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FAITH MATTERS
The Parish Magazine of St.
Faith, Havant with St. Nicholas, Langstone
MARCH
2005 (Internet Edition)
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From the Rector
As we continue through Lent we are
reminded that this period is in itself a metaphor for
our journey with Christ to the cross. But what does this
mean? Are we to be bowed down with guilt – guilt for our
own unworthiness and dreadful past behaviour or of our
failure to make the world a better place? Absolutely
not! This would be a complete misinterpretation of
Christ’s message and the Church’s true meaning of Lent.
In the first place Lent is a time
when we can make a little time to consider our own
relationship with God. Is the time we set aside for
prayer fruitful? Do we live our life out of a sense of
immense gratitude for all that God has done for us? Or,
on the other hand, are we controlled by a sense of
having to do more and better all the time in order to
placate a jealous and vengeful God? If so then we may
know we are in trouble. Or the truth of Good Friday and
Easter day is that God loves us – no adores us in who we
are and what we are. We are then truly blessed and
redeemed in we have faith in this ‘Good News’.
But what about all that talk of
Lenten discipline – what of that? And if we hurt others
or break the rules are we to say that it doesn’t matter?
Of course not – to do so would be to belittle those we
have hurt and ourselves. But we also have to remember
that God’s love for us is unconditional and forgiveness
absolute. The real issue is can we believe this and act
out of that forgiven state? Because it is only then that
we can enter more fully into the life of the redeemed.
This, then, is how we share in the suffering of Christ,
because we have to share in the pain of living in a
broken world, knowing we are contributing to its
brokenness.
But – and this is the good news – we
also need to remember we are no defined by our worst
moments, nor are we bound to live as the worthless,
unlovable and weak person we imagine we are in our
darkest hours. By living as the glorious, redeemed
person God has made us to be we can contribute more
joyfully (and indeed uniquely) and vibrantly to the life
of those around us, both near and far. In this way we
can truly become the servant God calls us to be. Not
that we are judged by God for our deeds but that we are
called to live out our life for others, as Christ did so
spectacularly once for all.
This year then I bid you a prosperous
Lent as you examine yourself for the faithful part of
you that enables you to give your whole self to the
Christian ministry.
And as you search for such ministry I
draw your attention to the projects of Christian Aid at
this time, particularly with regard to making poverty
history.
Every blessing,
David
About The Parish
Last month we read about St Agatha's
Church and its Vicar Father Coles. This month we are
looking at St Agatha's School and he appears again in
our narrative. The school was founded in Clarence
Street, one of the streets destroyed in the Conway
Street bombing, in 1812 by a Dr Andrew Bell, so not
surprisingly it was originally Bell School, St Agatha's,
Landport. The land for the school was given by a Miss
Mary FitzHerbert and it was built for a cost of £1,200.
It was built of grey brick and slate and in effect was
three schools in one. There was an Infants School on the
ground floor, a Boys School above it and, at the far end
(and quite separate!) a Girls School. The entrances were
also separate, with the infants in Clarence Street, the
boys in School Lane and the girls in Frederick Street.
The classrooms were lit by gas mantles and heated by
coal fires. The desks were in four rows, with the
teacher's large desk placed in close vicinity to the
fireplace!
When the school was first built, a
gift of £100 was made by the Church of England National
Society for Promoting Religious Education. It follows
that the curriculum was decided by the Church of England
Commission. Dr Bell pioneered a system of teaching by
which the older pupils were first taught and they then
passed on their knowledge to the younger children. At
that time, it was called the Monitorial System. To this
day, some large organisations have a similar system
(Cascade Training) by which staff are trained centrally
and then go back to their branches and units to train
their colleagues.
After some time, the school was
renamed St Agatha's and in 1870 it was adopted by the
Local Board of Education, although it was still a church
school. The school finally closed in the 1960s. Looking
back over this period, it is impossible to ignore the
achievements of the great Father Dolling who did so much
to establish the school in the community. This has been
well documented but not so much is known of a later
Vicar of St Agatha's, Father Coles, who I mentioned last
month.
I recently read an account by a
former pupil who remembered regular visits by him to the
school in the 1930s. Each class in turn would have a
period away from schoolwork to listen to Father Coles
and he was very popular with the children. Apparently,
he always wore his cassock under a long black cloak,
which was fastened with a very elaborate chain. The
account went on to say that Father Coles’ stature and
kindly manner held the children in awe. They regarded
him as "one step away from God"!
As you know, our Rector, Father
David, makes regular visits to schools in Havant and is
very well known to the children, parents and teaching
staff. I wonder how former pupils will write of him 50
years from now. He will have to develop some
eccentricity of dress and behaviour to get some
colourful accounts of his time in Havant. Hopefully,
unlike Father Coles during the Blitz, he will not have
to live in the Vestry. Perhaps his visits to Fratton
Park will be chronicled and his prowess with the cricket
bat. In which case, the legend of "one step away from
God" may once again be recorded.
Roger Bryant
Burning Questions of the Day
When someone asks you, "A penny
for your thoughts," and you "put your two penneth
in", what happens to the other penny?
Why is the man who invests all your
money called a broker?
If you take an Oriental person and
spin him around several times, does he become
disoriented?
If people from Poland are called
"Poles," why aren't people from Holland called
"Holes"?
Doris Cox RIP
Many parishioners knew Doris from her
early days in St Faith's and were sorry to hear she had
passed away early this year after a long illness. Doris
was born in Portsmouth in 1915 and came to Havant, with
husband Frank, in 1947, which is when she started to
attend St Faith's Church. She had served in the YMCA
during the war, when Frank, whom she married in 1937,
was serving with distinction in the Royal Navy.
The couple moved from Cosham to
Southbrook, Langstone, where she was to spend 58 years.
Doris became Chairman of the Havant NSPCC in March 1959,
then Area Chairman in 1968, finally becoming a Member of
the Council in 1974. She loved all sports and in later
life enjoyed watching them on television, even when
Father Brown was waiting to give her home communion!
Frank was the Senior Partner in a Law Firm. Tragedy
struck them in 1970 when their eldest daughter, Diane,
died at the age of 23. Frank never got over their loss
and sadly died just four years later.
Doris was a very elegant and charming
lady, who was devoted to her daughter Sarah and
son-in-law Richard and to grandchildren Alex, Charles
and Edward. As her health was failing, they gave Doris
wonderful love and support. Father Brown had promised
Frank that he would always look after Doris and, true to
his word, he gave her a very special and unconditional
friendship, unique in these times. All, who knew Doris,
held her in special affection and regard. Most will not
see her like again. RHB
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Judy & Innes
Judy with her new dog, Innes, a cross between a Labrador
and a Golden Retriever.
He is 18 months old and has been
trained.
Judy knows how to handle a dog and
both now have to learn to live together.
To help them, Judy and Innes
completed a three-week course at the Hilton
International Hotel in Chilworth .
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March 1955
This month 50 years ago on 4th March, I
arrived with my father in Southampton from Cape Town in
the RMMV "Carnarvon Castle" after an exciting 14
days passage – that’s how long it took in those days as
travelling by sea was the main mode of transport. From
Southampton we went by train to London where my mother,
younger sister and two brothers, who had arrived six
months earlier to set up home with the help of the
Methodist Church, met us. That morning, I had never felt
so cold in all my life having left Cape Town in the
middle of summer and with the lovely hot weather during
the voyage, especially when we crossed the equator, it
was quite a shock. |
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People had said that it would be
difficult for me being a teenager to move to another
country, but not so at all. I very soon settled down and
within two weeks of arriving found myself employment as
a typist in the offices of George Payne (Tea Merchants)
Co. Ltd at Tower Bridge. I was fascinated by all the
London historic buildings, especially Tower Bridge,
which I could see being raised and lowered from the
office window. Also, the underground which I used daily,
the hustle and bustle of London, the sense of humour of
the office girls, and the different way of life from
that of living in South Africa. However, I shall always
have memories of beautiful Table Mountain, which I had
seen every day.
Before the end of March, I was
bridesmaid to a cousin’s wedding in Surrey, on a
bitterly cold day – just image how cold I felt in a
short sleeved dress of taffeta and net! – I shall be
attending their Golden Wedding anniversary celebration
later this month. |
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So my memories of my first month in
the UK were of excitement and also of feeling very cold
– even the bed felt cold and damp – remember there was
no central heating then. But when you are young you take
this all in your stride.
The decision my parents made those 50
years ago in coming to the UK was one of the best things
that happened in my life, which I have never regretted.
By the end of that year, 1955, I had met a handsome
sailor who became the love of my life – but that’s
another story!
Beryl Carter
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A Jew from Tarsus
Last month we left Paul safely
ensconced in the household of Stephanas in Corinth and
we now consider the extraordinary success of his
ministry in that city. He established a Church, which
embraced men and women from all walks of life;
ex-slaves, gentiles, Romans, wealthy, poor, educated and
ignorant. Corinth was at the centre of many trade routes
and people were constantly arriving, becoming new
converts but also bringing news of other territories,
news that was not always welcomed by Paul, particularly
of Thessalonica, where there was worrying discord in the
Church. May I digress; you will remember that Dennis
Doney wrote in "Faith Matters" of a cruise he and
Joan had taken following the journeys of Paul. Dennis
has kindly sent me a superb Chronology of the Life of
Paul for which I am very grateful. Dennis mentioned that
Paul came over as rather difficult and troublesome. In
our narrative, he is now over 50 and not always at his
best in dealing with views contrary to his own! (Joy
says the same of me!) His preaching was not always as
clear as it might have been.
Paul refused to accept money from
anyone in Thessalonica but help was still being received
from his generous benefactors in Phillipi. Paul worked
hard for some 18 months, developing the Church in
Corinth, but his dominant personality meant that
everything was being referred to him, with no leaders
emerging to take over from him. The only answer was for
him to leave and so he returned to Antioch-on-the-Orontes.
It was now AD51 and he had been away from Antioch some
five years. Much had changed in his absence and he was
not accorded a warm welcome. In fact he found many
critics. The Church in Antioch was split into two camps;
the Jerusalemites held to the view that Jesus was a
circumcised Jew who obeyed the ancient Law of Moses and
the other led by Paul believed that Jesus, as the
Messiah, had inaugurated a new age; the old had passed
away and the Messiah was an alternative to the old Law.
All parties agreed that Paul and Barnabas, now together
again, should go to Jerusalem to present their case.
Arriving in Jerusalem, Paul and
Barnabas were confronted with a committee of Cephas,
John and James, the brother of Jesus and now the leader
of the Church. Like the Pharisee Paul, James had
initially been hostile to the Ministry of Jesus but was
converted to Christianity by the resurrection. There is
no doubt that his family connection with Jesus assisted
him to gain leadership of the Church. (It also assisted
his successor as Leader, Symeon, who was a cousin of
Jesus, being the son of Clopas, brother of Joseph.)
James was a very parochial figure and, unlike Paul, had
never travelled further than Jerusalem.
Many reasons have been put forward
for the settlement achieved at the meeting, not least
the politics of the day, which saw Jews, Romans and
Samaritans in conflict. (We all know of the Good
Samaritan but how many know of the slaughter by
Samaritans of Galilean pilgrims on their way to
Jerusalem?) James made a major concession in accepting
that Gentiles did not have to be circumcised or become
Jews to join the new Church. For their part, Paul and
Barnabus agreed to continue to subsidise the Church in
Jerusalem with grants from Antioch. Returning to
Antioch, the two men found that in their absence the
Jewish Christians had moved further apart from the
Gentile Christians. The accord reached in Jerusalem did
not last long. Cephas came to Antioch and was appalled
at the state of the Jewish Christians. He and Barnabas
started to separate themselves from Paul and the
Gentiles. Troublemakers arrived from Jerusalem, possibly
sent by James, and this aggravated an already dangerous
situation. Throughout, Paul preached the Gospel of Jesus
but was fighting a losing battle.
The Church in Antioch was in turmoil
and, finally, in AD52, Paul left with the faithful
Timothy, never to return. They made their way through
the Taurus Mountains to Pessinus, where they were given
a warm welcome from the Galatians. All was well with the
Church there and after spending a summer with them, Paul
and Timothy made their way to Epheus, never to return to
Pessinus. The journey was 340 miles through lush
countryside, through which flowed the rivers Lycus and
the winding Meander, from which we get the word
"meander". The City of Epheus was built on a grid
system and they soon found their way to the home of old
friends and converts, Prisca and Aquila. For the next 27
months Paul used Epheus as his base and preached to the
Jews in that city about Jesus the Messiah. Very little
is known of the structure of the Church in Epheus but it
is assumed that it was similar to the Church in Corinth,
the two cities being very similar.
The battles between the two wings of
the Church in Antioch were to surface again while Paul
was in Epheus. He had founded the Churches of Galatia,
Phillipi, Thessalonica and Corinth as an agent of Christ
but the Church in Antioch took the view that Paul had
been working for them and that the Churches founded were
their daughter churches. Accordingly, they sent a
delegation to Galatia to claim them back and Paul
countered by sending letters to the Galathians urging
them not to listen to the delegation from Antioch. The
delegation was arguing the case originally put forward
by James and the Jerusalemites that Christianity was
based on the word and life of Abraham. Paul argued to
the contrary in his letters to the Galathians that
"It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.
And the life I lead in the flesh, I live by the faith of
the Son of God, who loved me, that is, gave himself for
me." Meanwhile, as we shall see next month, Paul had
troubles closer to home in Epheus, where not all the
Christians had welcomed him.
Roger Bryant
News from Nottingham
Since I last wrote to you, I have
visited six more churches, learned to read the Lord’s
Prayer in ancient Greek, helped lead a school assembly,
started a children’s choir, moved into a flat and
celebrated my 40th birthday. And I have
learned some new notes on my saxophone.
On the work front, we have been
studying the New Testament epistles and Revelation. It
became clear very early on that in the short time we
have here, we can only really scratch the surface of
many things. It would be lovely to have time to study
every one of Paul’s letters in detail, but the Bible is
a big book and we only have two years - and Biblical
studies is only one aspect of our training. But the
teaching here is so good that we have covered an
astonishing amount and, more importantly, we are
learning how to study the Bible, for the future.
The other main topic of study so far
this term has been church ministry, particularly what
ordination is and how it fits into the Church as a
whole. Our Principal, Christina Baxter is the chair of
the House of Laity in the General Synod and was on the
commission, which produced the recent report on women
bishops. I like to think that the report was published
so as to fit in with our lecture timetable, but I
suspect it was the other way round. Anyway, Christina
gave us a fascinating lecture on the theology of women
bishops the very week that the report was published, in
the very room where the commission had met. That’s what
I call up to date teaching!
Church hopping has taken me to some
interesting churches. But one Sunday we had a rather
different experience. A group of us decided to go to the
Salvation Army service, but unfortunately, when we
arrived at 10.50am for an 11.00am service, we discovered
that the service had in fact begun at 10.00am. Not
wanting to disturb the service half way through, we
found ourselves in an unfamiliar part of Nottingham with
no church to go to, and too late to go anywhere else.
So, in the interests of research, we decided to go to a
nearby pub instead. There, we received a warm welcome
and a late breakfast. As we collectively tried to
remember the last time any of us had not been to church
on a Sunday morning, we realised that what we were doing
was having a normal secular Sunday. What’s more, we all
really enjoyed it and it made us think about what we
expect people to give up when we ask them to come to
church on Sundays.
We didn’t have the same problem with
our visit to the Greek Orthodox Church. As their
services last for three hours, we were positively
advised to arrive one hour after the advertised starting
time, which we did. At that point there were only about
12 people there, but it filled up to about 100
(including children and rather a lot of babies) as the
service progressed. It was a Eucharist, following the
Liturgy of St John Chrysostom, which is the most
commonly used liturgy. There was a lot of incense,
lighting candles and kissing the icons, as Orthodox
Christians believe that it is very important to worship
with the whole body. Everything was in Greek of course,
but four weeks of studying New Testament Greek was
surprisingly helpful; and a bilingual service book was
even more helpful, even if it did run to 62 pages. But
neither of the above helped me with the sermon (13
minutes, in Greek), which took us by surprise by
appearing after the priest had received communion and
before the congregation received it. Nearly all of the
service was sung – by a choir of four people and by the
priest. One of the choir had a sort of cantor role: he
sang most of the liturgy and the choir sang various
responses. This meant that the cantor sang almost
constantly for three hours, standing up throughout.
That Sunday evening, as a complete
contrast, we went to the Pilgrim Church, which is a Free
Church in the Wesleyan "Holiness" tradition. We
unanimously agreed that this was by far the most
friendly and welcoming church that any of us had
attended in Nottingham. As a group of white people in an
entirely black congregation, it would have been
difficult for us to hide, but what particularly struck
us was that every member of the congregation went out of
their way to make us feel welcome and at home: it was as
if we were visiting a family. It happened to be
"Youth Sunday", which meant that children played a
large part in the service. This included a youth choir,
youth dancers and two girls who sang a song, assisted by
a tiny girl of about four, who joined in the choruses.
But the absolute star of the show was the drummer, aged
nine, who played with uninhibited enthusiasm, and facial
expressions to match. He had us all dancing along and we
loved it! One of the church leaders told us after the
service that their youth work has only really taken off
over the last year.
And finally, a true story from the
new chocolate museum in Bruges. In the sixteenth
century, Spanish women who had emigrated to Mexico loved
drinking cocoa so much that they got their servants to
pour it for them during church services. The servants’
constant coming and going became so annoying that the
Bishop of Chiapas, Don Bernardus de Salazar, banned the
drinking of cocoa during Mass. As a result, people
stopped coming to church and finally the bishop was
murdered: his cocoa had been poisoned. I’m not sure what
that tells us about the theology of ordination (or the
theology of cocoa) but I’m sure there’s a moral in it -
and probably a sermon too.
Rachel Phillips
Congratulations
To Fr Charles and Annie Keay on the
birth of their first son, Rufus Duncan, born on 17th
February weighing 7lb 9oz.
Make Poverty History Campaign
This campaign, recently backed by
Nelson Mandela, is urging world leaders to Drop the
Debt, create Trade Justice and deliver more and better
Aid in 2005. As I am sure you are aware by now some
30,000 people are dying of poverty related diseases in
Africa every day.
We can, and must, make a difference.
Our Government can make a difference. While the UK
Government leads the field as the biggest debt reliever
in Europe, we could do more. Later this year, Tony Blair
hosts the G8 summit, the meeting of the world’s 8
richest economies. This is our chance to really stand up
for the justice for millions of the world’s poor. Please
show your support by doing one of the following:
- Wear the white wristband* with the
MakePovertyHistory logo
- Send a postcard* to Tony Blair, urging him to
allow poorer countries the right to support their
vulnerable farmers and industries.
-
The Global Week of Action
(April 10-16) will include an invitation to join a day
of fasting on Monday 11 April in solidarity with the
850 million people who go to bed hungry each night;
and an all-night vigil in London on April 15-16. The
night’s activities include a dawn procession past
Downing Street. See "www.christianaid.org.uk/campaign"
or call 0207 5232225, or
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The Pilgrim’s Challenge – a
sponsored walk from Rochester Cathedral to Canterbury
Cathedral (45 miles) to raise money for Christian
Aid’s overseas partners from July 1-5. Contact:
events@christian-aid.org
or 0207 4961696. (Please note this is the same date as
our Havant Remembered weekend!)
* Wristbands and postcards will
be available in the church.
David
Blessing of the Boats Ceremony
David will be leading the blessing
ceremony, on Sunday 13 March 2005 to mark the re-launch
of the Langstone Cutters Rowing Club 4 boats (Gladys,
Mabel, Millie and Lotty) and the traditional start of
the Club's rowing season. This is an open event and the
rowing club would be delighted if parishioners could
attend. Meet on the quay beside the Royal Oak Pub,
Langstone, for the blessing and re-launch of the
Langstone Cutters Rowing Club Boats at 12-noon.
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From the Editor
Getting "Faith Matters" out
this month has been a rush as Beryl and I only arrived
back from seeing Mickey Mouse in Orlando on 26th
February, 11 days after the closing date! We went with
my daughter, Colleen, her husband, Graham and our two
grand daughters, Jenny and Holly. The assistant editor,
Jan Stuart, was unable to produce the magazine in my
absence as Carmen and he were also in America at the
same time, but in Boston, for their grandson’s 1st
birthday. However, Sisyphus (before he broke his writing
wrist!) and Roger Bryant helped me by letting me have
their inputs before I went, for which I am extremely
grateful. Florida lived up to it’s name as the
"Sunshine State" as we had beautiful weather whilst
visiting the four Disney theme parks in Orlando – Magic
Kingdom, Epcot, MGM Studios & Animal Kingdom – and the other
parks in Orlando - Sea World, Universal Studios &
Islands of Adventure - and Busch Gardens in Tampa. As
you would have gathered, we had plenty of exercise
walking around the vast parks in the beautiful sunshine
– temperatures were in the 70s - and we had lots of fun.
It was quite a shock to the system when we arrived back
as the temperatures in Orlando were in the 70s
throughout. I expect Jan and Carmen found the UK
slightly warmer though than what they experienced in
Boston! |
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On the Sunday, we went to the
Eucharist service at the Episcopal Church of the
Ascension in Orlando. Their vision is that "We
are a community which desires to live intentionally into
God’s call on our lives. Our vision is to provide levels
of opportunities and experiences which will lead people
of all ages to grow in their relationship and commitment
to Almighty God". The service was very similar to
our own service with some variations. There was the
"peace", and the Nicene Creed said "we"
instead of "I". In addition to the traditional
service that we attended, there is a contemporary
service when guitars, drums and the like provide the
music, with hand waving by the congregation. The church
has large plain windows looking out onto a wood. It is a
young church that celebrates its 25th
anniversary this Easter.
This month, there is a recollection
by Beryl of an important time in her life. If you have
memories or dates that have affected your life and would
like to share them with our readers, please let me have
them.
Colin Carter
A Week of Accompanied Prayer
Weeks of Accompanied Prayer are
intended to help people in their prayer while remaining
at home - there is no need to stay at a special retreat
centre. These weeks are brought to the local community
and provide an especially good opportunity for those who
cannot easily be away from home overnight. Participants
continue their normal daily life and so the prayer is
able to be more in touch with the daily happenings in
our everyday lives. During a "week" the
participants are asked to set aside 30 minutes daily for
personal prayer, and to spend about the same amount of
time daily with a Prayer Companion, to talk about what
is happening in their prayer, and how it reflects their
whole faith.
Programme. On Sunday April 24th
all participants and prayer companions meet together at
the Ark (St Peter’s Church, Northney) at 7.30pm (for
about an hour) for an introduction to the week giving an
opportunity for participants to link with their
companions. Following this, participants will meet
individually with their prayer companion 5 times over
the next six days (Monday 25th – Saturday 30th
April) at a mutually convenient time each day. The week
ends with a closing meeting altogether on Sunday 1st
May at 4 p.m. in the Ark
Should you wish to take part in the
week of accompanied prayer, please contact Mrs Sybil
Laird, 4, Willow Close, Havant, telephone: 023 9247 2489
Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM)
– 24 April 2005
The revision of the Electoral Roll
will take place between the 20th March and
the 3rd April 2005. Persons wishing their
names to be included in the Roll may obtain an
Application Form from the undersigned. Please note these
completed Forms must be returned to me by the 3rd
April 2005 to enable the name and address to be added to
the Revised Roll. Names already on the Roll do not need
to be renewed.
Audrey M Currie – Electoral Roll Officer
Havant During World War II
To mark the 60th Anniversary of the
end of World War II we are having an exhibition in
church 1st-5th July 2005 about Havant during
the war. We are looking for anything connected to Havant
during the war years - your memories, photographs,
memorabilia from school days, evacuees, the Home Guard,
Air Raid Wardens, the hospital, weddings, the armed
forces, the camps, factories, buildings taken over by
the War Department, the VE & VJ street parties, HMS
Havant - in fact anything you might like to share with
us.
If you can help us in anyway please call Sandra
Haggan 023 9245 5161
Havant Parish Magazines 1912-1961:
Part 1
Mike Dodsworth was given a cache of
Parish Magazines covering the period 1912-1961 that had
belonged to Audrey Brown of 40 East Street. This lady
died in 1992 and will be known to many parishioners
because she spent virtually her whole life in Havant.
Mike has compiled a fascinating insight into St Faith's
over the years, as revealed in these magazines. Details
and dates are given about the Parish Hall, when the
Diocese of Portsmouth was created, the church lighting,
hanging of the bells, and many other interesting facts
for which I am grateful to Mike for taking the time to
produce this most interesting article. I would welcome
any memories from readers of the people mentioned in
this narrative. I know that Audrey Currie remembers
Audrey Brown and the shop in East Street. The
first part, 1912-1923 appears this month, and the second
part, 1924-1961 will appear in next month’s magazine.
Editor
The first magazine is April 1912,
when it is reported that the new lighting scheme is not
quite complete. In December 1917, during the First World
War, Commander Boyd Richardson proposes a scheme to
build a new parish hall. (He was a great benefactor of
the church and was destined to give us our Lady Chapel
as a memorial to his mother). A large amount of money is
raised to start off this scheme, with donations of £500
from Mr Woolmer White, £250 Commander Richardson and
£100 Mr E R Longcroft.
Not surprisingly, the war dominates
the magazines between 1914 and 1918. Much of the news is
good, clearly to lift morale. In January 1918, there is
a Day of Prayer for final victory proclaimed by the
King. A Mr E E Brown (any relation to Audrey Brown?) is
compiling a Roll of all in the Parish who are serving.
The February 1918 magazine records that the Assistant
Curate, The Reverend Hill, has left the parish to go to
war and is now at a school for Chaplains. By April, the
magazine records tremendous advances by the German
troops and there would seem to be considerable unease
about the war. That Easter, there are 450 communicants.
By August, the site for the new Church Hall in the
Pallant has been chosen and Mr Longcroft has given a
further £100 to it. In October, a Roll of Honour is
published listing all the men killed so far in the war.
Happily, the war comes to an end and
in December 1918 the magazine records that a
Thanks-Giving Service on Armistice Day had completely
filled the church, leaving many outside unable to get
in. Around this time a Miss A D Chandler of 113 West
Street is shown as a member of the staff but by January
1919 she had left to be a Deaconess in Calcutta. During
her year at St Faith's, she had run the Mission Hall
Girls' Fellowship Club. There was also a St Faith's
Young Men's Club in Pallant House. (Years later, the
July 1925 magazine records that Dorothy Chandler had in
fact been in Calcutta from 1910 and had returned to
England, only to be stuck in Havant by the war. She had
died in June 1925 in Calcutta).
The magazines are full of names, many
familiar to older parishioners. Rectors include Scott
(1912), Musgrave (1917), followed by Rodgers. In August
1919, Boyd Richardson is now Churchwarden and Dymoke
White is a Sidesman. The Reverend Hill is still away!
Having been in Salonika, then reported as going to the
Army of Occupation, he finally turns up in Athens as
Chaplain to the British Legation. He never returns to
Havant. By November 1920, Dymoke White has become
Churchwarden. Presumably, his father had died because
his address is given as Eastleigh House.
In February 1922, there is news of an
appeal about to be launched for the War Memorial Cross,
designed by Sir Charles Nicholson and Mr E A Stallard,
to stand on the crossroads (where it is now). With the
magazine is a Roll of Honour, so that names and details
can be checked before the bronze panels are made. The
magazine contains a number of burials, including, sadly,
two babies aged 3 hours and two days. On a happier note,
an advertisement appears for Brown's Connoisseur Cafe,
10 North Street. The manageress, Miss Evelyn Brown, runs
a tearoom, serving tea, confectionery, jams, jellies,
biscuits, etc. We now have a new Assistant Curate, The
Reverend E F King.
September 1922, Lady FitzWygram is
giving a memorial window in memory of her son Sir
Frederick FitzWygram and the Rector says it is to take
the place of "that extraordinary crude and ugly
Faith, Hope and Charity window in the south transept
which was erected by many parishioners in 1848". (In
fact, the window was moved and is still in the church!).
The new memorial window has St Michael centre, St George
left, St Hubert right, together with the Regimental
Crest of the Scots Guards and FitzWygram's name. The War
Memorial is to be unveiled on 30 September by the Member
of Parliament, Major General Davidson.
In April 1923, the magazine reports
the death of Preston Watson aged 80 and a long list of
candidates for confirmation includes John Rankin McIlroy
(of the Drapery family) and three Redshaws. Moving to
1924, the October magazine includes a complaint from the
Rector about poorest congregations and low collections!
In December, the proposed new Diocese of Portsmouth has
its first Archdeacon. News of a February Fair, with one
stall run by Mr Bulpitt and one by Mr Rankin McIlroy,
rival drapers! Other helpers include Mrs Dymoke White,
Miss Longcroft and Mrs Paxton. In September, the Bishop
of Winchester reluctantly announces his retirement - at
the age of 80! Was he pushed out?
Mike Dodsworth
Serenity Prayer
God grant me the Serenity to accept
the things I cannot change.
Courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to
know the difference.
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Glenda & Rod Thomas
Rod Thomas, our overseas missionary in Sendai, Japan,
was the guest speaker in St. Faith’s Church on Sunday 23
January and gave a very interesting insight to
missionary work in Sendai, Japan. His wife, Glenda, and
their children accompanied Rod.
Glenda & Rod have spent the last four
months in Havant, and are now in Cape Town, South
Africa, before returning to Japan in June. Sendai is the
largest city in the area north of Tokyo with a
population of about one million.
The majority of Japanese claim no
personal religion, but most follow the customs of
Japan’s traditional religions. Religion in Japan is a
rich tapestry of diverse traditions with a history of
nearly 2,000 years. Many Japanese people display some
kind of allegiance to more than one religion; a person
will usually be expected to have a Shinto wedding and a
Buddhist funeral, though Buddhist and secular weddings
are also possible. With this may go a personal or family
interest in a particular Buddhist denomination or
practice, or membership |
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of one of the various
new religions, which attract almost a third of the
population. These different forms of religion have
separate organisations, buildings, festivals, sacred
writings, ministers or priests and so on. However, it
should always be remembered that the paths of these
religions have touched at many points in Japanese
history, and that they still meet in the lives of many
Japanese people.
Spiritually, Japan remains
unresponsive to the gospel. Cultural pressures to
conform and the intense work ethos squeeze out
Christianity. Churches often have only a handful of
members, mostly women. However, there are no
restrictions to witnessing or preaching the gospel. |
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