Dear Friends

Just as I was writing my last magazine letter before our Summer Fair, so I am writing this one before our Christmas Fair. The Summer Fair was a great success, blessed by some fine weather, and raised over £1,000 for church funds due to the hard work of Sarah Lavelle and others. Likewise, I hope our Christmas Fair will have been a similar success, aided by the efforts of Clare Archibald and team.

And so it is that the Christmas season will soon be upon us but not before we get to Advent (which begins this year on Advent Sunday, 27 November). The word Advent comes from the Latin word ‘advenio’ meaning to come, and so in this season we anticipate the coming of Christ as a baby at Bethlehem, as well as His second coming at the end of time. The four weeks or so of Advent give us time to reflect upon these great comings and of what we can do to prepare ourselves to receive Christ afresh at Christmas, as well as when He comes again. And yet often we rush through Advent to Christmas in a whirl of busyness – shopping, wrapping, cooking, and yes, even church services! So why not put aside some time this year to make your Advent different – to make time to pray, to read a Christian book, to perform acts of kindness towards others? It could make your celebrations at Christmas even more meaningful and joyful as a result.

And then of course, we move from Christmas to the New Year. I wonder what 2022 will hold for each one of us, for the life of St.Mary’s church, and indeed, the life of the world? There always feels something slightly strange to me about stepping over the threshold into a New Year. For none of us can know for sure what it will hold – what joys, sadnesses, challenges and delights. One thing for sure though is whilst we do not know what the future holds, we can know the One who holds the future, right there in His hands. As the words of the poet Minnie Louise Haskins put it:

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:

“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”

And he replied:

Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”

Wishing you and your loved ones a joyful Christmas, and a peaceful new Year

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector

Dear Friends

I write this just before our delayed Summer Fair and Heritage Open Day, due to take place on Saturday 18 September. It’s looking to be a promising event and I do hope that you will have been able to pop along and enjoy it. Many thanks to Sarah Lavelle, Clare Archibald and to all who have worked hard to make this a reality.

I indicated in my last letter that I would update you in this one about the proposed extension/car park. The PCC had a very productive Away Day in July and meeting in mid -September. We have decided to seek a faculty for a new extension between the church and the family room. This would provide 2 new toilets, a kitchen, a lobby and two new entrances to church, one at the front and the other at the rear of the churchyard. We are also wanting to put a dividing screen in the middle of the family room (plus a new entrance into it) so that we can have two separate small sized meeting rooms or one larger one as we wish. This will enable us to have two meeting spaces for our children’s work as well as two rooms that we can hire out to others.

We have also learnt the results of our latest five yearly inspection of the church. This indicates that we are probably going to need something in the order of £40,000 to carry out repair work to the building. As a consequence, we have decided to put on hold the plans for a car park in the rear of the churchyard in order to be able to fund these repairs. We are seeking two quotes for the work and I hope that we can start as soon as possible.

In November, we plan to hold another of the Alpha courses, this time in person at church. The course will run over 12 sessions on Tuesday evenings, beginning 2 November. If you would like to attend, or invite someone to come with you, please do let me know. The feedback from our first two Alpha courses has been very positive and people have found the sessions both enjoyable and stimulating in thinking about the Christian faith.

Finally, in October we are holding three special events in church. On Sunday October 3^rd, we shall celebrate the harvest at our two morning services as we once again give thanks to God for his provision for us. Donations to the Warrington Foodbank will be gratefully received. Then on Sunday 17^th October, we shall be holding a Climate Sunday service as we think about our role as Christians in seeking to protect and preserve the planet which God has given us to live on. Finally on Sunday 31^st October at 3 p.m. we shall be holding our annual Team memorial service for those whose loved one have died in the course of the past year. Do sign up via Eventbrite for the harvest and climate Sunday service. Invitations will be sent to the next of kin for the memorial service.

Take care and stay safe

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector

JEREMY’S JOTTINGS

Dear Friends

As I write, I am awaiting further guidance from the government and Church of England with regards to places of worship as we enter step 4 of the roadmap on 19 July. As I said in my last magazine letter, for some this will be a source of rejoicing as we finally come out of lockdown restrictions; for others there may still be some anxiety around. I think it’s important to remember that we may be in different places regarding all of this and to continue to look out for others who may be more vulnerable than we are by taking appropriate action where necessary.

At the end of July, the PCC will have had its  Away Day at which I hope it will have taken some decisions around the proposed extension and car park. We have been on a long journey to get to this point, and I would like to pay tribute to the different members of the PCC, Standing Committee and Building Team who have been closely involved with this. My thanks also to all who have attended church meetings and completed questionnaires over the last few years. I will update you on the decisions the PCC has reached in my next letter.

Unfortunately, the Summer Fair has had to be rescheduled to Saturday 18 September due to the delaying of the unlocking process. We are hoping for a fine day and look forward to welcoming many members of our community along between 12 noon-4 p.m. As well as various stalls and refreshments, there will also be display about the history of the church, timed to coincide with the Heritage Open Day event. Do pop in.

Finally, if you are going away on holiday in August or September, I do hope that you have a refreshing time and return renewed ready for the autumn.

Take care and stay safe.

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector

Dear Friends

As I write today (17 May) we have entered step 3 of the roadmap and a further easing of restrictions is taking place. For many, this may be a cause for rejoicing as we are now able to go on holiday to certain countries (without quarantining on return), eat indoors at restaurants and pubs, go to the cinema and sports matches, meet with up to 6 others (or 2 households) indoors, and even give a (cautious!) hug. But for some, perhaps those who have been shielding or are feeling anxious, these new freedoms may lead to further anxiety – will I be safe if I venture into unknown territory? The rise of the Indian variant of the virus is a source of concern at present and who knows exactly what will happen to the proposed date for the ending of restrictions on 21 June?

In the face of ongoing uncertainty, it is good to be reminded by the author of Hebrews that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). He will not change, even though things continue to change around us. As we all continue to adjust in our different ways to coming out of lockdown, may I remind you that you are very welcome to attend services at St.Mary’s when you feel comfortable to do so. We are working hard to maintain a covid secure environment and if we all play our part in that by following the protocols in place regarding mask wearing and appropriate social distancing, we can continue to keep each other, and those visiting for services, safe. Currently we have about 10 people attending both our Sunday 8am and Wednesday 10 am services, 30 people attending at Sunday 10am, and a further 10 logging in on Zoom (thanks to our broadband finally being installed at the end of March!). But we do have room for more at every service, so feel free to join us when you are ready (and register using Eventbrite if you wish to come to the 10 am Sunday service – details elsewhere in the magazine).

As mentioned in the last magazine, we had our Easter Prayer and Gift Weekend at the beginning of April. I am delighted to report that this raised around £11,000 (including Gift Aid to be reclaimed) to help replace income we are expecting to lose this year due to the implications of coronavirus. So thank you very much to all those who responded. At the end of April, we held our APCM in church and had a good attendance of about 30 people. The PCC have since consulted with members of the church regarding proposals for payment of parish share and the proposed extension/car park – thank you to all who returned their questionnaires. These will have been talked about at the PCC on 19 May and the PCC will be in touch with people further as a result. Do please keep praying for wisdom for the PCC as it considers these important matters affecting the life of our church.

Finally, please do come to our Summer Fair on Saturday 3 July. We hope for a fine day and the opportunity to be able to freely mix with others in our community as we raise much needed funds for the church (should the fair be unable to go ahead on July 3, we will reschedule it for later in the year instead). Keep an eye out for further details!

With my very best wishes to you and to your loved ones.

Take care and stay safe

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector

Dear Friends

Spring is most definitely in the air, and with the daffodils and crocuses out, we are reminded of nature springing back to life. This fits in well with the message of Easter which we celebrate this month, that after death comes resurrection. The easing of the national lockdown restrictions and the decision to reopen St.Mary’s for public worship gives that theme an added poignancy this year (see details elsewhere in the magazine of how to register for our main services using Eventbrite). As I write this, I am also very hopeful that our broadband will eventually have been installed in our church building and we can share our services online for those who do not feel comfortable attending worship yet.

As well as reopening for worship, the Easter weekend has also been earmarked by the PCC as a Prayer and Gift weekend. For those readers of the magazine who are on the church electoral roll and/or Church Suite (our church database), you will by now (I hope) have received details about this. To explain this briefly, St.Mary’s has been badly affected financially by the impact of coronavirus this past year. Our building has been closed for worship for 6 months and this has not only affected our cash income via the collection plate, but also our non- gift aid envelopes and standing orders, as well as fee income from weddings and funerals. Last year, we received £20,000 less income than normal, and whilst this was offset by the receipt of a generous legacy, we expect a further £10,000 drop in income this year. The PCC are therefore asking people to firstly pray about our financial situation. The church will be open for prayer on Maundy Thursday between 7.00-10.00 pm, on Good Friday and Easter Eve between 10.00 am – 12 noon, and on Easter Sunday between 8.00 am – 12 noon. If you can’t make it to church in person, please do pray at one of these times at home. Secondly, we are asking people to give generously what they can to help us. Maybe, like me, you have saved money this past year by not being able to go away on holiday as planned, to go to the cinema or theatre, or out for meals? Could you give some of what you may have saved back to the church? If you have received details about the weekend, please return your response form with your gift to church at one of the times mentioned above, or put it in the postbox outside the church, or simply post it back to us. If you haven’t received details, a copy of the appeal leaflet is enclosed with this magazine.

Finally, on 25 April at 11.15 a.m., we have our Annual Parochial Church Meeting in church. This is our yearly opportunity to reflect upon the life of St.Mary’s and to elect new wardens, assistant wardens, PCC and Deanery Synod members. If you are interested in standing, please do speak to Lynn Parish or myself. There will also be an opportunity to receive an update on the proposed extension/car park and the PCC would welcome hearing your views about this as to how we move this forward together. The church electoral roll is also now open once again though it closes on 3 April, so please do contact Jean Lawrence (our electoral roll officer) asap at jeanlawrence582@yahoo.co.uk or telephone her on 710606 if you would like her to send you an application form.

With my very best wishes to you and to your loved ones for a very Happy Easter

Take care and stay safe

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector

Dear Friends

The introduction of a third national lockdown, though not unexpected, has been a challenging way to begin the new year. It seems that lockdown fatigue is very much evident, with people being tempted to ignore the rules, and yet this period keeps being described as the most dangerous part of the pandemic yet. It was because of the rapid rise in our local infection rate that the Standing Committee took the decision in early January to suspend public worship once again. Whether we will have reopened by the time you read this or not, it remains important that we seek to play our part to reduce transmission rates as far as possible. So, let’s not forget – HANDS-FACE-SPACE.

The brighter news has been the introduction of the mass vaccination programme. Some of you will already have received jabs and others of us will still be waiting. The government has indicated that by the autumn every adult aged over 18 should have been vaccinated but that is, of course, a long way off. So, in the meantime, we need to be wait patiently as a nation and to be careful.

Talk of waiting reminds me of the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, otherwise known as Candlemas, which we shall celebrate this year on 31 January. We are told by Luke in his gospel that Simeon and Anna had been waiting for the revelation of the Messiah. Indeed, it had been revealed to Simeon by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before had seen the Lord’s Messiah. What a wonderful surprise it must have been for him to come into the temple that day and to hold Jesus in his arms, and for Anna to join her praises with his.

Following on from Candlemas, the season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on 17 February, another period of waiting in the run up to Easter. Sarah Peppiatt will be conducting an online service at 7 p.m. that day (details elsewhere in the magazine). Churches Together in Lent will also be running an online Lent Course called ‘Caring for Creation’, looking at climate change and how we respond to that as Christians. Keep an eye out for details of course groups by visiting the website www.stmarysgreatsankey.org.uk,looking at the weekly notice sheet or reading my weekly Vicar’s letter. If you have not yet signed up to ChurchSuite, our church database, do let me know as this is how my weekly letter is distributed.

With my best wishes for the year ahead

Jeremy Tear

Pioneer Team Rector