Posada originates from Mexico where people dress as Mary and Joseph and re-enact the journey to Bethlehem, travelling from house to house asking for a place to stay (the word Posada means an inn). In recent years, this idea has been modified by churches in this country by sending the figures of Mary and Joseph and the donkey from house to house during Advent.
This year, we are offering the Posada experience in our village. From Sunday 27th November until Christmas Day, figures representing Mary and Joseph will travel round our community from home to home, stopping by arrangement, where there is a place for them and a warm welcome waiting.
Then Jesus declared ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.’
John 6:35
More Sustainable
In an effort to live more sustainably, I decided to try and grow some vegetables in my garden for the first time this year. I made lots of mistakes so the results were very mixed. The broad beans were covered in black fly, the dwarf pea plants produced about 6 peas from 20 plants, and the carrots were very tiny. But I did manage to grow some passable red peppers!
Many of you, I am sure, will be familiar with the story of Goldilocks and the three bears. There is something in this fairy-tale which speaks into our very human nature.
This edition starts with thoughts on recent storm damage and then addresses Lent matters and the usual listings of services and contacts.
Storm Damage
Dudley, Eunice and then Franklin. In the space of just a few days, storms wreaked havoc in the UK. Power lines were cut, properties damaged, trees fell down, some were injured and tragically a few lost their lives.
On the Sunday after Storm Eunice, and as Storm Franklin gained momentum again, across the six parishes we worshipped in churches which had lost window panes and trees, all whilst hearing the reading from the bible of Jesus calming the storm from Luke’s gospel.
As the storm builds, Jesus is asleep in the boat, the disciples become frantic and eventually wake Jesus up saying ‘Master, Master, we’re going to drown.’ In Marks gospel, it says the disciples said ‘don’t you care if we drown?’
Jesus Cares
Of course Jesus cares, he cares deeply for all of his children, and he gets up rebukes the wind and the raging waters and the storm subsides.
But that doesn’t mean that storms still don’t occur, whether that is the aforementioned physical storms, or the emotional or mental storms that might assail us throughout our lives.
And sometimes, we like the disciples may feel in a place where we want to call out and say ‘Jesus, don’t you care that we are drowning?’ and the answer for us is that of course he cares, he is indeed, as he was for the disciples, in the same boat with them and us. He is always with us. He can’t protect us from every storm, but he is with us through them all.
Lent Journey
This month we begin our journey through Lent, as we travel with Jesus to the cross. A stark reminder that Jesus himself had to suffer both spiritual and physical storms in his life. We see his pain and torment in the Garden of Gethsemane, when he cried out, ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will but yours be done.’
Jesus travelled through his own storms, and is with us through ours too. May we trust in him and may God bless you. Reverend Heather
Lent Carbon Fast, Groups & Prayer
There are three Lent-specific activities taking place during Lent, a Carbon Fast, Lent Groups and Prayers.
Lent Carbon Fast Challenge
In the Bible, caring for Creation is God’s first instruction to humans. During Lent, an organisation called Climate Stewards is encouraging us to take up the challenge to find new ways to reduce our impact on the natural world and our global neighbours.
You can sign up through the link below to receive weekly emails suggesting easy, medium and harder challenges to try related to the seven weekly themes of:
1—fast from social media or tv.
2—Fast from unawareness—expand your knowledge.
3—Fast from silence—speak up.
4—Fast from electricity—live more simply.
5—Fast from driving.
6—Fast from meat and dairy.
7—Fast from food waste.
Lent Groups
Rev Heather Wilcox has written a Bible Study Course which be focusing on our Sunday readings for Lent. Our regular Bible Study Groups will meet weekly, from 8th March to 5th April, to study this material and you are very welcome to join the following groups:
Tuesday afternoons @ 2pm at Sue Day’s house. (please contact [email protected] for details)
Tuesday evenings on zoom @ 7.45pm: Meeting ID: 852 5818 3545, passcode: 814244 (please contact: [email protected] for more details).
Lent Prayer Activities in Church
Throughout Lent (from Saturday 4th March until Easter) there will be prayer space activities in the Church, changing weekly, to reflect the set Gospel reading for the week. All are welcome to come in and have a look at the prayer spaces and try out some of the simple activities, such as writing in a sand pit something we are sorry for and then wiping the words away to remind us of God’s forgiveness.
One of the prayer spaces will include an opportunity to light a candle and say a prayer for the people of Ukraine.
The church will be open from 9am to 3.30pm each week day and children accompanied by parents are very welcome.
Services & Other Dates
6th March
10:00 am
Holy Communion (also on Zoom)
13th March
10:00 am
Messy Church
20th March
11:15 am
Holy Communion (also on Zoom)
27th March
10:00 am
Mothering Sunday – Praise on 4 Service (also on Zoom) with refreshments served from 9.45am
3rd April
9:30 am
Holy Communion (also on Zoom)
10th April
9:30 am
Messy Church
For those services which are also being zoomed, please contact the church office on 01206 243683 or [email protected] for the zoom link.
Our Team at St Mary’s
Priest in Charge: Revd. Heather Wilcox email: [email protected] tel: 01206 240906 or 07503 151715
February is the month when traditionally we celebrate Valentine’s Day on 14th February. So what better month in which to hold a special Songs of Praise service with a wedding theme! The service will take place on Sunday 27 February @ 6.30pm.
Cake & Prosecco
We will be inviting couples who have been married in our joint parishes over the last few years , and also couples planning to be married this year. But everyone from the village is very welcome to attend and enjoy cake and prosecco at the end of the service!
As part of the service, it would be lovely to display a selection of photos from people’s weddings, so if you have a wedding photo you would like to share, please contact Jo, our church administrator , or Rev Heather (contact details on page 2).
Colchester will join the rest of Essex in Tier 4 a minute after midnight Xmas Day. After that non-essential services & shops will be closed and we are asked to stay at home apart from exercise, shopping etc…
Inspired by other places around the country that turn their village into a giant advent calendar, St Mary’s are very grateful to those who volunteered to decorate a window representing a part of the nativity story.
St Mary’s Church wants to turn the village into a giant Advent Calendar; do you want to be involved? In other news, do you fancy sitting on the bench?
To celebrate Christmas and what it means to our community, we would like to turn West Bergholt into a giant advent calendar! The idea is to use 24 windows around the village with 1 new window being revealed each day. Each window will tell part of the Christmas story. You can look for a new window each day or save a few and do a trail!
Would you like your house or shop to be part of the village advent calendar? You can use an upstairs or downstairs window providing it is visible to people passing by.