Dear friendsI hope this week has found you well, and hopefully coping with the heat and the high pollen!I appreciate it is a week of mixed emotion - a time of great celebration as Phil is priested on Saturday and celebrates his first Eucharist on Sunday, alongside some uncertainty following the announcement that I will be leaving St Martin's at the start of August.I think it's often the case in life that two things that could be seen to be opposite can both be true. It's certainly true in our faith, where we know Christ has died, Christ is risen and Christ will come again!The PCC met on Tuesday evening, and agreed an initial plan for the coming months whilst the church is in vacancy. Richard Hensman and Becky Wearne, our Church Wardens, will have legal responsibility for the leadership of the church. They will be the first point of call for any questions or queries. Becky will also continue to coordinate the Pastoral Care provision, and Jan Coombes continues as the Parish Safeguarding Officer, so concerns relating to pastoral care or safeguarding should be directed to them respectively.The pattern of worship will continue largely unchanged during the vacancy: we are pleased that our good friend Revd Dr Simon Taylor will come to St Martin's once a month to preside and preach at both 8.30 and 10.30, and Revd Tim Godden will preside and preach every 2nd Sunday at 8.30am. The only change will be that where there is a 5th Sunday of the month, the 8.30am service will be a service of Morning prayer, led by one of the Licensed Lay Ministers. Our newly priested Phil will be, thankfully, staying at St Martin's to continue his curacy, and will have the support of a new Training Incumbent.Over the course of the vacancy, the PCC will be supported by the Archdeacon of Malmesbury, and members of the Diocesan Support Services team to look at the vision for St Martin's for the next season of it's life, and to prepare a profile that will be used to appoint the next incumbent.There will be lots more to say over the coming weeks, not least to find opportunities to say goodbye! My last services on Sunday 4 August will be particularly poignant, and I hope to see as many of you as possible then - appreciating it's also Summer Holiday season.I will be licensed and installed as Archdeacon on Sunday 1 September at 3.30pm at Bristol Cathedral during Evensong, and want to extend an invitation to all of you to come along, if you would like to.Meanwhile - this weekends celebrations are our priority, and will be wonderful!I look forward to seeing you either at Bristol Cathedral at 3pm on Saturday, or at 10am for our single service on Sunday, followed by a bring and share lunch - you're invited.With every blessing, as alwaysBecky
Dear Friends, It seems that the approach of the end of June has finally helped summer to realise it is due to make an appearance! Hopefully some of this warmer weather will stay and, dare I say, increase slightly. The end of June also brings with it a special occasion for me and with it a time of transition. On Saturday 29th June I will be ordained priest in Bristol Cathedral in a service beginning at 3pm. I am so grateful to everyone at St Martin’s and beyond who has supported me in this first year of my curacy and for everyone who is making the effort to come next week to witness this life-changing moment and celebrate with me. There is plenty of space at the cathedral (if you get there early enough!) for many more to join us so do ask if you would like more details. Priesthood is an increasingly unusual calling these days but one that is ancient and full of profound weight. It is an honour that I don’t take lightly that I will be entrusted with my part in continuing the ministry of the global church, caretaking it’s traditions and learning to preach the gospel afresh to the next generation. For me, so much of what I feel called to is tied up in those two ideas – the old and the new, the tradition and the freshness. I love that at St Martin’s we preserve ancient traditions but are also willing to experiment and try out new ways of praying and worshiping together. One change in our Sunday worship will be that from June 30th I will be able to preside at the Eucharist. I look forward to the many times that we will gather around the table, each carrying our own baggage, each searching for our particular answers and yet drawn together around the same table by the same Spirit. There are many things that I love about the Eucharist – the way it unites us, the mysterious transformative work that Jesus does through it and, the reminder that at the heart of our faith there is brokenness and pain. I believe that through the consistent, faithful, coming together around this ancient practice, we can expect to receive not just from God but of God. It is beautiful that in Holy Communion, our faith is touchable, it has a taste and a smell. This Sunday we will gather twice around the table, once at 8:30 for our spoken service and again at 10:30 for our All Together interactive service. You are invited to join us, to discover more of the mystery that is faith and to be part of our community of seekers, hoping for transformation in our lives, our church and our world. You are welcome! See you soon, Rev. Phil
Dear friends, This morning was a beautiful one in church as it was filled with community, conversation and of course coffee. We began with a simple service, seated in a circle, in which we discussed the readings for today and prayed with one another, passing the candle of God’s love around from person to person. We then ate together, chatting more about all the things going on in our lives. These conversations continued with our wider parish community as we hosted the first pop-up of our new initiative: Café Reconnect. This pay as you can café is a wonderful opportunity for everyone to get together and share a cup of tea, a bite to eat and enjoy the special space that is St Martin’s in a different way. We always have a laugh when we get together but there is also something about having a café in a church which can draw out some deeper conversations from time to time. Whether you want to find space to ask questions about faith, life and God or share a difficult situation you are dealing with, our gatherings, both for prayer and for coffee can be great spaces to have those conversations. Equally, if you work from home and want some company whilst you work, or have space for a short break, why not come along and setup at Café Reconnect one week? This Sunday, whilst Becky enjoys some much-deserved time off, we are fortunate to be joined by not one but two guest priests to celebrate the eucharist with us and share from the readings for this week. Many of you will know Rev’d’s Tim Godden and Simon Taylor as we are so often blessed by hearing what they have to say and the conversations it leads us to. So come, join us for a coffee, a service or a chat. We will gather on Sunday at 8:30 and 10:30 as well as Friday at 9:30. All our services are open to everyone and Sunday Spirit will be on at 10:30 for our children and young people. Hope to see you soon, Blessings, Rev’d Phil
Dear friendsI hope this week has found you well, and that you have felt a sense of God's presence with you whatever you have done.Our theme of story telling, which has featured heavily over recent weeks, felt particularly appropriate this week with the commemoration of the D Day landings. I watched the tribute of the lone piper on a navy vessel coming into Normandy, and felt strongly moved, as when I saw the gradual illumination of the candles on the war memorials. It was beautiful, and sombre. One individual interviewed said they would love their children's class to go to the memorial, to all find one of the names on the memorial, and to research the story behind the name. Wouldn't that be a remarkable thing to do! The story of all those who gave their lives in war is remembered on a national scale, but of course there is a further story behind each of their names: stories of loved ones who grieved them, of colleagues who missed them, and a nation who thanks them.How we continue to connect our stories with a story of love is part of our gathering as a church community, and as ever I commend to you the opportunity to gather for worship.This weekend we have our traditional Holy Communion service at 8.30am where Steve will be preaching, and then Cafe Church at 10.30am where we will be thinking about the stories of our faith: when it may have been hard, how we speak of what we believe, and how we might share our hopes for our stories going forward.You're invited to be part of these gatherings.We also gather on Sunday afternoon at 4.30pm to witness Martin Turnbull's street evangelism performance - he is bringing "Street Surprise" into church, again you're invited to come along.With all good wishes as everBecky
