Bowland Benefice Pews News
15 December 2024
Third Sunday of Advent

Collect

God for whom we watch and wait,
you sent John the Baptist to prepare
the way of your Son:
give us courage to speak the truth,
to hunger for justice,
and to suffer for the cause of right,
with Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
This Week in the Benefice
Saturday
14
December

10.30am
to 4.00pm

Christmas Tree
Festival in
Upton
Snodsbury

Sunday
15 December

10.30am

and
2.00pm
to 4.00pm

Benefice Holy
Communion in
Upton
Snodsbury
Christmas Tree
Festival

6.00pm

Carol Service in
Broughton
Hackett
6.00pm Carol Service in
Peopleton

Sunday
22
December
Advent 4

9.30am

Holy
Communion in
White Ladies
Aston
6.00pm Carol Service in
Upton
Snodsbury
St Kenelm’s church will be aglow with beautiful trees
and Christmas lights this weekend –
please do support Church Warden Helen, her team
and the PCC by supporting this annual event

in Upton Snodsbury.

The entrance fee is only £2 and there will be a raffle, a
variety of craft stalls and items to buy for Christmas
presents. Refreshments will also be
available….including (I have no doubt) some
wonderful mince pies!
Revd Claire says…..

The 3 rd Sunday of Advent celebrates joy.  What the
weary long for, what children often exude, what
makes us all smile. Joy. It cannot be paid for but is a
priceless treasure. We pray for joy as we wait for the

birth of the Son of God.

This time of year can be difficult, lonely and painful. If
you feel you need just to talk or you know of someone
who would benefit from a bit of tender loving care,
please do contact Revd Claire on 07921 101320.

A thank you from Claire

The weather was on our side for the Nativity at the
Crown last Friday evening.  A real village production,
thank you to all who were involved in making the
evening a success.  The tradition continues….!!

Other stuff

Another week of distressing news, pain and
devastation around our incredible world.
I am sure this week we have all been appalled at the
incomprehensible cruelty shown to a beautiful and

innocent young girl.
We seek for hope and reassurance.
This Sunday in Advent we remember the ministry of
John the Baptist – Christ’s for-runner. He came to
prepare the way for Jesus’ life and ministry of hope

and love.

John is revered both in Christianity and also in Islam.
By tradition, his head was placed in the Basilica of St
John in Damascus which later became the Umayyad
Mosque where there is a huge shrine to his memory
at which Moslems venerate him constantly.
In the Apocrypha, in a few Syriac manuscripts, can be
found the first prayer of John the Baptist to his

disciples:

Holy Father, consecrate me through your strength
and make known the glory of your excellence and
show me your son and fill me with your spirit which
has received light through your knowledge.
Or put more simply – could this be a prayer for us all?
Father, show me your son. Son, show me your spirit.
Holy Spirit grant me wisdom through your strength.
Thoughts and Prayers for this week
Gracious God, may this last week of Advent be a time
of turning our faces towards the light, and a space to

pause, to reflect and to watch.
May we learn to wait in the present and not for the
future, that every moment may be lived in the
presence of the Christ Child, the Lamb of Calvary, the
Saviour of the World and to your glory. Amen.
For children and families preparing for the Season of
Christmas as our schools wind down for the holidays.
May the true message of the babe in the manger be at
the heart of the next few weeks.
Help us to be open to the needs of friends and
neighbours who find the Christmas Season poignant
and difficult. Make us sensitive and able to offer the

help and support needed.

For all war-torn areas of the world, for migrants,
refugees and those without hope.
May justice, common sense and love prevail in the
hearts and minds of leaders across the globe.
For the world’s problems and seemingly unsolvable
political situations as the year draws to its close.