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Scripture readings for Sunday
Church Calendar
The revision of the Church of England's main worship services is now complete except for continuing work being done on seasonal material, and the Parochial Church Council has decided to begin using a new order for Holy Communion from Advent Sunday (3rd December) this year, one month before the Alternative Service Book's authorisation expires. We shall be using the new services, then, for Advent and Christmas this year. The new services are collectively known as Common Worship.
The Sung Eucharist is not very different from the ASB Rite A that we have used for many years, but there are some small changes designed to enhance the worship we offer. There is also more flexibility and the Worship Committee is looking into choices we can make which will give a regular "shape" to our services and yet provide a seasonal variety to enrich what we do. In preparation for this step we are already using the new baptism section of the service and have had the Common Worship lectionary for nearly three years.
I wish I could show you the new services, but they will be published in full only a few weeks before we start using them: it takes time to print all the books! Meanwhile, if you have internet access you can see the Holy Communion service texts and other information on the Church of England's website. If you do not have access, then I do have one copy of the Holy Communion services in a book which people can see by arrangement.
6th August, Transfiguration of Our Lord:
10:00: 2 Peter 1: 16-19; Luke 9: 28-36
13th August, 8th Sunday after Trinity:
10:00: Ephesians 4: 25 - 5: 2; John 6: 35, 41-51
20th August, 9th Sunday after Trinity:
10:00: Ephesians 5: 15-20; John 6: 51-58
18:00: Exodus 2: 23 - 3: 10; Luke 12: 49-56
27th August, 10th Sunday after Trinity:
10:00: Ephesians 6: 10-20; John 6: 56-69
3rd September, 11th Sunday after Trinity:
10:00: James 1: 17-27; Mark 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23
We hope to keep the church open in the daytime for people to come and pray or visit outside service hours - but it does depend on people being available.
A rota is now on the noticeboard at the back of church. If you can spare a little time for this valuable service, please fill your in against a particular time slot. The key may be collected by prior arrangement from the Vicar or Churchwardens.
A notice giving times of opening will then be posted both in the porch and on the church noticeboards..
The Dean and Chapter has agreed in principle to charge for entry with effect from 3rd April this year. This is a decision that we have thought about very carefully. It's over twenty years ago that the then Dean wrote a discussion paper on this subject. Then it was thought unnecessary as half a million visitors a year were expected. Today we receive about a third of that number. The decision was taken in the context of a comprehensive review of the Cathedral's finances. The expenditure of each department is careful1y monitored each month and all are running within the strict budget that was set for them, but income is running below expectations and we still cannot make ends meet.
The Cathedral is a very busy place. In the week before Christmas, for example, thirty-five services were conducted both for the normal congregation and also for outside bodies wanting to worship here. Each required a verger, stewards, organist and choir, not to mention the heating and cleaning. There is a skilled work force of thirty people working on the repairs to the stone work, roofs and stained glass windows. The Library and its educational programme has to be paid for too. In all to keep the Cathedral open and repaired it costs £2.25 million a year. We are now in the process of having to maximise our income in all available ways.
Many people have felt that our present system of requesting donations is actually the worst of all worlds. It is difficult for those staff who make the requests and difficult for the visitors who often feel uncomfortable about whether they have given too little or too much. know, for the Bible tells me so" was subtly changed in later editions to "... and the Bible tells ..." Why? Because most Christians first learn of the love of God in Jesus not by reading, but by the words of someone. We do have evidence in correspondence and in the press that the visit is spoiled in consequence.
One of the guiding principles of the new system is that no-one will be excluded from the Cathedral purely on the grounds that he or she cannot pay. We shall continue to offer rest and refreshment for the dispossessed and socially disadvantaged. The intention is that those that are able to afford the charge should pay and thus support the continued ministry of the Cathedral. The charge for adults will be £3.50 with a concession figure of £3.00. Accompanied children will be admitted free. Residents of Lincoln and frequent visitors are encouraged to obtain an annual visitor pass which costs £12. We can now look forward to playing a full part in the Lincoln Heritage Trail Scheme of one charge admitting the visitor to all buildings on the Trail. We are aware that some visitors might object to the charge and we plan to have a 'welcomer' on hand who will have the time to explain what we are doing and why. We hope that as a result of this income will be increased by about 20%, taking into account a more favourable recovery of VAT.
All visitors will have free access to the Morning Chapel and to the Consistory Court Shop and the entry points will therefore be at the first set of pillars coming from the West end. This has not been an easy decision to come to and I have not spoken to anyone who has not felt some ambivalence about it. Rest assured we have looked at the issue from all the angles we can think of, including the theological.
Alec Knight
Dean.
Last Sunday I took my friend Elizabeth to the Sunday school party.
We had a magician called Keith Downes. He did lots of tricks and told us stories about magic.
I think everyone thought the food was great. We had cat cakes, porcupine cocktail and butterfly biscuits, cheese snakes, sausages and a few other things.
We had a man who made balloon models for us to take home. I got a balloon seal because I helped with a trick. Elizabeth got a poodle. She loves poodles.
Altogether it was fantastic.
By Anna Templeton (aged 7)
It is interesting to read the letter pages of newspapers and magazines. From them we can learn something of the character of the writer, whether or not we agree with their views. More precious are letters received from friends with whom we were very close in the past and are now separated by distance or circumstances. We treasure such letters especially if they contain words of encouragement or advice when we are passing through difficult times. Two such letters are Paul's epistles to Timothy, the young leader of the church at Ephesus. They contain guidance in dealing with practical problems in the early church and the development of his own Christian faith. Much of this teaching is relevant to the church today. In this age of E mails and telephones, letter writing is becoming a lost art. Is there someone who would appreciate a letter of encouragement from you today?
Place butter, sugar and flour in bowl and rub in as for pastry, when it has all come together place in greased swiss roll tin, smooth out and spread Raspberry jam onto mixture. Place the remaining ingredients in a bowl and rub in until you have a crumble mixture, place mixture over jam, and put tray in oven reg 4, 180°C or 350°F, for approx one hour. Allow to cool in tin then cut into 14 even size fingers.
We welcome to the Lord's family:
11th:
We congratulate:
3rd:
10th:
17th:
We commend to God's keeping:
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