Category Archives: What’s New

A weekend in Sweden – October 2015

Between the 23rd and 27th October 2015, a group of 14 of us from All Saints went to visit our link parish of S:t Olofs in Norrköping, Sweden.

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Friday

We all met at All Saints ready to head off to the airport for our adventure.

That evening, we safely arrived in Norrköping, Sweden. Here’s a few of us enjoying a drink in the hotel before an early night.

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Saturday

We started the day by joining our hosts as they held a service to commemorate United Nations Day at S:t Hedvig’s church, one of the three churches in the parish. S:t Hedvig’s is a beautiful building and the service was accompanied by a fantastic soloist and pianist.

S:t Hedvig’s church

Then we had lunch in the Prästgård (the old rectory which is now used as a meeting and conference centre) which became our hub for the weekend. Two of our hosts, Pether and Kristina gave us a short presentation all about the parish of S:t Olofs.

Then in the evening our hosts threw a lively party for us. There was loads of lovely food (felt like we’d done nothing but eat all day!) and singing in Swedish and English – including some Abba, well what else would we sing in Sweden?

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Finally, we had a short Swedish lesson. Can you say the phrase “sju sjösjuka sjöman”? – It’s not as easy as you might think!

Sunday

The parish of S:t Olofs has three churches, two of which hold Sunday morning services (the third is S:t Hedvig’s which we visited on Saturday). Therefore, we split into two groups and some of us went to S:t Matteus church for a traditional service (in Swedish but follows the same order as our service so we could follow what was going on). The songs were led by the fantastic “Joy” community choir.

S:t Matteus church

The rest of the group went to the church of S:t Olai in the centre of Norrköping.

S:t Olai’s church

After the morning service, we split into small groups and were invited for lunch with members of the congregation. We all enjoyed lovely home cooked Swedish food, which for some of us included reindeer stew!

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Then in the evening there was a big football game so a few went to cheer Norrköping FC on to a 3-1 victory (they won the league the following weekend).

And finally, we all met up to share our stories over a pre-bed drink.

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Monday

Day 3 in Sweden and for most of us it is our last full day. We ventured a little further afield and took the short train journey to the nearby city of Linköping.

When we arrived we had a tour of the Domkyrka (the cathedral), a beautiful building with some interesting and powerful paintings and sculptures. Linköping diocese is linked to our own diocese of St. Albans and so it was great to make that link.

Linköping also has a fascinating living museum (Gamla Linköping or Old Linköping) where they have rebuilt a collection of old houses which are occupied by traditional craft workshops.

Our last night in Norrköping.

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Tuesday

Our last day. We spent the morning having a final look around Norrköping, including the old industrial area which has been converted into shops, cafes and museums.

A fond farewell to our new and old friends in Norrköping and thank you for the great hospitality.

Tack så mycket! (Thank you very much)

Response to the Refugee Crisis

The following message has been circulated by the Watford Deanery Chapter with suggestions on how we can respond in some way to this humanitarian crisis:

8 Practical Ways You Can Help

Many of us have been heart-broken and appalled by the plight of the refugees in Europe, and become increasingly concerned with the unfolding refugee crisis. As a Deanery we would like to encourage every member of the churches in Watford to respond in some way to this humanitarian crisis. Below are eight suggested ways you can personally help. Please consider what you can do, and what your church community can be involved in.

1. Prayer

Please pray for the refugees, the relief organisations, the governments, and all involved in this crisis. Please pray personally and during church services. May we also encourage you to gather like-minded people together to intercede on behalf of our brothers and sisters.

2. Donate Money

A whole host of national charities have dedicated Syrian appeals you can donate towards, and are offering help to refugees with bedding, food and shelter. These include: Save the Children, Oxfam, Unicef, Christian Aid. There is also the Disaster Emergency Committee (dec.org.uk) who coordinate funding and assistance. Please donate as individuals and consider whether your church should have a special appeal, or use harvest donations.

3. Donate Practical Items

As well as donating financially to non-government organisations, you can offer practical items like food, blankets, shelter, water. Save the Children, Red Cross, Refugee Action, and other groups are sending items to Calais, and other locations, to support the housing of feeding of refugees. CalAid is a London based local initiative sending items to Calais. There is an Amazon WishList set up on their website to enable people to donate directly.

4. Support Grass Roots Groups

As the crisis unfolds and refugees are settled in the UK there will be more and more pressure on local services and groups. Within Watford this will affect Christian charities in our local area that many of us know well including: Watford & Three Rivers Refugee Partnership (wtrrp.org.uk), Foodbank (watford.foodbank.org.uk), New Hope (newhope.org.uk). Please support these groups with your practical support; donating money, donating practical items, volunteering, prayer, and more.

5. Hosting & Housing

Do you have a spare room, or know of an empty house? Would you be willing to act as a guarantor, perhaps with others, to rent some accommodation? As the crisis unfolds refugees will be coming to Watford in their hundreds. Whilst some housing will be available through the local authority there will also be a need for private accommodation. A German initiative “Refugees Welcome” has linked up refugees with host families, and a similar organisation may well be setup in the UK. In addition the local authority and MP will be able to offer guidance. This is a long term commitment as there is no guarantee how long the refugees will need to be housed.

6. Volunteering

Many relief organisations are looking for additional volunteers with the necessary skills and experience to help. Roles include medical, educational, relief work, counselling, and more. Citizens UK is a scheme where people can volunteer, but also Refugee Council, International Rescue Committee (US-based charity), and many of the major NGO’s listed above, require extra help to meet the overwhelming need. These are skilled roles and usually require considerable training and experience, and a long term commitment.

7. Make Their Voice Heard

Continue to speak up for these vulnerable people, who have little voice of their own. Write to your MP, MEP, members of the House of Lords, and others in positions of influence. Sadly the crisis will continue when it has long since disappeared from our TV screens and newspapers. Ask your business and those in commerce to allocate part of their charitable giving and community awareness to the above, and ask them to offer their expertise to the crisis. Encourage family, friends, colleagues, and others to offer their personal support, perhaps giving them a copy of this document.

8. Meet Together – 23rd Sept 7:30pm

On Wednesday 23rd September at 7:30pm there will be an open meeting at St Mary’s Church, Watford, for all those interested in assisting with this crisis with prayer, practical help, and further sharing of ideas. Please be there if you can and encourage others to come along.

Upcoming Events in September 2015

Children and Communion

Wednesday 2nd September at 7.30pm

St. Albans Diocese has a policy that children over the age of 7 years may receive Holy Communion but this can only happen following a certain process. Firstly the PCC must agree to allowing us, as a church, to explore the possibility of children receiving communion before confirmation. There must be teaching about Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Communion and there must be opportunities for everyone to come together to learn about and to discuss the issues and implications. Everyone must be permitted to listen and express their thoughts. Following this process the PCC will then vote on whether we will apply to the Bishop of St. Albans to ask his permission to admit children over 7 years of age to Holy Communion.

This is a big decision for us all and we all need to think carefully and talk about how we feel and what we would like to happen.

This meeting will be the first opportunity to come together to hear about and to discuss the issues. Ruth Pyke, the Diocesan Childrens Adviser, will be with us to talk to us and answer any questions we may have.

Please put this date in your diary and make every effort to be there. It is especially important the PCC members, the parents of our Sunday School children and those who work with our children come along to this meeting if they possibly can.

Table Top Sale

Saturday 5th September 10.30am – 12.30pm

Our next Table Top Sale raising funds for our Missions. Admission is free and there will be plenty of items for sale to suit everyone including gifts, cards, plants, toys, books, DVDs etc. Table-hire (if available) is only £5, speak to Jo or contact the church office for details.

Cake Stall

Cake Stall

Table Top Sale

Table Top Sale

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Sunday School Welcome Back Party

Sunday 6th September after the service

Fun, games and food to start the new Sunday School term. Pam has brought a new cricket set and has been practicing her bowling!

It would be helpful if people could let us know who will be there so we can sort out the food.

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Meetings and Events in July 2015

Children’s Choir Performance

Wednesday 6th July at 6:30pm

Our South Oxhey Children’s Choir will be performing at All Saints.  Come along and help the children feel they have a good audience to perform to after all their hard work.

Visit to Sweden – Meeting to find our more

Wendesday 22nd July at 7:30pm

We are hoping to take a group to our link parish of Norrköping in Sweden – probably in November this year.  We would be put up by local church members and therefore the cost would be primarily the airfare – which at the moment is about £40 return from Stansted airport.

If you think you would be interested in joining the group, come along to this meeting to find out more.

How can the God of Love Allow Suffering….Discuss

Thursday 30th July at 7:30pm

Recently, a young man shot and killed 9 people as they sat in a Bible study class in a church – resulting in immeasurable pain and suffering…why, how, did the God of love let this happen?

In April an earthquake in Nepal killed and injured thousands of people and destroyed their homes and lives – people who were already living in poverty…why, how, did the God of love let this happen?

God and suffering is one of the most difficult issues we have to face in our faith but it is not one that we can ignore.

If you would like to explore this subject and perhaps offer your thoughts then please come along and join us for a stimulating, and probably challenging, discussion about God and Suffering.

Ricky’s Ordination Weekend

We’ve had a great weekend celebrating our Curate Ricky Turner on his ordination as a priest.

On Saturday we had a sunny and warm (maybe a bit too hot!) afternoon at St Alban’s Abbey for the ordination service.

Then on Sunday morning Ricky lead our Holy Communion Service for the first time and we had a great sermon from our guest preacher Sue Allen, a good friend of Ricky. At the end of the service we had the customary present opening.

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And finally we ended with a wonderful Bring and Share lunch to wrap up a wonderful weekend.

Easter 2015

Easter Egg Competition

We had some fantastic decorated eggs in our Easter Egg competition. Minions appeared to be a theme, but all were very creative.

Easter Egg Hunt

Following our Easter Sunday service, the children burnt off some energy in the Easter Egg Hunt (or should that be stampede!)

Easter Monday Pilgrimage to St Albans

And on Easter Monday a group of us walked the 11 miles to St Alban’s Abbey for the Pilgrimage service. We had beautiful weather for the walk and then had a relaxing picnic outside the Abbey before a wonderful service celebrating the risen Lord.

Holy Week and Easter 2015

Palm Sunday – Holy Communion

Sunday 29th March – 10.00am

Our traditional Palm Sunday Service where we celebrate Christ’s entry into Jerusalem before starting his final week of ministry. Service starts with a palm cross parade and includes a dramatic reading of the Passion.

Maundy Thursday – Holy Communion

Thursday 2nd April – 7.30pm

Maundy Thursday is one of the most holy days of the Christian year. It is when we remember Christ’s promise to us, it is the moment when Jesus gave us the Eucharist as our main act of worship and it is the service when he washed the feet of his disciples and set us the example of how to live as Christians.

Good Friday Services

Friday 3rd April – 11am (United Service in South Oxhey Precinct)

Friday 3rd April – 2.30pm (Service at All Saints’ Church)

Please join us as we remember the sacrifice that Jesus made for us as he suffered on the cross to save our sins. Good Friday is also one of the holiest days in our calendar and it is important that as Christians we all observe it seriously.

There is no Easter without Maundy Thursday or Good Friday.

Easter Day – Holy Communion

Sunday 5th April -10.00am

Come and join the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection . The service will start outside – beside Oxhey Chapel – with the lighting of the Pascal Candle from a fire. The lit candle will then be carried into the church symbolising the light of Christ coming into the world.

This will be an All Age service.

Our Easter Service will be followed by our Decorated Egg Competition and Egg Rolling Competition.

Easter Monday Pilgrimage to St. Albans Abbey

Monday 6th April

Walk to the Abbey, or meet us there for a picnic before the service of thanksgiving. Check out our Events page for more details.

Missions for 2015

We can now announce our Missions for 2015. These are the four charities that we will be supporting with our fundraising events throughout the year, including Table Top Sales and our Summer and Christmas Fayres.

Our first fundraising event is our Table Top Sale this Saturday (14th February 10:30am-12:30pm).

Please come along and support our events and raise money for these good causes.

International Mission: Development Pamoja

Development Pamoja is an Irish charity working with disadvantaged rural communities near Nakuru, Kenya. Pamoja means “together” in Swahilli, so Development Pamoja literally means “development together”.

They work with the community to create opportunities for people to improve their own lives and in turn help build a sustainable local economy. (They do not usually give free handouts as they believe they lead to a reliance on aid and are damaging to local economies.) Their objective is to foster a greater sense of collective responsibility which helps to build a better society for all.

Development Pamoja promise that 100% of all money donated goes directly to Kenya. All work in Ireland is done on a voluntary basis and expenses in Kenya are kept to an absolute minimum.

For more information, check out the website for Development Pamoja →.

National Mission: Ataxia UK

‘Ataxia’ means ‘lack of order’. People with ataxia have problems with movement, balance, and speech. Over 10,000 people in the UK have a form of ataxia. There is currently no cure.

Ataxia UK works across the whole of the UK. They aim to support everyone affected by ataxia; people with the condition, their families, carers and friends. They help people to live with ataxia by providing a range of services that are not available anywhere else. They also fund research into developing safe, effective treatments. Their ultimate goal is to find a cure for the ataxias.

For more information, check out the website for Ataxia UK →

Local Mission: New Hope

New Hope exists to serve individuals who are homeless or vulnerably-housed through the provision of accommodation and opportunities to transform lives. Founded upon Christian values, which are at the core of their work, they support people regardless of faith, class, disability, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation.

New Hope provide seven accommodation services with up to 60 beds every night (an emergency transition service and night shelter, a damp house, a dry house, and four move-on hostels), five support services (street outreach, a 24/7 emergency homelessness advice line, a drop-in, a mental health worker, and a tenancy sustainment team) and two development services (a community market garden and an employment training scheme.) They support more than 600 people every year through these services.

For more information, check out the website for New Hope →

Home Mission: ASCEND

ASCEND is our very own Mission working right in the heart of our community. They’re all about moving people forward, challenging their perceived barriers to education and training; providing people with more choice and control over their lives. Thanks to ASCEND, many local people now have the confidence, self-esteem and skills to find a route to employment, some for the first time in their lives. ASCEND also works with young people aged 16 to 25 and has set up the Dig Deep Allotment Project with Farming for All CIC and Step Up with Herts Mind Network.

For more information, check out the website for ASCEND →