| † St Andrews Proclaiming Christ in Clewer 27 Mar 2022 Mothering Sunday  |
| THE EUCHARIST SERVICE WILL BE HELD IN PERSON AT ST ANDREWS CHURCH AT 10.30AM Welcome! It seems such a long time ago since I wrote my last ‘welcome’ to you all! Much has happened over the last 3 months and my sabbatical seems to have gone by very quickly. The seasons in the churchyard have changed, Lent is in full swing, we have become grandparents again, there is war in Europe and Covid continues. Today is Mothering Sunday and a fitting time for my return to parish ministry. Some people find this particular Sunday a difficult one, mainly due to their relationship, or not, with their mother. But it is so much more than that. We come together at this time of year to celebrate Mothering. The season has now changed and colour is everywhere, particularly yellow, spring is in the air, birds are nesting, heavy coats are put back in the wardrobe and the sun feels warmer and brighter. It is a time of nurture and new growth. Bible readings for Mothering Sunday always focus on the stories of Mary, Hannah, and baby Moses, because of their human desire to be blessed with a child. But nurturing, mothering, is much more than being blessed with your own child. For instance, the church is referred to as our mother, we receive faith and growth from the first day we are brought into the church; countries are also feminine, our motherland. We think of those who long to be nurtured by their mother country, the Ukraine, but have been forced to flee from it. In order to fully celebrate Mothering Sunday we not only look at our own mother, our mother church, our motherland, also, mother nature that gives us a clear picture of nurture, growth and changes. In all these expressions of mothering, not only do we see nurture, but also despair and sadness. It is our faith that will always lead us back to God whom we can experience the greatest mothering and fathering there will ever be. Today we will be planting Sunflowers, as a sign of hope, nurture and the beauty of the world around us. Why not plant some too? Blessings to you all on this Mothering Sunday Revd Rosie COLLECT God of compassion, whose Son Jesus Christ, the child of Mary, shared the life of a home in Nazareth, and on the cross drew the whole human family to himself: strengthen us in our daily living that in joy and in sorrow we may know the power of your presence to bind together and to heal; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. All Amen READINGS Samuel 1.20-end In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, ‘I have asked him of the Lord.’ The man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, ‘As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may appear in the presence of the Lord, and remain there for ever; I will offer him as a nazirite for all time.’ Her husband Elkanah said to her, ‘Do what seems best to you, wait until you have weaned him; only—may the Lord establish his word.’ So the woman remained and nursed her son, until she weaned him. When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was young. Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. And she said, ‘Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed; and the Lord has granted me the petition that I made to him. Therefore I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord.’ She left him there for the Lord. This is the word of the Lord. All Thanks be to God. Psalm 34.11-20 Come, my children, and listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Who is there who delights in life and longs for days to enjoy good things? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from lying words. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous and his ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to root out the remembrance of them from the earth. The righteous cry and the Lord hears them and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and will save those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the troubles of the righteous; from them all will the Lord deliver them. He keeps all their bones, so that not one of them is broken. Colossians 3.12-17 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. 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 2.33-35 And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, ‘This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed – and a sword will pierce your own soul too.’ This is the Gospel of the Lord. All Praise to you, O Christ. INTERCESSIONS – COSTA BLANCA Holy God, during Lent we come to you aware that we are not prepared for the awesome Easter message of Christ’s suffering and death and his glorious victory of resurrection. So help us as we offer of intercession and thanksgiving to truly understand the tremendous gift of Easter. Today on Mothering Sunday we give thanks for our Church and earthy families and especially pray for our Mother churches where we first got to know you and our saviour Jesus Christ. Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer Loving God, we come before you today aware of how you call us to be like you. We remember that you made us in your own image and that you gave to us mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, people to love, enjoy and work for and people to pray for and we are thankful. As we think about our family, help us to remember our own sinfulness before you and how you forgive it and so make us, within our families and the wider world, to be messengers of your reconciling love. Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer Merciful God, we pray for those who are in need of a healing touch today; for children who are hungry ; for families threatened by war or insurrection; for the sister who is very ill; for the father who soon will be dwelling in your kingdom; for the prodigal who left home in haste leaving behind uncertain parents; for the mother who is living in a house of fear especially as the war continues in Ukraine. We pray especially today for Blake, Sam, Reuben, Don, Karl, Hugh and Sarah, Joanna, Pam, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Norman and Diane, Patricia, and Frank Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer Everlasting God, we remember before you those who brought us into this world, raised and cherished us and made us what we are today, especially those who we love but see no longer, and we ask that you be close to all those who are grieving today over the loss of a loved one. Today we remember Stephen Collins and Martin Stone, all those recently departed this life, and those whose anniversaries fall at this time. Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer Father God, our heart-felt prayer today, is but this, bless our family, and help us be a blessing to it. Touch all those who are mothers to us or to others. Anoint with your healing goodness our brothers and our sisters, smile upon our children and help them to grow. Merciful father: accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION Loving God, as a mother feeds her children at the breast you feed us in this sacrament with the food and drink of eternal life: help us who have tasted your goodness to grow in grace within the household of faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord. All Amen Listen to Canon Brian’s Sermon for the Third Sunday of Lent NOTICES SUNDAY 5.00PM EVENING PRAYER (ZOOM) BCP Evening Prayer is on Sunday at 5pm via a Zoom link. We will send out the order of service later. Readings Psalm 30 Prayer of Manasseh (or Isaiah 40.27 – 41.13) 2 Timothy 4.1-18 CLOCKS CHANGE TONIGHT Don’t forget that the clocks go forward to BST this evening. SERVICES FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS Evening Prayer on Zoom, every Tuesday and Thursday at 5.00pm Prayers & Bears at St Agnes every Friday at 9.30am Church open for Private Prayer, every Wednesday 10.00am-12.00 Sun 27 Mar 10.30am 4th Sunday of Lent – Parish Eucharist 5.00pm Evening Prayer – Zoom Sun 03 Apr 10.30am 5th Sunday of Lent – Family Eucharist 5.00pm Eucharist – in Church Sun 10 Apr 10.30am Palm Sunday – Eucharist with Liturgy of the Passion 5.00pm Evening Prayer – Zoom Mon 11 Apr 7.30pm Monday of Holy Week – Eucharist Tue 12 Apr 7.30pm Tuesday of Holy Week – Eucharist Wed 13 Apr 7.30pm Wednesday of Holy Week – Eucharist Thu 14 Apr 7.30pm Maundy Thursday – Eucharist Fri 15 Apr 2.00pm Good Friday – Liturgy of Good Friday & Veneration of the Cross Sun 17 Apr 6.00am Dawn Service & Bonfire 10.30am Easter Sunday – Eucharist for Easter 5.00pm Evening Prayer – Zoom REVD ROSIE’S FUNDRAISING My fundraising challenge this year is to Swim40Lent. Swim 40 times during Lent. Now you may think this is not much of a challenge for me, but let me assure you it is! I’ll have to make the time, never mind the weather and it is a freezing 6.5 degrees today! AND not in a wetsuit! I’ve chosen ShelterBox/Ukraine to support those affected by this intolerable and unjust situation. The charity provides warm blankets, cooking equipment, water filter kits and tents etc. When I have been swimming I can appreciate a warm blanket and hot drink, hence this charity. I’m aiming to raise £500. I’d be very grateful for your support and donations. Sometimes we feel helpless in these situations and we have no idea what each day will bring or what we can do to help. Lent is a time to look deep into ourselves, our relationship with God and God’s people. Please continue to pray for peace. Thank you Revd Rosie Click here for the fundraising page or https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/shelterbox-swim LENT CAFÉ Our fourth and final Lent Café is this Wednesday 30th March, at 10.00am, in Church. It will be followed by a Said Eucharist. As well as coffee, there will be an informal Lent discussion on “The Church and Us”, prepared by Revd Louise, and led by Canon Brian. All are welcome. The course details can be downloaded here or https://www.standrewsclewer.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/2022-Lent-study.pdf PLEASE PRAY FOR The Suffering: Blake, Sam, Reuben, Don, Karl, Hugh and Sarah, Joanna, Pam, Holly, Hugo, Frank and Barbara, Bill, Suzanne, Christopher, Jackie, Norman and Diane, Patricia, and Frank. Refugees, Prisoners, the Homeless and those who mourn. The Departed: Stephen Collins and Martin Stone, all those recently departed this life, 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 or work at, all retail premises, Mill Stream Houseboats, Boatyard, Windsor Race Course, Forest House Veterinary Group, Petworth Court, Care Homes Sandown Park, Queens Court and Winton House. Anglican Cycle of Prayer: please pray for The Church of Myanmar (Burma). Please pray also for the Churches in these Dioceses: Kobe (Japan), Koforidua (West Africa), Kolhapur (North India), Kottarakkara (South India), Kondoa (Tanzania), and Kongor (South Sudan). Please continue to pray for and support your neighbours and families in any way you can whilst keeping yourself safe. CHURCHYARD TIDY POSTPONED The planned Churchyard Tidy has been postponed until Saturday 30 April. Still the same time 1000-1200. Please speak to Bob Lester if you can help on the day. 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 Also: they need plastic bags. They use strong plastic bags for their clients to take away tinned food and fruit & veg. More information, and to donate online: https://www.windsorfoodshare.org.uk/food-donations 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 |