Free DECEMBER 2020
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St Michael & All Angels, Bude Haven St Winwaloe, Poundstock Our Lady & St Anne, Widemouth Bay St Mary the Virgin, Week St Mary St Marwenne, Marhamchurch St DECEMBER Free 2020 MAIN CONTACTS FOR OUR CLUSTER: Please contact any of the following for information or enquiries about Anglican Church life in the Cluster: Our Parish Priest & Rural Dean: Father David Barnes,The Rectory, The Glebe, Week St Mary, EX22 6UY Tel: 01288 341670 [email protected] Our Churchwardens: St Anne’s, Whitstone: Mervyn Collins: 01288 341598 Phyllis Walter: 01288 341699 St Marwenne’s, Marhamchurch: Rob Corney: 01288 359754 Angela Grills: 01288 361247 St Mary the Virgin, Week St Mary: Lesley Booker: 01288 341221 Dick Sowerby: 01288 341348 St Michael’s, Bude Haven: Our Lady & St Anne’s, Widemouth Bay: Judy MacDonald: 01288 362254 St Winwaloe’s, Poundstock: Hilary Kenny: 01288 361504 Barry Smith: 01288 361716 Stratton Deanery website: www.strattondeanery.co.uk/ Editor of Voices Together: Clare Hicks, Trelowen, Lynstone, Bude EX23 0LR. 01288 352726; [email protected] Copy deadline for Jan & Feb 2021 issue— by Friday 11 December please (NB a week earlier than normal) ELECTRONIC COPIES OF VOICES TOGETHER If you would like to receive a copy of this magazine please email Lesley Booker: [email protected] 2 PARISH NEWSLETTER Dear Friends I write this letter mid way through November, midway through lockdown and not really knowing what December will bring. I guess that each one of us would wish for Christmas to be back to normal, like it used to be, with gatherings, parties, carol singing and the like. However none of us can say with any certainty what Christmas will bring. One thing is for certain Christmas will still be about a baby, a manger and a young mother far from home and that has not changed. James Simpson, moderator of the Church of Scotland, was attracted to an advert in a local paper which read:- “Loving kitten desires position as companion to child In exchange for a little mouse work”. In a similar vein, an egotist was defined as a person who is :- “Always me deep in conversation” And Christmas is a time :- “When the world breathes a great sigh of belief” I wish the latter was true. Unfortunately many of us get so engrossed in buying and wrapping presents and involved in preparing Christmas dinner and parties that belief aspect can easily be put to one side or worse forgotten. As we move into the month of December the Church begins to look forward to the celebration of Christmas (albeit very different this year to what we are used to). The four weeks prior to Christmas is the period of Advent (“Coming”), it is a time for getting spiritually ready, a time of preparing to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. During Advent the colours of the Church are invariably purple signifying Advent as a time of repentance and a time 3 of reflection. It is a time in which we can seek to grow near- er to God and nearer to our friends and neighbours so that the feast of Christmas becomes even more exciting and relevant. During Advent we are given chance to think and reflect on God and what Christmas really means to us. As we busy ourselves in our preparation for Christmas let us allow ourselves time to think about its true meaning. Through this special time of preparation we will be able to see Christ- mas more clearly through the eyes of faith. Let us all make time to “breathe a huge sigh of belief” this Christmas. Yours in Christ’s service David Two things from the Editor The Editor would like to wish all readers, contributors, sponsors and advertisers a peaceful & happy Christmas and a more normal 2021. Thank you all for your support, long may it continue. Secondly, please note that the deadline for the Jan/Feb issue of Voices Together will be Friday 11th December, a week earlier than normal, to avoid getting the magazine out over the Christmas holiday. Clare Hicks This month’s magazine has been kindly sponsored by an anonymous donor: Remembering all in our cluster of churches Peace and goodwill to all at this time 4 December details for “Zoom” Services at time of going to print All the details below are subject to change depending on circumstances prevailing at the time and to the internet being willing. Every Wednesday at 9 am there will be Morning Prayer on zoom. Please contact Lesley Booker if you wish to be included on the zoom service contact list: [email protected] There will be a service in at least one church each Sunday in the month which will also be available on zoom—for details please see pages 14 & 15. Voices Together during the Coronavirus pandemic As the churches still have limited opening, there are various places where you will be able to collect your magazine. David Williams has kindly offered his house, Rock Haven, Upton, as a collection point and you can also collect one from the Crescent PO and shop in Bude, the Beach House shop at Widemouth and usually in the village shops. The magazine will also be available on the Voices Together facebook page and St Michael’s facebook page and also on the Stratton Deanery website. Lesley Booker will also send out as a pdf attachment to emails (see bottom of page 2 for Lesley’s details). Any problems with obtaining a copy please contact either Heather Whit- lock (07771 964672) or Clare Hicks (01288 352726) Why not lend your copy of this magazine to a neighbour or friend when you have finished with it? 5 MOTHER* & CAMEO TODDLER COFFEE POT CLUB Come And Meets every Tuesday 10am— Meet Each 12pm in Other Week St Mary Parish Hall. Contact Emma Woolfe or Kathy Jef- Next meeting: frey 2-4– pm (Search for Coffee Pots in Fa- Contact: cebook Groups) Sue Dickenson (*Grannies, Grandads, Carers etc) All Welcome 01288 341016 Widemouth Bay Summerhouse Activities We meet on the 2nd & 4th Friday of each month Join us and off load any prob- lems, have a cup of tea and cake. Some- times we play a game. Whatever we do it get us out of our house to enjoy time with friends. Ring Hilda on 01288 361323 for more details 6 Meet ’n’ Eat STRATTON Next Soup and Sweet DEANERY Lunches BOOK CLUB We are reading: 'WHY' writ- Held in WSM Par- ten by ish Hall at Russell Stannard. 12.30pm on the First Monday of each month first Mon- day of 14 Monterey Close, Bude, each month (not EX23 8DX at 7.30pm August) Gail Brace: 01288 352412 Everyone is very New members always welcome Locally reared, pasture fed beef and lamb Restaurant quality, rare breed beef and traditional lamb. Low food miles, supporting local jobs, local delivery available. 10 or 15Kg Beef boxes, mixed joints, steaks & mince etc. !/2 Lamb packs approx 10 Kg Email [email protected] or phone 01288 361 666 to order 7 Persecuted Christians in Turkey As Christians, we are familiar with the south western part of modern day Turkey through the accounts of the missionary journeys of Paul, Barnabas and others in the book of Acts, and in some of the pastoral letters, Then it was known as Asia Minor, Galatia, Cilecia, and Cappado- cia. Here they established Christian church groups in many of the towns and cities, reflecting the fast spread of Christianity in this area. In spite of frequent bouts of persecution, Christianity grew and spread, eventually becoming the main religion of the Roman Empire under Emperor Constantine in the 4th century. With the arrival in the area of the Islamic faith in the 6th and 7th centuries, coinciding with the decline of the Roman Empire, the Christian presence and influence shrank. By the 13th/14th centuries the whole area had come under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, which lasted until it collapsed during and soon after the turmoil of World War 1. During this turmoil some 3 million Christians, mostly from Armenian, Assyrian and Greek ethnicity were either killed or deported. With the establishment of modern Turkey, the place of Islam has become enmeshed with a fierce fanatical nationalism. Although supposedly a secular state, the ingrained antipathy of the past towards Christians and non-Turkish communities has continued to this day. The number of indigenous Christians is now only about 180,000 out of a population of some 80 million. In spite of this there are still quite a lot of active Christian churches in the country. But following Jesus Christ in Turkey comes at a price, both collectively and personally. Under the present government, which has recently taken a further swing towards becoming an Islamic State and echoing the position of the old Ottoman Empire, restrictions on Christians have increased. These new government restrictions curtail the rights of churches to own property, conduct services, open other facilities, train leaders, manage their own affairs and carry out evangelism and education, especially for non traditional churches. In spite of this, many Turkish believers use modern media platforms to share the gospel with their fellow Turks. Against this background Church buildings have been attacked and anti- Christian slogans daubed on their walls by hard line Islamists. Christians have no access to state employment, and suffer discrimination in private employment. Christians from Muslim backgrounds face ostracism by their families, even divorce and loss of inheritance rights. Leaving Islam is seen as a betrayal of their Turkish identity and a source of shame on 8 their family.