October 2020

St Mary the Virgin, Rievaulx

St Chad, Sproxton

All Saints, Helmsley St Mary Magdalene, East Moors

October 2020

50p

Dear friends,

As I write, I am listening to our Prime Minister once more announcing further restrictions on our lives, probably lasting for the next six months. We all know that these are necessary. I am pleased to note that public worship is not affected (except that the total number of people permitted in church for a wedding is now fifteen).

I have been encouraged and delighted by attendance at Church over the last months. I understand now that although the infection level is relatively low in Ryedale people will be feeling more anxious about being in close proximity to others. The online services have and will continue over the coming months. Please see below for details.

With very best wishes Tim Robinson

Every Sunday in Helmsley Church

8.00am Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer, said) 9.30am Parish Eucharist (Common Worship, with music)

Sunday online

11.00am Spiritual Holy Communion

Monday – Friday online

10.00am Morning Prayer

Every Wednesday in Helmsley Church

9.30am Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer, said)

First Sunday in the month in Helmsley

6.00pm Choral Evensong

Second Sunday in the month in Sproxton

11am Holy Communion

As announced

Services at East Moors and Rievaulx

Everyone is welcome to all our services

Poem chosen by Mary Stewart :- Author unknown - copied from a Radio Times in 1935!

There’s a glint of gold in the thorn bush By the side of a long white road, But it’s only a stray straw dangling there Caught from a harvest load.

And our memories, our golden memories, That we treasure, you and I, What are they more than a few lone straws From a waggon long passed by?

PILGRIM - online group

Every Tuesday at 3.00pm

Details / link from Tim

10th - 11th October

Sadly the harvest quiz we were planning on Friday 9th October is now not going ahead. If we are limiting social interaction to prevent the spread of COVID it would not be right to go ahead with this.

Annika and I look forward to receiving your harvest gifts, both fresh and dry/tinned, on Saturday 10th October, 10am – Noon. Gifts can also be brought on Sunday at 8am and 9.30am when we shall celebrate harvest.

REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY - 8th November

8am Said BCP Holy Communion 9.30 Eucharist with music 10.55 Gathering around the war memorial. Reading of the names on the War Memorial The Last post Two minutes silence Strict social distancing to be observed.

This year there will be no parade and no service in the church following the ceremony outdoors.

ANNUAL GIFT DAY 2020

Thank you so much to all those who kindly gave so generously on our Gift Day held in the market place on Friday 4th September. The total on the day was £1,686.19. If full Gift Aid is received, the total will increase to: £1,972.74. A wonderful result of your generosity – thank you again.

There is still time to give if you missed Gift Day. Please place your gift in an envelope and give to one of the churchwardens or me. Or post through the vicarage door.

I wanted to mention briefly the Parish Giving Scheme whereby parishioners can give regularly through direct debit thus guaranteeing the church a steady income. Do talk to me or the churchwardens if you would like to consider this. There is also information to take at the back of Church.

Thank you again Tim

Thank you to Jim Hewson and David Owen (and Mark Willshaw when he can) for the terrific and often hard work they do on a Monday morning to keep Helmsley churchyard in good shape. It is always pleasing to walk through and helps us to feel proud of our Church.

Need for healing

Heavenly Father, We bring to you all those struggling with their mental health just now.

We pray:

For everyone who is smiling, when inside they’re in pain.

For everyone who is saying they’re fine, when inside they feel drained and empty.

For everyone struggling with fear and worry as the easing of the lockdown brings new anxieties.

Be with them in their suffering, as so much of their world has been stripped back and emptied.

When loved family and friends have been taken by illness, Or made distant by lockdown.

Pour your healing balm into their pain and sadness. May you walk with them besides still waters May you speak to them in a still small voice.

May you heal them, and fill them, and bless them with your abundant love and fullness of life.

And may they know that they are loved by you for the beautiful unique person that they are, created in the image of their heavenly creator and loving Lord.

In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

By the Revd Peter Crumpler

Home I just saw a local burglar kicking his own front door in. I asked him what he was doing.

He replied, “Working from home.”

Aliens probably fly by earth – and lock their doors.

Litter Virus

A face mask is a helpful thing – It traps those nasty germs! An extra message I must bring In these poetic terms: When you’ve finished with your mask A bin is simply found So drop it in – an easy task! Don’t leave it on the ground!

by Nigel Beeton

Helmsley Parish Annual Parochial Church Meeting

The APCM takes place at All Saints Church, Helmsley on Monday 5th October at 6.30pm.

Agenda

ANNUAL MEETING OF PARISHIONERS - AGENDA

1. Election of Churchwardens for the coming year

APCM FOR THE ELECTORAL ROLL MEMBERS - AGENDA Prayers

1. Apologies 2. Minutes of the last meeting 3. Matters arising 4. Electoral Roll Report 5. Report of the proceedings of the Church Council by the Secretary 6. Financial Statement by the Treasurer 7. Report on the fabric, goods and ornaments by the Churchwardens 8. Report on the proceedings of the Deanery Synod 9. Church organisations reports 10. Election of Parochial Representatives of the laity to the PCC 11. Appointment of sidespersons 12. Appointment of auditor 13. Report of the Vicar

BRIEF MEETING OF THE NEW PCC - AGENDA

1. Appointment of Secretary, Vice-chairman, Treasurer and Safeguarding 2. Minutes of the last meeting Officer 3. Matters arising and any other business 4. Date of next meeting: to be agreed.

Forms are available to be elected to the PCC (Parochial Church Council). The PCC meets six times a year and works with the Vicar to promote the work of the Parish. It would be good to have some ‘new blood‘ on the Council! If you think this might be for you please chat with the vicar or churchwardens.

This letter was addressed to all Church of England Bishops with the encouragement to share it with everyone.

Don’t ‘go it alone’

If you are helping others at this time, remember to still leave space and time for yourself. Going the extra mile for other people all the time will only ensure one thing; your collapse. Work in teams. Even the Good Samaritan did not attempt to help the injured man all on his own; he brought in the innkeeper. By sharing the problem, they solved it!

FROM THE PARISH MAGAZINE OF SEPTEMBER 1880

The Sunday School Festival took place on Monday 16th, Tuesday 17th and Wednesday 18th of August. On Monday there was the Service of Song and the giving of prizes in Church at 7.30pm. The prizes were given to the smallest first and then they went home. The prize giving took some time but all was ended about 9.30pm and so the first day’s festival came to a close.

On Tuesday soon after the early celebration at 6.00am a large company began to gather in the Market Place and waggons kept coming in which were speedily filled so soon as they arrived, until at last there was a long string of nineteen waggons with 525 persons old and young seated in them. So large a trip has rarely if ever left Helmsley for such an expedition and the vicar and Rev E White rode on horseback to help to keep order. It was a long journey via Stonegrave and Hovingham and took four hours, but so soon as all had arrived the house by kind permission of Lord and Lady Lanerton was visited and also the chapel. The whole 525 formed into a long procession three abreast and marched in perfect order through the house. The Chapel which only held 200 was visited in three relays; it was much admired with it’s rich paintings and costly marbles. The Lord’s prayer was said by each party before leaving.

On regaining the open air, dinner was the order of the day, then games and wandering about the Park or wading in the water. Then at half past three came the tea and it speaks well for the labours of Mrs Thomson of the vicarage and Mrs McOwan with their assistants that such a large number of people were fed without delay or hitch with plenty of excellent bread and butter, spiced cake and hot tea.

After tea there was a visit to the gardens where fountains played and then followed races and scrambling and then it was time for mounting the waggons. At half past five a good start in admirable order was made and home was reached in three hours time; all being thoroughly tired after a most enjoyable day.

Our kindest thanks are due to all those farmers and others, viz: Messrs Aconley, High Street, Aconley, Bondgate. Carr, Frank Snowden, Stephen and Walter Baldwin of Helmsley. Stephen and Leonard Kirby of Carlton, Holmes of Eastmoors, Scoby of Beadlam. Taylor, Warriner and Wilks of Pockley. Hopkinson and Read of Sproxton and Freer, Lumley, Sigsworth and Wass of Rievaulx who so kindly lent their teams of horses and waggons for the day. They may rest assured that they helped in a most important way to give a days hearty pleasure to the children. On Wednesday the third day of the festivities, the balloons were sent up after Evensong in Beckdale. Business commenced with the giving of a bun to each child then five or six balloons were sent up, one being a magnificent pig which sailed away in fine style amidst much laughter and cheers from the assembly. It was planned that one of the lesser ones should catch alight, but this it refused to do. Thus came to a close the festivities of Helmsley Church Sunday Schools which have so wonderfully prospered during the last few years.

The language of church-going…

BULLETIN: Your receipt for attending the service.

HOLY WATER: A liquid whose chemical formula is H2OLY.

PEW: A medieval torture device still found in many Anglican and Catholic churches.

TEN COMMANDMENTS: The most important – and oldest – Top Ten list.

Mothers' Union and the UK prison system

Crime hurts many people – including the families of prisoners who have ended up in the UK prison system. They are often the forgotten victims, but not by the Mothers’ Union (MU).

Instead, the MU’s prison work across Britain is extensive, with the aim of keeping hurting families together. It is not simple work, for as prison governors are replaced and new directives come into force, those who work with prisoners and their families must adapt their approach.

MU members provide support to prison visitors by holding short courses so that visitors can get the most out of their time with the prison residents. MU also holds workshops to introduce many of the services that work with prisoners’ families. MU helps support the Family Days held at one prison, and also provides presents for children of prisoners at Christmas time. MU provides tea and a chat with the inmates of one women’s prison, as well going-home packs of essential items for when they leave.

MU also supports prison officers, who as key workers have found the last few months particularly challenging. MU’s Thank You Key Workers appeal wants to raise funds to provide families of key workers with short breaks or experience days. If you would like to help, please go to: https://www.mothersunion.org/thank-you-keyworker-appeal

Honey, honey!

If your grannie gave you honey when you had a cold, she was right.

Research published in The British Medical Journal has found that honey is especially good for treating upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) such as the common cold.

Honey has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. These do better at soothing your cough and sniffles than any of the over-the-counter remedies. In fact, URTI sufferers who were given honey suffered their symptoms for up to two days LESS than those who did not use honey.

All good news, especially as honey is cheap, readily available, and has virtually no side effects.

Noah and the Ark – 2020 version

In the year 2020, Noah was living in England when the Lord came unto him and said, “Once again, the earth has become too wicked to continue. Build another Ark and save two of every living thing. You have six months before I will start the unending rain for 40 days and 40 nights.”

Six months later, the Lord looked down and saw Noah weeping in his garden, but no Ark. “Noah”, He roared, “I’m about to start the rain! Where is the Ark?”

“Forgive me Lord”, begged Noah “but things have been difficult. I needed Building Regulations approval because the Ark was over 30 square metres. I’ve been arguing with the Fire Brigade about the need for a sprinkler system. My neighbours claim that I should have obtained planning permission for building the Ark in my garden because it is a development of the site even though in my opinion it is a temporary structure, but the roof is too high.

“The Local Area Access Group complained that my ramp was going to be too steep and the inside of the Ark wasn’t fully accessible. Getting the wood has been another problem. All the decent trees have Tree Preservation Orders on them and we live in a Site of Special Scientific Interest set up in order to preserve the Spotted Owl. I tried to convince them that I needed the wood to save the owls – but no go!

“When I started gathering the animals the RSPCA sued me for intending to confine wild animals without the proper paperwork. The County Council, the Environment Agency and the Rivers Authority have ruled that I can’t build the Ark until they’ve conducted an Environmental Impact Study on your proposed flood. The Trade Unions insist that I can’t use my sons to build the Ark; I can only employ members of the Shipbuilding and Allied Trades union. Finally, Customs and Excise have seized all my assets, claiming I am going to attempt to leave the country illegally with endangered species.

“So, forgive me Lord, but it will take me at least another ten years to finish this Ark.”

Suddenly the skies cleared, the sun began to shine, and a rainbow stretched across the sky. “No need for me to destroy the world after all,” observed God. “The government has the matter already in hand.”

Gift Aid

As many of you will be aware, Gift Aid is a Government scheme which allows charities to reclaim tax on donations from UK tax payers. This increases eligible donations the Church receives by 25%. Over the year, these Gift Aided donations add up and really do make a big difference to the Church.

If you are a UK tax payer who is considering donating to the Church this year, please include a Gift Aid declaration. A copy of our Gift Aid Form is included here, in case this is useful:

Helmsley Parish

GIFT AID DECLARATION

Full name......

Address......

......

Postcode......

I want Helmsley Parish Churches to treat all donations that I make from the date of this declaration until I declare otherwise as Gift Aid donations. I confirm that I am a UK taxpayer and have or will pay income tax and/or capital gains tax for each tax year that is at least equal to the tax that will be reclaimed on all my donations to charities and community amateur sports clubs (CASCs). I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand that charities will claim 25p for every £1 that I donate. I understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations in that tax year, it is my responsibility to pay any difference.

Signed...... Date......

We need to hold this data to process your gift. Your data will be updated / added to our database and may be used for the purposes outlined in our privacy notice, which can be found on our website.

OCTOBER’S SUDOKU PUZZLE

It was: SEPTEMBER’S 175 years ago, on 12th Oct 1845 that SOLUTION Elizabeth Fry, died. This prison reformer and philanthropist was depicted on the British £5 note between 2001 and 2016.

100 years ago, on 7th Oct 1920 that Oxford University allowed women to become full members and study for full degrees for the first time, and the first 100 women were admitted.

90 years ago, on 22nd Oct 1930 that the BBC Symphony Orchestra gave its first concert.