Our parish in 2012: new opportunities for our Christian life

As we begin to look ahead to determine the priorities for our parish, I’d like us to focus on three particular areas of our Christian life together. I hope very much that I can encourage you all to join me as your priest in charge and to support one another across the parish in these three endeavours throughout 2012. These three themes are all part of the Candlemas Gospel from Luke 2.

Simeon, we are told, was “righteous and devout”. We get the impression that he was particularly devout in his worship in the Temple. Anna, the prophet, appears even more devout for she worshipped there with fasting and prayer, night and day”. Mary and Joseph also came to the Temple as part of their own custom and tradition. And all four of them witness the Presentation of Christ in the Temple.

So here I want to suggest what should be the first priority for us in the year ahead: our worship – and specifically the pattern of Sunday services across the three churches of our parish. That is why, at the beginning of January, the PCC invited everyone to say which services they regularly attend, and why, and what changes they would be willing to see, so that we can best meet the variety of needs in attending public worship in our churches. Whatever pattern we come up with, let us pray that it will be one which enables us all, like Simeon, to see Christ presented before our eyes in our places of worship, and praise God for the salvation he has prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light to enlighten the nations and to be the glory of his holy people.

Secondly, Mary and Joseph came to the temple to make an offering of a sacrifice according to what is written in the law of the Lord. They made their offering of a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons, according to the Law.

Although we are also called to make our offering, it is no longer according to the Law but according to the Gospel. This means that our offering is in response to Christ’s offering for us: his self-giving love. So this is why I want to suggest that our second priority for 2012 should be for us all and together to be prayerfully considering what it means to make our offering to the Lord according to the Gospel.

In our Christmas carols we sang “what can I give him, poor as I am?”, and I am sure you will recall the answer. In our Communion services we often pray the following promise to God: “we offer you our souls and bodies to be a living sacrifice”. Although giving our hearts and souls and bodies to God seems quite a challenge it is one we all readily pledge ourselves to do in our Sunday worship, so why does giving our money often seem so much harder for us? Let us pray that 2012 will be a year when we really take to heart the challenge of Christian Giving.

Mary and Joseph offered what was required by the Law of the Lord. I pray that we shall look forward in 2012 to offering what is required by the Gospel: our generous and joyful sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving.

Thirdly, our Candlemas gospel shows how all four characters, Simeon, Anna, Mary and Joseph, were aware of having received both a special blessing and a special commission from God. Simeon knows he is blessed in being able to hold and behold Christ, and we too are blessed in this and every eucharist as we hold the body of Christ in our hands. Anna too is blessed by knowing this child is the answer to all who look and long for God’s promises to be true, and we too are blessed very time we see in Jesus the answer to our longings. Mary and Joseph are blessed by being amazed by what was said about Jesus and we too are blessed every time someone tells us about Jesus.

But with all these blessings comes also a sense of a definite commission from the Lord – a sharing in His mission and ours. It is this sense of a sharing in Christ’s mission that I pray will be our third priority in the year ahead. For Simeon did not merely fade away when he departed in peace: he was set free to proclaim his gospel of salvation. Anna did not merely continue her prayer and fasting, but told everyone about Jesus. And Mary and Joseph did not merely return home, but prepared for the cost of true discipleship, the sword that would pierce their own souls. All of them were empowered to share in Christ’s mission.

With a new pattern of services, new opportunities for self-giving, and a renewed sense of sharing in Christ’s mission we can rejoice with Mary and Joseph and Simeon and Anna at the beginning of this year and look forward with them to the consolation of God, to the Holy Spirit resting upon us and to seeing the salvation which God has prepared for us and for all people.

Revd Dr David Miell delivered this sermon at Ringwood Parish Church on Sunday 29 January 2012. 

Find out more about the open meeting to discuss the changes to the pattern of services.

This is no ordinary time

Dear Friends

As we are ‘sent out’ at the end of the Candlemas service (the grand finale to our Christmas and Epiphany celebrations) we enter the first (and shorter) of two phases in the Church Year known as ‘ordinary time’. That is quite an ironic name for it when we realise that the times ahead for us – not least in our own parish – are anything but ordinary! Some will surely cry: “We’ve only just begun to think about new patterns of services (and who knows where all that will lead!), and already there are rumours of the PCC beginning to think about a new stewardship campaign, and a new ‘mission action plan’… Oh, how we long for some ordinary time!”

It’s true: the times ahead are full of perplexing challenges – but also of exciting new possibilities. One of the latter is that Bishop Tim, (as we can now call him, following his consecration at St Paul’s Cathedral on 25 January), will be coming among us in April as Bishop of Winchester. Significantly, he comes from being General Secretary of CMS, the Church Mission Society.

In the consecration service the archbishop says these words: “Bishops are ordained to be shepherds of Christ’s flock and guardians of the faith of the apostles, proclaiming the gospel of God’s kingdom and leading his people in mission.” We will therefore be especially blessed by Bishop Tim’s experience of mission throughout the worldwide church, enriching our own understanding of what mission is and how mission works.

Bishop Tim has already declared that his vision for our Diocese is that we should be “Living the Mission of Jesus”. As 2012 unfolds no doubt he will take every opportunity to communicate that vision to us in greater detail. In Ringwood Parish we shall probably need to adapt our own plans and projects, perhaps quite radically, and maybe even quite often, to ensure that we are following the lead already being given by our bishop.

We do well to prepare for Bishop Tim’s new ministry among us by thinking deeply and prayerfully about what it should mean for us as a parish to more authentically “live the mission of Jesus”. I find it helpful to think of the church’s mission as our witness to that great movement of divine love in which God the Father sent his beloved Son as the saviour of the world. Jesus said to his disciples “as the Father has sent me, so I send you”. Bishop Tim’s consecration continues the great succession of the church’s mission from those apostles – the first to be sent by Christ. Let us all pray for him as he prepares to lead us in mission.

Ash Wednesday falls on 22 February. Let’s use that occasion to make ourselves ready to move with confidence out of “ordinary time” and into the season of Lent. May we all be willing to be led by the Spirit, as Jesus himself was, into a place outside our “comfort zones” and pray for grace to withstand the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil in order that we may “live the mission of Jesus”.

David Miell

Consultation on Pattern of Services

Thanks to all who have returned questionnaires. The PCC would like to present its proposals for the new pattern of parish services at a special meeting in the Parish Church on Saturday 18 February at 10.00am.

All are welcome to come and hear the proposals, to ask questions and to comment on them.

Looking after the Church

January has been a very busy month for repairs and maintenance at the Parish Church. The lock to the Vicar’s vestry door finally gave up after several months of being temperamental, and Peter arranged with Ian Dods, the locksmith for it to be replaced. If you have an old key to the Vicar’s vestry, it will no longer work! So please let me or Peter know if you need a new one.

The Parish Rooms committee raised a couple of concerns about the churchyard behind the church. Firstly, there is a very large bay tree whose branches are starting to encroach on to the Rooms roof, and which causes blockages in the gutters. The care of the churchyard lies with the Town Council and their tree surgeon has recommended that the tree be cut right back and then the re-growth managed to keep it in tidy shape. This idea had unanimous approval from the church committee, so I am now in the process of getting faculty permission which we must have before the council can go ahead. The other concern raised was that the footpath at the back of the church is extremely dark at night time, and really needs some more lighting. It would be very difficult to dig the trench needed for electrical cables, so we are investigating the possibility of solar powered lights, and I’m currently waiting for suggestions from the Diocese’s lighting consultant about this.

You may have noticed that our church notice boards are very out of date, and we are actively investigating replacements. We have found a company – The Church Notice Board Company! – who are very good, and will place an order this month. At the moment, this will be for the parish church only, but I hope that St John’s and St Paul’s committees may decide to put up new boards in the same style, so that we have a parish ‘brand’ with greater visibility to townspeople.

And then there are the windows. I mentioned last month that I was awaiting a report from Salisbury Cathedral Stained Glass. I’ve now received this, and the repairs needed are quite significant, as expected. Repairs to the church will cost some £14,000 and to the tower and ringing chamber, a further £7,000. We do have sufficient reserves, which are restricted for the fabric of the church, which can be used to cover these costs, but are also investigating grants and other sources of funding. We do intend to press on at full speed with the repairs. Advance warning: this will mean some sections of the churchyard will have to be cordoned off to avoid danger from falling masonry or glass.

Now that the Christmas and New Year festivities are behind us, our thoughts turn quite naturally to… our annual meetings and elections. I know that many people find the various processes quite confusing, and I hope I can simplify them over the next few months.

Let’s start with the Church committees. Each of our three churches has a committee which has delegated authority from the PCC to deal with matters of routine house-keeping and maintenance. Each committee has a treasurer who takes care of financial matters and a secretary to take minutes of meetings. Church committees generally meet once every two months. Anyone who is on the Electoral Roll can be elected to the committee of the church where they regularly worship.

Each church has an AGM during April and the dates will be published in due course. At the AGM the committee members for the year ahead are elected. If you would like to stand for election, you should complete a nomination form. You must ask two other members of your church to nominate and second you, and they must complete the form where indicated. You cannot nominate another person without their agreement. All posts are re-elected every year, so, if you are on a church committee this year, and you would like to continue, you must submit a nomination form. There is no automatic re-election of existing committee members. Pass the completed form to me or Peter. All nomination forms must be received before the AGM begins. If there are more people wishing to stand than places available on the committee, there will be a vote during the AGM. Being on a church committee is very rewarding and an excellent way of becoming more involved with your church. Do please think and pray about standing.

At the Parish Church and St John’s AGMs deputy churchwardens are also elected. Each has two; St Paul’s doesn’t have any deputy wardens. As with the church committees, re-election isn’t automatic, and a deputy churchwarden must be nominated, seconded and elected each year. If you would like to stand, the nomination form is available is enclosed in the Parish magazine, or is available from the Parish Office (office@ringwoodparish.org.uk). The form should be completed as before and passed to myself or Peter. Again, this must be done before the AGM begins.

Christmas donations and windows

I’m delighted to say that our appeal for donations for Christmas Hampers raised £250 including gift aid! This has been used to buy food for ten hampers which have been distributed by the Jigsaw Project to those in our area who are in need. I’m so grateful to Henriet for taking on this task and getting the hampers prepared at very short notice for the Jigsaw Project’s Christmas Party at Trinity Church. At a time of year when there are so many demands on our finances, you have been very generous. Thank you so much.

December was a very busy month in the Parish Church, with several carol concerts which needed a number of rehearsals for each, as well as concerts and the Civic carol service. Peter and I are grateful to Alan and Tom, our deputy wardens, and to Anne Osborne and Reg Blunden for their help during this very busy period. It was very special to see so many young people and their families enjoying our church, and a wonderful opportunity for them to start to get to know David. All were very surprised and interested to see our life-size stable and crib. This really has become a major taking point and a focus for regulars and visitors alike, allowing us to make our pilgrimage to Bethlehem.

I met recently with our church architect, Antony Feltham-King, and Sam Kelly from Salisbury Cathedral Glazing at the Parish Church. They had come to look at the stained glass windows in the Chancel. Some of the ferramenta, the iron cross-bars, have drawn moisture into the surrounding masonry, causing it to expand and crack. Antony has prepared a report on the repairs he considers necessary. It became very clear to me that our stained glass is historically significant, and we have a very real duty to ensure that it is preserved for the future. We also inspected all of the church’s windows, and I’m afraid the result was not good. The windows had secondary glazing in polycarbonate or glass added when the A31 was built and subsequently, and this has been very valuable in keeping noise out, heat in, and providing protection for the windows from vandalism. However, particularly on the south, sunny side of the church, this glazing has created a mini ‘greenhouse’ environment causing some of the windows to bow. The polycarbonate has discoloured and some of the glass panes have cracked. Repairs will have to be undertaken, and we are currently waiting for a full report from Salisbury Cathedral Glazing. I expect that it will be costly, but would hope that we might be able to get help with funding.

Advance warning that before the end of April, we must elect the representatives to each of our three church committees, the PCC, deputy churchwardens for the Parish Church and St John’s, and Churchwardens. So this is a good time to start to think and pray about how you might be able to help ensure that the church continues with growing strength in Ringwood. Over the next few months, I will explain the election process and the various meetings and will provide a nomination form in the Parish News.

Christmas in Ringwood

Our first Christmas in Ringwood has been a delight. Henriet and I have really enjoyed being part of the many Christmas celebrations that have taken place in the churches and various other locations: so many occasions for sharing the light, love, joy and wonder of the birth of Christ.

But when the decorations come down, our homes, shops and streets all seem for a while to be a bit flat, a bit empty, surrounded by a dreary wintry wilderness. But, the fact is, life returns to normal. Luke’s Gospel tells us that, after seeing the babe lying in the manger, the shepherds returned. Like the shepherds, we also return to the ordinary routines, like going back to work. Even wise men departed and returned. Even after the resurrection, the disciples went back to work… as fishermen.

The good news is that, following on from the glory of Christmas or Easter, it is precisely here, in the ordinariness of our lives, that the mysteries of incarnation and resurrection become truly manifest. In our day-to-day living, we begin all over again as witnesses, as we, like the shepherds, return glorifying and praising God for all we have seen and heard. In the hum drum of our existence we are commissioned anew, as were the first apostles, with the task: “Go, therefore, and make disciples…”

As we return to the ordinary, but believing anew in what we have seen and heard, so we shall find the ordinary transformed, as water into wine. This is the meaning of the Epiphany: the revelation of Christ which drew us near, sends us out again, but transformed. And with Christ, as he did after being baptised, we can even dare to leave behind the glory and enter the wilderness of ordinariness. In the same Spirit we can even dare to begin writing on the blank pages of our new 2012 diaries.

And so, we now return to the beginning of a new year. We return to many old familiar routines; but we are changed and renewed. Our journey through last year has brought us here, transformed by what has been revealed to us. We have searched diligently, and rejoiced exceedingly with great joy at what we have found. Now we can look forward to returning to old routines, perhaps by another way; not only a little older but more than a little wiser. I’m going to enjoy filling in my new diary!

Every blessing for 2012.

David