Newsletter: December, 2003

A CHRISTMAS MESSAGE FROM THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY

The carols we sing and the prayers we say around Christmas carry two important messages which at first sight look a bit contradictory. Jesus is described as 'the desire of all nations', picking up the words of Haggai 2.7; he is what everyone has been waiting for, the one that everybody on earth longs to meet. All human life finds its centre and its goal in Jesus.

And then we remember that there was ‘no room in the inn’, and we sing carols about how ‘the busy world’ had no space for Christ, and how, from the very beginning, the Son of Man had nowhere to lay his head. No-one wants to meet him; he is on the edge, not at the centre.

This is not a sign of confusion on the part of Christians. If Jesus is truly divine as well as truly human, then we always have to face the fact that he will not fit into our world tidily — even when we want him to.

God's purposes for the world are likely to be mysterious to our small minds; and in order to go along with those purposes, we shall have to change in ways that can frighten and panic us. No wonder that we push Jesus to the edge and try to avoid the implication of what he says and does.

Yet we can't get away. God has made us in such a way that we only become really human when we are in harmony with his life and love. His will, his presence, his personal being is indeed what we most deeply want. It’s as if we have to make a very long journey to find these deep places in ourselves, a journey for which we need courage and patience.

So what looks like the edge is really the centre. Jesus is both a frightening stranger and the one who speaks to us with more intimacy and immediacy than any other being. Our Christmas stories and songs are about how long it takes to find ourselves, the selves God made.

T.S. Eliot's poem about the journey of the magi imagines the three wise men asking ‘Were we led all that way for birth or death?’ And the answer is ‘both’; so much of what we think we want and what we think will help us or make us safe has to die; and what comes to birth is the self God wants, the self that begins to look like Jesus, the true image of God in humanity.

We're living through a time of great uncertainty and disturbance in our Church. There is no quick solution to the disputes that divide us, and we are all, surely, grieved at how these disputes take us away from the task of sharing the good news. But at Christmas we are reminded of truths that should unsettle everyone in the Church — not just ‘liberals or ‘conservatives’. We are all brought before the same Christ and told that he is both the one we most need and long for and the one we shall find most strange and troubling. We are all urged to begin again the long journey into our hearts to find the true centre. We shan't emerge from that journey with better arguments with which to defeat opponents or better schemes for saving the Church. We emerge with a greater fear and wonder — like those who in the gospel stories first met the newborn child; and we turn to get on with the hard business of living in a divided and imperfect church with just a little more awareness of the overwhelming mystery with which we deal and the searching questions it puts to each one of us. Before becoming preoccupied with our neighbour's failings, we must, in the presence of the Christ child, look first to our own birth and death; to where we see the centre and the edge; to how we find God's centre, not just the centre of our own concerns and anxieties. The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid...” The shepherds said to one another, “Let's go to Bethlehem and see”.

Rowan Cantuar

NEWS IN BRIEF
We were very sad to hear that Mrs Betty Attwater has died very suddenly on 18th November. Betty had been a regular worshipper at St Jude’s for a number of years and was a familiar figure around the village in her weatherproof buggy. Her family is very much in our thoughts and prayers. Her funeral will be in Somerset.

ST JUDE’S SCHOOL
St Jude’s School would like more people who can spare a little time to go into the school and listen to some of the children read. This is a great help to the teachers and is very rewarding for the individuals who help in this way. Offers should be made to Lorna, the Vicar, either by telephone or in writing.

ST JUDE’S PLAYERS
This year's pantomime will be Little Red Riding Hood by Paul Reakes (an author whose work has been performed several time before with great success) and will be performed on 5th, 6th, 11th, 12th & 13th December at the Social Hall. This is truly your local pantomime and offers very good value for money.

PARISH CENTRE APPEAL
Total raised so far £85,937
Total expenditure so far £9,181
Total promises so far £17,688
Money available for project £94,444
Balance needed £405,556

Raised last month
Coffee Morning £108
Donations £3687

CHRISTMAS MARKET
Our Christmas Market held in St Jude’s School on Saturday 22nd November raised a total of £584 for USPG. Many thanks to all those who supported this.

TEDDY BEAR CLUB
After more than five years the people at the Teddy Bear Club are sorry to say farewell to Gillian Weigel. Gillian was instrumental in the success of the Teddy Bear Club, not only by supplying members with endless cups of tea and coffee, but more importantly she always had time to talk to each and everyone in the club. All Gillian's hard work has not gone unnoticed and she will be greatly missed by all.

We would all like to wish Gillian all the best as she moves to her new home.

FROM THE REGISTERS
Holy Baptism:


Holy Matrimony:

Confirmation:
(6th November) David Beer, Michelle Beer, Linda Crowley, Yvonne McLaren and Richard Marston.

Funerals:
(7th November) David Lawrence Flockhart; (10th) Patricia Weldin; (20th) Patricia Nolan; (26th) Zena Bishop.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

COFFEE MORNING
The next Coffee Morning outside St Jude’s Church will be on Saturday 13th December from 10.00am to 12 noon. At this event there will be mulled wine, mince pies and some extra things to sell.

At 11.00am there will be the draw for the Football signed by the Arsenal First Team (other prizes are a Christmas Hamper and a bottle of whisky). More details of the Draw including how to get hold of tickets is on the back of this Newsletter.

After this Coffee Morning, there will be a break. The first one of the New Year will probably be on 8th May (the second Saturday in April is Holy Saturday).

CAROL SINGING
Carol Singing will take place around the village on Monday 22nd December. Last year proved that with more people, this really can be great fun, so please join us. We meet at 7.00pm at St Jude’s Church. The money collected will go to the Shooting Star Trust which is raising money to build and equip a hospice for children and young people at Hampton.

CALENDAR FOR DECEMBER 2003
1 Monday 8.00pm at the Jurgens Centre Meeting of Churches on the Green
6 Saturday St Jude’s School Christmas Fair 2.00pm (auction 3.30pm)
7 SECOND SUNDAY in ADVENT 8.00am Holy Communion (BCP) 9.30am Youth Eucharist 3.00pm Holy Baptism
13 Saturday 10.00am–12 noon Coffee Morning and Sale at St Jude’s Church
14 THIRD SUNDAY of ADVENT 6.30pm Evensong and Sermon
15 Monday 7.00pm St Jude’s School, Celebration of Christmas
16 Tuesday 7.00pm St Jude’s School, Celebration of Christmas
21 FOURTH SUNDAY of ADVENT Dressing of the Christmas Tree at the end of the 9.30am Sung Eucharist.
4.00pm Churches on the Green Village Carol Service followed by refreshments
24 Wednesday CHRISTMAS EVE 4.00pm Crib Service, 11.30pm Midnight Mass
25 Thursday CHRISTMAS DAY 8.00am Holy Communion 9.30pm Family Eucharist
26 Friday 9.15am Holy Communion (St Stephen)
27 Saturday 9.15am Holy Communion (St John)
28 THE FIRST SUNDAY of CHRISTMAS