Rolvenden Village News ! ONLINE! Newenden Notes ! Parishes of Rolvenden and Newenden Associate Team Priest The Revd Chris Hodgkins 01580 389587 [email protected] mob: 07843220684 Please note Chris' day off is Friday Reader Judy Vinson 01580 241504 [email protected] St Mary the Virgin, Rolvenden Churchwardens Elizabeth Marshall 01580 241529 ea.marshall@btinternet .com Maggie Macaulay 01580 241843 [email protected] Hon. Secretary Ann Paddick 01797 252334 Hon. Treasurer William Barham 01580 240852 Sacristan Elizabeth Marshall 01580 241529 Organist Geoffrey Davison 01580 241685 Bellringers’ Assoc. Captain Linda Smith 01580 241783 St Peter, Newenden Churchwardens Frances Jones 01797 252563 [email protected] Hugh Edmonds 01797 252196 [email protected] Hon. Treasurer Sue Bourne 07879 403424 Sacristan Rhoda Smith 01580 292041 Magazine Administration Judy Vinson 01580 241504 [email protected] Magazine Subscriptions Elizabeth Marshall 01580 241529 Published by Rolvenden P.C.C. This month’s cover: Photo attributed to Cocoparisienne Minister’s Letter Dear All s I am writing this letter the country is gripped by Coronavirus (Covid-19) and life changes daily with every press release from our government. AOur churches are closed for worship and the way in which we minister to our communities has had to change overnight. Easter this year will not see fire and organ fanfares as we celebrate the risen Lord Jesus but will instead be celebrated by individuals in their own homes. It will all seem very strange. For the disciples 2000 years ago life seemed very strange. Having realised that the long awaited messiah had come, witnessing his miracles and hearing his teaching, he is now telling them that he is going to die. Not only that but in three days he will rise again. On Maundy Thursday we remember how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples and took bread and wine and gave it them saying: “This is my body broken for you. Do this as often as you eat it in remembrance of me.” “This is my blood broken for you. Do this as often as you eat it in remembrance of me.” Jesus then went to pray in the garden of Gethsemane and was arrested by the religious authorities of his day and taken before the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate. Pilate had Jesus flogged and ordered him to be crucified. When Jesus died the curtain in the temple that sealed the Holy of Holies was torn in two signifying that humanity now had free access to God through Christ. Jesus was taken away, placed in a tomb and a large stone rolled across the entrance to seal it. This is what we remember on Good Friday and why we eat Hot Crossed Buns marking the end of Lent. In the Church Holy Saturday is much like what is happening now with the Coronavirus situation. There are no services, the church is stripped of all its candle sticks, crosses, altar cloths and banners. It appears to be empty of life. Then on Easter Sunday Mary Magdalene and the women, Peter and John discovered that the stone had been rolled away and that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead and was alive. Again everything changed as sorrow gave way to joy and death gave way to life. This moment in time feels very much like Good Friday and Holy Saturday. People are worried and anxious, there are reports of vast numbers of people across the world being infected by coronavirus and sadly the death toll increases by the day. We seem to be in a place of darkness. But light will come. After the sadness of Good Friday the Joy of Easter Sunday always follows, where life is celebrated and death is defeated. The Easter fire is lit and the Light of Christ is carried once again into the darkness of our church building. The conclusion of Night Prayer ends with these words bringing hope that the sun 1 will rise on a new day, scattering the darkness of the night. In peace we will lie down and sleep; for you alone, Lord, make us dwell in safety. Abide with us, Lord Jesus, for the night is at hand and the day is now past. As the night watch looks for the morning, so do we look for you, O Christ. Come with the dawning of the day and make yourself known in the breaking of the bread. On Easter Sunday you will hear the church bell ring and you will know that Christ is risen. Day will follow night and Christ will make himself known in broken bread and wine outpoured. Keep us, good Lord, under the shadow of your mercy. Sustain and support the anxious, be with those who care for the sick, and lift up all who are brought low; that we may find comfort knowing that nothing can separate us from your love in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen God bless you and keep you. Reverend Chris Hodgkins Flower Rotas The churches are currently closed. Arrangers will be contacted when the buildings are reopened. From the registers Funeral 21st February Funeral of Sarah O’Neill at St Mary’s 27th February Funeral of Neville Matthews at St Mary’s 12th March Funeral of Jean Bowles at St Mary’s Interment of Ashes 6th March Interment of ashes of Audrey Turton at St Mary’s 2 Tony Horton President Newenden NCC e announce with a heavy heart that our dear President Anthony W“Tony” Horton passed away peacefully on the 9th March at the Conquest Hospital in Hastings. For those of you who had the pleasure of his company, Tony was an unforgettable character who loved his cricket and held the club close to his heart. A connoisseur of all thing’s rugby and wine, he was of course a British Lion on the infamous 1968 tour to South Africa as well as being a proud husband, father and grandfather. There will be a memorial to Tony once we have seen this virus off, and there is a short piece in the 2019 handbook about Tony’s career in the front row if you wish to learn more about a true gentlemen and stalwart of the cricket club and community. NCC Committee 3 What does April bring to the Church This month we will be observing the shattering events that happened some 2000 years ago in a small province of the Roman Empire when a carpenter from the north rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and the people went wild. The authorities got to grips with the situation and finally managed to arrest him quietly several nights later. It helped that one of his close followers was prepared, for the generous sum of 30 pieces of silver, to lead the arresting soldiers to the place he would be, a favourite haunt, a garden on a hillside where he went to pray. Justice was pretty swift. The Roman Governor took a bit of convincing, but finally he gave the order for the execution and the carpenter was dead less than 24 hours after the arrest. And that was that…until three days later the carpenter’s followers found his tomb was open and empty. And then he appeared and spoke to people, ate with people, and his friends , and life was never the same again. There will be no services in church to cover this time but you can follow the story: There are four versions. They have different details, but remember the Gospels were different sets of memories gathered by four writers and we all know how people tend to remember different things, details get changed as a story is passed on. Have a look: Mark chapters 11 to 16 Matthew chapters 21 to 28 Luke chapters 19 (starting verse 28) to chapter 24 John Chapter 12 verses 1 – 19, chapter 14, chapter 18 to 21 Timetable: Sunday April 5th - Palm Sunday -Jesus enters Jerusalem Thursday April 9th - Maundy Thursday - Jesus has a last supper with his friends and is later arrested Friday April 10th Good Friday - Jesus is crucified, the hour between 2:00 and 3:00pm are marked as the last hour of his dying Sunday April 11th - Easter Day - the day of Resurrection and much celebration Alleluia The Lord is risen, He is risen indeed Alleluia. But more than that. Christians believe that by his dying on the cross Christ has defeated death for all humanity and by his resurrection has given eternal life to all who believe. There’s a lot more to the story but that is the good news at the heart of the Gospel. Following the closure of the churches Rev’d Chris will be saying Morning and Evening Prayer away from church. He may also live stream Prayers through St Mary’s FaceBook page. These prayers are offered for both villages and you are invited to join him across the web. Or you may just prefer to sit quietly at home and pray. Morning Prayer at 9:00am Evening Prayer at 5:00pm. Timings for Sunday still to be set as we go to press. Sadly it means that the single church bell will not be rung beforehand as we have been doing for a week. Please keep an eye on the church FB pages for any changes and other ideas about prayer and on-line services. The pages are: St Mary the Virgin Rolvenden and St Peter’s Church, Newenden Judy V 4 5 Rolvenden WI News ur change to the evening meeting and pouring rain and cold. Thank goodness the village hall was warm. OCynthia Crowley, our President, welcomed everyone and we sang Happy Birthday to three members this month.