| † St Andrews Proclaiming Christ in Clewer 19 December – 4th Sunday of Advent  THE MORNING SERVICE WILL BE HELD IN PERSONAT ST ANDREWS CHURCH AT 10.30AM Welcome This Sunday we light the fourth candle on our Advent wreath. The 4th candle represents Mary and also Love, so this week we reflect on Preparing to Embrace Love. In our family we are preparing to embrace two new grandchildren, a second child for our youngest son and his wife, and a first child for our youngest daughter and her husband. The bumps are growing rapidly and there is much chatter about kicking and how ‘nothing fits’! Preparing for a new baby is exciting for us but for many it can be a dangerous and worrying time. Some mothers are facing very unfamiliar and unexpected things, as were our characters in the readings for this Sunday. Mary and Elizabeth are both preparing to become mothers for the first time. They did what many people would do when faced with something difficult, they looked to each other for love and support. May we seek out ways to support those in our community who may need reminders of God’s love and promises this Advent Season. Blessings for your week Revd Rosie |
| COLLECT God our redeemer, who prepared the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son: grant that, as she looked for his coming as our saviour, so we may be ready to greet him when he comes again as our judge; who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. All Amen READINGS Micah 5.2-5a But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labour has brought forth; then the rest of his kindred shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth; and he shall be the one of peace. If the Assyrians come into our land and tread upon our soil, we will raise against them seven shepherds and eight installed as rulers. This is the word of the Lord. All Thanks be to God. Canticle: Magnificat (The Song of Mary) 1 My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour; he has looked with favour on his lowly servant. 2 From this day all generations will call me blessed; the Almighty has done great things for me and holy is his name. 3 He has mercy on those who fear him, from generation to generation. 4 He has shown strength with his arm and has scattered the proud in their conceit, 5 Casting down the mighty from their thrones and lifting up the lowly. 6 He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. 7 He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, to remember his promise of mercy, 8 The promise made to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children for ever. Hebrews 10.5-10 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, ‘Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt-offerings and sin-offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, “See, God, I have come to do your will, O God” (in the scroll of the book it is written of me).’ When he said above, ‘You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt-offerings and sin-offerings’ (these are offered according to the law), then he added, ‘See, I have come to do your will.’ He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. This is the word of the Lord. All Thanks be to God. GOSPEL READING Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke. All Glory to you, O Lord. Luke 1.39-45 [46-55] In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’ [ And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’] This is the Gospel of the Lord. All Praise to you, O Christ. PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION – DENNIS EVANS The response to the bidding “Maranatha” is “Come Lord Jesus” O come O come Emmanuel, the time of your birth, which we have long anticipated, will soon be with us. You have promised to all who come to you in faith that you will hear their call accept the prayers which we offer. We pray first for the community of Christian believers all over the world; many witnessing to their faith and celebrating the joyous news of your birth in dangerous circumstances. Give them courage and fortitude and reassurance that you are giving them strength and sharing their fears. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus We pray for all bishops, priests and deacons . We pray for our local church and in particular Rosie our Rector Give us perception to see how our role in announcing the Good News and furthering the Gospel here in Clewer and beyond might best be achieved. Above all save us from the dangerous temptation of complacency and taking our faith for granted. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus We pray for all who are every day struggling to get by, and in particular those with small children for whom normal regular expenses such as the provision of clothing and good food are a challenge. Christmas can be such a hard time for them. Open our hearts in a spirit of generosity to do what we can to help and to ensure that our public authorities recognise more fully their duty to help. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus Lord we are so lucky to be able to live a relatively tranquil life. We pray for those many parts of the world where your children live in daily fear of violence and attack We remember in particular those left behind in Afghanistan and with their families now living in hiding. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus We pray for all those who are ill; often bearing their suffering with strength and forebearance but sometimes with a deep depression at their infirmity and fear for the future. Be with them we pray and also with all those who love them and are sharing this distress. We pray in particular for Blake, Sam, Reuben, Don, Karl, Hugh and Sarah, Joanna, Pam, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Alan, Norman and Diane, and Patricia. Refugees, Prisoners, the Homeless and those who mourn. We pray for all in the medical and caring professions who work so hard often in circumstances of great stress . The pressure seems relentless and the holiday season often seems to particularly hard. Give them strength oh Lord to carry on and to know in the deepest sense that they are doing your will. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus We pray for this wonderful world which you have given into our care; not as owners but trustees for coming generations. We have too often despoiled its beauty and exploited its riches for our own benefit. Even at this late stage give us the will to do all we can to help reverse this process. Lord we pray that the results of the recent Climate Change Conference may lead to effective and workable ways to preserve our precious heritage. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus It seems more and more the case that a spiritual and emotional poverty is weighing heavily on your people. The sense of social cohesion and joint responsibility is being weakened and the benefits of a sound family life are denied to so many. May your message of hope and fellowship we heard more widely and many who are so disheartened in their lives feel more encouraged. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus For many Christmas is a poignant time; family members may be far away or have died leading to painful recollections of happier times. May the Christmas message of hope and joy sustain them during this Season and the years to come. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus The world often seems so hostile and many bad things seems to happen to good people. We pray for all those feeling discouraged and beset by doubts as to their faith. May they know that all experience such uncertainties from time to time and that this is a sign that they are truly seeking Gods path in their lives and that at the last you will be there to comfort and reassure. Merciful Father accept these prayers for the sake of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION Heavenly Father, who chose the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of the promised saviour: fill us your servants with your grace, that in all things we may embrace your holy will and with her rejoice in your salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. All Amen Listen to Revd Rosie’s Sermon last Sunday NOTICES AFTERNOON SERVICE 19 DECEMBER The evening service is the 3pm Carols and Lighting Up service in the churchyard in lieu of Evening Prayer. SERVICES FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS This Wednesday – 10.30-12.00 – Church open for Advent Café. Every Tuesday & Thursday – 5.00pm Evening Prayer Zoom Prayers & Bears resumes at St Agnes on Friday 07 Jan Sun 19 Dec 10.30am Parish Eucharist in Church 3.00pm Switching on Christmas lights, Carol Singing in Churchyard Fri 24 Dec 3.00pm Nativity, outside the Church 11.00pm Midnight Mass in the Church Note: now no carol singing beforehand Sat 25 Dec 10.30am Christmas Day Parish Eucharist in Church Sun 26 Dec 10.30am St Stephen’s Day Parish Eucharist in Church ADVENT & CHRISTMAS FLYERS There are still some Advent and Christmas at St Andrews Christmas flyers are still available in Church, please take some and distribute to your neighbours. ADVENT CAFE The final Advent Café is this Wednesday 22nd Dec, in Church 10.30-12.00. Time for a coffee and a chat. CHRISTMAS COLLECTIONS Special collections over Advent and Christmas will be for Christian Aid. If you would like to donate online, you can do so here: https://www.christianaid.org.uk HELP WITH REFRESHMENTS We need help please with refreshments for 19th and 24th events, hot chocolate, mince pies and mulled wine. REVD ROSIE’S SABBATICAL Revd Rosie will be on Sabbatical from January for 3 months, Canon Brian Shenton will be holding the fort. Any queries, or if you need a priest during this time please email office@clewerparish.org or if urgent, phone 07490 094261 WINDSOR FOODSHARE They need basic food please, anything welcome, especially: Tinned meat · Tinned fish · Tinned vegetables· Soup · Rice · Herbs/Spices Cooking sauces · Instant mash · Tea bags/Instant coffee · Sugar Breakfast cereals · UHT milk · Tinned desserts · Cereal bars/biscuits · Jams · Fruit juice/Squash More information here: https://www.windsorfoodshare.org.uk/food-donations And also the poster below.  PLEASE PRAY FOR The Suffering: Blake, Sam, Reuben, Don, Karl, Hugh and Sarah, Joanna, Pam, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Alan, Norman and Diane, and Patricia. Refugees, Prisoners, the Homeless and those who mourn. The Departed: those recently departed this life, including Richard Chandler, and those whose anniversaries fall at this time. Those being Baptised: 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. Parish Cycle of Prayer: Please pray for all who live in Byron Court, Mayfield Close, Kimber Close, Harrington Close, Sherbourne Drive, Woodland Avenue, and Illingworth. Anglican Cycle of Prayer: please pray for The Church of the Province of Central Africa. Please also pray for the Churches in the Nigerian Dioceses of The Diocese of Ikwuano, Ilaje, Ile-Oluji, Ilesa, Ilesa, and the Diocese of North East India. Please continue to pray for and support your neighbours and families in any way you can whilst keeping yourself safe. 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. We also have boxes of numbered envelopes available, if you would like to use these please contact the Parish Office office@clewerparish.org CONTACTS The Parish Office is now closed. The Office Number is: 07490 094261 Email: office@clewerparish.org Revd Rosie Webb: rector@clewerparish.org Tel: 01753 852334 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 |