Old Heath Parish and Community Magazine July 2019 50P
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Old Heath Parish and Community Magazine July 2019 50p The Household Cavalry, a premiere regiment of the Royal Guard. Read more inside. Household Cavalry In a previous magazine we highlighted the splendour of our Guards Regiments and their different uniforms. This month we explain the Household Cavalry. Often called the Blues and Royals and the Life Guards. So what is the Household Cavalry? The Household Cavalry is formed by the British Army’s two most senior regiments: The Life Guards and The Blues & Royals. It has an Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment, the Household Cavalry Regiment (HCR) in Windsor, and for ceremonial duties the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR) in London. Today’s Household Cavalry and its four antecedent regiments (The 1st and 2nd Life Guards, and The Royal Horse Guards (The Blues) and the 1st (Royal) Dragoons) have fought in all of the British Army’s major campaigns since 1660. 1660: Just before the Restoration of King Charles II, a Royal Mounted Bodyguard is formed in Holland from 80 Royalists who had gone into exile with the King after the Battle of Worcester in 1651. After the restoration in 1660, The Life Guards are officially recognised as the unit to provide his personal escort and guard at his Whitehall Palace. 1813 The Royal Horse Guards are especially favoured by King George III and, with the appointment of the Duke of Wellington as Colonel, are elevated to the status of Household Cavalry in recognition of their distinguished service. They now commence Sovereign’s escort and guard duties with The Life Guards. 1815 The Life Guards, Royal Horse Guards and Royal Dragoons all distinguish themselves at the Battle of Waterloo. The Royal Dragoons capture the eagle Standard of Napoleon’s 105th Regiment which today forms part of the Blues & Royals cypher. 1922 The 1st and 2nd Life Guards amalgamate and are called “The Life Guards (1st and 2nd)” until 1928 when they are renamed “The Life Guards”. Page | 2 My dear friends, What a mixed bag the last month has been for me. Just about every emotion has passed through my heart and soul. It began on a low with the news of my dad’s death and the end of a family era. Dad was the last of the generation. As I have already told you, he was a ripe old age and had seen just about everything from the horror of war to the peace and tranquillity of a log retirement. His funeral was uplifting and to our family’s delight the church was packed for his funeral. Soon after I was uplifted by the wonderful wedding of Sam and Hannah followed by the joyful baptism of Robert, Jenna and Rupert. Five funerals quickly followed where families, though grief stricken were also uplifted by the love for their departed loved one and the joy of celebrating those precious lives. All these emotions which are so important and reflect the cycle of life and community. Then came D Day and a reminder of the supreme sacrifice that all those men and women made in order to keep us free. The tears flowed as I watched the commemorations and reflected on the horror of war. On 10th June I went into our wonderful school and told the children all about St. Barnabas and how important it is to celebrate our Community of Old Heath and the fact that our church and school will be 150 years old next year; which calls for a party! The children were certainly ‘up’ for that. I cannot express easily what a joy it is to see the enthusiasm on our children’s faces as they listen and tell me what they think about things and what ideas they have for the celebrations. We should be very proud of our school. Then came St. Barnabas Day (11thJune) where we celebrate our Patron Saint of Old Heath and give thanks for our beautiful church. A good crowd joined in the Page | 3 celebration and we enjoyed social time afterwards. For me personally it was a very special St. Barnabas Day because (and some of you will have heard on the grapevine) I was able to tell the congregation that I have been made a Canon. (No not a big gun! That would be a cannon) It is a great honour which was bestowed upon me by Bishop Matthias and I hope to go to Ghana soon (Where Bishop Matthias has his cathedral) to be installed. My title ‘Canon’ came in to effect on 6th June but the ceremony is later. By the way I will still be Father Richard to you all so no need for the ‘Canon’ word in daily conversation! So much concentrated in such a short time is quite exhausting on top of all the day to day running of the parish, but also uplifting. I had some visitors at my door during this time (religious people) and their opening line as always was to tell me what a terrible state the world is in and how awful so many people are. Clearly, despite my clerical collar, they thought that they could persuade me that the only way to enjoy life was to join them and condemn everyone else. This always irritates me! I pointed out that the world is ,in fact, beautiful and that in my experience most people are beautiful, kind (Yes, I know we can be grumpy too!) and a privilege to share the journey of life with. In my address on St. Barnabas Day I reflected on Barnabas’s character – ‘For he was a Good Man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.’ He is known as the ‘Son of consolation’ in church circles because he devoted his life in service of others and especially those who found life tough. He is often the Patron Saint of the poorer parts of our Towns and Cities because he is the man who encouraged and supported those who worked hard and often for little reward. His life came to an abrupt end because he refused to abandon his love of God and of God’s people; he was executed (martyred) in 61 AD on the Island of Cyprus. Each one of us make sacrifices every day for our loved ones, for our place of work and for our community and sometimes it weighs heavy on us. However, unlike those people who knocked on my door, I see those sacrifices as sign that we love and support each other no matter what hits us and that, like Barnabas, our calling is to console and to encourage and to rejoice. A chapter has closed in my life but I have wonderful memories. A new chapter has open and I look forward to exciting times ahead in my own life and in the life of our parish. In the Gospel we hear that no one has greater love than this –that he lay down his life for his friends. Jesus and Barnabas and all those heroes of WW2 gave their life’s blood for us. I hope we will not be called to give our lives in that way but, perhaps, we are called to give our lives in service and love. I hope that you will have a happy July and that the sun will shine on us. HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Father Richard, Your priest and Vicar. Page | 4 Daily Prayers in July Monday 1st Healing in our lives Tuesday 2nd Families and family life Wednesday 3rdFaith to confess the Lord Thursday 4th The hungry and homeless Friday 5th The Hospital Chaplaincy team Saturday 6th Residents of Harwood Close Sunday 7th The parish/that we may share our faith Monday 8th The Emergency Services Tuesday 9th The Catholic group in Synod Wednesday 10thHealing for the sick and suffering Thursday 11th Religious communities Friday 12th Courage to do the right thing Saturday 13th The farming community in this area Sunday 14th The parish /Care for our neighbour Monday 15th The churchwardens and PCC Tuesday 16th The Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham Wednesday 17thChildren leaving primary school soon Thursday 18th Renewal for lapsed Christians Friday 19th Greater fellowship among us Saturday 20th Those who care for the sick Sunday 21st The parish /that we may heed Our Lord`s teaching Monday 22nd Loyal and loving witness to the Lord Tuesday 23rd Vocations to the sacred ministry Wednesday 24th That we may stay alert in our faith Thursday 25th That we may become fishers of men/St. James parish Friday 26th Teachers and children on holiday Saturday 27th Peace in the world and in our hearts Sunday 28th The parish/that all may find the Lord Monday 29th Residents of Haven Road Tuesday 30th Those who help to maintain our community Wednesday 31st Deeper understanding of the scriptures Page | 5 Holy Days in July St. Thomas the Apostle Wednesday 3rd July St. Thomas was one of the twelve disciples. He was devoted to Jesus and at one stage even offered to die with him. (John 11.6) He missed the appearance of the Risen Lord to the disciples and their tale of the Resurrection seemed to be too good to be true. His disbelief has earned him the rather unfair nickname of “Doubting Thomas.” When Jesus appeared again a few days later, Thomas confessed, “My Lord and my God.” (John 20.28) He is believed to have preached the Gospel in India and to have been martyred in Mylapore or Calamina. His tomb is believed to be in the cathedral of Tomas in Chennai (Madras) one of only three cathedrals in the world built over the tomb of an apostle, the other two being St.