Dear Friends We often complain that Christmas starts earlier and earlier every year. Christmas cards appear in the shops by September and as soon as Halloween and Bonfire night are out of the way, up go the Christmas trees and decorations in the shops and restaurants and we are serenaded by Christmas Carols […]
Dear Friends, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Luke 6. 27-28 The hymn “Make me a channel of your peace” is a favourite hymn for many. I am as fond of […]
Dear Friends, In October, the 15th to be precise, I will have been your Team Vicar for three years! Where has that time gone? It is my great joy and privilege to serve St Katharine’s and St Thomas’s. I am really blessed to serve within a great team and I feel like I’ve […]
Dear Friends, The summer is rapidly coming to an end as we approach September, and for many of us that lovely holiday is now a distant memory. The schools will be re-opening soon and for families life will settle back into its own routine involving work, rest and play, hopefully in a balanced way. It […]
Dear Friends, Here we are August already and we are in the height of summer, enjoying some lovely summer weather, at least from time to time. I was pleased to note that it did not rain on St Swithun’s day so we are in with a chance of more good weather! Even the Scarecrow weekend […]
Dear Friends, It now feels like Summer is on its way, doesn’t it. The lighter evenings and the sunshine, the trees are almost all in full leaf and the gardens and hedgerows are ablaze with colour, and growth is lush. I was delighted a few evenings ago as I stood washing up in the kitchen, […]
Once again it’s been a busy year for us, but before I go any further I’d just like to pay tribute to two faithful servants of this parish who died last year. Jean Douglas and Anita Skinner. Both Anita and Jean were artistically gifted and creative. Jean was not only a master of her needle […]
Dear Friends, If you’ve been in church you may have seen our photographs of Messy Church displayed in the lower room? You can see more photos in this magazine and an article from the Sunday School Team about our first one ever at St Katharine’s at the beginning of March. For the uninitiated, Messy Church […]
Dear Friends, Here we are in March and spring is on its way. At the end of the month we’ll put the clocks forward and look forward to lighter evenings. We’ve had a short respite in the church’s calendar with Easter being so late this year, which has enabled us all to get our collective […]
Dear Friends, Once more it’s my pleasure to wish you all a “Happy New Year” although I wish it didn’t come round quite so quickly! Each New Year gives us the opportunity to take stock of our lives and see what could be improved on leading to our making of New Year’s resolutions. Have you […]