| † St Andrews Proclaiming Christ in Clewer 04 December 2022 The Second Sunday of Advent |
 WELCOME ‘Prophets’. How would you picture a prophet? Do you imagine a man who is a little on the edge of normal behaviour, wild eyes and bad personal hygiene, who dresses strangely and has angry, but righteous words to deliver to the masses? Perhaps you turn all prophets into a version of John the Baptist? On the second Sunday of Advent the church invites us to reflect on the place of prophets directing us towards Jesus. Not an easy task, but a challenging one, a task that requires saying it as it is, not looking into future predictions, but calling the people of God to account. In Advent we are called to take a long hard look at ourselves, our relationship with God and others, only then will we really appreciate the coming of Christ. Actually, you know, we are all prophets of our time! If we are disciples of Christ, then surely we should be directing others towards Jesus? We are not all wild and hairy like John the Baptist! One simple way we can be prophets is to invite a friend or neighbour to a Christian event this Christmas, to a carol service, or a walk through the churchyard to visit the lights, to join Sunday worship. In fact, anything on our Christmas flyer…its all there, why not? The prophet John was grounded in the mystery and truth of the covenant, the same covenant that God made with Moses and the patriarchs (and Matriarchs) of Israel: be faithful to God as he is faithful to you. Now isn’t that worth sharing? Looking forward to seeing you and your invited guests at our upcoming events. Blessings Revd Rosie COLLECT O Lord, raise up, we pray, your power and come among us, and with great might succour us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness we are grievously hindered in running the race that is set before us, your bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit, be honour and glory, now and for ever. All Amen READINGS Isaiah 11.1-10 A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. he spirit of the Lordshall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Psalm 72.1-7, 18-19 Give the king your judgements, O God, and your righteousness to the son of a king. Then shall he judge your people righteously and your poor with justice. May the mountains bring forth peace, and the little hills righteousness for the people. May he defend the poor among the people, deliver the children of the needy and crush the oppressor. May he live as long as the sun and moon endure, from one generation to another. May he come down like rain upon the mown grass, like the showers that water the earth. In his time shall righteousness flourish, and abundance of peace till the moon shall be no more. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wonderful things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever. May all the earth be filled with his glory. Amen. Amen. Romans 15.4-13 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, ‘Therefore I will confess you among the Gentiles, and sing praises to your name’; and again he says, ‘Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people’; and again, ‘Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him’; and again Isaiah says, ‘The root of Jesse shall come, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles; in him the Gentiles shall hope.’ May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. GOSPEL READING Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew. Glory to you, O Lord. Matthew 3.1-12 In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, ‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.”’ Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our ancestor”; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ‘I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing-floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’ This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ. INTERCESSIONS Almighty God, you sent your servant John the Baptist to prepare your people to welcome the Messiah. Inspire our Clergy, who are stewards of your truth, to turn our disobedient hearts to you, so that when Christ comes again to be our judge we may stand with confidence before his glory. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Faithful God we pray for your blessing to be upon this congregation, upon the Church throughout the world and upon our Parish. May your presence be seen vividly in what we do and say each day. We pray that your joy and your love will flow freely in and through us and that we might even be perfect examples of your love in action. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Creator God, with axe and winnowing fork you clear a holy space where hurt and destruction have no place, and a little child is King. Clear the trouble spots of our world from hatred and despair and sow seeds of joy and peace so that shoots of hope may spring forth and all people, whatever their creed, race, colour or gender may live together in harmony with one another. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Father God you enfold those on the margins of society with love and you experienced through Jesus what it was like to be excluded. Your son befriended the despised like Zacchaeus; the shunned prostitute; the untouchable lepers and all those who the establishment labelled as sinners. We ask you to help those at the edges of our communities and give them hope through the patience and encouragement of all of us who claim to be your people. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Merciful God, we remember all whose illness stems from a mental health issue, who often suffer in silence because of stigma and who reach out for help that is often not there because of stretched services. Help us to break through the ignorance that causes stigma and recognise that mental illness is as real as a broken leg or influenza and give them hope through the patience, encouragement. We pray especially for Blake, Sam, Don, Karl, Sarah, Joanna, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Norman and Diane, Sylvia, and Mary. Refugees, Prisoners, the Homeless and those who mourn. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Loving God, we pray for those whose hearts have been saddened by the death of someone close and dear to them, for members of our families who have died and whose anniversary we recall. Help us to experience the comfort of the Holy Spirit within us, and the fellowship of the church family around us until we are reunited once more in your heavenly kingdom. We pray for Beryl Roche, Margaret East, and all those recently departed this life, and those whose anniversaries fall at this time. Lord in your mercy. Hear our prayer. Glorious God, source of joy and righteousness, enable us as redeemed and forgiven children evermore to rejoice in singing your praises. May what we have sung and spoken with our lips become strong belief in our hearts and what we believe in our hearts become our way of life, throughout this Advent and in the years to come. Merciful father: accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen From the Chaplaincy of the Holy Spirit Costa Blanca PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION Post Communion Father in heaven, who sent your Son to redeem the world and will send him again to be our judge: give us grace so to imitate him in the humility and purity of his first coming that, when he comes again, we may be ready to greet him with joyful love and firm faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Listen to Canon Brian’s Sermon from last Sunday Morning PLAY NOTICES SUNDAY EVENING The service this Sunday evening is a Eucharist, in Church. SERVICES FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS No Tue/Thu EP via Zoom during Advent Advent Study every Wednesday during Advent 7.30pm (see below for details) Church Open every Wednesday 10.00am – 12.00 Sun 04 Dec 10.30am 2nd Sunday of Advent, All Age Eucharist 5.00pm Eucharist in Church Sun 11 Dec 10.30am 3rd Sunday of Advent, Eucharist 5.00pm Lessons & Carol Service, followed by … 6.00pm Switch on of Christmas Lights (Clewminations) Sun 18 Dec 10.30am 4th Sunday of Advent, Eucharist 5.00pm Carols for Loved Ones Sat 24 Dec 3.00pm Christmas Eve, Crib Service 10.30pm Carol Singing before… 11.00pm Midnight Mass Sun 25 Dec 10.30am Christmas Day, All AgeEucharist PLEASE PRAY FOR The Suffering: Blake, Sam, Don, Karl, Sarah, Joanna, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Norman and Diane, Sylvia, and Mary. Refugees, Prisoners, the Homeless and those who mourn. The Departed: Beryl Roche, and all those recently departed this life, and those whose anniversaries fall at this time. Those baptised this month Community Prayers: Clewer Green School, the head teacher Martin Tinsley and all the pupils, staff and governors. For all our Care Homes, for the safety of residents and staff. We pray also for Windsor Christian Action, and the work of the Homeless Project, Street Angels, FoodShare, and The Night Shelter. Parish Cycle of Prayer: Please pray for all who live or work in Byron Court, Mayfield Close, Kimber Close, Harrington Close, Sherbourne Drive, Woodland Avenue, and Illingworth. Anglican Cycle of Prayer: please pray for The Episcopal Church in Jerusalem & The Middle East. Please pray also for the churches in el-Obeid (Sudan), and these dioceses in Nigeria: Offa, Ogbaru, Ogbia, Ogbomoso, and Ogoni. Please continue to pray for and support your neighbours and families in any way you can whilst keeping yourself safe.  Our Christmas flyers are available, please take some and give to your neighbours and friends.  CAROLS ON THE HILL NEEDS YOU!!! The Event will run from 6:15pm until 7:15pm, with music provided by The Band of The Household Cavalry, and WCA and The Baby Bank will benefit from this year’s donations. Churches Together in Windsor are seeking volunteers to help with stewarding and the charity collection during “Carols On The Hill” which will take place on Friday 9th December on Castle Hill. We’d be extremely grateful if one or more volunteers from each CTW member church could help with setting up for the event from around 5:15-5:45pm, before the arrival of The Band and invited dignitaries including The Mayor of RBWM at 6:00pm, handing out copies of the Order of Service, and circulating the charity donation buckets. The ‘Living Advent Calendar’ musical interlude (6:15-6:30pm) will precede the Carol Service which starts at 6:30pm and run until approximately 7:15pm. Audience members will be able to donate throughout the period from 6pm until the event finishes and road closures have been lifted at approximately 7:30pm. Please contact Susy Shearer as soon as possible if you can help on Friday 9th December! Thank you so much in advance for your generous support and help with this wonderful event! Best Wishes, Susy Shearer CTW Event Co-ordinator Carols On The Hill shearersj@btinternet.com 07530 974455 MARGARET EAST FUNERAL The funeral of Margaret East will be in church on 20th Dec at 10.00am. CHRISTMAS LIGHTS & CHURCHYARD TREE DECORATION On 11 December we’ll be lighting up the churchyard again, as we did last year. If you would like to support this popular event, by contributing towards their cost, please see Revd Rosie. Alternatively, you could provide some battery powered lights. Battery lights need to have a timer on them please so that we don’t have to keep switching them on and off every day. If you’d like to decorate a tree please see Revd Rosie. ADVENT WHATSAPP DAILY This year the Rector is offering a daily Psalm and Prayer, like opening an Advent Calendar but on your phone! Please sign up on the form in Church if you would like to receive a daily message, or email the office office@clewerparish.org including your mobile number. CHRISTIAN AID REPRESENTATIVE We are looking for someone to be our Christian Aid representative. This just involves liaising between Christian Aid locally and our church. Its not an onerous role. Please see Mulle for more details if you could help. ADVENT PREACHING For Sunday morning preaching during Advent, Canon Brian will be leading us in a series of study/reflection on the lectionary readings as we prepare the coming of Christ at Christmas. ADVENT STUDY ONLINE VIA ZOOM ON WEDNESDAY EVENINGS TRAVELLING LIGHT The Bible is full of comings and goings. People travel, sometimes long distances, sometimes just locally. Some travel willingly, others reluctantly; some carry a lot of stuff with them, others take little or nothing. All these movements become times of learning for those involved, part of how they grow in relationships with each other and with God. In this Advent course, we come alongside a few of those travellers. We journey with them, reflecting with them, almost getting into conversation with them about their experiences. As we walk together with them, we notice things about where we ourselves have come from and where we are heading. We hope to find inspiration, to put a spring in our step; also guidance about the route ahead; and perhaps some warnings which may prompt us to change our own direction of travel. In all this, we move on – towards the celebration of Christmas and towards the new year that lies beyond it. As followers of Jesus Christ, we walk with him, discovering more of the light which Christ brings and finding ways to share that light with others. Email the office if you would like to join us 7.30pm on 30 Nov, 7, 14 and 21st Dec. office@clewerparish.org WINDSOR FOODSHARE From their Facebook and Twittter Pages: https://www.facebook.com/windsorfoodshare https://twitter.com/WindsrFoodshare PLEASE CAN YOU HELP ? We are low on some of our toiletries and cleaning products. We give out toiletries once a month from foodshare. We make up over 80 bags for the families. In the bags they receive shampoo, deodorant, shower gel, razors and shaving gel when we have them. Toothpaste, toothbrush, cleaning spray, washing up liquid, washing detergent and toilet rolls. Also, we are still in need of strong plastic carrier bags for our clients to collect food in.. If you can drop some to us that would be really helpful. All items can be dropped off to the church: Dedworth Green Baptist Church, Smiths Lane, Windsor, SL4 5PE 9.30am-1.30pm Wednesdays 9.30am -3.00pm Thursdays. or alternatively they can be brought from our Amazon wish list. The address they are delivered to are saved to Amazon to make your life a little easier 😀. https://amzn.to/3a1IMAk Thank you all for your continued support and for helping to feed local families. More information, and to donate online: https://www.windsorfoodshare.org.uk/food-donations Did you know that Windsor Foodshare has its own just giving page. If you are donating with just giving don’t forget to tick the gift aid box that way we get an extra 25% on top of your donation. Every single penny we get given goes to help feed local families. https://www.justgiving.com/windsorfoodshare If you would like any further information please contact manager@windsorfoodshare.org.uk CHURCH FINANCES – MESSAGE FROM ANDREW Thank you to everyone for all you have been able to give in this difficult time. Please consider continuing your regular giving by paying directly to our bank account, the details of which are: HSBC Bank, High Street, Windsor Sort Code: 40-47-37 Account number: 11373366 Account name: PCC St Andrews Church or if your bank doesn’t like this Parochial Church Council St Andrews Clewer Parish You may wish to consider transferring to the Parish Giving Scheme, which we promoted in previous years. Details are on our page on their web site: https://bit.ly/2XCLuCr [https://www.parishgiving.org.uk/donors/find-your-parish/clewer-st-andrew-windsor/] We also have the printed application forms available, please contact the Parish Office by email. CONTACTS The Parish Office is now closed. The Office Number is: 07490 094261 Email: office@clewerparish.org Parish Website: www.standrewsclewer.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/standrewsclewer Churchwarden: Stuart Cockman Safeguarding Policy: www.standrewsclewer.org/safeguarding-policy Safeguarding Officer: clewerparishsafeguarding@gmail.com |
Pews News – 04 Dec 2022
