The Parish Church of
HOLY TRINITY, TARLETON
Parish "Webzine" December 2005

From the Rectory Advent 2005

Dear Friends,
Would you eat your Easter eggs before Easter Day? Or usher in the New Year a few days in advance of January 1st? Most of us, I suspect, probably wouldn’t. And yet across our society there seems to be an almost universal acceptance that Christmas can be celebrated well in advance of the feast. The pressures of advertising, of businesses cashing in on the festive season have almost totally eroded the character of the season of Advent. And once Boxing Day is out of the way, and the remainder of the turkey consigned to the dustbin, many people have had enough of Christmas. The traditional twelve days of celebration leading up to the feast of the Epiphany (when, amongst other things, the visit of the Wise Men is properly commemorated) has also largely lost its meaning. Decorations that have been up since November are often long packed away by the time of their arrival on January 6th.
I strongly believe that the Church has much to offer our society by rediscovering the joyful season of preparation and reflection which is Advent. If we rush each year to tell the over-familiar nativity stories without properly reminding ourselves of how God related to his people before he sent his Son then we risk leaving ourselves unprepared to realise the true implications of his birth. If we do not use the season of Advent to contemplate the big questions of what comes after this life, then we can loose sight of God’s overarching plan for his creation.
The very fact that Christmas today seems to envelope the best part of a quarter of the year, I believe, has weakened rather than strengthened its underlying message. Carols that tell the Christmas story and were once well loved have, for many, become little more than background music in the shops.
If Christmas is going to mean anything more than tinsel and presents to the next generation, then the Church as a whole - ourselves included - is going to have to rediscover effective ways of proclaiming the Good News which causes our pews to be as full on Good Friday as they are over Christmas. It is a challenge which we can only meet with God’s help. And Advent provides an opportunity to prepare which ought not to be missed.
Have a joyful and reflective Advent.
With my best wishes and prayers, Fr Nicholas.

FROM THE PARISH REGISTERS 2005
Baptisms “Inheritors with us of the Kingdom of God”
2nd October Abbie Taylor
16th October Ryan Steven David Wignall
Holy Matrimony “Those whom God has joined together”
27th August Marcus Halik & Andrea Baybutt
14th September Johnathan Tyrer & Vivien Clemson
8th October John Carl Russell & Claire Lee-Ann Cochrane
Funerals “Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord”
5th September Molly Holden
7th September George Henry Fazackerly
14th October Jean Mary Steele
21st October James Howard
16th November Harold Rogerson
17th November Vivien Forshaw
17th November William Hawell

OUT AND ABOUT – FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

Parish Visiting Team
If you know of anybody who would welcome a visit, either because they are in hospital, or because they are confined to the home for whatever reason, or because they are new to the parish, would you please fill in one of the slips at the back of the church and place it in the box or contact Fr Nicholas on 812614 or Pat Heap on 812991.

Advent Coffee Morning
Tuesday December 6th
10 am to 12.30 pm
At The Rectory
By kind permission of Fr. Nicholas
Bottle Tombola, Books, Cakes, Candles, Raffle
and much, much more
Tickets £1.50 including coffee and mince pie

MOTHERS’ UNION: December

Our Prayer group will meet on Monday 5th December in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel.

We look forward to our Annual Lunch on THURSDAY 8th December at the Rufford Arms Hotel – meeting 12 for 12.30 pm

On Wednesday 14th December at 7.30 pm, Father Nicholas will share some Advent Reflections with us.

We have received an invitation from St Stephen’s, Banks, MU to join them for their Carol Service on Thursday 15th December at 7.30 pm.

With greetings and best wishes for Christmas and the New Year to all our members and friends.

Pat Heap

Joint witness to the Christmas message
Saturday 17th December
6.30 pm
Mark Square
Carols and Readings
with members of all the churches in Tarleton

THE LEPROSY MISSION

Thank you to all who have bought cards and gifts from the catalogue or our displays, both in and out of church.

World Leprosy day in 2006 is Sunday 29th January. Our local celebration of the work of the The Leprosy Mission will be on the following day, Monday 30th, when we have a joint evening service at 7.30 pm with members of our other cluster parishes. The Speaker will be Derek Hartley, our regional TLM representative. This is an open service, with invitations going out to members of other churches locally, so please invite any friends who are already interested or who may be interested in TLM’s work. Please bring your L-boxes then or earlier.

More TLM Events for your diary in 2006

Splash Out for TLM
Saturday June 3rd, starting at 11.00 am, there is the sponsored Morecambe Bay Walk. This is 8 miles, from Hest Bank to Flookborough, led by Alan Sledmore. £6 per walker and sponsor forms available!

Venture out for TLM A one day (long day!) Pilgrimage to Holy Island, with worship led by Eddy Askew.
If we get ten people, we’ll have our own bus pick-up (6.30 am-ish). Cost will be £29 each or £60 for a family ticket (two adults, two children.) You can walk the pilgrim route over the sands or stay on the bus, then explore the island and eat a picnic lunch before worship in the abbey ruins.
Please let me know if you would like to go on either or both of these events.

Please keep dropping in your used stamps (trimmed if at all possible!) and intact postcards, and do ask me for a new L-box whenever yours is full! If you would like an L-box, please let me know.
Thank you all very much
Sue Wells

From BBC NW Teletext 15 November
£8000 bill for gold topped pie
A chef has baked what he claims is the world’s most expensive steak and mushroom pie, costing diners more than £1000 a slice. About £500 of beef, Chinese mushrooms worth more than £2000 and truffles have replaced traditional ingredients. Its sauce is fortified by 1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild wine costing £4000 and the crust is topped with gold leaf. The recipe was prepared by Spencer Burge, head chef at the Fence Gate Inn, in Burnley, Lancashire.

Even if you don’t have that money to spare, you might prefer to look at the Christian Aid Give a gift that lasts beyond tomorrow scheme.
Herd of goats £60
Can of worms £15
Mosquito nets £11
Here’s the idea – buy a gift from the online catalogue and we’ll send you a card to send to your loved ones telling them how they’ve made a life-saving contribution to a poor community.
Our list is quite imaginative, it includes taps, goats, stethoscopes and cans of worms. Whichever gift you choose it will be given to those that need it the most.
Do something a bit different this year – give someone a warm glow for Christmas, and the satisfaction that their gift is making a difference and not just chewing up the lawn.
To buy a goat or to see our entire gift range visit: www.presentaid.org

Social Committee news
Don’t miss the chance to win one of two hampers – one for Christmas Day and one for Boxing Day – tickets £1 each from members of the PCC and the Social team.
The draw will be made after the 10.30 am Eucharist on the 18th of December at the rather special coffee session.

ROSE QUEEN CHRISTMAS BINGO
at the Bowling Club
Friday 2nd December 7 pm
Adults £1 accompanied children free

CHRISTMAS CAROL CONCERT
in aid of the NSPCC
Friday 16th December
7.30 in church
The Galloway Choir
Children from Holy Trinity C of E School
Tickets £5 (children £1) from
Pat Scregg 812182 & Joan Dyson 813960

NEW YEAR WALK
Tuesday 2nd January
Meet in Croston at the village centre car park
Lunch at The Original Farmers Arms, Eccleston
This is a rerun of a walk we haven’t done for some years.
Out across the mossland between Croston and Bretherton to Eccleston. Back along the Yarrow.
Queries? Ring Ian 07767 638996

Happy New Year!
On Advent Sunday we began a new year at Holy Trinity. We are preparing with expectation for the birth of Jesus on December 25th. We are told by the world around us to buy, buy, buy to show our loved for our loved ones. We are told by the world to use money we don’t have, to buy things we don’t need, to impress people we do not even like. Our gifts given at church each week show our appreciation for God’s love for us. It is a gift, given to God weekly. Thank you all for your stewardship that enables us to proclaim the Son of God, Jesus!

The stars in the night sky looked down where he lay …
Today – and every day – around 350 children will run away from home. Some 50 of them will be under 11.
Most run away because thy feel ignored, reject and unheard. One young runaway, Paula, told us ‘no one seemed to care and there was no-one I could talk to about how unhappy I felt.’
But The Children’s Society does listen to children like Paula. This year, as a culmination of the Safe and Sound campaign, we presented a petition of 115,000 signatures to Downing Street. It called for a national network of safe emergency accommodation for young runaways and for local authorities to implement the Government guidelines.
As a result 83 local authorities in England now have Government recommended ‘runaway plans.’ With your support, we hope to encourage the remaining 67 to do this in 2006.
Our Holy Trinity, Tarleton, Christingle service is on Christmas Eve this year.

JOINT PILGRIMAGE
of the Dioceses of Blackburn and Chichester
18th September to 22nd October 2006
From Paul to Constantine
Tracing one of Paul’s missionary journeys
and the historical development of the early church,
ending in Istanbul
The Bishops of Chichester and Blackburn are commending this pilgrimage as “a teaching and devotional trip” with the hope of “increasing the understanding and deepening the discipleship of twenty-first century Christians.” It is also open to those who want to discover more about the origins of the faith that more than any other shaped our continent and our nation.
The Bishops’ full letter is online on the Diocesan website, but does not contain any idea of cost.

Candles for sale!
The church was donated several boxes of candles which are on sale for church funds. See a selection, including Advent candles and some in Christmas colours, at the St Nicholas Day Advent Coffee Morning on 6th December.

On the lighter side …
Paul Mitchell reported from Guildford, Western Australia:
Here's the text of the week as it appeared in our local paper...
Luke 24:35. "The Lord was known in the baking of the bread."
Thanks to Ship of Fools for this

A really popular special offer?

Plus the chance to win a year’s supply of washing up
Ten runners up will win a year’s supply of Washing-Up
– see the Website for full details

CHRISTMAS TALL TALES
1. From the Guardian Diary column, December 2004.
The reward for the most desperate piece of PR goes to Travelodge, which is offering any couple named Mary and Joseph a free night’s accommodation over Christmas. As the statement explained: “We are trying to make amends for the failure of the Bethlehem hotel industry.”

2. A woman walked into a post office to buy stamps for her Christmas Cards. “What denomination?” asked the counter clerk. “Good heavens,” she said. “Let me see: I need 17 Anglicans, 5 Catholics, 7 Methodists and a Presbyterian.”

3. The brass band was performing at a carol concert, and the players soon noticed that the programme said – courtesy of one those spell-checker assisted errors – that they were to play “The Shepherds go to the Manager.” By the end of the concert, one programme had an addendum that read “… to negotiate the rate for Christmas working.”

PARISH DIARY
Sunday 27th November ADVENT SUNDAY
8.00 am Holy Communion
10.15 am Sunday School
10.30 am PARISH EUCHARIST
6.30 pm Sung Evensong with Sermon

Tuesday 29th 6.30 pm Choir Practice (adults 6.50)
Wednesday 30th 10.00 am St Andrew
Holy Communion: (BCP)
DECEMBER
Friday 2nd Rose Queen Family Bingo

Sunday 4th Second Sunday of Advent
8.00 am Holy Communion
10.30 am CHURCH FAMILY EUCHARIST with Offerings of Toys and Gifts
12.30 pm Holy Baptism

Monday 5th 2.00 pm MU Prayer Group:
Blessed Sacrament Chapel
6.45 pm District Cub Carol Service
Tuesday 6th St Nicholas
8.00 am Eucharist
10.00 am Eucharist at Oakgate Close
10.00 am to 12.30 pm Coffee Morning at the Rectory
6.30 pm Choir Practice (adults 6.50)
Wednesday 7th 10.00 am Holy Communion: (BCP) followed by coffee and a chat in the Parish Room
Thursday 8th 12 for 12.30 pm MU Lunch: Rufford Arms

Sunday 11th Third Sunday of Advent
8.00 am Holy Communion
10.15 am Sunday School
10.30 am PARISH EUCHARIST
6.30 pm Village Carol Concert

Tuesday 13th 6.30 pm Choir Practice (adults 6.50)
Wednesday 14th 10.00 am Holy Communion: (BCP)
1.30 pm Mere Brow School Nativity
7.30 pm MU Advent Reflections: Fr Nicholas
Friday 16th 7.30 pm NSPCC Concert
Saturday 17th 6.30 pm Ecumenical Carol Service, Mark Square

Sunday 18th Fourth Sunday of Advent
8.00 am Holy Communion
10.15 am Sunday School Party
10.30 am PARISH EUCHARIST
followed by ‘Extra special coffee’ with the Rose Queen & Retinue
& drawing of the Christmas Hamper
6.30 pm NINE LESSONS AND CAROLS

Tuesday 20th 6.30 pm Choir Practice (adults 6.50)
7.30 pm Tarleton High School Carol Service

Saturday 24th CHRISTMAS EVE
4.00 pm Crib Service with Christingle
11.30 pm MIDNIGHT MASS
Sunday 25th CHRISTMAS DAY
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sung Eucharist

Monday 26th St Stephen
11.00 am Eucharist
Tuesday 27th St John the Evangelist
7.00 pm Eucharist
Wednesday 28th Holy Innocents
10.00 am Eucharist (BCP)
Thursday 29th Thomas Beckett, Archbishop & Martyr
11.00 am Eucharist

Parish Diary on into 2006
January

Sunday 1st The Naming of Jesus
No 8.00 am Service
10.30 am Sung Eucharist

Monday 2nd Bank Holiday
10.30 am Informal Walking Group
leaves Croston village car park see above
Wednesday 4th 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
Friday 6th Epiphany
7.00 pm Sung Eucharist

Sunday 8th The Baptism of Christ
8.00 am Eucharist
10.15 am Sunday School resumes
10.3 0 am PARISH EUCHARIST

Looking even further forward
Walking Day Quiz Night
Saturday February 10th
Our Lady’s Church Hall

The Mission Action Plan Prayer
God of new beginnings, we pray that you will transform your church as you renew us by your love.
Give us vision for the journey that we may travel light, and live increasingly by faith.
Inspire, enliven and empower us, so that along the Way we may be sustained by the life of Christ in ourselves, in one another, and in the world. Amen