I never knew her,
Not really.
However that boy was conceived
I was always an anti-climax.

When he was small,
He helped in the yard,
Watched and asked questions.
In that sense,
Now I'm dying,
The business is safe.
He'll do the accounts,
Manage the difficult clients.
The others will do the work.

There was that moment
Up in Jerusalem
The year before his bar mitzvah,
He ran wild with the zealots,
Pretending he was working for me.
I ask you:
'I must be about my father's business'!
I was incandescent,
Mary emollient,
And after that
If such a thing is possible,
They were both even more unreachable.
Perhaps he'll end up a rabbi.
It runs in the family.
I suppose that's OK
Provided it doesn't turn his head.

Well, I'm curious to know
What will become of him,
But I'm like Father Moses
Looking over the golden, longed for land
The fulfilment of an adolescent exile
Not mine to enjoy.
He and I
We'll never share a pie and a pint
At the close of a profitable day.

The lad has an aura,
A strange unworldly kind of promise.
That's as much as I can say...
 
                                       VC

Antiphon:

O Emmanuel, our King and our lawgiver,
the hope of the nations and their Saviour:
Come and save us, O Lord our God.

THURSDAY 22nd DECEMBER

                                                                     Fork Handles
                                                Oh how we've waited to add this caption!

Lord Jesus

We pray that your coming may transform our work:
Help us to labour eagerly and honestly,
To know that everything we do has a place in your purpose.

We pray that your coming may transform our family life:
May we learn in our homes the peace, love and generosity
We should show to all people.

We pray that your coming may transform society:
Inspire us to hunger and thirst for what is right,
To work against injustice wherever we find it.

We pray that your coming may transform the world,
Bringing peace and justice to all nations,
And turning the forces of science and technology to good ends.

Amen.


Prayer Space:

Just two more opportunities to use Open Church and explore this week's Prayer Space: the church will be open after Morning Prayer from 9.30 until noon both today and tomorrow.

As Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem, this week Prayer Space asks you to consider the baggage you're carrying into Christmas, to put it down and to place yourself in the Nativity action. Where do you fit in?


Your week?

Just another Manic Monday?  Torrid Tuesday:  Whizzy Wednesday: Thundering Thursday: Furious Friday:  Sapping Saturday:  Suffering Sunday ?

Take five.  You and Him.  Explain.  Listen.  Be calmed.  Renegotiate the day.

                                                               Snowdrops: Lilford


Winning the lottery

I hadn't been expecting that -
Her looking so young.
Perhaps I hadn't been listening at the briefing.
Easy to be dazzled in those high marble halls.

Precociously challenging in stance and set.
No visible tattoos.
Large eyes searching mine.
I tell you, I felt imtimidated. Me!
At a loss how to pitch my line.

I said might she like to sit down?
Not really she replied Happy as I am thank you.
I folded my wings.
Dropped the bombshell.
(I like these moments).
Oh she murmured.
(There was a hint of satisfying unsteadiness I thought).
By instinct a hand fluttered down to her belly
Flat under the fullness of the black skirts.

Run that past me again?
I did. With relish.
Explained that with Him everything is possible.
Ditch your logic, forget your physics,
Anything you thought you knew about biology.

Rather too quickly she said
OK whatever I'll do it.
I was a bit put out.

I'll leave you the contract I said.
You might want to read the small print.
There are consequences.
No rights, no royalties,
No book deals, a gagging clause.
A reputation:
Obedient, submissive, meek, pure.
You may be stalked, trolled,
Held up for inspection,
Caricatured, misunderstood...

I know she said and smiled.
That's the way it is these days.
My heart melted.
You have to make sacrifices for any child.
Why not this one?

                           Vince Cross

 Antiphon:

O King of the nations, and their desire,
the cornerstone making both one:
Come and save the human race,
which you fashioned from clay.

WEDNESDAY 21st DECEMBER

                                                                   A Blue Christmas
                                    The shortest day of the year: Twyning, Gloucestershire

God our Father
the angel Gabriel told the Virgin Mary
that she was to be the mother of your Son.
Though Mary was afraid,
she responded to your call with joy.
Help us, whom you call to serve you,
to share like her in your great work
of bringing to our world your love and healing.
We ask this through Jesus Christ,
the light who is coming into the world.
Amen



If other commitments prevent you from coming to the service this evening, make a few moments at home or in Open Church to remember those struggling with grief and hopelessness at this deep, dark time of the year.

Bells Across the Snow   by Frances Ridley Havergal

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
Is it really come again,
With its memories and greetings,
With its joy and with its pain?
There's a minor in the carol,
And a shadow in the light,
And a spray of cypress twining
With the holly wreath tonight.
And the hush is never broken
By laughter light and low,
As we listen in the starlight
To the 'bells across the snow'.

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
'Tis not so very long
Since other voices blended
With the carol and the song!
If we could but hear them singing
As they are singing now,
If we could but see the radiance
Of the crown on each dear brow;
There would be no sigh to smother,
No hidden tear to flow,
As we listen in the starlight
To the 'bells across the snow'.

O Christmas, merry Christmas!
This never more can be;
We cannot bring again the days
Of our unshadowed glee.
But Christmas, happy Christmas,
Sweet herald of goodwill,
With holy songs of glory
Brings holy gladness still.
For peace and hope may brighten,
And patient love may glow,
As we listen in the starlight
To the 'bells across the snow'

Frances Ridley Havergal (1836-1879) was a poet and hymn-writer, some of whose work can still be found in our hymn-books today. Perhaps her most famous lyric is 'Take my life and let it be'. Though the words of 'The Bells' are Victorian, the emotions and sensibilities are very recognisable. They are what we will prayerfully bring before God in our Blue Christmas service this evening.



Antiphon:

O Morning Star,
splendour of light eternal and sun of righteousness:
Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death.

TUESDAY 20th DECEMBER

                                                   Annunciation: Dante Gabriel Rossetti


O unknown God,
whose presence is announced
not among the impressive
but in obscurity;
come, overshadow us now,
and speak to our hidden places;
that, entering your darkness with joy,
we may choose to co-operate with you,
through Jesus Christ, Amen.

                 Janet Morley

Yesterday...

Twenty four carol singers of all ages braved the rain and cold to take some happy Christmas music to the streets of Weston Favell, and make some money for the East Park Hostel for the Homeless. Rosemary, Peter and the Enterprise Committee send out a thank you to all who sang, collected and gave. The total raised is at least £404, with two sizable donations included.

Throughout the year, the Enterprise Committee work on events to show the practical side of our faith, and in the course of that raise thousands of pounds for good causes. They in turn deserve a huge thank you for their hard work in organisation and in pricking our consciences.

Talking of raising money, Bill Kingston and his team persuaded hundreds of pounds from the pockets of those singing Christmas music in the Bold Dragoon last Thursday in aid of the visually handicapped. As Richie Benaud would have said...'Good effort!'


Tomorrow...

At 19.00 our Blue Christmas, a service for hope and healing. For many of us the approach to Christmas is tinged by sadness and regret. Here we take time to acknowledge those feelings on the shortest day of the year.



Annunciation     by John Donne

Salvation to all that will is nigh;
That All, which alwayes is All every where,
Which cannot sinne, and yet all sinnes must beare,
Which cannot die, yet cannot chuse but die,
Loe, faithfull Virgin, yeelds himselfe to lye
In prison, in thy wombe; and though he there
Can take no sinne, nor thou give, yet he will weare,
Taken from thence, flesh, which deaths force may trie.
Ere by the spheares time was created, thou
Wast in his minde, who is thy Sonne, and Brother;
Whom thou conceiv'st, conceiv'd; yea thou art now
Thy Makers maker, and thy Fathers mother;
Thou hast light in darke; and shutst in little roome,
Immensity cloystered in thy deare wombe.


The Advent Antiphons

The antiphons, or refrains, all beginning 'O...' were traditionally sung before and after the Magnificat at the service of Vespers on the seven days before Christmas Eve. They're addressed to God, calling for him to come as teacher and deliverer, with a tapestry of scriptural titles and pictures that describe his saving work in Christ. We too are using them each day this week.

Antiphon:

O Key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel;
you open and no one can shut;
you shut and no one can open:
Come and lead the prisoners from the prison house,
those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.


Throughout this blog from time to time we use materials which are the copyright of the Church of England with thanks.

MONDAY 19th DECEMBER

                                                              In the Crispin Chapel


Blessed are you, sovereign Lord, merciful and gentle
to you be praise and glory for ever.
Your light has shone in our darkened world
through the child-bearing of blessed Mary.
Grant that we who have seen your glory
may daily be renewed in your image
and prepared like her for the coming of your Son,
who is the Lord and Saviour of all.
Blessed be God for ever.

               Take Note telling us that that they want some figgy pudding and they want it now!
                                                    Coffee: church hall  11.30 yesterday.


Yesterday...

It took a long time to distribute communion at the 10 o'clock service yesterday - after the choir had received and were back in their seats, two full hymns and a long piece of organ music - a measure of how many people were there to enjoy the worship a week before Christmas. And in the evening the church was full again to hear the Lessons and Carols. In a world where human frailty is so exposed, maybe God is back on the agenda...?  For Christians, as Robert Bridges once memorably wrote in a hymn, 'All our hope in God is founded...'


Today...

We'll be taking the Good News of Christmas to the mean streets of Weston Favell from 17.30 starting from outside the church. Viewed one way, it's guerrilla evangelism, viewed another we'll be raising money for the East Park Hostel for the Homeless Trust. Wrap up well, bring your voice and a torch. Carol sheets provided.


And tomorrow...

A new Prayer Space in the church for use during Open Church. Take ten minutes to calm the mind. You'll work all the more efficiently for it.


Intimacy

I only have brothers.
My sisters never made it to their teens.
A fever took Hannah.
Eliana? Oh, a wall collapsed.
I'll spare you the details.

So, a womanly cousin,
A confidante, a comforting companion,
Was what I wished for.
But what I have - is Mary.

Twenty-five years between us.
An accidental circumstance.
I as dry as dust.
She as dew on grass.

She copies me.
And yes, you'll say, this is flattery.
But understand this.
In speech, in style, the way I walk,
The things I like: everything is colonised,
So I am forced to be unlike myself.

I marry an older man. So does she.
And now, a final irony,
She also is with child.
My moment of triumph,
My completion, my affirmation,
She steals from me.
A miracle in my life
Outbid by a greater one in hers.

Oh, these two strange children, bonded in blood,
How will they be vindicated?
How be understood?

                             Vince Cross

Antiphon:

O root of Jesse, standing as a sign among the peoples:
before you kings will shut their mouths,
to you the nations will make their prayer:
Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

SUNDAY 18th DECEMBER

Lord Jesus, light of the world,
Blessed is Gabriel, who brought good news;
Blessed is Mary, your mother and ours.
Bless your Church preparing for Christmas;
And bless us your children, who long for your coming.
Amen.

                                          It'll be all right on the night!: the choir rehearse.


Come and join the celebration...

A day, a week, to remember Mary, the mother of Jesus...

How's your throat? Warm it up before you start carolling. Don't oversing*, particularly if you're doing so outside. There's a whole week of wassailing to come...you want to stay the distance!

*  To clarify: we mean, go and sing, of course we do, but if you're in the open air it's easy to sing too loudly and do bad things to your voice! We've all been there (croak! croak!)


Today:

Services at 8.00 and 10.00. Evensong at St. John's 15.45. Who cares about Kings College? Come and take part in our own  Lessons and Carols: 18.00. (Well, we all do care about Kings, but you can listen to that too - later in the week!)


Tomorrow:

Join us to sing some jolly carols around the parish. Meet at the church 17.30. Refreshments afterwards in the Hervey Room.

The church will be open in the morning after Morning Prayer ( 9.00 ) until noon, with a new Prayer Space coming soon (Tuesday).

Please pray for Tim and Carly who will be married at 13.00. With brass quintet!  Hence no Prayer Space tomorrow: it's a Brass Quintet Space pro tem!



A Magnificat...

My Soul spirals heavenwards to the Lord;
He has embraced me with his Word
My Spirit flies to my eternal Saviour;
I am lifted on wings of Almighty favour.
Henceforth shall people rate me blessed
For to greatness he has raised the least
His mercy is on those that tell his worth
The proud are scattered by the pangs of birth.
He has exalted the truly meek and humble
The castles of the haughty burn and crumble
He remembering his mercy has rescued Israel
As he promised our father Abraham full well.
Deo Gracias, Deo Gracias
Be it then to me, according to Thy will.

   from the 'Northampton Nativity': Vince Cross


Antiphon:

O Adonai, and leader of the House of Israel,
who appeared to Moses in the fire of the burning bush
and gave him the law on Sinai:
Come and redeem us with an outstretched arm.

SATURDAY 17th DECEMBER

People of God: return!
You are called to be God's own.
From the mountains announce the good news.
God comes in justice and peace,
to all who follow his ways.
You are God's children.
Lord make us one in the peace of Christ
today and for ever.
Amen.

    Outside the International Court of Justice: The Peace Palace. Den Haag, The Netherlands


STOP PRESS!

If you're reading this before 10.00 in the morning, you've still got time! Get yourself down to the Church Hall for OPEN HOUSE. Coffee (tick!) Mince Pies (tick!) Things to do (tick!) All ages (tick!). The shopping can wait.


And tomorrow...

All the usual morning services and Breakfast Club PLUS 'Take Note' to entertain you over coffee after the 10.00 service. So...take note!

And then at 18.00, the Lessons and Carols service. The choir will be singing a number of pieces including John Joubert's lovely 'There is no rose', the R.L. Pearsall arrangement of 'In dulci jubilo' , and the entrancing John Rutter 'What sweeter music'. That man certainly knows how to write a good tune! And at the centre of everything the familiar, but spine-tingling story of what a baby's birth two thousand years ago can mean for us today.

                                                           Looks like rein...deer!

St John the Baptist:  1 St. John's Eve

A sonnet for midsummer by Malcolm Guite

Midsummer night, and bonfires on the hill
Burn for the man who makes way for the Light:
'He must increase and I diminish still,
Until his sun illuminates my night.'
So John the Baptist pioneers our path,
Unfolds the essence of the life of prayer,
Unlatches the last doorway into faith,
And makes one inner space an everywhere.
Least of the new and greatest of the old,
Orpheus on the threshold with his lyre,
He sets himself aside, and cries, "Behold
The One who stands amongst you comes with fire!"
So keep his fires burning through this night,
Beacons and gateways for the child of light.

copyright:  Malcolm Guite from 'Sounding the Seasons', Canterbury Press 2012
www.malcolmguite.com

Malcolm is Chaplain at Girton College, Cambridge.

                                                  David at Tea Club earlier this week.


Antiphon:
O Wisdom, coming forth from the mouth of the Most High,
reaching from one end to the other mightily,
and sweetly ordering all things:
Come and teach us the way of prudence.

FRIDAY 16th DECEMBER

                                                       Caravaggio: St. John the Baptist.

God our Father,
you gave to Zechariah and Elizabeth in their old age
a son called John.
He grew up strong in spirit,
prepared the people for the coming of the Lord,
and baptised them in the Jordan to wash away their sins.
Help us, who have been baptised into Christ,
to be ready to welcome him into our hearts,
and to grow strong in faith by the power of the Spirit.
We ask this through Jesus Christ,
the light who is coming into the world.
Amen.

                                                        Three candles (Wait for it...)

Today...

Morning prayer at 8.30, and then Open Church until 11.00

at 12.00, Danny Brenna and Harriet Moss get married in church.

...but while that's going on, Our Walkers will be striding the fields, ending with lunch at The Red Lion at Brafield. If you want to know more about our walks, ask Bill Rothwell. If you don't know who Bill Rothwell is, ask someone to point him out. If they don't know, keep asking.  And that's the way a congregation becomes the Family of God...

19.00. Choir practice


Yesterday...

The bar of The Bold Dragoon was absolutely rammed with people singing carols and Christmas music under the batons of Bill Kingston and Martin Pettit. An amazing and thought-provoking experience, and fearless, charismatic animation from Bill and Martin.

Coming up:

Saturday: 10.00  Open House in the church hall. Something for everyone!

Sunday: 18.00:  Lessons and carols. Don't miss it. The Christmas 'signature' service.

Monday: 17.30: Carol singing around the parish. Thus combining Walking with Music. Clever, eh!  Dress warmly. Bring the Strepsils.

Wednesday 19.00: Blue Christmas

More about all these later.

Conversation piece   

You've read the story.
Did you like him then,
That John fella?

Reminiscent
Of a madman on the tube,
Don't you think?
Or Ian Anderson
Living in the Past
Gap-toothed
Standing on one leg with
A Pied Piper's flute,
Bewitching a generation.
Wouldn't care to meet his eye
Would you?
Move to another carriage
Sharpish
Wouldn't you?

Is it important?
The liking bit?
Can you split
The man from the message?
Put your daughter
In his hands?
Of course you wouldn't.
Be honest.

But some people
They really go for that stuff
The weirder wilder shores of faith,
Or the ascetic angle.
And you've got to admit
The story of Jesus
Would lack a dimension
Without him.

What do you think then?
A contingent literary device?
Or a necessary condition
Of salvation history?
i.e.
Let there be a world
Anywhere in any universe
And there will be a Jesus
And there will be a John?

                               Vince Cross
                        
This came about after a conversation with another parishioner about faith and doubt held during Open Church a week or so ago.

THURSDAY 15th DECEMBER

                                         'Not sure that should be an A major chord, mind'...
                                             Bill Kingston busking: church hall 14.12.16

  (Bill and friends can be found singing seasonal music in the Bold Dragoon tonight from 8 p.m.)


Heavenly Father,
As streets fill with shoppers,
Bright lights and tempting offers,
Christmas songs and children's laughter,
You lead us along a different path
To a desert river and a Prophetic voice:
A call to repentance:
A call to service:
A call to immerse ourselves
In living water that will never run dry:
A call to prepare a way in our own lives
For the Saviour of the world to enter in:
To know the touch of tender mercy
And rest in your forgiving love.

For your faithful prophets
And your Living Word,
We give you thanks.
Amen.

This week's Prayer Space

As last week, the Prayer Space provides three focuses for the visitor's thoughts. An audio reflection offers the opportunity for the listener to think about the slights and injustices they've experienced in their lives, and to decide whether to let them go. Of course, forgiving those who we think may have wronged us leads to thinking about how we may have hurt others. The Love Heart Prayer gives us a chance to pray for those close to us: our friends and family. And the final activity takes us from darkness into light.

The Exceedingly Strange Case of Zechariah the Priest Part III

The baby yelled
And yelled.
Everyone laughed.
Like father, like son!
Then stopped in their tracks.
Zechariah, after all,
Was still mute.
Perhaps the priestly eloquence
Had gone for good.

People assumed.
The boy would be called
After his dad.
Obstinate, square Elizabeth
Glared.
His name is John.
The neighbours murmured.
What were they missing here?
Looked quizzically
At Zechariah.
Expected what?
An argument?
A scene?
He beckoned.
Inscribed in the wax
One word.
John.

Clutched at his throat.
Coughed and spat.
Held his head in both hands.
Coughed and spat a second time.
They thought he was a gonner.
But like a dam bursting,
A flood of foam-flecked words,
Emotional, prophetic, rejoicing,
Burst over their heads,
Engulfing them.

From a distance,
Gabriel watched
And smiled.

                             Vince Cross

WEDNESDAY 14th DECEMBER

                                                                   Cold Christmas?

Gaudete         by  Brad Reynolds

Because Christmas is almost here
Because dancing fits so well with music.
Because inside baby clothes are miracles.
Gaudete
Because some people love you
Because of chocolate
Because pain does not last forever
Because Santa Claus is coming.
Gaudete
Because of laughter
Because there really are angels
Because your fingers fit your hands
Because forgiveness is yours for the asking
Because of children
Because of parents.
Gaudete
Because the blind see
And the lame walk.
Gaudete
Because lepers are clean
And the deaf hear.
Gaudete
Because the dead will love again
And there is good news for the poor
Gaudete
Because of Christmas
Because of Jesus
You rejoice.

Jesus answered them, 'Go and tell John what you hear and see: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.'  A poem for the third Sunday in Advent.

Brad Reynolds S.J. is a photographer and artist, one time in residence at Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington State. He's also the author several mystery novels.


Today...

Don't forget the concert by Alison Roddy's pupils in church at 14.30

And Bill Kingston (plus hat and ukulele, we hope!) will be singing as the uniformed organisations arrive and leave church between 19.10 and 19.30. We expect you'll be able to join in the choruses if you're there...

And tomorrow...

Bill will be hosting seasonal music at The Bold Dragoon from about 20.00.  You'll be very welcome to join in the fun!


A thousand up...

We're delighted to announce we're now well past a thousand hits. Mrs Trellis writes from North Wales to say: " I have repeatedly visited your bog hoping to find out something of the Adventures of St. Peter, hopefully presented by Ewan McGregor or that nice David Attenby. But sadly in vain. I must warn you I have now complained to Mr Hyssop on 'Have I got news for you' about this flagrant misrepresentation which must surely fall under the umbrage of the Trades Descriptions Act. Yours etc."

We're truly sorry, Mrs Trellis, but other people seem to quite like visiting our bog.

                                                         Make straight a pathway...

The Exceedingly Strange Case of Zechariah the Priest Part II

He continued to scrawl,
A babbling fountain
Of prophecy,
Arcane, ecstatic.
People said
His mind had gone.
There was no child.
For Elizabeth
Was nowhere to be seen.
Rumours circulated.
He'd murdered her.
She'd done away with herself,
Unable to bear
The disgrace of
Childlessness.
Then one morning
As if in a magic show,
She appeared outside the house,
Cradling a wild-eyed baby
In her arms.
A hot wind
Blew in from the desert.

                (Third and final part tomorrow...) 

                                         VC

TUESDAY 13th DECEMBER

Heavenly Father,
you call us to prepare for the coming of your Son:
Forgive us our unreadiness to receive him.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy

Lord Jesus,
you were proclaimed by John the Baptist:
help us also to prepare your way.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

Holy Spirit,
you speak through the prophets:
make us attentive to hear your word.
Lord, have mercy
Lord, have mercy.

Today:     

Weston Favell Primary School Carol Services from 9.15
Open Church  11.00-12.00   (With knitting!!!)
Tea Club  14.00  (Church Hall)
Gardening club  19.30 (Church Hall)


This week: 

A new Prayer Space. Don't be fooled! The gazebo may look the same, but the activities and focus are different. Make some time for yourself 'in the tent'.


Tomorrow: 

Weston Favell is an extraordinary community. You name it, the skill or profession can be found. And amongst our number is a professional singer and conductor, Alison Roddy. Come and hear some of her pupils sing tomorrow afternoon in church at 14.30. Maybe you'll be inspired to improve your own vocal gifts too!

There are two Residents' Associations in the parish. One is the Weston Favell Village Residents Association, and the other is Bridgewater Residents who meet on Wednesday in the Road to Morocco at  10.30.

Threat or promise?

We carried away a plastic bag (priced 5p) from a well-known fashion retailer the other day which carried the slogan 'Christmas is coming for you...'  One could take that a number of ways...

                                   
                                                               'Repent and be baptised'
                                                           The Nene at Nether Heyford


The Exceedingly Strange Case of Zechariah the Priest: Part I

Entered the sanctuary
Loquacious as ever
Hands lifted high
Afterwards
Stumbled out
Quite unable to speak.
Wrote in the dust
Of a vision,
An angel.
(This happens to old men sometimes).
Claimed his wife Elizabeth
Would have the child
So long anticipated
In vain.
But look at her!
At her age?
Miracles do not happen
In the modern world.

                          (to be continued...)

MONDAY 12th DECEMBER

                                                              River Tove: Towcester.

The last and greatest Herald of Heaven's King
Girt with rough skins, hies to the deserts wild,
Among that savage brood the woods forth bring,
Which he more harmless found than man, and mild.
His food was locusts, and what there doth spring,
With honey that from virgin hives distilled;
Parched body, hollow eyes, some uncouth thing
Made him appear, long since from earth exiled.
There burst he forth: All ye whose hopes rely
On God, with me amidst these deserts mourn,
Repent, repent, and from old errors turn!
-Who listened to his voice, obeyed his cry?
     Only the echoes, which he made relent,
     Rung from their flinty caves, Repent! Repent!

                                        William Drummond ( 1585-1649 )

                                           Some shaking, some rolling, but a lot of Rattling.
                                                The Prince of Wales Rattlers entertain...

And in the parish ...

Open Church

There's a new Prayer Space...but you'll have to be clever with your diaries to see/experience it...the options are limited this week. Today your only chance was to be at Morning Prayer, and that will work on other days too. Some children from the Arbours Primary School are finding out about 'church' today. Tomorrow (Tuesday) our own Primary School will be enjoying carol services for Years 1-6, so the church will only be open afterwards from 11.00 a.m. until noon. On Wednesday morning it's the turn of the WFPS Reception year and Shining Stars so the church isn't available to other visitors. There's no problem on Thursday because we're open 9-12, but time is a little curtailed on Friday because Danny and Harriet are getting married, so Open Church will end at 11 to allow time to prepare the space for them and their guests. But do drop in before OPEN HOUSE (in the church hall 10-12 on Saturday): the church will be open from 9 until 10. Got all that? Good! We're not sure we have...but isn't it great that all this is going on! Please pray for all who visit St. Peter's this week, that they may find peace and/or challenge as they need it.

Elsewhere tomorrow...

Whoever you are, there's a club or group somewhere around St. Peter's that's for you. Tomorrow afternoon at 14.00 in the church hall you'll find Tea Club, where more senior folk can enjoy a bit of cake and company. And in the evening at 19.30, the Gardening Club will be talking about...well actually we don't know what they're talking about...but sharing intelligence amongst themselves as they do has proven results as anyone who walks around the parish or visits the allotments, or (particularly) attends the summer Open Gardens event will know.

Lord Jesus
Light of the world
John told the people to prepare
For you were very near.
As Christmas grows closer day by day,
Help us to be ready to welcome you now.
Amen.

SUNDAY 11th DECEMBER

 

Blessed are you, sovereign Lord, just and true:
to you be praise and glory for ever.
Your prophet John the Baptist was witness to the truth
as a burning and shining light.
May we your servants rejoice in his light,
and so be led to witness to him
who is the Lord of our coming kingdom,
Jesus our Saviour and King of the ages.
Blessed be God for ever.

In some Asian cultures peafowl are thought of as messengers. Here is the resident solitary peahen known and loved by many around the northern end of the High Street.  She was sounding off like a good 'un this weekend: St. Peter's own Joan the Baptist?


Yesterday

There was music in the church during the morning, and people wandered in and out to enjoy what was going on. The stand out moment? Probably Chris playing his own transcription of Debussy's 'Snow Falling' from 'Children's Corner'. If you missed it, lobby him to play the piece for you again sometime in the near future. Lovely! One listener said of their time in church 'It was so good to just forget about minutes ticking by, and not worry about what I had to do next'.


Today

A surprise for worshippers at the morning services as they found The Prince of Wales Rattlers singing some seasonal music on the church doorstep. Our thanks to Harry, Clive, Clive and Graham for giving up their time to do this. You can catch the Rattlers again (sounds like a new virus!) at St. Matthew's on December 19th at 7 p.m., after you've joined our carol singers singing around the parish from 5.30 p.m....

We hear rumours that the Youth Pilgrims may have been getting their skates on this afternoon... Want to know more? Ask Allison.


And tomorrow...

No Open Church or Prayer Space in the church during the morning, because we're welcoming children from The Arbours Primary School.

Pilates in the evening at 6 and 7 (church hall), while the Cubs do their thing in the Scout Hut.

St John the Baptist's cry

I keep tellin' 'em
(although it's lights on
and nobody home with this lot)
it's not about being on trend,
not some badge to be worn,
not membership of a select club.
This is about death.
You go into the water, and you die.
Get it?
Then you rise
to a life changed for ever.
Don't do it
unless you feel you must.
Look at me.
It'll cost.
                   Vince Cross

SATURDAY 10th DECEMBER

                                            Stained glass: St John the Baptist, Piddington

Who isn't fascinated by
The exquisite moment of balance?
Who doesn't love
A tipping point?
We watch a gymnast
Poised on the wire or bar;
Encourage a coin onto its edge;
Ponder if the universe,
Hitherto rushing headlong away from itself
May not be about to
Slow
And stretch,
Arching its back like a pole vaulter
Before falling inwards
To shake cataclysmic hands
With the rest of matter.

Well, here we are.
After all those mythic patriarchs
And sighing prophets,
Welcome to the Common Era;
To History
And all that follows;
To the turn of the page.
These are our people now.
This is the story of our salvation.
No excuses.

                                            Vince Cross

Catch the Saturday habit...

After Advent Soup last week, and a little light Saturday music this week, next week 'Open House'!Ten to twelve in the church hall. Watch for more details, but put it in your diary. Beg, borrow or steal (well, maybe not steal...) some tickets. See Sue Kirby. LATE ADJUSTMENT. Just learned: YOU DON'T NEED TICKETS. JUST TURN UP!!!


And catch the Sunday one too...

You're spoilt for choice. Is it quietness and early morning contemplation at 8 a.m. this Sunday? Or a more traditional Eucharist with music and a sermon at 10? Or a more informal Family Service at 11.15? Or compare and contrast and go to all three...now there's a challenge! Has anyone outside the clergy or lay-readership ever done that? I think we should be told...

And tomorrow morning, watch out for a little surprise, somewhere between the 10.00 and 11.15 services...


A mistake...

Our fault. We got confused. The Blue Christmas service is at the time advertised in the Church Christmas Card and elsewhere. It's at 19.00. (Seven o'clock). And we've corrected our mistake earlier in the blog.

                                                      Detail from the St. Peter's font.


Communication Breakdown 140

A prophet speaks...

      Listenupdudesallthisstuffthat'sgoin'downwotyathinkin'?readmylipsit'sgonna
      turnoutbadtheBigGuyhedoan'digitwiseupit'slaterthanyouthink#OTbeard

Time passes...  the son of the first prophet speaks...

    Awguysnowlookatya!pickin'oakuminBabylonhangin'upharpsontreesan'stuff
    getwiddaprogrampraytoGodan'mebbey'alleatSederbackhomesomeday#doin'myhead

More time passes...the grandson of the first prophet sticks in his oar...

    LookmyolemantoleyahisolemantoleyaI'mtellin'yabutyadoan'getitofftoBabylon
    backfromBabylonofftoBabylonagainetc.spareme!hadituptohere#nohairleft

Aeons pass...someone in a crowd...

    SocheckthisoutpeoplesomeweirddudemonikerJohnoutindaboondocksthreadslikeahobo
    eatin'INSECTS!!likelyhandlessnakesneedshisheadexamined#hairshirt

A little earlier...God...

    Putindaboysan'whathappens?STUFFhappensrubbedoutdoin'twentyhardignored
    jobsworthdoin'doityasel'!mysonmydearsonthey'lllistentohomwon'tthey?#CEO

                                                                            (Luke 20: 9-15)                 Vince Cross