Following Buckinghamshire entering Tier 4 of corona virus restrictions and after receiving permission from the Archdeacon of Buckingham, the Team Rector and the Churchwardens of the churches of the Benefice have made the difficult decision to cancel all future services and close our churches for worship for the foreseeable future. We are aware that churches are allowed to remain open for Communal Worship in Tier 4, but the Bishops of the Diocese have issued a Pastoral Letter from which the following is taken:
‘As bishops we assure you of our continued and prayerful support for all that you are carrying. We also want to give clear and explicit permission to you not to hold in-person services if that seems best locally. You will need to give particular consideration to this if you are in an area where infections are rising rapidly, if you or your family are vulnerable, or if others who are essential to your worship such as Wardens or organists are in vulnerable groups. Most parishes are able to stream or record worship and Church at Home is available for those who cannot.’
Our services will therefore be reverting to zoom as of today and please see below for the invitation to our next Sunday service.
We acknowledge that there will be those who will disagree with our decision, and we recognize that our parish churches for hundreds of years have been places which have been used by our village communities for quiet prayer and reflection, to give hope and comfort and a way through difficult times, so we feel that it is equally important that our churches remain open for private prayer as they did during the previous national lockdown, so please look at the individual church websites for more information regarding this.
To ensure your own safety please follow each churches covid 19 procedures and guidelines when you attend for private prayer. Please do not attend if you are showing any symptoms of covid 19.
Sunday 21st February, a Service of the Word via Zoom at 9.30am
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83288496263?pwd=VWVvaU9na0ZpblFaZjlOTW5wNTF6UT09
Meeting ID: 832 8849 6263
Passcode: 259788
Team Ministry News
We have a new member of the Ministry Team joining us in the near future as we have successfully appointed a Missional Team Vicar who is the Revd Philip Smith, our thoughts and prayers are with him and his wife Lucy as they begin their preparations to move to join us here in the parish,
Philip has written the following to introduce himself and his wife Lucy.
Hello, we are Philip & Lucy Smith, and we are looking forward to
serving with you all sometime soon. We are both originally West
Londoners, I was born in Fulham and Lucy was made in Chelsea.
We’ve thankfully converted Lucy into supporting Fulham.
Our sons in their 30s are based in: West London, Luke, Joy and
granddaughter Aria, in Oxford James & Roseanna and expectant
baby, and in Paris, David & Alice.
Lucy’s mother lives near Biggin Hill.
We love people, sharing and getting to know a whole community
whoever they are. We both love music, family and being creative. I
taught Secondary Design & Technology for 20 years and was
ordained in 1998 having been to Oak Hill College for three years
with the whole family.
Lucy has spent 19 years working with the Diocese of Gloucester in
Pastoral Care training for churches and working in schools, and
originally trained as a nurse.
We served in the Town Centre of Cheltenham for a 5 year curacy
and then to West Cheltenham serving as a Team Vicar in a large
urban parish.
We appreciate how this season has been for everyone and we pray
for you all and especially those who may be grieving loved ones or
are anxious in these challenging times.
Keep the faith, but never ever to yourselves x
Have a good day. Philip
We are also celebrating the licensing of Heather Ford Lark as a Licensed Lay Minister, her licensing service conducted by Bishop Steven took place virtually earlier in November. You can see a recording of the service by clicking on the following link:
https://vimeo.com/484122692
Congratulations to Heather and our thoughts and prayers are with you as you start this new phase in your ministry and walk with our Lord.