HomeVISIT OF ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY TO LICHFIELD DIOCESECALENDAR OF EVENTSBAPTISM (CHRISTENING) AT ST.MARY'SMORE PRIESTS NEEDED....FROM THE TEAM VICARYOUR WEDDINGRELIGIOUS LINKSCONTACT USPICTURES AT ST.MARY'S

10062006086.jpg

WORLD PRAYERS - CLICK HERE

The 4 candles burned slowly. 
Their ambiance was so soft you could hear them speak. 

The first candle said, I am Peace, but these days nobody wants to keep me lit. 
Then peace's flame slowly diminishes and goes out completely. 

The second candle says, I am faith, but these days I am no longer indispensable. 
Then faith's flame slowly diminishes and goes out completely. 

Sadly the third candle spoke, I am love and I haven't the strength to stay lit any longer. People put me aside and don't understand my importance. They even forget to love those who are nearest to them. 
And waiting no longer love goes out completely. 

.........Suddenly......... 
A child enters the room and sees the 3 candles no longer burning. 
The child begins to cry, why are you not burning? You are supposed to stay lit until the end. 

The 4th candle spoke gently to the little child. 
Don't be afraid for I am...Hope.. And while I still burn we can re-light the other 3 candles. 
With shining eyes the child took the candle of.. Hope.. and lit the other 3 candles. 
With Hope no matter how bad things look and are, 
Peace, Love, and Faith can shine brightly in our lives..

 

Prayer changes things. 
It opens channels for God's blessing to irrigate the barren hearts and places of this world. Prayer allows the love and light and life of God to bring healing and deliverance, fresh hope and encouragement. However at this point, we need to remember two things. First, while prayer ultimately points to healing and life, it does not prevent suffering and death - remember how in Acts, though Peter was freed, James was killed. Second, prayer changes the people who pray, as well as those for whom they pray. For example, those first Christians who were gathered in Mary's house. 

What about you and me? How persistent are we in prayer? I wonder if you have come across the following advice about persistent prayer:
When everything seems to go wrong .. just P.U.S.H! 
When the job gets you down .. just P.U.S.H! 
When people don't react the way you think they should .. just P.U.S.H! 
When your money is gone and the bills are due .. just P.U.S.H! 
When people don't understand you .. just P.U.S.H! 
P.U.S.H. - stands for Pray Until Something Happens. As you and I learn to do this, then we - like those first Christians in Jerusalem - shall experience more of the liberating power of Jesus Christ. And our lives in turn will point others to the Lord who hears our prayer, and who says to each one of us: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." 

The Revd.James Norton,
Team Vicar - St.Mary's, Ketley.

   
     
     
     
     
Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him" (Acts 12:5). From the outset, the first Christians knew what it was to be persecuted on account of their witness to Jesus Christ. As Luke's account of the spread of the Gospel unfolds in the Book of Acts, so we are told how the fledgling church faced hostility from the very beginning. First, there was the arrest and stoning of Stephen - the first Christian martyr - outside the walls of Jerusalem. This was then followed by a great persecution against the church at Jerusalem, in which Saul played a leading role. Now, in this evening's passage from Acts, we hear of more arrests - this time by King Herod - and of the execution of James the Apostle. James, the son of Zebedee and brother of John, whose life and witness unto death is remembered on St James's day, which falls tomorrow. It was at this time that Peter was arrested and put in prison. We are told that "Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover" (Acts 12:4). How did the church respond to this? Luke tells us that they gathered together and prayed for Peter. "The church was earnestly praying to God for him". Not just a quick one-off 'arrow prayer'. Rather, the Christian community in Jerusalem had gathered to pray persistently for Peter's release from the chains that bound him.It would appear from Luke's account that both Peter's imprisonment, and the church's prayer, lasted for several days. On the night before his trial, the persistent prayer was wonderfully answered. An angel appeared - light shone in the darkness - chains fell off - gates opened - and Peter was free. Yet those gathered in the house of Mary, those who had prayed so persistently for Peter's release, could scarcely believe that their prayers had been so powerfully effective. 

PRAYER CHANGES THINGS.....
"This is how all will know you for My disciples: by your love for one another," Jesus said (John. 13:35). If we come to Church only to acknowledge before one another that we have been doing God's Will, that is a sure sign that our God-given power to live the Christian life is withering. When we begin to congratulate ourselves on doing God's Will, that is a sure sign that we are not! When we begin to think we've done enough, that is a sure sign that we have stopped doing at all.  


Life Events 
The Church of England offers care, literally, from the cradle to the grave; and has a range of pastoral services to make key moments in your life. 

Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child 

The Service of Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child is not part of Christian Initiation but is often used by parents in place of baptism. This service can take place as a private or public celebration of a birth or adoption; and can take place at home or at church. The service of Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child can be a preliminary to baptism; an alternative to infant baptism; or simply an opportunity for parents to recognise that something wonderful has happened for which they wish to give thanks to God 

Marriage 

The Christian church believes that marriage is a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman; and that sex is at its best when reserved exclusively as an expression of love within a marriage. There are many different choices available for couples considering marriage. And its not just the choice between a civil wedding or a church wedding. If you chose a civil wedding you can get married in the local authority's register office or in hotels, stately homes, and even football stadiums. 

The church offers more than just a venue for a wedding; it offers practical care and concern for the whole of your married life together. And there are many options you can chose within a Church wedding to make the start of your married life a very special day. If you chose a civil wedding the Church, in some circumstances, offers a service of blessing. 

In 2004 in the Diocese of Lichfield, 2,350 couples were married in our churches; while 140 couples had services of blessings for their civil marriage. 

Funerals 

Death is the only guaranteed certainty about life. It is something that can happen when you are young or old; it can be expected or sudden; it can be a tragedy or a release. Nobody knows for certain what happens when you die, but Christians believe that God's love and power extend over all creation. Every life, including our own, is precious to God. Christians have always believed that there is hope in death as in life, and that there is new life in Christ over death. Even those who share such faith find that there is a real sense of loss at the death of a loved one. We will each have had our own experiences of their life and death, with different memories and different feelings of love, grief and respect. The funeral service is an occasion to express our faith and our feelings as we say farewell, to acknowledge our loss and our sorrow, and to reflect on our own mortality. The church offers funeral services as a way of providing support and consolation to those who mourn. 


What is baptism

In baptism, you as parents are: thanking God for his gift of life, making a decision to start your child on the journey of faith and asking for the Church's support.

For your child, baptism marks the start of a journey of faith, which involves turning away from all that is evil, turning towards Christ and becoming a member of the local and worldwide Christian family.

Baptism is a 'sacrament' a visible sign of God's love. In baptism, we are thanking God for his gift of life and publicly acknowledging his love. We are acknowledging that we all need to turn away from selfishness and evil and to accept God’s offer of a new start.

The Church of England has two authorized Baptism services.  One is taken from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer and is in 17th century English.

Most baptisms use a service in contemporary English, taken from Common Worship (2000).

To read the text of the Common Worship service.


What happens during the service?

The priest will make sure you know where to sit and when you need to move. Some parts of the service will be for the whole congregation to join in, some will be for you and the godparents.

Part of the baptism service will normally take place at the front of the church, but for the baptism itself, parents and godparents are usually be asked by the priest to gather around the font. (The font is a large basin on a pedestal, containing the water for baptism.)

The priest will ask the parents and godparents to make declarations on behalf of the child (see Making decisions and promises).

Making decisions and promises

When you bring your child for baptism, you will be asked to declare publicly on behalf of your child that you believe in God and that you will bring your child up to follow Jesus.

You will be asked to answer, on your child's behalf, that you have decided to turn away from everything which is evil or sinful and instead to turn towards Christ.

The declarations made by you and the child's godparents will be made in front of the church congregation; the local Christian community will promise to support you and pray for you and your child.

Symbols and actions used during the service

A number of important symbols and actions will be used during the service itself:

  • The sign of the cross - the priest will make the sign of the cross on your child's forehead. This is like an invisible badge to show that Christians are united with Christ and must not be ashamed to stand up for their faith in him.

The priest says:

Christ claims you for his own.

Receive the sign of his cross.

Do not be ashamed to confess the faith of Christ crucified.

The priest may also invite you and the godparents to sign the cross on the child's forehead after he or she has done so.

  • Water - the priest will pour water on your child's head. Water is a sign of washing and cleansing. In baptism it is a sign of being washed free from sin and beginning a new life with God.

Water is a sign of life, but also a symbol of death. When we are baptized, it is as though our old life is buried in the waters (like drowning) and we are raised to new life with Christ.

  • Anointing - after baptism in water, the minister may put the christening robe on the child and anoint him or her with oil. This is a sign of the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit.

The priest says:

May God, who has received you by baptism into his Church,

pour upon you the riches of his grace,

that within the company of Christ's pilgrim people

you may daily be renewed by his anointing Spirit,

and come to the inheritance of the saints in glory.

  • The welcome - the church congregation will say some formal words of welcome to acknowledge that you child has joined the Church and to show how pleased they are to have you among them.
  • Candles - Jesus is the Light of the World.  A large candle may be lit in the church and you may also be given a lighted candle at the end of the service as a reminder of the light which has come into your child's life.

It is up to you, the child's godparents and the church community to help your child reject the world of darkness and follow a way of life that reflects goodness and light and shares this light with others.

The role of godparents

Godparents make the same promises on behalf of the child being baptised as parents. Godparents promise to pray and support the child and to help the parents to bring up the child in the Christian faith. It is an important and responsible role.

You should have at least three godparents: two of the same sex as the child and one of the opposite sex. Godparents can be family members or friends. However, it is important that you choose people who will take an interest in your child's spiritual welfare and who will pray for you and your child.  Godparents must themselves be baptized.

BAPTISM ENQUIRIES TO MARY RICHARDS ON 01952 613653

Prayer and Thanksgiving for life events 

Your local church can help you to mark other significant life events with prayer or thanksgiving. 

Are you moving to a new house? 

Why not invite your local vicar to bless your new home? It can be a private simple affair, or you can invite your relatives, friends and your new neighbours; you can even have the prayers said as part of a housewarming party. 

Are you, or somebody you know, ill? 

Prayers are said in all of our churches every week for those who are ill. If you would like to be prayed for yourself, or would like a friend or relative to be prayed for, please contact your local vicar. We have chaplains working in all our major hospitals as part of the multi-faith chaplaincy teams. Regular church services are held in the hospital chapels and the chaplains are able to visit you on your ward if you would like. 

Do you know somebody in prison? 

There are Church of England clergy in all our local prisons and youth offending institutions. Jesus said he had come to set prisoners free. Rest assured that chaplains have no intention of opening the doors to set the prisoners free! But they do work to bring spiritual freedom to those they serve. Regular services are held in the prison chapels and they are available to talk to prisoners and to provide a caring listening ear. 

Whatever you are facing; the church is here for you! 

Every house, in every street in every district, village, town or city is part of a Church of England parish; this means that there is a local church serving you and your community. The clergy can only do so much; but the ministry of the church is shared by all its members. Do please join us at St.Mary's you will be most welcome!