The Parish Church of
HOLY TRINITY, TARLETON
Parish "Webzine" October 2007

From the Rectory

Dear Friends,
Many of you have asked me how my trip to Australia went, especially since I was a little apprehensive before I set off. Well I’m glad to say it was a wonderful trip and the highlight was my brother’s wedding. My first visit down under was the summer before I moved to Tarleton, and on that occasion I did a lot of travelling round the famous tourist spots. This time I stayed in a house in Sydney with my family and we didn’t travel further than a couple of hundred miles from the city, which is still considered to be local over there.

There were three things I had determined to do on this holiday which I had not managed last time. Firstly I wanted to see a real live possum – even the ones at the wildlife park had eluded me in 2004. This time I was not disappointed, as they’re quite commonplace in my brother’s neighbourhood, and I managed to catch a glimpse of one hopping off into the night.

Secondly I wanted to see the famous caves at Jenolan. I’ve seen some fantastic sights underground in Yorkshire, but I was amazed what I saw there. The first cave you visit you actually drive through! No chance of me getting stuck there.

Thirdly, I had not previously managed to get into the Anglican Cathedral in Sydney as I always found it locked on my previous trip. This time I managed to find it open - once. From the outside it looks like a miniature replica of York Minster. I wasn’t expecting the splendour of York inside, but what I did find saddened me greatly. The first thing that struck me was that there was no altar in sight. The choir stalls had been repositioned so that you could not see the high altar. Of course in York there is a heavy screen that restricts the view but, unlike York, when I made my way up to the sanctuary I discovered that the altar, and all the side chapels, had been removed completely. Then I noticed something else was noticeable by its absence – there wasn’t a single cross in the building. They had all been deliberately removed or obscured.

The guide in the cathedral told me that he wasn’t permitted to express his own opinion about the alterations that had been made to the church but had been told he must remain loyal to the Dean and Chapter. The closest he could come to sharing my surprise at the state of affairs in the diocese of Sydney was to say that his wife thought there should be at least one cross in the cathedral.

Fortunately there are few Anglican churches in England that do not have a communion table of some kind and where the symbol of the cross does not provide a focal point, but in Sydney diocese much of what we would take for granted in the Anglican Church over here has been sidelined or forbidden.

The diocese of Sydney is even trying to plant churches in the UK to bring us up to speed on their ‘new’ brand of enlightened Christianity. A sign of progress you may wonder? In the long term I suspect not. The puritans tried exactly the same thing here in Tarleton 350 years ago.

My experience of Church in Sydney did make me reflect on what is important for our spiritual growth, and whereas I’m sure much good is done by the Church over there, I am equally certain that a healthy balance between Word and Sacrament is best. Ask yourselves, what matters to you in your prayers and worship?

With my prayers, Fr Nicholas

PARISH NOTICE BOARD

BIBLE STUDY GROUP
The study group will meet at 8 Willow Hey on Thursday 27 September and then on 18 October at 7.45 pm. The group will be studying the Epistle of James.

TODDLE TIME
An invitation and welcome to all pre-school children to come along for a play and a story with a drink and a chat and to bring their grown ups to Toddle Time. Every Monday from just before 9 am until 10 am in the Parish Room.

FROM THE PARISH REGISTERS 2007
Baptisms “Inheritors with us of the Kingdom of God”
22 July Riley Adam Jackson
2 September Samuel James Rigden
9 September Jemima Louise Richards

Weddings “Whom God has joined together …”
27 July David Hurst and Nicole Thomson
26 August Stuart Johnson and Lindsey Heaton
14 September Simon Clark and Sally Williamson

Funerals “Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord”
16 August Dorothy Elizabeth Annie Harrison
3 September Muriel Dodd

Mothers’ Union October
We begin the month with a meeting of the Prayer Group on Monday 1st October at 2.00 pm in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel.
The Deanery Quiet Hour will be held on Thursday 4th October at St Paul’s, Farmington Moss, at 7.30 pm.
On Wednesday 10th October at 7.30 pm, Malcolm Tranter will talk to us about Gardens in the NW.
The Celebration Service for 80 years of MU in the Diocese will take place in Blackburn Cathedral on Wednesday 17th October at 7.30 pm, when the monies raised for the Buckets of Love will be presented.
Our afternoon meeting on Wednesday 24th October at 2.00 pm will be a DIY session, when we will be reflecting upon creation and ways to live for justice.
We offer a warm invitation to all friends to join us on any of these occasions.
Pat

Social Trips Out
If you weren’t at the parish lunch and missed the questionnaire, here are some future possibilities. Let the wardens or any member of the social team know if you fancy any of these:-
Sunday 11 November, Sing-along-a-Sound of Music at Preston. Cost under £20 with transport.
In December, Tommy Steele in Doctor Doolittle at the Liverpool Empire. Cost c£5 incl. transport.
The Little Theatre Christmas Pantomime - which will be quite a lot cheaper … oh yes it will!
PLUS: Any suggestions of your own?

HERITAGE OPEN DAYS at St Mary’s Church, Tarleton
I would like to thank Agnes, Eva and Beryl for all the lovely flower arrangements that they put in church.
To Jimmy and Hector for the wonderful photographs that they provide for us all to look at.
Also to Father Tom. Norma, Barbara, and Simply Hosanna for entertaining us with their music.
Last but by no means least, to Jean, Lillian, Mary, Tom, George, Brenda, Brian and, John and Winifred: without all your help we would not have been able to open St Mary’s Church for the two days that we did.
Thanks once more. Gail Sutton.

Also I would like to thank the four volunteers: George Maughan, Jack Stazicker, Bob Abram, Jim Sutton.
People have been remarking all summer just how well the graveyard at St Mary’s has been looking. Well, it is due to these four men. It is certainly a great credit to them.
Thanks for all your hard work: PLEASE KEEP IT UP
Gail Sutton

Help wanted
The new cleaning ream is struggling to get enough members to come once a fortnight, so a new suggestion has been made.
If you could help once every while, please add your name to the list at the back of church. Beryl will be able to tell you what is involved.
The existing Thursday team will continue to clean every other fortnight.

News from the school - Holy Trinity
September saw us all back safely in school and ready for the next term’s learning! We welcomed three new families whose children are in Year 1 and Year 3. Our Reception children are settling in well and we are looking forward to working with them and their parents. The staff are refreshed after their break and raring to go. I have to say our school is one that loves new challenges and we are ready for the months of work ahead. As I mentioned in the previous month, the Governors of the school are about to select a new headteacher and I would ask you to continue to pray for them during this difficult to task.

We have quite a few things to look forward to this term. Our bog garden is nearly ready for planting and the children will be involved in this. I am sure they will love getting muddy and digging the soil as well as learning about the plants! We are at present looking at the next phase, the story telling circle. We thank God, for the wonderful grounds we have and we know the children will benefit and continue to grow (just like the plants), fully aware of God’s creation and how to appreciate and care for it.

God bless you. Sue.

MERE BROW SCHOOL
Fireworks display on November 5
Gates open at 6.00pm, hot refreshments available
Display at 6.45pm, site closes at 7.30pm.
Tickets available from school (812689) from 2nd week in October.

Advance notice: Christmas Grotto and Fair
Friday 14 December (1.30 - 4.00pm) Admission free.

The Leprosy Mission Catalogue & events
I have catalogues available with Christmas cards and gifts.

I will also have some cards etc for sale at coffee after the Wednesday 10 am Eucharist on November 7th.

Dates for your 2008 diary
Sunday 27 January TLM Sunday
Joint Cluster Evensong at All Saints, Hesketh Bank, with visiting speaker our regional TLM organiser, Derek Hartley
Saturday 19 April - repeated by popular demand! - excursion up the Manchester Ship Canal. £32 per person inc coach. £65 family ticket. £5 deposit by end of the year. †
Saturday 12 July
Splash Out - the Morecambe Bay Walk £7 on the day †

† Do let me know if you are interested in either of these regional events, so I can book you in. Sue 813267

Informal Walking Group - August Bank Holiday
Twenty two folk enjoyed the walk, and the excellent lunch at The Rufford Arms. The Douglas was not too high, so we could walk under the railway bridge at Rufford, and the return along the canal was most relaxing. Newcomers to this section enjoyed the way Bank Hall tower apparently wanders round the skyline!
Next walk: Easter Monday 2008.

OUT OF THE PARISH
Fund raising for Christie’s
On November 2nd Jon Armitage (Rufford resident and member of Burscough Methodist church) flies to Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam, with a group of fund raising cyclists. He is seeking sponsorship for funds for the Adult Leukaemia Centre at Christie's Cancer Hospital, Manchester. This centre undertakes treatments such as bone marrow transplants, which require strict isolation.
Jon is funding the 11 day trip himself and all donations will go directly to Christie’s. He is hoping for a total of £5000.
The trip covers 500 km through remote areas: the Mekong Delta, Phnom Penh in Cambodia, and will end at the jungle temple complex of Angkor Wat.
To offer sponsorship ring Jon on 01704 821884 or log on to www.justgiving.com/jonarmitage

A GAP IN THE WALL?
An Exhibition of Paintings by Children from the Holy Land
Blackburn Cathedral 19 October to 9 November
09.30 17.30 weekdays 10.00-1500 Saturdays 12.00-15.30 Sundays
The first thing any visitor to Jerusalem notices is not the historic skyline of religious buildings. It is the blandness of the “barrier/wall” that divides Israel-Palestine.
The children’s paintings reflect on this and other aspects of what we still call The Holy Land and challenge us to find the gaps in the walls that exist everywhere.
Admission free
PLUS
22-25 October Half Term Activities Story-telling; Art & Graffiti;
Short film presentation: 10.00-1200, 14.00-1600
30 October 19.30 Book Launch: Jerusalem Haiku
07903731106 for further details

‘FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT’
Blackburn Cathedral Advent Carol Service
Sunday 2nd December 6.30 pm
If you would like to attend this candle lit service, please put your name on the list at the back of church by the end of October. You will need to be in place by 6.10 pm, and the service lasts c1hr 20 min.

PILGRIMAGE 2008
THE HOLY LAND
under the spiritual leadership of Canon Martin Warner (Canon Pastor, St Paul’s Cathedral)
25 February - 3 March 2008
Lightline Pilgrimages: brochure line 0845 610 6447
Inc tour cost £1095
COMMUNITY NEWS

Tarleton Library Events
Bounce & Rhyme (term time only) 2 - 3pm
Songs, action rhymes and a lot of knee bouncing for babies and very young children.

Play Morning - Monday 8th October 10 - 11am
Colouring, painting, and playdough crafts for pre school children. Refreshments provided.

Kindermusik demonstration Thursday 4th October
Singing, bouncing, playing instruments, dancing, baby massage
2- 2.30pm - newborn to 1 ½ years
2.45 - 3.15pm 1 ½ to 4 years
Refreshments provided.

Tarleton Library Reading Group Meeting
Monday 8th October 5.45 - 6.45pm.
Come and join our friendly and informal monthly reading group. Refreshments provided.

School days exhibition for one week commencing 15th October. An exhibition of old school photographs relating to Tarleton and Hesketh Bank will be on display in the library all week. Come along to the library and remember your school days.

All these events are free.

TARLETON 44TH SCOUTS
TABLE TOP SALE
Saturday October 13th at the Scout Hut Gorse Lane
Tables £10 each (£15 on day)
Contact Doug 815630 or Kath 815109
for more details or to book your table.
Table set-up from 9 am: Doors open 10 am
Parking at Bowling Club
Cake, refreshments and more

Erm …
Eight piece drunk kit, plus strool, sticks and brushes. £200.
Small ad in Folkestone Herald, Nov05

The Christian ideal has not been found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried. G K Chesterton

From previous magazines:- October 1902
Our annual Harvest Thanksgiving took place on Sunday, September 28th, and was favoured with beautiful weather. The congregations were not quite so large as we have sometimes seen, though the Church was well filled, and at night a certain number of chairs and forms were required to supplement the ordinary seating accommodation. The Archbishop preached in the morning, and at the other two services the Vicar of Lancaster, a man of fine presence and sweet and Christlike character, occupied the pulpit, and his clear voice and distinct articulation carried his words to every corner of the Church. Three anthems were sung during the day, and the singers and organist discharged their respective duties with care and skill.
The decorations of the Church were, as usual, much admired, though the unfavourable season had rendered it difficult to obtain high-class fruit and flowers.

“When God created the world, He made no spectator’s gallery.” Leslie Newbiggin

PARISH DIARY for OCTOBER
NORMAL SUNDAY SERVICES
8.00 am Holy Communion,
10.30 am Sunday School and Crèche
10.45 am SUNG EUCHARIST
(most 3rd Sundays, FAMILY PARISH COMMUNION)

SEPTEMBER
Sunday 30th Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am PARISH EUCHARIST
OCTOBER
Monday 1st 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
2.00 pm MU Prayer Group: Blessed Sacrament Chapel
Tuesday 2nd 10.00 am Eucharist: Oakgate Close
6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 3rd 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP) Then tea/coffee & fellowship
Thursday 4th 7.00 pm Eucharist at St Mary the Virgin, Rufford
7.30 pm MU Deanery Quiet Hour, St Paul’s, Farrington Moss
Friday 5th 12.15 pm Eucharist
Sunday 7th Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am PARISH EUCHARIST
Monday 8th 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
Tuesday 9th 6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 10th 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
7.30 pm MU: Parish Room: Malcolm Tranter: Gardens in the Northwest
Thursday 11th 7.00 pm Eucharist at St Mary the Virgin, Rufford
Friday 12th 12.15 pm Eucharist
Sunday 14th Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am PARISH EUCHARIST
Monday 15th 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
Tuesday 16th 6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 17th 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
7.30 pm Celebration Service at Blackburn Cathedral for 80 years of MU in the Diocese
Thursday 18th ST LUKE
7.00 pm Eucharist at St Mary the Virgin, Rufford
7.45 pm Bible Study Group, 8 Willow Hey
Friday 19th 12.15 pm Eucharist
Sunday 21st Twentieth Sunday after Trinity
8.00 am Eucharist
10.45 am CHURCH FAMILY EUCHARIST
Monday 22nd 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
Tuesday 23rd 6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 24th 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)
7.30 pm MU: DIY session: Reflecting on Creation and Ways to Live for Justice.
25th - 28th Walsingham Pilgrimage
Thursday 25th 7.00 pm Eucharist at St Mary the Virgin, Rufford
Friday 26th 12.15 pm Eucharist
Saturday 27th CLOCKS BACK: Greenwich Mean Time resumes
Sunday 28th SS Simon and Jude
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am PARISH EUCHARIST
Monday 29th 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
Tuesday 30th 6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 31st 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP)

NOVEMBER
Thursday 1st ALL SAINTS DAY
7.00 pm Joint Sung Eucharist at Rufford
Friday 2nd Commemoration of the Faithful Departed (All Souls)
12.15 pm Eucharist at St Mary’s Old Church
7.30 pm Requiem Eucharist
Sunday 4th Fourth Sunday before Advent
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am PARISH EUCHARIST
Monday 5th 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
2.00 pm MU Prayer Group: Blessed Sacrament Chapel
6.00 for 6.45pm Mere Brow School Fireworks display see above
Tuesday 6th 10.00 am Eucharist: Oakgate Close
6.50 pm Choir practice
Wednesday 7th 10.00 am Holy Communion (BCP) Then tea/coffee & fellowship + TLM Stall
Thursday 8th 7.00 pm Eucharist at St Mary the Virgin, Rufford
Friday 9th 12.15 pm Eucharist
Sunday 11th Remembrance Sunday
8.00 am Eucharist
10.30 am Sunday School
10.45 am REMEMBRANCE SERVICE
with the Two Minutes Silence and The Reading of the Names
then PARISH EUCHARIST
Monday 12th 9-10 am Toddle Time: Parish Room
7.00 pm Eucharist
7.30 pm PCC: Parish Room

Joy is very infectious; therefore, be always full of joy. Mother Teresa