Author: Jacky

Advent Workshop for Children

Advent Workshop for Children:  On Sunday November 29th we are going to hold an Advent Workshop for the children of the parish. This will be held online from 2.30pm for approximately an hour.

There will be games, singing, prayers, crafts and friendship.  Come and join us to celebrate the start of advent.

We will need you to sign up for the session so we can give you the log in details.  Please register your interest by contacting Sandra on 07791627368, email [email protected] or Teresa on 07951082592 , email [email protected]  

Deacon John Writes

This week I thought that I would discover more about Thanksgiving Day as it is held on Thursday November 26th in United States and Canada and share it with you. It is a national holiday and celebrates the harvest and other blessings of the past year. Americans generally believe that their Thanksgiving is modelled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth and the Wampanoag people. This holiday is particularly rich in legend and symbolism, and the traditional fare of the Thanksgiving meal typically includes turkey, bread stuffing, potatoes, cranberries, and pumpkin pie. 

                A writer called Bradford wrote about how the colonists had hunted wild turkeys during the autumn of 1621 and since turkey is a uniquely American bird, it gained place as the Thanksgiving meal of choice for Americans after Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863.

                 Cranberries are important on Thanksgiving Day because according to University of Maine Cooperative Extension, American Indians used cranberries as a food source, to dye fabric and as medicine. … Due to the importance of cranberries in the 1500s and their abundance, it is believed that the pilgrims and the American Indians would have eaten them at the first Thanksgiving.

                The pumpkin is a symbol of harvest time, and pumpkin pie is generally eaten during the fall and early winter. In the United States and Canada, it is usually prepared for Thanksgiving, and other occasions when pumpkin is in season.

                Thanksgiving is important because it’s a positive and secular holiday where we celebrate gratitude, something of which we don’t do enough of these days.

                In the letter of St.Paul to the Philippians[4:6-7] we read: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

                One of the best things about thankfulness is that the more you choose it, the easier it gets. The more you profess gratitude, the more you notice things to be grateful for, the thankfulness muscles respond to exercise!

                There are many references to thankfulness in the Old Testament. Listed below are some of the references and I invite you to look them up for yourselves.

Ezra 3:11.   Psalm 7:17.   Psalm 9:1.   Psalm 35:18.   Psalm 69:30.  Psalm 95:1-3.   Psalm 100:4-5.   Psalm 106:1

                Please include this Prayer of Gratitude written by John F.Kennedy in your prayers this week: “Let us therefore proclaim our gratitude to Providence for manifold blessings—let us be humbly thankful for inherited ideals—and let us resolve to share those blessings and those ideals with our fellow human beings throughout the world. On that (this) day let us gather in sanctuaries dedicated to worship and in homes blessed by family affection to express our gratitude for the glorious gifts of God; and let us earnestly and humbly pray that He will continue to guide and sustain us in the great unfinished tasks of achieving peace, justice, and understanding among all men and nations and of ending misery and suffering wherever they exist.”

                I conclude with two bits of humour: When I think of “Thanksgiving Day,” I am reminded of the story of the little boy who saw his mother putting a thermometer in the turkey. He said, “If it is that sick, I don’t want any!”

                The small resident population in a nursing home had been gathered around their humble Thanksgiving table, and the director asked each in turn to express one thing for which he or she was thankful. Thanks were expressed for a home in which to stay, families, etc. One little old lady, when her turn came, said, “I thank the Lord for two perfectly good teeth left in my mouth, one in my upper jaw and one in my lower jaw. They match so well that I can chew my food.”

Fr Rory Writes

The Feast of Christ the King:  In time this will be the greatest Feast in the church’s year.  I leave the question why?

Thanks be to God, and again thanks be to God.  The first one is for the vaccine for the coronavirus which holds out light for the end of the tunnel.  The second one is for the return of my driver’s licence.  Also, thanks be to God, my insurance has not cost me an arm and a leg.  I hope and pray this will help me on the road.

On that road are two essentials:

One: Belonging:  Through the waters of baptism we belong to Jesus who has come down from heaven for our salvation.  Recognising the implications and the effects of the coronavirus can help us with the reality of the effects of sin or evil and help us deal with its consequences.  In my heart I have a constant conversation.  It focuses us upon the words “responsibility and reasonable”.  Alongside these are the essential elements a) human dignity and b) by their fruits you shall know them.

Two: Nourishment:  We see the best expression of this in providing food for our bodies, keeping the shops open and the food flowing.  I am hugely impressed by all the people who go the extra mile, indeed miles to feed those in need, they put me to shame.  When it comes to spiritual nourishment in this picture, improving this bleakness, and I have to include myself very much in this picture.  This is certainly our challenge.  This challenge has been with us for the past fifty years, and with the closing of seminary after seminary we will soon have to make an attempt to answer that question.

Our focus must be “The love of God” as first and foremost and forever.  Please God, we may be able to do this and the greatest time for us to begin is here and now.  The first week in advent begins at the end of this week.  Please God, may we make this journey truly worthwhile as we continue on our way.  Our true home is in heaven.

To be continued ………………

All Welcomers & Stewards

All WELCOMERS and STEWARDS are warmly invited to join a Digital Forum on Thursday 19th November at 7.00pm. We will explore the successes and challenges you have experienced in your roles during the pandemic, as well as celebrating all that you do!

Please email the Inclusion Adviser at [email protected] if you wish to be involved, so a link to join the Forum can be sent to you.

Deacon John Writes

We are nearing the end of this liturgical year. Next weekend with the Feast of Christ The King we will be at the end of the Church’s year. The following weekend, November 29th, will be the first Sunday of Advent and we move into Year B cycle of readings. Having said all that the readings for this weekend, November 15th, of the work we must in order to reach Heaven. These readings tell us to use the talents God gave us in such a way that when we die the Lord will say to us “Well done, my good and faithful servant!… Come and share the joy of your master”, words given us by St. Matthew in the Gospel.

The first reading from the Book of Proverbs feeds us with the wonderful idea that we should imitate the work of a loyal and faithful wife who brings out the goodness in everyone as she tends to the poor and needy.              

The Psalmist sings about the worth of the Lord’s faithful servants and how we can obtain happiness and joy in this life and the next. St. Paul in his letter to the Thessalonians tells us all to build everyone up whom we encounter in the coming weeks so that we will all be “children of the light” and so when Jesus comes we will be ready to greet him.

The parable of the talents challenges us to do something positive, constructive and life-affirming with our talents here and now. Yes, we can all do this in our homes and families and also in our parish. If you don’t already do this then perhaps you would consider offering yourself to share in the various ministries such as Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, Reader, Usher, singer in the choir, volunteer to help with activities such as Church cleaner or flower arranging or anywhere where help is needed. Please give your name to the secretary, Jackie, who is in the Parish Office on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. (Telephone 01323 486280 with answerphone). We have all been given at least one talent – the gift of faith – and it is our responsibility to work with that gift.  So, please, put your faith to work and help it to bear fruit in the Polegate and Hailsham communities.

With my love and prayers. DJ

Fr Rory Writes

Please God, a real ray of light is appearing with the announcement that a vaccine for protection against the coronavirus, which is fit for purpose, is on the horizon.  This vaccine has received the necessary assessment of its potential and the pitfalls that surround it.  Having heard much of the commentary, my compass remains firmly…… Please God.

Live and learn; the capacity to never learn is real.  When a final post-mortem on this episode with the coronavirus is carried out, it will reveal that some major afflictions might have been avoided.  Some great sense of loss and emotional damage and injury will be a legacy.  From the beginning I have recognised the reality of evil that accompanies this and indeed all of the viruses.  The capacity to turn all things to good is part of the legacy that has been left to us by Jesus.  Conscious of my failures makes me very sad.  Our failures as a parish community gives us a real opportunity to live and learn together.  Let us begin to reach out to prepare for, and to embrace the opportunity that will now come our way.

When I came to this parish, I introduced “Leaven Groups”, which I hoped would serve our parishes and build up our communities.  I still believe that this is possible.   For different reasons, and the loss of some great parishioners, has left us with a lot to do.  We reached a place where “A Missing Link” to help with communication was being prepared.  Prior to this lockdown progress was being made, and we will return to this.  During lockdown the Great Feast of Christ the King will pass and Fr Kieran will  help me with the celebration this year. Then a new Advent, when I hope and pray we can begin again to live a new life of faith.

Speaking of prayers; and with my heart and soul focused upon them, a great, great sadness.  Noelle, a real treasure in our parish has died.  After a long, long battle with cancer, shared by Marianne Patel, who died two years ago.  They were outstanding witnesses to our faith and above all life.  They battled for the greater part silently with it, with strong mutual support.  Noelle had just accepted to be chair person of our Leaven Group, and then she received this devastating news.  She quietly battled; and what a battle this year has turned out to be.  Consolation, she has united with her own and our family of saints, who have reached their true home which awaits us in heaven.

Her husband, Brian, and children, Aiden and Rosin (only again for the pandemic) would have celebrated her First Holy Communion this year.  Please God, a legacy of inspiration is left to us from Marianne and Noelle that will inspire us to build better liturgies and to communicate the gifts that faith can bring.   At this time I know you would just want me to let them know that we want to offer all the love and support that our parish could bring to them at this most difficult time.  

Deacon John Writes

Remembrance Sunday is always held on the Sunday nearest to 11th November, Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of hostilities in the first World War at 11am in 1918. 11th November is also the feast day of St Martin of Tours – the soldier who became a saint. He served in the Roman cavalry in Gaul, but left military service at some point prior to 361. The story is related that when he was on duty one bitterly cold night he took his sword and, after cutting his soldier’s cloak in two, gave half of his cloak to a beggar on the roadside. Later that night Martin dreamed that he had given half of his soldier’s cloak to Christ.

We all know that our world today is existing in very troubled times. It is very important that we nurture our Christian hope in times like these. No matter how hard or threatening things become, it is very important that we continue to live our lives in hope. The central Christian message is a story of hope. God in the person of Christ was crucified – but God raised Jesus from the dead. What was true for Jesus, can be true also for us.

God’s inclusive love, as revealed to us in Jesus Christ, is what we are all about.  May God continue to bless you all as you seek to further the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ through love of God and our neighbour, as you live out that love here in the Eastbourne area and beyond in our very needy and troubled world. 

The prayer of consecration of the gifts of bread and wine ends with the words:  “Do this in memory of me.” ,These words were spoken by one who will never forget us, never abandon us, never overlook us. As our Lord remembers us, we need to remember him. His teachings. His miracles. His mercy. His example.

This is part of our prayer during this month of November as we remember those we love, those we have lost — but also remembering and praying for those we don’t even know. This year due to the trouble caused by Covid-19, in a departure from our usual practice of entering names ourselves of those we wish to be remembered please phone the Parish secretary, Jackie, and leave the names you wish to be added and I will ensure that they are added regularly during November.  As we pray for those we love in this month of November we ask God to increase our trust that all will be well. Our faith tells us that when we die we will be safe in the hands of God.

Let us now pause in silence for 2 Minutes as we remember all those who have died in war and also those whose names are in the Book of Remembrance.

…………………. 2 MINUTE ………………………

When the Irish writer Frank McCourt died, Mitch Albom, a friend of his, wrote: “Smiling is the best cradle in which to rock your memories.” So, as you recall your memories of those you love, do try to ensure that they make you smile.

Let us pray: May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Fr Rory Writes

Here we are again, another lockdown

Father, Son and Holy Spirit

At the beginning of this year when our first experience of lockdown began after Ash Wednesday, we were experiencing the season of Lent.  Then all of a sudden on the horizon was Holy Week, and I was settled into praying the Divine Office, and celebrating Holy Mass on my own.  I was also experiencing the benefits of live streaming Mass and other devotions.  The Sacred Heart church in Hove became a sanctuary.  Holy Week was a very focused fruitful time, with the passion, death and resurrection merging with our experience of lockdown.

The evenings were getting longer and the weather was very kind.  Spring watch was a God send, and a sense of light at the end of the tunnel.  The Feasts of the Ascension and Pentecost are a time of hope and renewal.  Now Remembrance Sunday is particularly appropriate.  Deacon John’s contribution is very helpful.  Like Good Friday, the focus of Remembrance is upon injury, great damage and loss.  At the heart of their experience of affliction, death may have appeared as a welcome escape.  But for us when we give it all the care and attention it deserves, it leaves us with a great sense of the virtue of Hope and the odds that people can overcome through perseverance.

To be continued …………………………..

Godly Play

Godly Play:  Godly Play is a creative and engaging way of praying with children, young people and even adults!  Telling stories helps us explore God’s story, Bible stories, our own story, and where we fit in to it all.  Are you involved with, or interested in Godly Play?

Join members of the Diocesan Formation Team on Zoom, on Saturday 21st November at 10.30am.  Please contact [email protected] for booking information.