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November
2023
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Services |
5th |
10.00am |
Messy
Church |
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10.30am |
Rev
Treevor Grant - The Leprosy Mission |
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(C) |
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6.00pm |
Taize
Service |
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12th |
10.30am |
John
Price |
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19th |
10.30am |
Rev
Ray Lewis |
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26th |
10.30am |
Rev
Marc Owen |
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(C)
denotes communion will be held as part
of the worship service
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Weekday
Meetings |
Monday |
Craft
Group
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2.00pm
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6th
and 20th
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Wednesday |
Luncheon
Club |
12:00 noon for 12.30 |
1st,
15th and 22nd |
Thursday |
Bible
Study |
3.00pm |
2nd,
16th and 23rd |
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Remembrance
Day - Saturday 11th at 11
As is our practice, we will meet at the Memorial
Gates by the football pitch to remember those
who have fallen in war. This will be particularly
poignant given the situation in Ukraine and
the Middle East. Please come and join us (we
begin at 10.50)
Gardener's
Corner   |
Well
here we are into November. The evenings
getting darker sooner and leaves falling
everywhere. Lots of berries everywhere
too - cotoneaster, firethorns and hollies
all giving an exciting display. Rosehips
and haws are also good this year, giving
lovely colours although the bushes and
trees are dying back now - they look good
in indoor flower arrangements too. Pick
the last of the apples now for storage.
Now is a good time to check for damage
to fences, pergolas, posts, greenhouse
etc. The greenhouse can have a good clean
in preparation for early seed planting
next year. Evergreen climbers and vines
can be tidied up, making sure they have
adequate attachments on fences, walls
etc. Any pot grown bulbs for indoors can
now be brought inside, but be careful
to do this gradually or they will flower
too soon. If you are a rose fan now is
the best time to plant bare root varieties,
giving them time to adjust before the
growing season. Make sure you add bonemeal
or other slow-release fertiliser to the
soil when planting, firm the roses in
and prune about 30% of the top growth
away. All roses should be pruned by the
end of this month including ramblers and
climbers. Look out to for fir cones now
for your December decorations in time
for Christmas.
Enjoy your garden!
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Minister's
Musings |
Nansi's
Musings A few weeks ago we took a shortcut
through the graveyard of St. Mary's Priory
Church, Monmouth. The door of the church
was open, so we went inside. It is a beautiful
and impressive interior. The church as originally
built on the site of an old Benedictine
Priory, and over the years has been restored
and rebuilt many times. On the side of the
altar are an impressive array of plaques,
each one bearing the name of a solider killed
fighting in the Boer War. On the opposite
wall are memorials; large ones listing the
names of men who died in the first and second
world wars, and smaller tablets for those
killed in Korea and other subsequent wars
- the last one being for those who died
in Afghanistan. Each and every one listed
must have left behind a grieving family.
My thoughts turned to the futility of war
and to Pete Seeger's song Where have
all the flowers gone, with the refrain
When will they ever learn?
Our chapel, here at Govilon, is certainly
not as grand as St. Mary's, it is a far
more humble building. However, it has been
a meeting place for the faithful for over
three and a half centuries. The size of
the congregation makes it possible for us
all to know each other. It is a place where
Christian friendships are formed, and individuals
can participate in worship, pray for the
sick and learn to pray in public. Everything
is done in an atmosphere of love and acceptance,
where people are free o risk making mistakes.
We have no war memorials here (Editor's
note - but do have two Commonwealth War
Graves), but on Remembrance Day - November
11th at 11 o'clock - we will gather to honour
the dead of the many wars at the War Memorial
Gates.
During the first world war, after the original
patriotic enthusiasm, people's views of
the war began to be challenged when news
reached them of the enormous number of dead
and missing after the battles of the Somme
and Passchendaele. Were the number of casualties
justified? Was fighting this war actually
going to achieve anything?
The circumstances in Germany after the war
indirectly led to the rise of Hitler and
the Nazi Party, and with it Hitler's ambitions
for territorial expansion that led to the
second world war. Since 1945 there have
been numerous conflicts, and there continues
to be strife throughout the world. We live
in troubling times. Russia's unprovoked
invasion of Ukraine in 2022 set alight the
worst conflict in Europe since world war
two. Now there is conflict between Israel
and the Hamas militant group. Following
the vicious killing by Hamas of around 1400
people (many at a music festival, and others
in their homes on various kibbutz). After
the incursion, many hostages were taken
back to Gaza. And now Israel has launched
many retaliatory attacks on Gaza where,
in a different way, Palestinians are also
hostages to Hamas. The situation changes
hourly now, and we can only pray that there
is no escalation of hostilities to embrace
the rest of the Middle East and beyond.
Every person, whatever nationality, is a
child of God, and in these worrying times
we must strive to honour humanity. This
is the very opposite of hatred, and is the
root of compassion, justice and dignity.
We pray for an end to the bitter conflict
and for a lasting peace. |
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