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Please note that there may be changes in the
“Services” over the coming months as the Worship
Group has proposed changing one of the Sunday
“Eucharist’s” for an occasional “Choral Matins”
as it was thought it may be more welcoming to
newcomers to St. Faith’s - this will be considered by
the PCC on 26 January. Furthermore, it has been
proposed to make the second Sunday of each month a
“Family Eucharist” so that it can be presided over
by the Revd David Lyndsey. So watch this space and read
the Sunday Bulletin’s. Should you have any comments on
these proposals then please see the Churchwardens or
write to the Editor.
Please note that this year the Annual Parochial
Church Meeting (APCM) will be held on Sunday 29 March in
the Church Hall after the 9.30am Parish Eucharist
provided Morris Crocker can complete the accounts in
time. It is necessary to have it earlier this year
because of the Easter period in April.
Our annual parish share to the diocese for 2009 has been
finalised. St. Faith’s share is £44,282 out of the
Havant Deanery quota of £874,808. It is interesting to
note that this figure, is around 40% of our total annual
income and works out at about £5.70 per week for each
member on the Electoral Roll just to cover the costs of
the share.
Each month Waitrose in North Street donates £1,000
between three local good causes. The more tokens a
cause gets, the bigger the donation it receives. In
December St. Faith’s was one of the three good causes
and we received £239 from Waitrose towards security of
the church in the form of a CCTV.
The joint Epiphany Eucharist at St. Faith’s was held
with parishioners from St. Albans, St. Clare and St.
Frances and the Revd Jonathan Jefferies from St. Frances
and St. Clare both presided and preached. After the
service, another successful dinner organised by Sandra
Haggan was held at the Brookfield Hotel for 45
parishioners, with 32 from St. Faith’s and included some
of the clergy who have been helping us out. After
dinner entertainment was conducted by Jonathan Jefferies
and the evening ended with a joyful singing of “The
12 Days of Christmas”.
This year the Town Fair has been provisionally
fixed for Saturday 5 September. It is the biggest day
for raising money for the Restoration and Redevelopment
Fund. A Town Fair Committee needs to be formed now so
please volunteer and give your names to the
Churchwardens.
Colin Carter
Last month we looked at the founding of The Hospital
of St Cross and Almshouses of Noble Poverty in
Winchester. Now we look at the Brothers but before
that a little more history. Originally, there were
two separate charitable foundations – the Hospital of
St Cross and the Order of Noble Poverty. Last month,
we read about the founding of the former in
1132-1136. The second Order was founded by Cardinal
Henry Beaufort in 1445. The two orders were merged
some years later. Brothers of the first order wear a
black gown, similar to those worn by graduates, black
trencher hat and a silver badge in the shape of the
Cross of Jerusalem. Brothers of the second order wear
the same gown and trencher hat, except that they are
in claret, but they display a silver Cardinal’s badge
in place of the Cross of Jerusalem.
If I may digress, we moved to Winchester in 1959 when
I transferred from the Admiralty to the National
Assistance Board and we lived there four years. Our
daughter Laura was aged 3 at the time and our second
daughter Tracey was born in Winchester. Some of you
may remember a comedian named Charlie Drake. Laura
loved watching him on television, tumbling and falling
about, dressed in comic costumes. We once took her to
see him on stage at the Mayflower Theatre in
Southampton. The Brothers from St Cross are often
seen in Winchester and on one occasion a Brother came
into the shop we were in with Laura. Seeing his
unusual hat, she said loudly, “He’s got Charlie
Drake’s hat on!” We quickly got out of the shop!
I was responsible for the payment of national
assistance in the city of Winchester. Brothers who
were not in receipt of a retirement pension could
claim it but this was quite exceptional. However, I
did visit one or two who claimed help and saw their
living quarters. There are places for 25 Brothers and
they live separately in a self-contained flat dating
from the 15th Century. Each flat has a
sitting room, bedroom, kitchen, shower/wet room and a
separate lavatory. Brothers have to provide their own
furniture, although St Cross gave help in exceptional
cases. The flats are either ground or first floor.
Men who apply to be Brothers must be over 60 and not
in employment. They are usually single, divorced or
widowed. Preference is given to men on low or limited
income, although a higher income is not in itself a
bar. Brothers do not belong to a religious order but
they are expected to be Christians. They are also
expected to attend, wearing their gowns, morning
prayers in the church.
The Hospital of St Cross is known around the world for
the very ancient tradition of the Wayfarer’s Dole. It
was founded by a Cluniac monk of an order which always
gave wine and bread to travellers at a time when St
Cross stood on an important east-west route for
merchants and pilgrims. Today, visitors may call at
the Porter’s Gate and receive a small drink of beer
and a square of bread, both placed on a wooden tray
embossed with a silver Cross of Jerusalem. As an
official I was not allowed to receive gifts but I made
an exception of the Wayfarer’s Dole!
Roger Bryant
St Valentine’s Day – 14 February
There are two confusing things about this day of romance
and anonymous love-cards strewn with lace, cupids and
ribbon: firstly, there seems to have been two different
Valentines in the 4th century - one a priest
martyred on the Flaminian Way, under the emperor
Claudius, the other a bishop of Terni martyred at Rome.
And neither seems to have had any clear connection with
lovers or courting couples.
So why has Valentine become the patron saint of romantic
love? By Chaucer’s time the link was assumed to be
because on these saints’ day -14 February - the birds
are supposed to pair. Or perhaps the custom of seeking
a partner on St Valentine’s Day is a surviving scrap of
the old Roman Lupercalia festival, which took place in
the middle of February. One of the Roman gods honoured
during this Festival was Pan, the god of nature.
Another was Juno, the goddess of women and marriage.
During the Lupercalia it was a popular custom for young
men to draw the name of a young unmarried woman from a
name-box. The two would then be partners or
‘sweethearts’ during the time of the celebrations.
Even modern Valentine decorations bear an ancient
symbol of love - Roman cupids with their bows and
love-arrows.
There are no churches in England dedicated to Valentine,
but since 1835 his relics have been claimed by the
Carmelite church in Dublin.
Sin
A young minister, serving his first church, noticed that
one of his flock had been absent from services several
Sundays in a row, so he decided to see her and ask the
reason. The old woman shook her head and looked at him
pityingly. “Son,” she said, “you can’t help
me. You are not old enough to have sinned enough to
have repented enough to be able to preach about it.”
Ash Wednesday
– 25 February
Lent begins with
Ash Wednesday. But why 'Ash' Wednesday? The
reason has to do with getting things right between you
and God, and the tradition goes right back to the Old
Testament.
In the Old
Testament, the Israelites often sinned. When they
finally came to their senses, and saw their evil ways
as God saw them, they could do nothing but repent in
sorrow. They mourned for the damage and evil they had
done. As part of this repentance, they covered their
heads with ashes. For the Israelites, putting ashes
on your head, and even rending your clothes, was an
outward sign of their heart-felt repentance and
acknowledgement of sin. (See Genesis 18:27;
2 Samuel 13:19; Job 2:8, 30:19; Isaiah 58:5; Jeremiah
6:26; Jonah 3:6)
In the very
early Christian Church, the yearly 'class' of
penitents had ashes sprinkled over them at the
beginning of Lent. They were turning to God for the
first time, and mourning their sins. But soon many
other Christians wanted to take part in the custom,
and to do so at the very start of Lent. They heeded
Joel's call to 'rend your hearts and not your
garments' (Joel 2:12-19). Ash Wednesday
became known as either the 'beginning of the fast'
or 'the day of the ashes'.
The collect for
today goes back to the Prayer Book, and stresses the
penitential character of the day. It encourages us
with the reminder of the readiness of God to forgive
us and to renew us.
The Bible
readings for today are often Joel 2:1-2, 12 - 18,
Matthew 6: 1-6, 16 - 21 and Paul's moving
catalogue of suffering, "as having nothing and yet
possessing everything." (2 Corinthians 5:20b -
6:10)
The actual
custom of 'ashing' was abolished at the
Reformation, though the old name for the day remained.
Today, throughout the Church of England, receiving
the mark of ashes on one's forehead is optional.
Certainly the mark of ashes on the forehead reminds
people of their mortality: "Remember that you are
dust and to dust you will return..." (Genesis
3:19)
The late
medieval custom was to burn the branches used on Palm
Sunday in the previous year in order to create the
ashes for today.
The
Collect for Ash Wednesday is:
Almighty and everlasting God,
You
hate nothing that you have made
And
forgive the sins of all those who are penitent:
Create
and make in us new and contrite hearts
That
we, worthily lamenting our sins
And
acknowledging our wretchedness,
May
receive from you, the God of all mercy,
Perfect
remission and forgiveness;
Through
Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
Who is
alive and reigns with you,
In the
unity of the Holy Spirit,
One
God, now and for ever.
Havant Cemetery
- New Lane/Eastern Road
The original St Faith's church was
built about 1150 on what could have been the site of an
earlier Saxon church and its adjoining graveyard
provided Havant's main burial ground.
The parish records covering the period
of 1653 to 1851 record that some 6,000 departed souls
were buried there and from this figure it has been
estimated that the graveyard could contain the remains
of over 20,000 people. Most of these would not have been
in individual coffins but be placed side by side or on
top of each other.
As the graveyard became full it would
have become necessary to bring in further earth that
resulted in its original level being raised to what we
see today. (The 1853 drawing of the crossroads shows
the church wall to be much higher).
However by 1851 further burials became
difficult without disturbing those already there or the
tombstones that it had become the practice to erect. It
was therefore decided that a new burial ground
(cemetery) was required and this was achieved through
the generosity of Sir George Staunton of Leigh Park who
was `Lord of the Manor of Havant and Flood'.
The following record of its
establishment is taken from Charles Longcroft's
“Topographical Account of the Hundred of Bosmere”
published in 1856:
The site was presented to the parish [of Havant] by Sir George Staunton,
and the subsoil is flint gravel. The mortuary chapel
and necessary walling have been erected by subscription.
One statute acre has been inclosed for the members of
the Church of England, and one quarter of a statute acre
for the dissenters. The inclosure walls are of
flint and brick. The entrance gateway and the chapel
are built of flint, with Caen stone dressings.
The style of the work is Gothic, and the chapel will
accommodate about fifty persons. The windows are of
stained glass, the floor of red and black tiles six
inches square, and there is an outer iron gate which is
closed during the day, the inner door being left open to
secure proper ventilation. A small turret and bell
complete the whole, and the total sum expended did not
exceed £416, of which the chapel cost £200.
The first Church of England burial was
that of Merinda Fearn, aged 28, which took place on 29
August 1851. As by now everyone had a separate grave
space the cemetery filled up much more quickly than the
old graveyard and by 1895 it had become full so more
land was required.
Fortunately alongside the cemetery was
the Stone's allotment site. This was an area of land
given by Sir George Staunton's successor at Leigh Park,
William Stone, to be held in trust for the establishment
of allotments for
`the labouring classes of the Parish of Havant'.
On 25 March 1895 the Urban District
Council of Havant entered into an agreement with the
trustees to exchange 1 acre 3 roods 8 poles (0.73
hectare) of the allotment site for a similar area of
land to the north to enable the cemetery to be extended.
An enclosing wall that matched the original was
constructed which was topped with metal railings. These
railings were removed to help the 1939-45 war effort.
Whether they did or not is debatable as I have seen it
recorded that much of the metal that was collected was
not suitable for further use and was dumped.
Fortunately the fine entrance gates survived.
The first burial took place on 31 July
1896 and was that of Edward Till. Edward was a council
road foreman and had died of cancer at the early age of
45. Like so many council workmen he was also a
volunteer fireman so he was accorded the honour of
having his body conveyed to the cemetery on the fire
engine that was drawn by two black horses.
It can be seen from the 1897 Ordnance
Survey map that a `nonconformist' mortuary chapel
had been built but by 1940 the reference to it had been
changed to `general' mortuary chapel. It was
still in use in the early 1950's when the service for my
grandmother was held there but at some time later it
fell into disuse or disrepair and was demolished. It is
not known when the original chapel was demolished.
Laurie Booth has, by means of
`dowsing', located the foundations of both of these
chapels. In addition he has found clear evidence of a
third, previously unknown chapel to the south of the
second chapel. This chapel was smaller than the other
two but appears to have had an altar and an aisle with
three pews on either side. Two footpaths lead off from
its west door, the one going towards Leigh Park and the
other towards Havant.
This `new' cemetery, which
contains approximately 6,000 burials, provided
sufficient space until about 1976 when it was closed for
new burials. However burials are still taking place in
those graves where there is an adequate depth and with
the permission of the grave owner. There are about 600
`common', that is `unpurchased', graves
that could be reused in the future if legislation
permits.
Ralph Cousins, Chairman of “Friends of Havant Borough
Council Cemeteries”
A Senior Moment
An elderly lady actually wrote this letter to her
bank. The bank manager thought it amusing enough to
have it published in The Times.
Dear Sir,
I am writing to thank you for bouncing my cheque with
which I endeavoured to pay my plumber last month. By
my calculations, three 'nanoseconds' must have
elapsed between his presenting the cheque and the
arrival in my account of the funds needed to honour
it. I refer, of course, to the automatic monthly
deposit of my Pension, an arrangement which, I admit,
has been in place for only eight years. You are to be
commended for seizing that brief window of
opportunity, and also for debiting my account £30 by
way of penalty for the inconvenience caused to your
bank.
My thankfulness springs from the manner in which this
incident has caused me to rethink my errant financial
ways. I noticed that whereas I personally attend to
your telephone calls and letters, when I try to
contact you, I am confronted by the impersonal,
overcharging, pre-recorded, faceless entity which your
bank has become. From now on, I, like you, choose
only to deal with a flesh-and-blood person. My
mortgage and loan payments will therefore and
hereafter no longer be automatic, but will arrive at
your bank by cheque, addressed personally and
confidentially to an employee at your bank whom you
must nominate. Be aware that it is an offence under
the Postal Act for any other person to open such an
envelope.
Please find attached an Application Contact Status
which I require your chosen employee to complete. I
am sorry it runs to eight pages, but in order that I
know as much about him or her as your bank knows about
me, there is no alternative. Please note that all
copies of his or her medical history must be
countersigned by a Solicitor, and the mandatory
details of his/her financial situation (income, debts,
assets and liabilities) must be accompanied by
documented proof.
In due course, I will issue your employee with a PIN
number which he/she must quote in dealings with me. I
regret that it cannot be shorter than 28 digits but,
again, I have modelled it on the number of button
presses required of me to access my account balance on
your phone bank service. As they say, imitation is
the sincerest form of flattery.
Let me level the playing field even further. When you
call me, press buttons as follows:
1. To make an appointment to see me.
2. To query a missing payment.
3. To transfer the call to my living room in case I
am there.
4. To transfer the call to my bedroom in case I am
sleeping.
5. To transfer the call to my toilet in case I am
attending to nature.
6. To transfer the call to my mobile phone if I am
not at home.
7. To leave a message on my computer (a password to
access my computer is required. A password will be
communicated to you at a later date to the Authorized
Contact.)
8. To return to the main menu and to listen to
options 1 through 8.
9. To make a general complaint or inquiry, the
contact will then be put on hold, pending the
attention of my automated answering service. While
this may, on occasion, involve a lengthy wait,
uplifting music will play for the duration of the
call.
Regrettably, but again following your example, I must
also levy an establishment fee to cover the setting up
of this new arrangement.
May I wish you a happy, if ever so slightly less
prosperous, New Year.
Your Humble
Client
Addendum from The Times Editor: It is important
to remember that this letter was written by a
lady who is a 98 year old woman; doesn’t she make you
proud!!!?
Correspondence Column
Many thanks to the cruciverbalist and the campanologist
who sent me – via the editor – a welcome Christmas card
expressing their best wishes and appreciation for my
monthly efforts to emulate the esteemed crossword
compilers past and present. I hope to continue – at
least for a while – to provide some moments – or minutes
– of interest and possible amusement for my two
correspondents and others of like mind.
Best wishes to all,
Sisyphus
The Fitzwygram’s & St. Crispin’s Church
In response to the article in the January edition of
“Faith Matters” from Stephen Craven,
Administrator to the Pastoral Department, Diocese of
Southwark, Ann Griffiths, our local historian, sent me
the following:
“Dear Colin,
The Fitzwygram family tree is in Burke’s Peerage
under WIGRAM. Towards the end of the entry you come
to Sir Robert (2nd Baronet), who changed
the name to Fitzwygram in 1832. His sons were Sir
Robert Fitzwygram (3rd Bart) who died in
1873; Sir Frederick Wellington John (4th
Bart); Rev. John Fitzroy (1827-1881) vicar of New
Hampton Middlesex and Loftus (1832 to 1904). The
three surviving brothers were major subscribers
towards the building of St Crispin’s church and
parsonage, Bermondsey, in 1879.
There is an article about the consecration of St
Crispin’s in the Ipswich Journal 13.7.1880, which
states that the Fitzwygram’s contributed £11,500 of
the £15,870 building costs. If you have a library
card you can read the article by accessing 19th
century newspapers online via Hantsweb.
Leigh Park estate, at Havant, was bought in 1874 by
Lt. General Sir Frederick Wellington John Fitzwygram,
Bt, after inheriting the baronetcy on the death of his
unmarried brother, Sir Robert Fitzwygram (above). Sir
Frederick married in 1882 and was elected as
Conservative MP in the 1884 election. He sat for the
Fareham Borough of Hampshire and South Hants until
shortly before his death in 1904. Sir Frederick’s
only son was Sir Frederick Loftus Francis Fitzwygram 5th
Bart (1884-1920). Sir Frederick Fitzwygram’s obituary
is recorded in “The Times” on Friday 7 May 1920 and
his funeral which took place in Havant on 10 May 1920
is recorded in “The Times” on Tuesday 11 May 1920.
I can find no reference to St Crispin’s being
called the Fitzwygram Memorial Church but I hope this
adds a few more pieces to the puzzle.
Ann”
Here is an extract from the Ipswich Journal on Tuesday
13 July 1880 under the heading “The Church”.
“On Wednesday the Bishop of Rochester consecrated
St. Crispin’s Church, Southwark Park Road. The cost
of the building, together with the parsonage, amounts
to £15,870. Towards this no less than £11,500 has
been given by the following members of the Fitzwygram
family: Major-General Sir F Fitzwygram, Miss
Fitzwygram, Lady Bake, Rev. J. Fitzwygram, and Mr
Loftus Fitzwygram. The Church Building Society has
subscribed £225, and the Rochester Diocesan Society
£500, leaving but the very small deficiency of £395.
The building is in the Gothic style, with red bricks
and stone facings. The tower and spire remain to be
completed, at an estimated cost of £900.”
Stephen Craven says that St. Crispin’s Church was
originally known as the “Fitzwygram Memorial
Church”. I suspect this may have been because of
the £11,500 – a lot of money in 1879 – which the
Fitzwygram family put into the building of the church.
Colin Carter
The west stained glass window in St. Faith’s
commemorates Major-General Sir Frederick Fitzwygram.
Sir Frederick’s sister, Selina Frances Fitzwygram is
remembered in the chancel, and his son in the Lady
Chapel.
Restoration & Redevelopment Fund 2008
The money raised for the Restoration & Redevelopment
Fund during 2008, was £13,053.88 (£3,601.26
down on the 2007 figure of £16,655.14). The
breakdown is:
|
|
3,800.00 |
Flower Festival |
1,653.14 |
|
Quiz Night |
701.07 |
Christmas Cake Draw |
50.00 |
|
Historic Churches Bicycle Ride |
164.50 |
Christmas Quiz 2007 |
139.28 |
|
Cloak & Dagger Donation |
550.00 |
Burn’s Night Supper |
228.66 |
|
Sarah Butterfield Prints & Cards |
220.80 |
Coffee Mornings |
1,184.52 |
|
Parish Breakfasts |
366.52 |
Jenny’s Jam |
497.00 |
|
Lent Lunches |
131.00 |
Sale
of Books |
34.80 |
|
Gift Aid Donations |
55.00 |
Other Donations |
38.30 |
|
Loose Change |
6.51 |
|
|
|
Tax Refunds |
132.89 |
Bank Interest |
3,099.89 |
Roger Simmons
(In 2007, income was received, inter alia, from the
Emsworth Concert Band, Hampshire Area Guitar Orchestra,
the Royal Marine Band and the Wyndcliffe Singers who
performed in St. Faith’s Church – the performances were
organised by the Restoration & Redevelopment Committee
which was disbanded in December 2007 after raising funds
for the church’s restoration since 2002 (see “Faith
Matters” January 2008 page 18). This clearly has
affected the amount of money raised during 2008 and this
may continue during 2009. Furthermore, the Town Fair
was £880 down on 2007 due to the inclement weather – Ed)
Magazine Income & Expenditure in 2008
The income in 2008 (with the 2007 figures in
brackets) from sales of “Faith Matters” was
£656.20 (£635.15) and from
advertisements £759 (£965) giving a
total income of £1,415.20 (£1,600.15).
The cost of printing the 12 editions of “Faith
Matters” was £1,260 (£1,274),
thereby giving a small profit of £155.20
(£326.15). The aim is for the magazine to
“break even”, therefore the price of “Faith
Matters” should remain at 30p during 2009 providing
the printing costs do not increase and parishioners
remember to buy a copy each month
Beryl Carter
A certain lady who was nearly always late for the church
service arrived as the congregation started to sing
“With early feet I love to appear among thy saints”.
Following in the usual tradition a group of St Faith’s
Bellringers gathered in the Bell Tower to ring out the
“Olde Year” and to welcome in the New Year.
There was somewhat of a party atmosphere in the tower
with one or two visitors from other Towers. Ringing out
the old year starts about 11 o’ clock with rather sombre
ringing of half muffled bells whilst we wait for the
approach of midnight when we take the muffles off. The
radio is tuned in to hear the first stroke of Big Ben
when our tenor, rung by our captain, Barbara, strikes
twelve strokes in time with Big Ben followed by all of
the other bells in open ringing to welcome in the New
Year.
We continued to ring for about ten minutes and make more
noise than the people in the nearby public houses who
come out and make their own noise with dustbin lids and
vocal choruses but we are the real sound of the New
Year.
When we came out of the Tower some people visiting
Havant, who had been in the local hostelry’s (I might
add that they were completely sober) came over and
thanked us for our ringing as they had not heard bells
ring in the New Year since their childhood. It really
made their visit and their thanks made our turning out
late at night in the cold all worthwhile.
Anne Plater
Mamma Mia Disco
At long last we have a date for the 70’s/Mamma Mia
Disco. It would be great if as many people as possible
could try to get a table of friends together. If anyone
would like to help on the evening or before please let
Simon Creasy know – telephone: 023 9249 8828. Details
are:
Friday 13 March 7.30pm – 11pm St. Faith’s Church
Hall Cost £5
Bring your own picnic and don’t forget to wear your
flares
Bar available, so please don’t bring your own drink.
Money raised will go to Systic Fibrosis and St. Faith’s
A young man preached his first sermon at a country
chapel. During the following week the steward went to
see if he would take the service the next Sunday as the
planned preacher was ill. The young man said “Oh
dear, you realise that I have only just started
preaching and I have only the one sermon prepared”.
“That’s all right”, said the steward, “We can’t
remember a word you said last week, but we did enjoy
it”.
During a BBQ, a guest stumbled and took a little fall
– she assured everyone that she was fine. She said
she had just tripped over a brick because of her new
shoes. She was cleaned up and got a new plate of
food. While she appeared a bit shaken up she went
about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.
Her husband called later telling everyone that his
wife had been taken to the hospital – and later she
passed away. She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ.
Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke,
perhaps she would be with us today. Some don’t die –
they end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.
It only takes a minute to read this.
A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke
victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the
effects of a stroke – totally. He said the trick was
getting a stroke recognised, diagnosed, and then
getting the patient medically cared for within 3
hours, which is tough.
Recognising a Stroke
Remember the ‘3’ steps, STR
Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to
identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells
disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain
damage when people nearby fail to recognise the
symptoms of a stroke.
Now doctors say a bystander can recognise a stroke by
asking three simple questions:
S
– Ask the individual to SMILE
T
– Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE
SENTENCE
R
– Ask the individual to RAISE BOTH ARMS.
If the person has trouble with ANY ONE of these
task, call 999 immediately and describe the symptoms
to the operator
You can also ask the person to ‘stick’ out
their tongue. If the tongue is ‘crooked’, or
if it goes to one side or the other, that is also an
indication of a stroke.
A cardiologist says if 10 people read this you can
bet that at least one life will be saved.
(The above was sent to me by a reader of “Faith Matters”
- Ed)
Manner of speaking
“Are your father and your mother in?”
asked the vicar when the small boy opened the door.
“They was in,”
said the youngster. “But they is out.”
“’They was in. They is out.’ Where’s your grammar,
young man?”
“She’s gone upstairs, for a nap.”
The word Jesus used for peace in Hebrew was, ‘Shalom’.
When we left England in July, we bid Shalom to our
friends and parishioners.
Steve Chalke, a famous British Baptist minister, has
written a book called ‘The Lost Message of Jesus’.
In this book he talks profoundly about A Kingdom
of Shalom. Shalom, as Jesus identified it,
Chalke says, is like a kaleidoscopic vision of what life
is like when lived in line with God’s agenda. It
incorporates contentment, health, justice, liberation,
fulfilment, freedom and hope. It isn’t the provision of
wealth so you can buy yourself out of the troubles of
life. Instead, shalom is the equipping of a person so
they can cope with life’s suffering and sorrows while
basking in the beauty and joy it brings.
Moving across the Atlantic brought into sharp focus the
blessings that surrounded us in Havant and now in
Barrington Hills. The move has had both its joys and
sorrows. Life, no matter where lived, will have its
share of happiness and pain. But we feel blessed that
this Kingdom of Shalom is actually all around us.
We feel blessed to be and to have been touched by so
many wonderful and incredible people in our lives. It
was wrenching to leave our UK family and friends
behind. We had our good friends at our house – Angela &
Duncan and Nigel & Alison as we packed up the last bits,
swept the floors and shut the door for the last time.
Ahhh, it was so hard. We will never forget those final
moments in our much loved home at 5 Meadowlands. And
then as we drove veering off the M27 onto the A3 waving
goodbye to Angela and Duncan as they continued on the
M27 and we headed north. Sophia burst into tears and
just sobbed as we were crossing the Hampshire border.
So, Elise, Sophia and I cried together as we drove
north. We miss our friends and our old home so very
much.
It was hard to leave the much loved congregation at St.
Faith’s behind. We have so many great memories of our
life at St. Faith’s. We have great memories from our
very first day to our very last day at St. Faith’s.
There were so many wonderful times we spent there. The
ultimate climax of our time at St. Faith’s came at the
end. The send off was so incredible, so moving, so
touching it made us want to stay and never leave. Did
we really make the right decision? But, all our things
were gone. However, we knew in our hearts it was time
for us to move on. We thank everyone at St. Faith’s for
such special weeks leading up to our departure and the
final special day.
We stayed with David’s parents for a few days before we
departed. It was nice to have that time together but
the tearful departure was hard – especially on David and
his parents.
The good news is that we have landed on our feet over
here. The community at St. Mark’s had been preparing
for our arrival and worked hard to get our new home
ready. Since we have been here, the people have been so
very warm and welcoming. David’s first service at St.
Mark’s was a baptism – what a great way to start a new
ministry. It was a lovely Saturday summers evening and
baby Cavan was as placid and happy as anyone there.
Baby Cavan’s family suffered the loss of baby Evan just
a year before, so Cavan was a special gift of joy to
help heal the pain of their previous loss. It was a
very special baptism. The very next day at David’s
first Sunday service the choir sang the British National
Anthem. It was the first time I have witnessed David
having tears roll down his face during a service. It
was such an incredible act of graciousness by the people
here to respect David’s roots in this way. (As it was
at St. Faith’s when the choir sang the creatively
adapted ‘America’ song at our last service!)
Elise is adapting well to her new school and has a
lovely group of friends. Before we left the UK, the 7th
grade councillor at her new school put her in touch with
a lovely girl named Amy who has most of the same
interests as Elise – dance, art and fashion. Elise has
joined the same dance academy and has rediscovered her
love for ballet. Elise says it has the right balance of
challenge and fun. She is also taking jazz and tap, but
ballet – she has rediscovered – is her favourite! Elise
made the school honours role the first quarter so we are
really proud of her. The one thing Elise really
hates is how everyone adores her English accent.
She also desperately misses her friends in the UK.
Sophia is still her imaginative and creative individual
self. She has not made as many friends as Elise, but
that will come in Sophia’s time – she really misses her
friends and classmates at St. Albans. Sophia likes her
new school and has found a new sense of independence by
taking the bus to and from school every day. We were
most impressed (as was Sophia’s teacher) when Sophia was
voted onto student council only 3 weeks after being at
her new school. She has achieved A’s in most of her
subjects in school and is taking private flute lessons.
We were also impressed by Sophia’s determination to try
out and then make the Barrington Swim Team only after a
month of being here. She was determined, put the effort
in and then reaped the reward. Now, I am putting the
effort in driving Sophia and Elise around Barrington to
their various practices.
David and I are doing very well. David is very much
loved by the congregation at St. Mark’s. They feel so
lucky to have him (so do I!). At the moment we have 5
inches of snow on the ground and it is blustery and cold
outside. David keeps converting the temperature from
Fahrenheit to Celsius and is always shocked by the
result! ‘It’s minus 20 Celsius, with a wind chill of
minus 27 Celsius (this is no joke)!’ he exclaimed
the other day. ‘Yes’, I responded, ‘and this
is just the beginning of winter!’ (It could be a
long winter!) Do we actually miss the English rain?
We joined a fantastic fitness club in September and have
been going regularly to do our workouts and enjoying the
Jacuzzi and steam rooms- especially with the cold
weather! We are gradually settling into our new home
but it is taking time. We have recently been accepted
as members of Barrington Hills Country Club and look
forward to tennis, swimming and golfing when the spring
arrives!
This year we are counting our blessings and wish all our
family and friends Shalom – contentment, health,
justice, liberation, fulfilment, freedom and hope -
that Jesus our Lord meant when he said, in our English
translated bibles, ‘Peace, be with you.’
With all our love,
Susan Gibbons
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