St Nicholas Church
Dear Everyone
Lent traditions
have been summed up as :-
Prayer for the good of your
soul.
Fasting
for
the good of your body.
Giving
to Charity
for the good of your neighbour.
Prayer is about “being
real” with God – opening our lives and hearts to what our Creator has planned
for us. What has he planned for you in 2012 ?
How would you find out ?
Fasting has its roots in
Jesus’ 40-day fast in the wilderness but the tradition has evolved over the
centuries. In the Middle Ages only one meal was allowed per day in Lent and
what they called break-fast was postponed until the evening. Later all things
that come from “flesh” were prohibited, removing fish, milk, cheese, and eggs
from Lent tables. From this came two of our most popular customs: the eating of
pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, the night before Lent begins, to use up all the
food that wouldn't be needed during Lent, and the giving of eggs on Easter
Sunday as a celebration of Easter and that the restrictions of Lent were over
at last.
These days fasting is often recognised as a
positive attempt to get toxins out of our bodies - a week without coffee can
make a vast difference to our state of well-being and release a little bit of
cash for other things at the same time – like Giving to Charity for instance.
But behind all the
traditions of Lent lies an attempt to tune in to God’s ways. That’s the long and the short of it…. how
we respond, how we get closer to Him.
Giving to Charity, Fasting and particularly Prayer are good things to do
in Lent.
Parish Priest of
Hardwicke and Elmore with Longney
Dear Everyone
This year’s Confirmation at Gloucester Cathedral will be on Saturday May 12th at 4.30pm – beginning in February we will be preparing candidates for Confirmation. There will be weekly meetings for youngsters from the top classes of our Junior Schools and a separate weekly group for adults too.
We will be covering the basics of the Christian faith; belief in God, the life and work of Jesus, the importance of faith for our lives today and the ongoing relationship that we can have with God through Jesus our Saviour and friend.If you are interested please let Fr Andrew know as soon as possible.
Shrove Tuesday Pancakes are served at Pam Lewis’ house, Purton Cottage, Bristol Road on February 21st from 10.30am onwards, all welcome.
The Season of Lent begins this month on Ash Wednesday, February 22nd, if you’ve ever wondered about this Christian celebration and what it all means, then come to St Nicholas Church for the Service with Ashing at 7.30pm.
We will also be running our annual Quiz Night Special with Prizes on Friday February 24th at Hardwicke School, beginning at 7.15pm. We are inviting entrants in teams of four at £2.50 per head entrance - single entries are welcome (we will group single entries into teams). Bring your own nibbles and drinks. Entrance is by ticket – for more details and for tickets phone 720015.
This year we are continuing our popular “Storyteller” Family Service on the second Sunday of every month at 11.00am – families including children are very welcome and there are lots of youngsters in Church that day so no one need feel worried about bringing the kids. Our own Junior Choir sing too so it’s well worth coming along that day. If it’s been a while since you’ve been to Church give it a try on February 12th.
For those who like a quiet traditional style of service, we have a Communion Service every Wednesday at Hardwicke Church beginning at 9.30am – timed to follow on after the “school run”, this might be a way to re-charge your spiritual batteries midweek.
Remember your local Church is here to help, for more details see www.hardwickechurch.info
Fr Andrew
Parish Priest of Hardwicke and Elmore with Longney
|
St Nicholas Parish Church, Hardwicke
Worship and Events – February 2012
Sunday February 5th – Education Sunday
Parish Eucharist & Guest Service at 11.00am
also Sunday School
Sunday February 12th – St Valentine’s Sunday !
”Storyteller” Family Eucharist at 11.00am
(Welcoming those to be married in our Church this year)
Sunday February 19th – Sunday before Lent
Parish Eucharist and Sunday School at 11.00am
also Sunday School
Ash Wednesday - February 22nd
Eucharist with Ashing at 7.30pm
Sunday February 26th – Lent 1
”Simply Worship” Eucharist at 11.00am
also Sunday School
Our Church service at 11am on the second Sunday of every month is especially suitable for families with children and our Junior Choir also sings during the Service on that Sunday. If you don’t attend Church or its been a long time since you came along, try the Service on February 12th – we would love to see you.
Baptism (Christening), or Weddings - phone Fr. Andrew 01452 720015
Our Midweek Communion Service is at 9.30am every Wednesday
Email : vicarage@inbox.com Details on our Website : www.hardwickechurch.info |
