Chronicle AUGUST 2021 THE MAGAZINE FOR

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Continuing Covid restrictions led to the cancellation of the planned Visitations, so churchwardens have been sworn in at their own churches, mostly during public worship, to serve for the year ahead. Here, Kay and Emma renew their roles as wardens of the parish of Middleton for a further year. Come to a GROUP SERVICE

at Saint Mary’s, Trelystan, on Sunday 29th August at 11.00, celebrating the life and history of this special building! 1

THE CHIRBURY HILLS GROUP OF PARISHES is part of the Pontesbury Group Ministry, and comprised of the parishes of Chirbury, Marton, Middleton w Corndon Marsh, Trelystan & Leighton. Rector: Revd Bill Rowell (01938 552064 or 07711 298104, [email protected]). Hon Assistant Priest: Revd Eric Brazier (01938 561450, [email protected]). At each church, contact the wardens as follows: Chirbury - Tony Sheppard (01938 561268); Marton - Maureen Jenkins (01938 561645); Middleton - Kay Yeates (01938 561640 or Emma Bailey-Beech (01686 669971); Trelystan - Janet Jones (07967 312460); Leighton - John Markwick (01938 555043).

BIBLE STUDY - Rev Bill writes: What I am calling a Bible Study group will begin meeting on the third Wednesday of each month from Wednesday 15th September. We will start with a Bible reading and some thoughts about it, but I hope the discussion will be free-ranging, and helped by some refreshments. We will have a first meeting in Chirbury Church, at 11.00 am, and then I will be open to suggestions and offers regarding where to meet. I would like this to be an easy going group, requiring no expert knowledge, open to all and very much about fellowship - give it a try.

OUR COVID PRECAUTIONS - All our churches St Podwell’s are open, but aim to be as Covid secure as possible; so we still have rules to keep to: As far as possible avoid touching door furniture and other surfaces as you enter and leave the church, and do make use of the hand gel provided. Please leave contact details - and the QR code remains in place for the NHS app. We still try to maintain an effective social distance in church (of between one and two metres); please wear masks at least while moving about, unless you are medically exempt. For the present, we will continue to use recorded versions of hymns. Should you experience symptoms that might be Covid within a week after attending service, or if you have a positive Covid test, “I think Vicar’s getting ideas please inform us straight away: contact the Rector above his station again!” or a church warden. These rules apply for public worship, at funerals or if you enter church for any other reason, including for private prayer. Please note that All our churches are now part of these rules continue to apply even if you have had your the Parish Giving Scheme - an full Covid vaccinations - and though things are opening easy way to support your church up, we will keep some sensible restrictions in place in by Direct Debit. To know more, our churches, to ensure they are safe places. contact the Rector or treasurers.

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SERVICES AROUND THE GROUP IN AUGUST

DAY TIME CHURCH SERVICE______

1st - Trinity 9 11.15 am Chirbury Holy Communion 4.00 pm Leighton Forest Church

8th - Trinity 10 9.30 am Marton Holy Communion 11.15 am Chirbury Morning Worship 11.15 am Middleton Family Service 3.00 pm Trelystan Holy Communion

15th - St Mary* 9.30 am Middleton Holy Communion 11.15 am Chirbury Holy Communion 11.15 am Leighton Morning Worship

22nd - Trinity 12 9.30 am Marton Holy Communion 11.15 am Leighton Holy Communion 7.00 pm The Marsh Holy Communion

29th - Trinity 13 11.00 am Trelystan Group Service

* This is Trelystan’s patronal festival, but the celebration of this will be transferred to the Group Service on 29th, as the Rector has a family engagement on 15th.

The simple service sent round each week and recorded on Youtube continues. If you’d like to receive this please contact [email protected], to be added to the mailing list. The service can be accessed from the “A Church Near You” site for each church on the web. Revd Bill’s “Hymn of the Week” mailing will re-start in September.

Lammastide and the “Short Communion” The Rector writes Our next Forest Church service is at Leighton on Sunday 1st August, the traditional “Harvest First-Fruits” day of Lammas. We shall meet at 4.00 pm for a service partly inside and partly outside the church. Everyone is very welcome! Then from September the service at Leighton on the first Sunday of the month will be a shorter service of Holy Communion, beginning at the later time of 10.15 am, which will replace the previous 9.30 am service, and will I hope be a time that suits more people. Please note that on the first Sunday in September (5th), this will be the only morning service in the group, as there is a special Sunday lunch at Chirbury (see page 8).

TEA SERVICE AT MARTON - There will be a special praise service with tea and cakes at Marton on Sunday 19th September at 4.00 pm. More about this in next month’s magazine.

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Nature Notes . . . An Evening Walk

On a very pleasant clear evening after a warm day in early July, I parked my car at Llyn Coed y Dinas nature reserve, to do a circular walk via Trehelig and Belan. A quick glance around the nature reserve revealed not much to see on the water - coots, mallard and tufted duck. The island, full of black-headed gulls when I was last there, was now hosting a good number of greylag geese. A pool by the path held a stand of greater spearwort - this is a buttercup on serious steroids, almost as tall as me, with a flower a good half inch or so across. It likes wet places, and the leaves are spear-shaped, hence the name.

The lane to Trehelig runs the length of the airport runway. Not having walked it for a few weeks, I was amazed at how overgrown it was (though further on it’s kept clear by traffic to and from the fields). Grasses predominated - tall oat, cocksfoot and timothy along the sides (plus brambles, meadowsweet and hogweed), and meadow grasses, ryegrass and Yorkshire fog across the centre. Swallows were everywhere, twittering away, and broods of blue tits and great tits prospected the hedgerows. A young chiffchaff sat waiting grumpily for mum to feed it, the yellow gape of its bill proving it wasn’t yet independent.

A buzzard drifted out of one of the field trees, ignoring the somewhat half-hearted attacks of a couple of jackdaws, and headed out across the meadow. At Trehelig, a quarrelsome group of house sparrows was literally raising dust along the road side. I stopped to listen to a song that sounded wren-like, but much quieter than the strident song of a wren in Spring. The bird duly appeared, and it was a wren, but clearly no longer needing to be the loudest bird around.

I walked up to join the canal towpath by Belan chapel. The canal is very overgrown indeed here, and water rushing down from the fields above has conveyed large amounts of silt to speed up that process. There are substantial stands of common reed, and to clear it for navigation is going to take some effort. There was much less bird song than there would have been just a couple of weeks earlier, but the chiffchaffs were still calling everywhere. A song consisting of two repetitive notes can be sung while you’re doing other things, and chiffchaffs sing on the move, and keep on doing it through the summer. Blackbirds were silent, but song thrushes and (just below Belan locks) a very forceful and shouty mistle thrush were still calling.

It’s harder to distinguish birds by their call notes, but I was sure a pair (or maybe a family group) of redstarts were working their way through a group of hawthorn bushes, calling loudly as they did so. All I could get through my field glasses were frustrating glimpses. I followed the towpath back to the main road, passing a pair of mute swans with a good brood of half-grown cygnets - eight in all. Then back to Llyn Coed y Dinas, and the sound of very argumentative geese as I got back to the car.und quite widely across the UK, but tending towards the north and west in the main. WKR 4

Chirbury United Charities

Chirbury United Charities, reg no. 217532, has as its purpose to support members of the communities of Chirbury, Marton and Middleton in need, as well as assisting with educational needs. At present we have three grants available to members as follows:

1) Book, software and or equipment grant. This is aimed at students moving from school to College, University or apprenticeship furthering their chosen studies. It is a small grant towards books, computer software or equipment. This grant can only be applied for once per student, all applications to be made in writing after confirmation of a place of study has been accepted, stating the name of the course and College or University of study. 2) Mobility Grant. This grant addresses the nursing approach of the charity, by offering small monetary grants to people with mobility difficulties to help towards purchasing mobility aids and so enable them to remain active within their wider community and combat the effects of isolation and loneliness. 3) Covid 19 support grant. This is a small monetary grant to help those hardest hit by the effects of covid, it can be applied for in person or by a friend or neighbour, an initial letter with explanation would be required to present to the committee outlying the hardship experienced.

Anyone wishing to apply for any grant is advised to contact Jo Sheppard, the Chair, at the address or email below. The committee will treat every application confidentially. MINSTERLEY SHOW Applications to be sent to: is on Saturday 21st The Chairman, Chirbury United Charities, August. If you’re Mrs J Sheppard, going, why not look Heightley, Chirbury, Montgomery, Powys SY15 6BW in at the Deanery stand, where you [email protected] / tel 01938561268 will receive a THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH from the Revd Greg Smith friendly welcome!

I write at a time when racism and sport and uppermost in many people’s thinking, following the appalling online abuse received by England’s black players after England’s loss (on penalties) in the final of the Euros. Less than 48 hours later, I was at Edgbaston, watching England v Pakistan One Day Cricket International. I had the opportunity of witnessing the best and worst of what it is to live in a multi-racial society.

I watched Babar Azam play what may well be the best one-day innings I have ever seen,

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only for the four apparently middle-class, white, young men next to me to hurl the most unspeakable abuse at him upon his dismissal. Meanwhile, two older Pakistani supporters festooned in a Pakistan flag and wearing green and white boaters cheered every boundary he scored and then stood to applaud him at the end of his innings. Strangely, the four young men failed to return at the interval to watch England bat, while the two Pakistani gentlemen stood to applaud James Vince when he scored a century for England and again at the end of his innings. In the space of a couple of hours, I felt ashamed of and immensely proud of the country in which we live.

In recounting the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke Chapter 10, Jesus addresses racist attitudes head on. Surely, the key phrase in the story is “a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was” 10.33 (NIV). Racism prospers all the time we fail to see the common humanity of those we abuse. Getting close enough to individuals or groups different from us to perceive Christ in them is the antidote. It takes time and trouble and can sometimes feel a bit risky. But surely it is the only way to build a nation in which stories of trans-racial kindness and courtesy will no longer shock us.

NEW DEAN OF HEREFORD

Bishop Richard is delighted that Her Majesty The Queen has confirmed the appointment of The Revd Canon Sarah Brown as the next Dean of Hereford. This is a significant appointment for the Church of England in Herefordshire and South Shropshire. It is the first time in the 1,300 year history of the diocese that a woman has been appointed to the role of Dean.

Sarah came to faith in her late twenties and describes how she first encountered God in her village church where she joined the choir. She explains: “It was here that I discovered the power of church music, the care of a Christian community, the teaching of a wonderful rural vicar and finally, in utter astonishment which persists to this day, the disarming love and forgiveness of God. “ She describes how that forgiveness finally “freed” her to set out on a new path of adventure in Christ’s service. “If the God of Creation has led me to this point, then I know that he can transform literally any person and any set of circumstances, to bring new life - and I find that amazing.”

Sarah is currently Canon Missioner at Peterborough Cathedral in the diocese of Peterborough where she has spent most of her adult life. ------

SECRET ART SALE - A reminder that Emma Bailey-Beech is still collecting pieces of art and craft work to include in her sale this Autumn. Lots of great things have been given or promised, but she’d still like more! The exhibition is now scheduled for the week of 24th October, in Chirbury Church. Contact Emma on 01686 669971. READERS’ ROTA AT LEIGHTON - A rota of readers for each Sunday will begin in September for services at Leighton: the Rector will welcome offers to read! 6

MIDDLETON FETE - The weather held for the summer fete held at Tumbledown House, Priest Weston, by kind invitation of Judy and Robert Vicary. Judy writes: “The Middleton and The Marsh Fete made £923.20. A big thank you to all the helpers, stallholders, cake makers etc. An even bigger thank you to all who came and made it such a fantastic day and even the sun shone!!” TRELYSTAN FETE - The weather was superb for Trelystan Fete, and it was blessed by a good turn-out. Including nearly £600 in donations and over £750 from the prize draw, the total received was £2,383, a very creditable total. PARISH OFFER - A reminder that all churches are asked to review our parish offer for 2022 by the middle of August this year. Please do look back to the article on page 7 of last month’s magazine, which sets out just how important it is that we do our best to maintain what we send to the diocese. It isn’t a “church tax” taken off us, but our share of the cost of providing, resourcing and maintaining the ministry offered in each place. NEW SERVICE AT CHIRBURY - A new and extra service is planned at St Michael’s church, to begin in September. It will happen at 4 o’clock on the fourth Sunday each month, will be informal in style, and will be aimed specifically at families and children. It will begin (on 26th September) with something of a harvest theme. The service may take a different form each month but will always be for families, and will always be a 4 on the 4th Sunday. However, we may move into the village hall in the colder months! The Rector is hoping to form a group to help him to plan and lead these services, and would be glad to hear from anyone who would be interested. WORK AT CHIRBURY - Though a lot of work has been completed at St Michael’s, there is still some work to be done, particularly to repair damage left by a plaster fall at the east end of church. We hope this will be carried out soon, and are very grateful for the Covid grant that has helped fund it. Meanwhile, attempts to restart the clock have proved unsuccessful, and it looks as though a new mechanism may be needed. We will hope to obtain funding for this. FROM THE REGISTERS - We welcome into the family of the church Constance Isabella Harris Amos, baptized at Chirbury on Sunday 18th July. We congratulate Mark Jones and Rebecca Davies, and Thomas Davis and Bethany Byers, married at Trelystan on 17th and 27th July respectively. We give thanks for the life, fellowship, and Christian witness and service of Marj Delves, whose funeral service took place at Hope Cemetery on 29th July, and we send our sympathy and good wishes to John, Bev, Cheryl, Jeremy and all her family and friends. The Harvest Festival service at The Marsh, on Sunday 26th September at 7.00 pm, will specially remember both Marj and her friend Doreen Pope, at a time when in past years both of them would have been very busily preparing the church and organising the refreshments. 7

LOCAL MINISTRY - As we emerge from lockdown and look to re-start church activities and develop some new things, and anyway as we look to the future, we shall need to develop lay leadership. Clergy are spread increasingly thinly, and, given the financial shortfall we face in our diocese, further cuts in the numbers of stipendiary clergy can be expected. To begin this process, the Rector would like to form a team of people prepared to work with him at doing more together, making sure our churches connect with our schools and communities, and developing new ideas. A meeting long ago with Mark and Lizzie Hackney came up with some ideas and directions - now it’s time to meet again. A meeting, open to all, will take place on Monday 27th September - time and venue to be announced next month. Please don’t leave it all to someone else - the future of our churches requires your commitment! CHIRBURY VILLAGE HALL - An open day is planned at Chirbury Village Hall on Saturday 14th August, when the hall will be open from 10.30 am to 4 pm, with refreshments available, and a chance to have your say on how we develop the hall, use it, decorate it, etc. Everyone’s point of view counts! NEXT MONTH’S MAGAZINE - Notices, ideas and articles to the Rector by Sunday 15th August, please. It would be good to have more material from around the parishes! ALPHA - An Alpha course will be starting in September in the deanery, on Tuesday 21st: a lunchtime face-to-face session and an evening meeting using Zoom - both are OPEN TO ALL - please think about who you might invite to be part of these meetings, which are an excellent way to discover the Christian faith!

------OPENING OUR CHURCHES - Chirbury, Trelystan and Join us for Middleton churches are now open each day, and it is hoped that Leighton church can also be open daily from some point during this month. A quiet space is Sunday being developed in Chirbury church, and this work should be completed this month, for anyone who wants to sit awhile and perhaps reflect or pray. Some Lunch helpful literature will be available, and there will be space to leave requests for prayer. £25 a RIDE+STRIDE - This year’s Ride and Stride event for the head Shropshire Historic Churches Trust takes place on 11th Tables of 10 September. More details of this in next month’s magazine, but your Rector is hoping to take part - 12.30 for 1 pm, on the Show Field though not until after the christening and wedding at Chirbury, supporting Chirbury and Middleton Parishes. Bar and already booked for that day! He would be glad to raffle, choice of menu. Book via receive any sponsorship. Tony Sheppard - 07986 715180 or Jenny Jerman - 01938 561601. 8