I am looking forward to seeing some of you on Sunday at Orsett at 10am. Thank you to those who have let me know you are coming. If you are not able to join us in person, and have access to technology, we will be live -streaming the service so please do share in worship with us that way at hobnob.org.uk/watch This Sunday is Rural Mission Sunday and I am hoping that this will be a joyous service. Please, though, be aware that there will be some restrictions in place, as below. You can also find this information on our website.
Do not come to church if you or anyone in your household has confirmed or suspected COVID-19, or is otherwise self-isolating.
Please note that, in accordance with the guidelines, “While those at extra risk and the ‘clinically extremely vulnerable’ should be advised of the risks of attending public worship, a decision to do so is theirs alone.”
When you arrive at church:
You may need to wait in a queue before you can enter. Please observe the 2m distancing.
Hand sanitiser will be available at the door and you will be asked to sanitise your hands on arrival.
We will register all who attend, and may ask you for additional contact details. (This is so that we can provide details of our visitors to NHS Test and Trace, if requested. We will hold this information for 21days.)
You will be shown to your seat by a sidesperson.
Movement around the church will be via a one-way system.
During the service:
There will be no singing. (This is because of the potential for increased risk of transmission from aerosol droplets.)
At Holy Communion Services, only the bread will be distributed and receiving it will be optional.
After the service:
There will be no refreshments.
You should leave church promptly when the service is over.
Take care to remain socially distanced as you leave. This may be overseen by a sidesperson.
Again, hand sanitiser will be available at the door.
If you or anyone in your household develops symptoms of COVID-19 within 21 days of attending, then it is vital that you let us know by calling 01375 891254. Or one of the wardens.
I apologise for this long list but it is necessary for me to impart this information as part of our risk assessment and, hopefully, it will help us all to feel comfortable.
Also a reminder that Daily Hope, a free phone line of hymns, reflections and prayers, can be accessed on 0800 8048044.
Foodbank needs this week are sponge puddings, custard, jelly and savoury snacks. In non-food items they need deodorant, shampoo, washing powder and washing up liquid.
or by sending a cheque made payable to The Mission to Seafarers to The Rectory and I will make sure it gets sent to the right place.
Local prayer needs this week include Nicola, Hazel, Dave, Steve, Steve, Allan, Steve, Jane, Dawn and Roy. Prayers for the Sixth Sunday of Trinity on our Diocesan Prayer Diary are for the men and women of the RNLI and HM Coastguard, who risk their lives to protect those who travel the seas around our coast. We are also asked to pray for the Episcopal Church in the Philippines and The Most Reverend Joel Atiwag Pachao, Prime Bishop.
As ever, please let me know about any prayer or pastoral needs and be assured of my prayers for all of you.
Having written a long letter last week, this week’s message is brief in comparison and, as things unfold, whilst I will remain in touch to keep you informed, it is unlikely that I will be writing on a weekly basis, from now on, although I am aware that some of you like to receive Lectionary Readings, so I will give this some thought…
On Sunday 19th July, we will be holding our first church service in the Benefice since the beginning of the lockdown. This will be a short Holy Communion Service at Orsett Church at 10am. Please be aware that, at this stage, no singing is allowed and that social distancing and the necessary precautions will be in place. If this works efficiently, the plan is to hold weekly United Benefice services alternating between Orsett and Horndon so, all being well, the following week, on 26th July, the service will be at Horndon. Because of the small size of Bulphan Church and the fact that it is not possible to introduce a one-way system, Sunday services will not be held at Bulphan at this present time. However, Bulphan Church will continue to be open for individual private prayer on Monday and Thursday mornings between 10am and 12.00, along with Horndon on Tuesday and Saturday mornings, also from 10am until 12.00.
Having a booking system for church services seems contrary to the ethos of being welcoming, particularly to newcomers. However, it would be helpful if you could let me know whether you intend to come to church on 19th and how many members of your household this might include. Please could you also let me know if, at this stage, you don’t feel ready to come back to church so that we can plan accordingly; my contact details are at the top of this letter. If you are coming, you may wish to bring your own bible, to follow the readings as our pew bibles have been put away for the time being.
This Sunday will be our last online service in its present form, as we begin returning to church. However, I am considering how we might be able to record or livestream our church services in the future so that those of you who are not comfortable or able to return to public worship might still be able to share in the worship. I will keep you informed about progress which will require some thought as none of our churches currently have wifi. At the moment we will continue the livestreamed Morning and Evening Prayer and it is hoped that we may be able to continue some of these services in the future and, again, I will keep you informed, in due course, as to when and how often we might be able to do this.
Our online service this Sunday, as mentioned in last week’s letter, will celebrate The Mission to Seafarers when we remember the work of our dear friend, Glyn Jones, their former Secretary General. If you would like to make a donation to the Mission to Seafarers, you can click on,
With regard to the foodbank, needs this week include savoury treats for adults ie cheese biscuits, cream crackers or savoury biscuits, breakfasat bars, cheese twirls, breadsticks etc and they are also short of tinned rice. sponge puddings, tinned fruit (preferably not peaches), custard and jelly.
The Lectionary Readings for this week, beginning 13th July, are
Don’t forget you can also access Daily Hope, a free phone line of hymns, reflections and prayers, on 0800 8048044.
Local prayer needs this week include Nicola, Hazel, Dave, Steve, Steve, Jane, Dawn and Roy. Please pray for those affected by the crane collapse on the houses in Bow. And, of course, we remember all those whose lives are lived on God’ s great oceans and we give thanks for the work and inspiration of The Mission to Seafarers and pray for all agencies who work amongst seafarers. You may like to use the following prayer in your personal devotions.
Lord God, Creator of land and sea, bless those who work at sea. Be with them in fair weather and foul, in danger or distress. Strengthen them when weary, lift them up when down and comfort them when far from their loved ones. In this life, bring them safely to shore and, in the life to come, welcome them to your kingdom. For Jesus Christ’s sake, Amen. (From the Mission to Seafarers).
Thank you, so much, to all of you who during the past 4 months, have faithfully kept an eye on the Churches in the Benefice, tended the churchyards, phoned parishioners, delivered letters, cakes and shopping to others, assisted with readings and prayers for our online services and Max, with talks, and, more recently, thank you to those who have helped with risk assessments and cleaning in preparation for reopening. And, of course, your continued great support for Thurrock Foodbank, who anticipate an increased demand for the foreseeable future is greatly appreciated.
As ever, please continue to let me know about any prayer or pastoral needs and be assured of my prayers for all of you.
Now we are in July, we are approaching Sea Sunday, July 12th when we remember not only the work of the Mission to Seafarers but, in particular, our dear friend Glyn Jones, their former Secretary General who sadly died on Easter Monday this year, following a long illness. After the success of our online Christian Aid Appeal in May, I thought it would be good to do something similar for the Mission to Seafarers and we are fortunate to have been able to set up an online appeal for their work, in memory of Glyn; if you wish to donate, all you need to do is click on,
And thank you, Ron, for the thoughtful words you wrote about Glyn which are included on this page.
Reflecting upon mission, thank you for your continued fantastic support for Thurrock Foodbank. Items needed this week are sponge puddings, cooking sauces and jellies; shampoo, shower gel, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant and nappies size 4, 5 and 6 are in particularly short supply.
As we prepare to open Bulphan and Horndon Churches for private prayer next week, as below, please can I remind you that this is for individual private prayer with the appropriate 2 metre social distancing in place, and not for social gatherings. Therefore, please could I ask that you adhere to the regulations displayed, to make our worship spaces as safe as possible for all. We all need to be mindful that some people may not feel able or comfortable to return to our church buildings at present and that this may be the case for the foreseeable future and I ask for your continued support in ensuring no one feels excluded.
Bulphan will be open on Monday and Thursday mornings from 10am until 12.00, beginning on Monday 6th July.
Horndon will be open on Tuesday and Saturday mornings from 10am until 12.00 beginning on Tuesday 30th June.
Our 10am Sunday online service will continue this week at hobnob.org.uk/watch or you can join in with our daily Facebook Morning and Evening Prayer services @HOBNOBChurches, and don’t forget you can also access Daily Hope, a free phone line of hymns, reflections and prayers, on 0800 8048044.
As you will be aware, the Government has issued some more information with regard to Sunday worship in our Church buildings and Church of England Guidance on this was released yesterday. I am, currently in the process of assimilating the documents but am looking towards introducing United Benefice Services on a Sunday. Coupled with this, as I have mentioned previously, the Church of England has recognised that out of this COVID-19 crisis, new patterns of ministry have emerged. Philip North, the Bishop of Burnley, said,
‘The crisis is showing patterns that can enable the Church to recapture imaginations with the Gospel……We need to shrug off the instinct for safety and be ready to risk everything-even our bank balances- in the mission that Christ calls us to share with him. But then, since Jesus has already won the victory, what have we got to lose? The Church Times, 26th June, 2020.
I suspect, had it been suggested in January that we abandon all services in our Church buildings for three months and record Sunday services on Youtube, and live-stream Morning and Evening Prayer on Facebook each day, it might have been met with some resistance, not least from me! I am sure that many of us would have been very fearful. In fact, my recollection is that the discussion as to whether we should have a church Facebook page, some time ago, ran into debate of several hours, if one was to total up all the meetings at which it was deliberated! But, actually, since the beginning of the lockdown, online or telephone services for many people have become the norm.
In a study conducted by Tearfund, over a month ago, it was discovered that a quarter of adults in the UK have watched or listened to a religious service since the coronavirus lockdown began, and one in 20 have started praying during the crisis. The Church of England had found high numbers of people tuning into online or broadcast services, and 6,000 people phoned a prayer hotline in its first 48 hours of operation. A third of young adults aged between 18 and 34 had watched or listened to an online or broadcast religious service, compared with one in five adults over the age of 55. One in five of those who have tuned into services in the past few weeks say they have never gone to church.
So I think it can be said that the Church, generally, as well as locally, has risen to the occasion and in this Benefice I thank you for your support. We now, thanks to the help of Lynda Robertson, have nearly 300 people on our church data base and we also have 176 followers on our Facebook page. You may be aware that, on average, each day, between 20 and 30 people have joined in with our Morning or Evening Prayer services. And each Sunday, usually between 15 and 38 households worship with our online service.
You may, also, however, be aware of the concerning financial situation within the Church of England, and that clergy posts in our Diocese are in the process of being coded as Green, Amber or Red, with Green meaning a post is viable, Amber it is desirable, finances permitting, and Red, it is no longer viable. Ability to pay our share will be one factor taken into consideration with what has been termed the ‘RAG’ process, but the main factor is whether a post is of strategic importance, hence we need to be looking, seriously, at our strategies in this Benefice, in order to engage as many people as possible with the good news of the Gospel. It is a well-known fact that, prior to the coronavirus, Church of England Sunday church attendance was in steady decline but the above statistics reveal that hunger for God is not waning. Through this terrible pandemic I do believe that ‘God has revealed to the Church new insights and new ways of being faithful to the Gospel.’ The Church Times 26th June 2020.
The question for us now is, how do we move forward?
Friends, I believe this is a time of great opportunity; opportunity to reflect upon our current way of doing things, in order to share the love of Jesus with as wide a range of people as possible and this may mean, using the analogy of of abseiling, leaning back into the unknown from a somewhat scary precipice, trusting in the rope, the hands of the Almighty, in order to experience the exhilaration of the new adventure with God which, potentially, lies before us.
As I said in my letter a few weeks ago, we have beautiful, historic buildings which have been cherished and nurtured for centuries, and within which prayers have been offered to God by people through many generations, for which we are thankful. Our buildings are important sacred spaces, and, in another survey, recently carried out by Andrew Village and Leslie Francis, 67% of church people regarded buildings to be central to the Church’s witness but another 63% also believe now to be time to rethink the church’s future…..
So how do we use and share our buildings but, also, how do we move away from our dependence upon them and our expectation that people will come to them on a Sunday morning?
How, when and where do we do church in a manageable way, in order both to fulfil the needs of current members and engage with the many others in our communities who are searching for God?
How, moving forward, do we conduct worship in a meaningful, inclusive way, whilst embracing some elements of technology because, clearly, we live in a digital age?
These are hard questions which, if we are to be sustainable in the future, we cannot avoid addressing.
I understand that many of us are looking forward to returning to our buildings but we also need to learn from the past three months. I believe we have risen to the challenges the coronavirus has imposed upon us, and that we can rise to the challenges of what might God might be calling us to embrace now as the ‘new normal.’
In order to consider how we might approach the future for our church community and our worship, I will be sending out an online survey for completion in the next few weeks and ask that you do take the time to prayerfully consider and answer the questions. I invite you, whatever your age, to join me in this new adventure as, together, we stand at the top of a precipice ready to trust the arms of our loving Father, as we step, or even leap, into the unknown, knowing that God will never leave us or forsake us.
Psalm: 56; 2 Samuel 2: 1-11; 3.1 Luke 18: 31-19.10
Monday 6thThomas More, scholar, and John Fisher, bishop, martyrs, 1535
Psalm: 80; Judges 13: 1-24 Luke 17: 20-end
Psalm: 85; Job 33 Romans 14: 13-end
Tuesday 7th
Psalm: 89: 1-18; Judges 14 Luke 18: 1-14
Psalm: 89: 19-end; Job 38 Romans 15: 1-13
Wednesday 8th
Psalm: 119: 105-128 Judges 15: 1-16.3; Luke 18: 15-30
Psalm: 91; Job 39 Romans 15: 14-21
Thursday 9th
Psalm: 92; Judges 16: 4-end Luke 18: 31-end
Psalm: 94; Job 40 Romans 15: 22-end
Friday 10th
Psalm: 88; Judges 17 Luke 19: 1-10
Psalm: 102; Job 41 Romans 16: 1-16
Saturday 11thBenedict, abbot, c.550
Psalm: 97; Judges 18: 1-20, 27-end; Luke 19: 11-27
Psalm: 104; Job 42 Romans: 16: 17-end
Local prayer needs this week include Nicola, Hazel, Dave, Steve, Steve, Jane, Dawn, Lyn, Roy, Mark, Derek and Alastair. Please continue to pray for those recently bereaved, including the family of Colin, Suzarne’s brother-in-law and, in particular, Colin’s wife, Diane, also our former Archdeacon, Mina, and her husband, Chris, following the tragic death of their two daughters in a London park, and those affected by the stabbings in Reading and Glasgow. Louise Bradshaw and Kevin McAlpin are due to be married this Saturday, so please hold them in your prayers. We are also asked to pray for the work of the Hockerill Foundation, which provides grants to teachers in training from this Diocese, St Albans’ Diocese and others, especially those studying Religious Education. We are also asked to pray for the United Church of Pakistan, the Most Reverend Humphrey Peters, Moderator and Bishop of Peshawar.
As ever, please continue to let me know about any prayer or pastoral needs and be assured of my prayers for all of you.
I am delighted that, thanks to those of you who have worked hard to clean, all our churches are ready to open for individual private prayer, as follows.
Bulphan will be open on Monday and Thursday mornings from 10am until 12.00, beginning on Monday 6th July.
Horndon will be open on Tuesday and Saturday mornings from 10am until 12.00 beginning on Tuesday 30th June. (Please note that whilst we fully intend, in the future, to reinstate the ‘open church’ coffee mornings,when safe to do so, at present this is not allowed and the church will be open for individual private prayer only.)
In addition, St John’s Church, Corringham, will be open on Wednesday mornings from 10am until 12.00,beginning on Wednesday 1st July andSt Margaret’s Church, Stanford-le-Hope, will be open on Friday mornings at the same time, beginning on Friday 3rd July.
Funerals, weddings and baptisms are now permitted with the appropriate restrictions in place which, at the current time, in this Benefice, will be conducted mostly at Horndon and Orsett due to their larger buildings. I am sure you will also be aware that the Government has stated that Sunday worship is permitted to begin at the beginning of July. Please note that they have said permitted, not mandatory, and whilst I know some of you may be keen to begin worshipping in church again, I am asking for your patience as we begin to consider when and how it might be safe and appropriate to do this and what form worship might take within the current restrictions. For example, we will not be able to have hymns books or service books and, whilst church liturgy is familiar to some people, it is not familiar to everyone. This will, therefore, require some prayer and creativity if we are to continue to make our services engaging for all as I hope, together, we have achieved during the lockdown. Certainly I have received some positive feedback and, as churches we have been encouraged by the Bishops to build upon the positive things that have been learned during the lockdown. So please can I ask for your prayer and support in this matter.
Last week I sent a list of 6 questions for us to use as a template for our Benefice response to the Diocesan appeal for our views regarding the kind of person we think would be appropriate as our new Bishop of Chelmsford. The deadline for your responses was today, 26th June and, as yet, only one person has replied! You may have already sent your own personal response to the Diocese following my previous mailing, but, if you haven’t, please could I ask you to give the questions below some consideration and send me your thoughts on one or all of them by tomorrow, 27th June.
Can you tell us what you value most about the Church in your community as well as across Essex and East London?
What challenges does the Church face in East London and Essex as we seek to share the Good News of Jesus?
What wider issues would you like our next Bishop of Chelmsford to be passionate about?
What qualities, skills or leadership characteristics will our next Bishop of Chelmsford require?
What kind of person will our next Bishop of Chelmsford need to be (particularly as we emerge from the coronavirus pandemic)?
What else would you like to tell us?
The Lectionary Readings for the week beginning 28th June are, as follows.
DAY
Morning Prayer
Evening Prayer
Monday 29thSaint Peter & Paul, Apostles
Psalm: 71, 113,Isaiah 49: 1-6 John 21: 15-22
Psalm: 124, 138, Ezekiel 34: 11-16 Psalm: 125
Tuesday 30th
Psalm: 73, Judges 9: 1-21 Luke 15: 11-end
Psalm: 74, Job 28 Romans 12: 1-8
Wednesday 1stHenry, John and Henry Venn, priests, evangelical divines, 1797, 1813, 1873
Psalm: 77, Judges 9: 22-end Luke 16: 1-18
Psalm: 119: 81-104 Job 29, Romans 12: 9-end
Thursday 2nd1st EP of Thomas the Apostle
Psalm: 78: 1-39, Judges 11: 1-11 Luke 16: 19-end
Psalm: 27, Isaiah: 35 Hebrews 10: 35-11.1
Friday 3rdThomas the Apostle
Psalm: 92, 146, 2 Samuel: 15: 17-21, John 11: 1-16
Psalm: 139, Job 42: 1-6 1 Peter 1: 3-12
Saturday 4th
Psalm: 76, Judges 12: 1-7 Luke 17: 11-19
Psalm: 84, Job 32 Romans: 14: 1-12
Also, a reminder that, if you are unable to access our online services at hobnob.org.uk/watch or our Facebook services @HOBNOBChurches, you can access Daily Hope, a free phone line of hymns, reflections and prayers, on 0800 8048044.
Thank you for your loyal support for the Foodbank. Items needed this week are brown sauce, gravy granules, ketchup, stuffing, jelly cubes, sponge puddings, shampoo, shower gel, toothpaste and toothbrushes, soap and handwash.
Local prayer needs this week include Nicola, Hazel, Dave, Steve, Steve, Jane, Dawn, Lyn, Roy, Mark, Derek and Alastair. Please continue to pray for those recently bereaved, including the family of Colin, Suzarne’s brother-in-law and, in particular, Colin’s wife, Diane, also our former Archdeacon, Mina, and her husband, Chris, following the tragic death of their two daughters in a London park, and those affected by the stabbings in the park in Reading. Louise Bradshaw and Kevin McAlpin are due to be married at Bulphan on 4th July, so please hold them in your prayers. We are also asked to pray for the Friends of Essex Churches Trust, The United Church of North India and The Most Reverend Dr Prem Chand Singh, Moderator and Bishop of Jabaipur.
As ever, please continue to let me know about any prayer or pastoral needs and please be assured of my prayers for all of you.
Over the past week I have been meeting with wardens to do risk assessments for when the church buildings re-open and I am pleased to let you know that, from the beginning of July, the churches in the Benefice will be open for funerals, albeit, with necessary restrictions in place, to enable social distancing etc. Because Bulphan Church is small with only one aisle, and unable to support a one-way system it will, at present, only be used for funeral services after which there is a burial in the churchyard.
With regard to churches opening for individual private prayer,
Bulphan will be open on Monday and Thursday mornings from 10am until 12.00, beginning on Monday 6th July.
Horndon will be open on Tuesday and Saturday mornings from 10am until 12.00 beginning on Tuesday 30th June. (Please note that whilst we fully intend, in the future, to reinstate the ‘open church’ coffee mornings,when safe to do so, at present this is not allowed and the church will be open for individual private prayer only.)
In addition, St John’s Church, Corringham, will be open on Wednesday mornings from 10am until 12.00,beginning on Wednesday 1st July andSt Margaret’s Church, Stanford-le-Hope, will be open on Friday mornings at the same time, beginning on Friday 3rd July.
You may remember a few weeks ago, I sent you some information about the discernment process to appoint our new Bishop of Chelmsford. I hope that some of you might have sent a response, and, if you have, thank you for taking the time to pray and consider this. If you haven’t had a chance to do it yet, there is still an opportunity and I am planning to send a response from our Benefice at the end of June so would be grateful for any answers to the questions below by next Friday 26th June. It is important that we send our views so, even if you only have an answer to one of the questions, please send it to me and I will make sure I include it with our submission. You can email me, phone, or put a note through the door. The questions are,
Can you tell us what you value most about the Church in your community as well as across Essex and East London?
What challenges does the Church face in East London and Essex as we seek to share the Good News of Jesus?
What wider issues would you like our next Bishop of Chelmsford to be passionate about?
What qualities, skills or leadership characteristics will our next Bishop of Chelmsford require?
What kind of person will our next Bishop of Chelmsford need to be (particularly as we emerge from the coronavirus pandemic)?
What else would you like to tell us?
The Lectionary Readings for the week beginning 22nd June are, as follows.
Day
Morning Prayer
Evening Prayer
Monday 22ndAlban, first martyr of Britain, c250
Psalm: 44, Judges 2, Luke 13: 1-9
Psalm: 47, Job 19, Romans 9: 1-18
Tuesday 23rdEtheldra, abbess, c678.1st EP of Birth of John the Baptist
Psalm: 48, Judges 4: 1-23 Luke 12: 13-21
Psalm: 71, Judges 13: 2-7,24-end Luke 1: 5-25
Wednesday 24thBirth of John the BaptistEmber Day
Psalms: 50, 149, Ecclesiasticus 48: 1-10, Luke 3: 1-17
Psalms: 80, 82, Malachi 4 Matthew 11: 2-19
Thursday 25th
Psalm: 57, Judges 6: 1-24 Luke 14: 1-11
Psalm: 62, Job: 23 Romans 10: 11-end
Friday 26th Ember Day
Psalm: 51, Judges 6: 25-end Luke 14: 12-24
Psalm: 38, Job 24 Romans 11: 1-12
Saturday 27th Cyril, bishop, teacher of the faith, 444. Ember Day
Psalm: 68, Judges 7 Luke 14: 25-end
Psalm: 66, Job 25-26 Romans: 11: 13-24
Also, to let you know that, if you are unable to access our online services at hobnob.org.uk/watch or our Facebook services @HOBNOBChurches, you can access Daily Hope, a free phone line of hymns, reflections and prayers, on 0800 8048044, and when you phone you will hear a welcome message from the Archbishop of Canterbury!!
Items urgently needed at the Foodbank this week are brown sauce, gravy granules, jelly, ketchup, sponge puddings and toiletries. Thank you, so much, for your ongoing practical and prayer support; it is greatly appreciated.
Local prayer needs this week include Nicola, Hazel, Dave, Steve, Steve, Jane, Dawn, Lyn and Roy. Please also continue to pray for those recently bereaved, including our former Archdeacon, Mina, and her husband, Chris, following the tragic death of their two daughters in a London park. Please pray for our local area coordinators and local councillors. As well as being Father’s Day, this Sunday is Refugee Sunday, when we are called to hold before God all those who flee to other countries, or are internally displaced within their own country, due to famine, plagues, war, persecution, discrimination, natural disasters like floods and earthquakes, or to escape dire poverty. We are asked to pray for all organisations, churches and communities who are working tirelessly to care for refugees. Other prayer requests, as part of the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, are for the Anglican Church in Nigeria and the Most Revd Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba, Metropolitan and Primate, and, of course, the current discernment process to find the right person to serve us as the Bishop of Chelmsford and East London.
As ever, please continue to let me know about any prayer or pastoral needs; please be assured of my prayers for all of you and know that each one of you is deeply loved by God.
