st. nicholas church · jolly tots at 9.30 am all pre-school children and parents / carers welcome...

St. Nicholas Church with St. John and St. Michael

Parish News

June 2019

www.stnicholasnewchurch.com

MONDAY

2nd of every month:

MONDAY CLUB at 2.00pm

for retired people of any age

Laughter, fun and sparkling

conversation!

Delicious refreshments

Contact: Jo Blair

07739 596810

4th of every month:

FILM CLUB at 2.00pm

ALL are welcome

Films old and new

Delicious refreshments

Contact: Mitchell Lord

213601

We’re

not just

open

on a

Sunday!

P

L

E

A

S

E

J

O

I

N

U

S

WEDNESDAY

Every week

SAID EUCHARIST FROM THE

BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER

10.15am

Followed by refreshments

4th of every month:

THE NARTHEX EXPERIENCE

at 7.30pm

ALL are welcome

Informal worship lasting

about 45 minutes followed

by refreshments

FRIDAY

1st and 3rd of every month:

JOLLY TOTS

at 9.30 am

All pre-school children and

parents / carers welcome

Refreshments available

Contact: Eileen Barnes

379928

Also…..

1st and 3rd MONDAY

Flower Club 7.00pm

Contact: Jane Giles 344761

WEDNESDAY

Bell ringing 7.00pm

Contact: Jane Giles 344761

THURSDAY

Choir Practice 7.15pm

THURSDAY

Every week

‘PLACE OF WELCOME’

9.30am — 12noon

Informal time to play games,

pursue hobbies & crafts and

enjoy conversation with

others.

Refreshments available


The Vicar writes…

It would be fair to say that in the churchyard now, thanks

to our grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the hard work of the PCC and Valley Heritage, we can

finally see the wood for the trees!

This month, a volunteer project to rebuild one of the dry

stone walls commences. In July work will done on 8 memorials which are most in need of repair, and later in the year the

woodland management program will commence. There are various

workshops taking place to give people new skills. Heritage research is ongoing by various people.

In April, John Lamb from the Lancashire Wildlife Trust conducted the first

survey of the churchyard and noted 103 different species of trees, shrubs, ferns, grasses and wildflowers! There will be 2 further surveys by John

throughout the year as well as opportunity for others to be involved. A

“bat walk” will take place on 2nd July at 9.30pm, using bat detectors with a second taking place in August.

The way in which we speak of the churchyard is changing – it has gone

from being a problem and a drain to being a resource to encourage our care for the world around us, a creative opportunity and a connection with

the local community.

As part of our learning about the land around us and our commitment to

care for God’s creation, the PCC have asked a small group of people to conduct an Eco Church Survey for us to assess what we are doing well and

where we could do better in being environmentally friendly. The results

will be brought to the next PCC meeting and from there on we can see where we are and how we can improve and learn more.

The 5th mark of mission (the ways in which we communicate and share the

love of God in the world) is "To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth". Our churchyard

project is helping us to begin to do that, as well as to build up our


relationships with our neighbours and safeguard the history and heritage

entrusted to us.

Please continue to pray for this project and speak with me if you would like to be involved!

With prayers and best wishes,

Mother Penny

Outline Programme of Activities coming up at St Nicholas

Churchyard

St Nicholas Church and Valley Heritage have been working on a programme

of activities which are to be carried out over the coming months as part of the

Churchyard project which has been funded by the National Lottery Heritage

Fund.

Booking is essential as numbers for these events are limited. Please book

online via the church website or Facebook page or by phoning Rev Penny on

01706 211 122 or emailing [email protected]. The events are free

and refreshments will be provided though participants are expected to bring

their own lunch (unless otherwise stated):

Dry Stone Walling

This course is being run by Master Dry Stone Waller, Alan Rhodes. Volunteers

will learn how to strip down a wall, prepare the foundations and rebuild the

wall. Ideally, participants would attend for 2 consecutive days in order to get

experience of a range of techniques and skills but this is not essential. There

is a maximum of 8 participants per day and bookings will be made on a first

come, first serve basis.

This course will be run from 9.30am (for 10am start) until 3.30pm unless

otherwise stated.

Thursday 6th June

Friday 7th June

Saturday 8th June

Sunday 9th June 12-4pm

Monday 10th June

Tuesday 11th June

Saturday 15th June

Sunday 16th June 12-4pm


“bat walk” will take place on 2nd July at 9.30pm, using bat detectors with a second

taking place in August.

The next stage of work in the churchyard will

be:

Repairs to the outbuilding in June

Repair to dangerous graves in July

Woodland management training will commence in the winter.

Thank you for all your support and encouragement – we are making a

big difference!

Dear Parishioners,

This half term has been a very busy one with the Year 6

and Year 2 children completing their SATs assessments.

The children have worked very hard and all did their very

best –which is of course all we ask. We know that a test doesn’t measure

the character or personality of a child and that it is just a

snapshot on the day.

Alastair Price from the Boo theatre has been working with

school this half term . He has been helping

us to create sculptures and banners for

the Waterfoot Wakes parade. As a school we had to think

about the heritage of Newchurch and the buildings and

features that were important to us. I am pleased to say that

church was top of the list.

Another future event is our summer fair which are holding on 29th June . I

hope to see you there !

Jane Thistlethwaite


Wordsearch - St Columba - June 2019

This month the Church remembers the Irish monk who first brought Christianity to Britain in around 565. He was St Columba, and he left Ireland with 12 companions to settle on Iona, a tiny island off Mull, in the Western Highlands. Iona had been given to him for a monastery by the ruler of the Irish Dalriada.

Read more about him later in this magazine.

Church Columba First Ireland Companions Settle Iona Tiny island mull monastery tall striking powerful impressive skills scholar poet ruler fearless

converted dearest

bright flame

guiding star


Not a Ghost but a Gift

By Canon David Winter

We used to call it Whitsun - White Sunday because long ago children marched to church in white on that day. No processions nowadays, and we’ve even changed its name. It’s now ‘Pentecost’, which is more accurate but needs explaining.

This year Whitsun/Pentecost is on Sunday June 9th. Pentecost marks a vital event in Christian history. It is a celebrated 50 days after Easter. On the year Jesus was crucified (which took place at the Passover), the remnant of His followers, just 120 of them, were together in an upper room in Jerusalem. They were afraid to show their faces in case the authorities arrested them. But on the day of Passover they had an amazing collective experience.

They described it in terms of wind and fire, a great surge of spiritual energy and confidence. Afraid no longer they

burst out on to the streets where crowds were gathering for the festival, led by Peter they began to tell them about Jesus and His resurrection. As they did so, although many of the people in the crowd were foreigners who spoke other languages, everyone heard them in their own tongue. Peter told them that what they were seeing was the fulfilment of an old prophecy when God would pour out His Spirit on the human race, men and women, young and old.

As a result of His words and the extraordinary spectacle, 3000 people believed and were baptized in the name of Jesus. They were the nucleus of what in 100 years would be a Church that would turn history upside down. For Christians Pentecost is in effect the birthday of the Church.

I realise many people find the whole idea of the Holy Spirit mysterious and elusive. It wasn’t helped by the earlier title ‘Holy Ghost’. The spirit is not spiritually a ‘ghost’ but a precious gift.


Paws for thought

I’m writing to confess that I’ve been in the

doghouse recently - I realise that’s probably a

surprise to you since I’m usually such a model of

good behaviour.

It started off well. I was helping Mother Penny and

Father David in the garden. I had already

supervised the mowing of the lawn and the

weeding of some flowerbeds. They were doing

quite a good job so I didn’t even feel it was necessary to give a hand

with the digging this time, though I did some watering, as usual.

But then, I’m afraid to say that temptation got the better of me. I was

having such a nice time and went a bit too far… the trouble is, I love

gardening gloves. I don’t know what it is about them, the smell, the

sport in seizing them and the adrenaline when they chase me for them,

or perhaps just the taste. Shamefully, I ate 3 fingers of one that day!

Suffice to say, I ended up at the emergency

vets, and an hour or two later was able to

reunite Mother Penny with those 3 glove

fingers. She seemed unimpressed.

The moral of this story is:

Don’t bite off more than you can chew…

Buddy Nicholas

Don’t forget you can follow me and the progress in the churchyard on

Twitter @heritagehound. I now have over 100 followers!!!

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwid-qbh3bfQAhWGWxQKHXw-BB4QjRwIBw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.clipartkid.com%2Fwolverine-paw-print-cliparts%2F&bvm=bv.139250283,d.cGw&psig=AFQjCNHU_tBnr97QPYqJkxAVa0OjW6fV7Q


June brings us the Petertide ordinations. The following article may be helpful to people who have sometimes wondered if ordination could be for them. Much of this material has been adapted from the Church of England website.

How do you become a vicar?

This month, dioceses across the Church of England will welcome new deacons and priests at special services in their cathedrals. This is because, traditionally, most ordination services take place at the end of June, during Petertide.

Have you ever wondered how someone becomes a vicar? Here is a brief description of the journey:

It begins with a call from God upon your life. Discerning this can take months or even years of reflection and prayer.

The next step is to talk to your vicar, or to a member of the vocations team in your diocese. Your diocese will help you to identify what type of ministry could best suit your gifts and talents.

Your bishop will then send you to a selection residential known as a Bishop’s Advisory Panel. Here they will assess your understanding of the Church, your faith, your sense of vocation, leadership, and collaboration.

The panel will decide whether or not to recommend to your bishop that you go forward for ordination training.

If you are recommended, then the next step is to enter a training course at one of the theological education institutes (TEIs) based around the country. These can be either residential or non-residential.

Training usually takes two to three years. After the course, an ordinand will normally receive either a bachelor’s degree or a diploma of higher education. Your tuition fees are covered by the Church, which also pays a contribution towards your living expenses.

After ordination, newly ordained clergy begin their ministerial life as deacons. The first jobs they do are called curacies (they are known as curates).

Your curacy will be an opportunity to serve alongside an experienced vicar. Here you can put into practice the knowledge gained from your course and learn from them as you prepare for your own ministry.

After a year, most deacons are ordained again, as a priest.


Beauty Treatments available Thursday, Friday & Saturday 63 Church Street Newchurch Rossendale

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Creative Professionalism

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All sorts of people train for ordination. There really is no such thing as a ‘typical’ ordained person.

What all candidates do share is a genuine and heartfelt desire to serve God and to serve others.

And if two vicars marry they can have a cake like this one…...

mailto:[email protected]


A new series for 2019

9th June Columba of Iona, missionary to the UK

2013 marked the 1450th anniversary of the arrival of Christianity in the UK. It was brought by St Columba from Ireland to Iona – a tiny island off Mull, in the Western Highlands. Columba (c. 521 -97) was born in Donegal of the royal Ui Neill clan, and trained as a monk. He founded the monasteries of Derry (546), Durrow (c.556) and probably Kells. But in 565 Columba left Ireland with twelve companions for Iona, an island off southwest Scotland. Iona had been given to him for a monastery by the ruler of the Irish Dalriada.

Why would a monk in his mid-40s go into such voluntary exile? Various explanations include: voluntary exile for Christ, an attempt to help overseas compatriots in their struggle for survival, or even as some sort of punishment for his part in a row over a psalter in Ireland. Whatever the reason, Columba went to Iona and spent the rest of his life in Scotland, returning to Ireland only for occasional visits. Columba’s biographer, Adomnan, portrays him as a tall, striking figure of powerful build and impressive presence, who combined the skills of scholar, poet and ruler with a fearless commitment to God’s cause. Able, ardent, and sometimes harsh, Columba seems to have mellowed with age. As well as building his monastery on Iona, Columba also converted Brude, king of the Picts. Columba had great skill as a scribe, and an example of this can be seen in the Cathach of Columba, a late 6th century psalter in the Irish Academy, which is the oldest surviving example of Irish majuscule writing. In his later years Columba spent much time transcribing books. Columba’s death was apparently foreseen by his community, and even, it seems, sensed by his favourite horse. He died in the church just before Matins, and it is a tribute to this man that his traditions were upheld by his followers for about a century, not least in the Synod of Whitby and in Irish monasteries on the continent of Europe.

Here is a prayer of St Columba:

Christ With Us My dearest Lord, Be Thou a bright flame before me, Be Thou a guiding star above me, Be Thou a smooth path beneath me, Be Thou a kindly shepherd behind me, Today and evermore.


Current Recycling Projects

Used stamps.

Please put these in the box on the table to the left of the porch doors in the narthex. Jam jars

Please put on the table next to the kitchen.

Old (used batteries) and mobile phones

Please put these in the box next to the used stamps.

Clean silver paper, foil and aluminium cans

Please give directly to Emily Hewitson-Townley.

Fundraising Dates for 2019

Friday 7th June: Summer Parish Ball will be held at

Sykeside Country House Hotel, with music, dancing

and a raffle. Price £20 including 3 course meal.

Saturday 22nd June: Summer Fair from 11am to

2pm, which will be run on similar lines to the last 2

years, but hopefully with better weather.

Friday 4th October: Whodunnit Dinner (provisional date).

An update on two ongoing fundraising initiatives:

Nics Number: we are now at 128 numbers sold each week and to date this

has raised over £1100 for use by the church. If you would like to be

entered into the monthly draw please see Adrian Watts to purchase your

numbers.

Easyfundraising: At no cost to any of the members we have raised £556 by

our 24 members making purchases through the Easyfundraising website.

For more details see Gill.

Crowd The new minister, encouraged by the numbers in church for his first sermon, began: “I have never had the pleasure of preaching to such a dense crowd before.”


The RAFT Foundation

Food Bank urgent needs

Tinned veg (no peas)

Rice, noodles, pasta

Pasta or curry sauce

Tinned meat / fish

Tinned veggie meals

Custard / rice pudding

Tea, coffee, sugar

Cream crackers

Soup / cup-a-soup

Toothpaste & brushes

Shampoo & soap

Washing up liquid

Sanitary towels

Tony Horsfall considers the fire at Notre Dame

God among the ruins

The tragic fire at Notre Dame Cathedral shocked the whole world. Seeing such a magnificent building engulfed in flames saddened all who saw the devastation unfold. It was a monumental blow to the nation of France. It will take years to rebuild this famous place of worship.

One striking image from the fire showed the interior of the church scorched and ruined, its art treasures lost, its contents still smouldering. But high up in the background, unbowed by the flames, stands a golden cross, brightly shining in the darkness of the surrounding debris.

Since the fire took place at Easter, it is hard not to see this picture as a parable. One Anglican vicar made this comment: ‘Notice what is left inside, untouched, after the destruction of all sorts of ‘priceless’ works of arts at Norte Dame Cathedral? The Cross. What an image for Holy Week and what a picture to de-scribe secular Western Europe.’

As I pondered the picture it spoke to me of the abiding value of the Cross. The


ST NICHOLAS CHURCH PRESENTS

PARISH SUMMER BALL

Black Tie and Evening Dresses

with a RED theme for Pentecost

Sykeside Hotel,

Rawtenstall: Friday 7th

June

7.00pm for 7.30pm

Commencement of Three

Course Meal

£20 per head

words of a hymn came to mind:

In the cross of Christ I glory, Tow’ring o’er the wrecks of time; All the light of sacred story Gathers round its head sublime.

The place of worship may be destroyed, but not the God we worship. The message of the Cross, at the centre of our faith, remains a timeless, undamaged truth.

The hymn continues:

When the woes of life o’ertake me, Hopes deceive, and fears annoy, Never shall the cross forsake me, Lo! It glows with peace and joy.

Even among the ruins of our own lives the Cross stands tall, reminding us of the presence of God and His grip on our lives.


THE BOARS HEAD NEWCHURCH

Proprietors: Margaret & Shaun

Fresh home cooked food served

Wednesday & Thursday 4.00—8.00pm

Friday, Saturday 7 Sunday 12.00—8.00pm

Warm and friendly welcome

All occasions catered for:

Birthdays, Christenings, Funerals & Weddings

Telephone: 01706 224751

Family Praise and Play

SATURDAY 8th June 10.00am—12 noon

Crafts, songs, stories and food celebrating Pentecost. All the

family are welcome

More churches than pubs

The UK now has more churches than pubs, according to new data published by the National Churches Trust. There are around 39,000 pubs in the UK, according to the latest figures from the Office of National Statistics, with more than 11,000 pubs having closed in the UK in the last decade – a fall of almost a quarter (23%). However, there are around 40,300 church buildings in the UK open to the public and being used for worship, according to research carried out for the National Churches Trust by the Brierley Consultancy.

The number of church buildings is also substantially higher than other key public buildings in the UK. There are currently around 14,300 supermarkets operated by grocery retailers, 11,500 post office branches, 7,500 bank branches and 3,600 public libraries.

An increasing number of churches in the UK are also becoming local ‘community hubs’, hosting children’s nurseries, senior citizen lunch clubs, concerts and exhibition venues. Some even house post-offices, GP surgeries and farmer’s markets. Around 6,000 of the UK’s approximately 32,000 polling places are located in church buildings.


Kirk Fair 2019

The Kirk Fair is a traditional annual event in Newchurch

which has been running for decades with the aim of the

event being to pull the community together and that

certainly happened. This year it took place on 18th May.

There is a fund raising aspect to the day as well as having

fun which, this year, has benefited not only the Newchurch

Village Community Association (NVCA) but also St Nicholas, St Peters and

the Methodist churches in

Newchurch who wholeheartedly

supported the Fair. The NVCA will

be using the money it raised for

local projects with which it is

currently involved; the biggest of

which is the proposed play area at

Staghills.

Both St Nicholas school and St.

Peter's school participated in a

bunting competition that was

placed in the little park on the day also doing a non school uniform day on

the previous day.

This was the first rain-free Kirk Fair for 3

years and was well attended both by locals

and also by people from further afield.

The Water Band has supported the NVCA on

several occasions and this year they played

by the green.

We set up stalls on the pavement outside the

little park and in the park itself, and this year

we also had local businesses running their

own tables. We also ran a competition to win

a signed Burnley football club shirt,.

A big thank-you to all who supported and organised the day.

Danny Allan (Chair) Natalie Ashworth (Vice Chair)


We thank our advertisers for their continuing support of our magazine. If you use

one of their services please remember to let them know you saw their advert

HERE!

If you know of a business that would be interested in placing an advertisement in

the magazine please ask them to contact Christine ([email protected])

Please note that we try not to duplicate on businesses (eg we would not advertise 2

hairdressers)

Set dinners available

A BIG THANK-YOU TO ALL WHO

HELPED RAISE £ 207.50 FOR

CHRISTIAN AID during the New Kirk

Fair on Saturday 18th May

Sins A patient, while recovering in the hospital from a heart attack, met an over-zealous evangelist. After listening politely for over a half-hour on how thankful he should be to have been spared, and how he should repent at once, he was asked if all of his sins had flashed before his eyes during the heart attack. The patient responded, "Don't be ridiculous. The attack lasted only 6 hours."


Giving you the latest word on Financial Services…

James Trickett & Son (Financial Services Ltd)

Suite 1C Link 665 Business Centre, Todd Hall Road, Haslingden, Rossendale, Lancashire,

BB4 5HU

01706 831 132

Bonds, Insurance, ISAs, Mortgages, Retirement, Tax


Flowers for June 2nd vacant 9th Fr Michael 16th In memory of Stephen Rothwell 23rd vacant 30th vacant Please contact Constance Fisher (01706 214530) if you wish to contribute to the flowers in church.

Thank-you to all who have contributed to this edition of our magazine.

Please let Christine have any articles, comments etc for the July / August edition

by Sunday 23rd June. [email protected]

If you would like to attend one of the services or social events please be

assured of a warm welcome.

Contact any of the people listed on the back page or simply turn up!

Answer to the wordsearch

THE CHURCH FAMILY

BAPTISM:

12th May: Corey Scott

Please continue to pray for Corey

as he continues on his Christian

journey

THANKS

A very big thank you to everyone

for all my birthday wishes. They

are very much appreciated.

Love Constance F.


2019 DIARY FOR JUNE

Saturday 1st 9.00am (for 9.30start) - 4.30pm First Aid Training (places must be booked)

Sunday 2nd 10.30am Parish Eucharist

Monday 3rd 11.00am Brandwood Eucharist 1.30pm Praise and Play

Wednesday 5th 10.15am BCP Holy Communion

Thursday 6th 9.30-12 noon Place of Welcome

Friday 7th 9.30—11.30am Jolly Tots 7.00pm Parish Ball at Sykeside (please sign sheet in Narthex)

Saturday 8th 10.00am—12 noon Pentecost Family Praise and Play

Sunday 9th

PENTECOST SUNDAY

10.30am Parish Eucharist

Monday 10th 2.00pm Monday Club 7.00pm Flower Club

Tuesday 11th 7.00pm Eucharist: St. Barnabas

Wednesday 12th 10.15am BCP Holy Communion 12noon Monthly Munchies


Sunday 16th

TRINITY SUNDAY

10.30an Parish Eucharist

Monday 17th 2.30pm Ashlands Eucharist

Wednesday 19th 10.15am BCP Holy Communion


Friday 21st 9.30—11.30am Jolly Tots From 2.00om Set up for Summer Fair

Saturday 22nd 11.00am—2.00pm CHURCH SUMMER FAIR

Sunday 23rd

CORPUS CHRISTI

10.30am Parish Eucharist 12.30pm Holy Baptism 12.30pm Boar’s Head lunch 7.00pm Taize Service

Monday 24th 2.00pm Film Club 7.00pm Flower Club

Wednesday 26th 10.15am BCP Holy Communion 7.30pm Narthex Experience


Saturday 29th Summer Fair at School (more details later)

Sunday 30th 10.30am Parish Eucharist

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Sunday Services Parish Communion 10-30 a.m.

Weekday Services Holy Communion Wednesday 10-15 a.m.

Saint’s Day Eucharist - see Diary

The Blessed Sacrament is reserved in church and the Holy Communion can be taken to the sick and house-bound by arrangement.

Clergy Revd Penny Warner The Rectory 539 Newchurch Road Newchurch Rossendale BB4 9HH E.mail: [email protected]

Telephone 211122 / 07393 420763

Churchwardens Mr Tony Abbey

Mrs Janet Booth

878077 227389

Magazine Editor : Christine Worrell 220175

St. Nicholas C.E. Primary School 229478

PCC members

The above plus

Tony Abbey

Iain Blair

Mitchell Lord

Julia Robertson

Eleanor Rothwell

Jean Starkie

Adrian Watts

Caroline Watts

st. nicholas church · jolly tots at 9.30 am all pre-school children and parents / carers welcome...

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