Great Meeting Chapel Newsletter

February and March 2009

Chapel built in 1708

300 years of freedom, reason and tolerance Great Meeting Chapel Newsletter for February and March 2009

SERVICES IN FEBRUARY

Sunday 1st 11am The Minister

Sunday 8th 11am The Minister

Sunday 15th 3pm Rev. P Timperley

Sunday 22nd 11am The Minister

SERVICES IN MARCH

Sunday 1st 11am The Minister

Sunday 8th 11am The Minister

Sunday 15th 3pm The Minister

Sunday 22nd 11am Mothering Sunday The Minister

Sunday 29th 11am The Minister

Items intended for inclusion in the Spring edition of the Newsletter should be in the minister’s hands no later than Sunday 15th March, if possible. Thank you.

DIARY FOR FEBRUARY

Sunday 1st 3pm Loughborough Unitarians meet.

Saturday 7th 10.30am-12.30pm Coffee Shop

Sunday 8th 12.30pm Lunch in the Garden Room followed by a visit to Exhibition at New Walk Museum.

Saturday 14th 10.30am -12.30pm Coffee Shop

Saturday 21st 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop

Saturday 28th 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop

DIARY FOR MARCH

Sunday 1st 3pm Loughborough Unitarians meet.

Saturday 7th 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop 2.30pm East Midland Unitarians Quarterly Meeting, at Chapel.

Saturday 14th 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop

Saturday 21st 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop

Saturday 28th 10.30am - 12.30pm Coffee Shop

Dates and times of the Vestry and Making Things Happen Group meetings will be announced from the pulpit. From The Minister…...

Dear Friends,

During recent weeks our Caretaker Stephen has been doing an excel- lent job of keeping our ancient chapel clock wound and quietly ticking away.

Set high up in the balcony it is strategically placed so that during the service the congregation cannot easily see it, and only the minister can keep his eye on the time as he rambles his way through the Sun- day sermon!

I don’t imagine that very many of us have wind-up clocks at home any more. The bothersome chore of turning the key every evening has been replaced by the battery and the lovely old tick of the clock- work mechanism has been either lost or replaced by an artificial tick, which is somehow less comforting.

My family was given a battery-operated clock last Christmas and one which at first acquaintance we felt uncertain about and couldn’t ini- tially think where we might like to put it on display.

However we have changed our minds about it completely.

It is a bird-song clock, rather like a modern day version of a cuckoo clock such as Annie had in her bedroom as a child. However instead of chiming or cuckooing there is a different bird-call on the hour. At midnight the owl hoots , and in the morning you can be awakened by the call of a blackbird or a song thrush. Illustrations of the birds sit by the numerals. It is light-sensitive, so that as in nature, during the hours of darkness silence prevails.

As I say we have all grown to love it. Especially on the dark winter days when the light is weak outside and the poor birds are rarely heard, the twittering comes as a happy surprise and cheers us with its promise of warmer days to come.

Our clocks mark the passage of time.

It’s how those hours are spent that is significant.

As springtime approaches, may all our days be filled with optimism and peace.

With warm good wishes,

Arthur

Winter Sunshine

On one of the sunshine Warm winter days My hearth joins its signal To the evening haze

And on street corners The street lamps glare As dark birds fly Through the still bright air.

I found a flower In the afternoon Come out of the black ground Much too soon

And a butterfly With its brilliant wings Lay on the pavement Trembling.

Tonight stars shall Shine glittering cold Where the earth was brushed By a touch of gold

A.S Chapel outing to “Simply Cinderella” at Curve……..

It is difficult to review “Simply Cinderella” positively.

What is hard to understand is why any director should choose this particular production to inaugurate a spanking new theatre recently opened by Her Majesty the Queen.

I felt, as Cinderella herself said once or twice, “I don’t know what’s going on…”, and as the story unfolded I was left not any the wiser. Good points included the live music and the ambitious sets, all of which worked well.

Nevertheless, not to pull any punches, in my opinion, it was a terrible show. But that was not the fault of the performers.

Oddly enough, many members of the congregation seemed to have a reasonably good time. Some, especially the children, loved it despite all the obvious failings. It was just good to be out together doing something sociable and entertaining (in the most generous sense of the word).

Some 27 of us including children attended, and we are grateful to An- nie for organising the arrangements and bookings for everyone. I personally came away thinking that I hope it will not be too long be- fore Chapel does another theatre outing to Curve again, perhaps this time to something --- (what’s the word I’m looking for?) --- good !

Arthur Down Memory Lane…….

After mention of Cathedrals in Arthur’s sermon of late, I was reminded of a poem from my schooldays. I had been asked to select a poem of my choice to recite at the end of term concert; I chose ‘The Cathedral’. I could only recall the first two lines and many times on visiting these wonderful old buildings I would say them to myself.

But through the magic of the internet Annie managed to trace the whole poem and its author– and here it is!

The Cathedral

“The high embower’d roof With antique pillars, mossy proof, And storied windows, richly dight, Casting a dim religious light. There let the pealing organ blow To the full-voiced choir below, In service high and anthems clear As may with sweetness through mine ear Dissolve me into ecstasies, And bring all Heaven before mine eyes.”

Taken from “ A Summer Vacation” By Lucia Barney Downing. 1907

Freda Betts Craft and Design: Ernest Gimson and the

This is the title of a new exhibition focusing on Pair of brass and steel firedogs, the work of -born Ernest Gimson at c.1904. Courtesy of New Walk New Walk Museum & Art Gallery, Leicester. It Museum & Gallery. opened on 8th November and runs until 1st March. There is a particular association with Great Meeting. Although Ernest and his brother Sydney were major figures in the Leicester Secular Society, their brother Josiah Mentor and sister Margaret were members of the Great Meeting.

The exhibition has examples of Gimson’s furni- ture and that of his partners, Ernest and Sidney Barnsley and , at the Sapperton workshops in the . Although best known for his furniture, the exhibition demonstrates Gimson’s interest in metal work, his architectural interests, including his designs for Canberra, the new capital of . There are examples from the Museum collection of all these crafts.

In Ernest Gimson is perhaps best known for the cot- tages he built in for his brothers and sister, Lea, and Rockyfield. Many a chapel outing was held at Lea Cottage at the invitation of Russell and his son and daughter-in-law, Ben and Gwen Gimson.

Ebony Box (1910) Cherry lined box inlaid with silver and ivory. Enest Gimson 1864 -1919.

(Copyright Leicester City Council, with kind permission)

Pictured above: A Great Meeting Congregational outing to Lea Cottage.

You will have the opportunity to judge the exhibition for yourself dur- ing the Chapel outing on Sunday 8th February. I and my sister, Mar- garet, did not find it entirely satisfactory. It mixes the modern with ex- amples of the original Gimson and Barnsley furniture. There could have been more on the houses and cottages that Gimson designed which are only briefly covered.

Ben and Gwen Gimson. There is still plenty of interest. David Wykes

Thanks to Freda for identifying some of our forebears pictured at Lea Cottage before the Great War.

1. Richard Mason (Freda’s Father). 2 3 2. Rev. Edgar Fripp. 1 3. Ernest Northfold

4. Lily Blackwell 5. Mrs Lilley 4 5 (Dr E Lilley’s Wife) 6. Sophie Flower 7. Maud Wells

(Mother of George Baker and Betty 6 7 8 Meadows). 8. Edith Flower (Mother of Freda and Margaret Mason). Gini’s Poem

Gini died in Illinois just before Christmas aged 90. She was the foster mother of a good friend and, for nearly 60 years, had loved her adopted daughter as her own. Gini never professed any interest in spiritual matters so it was a great surprise to find this poem at the top of her personal papers. This poem, and the circumstances surround- ing it have been a rich source of contemplation. There is no indication of who wrote it, but may it be of benefit to everyone.

A Poem for Today

God and I

God and I in a place alone And nobody else in view. "And where are the people, O Lord," I said, “The earth beneath and the sky o’erhead, And the dead, whom I once knew?"

"That was only a dream,” God smiled, and said, "A dream that has ceased to be true, No earth beneath and no sky o’erhead, There was only myself and you."

"And why do I feel no fear," I said "Meeting you here, this way; For I have sinned, I know full well And is there no heaven, and is there no hell And - is this the Judgement Day?"

"Nay, these were but dreams," the great God said, "Dreams that have ceased to be. There are no such things as fear and sin; And you yourself - you have never been - There is nothing at all but me."

In memory of Virginia Hardgrove.

Submitted by Tony Fletcher. Perception

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calcu- lated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work. The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tugged him along, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on. In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars. Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theatre in Boston and the seats average $100.00 each.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing some of the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing? With thanks to Richard Boeke. G M News ………….

CONGRATULATIONS

Warmest congratulations to Alec and Freda Betts who celebrate their Diamond Wedding Anniversary on 5th February 2009.

The happy couple are pictured here in front of Great Meeting following the ceremony conducted by Dr Hearn in 1949. Freda looking abso- lutely radiant and Alec as if he were the luckiest man in Leicester- Which he certainly was!

PS. We also extend our good wishes to Freda for a very Happy Birth- day on 4th February. Many happy returns!

News….

CONDOLENCES

We are very sorry to learn of the death on 12th December last of Gwen Satchwell, mother of Pam McIntosh. Our deepest sympathy is extended to Pam, Charles and all the family.

REV PATRICK TIMPERLEY

Patrick began his ministry at the Old Meeting House, Mansfield, on 1st January 09, and all at Great Meeting extend their best wishes to him and his new congregation. May they enjoy a long and happy associa- tion together.

COFFEE SHOP

The Great Meeting ’Coffee Shop’ has been well patronised since its opening on the 1st November 2008. Members have enjoyed having the opportunity of getting together on Saturday mornings as well as being able to show visitors around the Chapel.

Fairtrade ground coffee, tea and other beverages are on sale accom- panied by biscuits and cake.

Do come and join us from 10.30am - 12.30pm for a chat or quiet read of the newspaper, and browse the second hand bookstall.

Invite your family and friends and bring along those unwanted paper- backs that someone else might now enjoy. All sales in aid of Chapel funds.

If you are able to help with the ‘Coffee Shop’ on an occasional Saturday morning, please sign up on the rota sheet in the kitchen. News ….

MAKING THINGS HAPPEN!

The ‘Making Things Happen Group’ continues to meet regularly.

Following the success of last year’s tercentenary events suggestions have been put forward for a number of events and outings during the coming year, these include;

 Lunch in the Garden Room followed by a visit to the Ernest Gimson Exhibition at New Walk Museum.  Charity Concert by the Blackett-Howe Singers.  Visit to the Belper Chapel and the Strutt Mill.  Visit to Oxford and Harris Manchester College. To include lunch at the college and viewing of the Chapel.  Visit to London for a tour of the House of Commons.  A repeat of the ‘Open Garden’ event with Enderby Youth Band.  An evening with Ian Imlay, Professor David Hughes and Cantoris Martini.  Speaker Dr Jane Mackay on the subject of ‘Spirituality in Literature’.  Harvest Lunch.

It is also planned to re-establish the Great Meeting Fellowship in the form of talks/lectures on various issues and to arrange outings/ events of mutual interest. Anticipated events include a talk Alan Bailey and Tony Fletcher on ‘Darwinism’ and a speaker on ‘Welcoming Asy- lum Seekers and Refugees’ by an organisation working towards mak- ing Leicester a ‘City of Sanctuary’. Dates to be announced.

If you have any further suggestions for events or indeed ideas you would like to share, please join us at the next MTH meeting on Saturday 28th February,12.30 pm following the Coffee Shop, or alter- natively pass on your thoughts to the Minister.

It promises to be a busy and interesting time!

News ….

SPONSORED CHILD, KEVIN JOSE, UPDATE!

Some years ago Great Meeting Congregation joined with Alan and Cathy Bailey to help sponsor a child through the organisation ‘Plan’. The sponsored child’s name is Kevin Jose Tomala Orrala. He lives in Engabao, Equador with his parents Carlos and Dora and elder brother Carlos. Plan Equador works with Kevin Jose’s family and others like them to identify their most basic needs in health, education, housing and income. Through contribu- tions of manual labour, local materials, technical expertise or financial contributions Plan helps to ensure a brighter fu- ture for Kevin Jose and other children like him.

The most recent update from Plan reports that Kevin is now 11 years old. There have been no significant changes to his family life. He attends primary school and is in good health.

Thank you to Alan Bailey for sending us this most recent photograph of Kevin Jose.

Kevin Jose aged 11, pictured with his Mother.

If would like to contribute towards Kevin Jose’s continued sup- port there is a collection box in the Garden Room. Just a small donation each week will make a difference to Kevin Jose, his family and community.

News….

VISIT TO THE ERNEST GIMSON EXHIBITION

For all those interested in visiting this exhibition on Sunday 8th February there will be a lunch in the Garden Room following the morning service.

After lunch we will make our way to New Walk Museum for 2pm. David Wykes, great-great-nephew of Ernest Gimson, has kindly offered be our guide during the visit, which will certainly add interest and insight into Gimson’s life and achievements.

If you are able to join us please sign up on the sheet in the Garden Room .

STOP PRESS….

We are delighted to hear from David Wykes that Gweneth Gimson has been created a Member of the British Empire in the New Year’s Honours List for Voluntary Service in Ulverscroft, Leicestershire.

Warmest congratulations to Gwen on her well-deserved recognition.

CHAPEL FLOWERS

If you wish to donate and/or arrange flowers in Chapel to mark a spe- cial anniversary or simply take a turn, please sign up on the sheet pro- vided in the Garden Room or contact our Flower Secretary, Morag Jones. Great Meeting Coffee Shop

Every Saturday Morning

10.30am-12.30pm

Take respite from the hustle and bustle of the shops. Come and join us for a chat or a quiet read of the newspaper.

Fairtrade ground coffee, tea, soft drinks, cake and biscuits on sale.

Secondhand book stall. And Finally ……… .

“Father and Son” by Edmund Gosse

12th February 2009 marks the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Darwin author of the “Origin of Species” and creator of the (in some quarters still controversial) theory of evolution. Although an Anglican, Darwin was a long time attender at the Shrewsbury Unitarian Chapel.

The impact of the “Origin of Species” was as much in theological and religious terms as scientific.

And those interested in how this debate affected the lives of people at the time can do no better than to read the engrossing autobiography of Edmund Gosse, “Father and Son”.

As it says on the back cover of the Penguin Classics edition: Edmund Gosse’s father was a marine zoologist of considerable repute; he was also a Plymouth Brother and a man of such unbending and fundamental Christianity that , in an effort to reconcile geology and Genesis, he publicly challenged the findings of Darwin and others during the controversy over evolution. But what he did to the mind of his brilliant and sensitive son was far worse.

That Edmund remained sane is extraordinary. He triumphed over the stifling dogmas of his childhood to write this gentle masterpiece.

Edmund not only survived the turmoil of his youth, but married and fathered three children of his own. He became a lecturer at Cam- bridge, then librarian to the House of Lords. He was knighted towards the end of his long life, and passed away in 1928 at the age of 79.

I remember recommending “Father and Son” to a friend many years ago. I later asked if he was enjoying it, he replied" I'm not enjoying it , I’m loving it!” I hope you do too. Arthur

G M on the map………. DIRECTORY:

MINISTER: Rev Dr Arthur Stewart, 11 Herrick Close, Sileby, Loughborough, Leics, LE12 7RL. Tel: 01509 812236 Mobile: 07803895828 E-mail: [email protected]

PRESIDENT: Dr David Wykes F.R.Hist.S, 4 Quickthorns, Blackthorns, Oadby, Leicester, LE2 4EE. Tel: 0116 2710784 E-mail: [email protected]

CHAIRMAN: Sir Peter Soulsby MP, 288 Evington Road, Leicester, LE2 1HN. Tel: 0116 2217419 Mobile: 0771 517 4820 E-mail: [email protected]

TREASURER: Dr David Wykes F.R.Hist.S, 4 Quickthorns, Blackthorns, Oadby, Leicester, LE2 4EE. Tel: 0116 2710784 E-mail: [email protected]

ASSISTANT TREASURER: Lady Alison Soulsby 288 Evington Road, Leicester, LE2 1HN. Email: [email protected]

ACTING SECRETARY: Rev Dr Arthur Stewart, 11 Herrick Close, Sileby, Loughborough, Leics, LE12 7RL. Tel: 01509 812236 Mobile: 07803895828 E-mail: [email protected]

NEWSLETTER COMPILER: Mrs Annie Stewart 11 Herrick Close, Sileby, Loughborough, Leics. LE12 7RL. Tel. 01509 812236 Mobile:0773772381 Email: [email protected]

FLOWER SECRETARY: Mrs Morag Jones 10 Scraptoft Lane, Leicester LE5 1HU. Tel: 0116 2760400

ORGANISTS: Mr Mark Balding 458 Narborough Road, Leicester, LE3 2FT. Tel: 0116 2892203

Mr Qyan Arnachellum, 223 Glenfield Road, Western Park, Leicester, LE3 6DL Tel: 0116 2858502 Mobile: 07881953348

CARETAKER: Mr Stephen Lynch Mobile: 07811970859

CHAPEL WEBSITE: www.leicesterunitarians.co.uk

CHAPEL ADDRESS: Great Meeting Unitarian Chapel, 45 East Bond Street, Leicester, LE1 4SW.

Great Meeting

Unitarian Chapel

45 East Bond Street

Leicester LE1 4SX www.leicesterunitarians.co.uk