From the Rector - News from the Pews

My name is Patience Pew, just one among a very large family of Pews in St. Faith’s church.  Me and my other sister pews live in somewhere called the south transept.  I’m called ‘Patience’ because I’m still waiting for someone to sit on me after a long wait of nearly a year since the last Civic Service.  Nobody ever comes to our corner.  But I overheard a conversation the other day between our buildings committee and the archdeacon that made me and my sisters quite excited.  Apparently, the choir are being moved from their cold and very damp vestry where the floor has rotted through and they’re coming to live in our transept within a newly erected temporary vestry where their music and robes can be kept dry.  It means that at least a couple of us might get used at last more or less where we are while others of us could be moved out into the tower crossing to join some of our cousins from the north transept.

You see the ‘Prominent Pew’ family from that part of the church came to St. Faith’s years before us and, for that matter, our brothers in the nave, the ‘Privett Pews’, who came from a church of that name in 1968.  So it’s not surprising that until we can eventually try out having a nave altar under the tower the Rector is going to put some pews back there so that three or four dozen people who want to be closer to the High Altar can now sit in them – leaving others who prefer to be further back where they are.

Mind you the Privett Pews are in for a real surprise on Whitsunday.  I gather they are going to be turned around completely for this very special occasion to form a great big crescent to face an altar on the south side of the nave.  This means that we shall be able to celebrate the feast of Pentecost ‘gathered together’ around the Lord’s Table and remember the way that the Holy Spirit was given to a very mixed group of people forged into one body for the purpose of being Christ’s church.  And the remaining Prominent Pews back in the north transept will be able to have the company of the Sunday Club who’ll be having their party in that part of the church on that festival day.  What with their activities and the noisy, windy, fiery celebrations in the nave it’s going to be a very powerful Pentecost!

And that’s just what’s about to happen inside!  If the congregation has its way I’ve heard that as a result of their parish development plan there’s a good chance that a few of us pews might even get outside to see a bit of the summer sun.  You never know who might come and sit on us.  Just imagine – a whole bunch of new bottoms to welcome.  Many of them will never have seen us before….so we better scrub up just in case!  We might get renamed ‘Polished Pew’.  Better still, imagine becoming a permanent part of a new town square where you could spend the remainder of your days welcoming all the passers by and providing rest to the shoppers from the shops and the market.  In that case one of my sisters insists she’ll be known as Polly Pew because of the polyurethane coat she has to wear to keep the weather out.

We could probably persuade some of those very old gravestones to do what they do in so many other churches and get themselves re-cycled to form really nice paved areas around the church where some of us could be positioned so that folk can bask in the sun.  The churchyard could be reworked to accommodate a new memorial garden for peace and quiet some distance away from a larger area where all that lovely space could be used by other gardeners and children learning to enjoy green space for the living.  I reckon that’s even better than having a large church extension built on it.

Well let’s just wait before we get our hopes up too much and see what happens to the application to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation who are really keen to help us realise our re-cycling and re-development dreams and get older and younger people together to learn from one another and establish a new vision for our beautiful church.

‘Cor’! You see all sorts as a church pew.

Spring hopes eternal.

Peter Jones

From the Editor

Billy Graham

I doubt if there is anyone in the Christian world who has not heard of William Franklin “Billy” Graham an extraordinarily charismatic Christian Evangelist.  It must be said that he was, and still is, a figure of great controversy.  Many consider him to be a self-publicist who has used Christianity to promote himself.  I cannot in a short article do more than to present some facts about Billy and leave you dear reader to form your own conclusions.  I once worked with a lay preacher who had personally witnessed an incident when a man rushed up to Billy with his fist clenched to strike him.  Billy held out his hand in greeting and the man unclenched his fist to shake the extended hand.  Father Brown once told me that when he was in Australia, Billy arrived on one of his evangelical crusades.  He booked a whole floor of the most expensive hotel in the area for himself and his entourage.  Father was very unimpressed.

Billy Graham was born 7 November 1918 in Charlotte, North Carolina and was educated in Cleveland, Tennessee and Wheaton, Illinois where he met and married Ruth Bell in 1943.  They had five children and were married 64 years until her death in June 2007 at the age of 87.  He was converted to Christianity at a revival meeting in 1934 at the age of 16.  When he was at Wheaton College, the founder, Bob Jones told him, “At best, all you could amount to would be a poor country Baptist.  You have a voice that pulls.  God can use that voice of yours.  He can use it mightily!”  While at Wheaton, Billy spent four years (1939/43) as pastor of the United Gospel Tabernacle.  He also started a radio ministry, “Songs in the Night”, on 2 January 1944 which lasted many years.  He joined a movement, Youth for Christ International (YFCI), and travelled for several years for them around America and Europe.  He had hoped during the Second World War to be a chaplain to the armed forces but his ill health prevented it.

The beginning of Billy’s crusades was in 1949 when he set up circus tents in a parking lot in Los Angeles to preach the word of Christ to thousands attracted by his message of salvation.  The Hearst Newspaper Chain gave huge publicity to Billy’s crusade and in 1954 he appeared on the cover of Time magazine.  There were many in the established churches who were opposed to Billy’s style of evangelism.  One prominent evangelist accused Billy of setting religion back 100 years.  Billy said, “I did indeed want to set religion back, not just 100 years but 1,900 years, to the Book of Acts, when first century Christians were accused of turning the Roman Empire upside down.”  He used radio and television to promote the word of God.   His crusades took him across Europe and during the Cold War he even preached to thousands behind the Iron Curtain.  In the UK he filled football stadiums including Wembley when thousands were encouraged to come forward in faith.  He had a personal audience with every American President and was even summoned to the bedside of the dying President Eisenhower.  He did more than anyone to influence Government policy with his Christian values.  He led strong opposition against both segregation in the United States and Apartheid in South Africa.  In 2008 it was estimated that he had preached the Christian message in person, radio or television to 2.2 billion people!  So there you have it, dear reader, and it is for you to decide

Roger Bryant

Songs of Praise

Chorister Badge Awards – Dark Blue Badge

The previous article in “Faith Matters” (April 2010) explained the amount and depth of knowledge a chorister requires in order to be awarded a Light Blue ribbon in the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) badge scheme.  As the April article explained, in music there is no time to write down long instructions as to how to perform a piece.  All instructions are in a kind of ‘code’ and take the form of various signs, symbols and shortened forms of Italian words – all of which a chorister has to learn and understand.

This article deals with the next level – the Dark Blue ribbon.  This builds on the foundations laid down in the previous badge as choristers expand their knowledge of things theoretical.  To the semibreve, dotted minim, minim, crotchet and quaver notes are added the breve and semiquaver together with their rests.  However, all these notes can also be written as dotted notes, so these and their rests have to be learnt too.  There are rules as to how to write these notes down correctly and choristers learn how to beam (or join) these notes together properly.  Into this notational mix is added the difference between slurs and ties, staccato and legato, their meanings, how they are written down and recognised in the music.  More signs, symbols and shortened forms of Italian words are studied in greater depth, as it is these important instructions that inform singers how the composer wishes the music to be performed.

A new clef – the bass clef (or F clef) – is included at this level.  This is the clef that tenors and basses use and that pianists generally play with their left hand.  Choristers have to learn the new letter names of the lines and spaces in this clef.  Also included is a wider range of major scales that, together with their relative minors and associated key signatures, present quite a challenge.  Various humorous mnemonics have been devised to help in the learning of these!  Having learnt how to construct a major scale in the previous badge, choristers now have to be able to write down (or construct) a harmonic minor scale. 

The aural requirements of this badge level link with the theoretical requirements outlined above.  Choristers have to recognise the intervals of a major 3^rd, minor 3^rd, perfect 4^th, 5^th and octave in the music they sing, they have to be able to write these down, to be able to sing them and identify them when played.  They also have to know the difference between chords and triads, and distinguish between major and minor triads when hearing them.  Choristers have to sing a harmonic minor scale and one verse of a hymn, unaccompanied, with resonance and even tone, in tune and with good breathing and diction.  They have to sight-sing a melody that includes leaps and dotted notes, sing back a tune played to them, clap back a rhythm that includes dotted notes and be able to say whether the pulse of a piece of music is in 2, 3 or 4 time.

When being presented with a new piece of music, choristers have to know where to find information relating to the composer and lyricist.  They have to discover what other works the composer has written.  Choristers also have to recognise where the words have come from (e.g., Prayer Book, Eucharist or Bible) and be able to give the meaning of the text and know what language the lyrics have been written in.  In addition they have to say what service or season of the church’s year the work is intended for and how the mood of the music reflects that.  A simple musical analysis of the piece also has to be given.

Regular attendance, punctuality and the ability to be a good team member is an essential requirement at all levels of badge-work, as is good behaviour and the ability to remain focussed in rehearsals and services.  As this article shows, progress towards the award of a Dark Blue ribbon requires a greater depth of knowledge and is consequently more challenging for the choristers.  Those who successfully pass the two test papers can, therefore, take pride in being awarded their badge at the Sunday morning service.  

Sylvia Willey – Organist & Choir Director

Confirmation – Saturday 3^rd April 2010

Correspondence Column

Derek and I recently found ourselves in the unenviable position of being without heating or hot water.  Nor did we have a contingency plan for such an occurrence!  Having had, in the last few weeks, a new kitchen floor and cloakroom carpet beautifully laid by “Next Floor” we had no hesitation in phoning “All about gas” who also advertises in St. Faith’s church magazine, “Faith Matters”.  We are pleased to report that their response was prompt, efficient and sympathetic.  We were back to normal within 36 hours of contacting them.

We would like to thank Beryl for all her hard work.  Also to acknowledge the effort she puts into getting these excellent tradespersons and service providers to advertise in the church magazine.  Yours sincerely,

Pam & Derek Bowley

Accommodation for Missionaries

Rod and Glenda Thomas, who are our affiliated missionaries in Sendai, Japan, seek accommodation to rent for themselves and their two daughters from 1 June to 31 October while they are on Home Assignment.  If you are able to help for all or part of the time please get in touch with Peter or Rosemary Thomas either in Church, on yachtmaster@talktalk.net or on 023 9248 3836.

Flowers in St. Faith – 18-22 May 2010

The Portsmouth Branch of the Church of England Flower Arrangers Association will be arranging flowers in St Faith's on 17 May.  Do come in to see the displays from Tuesday 18 May until the end of the week.

 

Mary Robson RIP 22.10.30 – 21.01.10

Cambodia Reflections

Having graduated Discipleship Training School, I have spent much of my time reflecting on the things God did in me and through me during the past 6 months.  It is really wonderful to look back on my time in Cambodia and view the ministry we did from another perspective, having completed what God had asked me to do.

The thing that stands out to me most was the work God did by using us to reach out to prostitutes.  I mentioned briefly in my previous update that we had been able to share the gospel with street women from a local brothel about twice a week.  This started before I left for outreach, in that God impressed upon me a burden for women in prostitution, so I expected that sometime I would be able to reach out to these kinds of people.

When we finally arrived in Cambodia, I was shocked, challenged and yet excited to find out that the main street on which our guest house was located also had more than 5 brothels.  In Cambodia these are very poor, run-down looking places usually with a sign outside saying assuage.  The ministry was initially very slow, because of the language barrier.  During our first week in the city of Siem Reap, we concentrated on the most prominent one on the street, and it had about 10 girls hanging around the doorway looking for work.  We called it Green Doors.

As we walked past every night, they became familiar with our faces, and one night they invited us YWAM girls inside (the boys in our mission stayed outside and kept watch for our safety).  We sat and tried to communicate with actions and smiles, but we felt like we were not being that effective.  After about 4 weeks, and as we started to seek God for new ways to proceed with this ministry, the idea came to take them out during the day, outside of their working hours.  So we took them out for ice cream, which was a lot of fun and we really built up trust with them.  They began to open up to us about how they felt, and it turns out that they were amazed that we would even look at them, let alone hug them and talk to them.  In South-East Asia, prostitutes are shunned and completely rejected by all areas of society, no matter how poor.  We had no idea how much God was using our smallest actions to soften these girls hearts.  We ended up becoming very good friends and were able to actually tell them the gospel, and how God looks upon them with incredible love and compassion.  We wanted to make sure that they understood how valuable they were, that the Son of God might die for them.  As our time in Cambodia came to end, I was very heart-broken to be leaving these women who had had such an impact on my life.  I felt very attached to them, and very anxious about leaving them.

One morning as I spent time with Jesus, He showed me that the girls in the brothel were actually in His hands, not mine.  They were always in His hands.  He just decided to use me for a short while to reach out to them, and now it was time for me to leave them in His care.  As this realization sunk in, a strong peace comes over me and I understood that God is very capable of doing the impossible.  Our God really is an awesome God, and no one can limit him.

Before we left Siem Reap, we were able to connect the girls in the brothel with Martin and Dary Mydland, two long-term YWAM missionaries who have a very fruitful ministry called White Doves.  White Doves is a home for women who want an alternative income to prostitution.  Many women have come to Christ as a result of this.

As I mentioned in the beginning, God has given me a strong desire to work with women in similar circumstances.  God willing, this work will be continued as I go to work in South Africa at the end of this year.  I will be volunteering with a YWAM organization called Justice ACTs (Alliance of Christians against Trafficking) in Muizenberg.  I am very excited about the future!  Please pray for the necessary funds to do this.

Thanks again for all your prayers and support.

Esther Thomas

Wot, no Christian Aid Shop?

“When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and the princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flocks, the work of Christmas begins: to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner, to rebuild the nations, to bring peace among people and to make music in the heart.’’  (Words of the twentieth century American theologian Howard Thurman quoted in The Independent, Christmas Eve 2009.) 

If we apply this to Havant, it means that it is time to start thinking about Christian Aid.  However, we are now in a new era, because St Faith’s Church Hall is no longer available and there are no other premises which combine such a central position with a car park and storage space.  This faces us with a choice: either to shrug our shoulders and say, “What a pity! The world’s poorest people are going to be £9,000 worse off,” or to find other ways of raising money.  Meanwhile the need is growing all the time: even without the problems of Haiti and Chile, Christian Aid is faced with the prospect of having to abandon some vital projects, such as education in southern Sudan and literacy and development in Afghanistan.  Therefore the Committee has decided, rather than concentrating on one effort in May to spread our activities over the whole year beginning straight away.  Here are just some of the events which we hope you will support:

Saturday 15 May - URC: May Fair.

Saturday 12 June 12th:  Beetle Drive, Petersfield Road Methodist Church.

Saturday 19 June:  Car Boot Sale at St Joseph’s.

Plans for the autumn include an evening with Captain Stomp & the Roof Raisers from Hayling and a Skills Auction.  We shall keep you up-to-date.

Of course, the Committee cannot do everything and we very much hope that individuals or groups of friends will also seize the initiative, as there are so many possibilities: coffee mornings, tea-parties, open gardens, Scrabble parties, whist drives, sales of books, cakes & preserves or plants.  You may well have other ideas; talk to your friends.  If they belong to other churches, so much the better, as all our efforts are to be ecumenical: let us know in good time, in order that we can avoid clashes and also publicise each event in all the churches.  This could be a way of bringing us closer together and making new friendships as we express our shared faith.  We will also happily accept the proceeds of sales on EBay of the unwanted ‘treasures’ in your attic.

Finally we can look realistically at our giving.  These are difficult times, so some may have to acknowledge that they can give no more money (though they may be able to give time and skill).  Others of us are still spending on outings, entertainment and ‘extras’ that we don’t strictly need.  Perhaps by the choices we make we can increase our giving while staying within our present budget.  We are committed to loving our neighbour as ourselves, so let’s take up the challenge.  Valentine Searle is looking forward to hearing what you will be doing for Christian Aid in 2010.

Jennifer Moore-Blunt, Christian Aid Secretary for Havant

Warblington School – Spring Term