NEWSWeekly Matins has now resumed at 8.45am on Wednesdays, except there will be no service on 29th February and 26th April. We are extremely grateful to our three organists, Kevin Turner, David Bunkell and Murray Walding, who have so generously stepped in following the sad loss of Bob. The skill of their playing adds much beauty to our services. Three tables of diners from across the Benefice enjoyed a fine spread of delicious foods at the Benefice bring-and-share lunch at Barsham Village Hall on the last Sunday of January. Many thanks to those who supported the event.We congratulate The Revd Canon Rich Henderson, Rural Dean of Waveney and Blyth, and Rector of Beccles with Worlingham, North Cove and Barnby, on being appointed the next Archdeacon of Suffolk. There will be a Service of Farewell and thanksgiving for Archdeacon Jeanette at 3pm on Sunday 23 April at St Michael’s, Framlingham. A splendid 262 items were donated to the Foodbank in January. It can’t be said too often that our contributions are hugely appreciated. The January sales table organised by Margaret raised £75.00. In the calendar year 2022 the sales table made a magnificent total of £1,350.00.Barsham with Shipmeadow very gratefully acknowledges a donation of £250.00.FORWARD PLANNINGThe Choir of St Edmundsbury Cathedral will sing Choral Evensong at Barsham at 3.30pm on Sunday 5th March. Do bring friends! The Barsham Big Breakfast will take place on Saturday 11th March at 9.30am in the Barsham and Shipmeadow Village Hall. By all means attend on an individual basis (seats can be booked by emailing bsvh.info@gmail.com) or contact Bridget to join the church table, which will meet at the village hall at 10am. The cooked breakfast menu includes locally sourced meat as well as vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. With lengthening daylight hours and carpets of spring flowers breaking through (front cover: Barsham snowdrops), the Spring Equinox is just around the corner, falling on Monday 20th March. Assuming the sun shines, the ‘Equinox Event’ in the church may be seen on 19th, 20th and 21st March. Refreshments will be served from 4.45pm on all three days and the shaft of sunlight should begin to strike the rood at approximately 5.15pm.The next Benefice service of Choral Evensong will be held at All Saints, Mettingham at 6.30pm on Sunday 30th April. SNIPPETS – Oak Tree PlantingColin and Malcolm planted three oak saplings on the northern boundary of the churchyard on the first day of February. They were a gift from Bishop Martin Seeley, who has offered saplings to all the parishes of the St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocese. Originally planned as a part of the Queen’s Green Canopy initiative to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee, and as a fitting response to the climate crisis, Bishop Martin now wishes the trees to serve also as a memorial to our longest-serving monarch – and this is how we should see our three ‘Elizabeth Oaks’ at Barsham. In fact, most of Bishop Martin’s saplings were hornbeams, grown from seeds he collected in Christchurch Park, Ipswich, but he was also given 60 oak saplings, and our trees come from this latter source. The oak seems particularly appropriate in this context since in history and legend, oak trees have long symbolised royalty, patriotism and strength.It is pertinent too that our three oaks will make a valuable contribution to biodiversity in the long term. The Woodland Trust website provides extensive detail: the oak supports more life than any other native species: ‘a haven for a colossal 2,300 wildlife species, providing vital spaces to eat, shelter and breed’. Of these, 326 species depend on the oak for their very survival and 229 species inhabit the oak almost exclusively. Every bit of the tree has value, from the top of the canopy to the tip of the roots. Oak flowers are eaten by squirrels and many insects, and the pollen is a popular food source for bees. Acorns are attractive to 31 different woodland mammals as well as some birds. Oak leaves provide food for caterpillars and aphids, the latter producing the sugary honeydew that wood ants feast on, and these invertebrates attract species from higher up the food chain, including birds – the oak supports 38 species of bird. Oak bark provides niches for wildlife to shelter, feed and breed, including a range of invertebrates, bats and birds. Meanwhile, at the base of the trunk, fungi feed on the wood, and oak hosts 716 types of lichen, which offer nesting material, food and shelter. Liverworts and mosses cling to bark and branches, and various fungi rely on oak, some support the root systems and others depend on decaying organic matter in the leaf mould and fallen deadwood. Of course, dead and decaying trees are a vital part of a wood’s biodiversity, providing habitat and nourishment for a vast array of species.March Diary & Holy WeekWednesday 22nd February – Ash Wednesday. 10am Holy Communion, Holy Trinity, Bungay & 7pm Holy Communion, All Saints, Mettingham. Both services Rev Josh Bailey. Sunday 26th February – First Sunday of Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 5th March – Second Sunday of Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Jonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 5th March – 3.30pm Choral Evensong with the Cathedral Choir. Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 12th March – Third Sunday of Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Jonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 19th March – Mothering Sunday. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 26th March – Passion Sunday. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 2nd April – Palm Sunday. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Jonathan Olanczuk.Thursday 6th April. Maundy Thursday. 7.30pm Holy Communion with foot-washing. Holy Trinity, Bungay. Rev Josh Bailey.Friday 7th April. Good Friday. 12 noon Meditation at All Saints, Mettingham & 2pm Meditation, Holy Trinity, Barsham with Shipmeadow. Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 9th April. Easter Sunday. 6.30am Sunrise Service at Outney Common. 11am Sung Eucharist at Barsham (BCP). Both services Rev Josh Bailey.Every Wednesday at 8.45am – Matins at Barsham. Church correspondent: Robert Bacon 07867 306016, robert.bacon@yahoo.co.uk
NEWSThe four Candles of Advent were lit on successive Sundays leading up to Christmas, each candle representing a different aspect of the Advent season – the Prophesy Candle symbolising hope, the Bethlehem Candle peace, the Shepherd’s Candle joy, and the Angel Candle love. Finally, the Christ Candle was lit on Christmas morning, celebrating the arrival of Christ. The Festival of Seven Lessons and Nine Carols on the evening of 18th December was attended by a congregation of 62 people. Lit only by the 18 flickering candles of the great brass candelabra in the nave, Cheryl’s solo first verse of Once in Royal set the tone for an atmospheric service. It was uplifting to hear again the familiar words of the readings, and the choir’s sparkling descants soared majestically above the enthusiastic singing of the congregation. Further treats followed in the form of mince pies and mulled wine, sausage rolls and spiced apple juice, and the drawing of the Christmas raffle, which raised a splendid £250. Very many thanks to those who contributed to the Christmas hampers for the raffle, to Jean Cooksley for the splendid Christmas cake, and to those who decorated the church so beautifully with flowers and candles. The setting up of the crib heightened expectation of Christmas and you may have noticed in church over the Christmas period the figurines of the three wise men making their journey towards the crib, one windowsill at a time from the window beside the main door to the crib, arriving there at Epiphany – the Feast of the Three Wise Men – on 6th January. This celebrates the visit of the Magi to the new-born Jesus, having been led by the star to Bethlehem (picture, front cover).We were delighted to welcome as our visiting preacher on Sunday 1st January, the Archdeacon of Suffolk, the Ven Jeanette Gosney. On Sunday 29th January morning sung Eucharist will be followed by a Benefice bring-and-share lunch in Barsham Village Hall at 1pm, for those who wish to attend. Please contact Josh to let him know what food you can bring so that some coordination can be managed. A Benefice Evensong service will follow at Barsham at 5.30pm.Wednesday Matins will resume on a weekly basis at 8.45am from 1st February. 152 items were donated to the Foodbank in December, bringing our total contribution for the year to 2,352 donations – a tremendous outcome, much valued by the Waveney Foodbank and its beneficiaries. FORWARD PLANNINGThe Spring Equinox falls on Monday 20th March and, assuming bright and sunny weather, the ‘Equinox Event’ in the church may be seen late afternoon on that day and on one day either side. Refreshments are served beforehand. The Choir of St Edmundsbury Cathedral will sing Choral Evensong at Barsham at 3.30pm on Sunday 5th March.SNIPPETS – The Visitors Book 2022Holy Trinity Barsham receives several hundred occasional visitors each year. Only a relatively small proportion, I suspect, stop to sign the visitors book, but a survey of entries for 2022 sheds some light on the purpose of their visits and how far they have travelled. There are 83 separate entries in the visitors book for the year 2022, representing 131 named people. Overseas visitors included people from Germany, Canada, Australia and four states of the USA – Iowa, Maryland, Virginia and California. Unsurprisingly, the majority of UK visitors – 63% – came from the Eastern counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire. Indeed, a quarter of visitors came from Beccles, Lowestoft, Norwich and nearby rural parishes. But London and 15 other English counties are also represented, being Kent, Surrey, East and West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire in the south; Rutland, Lincolnshire and Warwickshire in the Midlands; Somerset, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire further west; and in the north Manchester, Cheshire and Lancashire. Our furthest UK visitors came from Shetland.Some occasional visitors, of course, are drawn here for Sunday service or for weddings, funerals and memorial services; and others are attracted by special events such as the Lindley Light Show, the Equinox events or Ride and Stride; while some come with study groups, perhaps with the U3A or the Round Tower Churches Society. There are those too who come to remember: a pilgrimage to an old familiar place, or to pay their respects at a family grave. A good proportion of visitors come out of interest in the history of the building, or for its beauty. With good reason, Holy Trinity Barsham is written up enthusiastically in most gazetteers of Suffolk churches. One of the visitors this year was Simon Knott, whose well-known website Churches of East Anglia includes an account of our church.Some visitors come on ancestral pilgrimage. A party of 18 came from North America, all of them descended from Elizabeth Blennerhassett (c1537-c1608) of Barsham Hall and her husband Sir Lionel Throckmorton (1525-1599), who married at Holy Trinity Barsham in June 1561. Two other entries, unrelated, recorded in the visitors book their Suckling kinship.A pilgrim of a different kind signed the book in June. Our first visitor on the Church Walking Pilgrimages scheme took overnight sanctuary in the church and came to Matins the following morning. She was walking the first section of the Via Beata pilgrimage route from Lowestoft to St Davids in Pembrokeshire. Amongst the brief comments most frequently committed to the visitors book are expressions of thanks for being open (a legacy of Covid lockdowns perhaps) and remarks about the beauty and peacefulness of the church – a reminder, if any were needed – of how fortunate we are in our special surroundings. FEBRUARY DIARYSunday 29th January – Candlemas (Presentation of Christ in the Temple). 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Jonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 29th January – 5.30pm Benefice Evensong at Barsham. Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 5th February – Third Sunday before Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). RevJonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 12th February – Second Sunday before Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Canon John Fellows.Sunday 19th February – Sunday before Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Wednesday 22nd February – Ash Wednesday. 10am Holy Communion, Holy Trinity, Bungay. Rev Josh Bailey. 7pm Holy Communion, All Saints, Mettingham. Rev Josh Bailey. Sunday 26th February – First Sunday of Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Every Wednesday at 8.45am – Matins at Barsham. Church correspondent: Robert Bacon 07867 306016, robert.bacon@yahoo.co.uk
NEWSWe are most grateful to the Lindley family for presenting a second magnificent Light Show in the church in November: to William for creating the show and to David and Penny for so generously sponsoring the event. This year’s show included some new artwork and further stretched the artistic possibilities by extending projections along the length of the nave as well as the chancel. The combination of swirling movement, colour, light and artistic design, along with beautiful choral music from Salisbury Cathedral Choir, made for a spectacular and ethereal immersive experience. The creation of such a show is complex and William explains in ‘Snippets’ (below) something of his process. The refreshments, kindly prepared by the ladies of the church, included mulled wine and delicious bites and added to the delights of the evening. The show attracted 187 visitors over the two nights and raised £720 for church funds.There will be no Wednesday Matins services during January on account of the cold in the building. The Foodbank was most appreciative of the 205 items we sent via Amy in November. Very many thanks to everyone for maintaining this giving: a much-needed lifeline for a growing number of people this winter. The November sales table organised by Sarah Jane realised £80. Meanwhile, Sarah Jane has continued her fine work selling the legacy bears, raising a further £267 in November and bringing the cumulative total to a remarkable £2,282. Erratum: in the December edition of the Newsletter, I erroneously wrote that Sir Astley Paston Cooper, 1st Baronet, the pioneering surgeon, was the brother of the Rev’d Rede Rede. To set the record straight, he was in fact Rede Rede’s uncle. Happy New Year 2023! The end of one year and the beginning of the next might be a time to reflect on and be thankful for the devotion shown by so many in maintaining our beautiful church and its services, and in giving it a broader function and place in the community. So, thank you to the clergy who officiate; to those who prepare the church for services and tidy up afterwards; to the organists; to the flower arrangers, cleaners and brass polishers; to those who prepare food and provide refreshments; to those who organise events and others who act as stewards; to those who look after the churchyard and maintain the building; to those who support and administer the foodbank; to those who raise funds and those who donate; and thanks to the PCC for the varied tasks they undertake – organisational, financial, practical.FORWARD PLANNINGOur Eucharist Service on Christmas Day will start at 10.30am, not the routine time of 11.00am. The Archdeacon of Suffolk, the Ven Jeanette Gosney, will be preaching at morning Eucharist on Sunday 1st January. SNIPPETS – An article by Will Lindley on his Light ShowIt is always a pleasure to be able to work in such extraordinary, historic buildings such as Holy Trinity church and it has been wonderful to be able to create a light show for the church again this year. Creating such a project involves a process of site visits, historical research, drawing, animation and testing projections on site. After initially exploring the potential of the site, I find it useful to test the projection as soon as possible, to help develop the film work. I create drawings of the site, and architectural features and details of the building, usually in pen and ink using a nib and ink pot, which I then digitize and adapt on the computer. I then begin the process of filmmaking and animation, to test the possibilities for the work. The animation process is quite involved, building up all the different drawings and images that I have created, as well as using some pre-existing work, experimenting with different speeds, layering, colour, texture and so forth, and how it fits with the music/soundscape. With the beginnings of the film work, I then return to site and test the projections to see how they work in the space, before final development and presentation at the event. I very much enjoy working on these site-specific projects and these form a key element of my artistic practice. All my work starts with drawings, and besides my commissioned light shows I create drawings, etchings and illustrations. Much of my work is concerned with place and landscape, exploring and reimagining places past, present and future and I have recently created projects in Clay Cross in Derbyshire and Slough, incorporating workshops where local peoples’ work is included. I also very much enjoy working with musicians, recently working with a string quartet in Lincolnshire for a festival event and another creating a projection to accompany the London Medical Orchestra’s performance of Stravinsky’s The Firebird. In the New Year I will be creating artwork about dementia with a neuroscientist at The University of Sussex.I would very much like to thank the Barsham Parochial Church Council for agreeing to stage the light show and for all their help with the organizing, promoting and stewarding the show, as well as the delicious refreshments made by members of the congregation. Many thanks as well to my parents for so kindly supporting the event. www.williamlindley.co.ukJANUARY DIARYSunday 25th December – Christmas Day. 10.30am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 1st January – The Holy Name. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey. Preacher: The Ven Jeanette Gosney, Archdeacon of Suffolk. Sunday 8th January – Baptism of Christ. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Canon John Fellows.Sunday 15th January – Second Sunday of Epiphany. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 22nd January – Third Sunday of Epiphany. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 29th January – Candlemas. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Jonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 5th February – Third Sunday before Lent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). RevJonathan Olanczuk.Church correspondent: Robert Bacon 07867 306016, robert.bacon@yahoo.co.uk
NEWSFollowing a funeral at St Bototolph’s Grimston, memorial services for Bob McNeil-Watsonwere held at The Players Theatre, Lowestoft and on 30th October at Barsham, the latter attended by almost 70 people. Bob’s invaluable service as organist at Barsham was just a small part of an extensive and distinguished career in music. Bob graduated in Music at UEA, studied composition under Benjamin Britten and became a schoolteacher – of modern foreign languages as well as music. In due course he became a freelance musician, teaching piano, keyboard, flute and singing; and he became a prolific and popular musical director. His contributions to and leadership of community performances – in musical shows, pantos, plays, choirs and orchestras – in Norfolk, Suffolk and beyond, became legendary. In Lowestoft he was Musical Director of The Lowestoft Players for over 26 years. Bob touched many lives and he will be remembered with much fondness and gratitude. We offer our sincere condolences to Sheila, his wife. The Lowestoft Journal’s fine tribute to Bob is available online at: https://www.lowestoftjournal.co.uk/news/obituaries/touching-tributes-bob-mcneil-watson-lowestoft-9346546.The PCC hosted the annual clergy lunch on the 2nd November to express our appreciation and thanks to the team of clergy who enable us to maintain regular Sunday services at Barsham. The annual Service of Remembrance took place at the village hall on the Friday 11thNovember, followed by a further act of Remembrance in the church on Remembrance Sunday, when Neville Smith called the names of the Fallen. William Lindley’s fabulous Light Show returned to Barsham on the evenings of 18th and 19th November. At the time of printing we have only had the first evening, which was attended by 87 visitors, many of them returning after last year’s show to enjoy again this wonderfully atmospheric and immersive experience. Full report to follow next month. There will be no Wednesday Matins services during December and January. There will be a regular benefice bring-and-share lunch at 1pm in Mettingham Village Hall on the fifth Sunday of those months with five Sundays. 29th January is the next occasion. All are welcome. The Rectors and Patrons board has been updated and rehung. A super 248 items were donated to the Foodbank in October, including 78 items at Harvest Festival: thank you for your generosity. Following Sarah-Jane’s suggestion of donating teddy bears with chocolate coins to the foodbank in December, foodbank gifts of chocolate coins would be much appreciated.Collections at Sunday services in October amounted to £1,187 and the collection at Bob’s memorial service raised £152 for the church, for which we are grateful. The sales tableorganised by Chris Bardsley raised an impressive £183, a sum enhanced by the sales of her beautiful Christmas decorations. Thanks are also extended to Doreen Springall for the proceeds of her produce stall, which during the course of the year has yielded a remarkable £316. Barsham with Shipmeadow PCC very gratefully acknowledges donations of £200, £80, £625 and £125, the last being a contribution towards the cost of refurbishing the lychgate. FORWARD PLANNINGThe Christmas Carol Service will be held at 5.30pm on Sunday 18th December.Refreshments will be served afterwards – mulled wine, sausage rolls and mince pies! Our Eucharist Service on Christmas Day will start at 10.30am, not the routine time of 11.00am. The Archdeacon of Suffolk, the Ven Jeanette Gosney, will be preaching at morning Eucharist on Sunday 1st January. SNIPPETS – The Rede Communion SetChristmas Day this year marks the bicentenary of the gift to the church of the Communion set (pictured front) by the Rev’d Rede Rede of Ashman’s Hall, Barsham. The patten is in regular use and the cup will be used throughout December to mark the 200th anniversary. The legend around the base of the cup reads: Presented to the Parish of Barsham by the Rev’d Rede Rede, the 25th December 1822. The gift was made in memory of the Rev’d Rede Rede’s uncle, Robert Rede, who died on 13th August 1822 and whose remains lie with those of his wife Charlotte in the vault under the once imposing and now crumbling table tomb that is such a familiar landmark in our churchyard. Robert Rede (1763-1822) was a lawyer who built Ashman’s Hall between 1814 and 1820 on the Roos Hall estate, which had been bought by his father Thomas Rede in 1805. With no children of his own, Robert Rede left the Hall to his nephew, the Rev’d Robert Rede Cooper (1794-1852), son of his sister Sarah Leman Rede. Upon inheriting Ashmans, Robert Rede Cooper assumed by Royal License the name Rede Rede.The Redes were originally a Norwich family and several generations had been Mayors there in the 15th and 16th centuries, but by the mid-16th century they were established in Beccles. A Rede daughter, Ursula, married Thomas Colby, who built the present Roos Hall in 1583. A daughter of the Rev’d Rede Rede, Louisa Charlotte Rede, married Frank Fowke, an officer in the Royal Engineers, who was a notable architect and engineer, much favoured by Prince Albert. Fowke designed various important mid-19th century public buildings, amongst them the Royal Albert Hall and parts of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Museum of Science and Arts in Edinburgh, the National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin, and the exhibition hall for the 1862 International Exhibition in London. He also won the competition to design the Natural History Museum but died before it could be built and his designs were altered and finally realised by Alfred Waterhouse. The Rev’d Rede Rede of Ashmans had an uncle, Sir Astley Paston Cooper, who was a pioneering surgeon in the early 19th century and founder of the Medical and Chirurgical Society. He was Professor of Comparative Anatomy to the Royal College of Surgeons, President of the Royal College of Surgeons and surgeon to George IV, who created him 1stBaronet. His statue graces St Paul’s Cathedral.December DiarySunday 4th December – Second Sunday of Advent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). RevJonathan Olanczuk.Sunday 11th December – Third Sunday of Advent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Canon John Fellows.Sunday 18th December – Fourth Sunday of Advent. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 18th December – 5.30pm Carol Service. Sunday 25th December – Christmas Day. 10.30am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey.Sunday 1st January – The Holy Name. 11am Sung Eucharist (BCP). Rev Josh Bailey. Preacher: The Ven Jeanette Gosney, Archdeacon of Suffolk. Church correspondent: Robert Bacon 07867 306016, robert.bacon@yahoo.co.uk
