Lent 2010

Lent Teaching Eucharists: What is Truth? Share the Truth!

Discovering how the ‘+’ of Christianity will affect our ‘×’ at the General Election

Teaching Eucharist Arrangements
Day	Time	Where
Sundays	10:00 a.m.	St Mary’s
Sundays	11:00 a.m.	St Anne’s
Tuesdays	7:30 p.m.	Follow up discussions at St Mary’s

Teaching Eucharist Programme
Date	Subject	Presenter
Sun-21-Feb	More to life than the economy? My future	Youth Group
Tue-23-Feb	More to life than the economy? My future	Youth Group
Sun-28-Feb	Immigration and Interfaith	Toby Howarth, Diocesan Adviser for Interfaith Issues
Tue-2-Mar	Immigration and Interfaith	Toby Howarth, Diocesan Adviser for Interfaith Issues
Sun-7-Mar	War and Peace	John Hull, Queen’s College
Tue-9-Mar	War and Peace	John Hull, Queen’s College
Sun-14-Mar	Education	Mary Edwards, Diocesan Director of Education
Tue-16-Mar	Education	Mary Edwards, Diocesan Director of Education
Sun-21-Mar	Health	Richard Wharton, Chaplain QE Hospital
Tue-23-Mar	Health	Richard Wharton, Chaplain QE Hospital

Lent Prayer Calendar

Prayer Calendar
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Wed-17-Feb	Ash Wednesday Janani Luwum Archbishop of Uganda	Psalm 145	Your own spiritual life Take time to quietly ask God to show you how best to prepare yourself for his service during Lent.
Thu-18-Feb		Psalm 51:7-12	For spiritual courage Pray for courage to carry out new resolves and belief in Jesus’ restoring powers.
Fri-19-Feb		John 15	Our Vision Groups Pray that the Vision Groups may work towards increasing the love of God within the Benefice and the community.
Sat-20-Feb		Revelation 7:13-17	For the suffering world Pray for those who live in inhospitable parts of the world, especially those with little water or resources, giving thanks for charities such as Water Aid.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-21-Feb	Lent 1	Psalm 33:20-22	Clergy Pray for all clergy within Birmingham of all denominations, give them the insight, spiritual growth and mental and physical strength for all their tasks.
Mon-22-Feb		Isaiah 55:1-3	Unemployment Pray that the job situation will improve, and that people in unemployment can be helped and their self esteem kept alive.
Tue-23-Feb		Romans 8:31-39	Freedom to worship Give thanks that we have freedom to worship God in different ways; pray for all those persecuted for their faith.
Wed-24-Feb		Matthew 19:13-15	Children Thank God for all our children in the Benefice, may they be able to keep their innocence, joy and love of you God.
Thu-25-Feb		Proverbs 13:14	Those working with law In this difficult world pray for all working with the law, that their decisions may be fair and reflect your love God.
Fri-26-Feb		Psalm 46:1-3	All in Haiti Pray for all the people of Haiti in whatever state they find themselves, injured, rescued, homeless, bereaved, and all the aid workers.
Sat-27-Feb	George Herbert priest, writer, poet	1 Thessalonians 5:12-28	Poets and writers Give thanks for all literature that stimulates and educates. Remember everyone who cannot read or write through no fault of their own.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-28-Feb	Lent 2	Romans 8:26-27	Quiet Time Take time to quietly pray to God about your Lenten Journey and strength to reinforce resolves and move forward.
Mon-1-Mar	St David Patron Saint of Wales	Revelation 5:6-8	St David Give thanks for his work, and his influence in Wales.
Tue-2-Mar	St Chad Bishop of Lichfield	Exodus 3:1-6	Thin Places Give thanks for the ‘thin places’ in Britain and pray for all those who work and worship there and in retreat houses.
Wed-3-Mar		Matthew 5:14-16	Lengthening Days Give thank for the increase of light, and ask God to fill us with more of His light.
Thu-4-Mar		John 9:1-12	Medical World Give thanks that we can call on medical help, pray for all those administering this help, give them patience and compassion. pray for all in moseley hall and west heath hospitals.
Fri-5-Mar	Women’s Day of prayer	Galatians 3:26-29	Woman’s Role Give thanks for the women who can express themselves in Birmingham and especially at the Women’s Day of Prayer; pray for women who are still restricted here and abroad.
Sat-6-Mar		1 Samuel 6:23	Music in Birmingham Give thanks for all the music opportunities in Birmingham. Pray for all those hearing St Matthew Passion today that they may draw nearer to God’s love.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-7-Mar	Lent 3 Perpetua, Felicity and their companions	John 14:27	Our absent people Pray for all those who cannot attend the services of the Benefice today, especially those who are ill or have pressing problems, may they still be spiritually fed.
Mon-8-Mar	Edward King, Bishop of Lincoln Commonwealth Day	2 Corinthians 1:3-7	Pastoral Work Pray for those who care for and support others in many different situations.
Tue-9-Mar	Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy	Psalm 46:8-9	Our Forces Pray for all our forces serving over the world and especially in Afghanistan, remembering the chaplains and medical staff and anxious families back home.
Wed-10-Mar		John 6:1-15	Hospices Pray for both our hospices that they may always have enough funding to continue their special caring.
Thu-11-Mar		John 11:17-27	Bereaved Pray for all who are bereaved and grieve within our Benefice, and that God’s comfort and reassurance may help them along this difficult path.
Fri-12-Mar		Isaiah 40:11	Schools Pray for all our children, that they may know Jesus to lead and teach them through their journey of education and guide them to make good choices for their future.
Sat-13-Mar		Colossians 3:15-17	Music Give thanks for the music in church letting it strengthen our souls and help us to digest the words.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-14-Mar	Mothering Sunday	Matthew 25:1-10	Mothering Women Pray for all who guide and love children as in the mothering role. As life becomes more complex help them with their multi-tasking.
Mon-15-Mar		Isaiah 40:28-31	Examinations Help all our older teenagers with preparations for exams.
Tue-16-Mar		Luke 10:25-37	Care Pray for all our nursing and rest homes in Moseley, the residents and carers, and all those needing care within their own homes.
Wed-17-Mar	St Patrick’s Day Patron Saint of Ireland	1 Thessalonians 5:16-24	Praying Help us to find time to explore different ways of praying, and be strengthened by the influence of the Trinity.
Thu-18-Mar	Cyril Bishop of Jerusalem	Luke 4:14-21	Literature Give thanks for all the spiritual literature available to us and the spread of the Good News and abroad by the CU, Scripture and others.
Fri-19-Mar	Joseph	1 Timothy 4:1-5	Multi-Faith Pray for the work in Moseley and Birmingham to bring together people of different faiths in harmony, love and understanding.
Sat-20-Mar	Cuthbert Bishop of Lindisfarne	Psalm 23	Shepherds and farmers Pray for all shepherds and farmers at this busy time of year when lambs are born and crops sown.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-21-Mar	Passion Sunday	1 Corinthians 11:23-24	Licensing Pray for all who have been newly licensed to assist with Holy Communion, help them always to feel your presence Lord in the bread and wine.
Mon-22-Mar		1 Timothy 4:12	Sunday School Give thanks for the growing numbers in Sunday School and the guiding hands of the helpers.
Tue-23-Mar		Isaiah 46:3-4	Services in homes Pray for the team carrying out these services that God will guide them to produce services that will spiritually nourish the recipients.
Wed-24-Mar	Walter Hilton of Thurgarton Oscar Romero Archbishop of San Salvador	1 John 5:5-6	Blood Transfusion Service Give thanks for this service and for blood donors, and for all the lives that are saved because of the work.
Thu-25-Mar	Lady Day The Annunciation of our Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary	Luke 1:26-38	New life Pray for support for all newly expectant mothers, fill them with joy. Help us to accept new developments in our lives, and try to hear where God is leading us.
Fri-26-Mar	Harriet Hansell	Romans 15:13	Homeless Pray for all those in Birmingham who are homeless; give thanks for the work of St Basil’s.
Sat-27-Mar		Psalm 51:10-12	Approaching Holy Week Pray that all of us in this Benefice will take time to prepare with God for the forth coming Holy Week. Open our hearts.
Date		Look up and reflect	Please pray for
Sun-28-Mar	Palm Sunday	Luke 17:11-19	Procession Give thanks for all Palm Sunday processions of witness; stir the onlookers and make us more resolute in our faith.
Mon-29-Mar		John 12:1-11	Anointing Pray for those who are dying and those who help prepare them for death.
Tue-30-Mar		John 13:21-33;36-38	Hungry Give thanks for the food we have and all those who are physically and spiritually hungry for God’s word and justice.
Wed-31-Mar		Matthew 26:14-25	Betrayal Pray for all people who have been betrayed or suffered at the hands of those in power or for profit.
Thu-1-Apr	Maundy Thursday	John 13:1-17	Cleansing As Jesus washes the feet of his disciples, pray that he may cleanse us from our sin and that may we follow his example of servanthood.
Fri-2-Apr	Good Friday	John 18 & 19	Forgiveness Use today to pray and reflect on Christ’s forgiveness for you.
Sat-3-Apr	Easter Eve	Luke 24:1-12	Celebration As we celebrate the risen Christ, may we discover God’s liberating power in our lives.
Sun-4-Apr	Easter Day	John 20:1-18	Victory Christ has risen and destroyed death. Rejoice! Tell others the Good News that he can bring new life to us today!

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Events during Lent

Spring is coming – soon hopefully! What an awful winter it’s been and I hope that Easter will not only bring resurrection but growth both in our spiritual lives and the landscape around us. This news update tells of some of the exciting events that will hopefully brighten us up!

Events during Lent
Date	Details
Sun-14-Mar Mothering Sunday	Mothering Sunday is being celebrated at both churches at the normal times. Continuing our series What is Truth, Share the Truth at the 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. services Mary Edwards, Diocesan Director of Education, will be with us to reflect on Education and Family values in our worship. Mary will also be joining us on Tuesday 16 March at 7:30 p.m. at St Mary’s to continue to reflect on the importance of education in society. Please do join us.
Sun-21-Mar Passion Sunday	The centre of Moseley Village will have no electricity between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. on this Sunday. All Services will be held at St Anne’s but the times will remain as normal. Our new Teaching Eucharists are held on the 3rd Sunday at the 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. services, which last 40 – 45 minutes and allows children and adults to learn together (a crèche will be available during the 10:00 a.m. service). We be welcoming Richard Marton, Chaplain of the QE to reflect on health during our worship. After both services, a party will be held in St Anne’s Hall to celebrate my ‘growing older’ birthday. Please do join me for that. However, two things: Please no presents but instead a collection for the development of a clergy (two roomed!) house at St Mark’s Church, Dzoanti in our linked Diocese of Ho in Ghana. Please make sure you wear a name tag (labels provided) and try and talk to someone whom you haven’t met. It will help us to continue to get to know each other and make sure no one is left sitting on their own.
Sat-27-Mar Cleaning Day!	Sheila Perks, our cleaner at St Mary’s had a fall in December and is still unable to come back to work. She is getting better and hopes to be back to worship with us soon. During the last three months the responsibility of cleaning the Church has fallen to a few generous people who have offered their time to help keep the place reasonably tidy. Between 10:00 a.m. and 12 noon we however need a thorough clean of the whole building and adjacent grounds. Many hands are needed to make light work of this. Please help make the Church look good for Holy Week and Easter.
Sun-28-Mar Palm Sunday	In the morning, we will be continuing the established pattern of processing with palms between St Mary’s and St Anne’s, but with a difference. This year we will be following a real donkey who will lead us through Moseley from St Mary’s to St Anne’s. The main morning act of Worship begins at St Mary’s at 10:00 a.m. with the reading and the celebration of the Passion story. At 10:40 a.m. we process to the centre of the Village Green to erect the Cross and finally we process to St Anne’s to complete our journey for our Eucharist, arriving as soon as possible at approximately 11:00 a.m. In the evening at 5:00 p.m. there will be the alternative worship at St Anne’s for Palm Sunday and at 6:30 p.m. a service of readings and music for Palm Sunday at St Mary’s. Please note that the only Eucharist at St Mary’s will be at 8:00 a.m., as the 10:00 a.m. service will be a family service of the word, which will lead into the Eucharist at St Anne’s at 11:00 a.m.
Holy Week Churches Together in Moseley Prayer Box	Churches Together in Moseley will be launching the new prayer scheme where any members of the community can post a prayer request in the new box on the gates next to Indigo Foods. These prayer cards are available across Moseley in pubs, shops, schools and churches. Please encourage people to fill them in and post them. Members of the congregation are also invited to use the prayer spaces and boards in both Churches.
Holy Week Mon-29 – Wed-31-Mar	Holy Week, the days that lead up to Good Friday and Easter, is traditionally a time for Christians to reflect on what the death of Christ means for us today. To help us reflect on God’s loving and saving presence, there is a service of Holy Communion each evening at 8:00 p.m. in St Mary’s with a reflection and meditation. Make just half an hour’s time on one or all of these evenings to come and seek God’s presence and ask, ‘what does my life mean today and what is God doing for me?’
Maundy Thursday Thu-1-Apr – Triduum 1st Day	The School term ends on Thursday 1 April and Moseley C of E School will be holding their Holy Week and Easter Service at 10:00 a.m. in St Mary’s. On Maundy Thursday Christians celebrate the memorial of the Last Supper, the time when Jesus celebrated Communion with his Disciples giving them bread and wine as a foretaste of the elements of the Body and Blood of Christ which we receive today. The Sung Eucharist begins at 8:00 p.m. in St Mary’s and is followed by a Watch Vigil Service from 9:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m., during which people can come and go as we remember Christ watching in the Garden of Gethsemane before he was arrested and taken away to be tried and crucified.
Good Friday Fri-2-Apr – Triduum 2nd Day	Good Friday is the day when we commemorate and remember the death of Jesus Christ. It is a solemn time and there are two services. There is a Family Service at 10:00 a.m. in St Anne’s led by the MAS*S. This lasts approximately 45 minutes and is followed by hot cross buns. The Good Friday Service commencing at 12 noon in St Mary’s commemorates the last three hours of Christ on the Cross. Between 12 noon and 2:00 p.m. there are six reflections on The Cost of Truth – Christ Crucified Today. Each will last about 10 minutes followed be a reading, silence and a hymn. As in previous years, please feel free to stay as long as you like, there are opportunities to join or leave the service between the reflections. At 2:00 p.m. there is the Liturgy of the Last Hour when we remember the final moments that led to Christ’s death on the Cross at 3:00 p.m. Please keep silence when entering or leaving St Mary’s throughout the day.
Easter Eve Sat-3-Apr – Triduum 3rd Day	Easter Eve is a time of remembering the absence of God. For practical reasons, it is also a day of preparation to begin leaving behind the tragedy of death and waiting for the coming of the resurrection on the 3rd Day at sunset. In the morning there will be flower arranging at both churches – please contact Betty Clarke 449 1189 (St Mary’s) or Pat Burrows 449 3762 (St Anne’s), if you can help. There is also going to be an Easter Garden created by our children and families in front of the High Altar at St Mary’s. We need lots of people to help and would be grateful if children can bring flowers to decorate this. In the evening at we begin the preparation for celebrating Christ’s resurrection. The journey starts at St Anne’s at 7:00 p.m. with the recall of God’s purposes, then we move through Moseley with our Easter Candle, stopping at the Cross on the Green at 7:45 p.m. before moving into the dark Church for the First Eucharist of Easter at St Mary’s at 8:00 p.m. Here beyond belief but in strong faith, God overcomes death with the proclamation of the Easter Gospel celebrated with all joy and splendour that the Church can find. We will certainly be doing that with our choirs, art, flowers and senses, tower bells and at the end with a Champagne Party!
Easter Day Sun-4-Apr	A celebration day with services at 8:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Easter Day is the traditional time for Baptism and Confirmation and at the 10:00 a.m. service at St Mary’s there are a number of baptisms and families celebrating new life. (A crèche will hopefully be available). After 17 services in 1 week there will be no Evensong on Easter Day.
Sun-25-Apr Looking ahead!	Annual Parochial Church Meeting and Annual Vestry Meeting will be held on Sunday 25 April at 11:45 a.m. at St Anne’s Hall. Elections for Church Wardens and the PCC will take place and nominations are invited. Why not stand and positively help develop the future of the Benefice? Please watch the boards and pew leaflet for details. There is also the renewal of the Electoral Roll.
So there’s lots to look forward to in the next month. There is much to prepare for and so the Ministry Team request that matters other than to do with services and pastoral issues are deferred from Palm Sunday until after Easter. With best wishes for Holy Week and Easter.