OPENING OUR CHURCH BUILDINGS
Our church buildings at Aysgarth, Castle Bolton, Preston under Scar, Redmire and Wensley are usually open daily but closed for two days before a service ie on Fridays and Saturdays if there is a service on a Sunday. See Our Churches for list of services.
We have now returned to services in our churches on a regular basis and are not having regular Zoom ones. Phone based services will continue.
Rev Tom Ringland
Church Afternoon Tea
2-4pm
Wednesday 15th September
Redmire Village Hall
Keeping safe
We have sought to make our church buildings as safe as possible. Please do still wear a face covering, use the test and trace facility and use the hand sanitiser.
The responsibility for keeping buildings clean and the public safe rests with the members of each church council along with myself as Vicar. We show our care for the community by only opening after we have studied the guidance and made a careful risk assessment.
The church (as the family of God), of course, has remained active and alive throughout the health crisis. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if we can be of help.
Revd Tom Ringland
Thy Kingdom Come
The Archbishops’ invitation to pray “Thy Kingdom Come” between Ascension and Pentecost is once again backed up with the “Thy Kingdom Come” app.
This is a wonderful discipleship tool for all ages, with content for adults, youth and children, created to spiritually nourish and encourages prayer during the eleven days of “Thy Kingdom Come”.
All of the key resources are featured on this free app and is an accessible way for individuals and families to journey through this time of prayer.
You can download the app from the google play store here and the app store here, and if you would like to share about this on social media you can find various graphics here.
Daily Hope offers music, prayers and reflections as well as full worship services from the Church of England at the end of a telephone line.
The line is available 24 hours a day on 0800 804 8044. Callers will hear a special greeting from the Archbishop before being able to choose from a range of options, including hymns, prayers, reflections and advice on COVID-19. Please let your family and friends, who are not on internet, know about this. More information click here
Hear To Help
Part of North Yorkshire Hospice Care community response to Covid-19.
Just B is offering emotional wellbeing support to people in the Harrogate District, Hambleton and Richmondshire, with its new Hear to Help phoneline, available to anyone who may be dealing with anxiety at this time. The line is manned by trained staff and volunteers and is available seven days a week, 8am-8pm. For more information see Hear to Help.Revd Tom Ringland
Aysgarth church -
As, due to Covid-19 restrictions, there are no printed guides available in the church at present and it is difficult to access the war memorial plaque the following are now available online -
War Memorials and Graves at Aysgarth church
Scroll down to message of March 21 for details about baptisms, funerals and weddings.
PENHILL BEACON
Dear friends,
July 20th was the feast day of St Margaret of Antioch, the fourth century martyr who is the patron of the church in Preston under Scar. (I wonder if you know the days when we celebrate Mary, Oswald, Bartholomew and Andrew – across our family of churches?).
We planned to have a Songs of Praise service on Sunday July 18th to mark the occasion – and then realised that with the delay in opening up, we would be looking at a ‘Songs of Praise’ - with no singing!
I sincerely hope and pray that by the time you are reading this, we are back to singing in our church services. Probably the thing we have missed most in our worship has been the freedom to sing.
Singing allows us to participate in worship – it’s where we all join in and make a joyful (and hopefully tuneful) noise to the Lord!
Joining in is what makes worship real. Without joining in we are passive observers, watching from the sidelines.
I remember over 30 years ago, attending a Greek Orthodox service on Crete. We arrived at church at around 7.30am, and found it had already been going on for around an hour. A few worshippers had come out to have a cheroot on the patio in the early sunshine before heading back in. I was told that the liturgy used an ancient form of Greek, and most people didn’t understand it – they were simply in the presence of worship, which was being offered by the priests.
It was comforting I suppose that we weren’t the only ones who didn’t know what was being chanted and sung!
I prepared to wait out the time, without too much expectation. However, I did find, as I was attentive, that I got caught up in the mystery and the drama of the act of worship.
It was possible to join in, even without the understanding.
However, speaking in the vernacular is actually written into the Articles of the Church of England.
The 24th of the 39 Articles of Religion says this:
“It is a thing plainly repugnant to the Word of God, and the custom of the Primitive Church, to have publick Prayer in the Church, or to minister the Sacraments in a tongue not understanded of the people.”
We want to be able to understand, because we want to participate and join in – just as we want to sing, because it’s a key way we engage and join in!
The ‘School Assemblies’ I remember from my youth are now given the much better title, ‘Collective Worship’. This also gives us the sense that it is to involve everyone present.
We’re presently enjoying a window of time when we can gather together. There is the hope that this time it may last – but while it does, I hope we may rejoice in the gift of weekly worship – with understanding, and with singing, as we join with others to celebrate and to nurture our faith!
Tom