OUR DOORS MAY BE CLOSED BUT OUR HEARTS ARE OPEN WELCOME St. Bartholomew’s with St. Nicholas’ Sunday 24th May 2020 7th Sunday after Easter Year A Gold or White Collect for seventh Sunday of Easter The Sunday after Ascension Day O God the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: we beseech you, leave us not comfortless, but send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us and exalt us to the place where our Saviour Christ is gone before, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen Anglican Cycle of Prayer (Saint Augustine / Anglican Communion Sunday) *Pray for all members of the Anglican Communion in the world *For the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and all pri- mates and bishops *For members of the Anglican Consultative Council * For the Secretary General, Josiah Idowu-Fearon, *For the staff at the Anglican Communion Office in London and at the UN offices in Geneva and New York The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has launched a free national phone line as a simple new way to bring worship and prayer into people’s homes while church buildings are closed because of the coronavirus. A reading from the Acts of the Apostles [ch 1] The story of the Ascension can easily seem just ‘strange’. See it as a pic- ture of the divine vindication of Jesus, leading immediately to the shared life of his followers, the infant church. 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ 7He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come up- on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Sa- maria, and to the ends of the earth.’ 9When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, sudden- ly two men in white robes stood by them. 11They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. 13When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14All these were con- stantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, in- cluding Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers. This is the word of the Lord Praise to you O Christ A reading from the first letter of Peter [ch 4/5] The testing of faith by persecution or otherwise is always hard; but it car- ries with it the seal of God’s restoration and even the experience of joy. 12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13But rejoice in so far as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. 14If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spir- it of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. 8Discipline yourselves; keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. 9Re- sist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sis- ters throughout the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering. 10And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. 11To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. his is the word of the Lord Praise to you O Christ The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John [Ch17] We read here the most profound statements about the interweaving of Jesus with the Father and then of us with them; it is our assurance for now and always. After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, 2since you have given him authority over all peo- ple, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 4I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. 5So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence be- fore the world existed.6 ‘I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; 8for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, be- cause they are yours. 10All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. 11And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Fa- ther, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. This is the Gospel of the Lord, Praise to you, O Christ This Sunday is Day 3 of the Novena: the nine days between Ascension and Pentecost Come Holy Spirit: Thy Kingdom Come ‘SORRY’ Oh merciful God, and full of grace, as we come into your presence may we remove, like outdoor clothes all pretence, all show, all arrogance; may our inner self be revealed, hum- ble, honest, open and longing to be changed by Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Listening on the way; The full nine days of Pocket Worship of Readings and Prayers are available elsewhere on our church website During this coming week there are a number of special days MONDAY 25TH MAY The Venerable Bede, Monk at Jarrow, Scholar, Historian, 735 Bede was born in Northumbria around the year 670. When he was seven years old, his family gave him to the monastery of St Peter and St Paul at Wearmouth. He then moved to Jarrow, where he lived as a monk for the rest of his life. Although it seems he never travelled further than York, his monastery – first under Abbot Benedict Biscop and then Abbot Ceolfrith – was a centre of learning, and Bede studied extensively. He used all the resources available to write the most complete history of Christian England up to the year 729, as well as commentaries on books of the Bible. He was renowned for his mo- nastic fidelity and his love of teaching, and was fondly remembered by his pupils, in- cluding his biographer. He died peacefully on the eve of Ascension Day in the year 735. Aldhelm, Bishop of Sherborne, 709 Born in the year 639, Aldhelm became a monk at Malmesbury, and later was elected its abbot. When the growing Wessex diocese was divided in 705, he became the first Bish- op of Sherborne, founding the abbey church. Aldhelm was a great scholar, teacher and singer who, ‘by his preaching completed the conquest of Wessex’, according to Bede. Tradition has it that he would attract listeners by his singing and then preach the gospel to them. It seems he may have also been responsible for introducing the Rule of St Bene- dict to the area. He built churches all over Dorset, and the headland – commonly called St Alban’s Head – is in reality St Aldhelm’s Head, where there is an ancient chapel. His Old English verse, sung to harp accompaniment, was praised by King Alfred. Aldhelm died on this day in the year 709 at Doulting in Somerset, on his way to Malmesbury. TUESDAY 26TH MAY Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury, 605 Augustine was prior of the monastery of St Andrew in Rome. In 596, at the instigation of Pope Gregory the Great, he was dispatched as the leader of a group of forty monks to re- evangelize the English Church. Augustine appears not to have been a particularly confi- dent person and, in Gaul, he wanted to turn back, but Pope Gregory’s firm resolution held the group to their mission. The monks finally landed in Kent in the summer of 597 where they were well received by King Ethelbert whose wife, Bertha, was a Christian.