The parish of All Saints with St Saviour
Weston-super-Mare
What Marine Cove used to look like!
February/March 2017
£1.00
The Parish of All Saints and St Saviour
Weston-super-Mare
Visit our website: www.allsaintswsm.org
Parish Priest
Father Andrew Hughes 01934 204217
[email protected]
Associate Priest
Father Stuart Boyd 01934 627897
[email protected]
Hon Assistant Clergy
Father David Parkinson 01934 708125
[email protected]
Father Arthur Payne 01934 615522
[email protected]
All Saints Church BS23 2NL: Junction All Saints’, Queen’s & St Joseph’s Roads:
Sunday Services
9.00am: Mass (said)
10.30am: Parish Mass (choral)
Weekday Services
10.00am: Wednesday Mass
10.00am: Thursday Mass
10.00am: EVERY Saturday: Mass
1st Saturday: Requiem Mass
nd
2 Saturday: Walsingham Mass
3rd Saturday: Healing Mass
4th Saturday: CBS Mass
5th Saturday: Mass
All Saints’ and St Saviour’s is affiliated to The Society under the patronage of
Saint Wilfred and Saint Hilda, also Forward in Faith and is under the
extended Episcopal care of the Bishop of Ebbsfleet. All are welcome
2
“The Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness
and he remained there for forty days, and was
tempted by Satan. He was with the wild beasts,
and the angels looked after him.” (Mark 1:1213.)
Have you ever wanted to escape from the pressures of
everyday life in order to find peace and solitude?
In the Gospels, we read about how Jesus, following his
baptism was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for
forty days he was tempted by the devil. Not only was he to
be denied contact with others, but he withdrew from the
normal comforts and provisions of life. Left in solitude, our
Lord fasted and prayed and in so doing opened himself to
the risk of temptation. Without food he learnt where his
inner-strength was to be found; facing differing kinds of
danger, he was to discover where his security lay and, on
being left isolated, he realised where his deepest loyalty
lay.
I have never had the opportunity to take myself off for
almost seven weeks. I doubt if any of us have. However,
as we prepare as a Parish to journey through Lent,
perhaps we might find ways of exploring something of that
experience. Of course we may not find it easy, in fact it
may be inconvenient, yet it could be worth the effort.
Why not try to find a space where you can withdraw away
from others for a short while each day and try to shut
yourself off from sounds – a fast from sound. This could
help you to discover the value of silence. As you do, begin
to explore who you are as you reflect on what has
sustained you, enabled you to be ‘you’ at times when you
felt under threat; in doing so you will also journey towards
God. As Jesus withdrew to where he had nothing, so we
might choose to create a time each day when we withdraw
from having and acquiring, to consider those things that
are our deepest needs, and the needs of others. One of
3
the values of self-denial is the discovery of what one really
needs as against what one wants and has.
Jesus also withdrew from a place of safety to a place of
fasting in which he discovered his security. As Jesus came
to know where his true security lay, so, during Lent, you
may wish to examine what it is that you dare not risk
simply because you wish to be safe. The demands of the
wilderness, the place of fasting, are considerable and we
may only feel able to step a short distance into such a
place. But no matter how far we travel, if travelled
seriously, the journey will yield its rewards.
This Lent, which begins this year with Ash Wednesday on
1st March, we are providing you all with many opportunities
to be still, and reflect on entering into one-ness with God.
On Saturday 4th March we will put another quite day, from
10.00am to 4pm; led by Deacon Jennifer Swinbank from
Cheltenham; on Saturdays within Lent we shall have our
usual Stations of the Cross, within the Mass, at 10.00am;
and this year there will be two opportunities each week to
participate in our Lent study groups. The first group will
meet on Monday evenings at the Vicarage, led by myself,
and the second group will meet in Church at 2.00pm., and
be led by Owen James. In addition, we shall again provide
you all with free Lent books, produced by the ACS, for
your own daily prayer and reflection. Please use the next
four weeks leading up to Lent to think and pray about how
you will use these many opportunities to deepen your
relationship with God.
With every blessing,
Father Andrew
4
Meeting of the Parochial Church Council of All Saints with St
Saviour held in All Saints Church on Monday 5th Dec 2016
1. Members Present and apologies
Fr Andrew Hughes (Chairman and Priest-in-Charge), Colin Taylor
(Churchwarden), Fr Stuart Boyd (Associate Priest), Terry Edwards
(Lay Chair, Treasurer and Secretary), Joan R Beer (Deanery Synod),),
Philip Pughe-Morgan (Deputy Churchwarden), Owen James, Diane
Guy, Jude Forth (Safeguarding Officer), and Ray Armstrong.
Apologies: Ron Fox (Deputy Churchwarden), Marjorie Fox (Deanery
Synod),
The meeting opened with prayer and a gospel reading.
2. Minutes of previous meeting(s)
The minutes of the meeting held on 12th September 2016 were
approved and signed with no amendments.
3. Matters arising and outstanding from previous meetings
a) Approval of the Viscount digital organ installation and a
completion certificate have been issued by our architect Alan
Thomas.
b) Concerns raised by Gordon Pullin in actual use of the digital
organ are; a.) the organist cannot see the choir in the stalls over
the music stand on the organ and b.) also cannot see the clergy and
servers during the service, so timing is an issue. It was
unanimously agreed by the PCC that we should extend our current
CCTV to overcome this problem and that we go ahead with a
£1,000 max spend.
c) TheAlzheimer’s Society was contacted by the secretary and agreed
to send a representative (Alan Richardson) to the carol service.
Also that the presentation of the cheque will be made during a
Sunday service in January 2017. Fr Andrew will arrange this with
Mr Richardson. The amount to be given to Alzheimer’s during
2017 from our different events will be discussed and agreed at the
sub-committees and reported to the PCC
d) The ex St Saviour stained glass windows, Colin reported on his
and Alan’s visit to Bakers, Alan included this n his report to the
PCC and estimated of the current value of these windows at irca
£40,000. Colin has spoken with the diocese and we now await a
report back from the Archdeacon/Chancellor on what can and
cannot be done with these windows. The general feeling of the
PCC was for disposal.
5
e) Way Forward Fr Andrew opened by apologizing for the delay in
having the first meeting of the new Mission group. However, we
have made significant headway since our visit to Coventry and on
Saturday 3rd Dec Fr Andrew was at a meeting at Buckfast Abbey
with The Society chairman of the Council of Bishops, Bishop
Tony Robinson, a six point plan on mission was discussed in some
detail. This plan along with material from the Coventry visit will
be used in the coming months to identify our way forward. The
first meeting of the Mission Group is now planned for 16th January
2017 10am at the Vicarage. (Standing Committee plus Ray
Armstrong, Jude Forth and Owen James). Copy of Bishop Tony
Robinson Letter attached with minutes.
f) Buildings and Security; Alan Yeates had issued a report prior to
this meeting, Terry summarised the security measures that had
already been taken and those yet to come during December, i.e.
lighting and door security. The review of CCTV for the outside of
the building and exploring the possibility of a grant. We are due a
full electrical safety test of the building to comply with legislation
and insurance needs. Improvement to All Saints and St Saviour
hall lighting and increase in number of power points is also
scheduled during December and into the New Year. The matter of
toilet facilities at All Saints have been raised by several different
organisations using our church/hall and also our own PCC subcommittees, it was discussed and agreed that we should seek
proposals for additional toilet facilities and upgrade to existing,
this matter to be followed up for outline plans. We will be having
a green wheelie bin for All Saints. We thank Alan for his diligence
and detailed report.
g) Finances and Parish Share; Terry gave an overview of the
finances this year, they were similar to last year and we have paid
£24,000, which was the forecast. However, it is possible for us to
pay another £2,000 towards this year’s share and the PCC
unanimously agreed to this action. Further the parish share for
2017 has been declared at £33,219 after discussion it was agreed
that adopt the same approach for the new year, i.e. £2,000 per
month and that the treasurer writes to the diocese as per last year.
h) Electoral Roll; the latest and final numbers for 2016 are as follows
3 deceased, 7 enrolled and 9 removed, 69 people are on the
electoral roll
i) Colin gave a Churchwarden report; an overview of activity was
discussed and it was noted that more photos for the inventory were
now necessary and this would be undertaken shortly.
j) Concerts; Jude gave an overview of the year and thanked all those
that had worked so hard to achieve a record year in attendance and
6
takings. It is anticipated that after the last concert on 11th
December the total will be circa £4,500.
k) Safeguarding no new matters
l) PCC meeting the first meeting in 2017 agreed. The date of the
APCM has been set for Sunday 2nd April 2017 after mass
m) Fr Andrew report; discussion re: Sunday refreshments had
concluded that these should be offered without obligation and the
donation signs removed. If people wished to give a donation they
would, supporting charities via refreshment donations was also
agreed and that people would provide tea, coffee, biscuits and
sherry. The coffee mornings would also support charity and be
advertised accordingly. The Nave altar has been on trial prior to a
formal request for a new portable one. It was agreed that a further
trial take place from Ash Wednesday during Lent. Discussion on
the use of church for social events concluded that this was a good
idea and the PCC agreed to use church for this coming year
beginning with the Bring and Buy on January 28th.
n) Correspondence; the secretary had received a communication
from the diocese bishops Bishop Peter and Bishop Ruth, entitled
Community Conversation, Living the story, Telling the story, this
was an invite for representatives of our parish to attend a
Community Conversation event either on 12th March or 2nd April,
this was agreed and reps will be selected for this event. A copy of
the invite will be circulated to the PCC.
The meeting closed at 11.50am with the peace and mass led by Fr
Andrew. Next Meeting Monday 27th February 2017 at10.00am venue All
Saints Church
Please Note: Standing Committee meet at Vicarage Mon 10am 20th Feb
2017
Item Matters for action
Assigned
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Digital Organ internal CCTV progress
Security & external CCTV
Toilet facilities All Saints
Use of Church for Bring and Buy
Sunday Refreshments status
Coffee Mornings
Bakers Stained Glass Storage
Community Conversation
“Way Forward” progress
Terry
Terry
Terry
Terry
Colin
Colin
Colin
Fr Andrew
Fr Andrew
These minutes shall be published for information purposes only, any
errors or omissions will be ratified at the next PCC meeting prior to
sign off.
7
Cheque Presentation
Colin Taylor writes….You will
recall that the PCC agreed that
the charity which would be
supported at our Annual Carol
Service was to be the
Alzheimer’s Society.
It seems a long time ago, since the Carol Service; but
first, we need to thank all those who were involved in
many tasks which helped make the Carol Service run so
smoothly and very successfully.
Over 300 people from the local community and beyond
attended the service, together with representatives from
the Alzheimer’s Society. On leaving the church, many
people passed comment on how much they found the
service to be uplifting and that they were made to feel
welcome.
Last year, for the first
time, it was decided
that instead of
sending each other
Christmas Cards, we
would have a Parish
Christmas Card.
Many thanks to all
those signed the card and made a donation.
8
The Carol Service collection, plus the Parish Christmas
Card donation totalled £1,300.00; which was presented to
Alan Richardson, the Alzheimer’s Society representative,
at the end of Mass on Sunday 22nd January 2017. Alan in
thanking the Parish for this donation, gave a short
explanation of the work of society.
Fund raising
for the work
of the
Alzheimer’s
Society will
continue
during 2017,
we will be
holding a
Coffee
morning
after Mass
on
Wednesday
8th February.
We have received a Thank you from Alan on behalf of
the Alzheimer’s Society, “Can I thank you for the
cheque for £1300 which was handed over on Sunday.
Also the opportunity to say a few words - which was
much appreciated. Thank you also for the hospitality,
and there were quite a few people who chatted
afterwards - about their own experiences.
Assuring you of our support as and when required.
Kind Regards
Alan G. Richardson Dementia Friends Champion
9
Letter from the Right Reverend Peter Hancock, Bishop of Bath
and Wells - February 2017
At one time January and February were not part of the
Calendar as the winter was regarded as being a ‘monthless
period.’ Indeed it was not until about 700BC that Numa
Pompilius added January and February to the Calendar.
February was named after Februa, a festival of ritual
purification. In Old English February was called Solmonath
(mud month) or Kale-monath (named after cabbages). In
Somerset we certainly know something about both mud and
cabbages!
But how strange to regard Winter as being ‘monthless’? It
assumes nothing is happening. And that’s certainly not true. In
our gardens we see snowdrops, crocuses and daffodils
appearing. New life and new growth is evident everywhere. For
farmers this is also a very busy period with early lambing often
underway and with winter sown crops already well established.
February is a time when we appreciate that the days are
lengthening and for many of us ‘spring cleaning’, whatever that
may mean, is often under way. In February Epiphany is well
behind us and Lent almost upon us. Across the Diocese there is
also much that is happening. Bishop Ruth and I are looking
forward to six Community Conversations, the first two of which
are in February. There will be two in each archdeaconry and
these are occasions for us to meet people from right across the
diocese. Some will be people we know well, but we hope many
will be people who we have not had the chance to meet before.
The aim of each Conversation is to provide an opportunity for
us to hear and to share some of the things that God is doing
among us. We are called to be followers of Jesus, living and
telling the story of his love. All PCC secretaries and clergy
have been given these dates, so do speak to one of them if you
would like to come along. We look forward to meeting you and
hearing your stories.
With warm greetings,
+Peter
10
PALM CROSSES
It would be appreciated if you could return
your Palm Cross to Church by Sunday 26th
February. This will allow us to burn them in
order that we can make the Ash for the
Imposition of Ashes; which takes place at
Mass on Ash Wednesday.
Many thanks
Dementia Friendly Church
The very successful ‘Becoming a dementia friendly
church’ course is being repeated on Saturday 25th
February 2017 at Holy Trinity Church, Lysander Road,
Yeovil, BA20 2BU.
The course runs from 10 am (meet for coffee) until
approximately 3.30 pm.
You are asked to bring your own lunch, but drinks will be
provided.
If anyone would like to attend and possibly share
transport, please speak to Ray Armstrong.
WINTER WARMTH
All Saints in common with several other
churches in the town provides food and
drink to those in straightened
circumstances during the late autumn
and winter months on a Saturday
evening. We use our St Saviours hall in
Locking road as it is more accessible to the town centre. We
have benefited greatly this season with support from popular
national bakers Greggs who have provided much food for our
clients. We average about 20 people at the evenings and if
anyone would like to know more please see Ray.
11
LENT NEWS - The theme for the ACS lent booklet is taken
from our Lord’s words as he shared the Last Supper with his
disciples: ‘And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he
broke it and gave it to them.’ Luke 22:19 TAKEN, BLESSED,
BROKEN, GIVEN Lent Meditations by Joan Wyman
The two lent study groups this year, previously mentioned by Fr
Andrew will use a lent study entitled "Moving to the margins"
published by Embrace, the Christian development charity
which tackles poverty and injustice in the Middle east. There
will be a total of six sessions leading up to Easter. All will
include bible study, prayer and information. If you feel this is of
interest to you please see Father Andrew (Monday) or Owen
James (Wednesday). Each group will last around an hour.
Tuck into a Fish
and Chip supper
at All Saints Hall
on Shrove Tuesday
28th February.
After the lovely food why not play some Bingo.
12
Concerts – What’s On
Friday 24th February - 7 pm
Churchill Academy, Bristol Cathedral School and
Trinity Singers. JS Bach’s Magnificat in D and
Bernstein’s Chichester psalms. Tickets £8.50 (students
£5.50)
Sunday 26th February – 6pm
Andrea Monk’s Students Spring Piano Concert. Tickets
Adults £3.50, Children £2
Saturday 22nd April – 12 –1 pm
Waves of Harmony, ladies choir. Songs from the
shows including ‘Can you feel the love tonight’, ‘Lift up
my head’, ‘I will follow him’ and ‘I have dreamed’ from
the King and I.
Tickets £8 on the door to include a free light lunch
and a glass of wine.
Saturday 29th April – 7.30 pm
‘From Vienna to Rome’ – Music from the Age of
Enlightenment- Mozart, Caldara, Constanzi and Bolis performed by Harmonia Sacra and directed by Dr
Peter Leech.Tickets £12 Concessions £10
Saturday 6th May – 12 – 1 pm.
Mendip Recorder Consort directed by Joyce Rudall –
‘Our favourites from the last 10 years’ – a range of
music from 500 years ago to the present day.
Tickets £8 on the door to include a free light lunch
and a glass of wine.
13
Concerts What’s On ……
Saturday 20th May – 12 – 1 pm
Richard Lennox performs a varied programme of piano
and organ music in the wonderful acoustic of All Saints’
church.
Tickets £8 on the door to include a free light lunch
and a glass of wine.
After Sunday mass refreshments
The PCC have decided that Sunday
refreshments should be offered
without obligation and the donation
signs removed. If people wished to give a donation they
would, supporting charities via refreshment donations
was also agreed and that people would provide tea,
coffee, biscuits and sherry.
Wednesday Coffee mornings 10.30am
The PCC has also agreed that the regular coffee
mornings introduced in December last year, would also
support charity and be advertised accordingly. The first
three have been designated in aid of the Alzheimer’s
Society. This Wednesday 8th February is the third of this
trio. The next one is planned for Wednesday March 8th.
14
HOLY WEEK SERVICES
9th April Palm Sunday
9am Mass 10.30am Parish Mass with Procession and
Blessing of Palms
10th April Monday in Holy Week
7pm Mass
11th April Tuesday in Holy Week
7pm Mass
12th April Wednesday in Holy Week
10am Mass
13th April Maundy Thursday
7.30pm Solemn Mass of the Last Supper, Washing of
Feet and Procession to the Altar of Repose
14th April Good Friday
10.30am Stations of the Cross for families
2pm The Liturgy.
15th April Holy Saturday
8pm Vigil and First Mass of Easter.
16th April Easter Day
9am Mass 10:30am Solemn Mass
15
ALL SAINTS COLLECTION BOX IS
BY THE NOTICEBOARD AT THE
BACK OF CHURCH
Over 90% of the food distributed by foodbanks in The Trussell
Trust network is donated by the public – that’s why your food
donations are absolutely vital to our ability to give everyone
referred to us a balanced and nutritious three day supply of nonperishable food.
What’s in a typical food parcel
Breakfast cereals, Long life milk, Baby food and milk, Soup,
Pasta and sauces, Rice. Tinned beans, meat and fish, vegetables,
fruit. Rice pudding, Jam, Tea or coffee, Squash, Sugar, Biscuits,
Snacks, Toiletries.
Thanks to everyone at All Saints for the continuing support
given to keep filling our food boxes at the back of church.
Our foodbank relies on your goodwill and support.
Diane & Anthony Guy
Foodbank organisers for All Saints’ Church.
16
Dates for your 2017 Diary
The Annual Parochial Church Meetings are in church after
Sunday morning mass on 2nd April, for the election of
Churchwardens, Deanery Synod representatives and the new
PCC.
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament
National Festival ~
Saturday 17th June
at St John the Baptist, Coventry
Glastonbury Pilgrimage ~
Saturday 8th July
Pilgrimage to Walsingham ~ Monday 18th
September until Friday 22nd September
Who can tell me where this
photo was taken, it is Roger
Ellery’s parents from a time
past. It’s in WsM.
17
25th Nov to 31st Dec
Services
Loss to Addiction
Service Friday 25th
Nov
ADVENT I
SUNDAY
27TH NOV
Incl Carol Service
Wed (incl Earlfield
Lodge), Thurs and Sat
ADVENT II
SUNDAY
4TH DEC
Weekly services and
Heather Collings
Funeral
ADVENT III
SUNDAY
11TH DEC
Annual Carol service
Freemasons Carol
service and weekday
services
ADVENT IV
SUNDAY
18TH DEC
Midnight Mass and
Crib Service plus
weekday services
including Earlfield
Lodge
CHRISTMAS DAY
SUNDAY
25TH DEC
Weekly services
Home Communion
People
in the
Pews
Week
No.
Collection
Plate
Envelopes
Schemes
48
£74
£163
49
£73
£253
50
£60
£125
£521
£994
51
£105
£150
52
£256
£149
172
93
28
57
225
53
492
56
133
46
15
11
Standing Orders
TOTALS
£1,100
1,380
£1,089
£2,934
18
Live Love Choir
As some of you may be aware we have a second choir
meeting here at All Saints!
In addition to our regular church choir we are also home to
the Live Love Choir. This ‘community choir’ grew out of
our annual Loss to Addiction service and was originally put
together in June 2016 from people involved in various
ways with the North Somerset Recovery Network,
specifically to sing at our November service.
However since then it has taken on something of a life of
its own and having made its debut in front of the Bishop of
Bath and Wells at All Saints on 25th November it was very
busy throughout December performing its free
‘Programme of Carols’ at: The Manor Nursing Home
Uphill, Heathwood Residential Home, Fig House Dementia
Care Home, Earlfield Lodge, Somerset Court (Autistic
Society), Broadway Lodge and The Long Fox Unit of
Weston General Hospital.
After a well deserved Christmas break it’s next project is to
try to get to grips with Karl Jenkins’s ‘Adiemus’ which it
has been invited to sing in the Bishop’s Chapel at the
Palace in Wells later in the year.
I think that we at All Saints can be justly proud that we
have been able to nurture, and continue to support, this
real expression of outreach and partnership between our
church and the wider community and if anyone is
interested in joining this choir just come along to All Saints
on a Thursday between 7:30 – 9:00pm. All are welcome,
no previous musical experience is necessary, there are no
auditions nor any need to read music – it’s just about
having fun and bringing happiness and enjoyment to
others.
Fr Stuart
19
Heresy & Schism
‘Heresy’ and ‘schism’ are regarded nowadays as rather oldfashioned and outdated terms. However, in times past they
could strike horror into the hearts of Christian folk.
Jesus prayed to his Heavenly Father, as recorded in Saint John’s
Gospel, ‘That they may all be one, even as You and I are one.’
However, Saint Paul warned his followers in the young
churches around the Mediterranean that they should ‘hold on
to the faith once given to the saints’ (the phrase is actually
recorded in the letter of Saint Jude), and enjoined upon them
the need to come out and separate from those who were
seeking to challenge the Gospel and disrupt the life of the
Church. It is in that spirit that much of the history of the Church
has been written.
The history of the Christian era falls neatly into three distinct
periods. In the first, which lasted until the eleventh century, the
Church was one and universal, stretching across the lands of
what was originally the Roman Empire and extending
progressively northwards into Scandinavia, eastwards into the
German lands beyond the Rhine, and northwards from
Constantinople through modern day Bulgaria and Rumania into
Kievan Russia and eventually beyond into Muscovy.
After the great rift between what had been the western
patriarchate, based in Rome, and the rest of the universal
Church, the Roman Catholic church dominated life in western
Europe for the next 500 years, until a fresh eruption, this time
against its rule, led to the Protestant Reformation and a further
500 years as the new churches have further splintered into a
myriad number of competing sects. It is the first of these
periods which forms the subject matter of my piece this time,
and I’ll follow up on the other periods in later articles.
20
If ‘heresy’ can best be defined as the distortion or rejection of
the truth, and ‘schism’ as a breach in communion with other
parts of the Church, then the first millennium of the Christian
era was scarred by a number of each. In the well-known hymn,
‘The Church’s One Foundation,’ we sing ‘by schisms rent
asunder, by heresies distressed,’ and they’re not meant to be
just a passing fantasy.
Heresy was rife from the earliest days, and erupted in different
ways in different parts of the empire, sometimes dying out
fairly rapidly when challenged, occasionally, as in the case of
Arianism which denied the full divinity of Christ, spreading
rapidly across various provinces, and lasting for several
centuries. It was apparently Arianism which triggered the early
seed which eventually led to the destructive breach between
east and west. More on that below.
Of course, ‘What is truth?’ as Pontius Pilate had asked at the
time of the crucifixion, is still a question which can bedevil us
today, if we let it. And secondly, how do we determine what is
truth? The Church’s way of doing this was through councils. The
first great Ecumenical Council of the whole Church was called
by Constantine, the first Christian emperor, in 325 AD just after
he had founded his new capital city on the Bosphorus, and it
was followed by a further six over the next three centuries.
They were principally concerned with defining with greater
precision the nature of the God-Man Jesus Christ, and each one
was contested as a great battle of wills between conflicting
beliefs of different factions within the Church.
Saint Luke records in Acts that, at the first ever council, held in
Jerusalem when Saint Paul visited to discuss with Saint Peter
and the other apostles how the new generation of Gentile
Christians should be treated, they agreed that ’It seemed good
to the Holy Spirit and to us…..’, and it’s this spirit which has
embued every council held since that time. Strong views, often
accompanied by blatant manipulation and sometimes violence,
21
were often the order of the day, but eventually a consensus
based on this philosophy would prevail, and a formal decision
be reached on what would become official church doctrine and
belief. So, in this way, the Church was a conciliar church, and
councils from local to ecumenical met on many occasions to
iron out problems as they arose and ensure the smooth
running of the Church. Of course, certain sections might still
remain dissatisfied and not reconciled to the official doctrine
once decided, and this could easily lead to schism.
This happened on a number of occasions during the early
centuries, most notably when a small number of churches in
the Middle East, ranging from Egypt to Persia and to Ethiopia,
retreated into organisational separation of communion from
the main Mother Church because of doctrinal disagreements.
These are known as the ‘Oriental Orthodox Churches,’ and after
a separation of some 1500 years, discussions with Orthodoxy
are leading now to their likely reunion at a date not too far
distant. Both sides are agreed that the original conflict was
probably scarred by the confusion of misunderstanding and
misinterpretation of what was decided, laced as always by the
rivalry of individual church leaders.
However, the main great schism of the whole Christian era,
which still remains unresolved and unhealed, came to a
crescendo in the eleventh century, and I’ll include a short
passage from one of many descriptions of events at that time:
‘One summer afternoon in the year 1054, as a service was
about to begin in the Cathedral Church of the Holy Wisdom in
Constantinople, Cardinal Humbert and two other legates of the
Pope entered the building and made their way up to the
sanctuary. They had not come to pray. They placed a Bull of
Excommunication upon the altar and marched out once more.
As he passed through the western door, the Cardinal shook the
dust from his feet with the words: ‘Let God look and judge.’ A
deacon ran out after him in great distress and begged him to
22
take back the Bull. Humbert refused, and it was dropped in the
street.’
It is this incident which has conventionally been taken to mark
the beginning of the great schism between the Orthodox east
and the Latin west. But the schism, as historians now generally
recognize, is not really an event whose beginning can be exactly
dated. It was something that came about gradually, as the
result of a long and complicated process, starting well before
the eleventh century and not completed until sometime
afterwards.
Among other lesser concerns, such as the date of Easter and
the tonsuring of monks, for example, (which were subjects of
the Synod of Whitby in 664 AD, where the Celtic and Roman
jurisdictions in this country were trying to reconcile their
differences), the two main bones of contention which
developed between the mainstream Church and its Roman
Patriarchate concerned what we call the ‘filioque’ and the
‘Papal Claims,’ the jurisdiction of the Pope in Rome.
Following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the
early fifth century, the Eastern Empire, governed from
Constantinople, was to exist for another 1000 years before its
eventual overthrow by the Ottoman Turks in 1453. The two
worlds slowly drifted apart, the western world with its use of
Latin and the eastern with Greek, and slowly shared customs
and ways of thinking became more distant and then practically
forgotten.
I mentioned Arianism earlier, and it was the third local Council
of Toledo in Spain in 589 AD which, in repudiating Arianism in
that country, interpolated the Nicene Creed with the Latin
word ‘filioque,’ which in English means ‘and the Son.’
This brief and seemingly inoffensive phrase was to cause more
mayhem than virtually anything else which has been uttered in
23
Church discourse down the centuries. The problem concerns
that part of the Creed where we say, ‘I/ we believe in the Holy
Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the
Father…’ in the traditional version of the universal Church. The
Toledo council now added ‘and the Son’ in an attempt to refute
the heretical Arian doctrine concerning Christ’s relationship
with the Father. However, it raised a new issue concerning the
whole set of relationships within the Holy Trinity.
The Church’s teaching had always been, as I indicated in an
earlier article, that the three Persons of the Trinity embrace in
an endless circle of love, in which the Father is the source, the
great patriarch to whom both the Son and the Holy Spirit
relate. The Bible quotes many instances where the Word (the
Son) and the Spirit of God are participating in divine activity
within the world. Some theologians refer to this as ‘the
Monarchy of the Trinity.’ It was argued that the Holy Spirit
cannot proceed ‘eternally’ from two sources, both the Father
and the Son, as this contradicts the whole principle of
relationships within the Trinity and causes confusion, although
it is accepted that the Spirit can act ‘temporally’ at the wish of
the Son. For instance, Jesus tells his disciples before his
ascension that he will send his Spirit to them, to be their guide
and comforter.
In the early stages of the growing dispute over the addition, the
practice spread from Spain to France and thence to Germany,
where it was welcomed by the newly crowned Emperor
Charlemagne, who was seeking to enlarge his empire, and who
saw the western church as a vehicle for doing so. It was
Charlemagne who made it a major item of controversy,
accusing the Greeks of heresy because they recited the Creed in
its original form. Initially the Popes resisted his changes, acting
as mediator between the two parties, and it was Pope Leo III
who wrote to Charlemagne in 808 AD to point out that it was a
mistake to tamper with the wording of the Creed. He had the
24
Creed inscribed on silver plaques without the extra words, and
set up in Saint Peter’s.
The other reason this issue became such a great cause of
offence was that a unilateral decision by one part of the Church
on a matter of such vital theological and doctrinal significance
offended the whole principle of a conciliar Church. Such
matters could only be properly considered by an Ecumenical
Council of the whole Church. Unfortunately, the Popes, who
were increasingly leading secular potentates in their own right
in a fragmented western world of competing powers, came to
side with the descendants of Charlemagne in repudiating any
criticism of the use of the ‘filioque.’ This then ran over into a
wider raft of issues which were rapidly dividing the Church, and
which focused around what we call the ‘Papal Claims.’
The Roman Patriarch, the Pope, had always been blessed with a
primacy of honour akin to that enjoyed by the Archbishop of
Canterbury within the Anglican Communion. Although
Constantine had moved his capital eastwards from Rome, with
its old connotations of vice and corruption, Rome remained the
leading patriarchate among the Pentarchy, the order of
primacy awarded by Ecumenical Councils to the five leading
churches within the universal Church.
However, what Popes from this time on tried to do was to
convert this primacy of honour into a hierarchical supremacy
over the whole Church, and this was bound to cause ructions
with their fellow patriarchs. The other four resisted this and
reminded the Popes that they exercised such authority within
their own territories only, and not in the lands for which the
four were responsible.
As you might guess, this all led progressively to a breakdown in
relationships, and patriarchs stopped including the Pope’s
name in their ‘diptychs’ when they were elected to office. The
diptychs were lists of those bishops with whom the patriarchs
25
considered themselves in communion, so the exclusion of the
Pope’s name was a clear confirmation that communion was
breaking down and a rupture developing. The critical dates
here are in the early eleventh century. The Papacy eventually
accepted the use of the filioque at the coronation of Emperor
Henry II at Rome in 1014, and included it in the service.
Patriarch Sergius of Constantinople thereafter failed to include
the Pope’s name in the diptychs. This in itself was not a
fundamental cause of worry to historians; lists, after all, could
often be out of date, given the time needed to convey news
between capitals if a Pope or Patriarch died. However, given
the circumstances at the time, we may conclude that it was
probably a very clear act with intention.
Eventually, as I’ve already indicated, all this led to a papal visit
to Constantinople in 1054 by a pretty temperamental legate
commissioned by a pretty temperamental Pope, and in the face
of a pretty temperamental Patriarch in Constantinople. Disaster
predictably was bound to follow, and the Bull of
Excommunication left there led to a reverse bull being sent to
Rome in retaliation. Since then the Western Patriarchate,
rapidly become the Roman Catholic Church, has been out of
communion with the rest of the Church, known as the
Orthodox Church.
In fairly recent times there have been attempts to begin the
process of healing the wounds between the two Churches. In
1965 Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of
Constantinople issued a Joint Declaration rescinding the mutual
excommunications of the eleventh century, but this hasn’t yet
resulted in the restoration of communion between them. There
have been a number of subsequent further meetings and
exchange visits for discussion and joint worship, involving also
the patriarchs from other Orthodox churches, but only limited
progress towards reconciliation has been made over the last
half century.
26
One stumbling block is the fact that the Orthodox and the
Catholics have different perceptions of the nature of the divide.
The official Catholic teaching is that the Orthodox are
schismatic, meaning that there is nothing heretical about their
theology, only their unwillingness to accept the supremacy of
the Pope, regarded as an ecclesiological issue, not so much a
theological one. The Orthodox Church, on the other hand,
objects to a number of Catholic doctrines as being heretical.
With respect to the primacy of the Pope, the two Churches
agree that the Pope, as Bishop of Rome, has primacy although
they continue to have different interpretations of what that
primacy entails.
In the Orthodox view, the Bishop of Rome (i.e. the Pope) would
have universal primacy in a reunited Christendom, as ‘primus
inter pares’ without power of jurisdiction, thus restoring the
relationship of the early centuries before the great schism.
The second great schism at the time of the Reformation is also
a very complex matter, and does not form part of this present
review. However, the way the English Church was affected by
all these upheavals is part, and I’ll return to this in a future
episode.
‘Yet saints their watch are keeping; their cry goes up: “How
long?” and soon the night of weeping shall be the morn of
song.’
Philip Pughe-Morgan
Dear Friends
A late thank you to all who sent Christmas greetings. Please
note that my address is as follows;- Apartment 4, Villa Rosa,
Shrubbery Road, Weston-super-Mare, BS23 2JB. Tel:- 01934
615522. Email:- [email protected]
With every blessing to you
Fr Arthur
27
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28
Narcissism, selfishness or necessary self-assertion?
W
e Christians frequently criticize the modern age for its
emphasis on ‘self’ – everything from the notorious
selfie photograph to whole styles of life. Conventions
including conventional roles seem to have dissolved, and with
them our sense of community cohesion. Only sixty years ago for
instance a woman’s role was sufficiently fixed for many
employers to impose a ‘marriage bar’ on working women – on
marriage they were obliged to give up their outside work as it
was assumed they would be working full-time keeping house.
Another solvent has been the enormous changes in patterns of
employment. Alan Sillitoe set ‘Saturday Night and Sunday
Morning’i in an archetypal stable working-class community,
where almost all the men worked in the local bicycle factory,
and the women stayed at home. During the day, the streets are
populated only by the elderly and women doing the shopping.
There is not a working-age man in sight. Contrast this with
today when working hours are both far more flexible and more
precarious and roles far less settled, partly because women have
(in theory at least) vocational equality.
The modern age seems designed for individualism, and before
we criticise we need to understand the reasons for this in-built
bias. The twentieth and twenty-first centuries have brought an
unprecedented rise in material prosperity, particularly in the
‘Global North’, with the Global South now catching up.
Admittedly this is uneven – I am eyewitness to subsistence
farming and very basic accommodation in Indonesia, but there
are definite shifts away from poverty, especially in China and
some of South America.ii,iii However this does not obscure the
fact that with material prosperity comes power to individuals to
choose their own lives – the more possessions and opportunities
you have, the more routes there are to self-expression. This
heightened sense of self is strengthened further by advertising.
Since this is business’s way of attracting customers, there is a
default tendency to flatter rather than, say, confront the reader or
viewers with uncomfortable truths. Advertisements for holidays
‘designed around YOU’iv are legion. In advert after advert
29
‘YOU’ are the prime and only focus. The world revolves around
YOU!
The conventional religious response to this of course is
disapproval and challenge. The world does not revolve around
you. Through the incarnate Christ – God made flesh – it aspires
to the unity with a transcendent God described in the Revelation
to St John – or if you are a Buddhist with an impersonal cosmic
consciousness. Either way, the self is dethroned. Those who
follow no religious path still see the individual as part of
something bigger – building a better society if you are a secular
Socialist like the late Tony Bennv, or simply a microscopic part
of our enormous Universe. It could be argued that the most
irreligious are not Richard Dawkins or Marxists, but ruthless
self-aggrandising entrepreneurs like the previous owner of
British Home Storesvi.
As so often happens though, there’s more to this than meets the
eye. Before consigning modern individualism straight to the bin,
consider an interesting document I came across at the premises
of the Weston branch of ‘One In Four’ in Oxford Streetvii. This
is a non-profit organisation set up to help people with mental
health problems and learning disabilities cope with general
living.
Part of this programme is a declaration entitled ‘Your Bill of
Rights’, the first two provisions of which might make Religion
uncomfortable, especially the second:
1. You have the right to be you.
2. You have the right to put yourself first.
The first at least strongly hints that if, for instance, you are gay
you have a right to live that lifestyle (with the implication that if
you are made that way then not to do so is to live a lie). The
second is even more problematic since it goes against one of the
fundamentals of all religious teaching, with Sir Philip Green as
‘Exhibit A’! However the document makes a lot more sense if
we look at three further ‘rights’:
3. You have the right to be safe.
4. You have the right to be angry, and to protest if you are
treated unfairly or abusively by anyone.
30
5. You have the right to your own opinions, to express
them and be taken seriously
The first two above may be so obvious as to not need stating.
However even these, and especially the second, may make
uncomfortable reading for those used to assigning absolute
authority to priests, teachers, children’s home staffviii and others.
Respect for authority should never annihilate self-respect – but
if we accept this, which we must, then item 5 follows, and
religion must make room for dissent. There have after all been
disputes since the very earliest days – the arguments between SS
Peter and Paul on the degree to which new converts need to
adopt Jewish customs are well known.
The ‘Bill of Rights’ commends a sense of self and self-worth.
Yet aspects of Christian liturgy and practice seem to emphasise
personal worthlessness and unconditional acceptance of
authority. Sin is realix, but we need to acknowledge it in ways
that do not encourage that authoritarianism and deference which
cloak abuse. The declaration ‘I am not worthy...’ at the point of
taking Bread and Wine is utterly realistic, and is completely
opposed to the consumerist vacuity of ‘Because you’re worth
it’x. Yet participants in that Act of Communion have also the
inalienable right to personal safety and to think for themselves.
The ‘Bill of Rights’ is a very modern document and could be
one way to restore the balance between tradition and the present
day, between authority and autonomy. There is nothing quite
like its sentiments in Scripture. However, the deeper meaning of
the New Testament should make it clear that abuse – the
permanent scarring of human beings – is totally unacceptable. A
literal reading of the Bible points to authoritarianism, but deeper
reflection suggests ways in which our ancient wisdom and the
twenty-first century can find common ground. We still revere
the thought of Plato and Aristotle even though they lived around
2,500 years ago. There is no reason why our interpretation of the
Bible should not enable us to refute the argument that because it
was written over 2,000 years ago it’s irrelevant or even harmful,
and encourage a similar respect for Scripture.
Humphrey Reader
31
Sillitoe, Alan: Saturday Night and Sunday Morning Pan Books 1955
I am not sure of the present situation, but some years ago reports about
Brazil appeared in British newspapers suggesting that many Brazilians,
who before were unable, could now afford refrigerators, washing machines
and other white goods.
1 My trip to Indonesia and other countries in 2003
1 Paraphrase of many advertisements. Readers will recognise the tone.
1 Like many outside the Faith, Tony Benn found Christ Himself
immensely attractive, but could not stand organised religion.
1 Not all business people or organisations are like this of course. We have
Bill Gates who has donated most of his vast fortune to good causes, and
Jamie Oliver who has put time and effort into a catering school for
deprived youngsters, as well as speaking his mind on school meals.
1 The full text of the ‘Bill of Rights’:
1. You have the right to be you.
2. You have the right to put yourself first.
3. You have the right to be safe.
4. You have the right to love and be loved
5. You have the right to be treated with respect
6. You have the right to be human, not perfect
7. You have the right to be angry, and to protest if you are treated
unfairly or abusively by anyone.
8. You have the right to your own privacy
9. You have the right to your own opinions, to express them and be
taken seriously
10. You have the right to earn and to control your own money
11. You have the right to ask questions about anything that affects
your life
12. You have the right to make decisions about anything that affects
you
13. You have the right to grow and change, including changing your
mind
14. You have the right to say no
15. You have the right to make mistakes
16. You have the right not to be responsible for another adult’s
problems
17. You have the right not to be liked by everyone
1
1
Scandals surrounding the Kincora Boys’ Home in Northern Ireland as
well as children’s homes in North Wales have recently re-surfaced. Added
to this are revelations about junior sports coaching and the persisting
problems within the Roman Church.
1 Just look at newspaper headlines for any age!
1 A well-known advertisement for beauty products.
1
32
JANUARY 2017
SERVICES
MARY
MOTHER OF
GOD
SUNDAY
1ST JANUARY
ATTENDANCE WEEK COLLECTION ENVELOPES
46
Weekly Services
16
EPIPHANY
SUNDAY
TH
8
JANUARY
49
Weekly services
19
SUNDAY
JANUARY
41
Weekly services
13
SUNDAY
JANUARY
58
Weekly services
28
CANDLEMASS
SUNDAY
29TH JANUARY
53
15TH
22ND
Home
Communion
Standing Orders
TOTALS
1
£66
£236
2
£42
£138
3
£25
£137
4
£52
£280
5
£51
£171
10
£1,100
333
£236
£2,062
33
34
35
36
CAN YOU HELP?
We need help in the parish
office, we open Monday to
Friday 10am until Midday.
Answering the phone, taking
messages, using email,
photocopying and a variety of
tasks that keep the parish
ticking over.
If you can help please speak
with Colin Taylor or Terry
Edwards.
Full training will be given
37
A bar steward notices that every evening, without fail, one of his
customers orders three beers. After several weeks of noticing this
pattern, the bar steward asks the man why he always orders three
beers. The man says, “I have two brothers who have moved away to
different countries. We promised each other that we would always
order an extra two beers whenever we drank as a way of keeping up
the family bond.” Several weeks later, noticing that the man only
ordered two beers, the bar steward said, “Please accept my
condolences on the death of one of your brothers. You know, the two
beers and all…” The man replied, “You’ll be happy to hear that my
two brothers are alive and well… It’s just that I, myself, have decided
to give up drinking for Lent.”
And finally
Don’t forget in put your clocks
forward 1 hour on Saturday
25th March
38
The Parish of All Saints and St Saviour
Weston-super-Mare
Visit our website: www.allsaintswsm.org
CONTACTS
Parish Office
St Saviour’s Hall, Locking Road,BS23 3EN. Tel: 01934 415379
E-mail : [email protected]
Open 10am-12noon Monday to Friday
Enquiries for baptisms, banns, weddings, funerals, and the booking of
both halls to the Parish Office
Churchwardens
Colin Taylor 01934 519069 e-mail: [email protected]
Vacancy
PCC Treasurer, Secretary and Vice chairman
Terry Edwards 01934 522026 e-mail: [email protected]
Sacristan
Colin Taylor 01934 519069 e-mail: [email protected]
Director of Music
Gordon Pullin e-mail: [email protected]
PCC Members and sub-committees of the PCC
The PCC consists of the Priest-in-Charge, Associate Priest,
Churchwarden(s) Marjorie Fox (Deanery Synod
Representative & Electoral Roll Officer), Joan R Beer (Deanery
Synod Representative), Jude Forth (Safeguarding Officer), Ron
Fox (Deputy Churchwarden), Terry Edwards (Treasurer and
Secretary), Diane Guy, Owen James, Ray Armstrong, Philip
Pughe-Morgan (Deputy Churchwarden)
Standing Committee
Fr. Andrew Hughes, Fr. Stuart Boyd, Colin Taylor, Terry Edwards, Ron Fox &
Philip Pughe-Morgan
Concert Committee
Jude Forth (Chair), Vacant (Secretary), Roger Ellery, Barbara Ellery, Janice
Rice and the Standing Committee
Fundraising Committee
Sandy Flood, Joan M Beer, Bobby Butcher, Joan R Beer, Ray Armstrong and
the Standing Committee
Mission Group
Owen James, Jude Forth, Ray Armstrong and the Standing Committee
The articles in this magazine are the responsibility of the
contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of
the Clergy, Churchwardens or Parochial Church Council.
Editor: Terry Edwards
39
Printed by St Saviour Press
40