Issue No. 9 November 2014 to January 2015 Welcome to the Ninth Edition of the Newark and Southwell Deanery Newsletter
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Issue No. 9 November 2014 to January 2015 Welcome to the ninth edition of the Newark and Southwell Deanery Newsletter. Dear All, This letter falls into three parts - a reflection of events and work done by the Deanery and delivered via the Deanery office; a thank you to clergy who have moved on; and thirdly, thoughts about the coming months. I cannot remember a busier time. June saw Newark & Southwell Deanery’s Annual General Meeting and the appointment of new officers. Penny Peterson retired and Mike Wilson was elected as the new Lay Chair. At that meeting the House of Clergy and Laity present voted for the membership of a new Standing Committee. At the beginning of September a Cream Tea was held in the Great Hall at Southwell Minster following its recent refurbishment. The acting Dean, Canon Nigel Coates, welcomed everyone and folks then tucked into scones, cream, jam and cups of tea. From comments made subsequently a good time was had by all. As part of a Diocesan wide plan, at the end of September, Bishop Tony Porter spent the day in the Deanery. He supported three major events: football for young people using the facilities at Tuxford Academy in the morning; a presentation, bible study and time of extended prayer, concluding with tea and cakes, at All Saints, Hawton, during the afternoon; and in the evening a musical and social event, music being provided by young people from Southwell Minster School and Tuxford Academy and hosted by Revd Andrew Porter at Holy Trinity, Southwell. Bishop Tony Porter concluded the proceedings with a presentation. Together with a Deanery Confirmation Service at Holy Trinity, Southwell and a Bereavement Course at St. Peter’s, Farndon, led by Revd Ian Lambert, there has been a considerable amount of activity. I am extremely grateful to all those who provided refreshments along the way for all of our events. The last three months has seen a number of comings and goings. Four clergy have left their present posts - three of those have left the deanery. Revd The Deanery Clare Goode has left her post with the West Trent Group and moved to a Newsletter church in Nottingham. Revd Colin Wall has left churches in the Tuxford area This is your newsletter. for the Riverside Group. Revd Christine French has just left the Beck and Tent A way of communicating Group to go to Kirk Hallam in Derby Diocese and finally Curate to Newark with each other. To Team Ministry, Revd Judith Pollard, is leaving to begin her ministry in Norwich make it successful we Diocese. They have all served the deanery and diocese to the best of their need to receive your abilities and we wish them well in their continuing journeys. offerings. The deadline for the next issue is 15th During the coming months there will be further events which will engage with January. Please send in different groups and individuals in special ways, further growing the identity your entries to of the Deanery and enabling people to use it appropriately. In 2015 there will nsdeanery- be a Deanery Service. If you have any ideas about how this should look [email protected] or by please do let us know at the deanery office. Bishop Tony is likely to spend a post to Mrs Louise Riley, day in the deanery again next year. We would also value your thoughts The Rectory, 3 Marsh about how this might look. Lane, Farndon, Newark, Notts, NG24 3SS All at the deanery office wish you well as we gear up for Remembrance services in November and, of course, Christmas. Due to the number of vacancies within the deanery, Louise, Michael and I will be busy making sure that, where possible, there is appropriate cover for all services and support ministry generally throughout the deanery. In Christian Love, David Milner http://southwell.anglican.org/about-us/deaneries/newark-southwell-deanery-home/ A Message from the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu The nights are getting longer and darker and the light and colours of autumn are dimming. We are now entering the dark time of the year, but we live in the hope of the light of the world, as we ap- proach Christmas. As we read in our physics books, the things we see around us are seen through the action of light striking and reflecting off the surface of objects. Without light there would be no sight. There would be no information for the brain to process. The use of sensory deprivation - particularly of sight, by the use of blindfolds, hoods, blackout rooms – is a longstanding form of torture. Without sight our sense of reality trembles. Our brains have no data to work on, nothing to interpret. Sight is either generated by a luminous object, like the sun, or by an illuminated object which reflects the light cast by a radiant object. Please don’t be offended if I say that we are not brilliant in ourselves; we are not like the sun; ra- ther, we are illuminated objects like the moon. We can only make our presence visibly known by re- flecting light to the eyes of those who look our way. It is only by reflection that we, as well as most of the other objects in our physical world, The fire of God’s love burns in our hearts and his can be seen. glory is etched on our faces as we delight in him, and worship him in truth and witness to his love in As Christians, the radiant light of God is the word and deed. source of our life and our understanding; but our reflected light is also essential to the sight of oth- Light came into the world with Jesus Christ. A light ers. which enables us to know what real life is; and as we reflect that light, we show others what Christ is At Christmas the radiant light of God was made like. We become a light which helps others to find visible to humanity in his Son, Jesus Christ, the way into the very life of God. through his birth, life and death. What was Word, was made flesh – so that all could see and know At Christmas we are reminded that God invested the good news. himself in the most unpromising way – in humani- ty at its weakest and most vulnerable. We are re- Communication of the gospel is by seeing as well minded too that the coming of God offers us the as by hearing. This double strand runs through opportunity to begin anew, for our sins to be for- the Bible: image and word, vision and voice, given and for those beams of self-righteousness opening the eyes of the blind and unstopping the to be removed from our eyes by God. ears of the deaf. Jesus is the Word of God and the Image of God. The Word became visible and This grace is freely given and joyfully unregulated. the Image audible. It calls us to active compassion. And its endless supply in a constantly demanding world offers us And if we live in that light, reflecting it in every- all a route to a more hopeful future. Offering us thing we say and do, then the world’s darkness forgiveness for past sins, new life in the present, will be put to flight. Like Superman eyes, our light and hope for the future. comes from within and not from outside. Refreshed, I tackled the hills leading to Kneesall, St A little ride around Bartholomew (toilet break) before a lovely stretch of open straight road which took me to the north part of the Ossington where the Church of the Holy Rood deanery. nestles well in the country! It was I have taken part in the Nottinghamshire Historic good to visit on the eve of Holy Churches Trust annual ride and stride event for a Cross Day! number of years, usually visiting the east of the Trent area through Newark and then down to By now the inclines were beginning Bingham. This year, on September to take their toll but I kept arguing 13th, I planned a different route that what goes up must come down but this did visiting as many churches as not seem to happen with these roads. Norwell, possible in the top half of the St Laurence was next with some deanery and made sure I had delightful pictures by the local school a camera with me. children to welcome riders and striders and then onto Caunton, St Andrew, So, having parked my car in where I possibly made a poor decision. I Tuxford and full of decided to cycle down (actually up, up enthusiasm off I set visiting St and up before down) to South Nicholas’s first before signing Muskham, St Wilfred and onto North in at the Methodist Church. Muskham, St Wilfred. It was good to The weather was good for cycling - see the Wilfreds but an hour later my body was not too warm, not a lot of wind and not raining. However, regretting that extra distance. what I had never really appreciated during my many However, I was now on my homeward stretch cycling along car journeys around this area the path alongside the A1 to was the number of inclines in Cromwell, St Giles, across the bridge this area. The first I to Carlton-on-Trent, St Mary the encountered was when I Virgin (which is cycled out of Tuxford toward not identified West Markham - but there on the diocesan was relief as I free wheeled map in the Church towards All Saints.