Category: St Mary’s Parish Church News
2018 Roundup
A Happy New year to all our Readers…
January is called after the Roman god Janus who was the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces, one looking to the future and one looking back to the past. This month is the time when looking back into the year that has ended, reminds us of what has happened in St. Mary’s Church and what we are hoping and looking forward to in 2019. It is a time of reflection, a time of recalling events in the year of 2018, a time of taking stock of the position we find ourselves in the life of the parish church in the community of Wenvoe.
There have been times when our church has been bursting at the seams with the nave and transept full and people standing in the tower vestry. The Remembrance Sunday service when we marked the 100 years since the signing of the Armistice in the 1st World War, was one such occasion. The services and Carol Concerts during the Christmas celebrations always bring in the crowds. We have conducted some very large funerals, with many standing in the churchyard, unable to get a seat inside the church. The Scarecrow Festival and Harvest Celebration in September, despite the bad weather, brought hundreds of visitors to the church. Our Parish Priest Jon works tirelessly in producing services that catch the mood of the seasons throughout the year, and the congregation really appreciates all that he does to enliven the message of salvation that he brings to each and everyone in the community.
He is supported in his work by the many volunteers, who give cheerfully of their time, who see to the daily running of the church. The two Churchwardens, the men and women who are on the church cleaning rota, the men who wind up the church clock, week by week, those who raise and change the flags flying on the flagpole on the tower, the ladies who arrange the flowers, the members of the Social Committee for catering and providing delicious cakes etc, at the many times during the year when hospitality is offered to visitors, and to all who donate cakes and biscuits so willingly during the year. Mention must be made of the members of the Music Group who play at the all Age Service on the 4th Sunday of the month. This informal worship is enhanced by their playing, and the hymns and songs often go with a swing and much clapping. The Chattery meets in the Church Hall on the 2nd Thursday of the month, offering a time for Tea/Coffee and a chat, with a raffle and a Tradecraft Stall. There are many regular customers but there is always room for more with a great welcome thrown in. Our 200 Club continues to grow and there are now more than 300 shareholders at £12 per share. The prizes are drawn at the Coffee/Tea in the church hall following the morning service on the 4th Sunday of the month. Dickon Oliver is pleased to welcome more shareholders as the proceeds are a major
contributor to our Building Fund, which is used to fund many of the day to day repairs to the fabric of the church building.
Mention must also be made of the two services recorded for BBC Wales in October with one broadcast on Advent Sunday and the other will be broadcast on Epiphany – Sunday the 6th January 2019.
Our churchyard is often commented upon as to how well it is being kept, thanks to Mike Tucker who keeps an eye on it, and who also works in areas not seen such as the tower, roof and gutters. Our electrics are kept in order by Neil Bainbridge, who for a number of years has replaced fittings and bulbs when necessary. All these people and many more all work together to keep the doors of St Mary’s open, to offer a welcome into God’s house that is sincere and caring for everyone’s wellbeing.
During the year our Pebbles Group, who meet in the Church Hall, join with the 9.30 am congregation and what joy and happiness they bring with them. Leaders and parents we thank you for being with us and sharing the activities they have been working on during their Sunday morning session. There is always room for more and Alyson Williams and her team are ready to welcome new children at any time. Likewise the Messy Church sessions on selected Saturday afternoons are well supported. These are run with the Vale Church and are great fun with worship, singing, craft activities and at the end a meal is shared and all of this is FREE.
So much for what has been happening, now we look forward to seeing the plans for relaying the chancel floor into a gradual gradient, to take away the chancel step, which is considered a hazard to the congregation and wheelchair users alike. We also await the revised plans for our proposed church extension on the North side of Nave; they will be different from the previous plans we were considering, but will be more user friendly. So we welcome 2019 in, knowing that the future looks bright, and that there remains much work for willing hands.
A date for your diary The Family Fun Quiz will take place on Saturday 16th February 2019 in the Community Centre, Wenvoe at 7.00pm for a 7.30 start with our quiz master Ian Moody ably assisted by his daughter Kim. Raffle and nibbles available. Tickets on sale NOW..
A Blwythyn Newydd Da. Happy New year 2019 — bring it on!
Christmas Services
November Winners
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM
The Armistice was remembered at the church and the Village War Memorial on Remembrance Sunday. One hundred years from the signing and coming into force of the Armistice in the Great War, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, in 1918, we remembered the young men of the village who did not return from the battlefields of Belgium and France. Remembrance Sunday dawned with heavy rain, but soon the clouds cleared and we were blessed with brilliant sunshine as we gathered from church for the Silence and Laying of Wreaths at the war memorial. There was an exceptionally large crowd of people, both in church and those waiting while the Vale Brass Band played suitable music as the procession, headed by the cross bearer and choir, followed by the Beavers and Scouts made their way for the second part of the day’s commemorations. Wreaths were laid by the Churchwarden, the Scouts, Wenvoe Community Council, and Wenvoe School. The words of “The Fallen” and “The Four Epitaphs” were read by Mr Philip Morant and the services were led by Parry Edwards, the Licenced Diocesan Reader at St. Mary’s.
The day’s commemoration also included the Royal Air Force, which had celebrated their centenary on the 1st April this year, and we remembered how people reacted to the peace and the effects on lives from the events of the previous four years. It was said that given the enormous rate of fatalities and casualties, that no family in Britain was left untouched by the conflict. Money taken at the collection in church was this year divided between the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal and the Royal Air Force Benevolent fund, and cheques for £150 each have been sent on to them.
A thank you to Ray Harris who devised the service, to Isis printers for printing it, to the Vale of Glamorgan under their Music Director Colin Thomas for playing the hymn, “Reveille” and “the Last Post”, to the Wenvoe Community Council for providing the sound system, to the Church social committee for the teas/coffees after the service, and lastly to the people of Wenvoe who turned out in such good numbers to be present, to remember the fallen, WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.
The Christmas Chattery on November 8th was very well attended with many from the village and friends meeting up for a coffee and chat. The morning gathering raised £287 for the church building fund.
The COMMUNITY CAROL SERVICE at St Mary’s takes place at 7.00pm on Wednesday the 19th December, followed by mulled wine and mince pies at the Community Centre, hosted by the Wenvoe Community Council. This is now a well established date in the Christmas Season with readers invited to take part from village organisations.. O COME LET US ADORE HIM.
Details of the Church Services over the Christmas period can be found elsewhere in ’What’s On”. A Christmas Card giving all the times is being distributed around the homes in the parish.
VISION 2020 is the name for the project in hand, of building an extension to St. Mary’s church. As reported in last months “What’s On” due to the sudden death of our architect Richard Dean, it was necessary to find another architect to take on the work. A recent meeting of the PCC has invited Michael Placeman of Sutton Davies Architects to take on the design of the proposed extension and also to be our own church architect. A preliminary meeting has already taken place and we await revised drawings and ideas of how we should proceed. Watch this space.
CHRISTIAN AID APPEAL with a contribution from EU. The treasurer reported on the amount we raised from the recent “Scarecrow Festival” which came to £700, This amount is increased 5 fold by the EU as their support of the work done by Christian Aid throughout the world. This amount included a donation from St. Lythan’s and Sully church sent their contribution separately.
Following the recent visit of our new architect, who was asked to examine the church floors that are covered by carpet, it was discovered that the underlay and carpets are soaking wet with condensation. They have to be taken up as the Victorian tiling underneath is being damaged, with staining and a white salt deposit growing as a result of the damp conditions. It was resolved to remove the carpeting in the New Year. The reason for the inspection was the plan to lower the Chancel Floor to a gradual slope, eliminating the Chancel Step, which is considered to be a hazard (Health and Safety and all that). The plan also includes under-floor heating, taking away the standing radiators. A Faculty for the work is being submitted to the DAC for approval.
Blessings to all readers. Have a Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year.
Parry Edwards
MIDNIGHT MASS
MIDNIGHT MASS
Christmas Eve Service at St Mary’s Church Wenvoe
This will be my fifth Christmas as Priest in Charge at the Parish of Wenvoe. During this time we have always celebrated the First Communion of Christmas (commonly known as Midnight Mass) with a service starting at 11.30pm on Christmas Eve. This will definitely continue to be the case this year in 2018. However, several people have mentioned to me that this service is too late for them to attend. I thought it would be interesting therefore to conduct a Straw Poll to see if people would prefer this service to be at 9.30pm in future years. A copy of the voting form is shown. If you usually attend this service, or if you would like to attend this service in the future, then you may wish to pick up a voting paper from St Mary’s Church, Wenvoe during the services on 23rd, 24th and 25th December and to return them by 30th December to the boxes provided in Church. We will then look at the results to see what would be the best timing of this service in future years.
With thanks and blessings for Christmas
Jon – Priest in Charge
October Events Report
October began with the rehearsal on Monday evening, Oct 1st in preparation for the recording of the two services on Monday 8th Oct. Jon had written the service for Bible Sunday with the help of the many written suggestions from the congregations, who had been invited to share their thoughts and ideas from the Bible teaching that had helped them during their lives. As you would expect in Wales, hymn singing formed a large part of the service and we sang a version of the Gloria to the tune of “Cwm Rhondda” and finished up with “We shall go out with joy” and we were even allowed to clap, clap, clap during the final verse as is our practice in St. Mary’s.
The second service had Epiphany (the visit of the Magi or wise Men or Kings from the East to the baby Jesus) for its theme, and we were all transported to the Twelfth day after Christmas. The Gospel according to St Luke provided the readings, the carols included “We three kings of Orient are” and we finished up with “One more step along the way we go”
The actual recording of the services were quite different from the rehearsal. We began at 6.30 pm on Monday evening October 8th, and soon realised that the first thing to happen was the voice checks to get the right level. Then everything was recorded in segments, which the producer explained was for any editing to be done to make sure there was enough material to edit or to fill in to the allotted time allowed for the programme to go on air. It must have been about 10 o’clock before the recordings were in the can, and now we have to wait until the broadcast times to hear the final result. It was a good experience to have representatives of our three churches together in an act of worship that was not only fun to do, but enjoyable at the same time.
The 1st broadcast is on Bible Sunday on BBC Radio Wales at 7.30am on October 28th. With the 2nd broadcast on The Feast of the Epiphany on BBC Radio Wales at 7.30am on January 6th 2019.
A session of “Messy Church” was held on Saturday afternoon October 6th in the Wenvoe Community Centre, when some 60 parents and children gathered for this informal family type worship. The theme was “The Wedding at Cana” and the children all helped to make a banner showing the bride and groom with their hand prints in the form of footprints along the bride’s train. That, together with wedding like bunting to decorate the feast, brought the afternoon to a close. A special thank you to the Vale Church for the help they give to make these events such a success.
The recent “Scarecrow Festival” brought many famous people to Wenvoe, despite the wet stormy weather. Due to the rain the event was quickly moved into the church and every nook and cranny seemed to have a scarecrow. We had Geraint Thomas, the winner of the “Tour de France” on his bike in the transept, “Flora the Wenvoe flower Girl”
in the Nave and Donald Trump, the President of the USA presided over all. All were worthy of prizes, for the effort that goes to assembling the scarecrows, and we look forward to next year, when perhaps the weather will be kinder to us. A full list of the prize winners, judged by the people who came, can be found in the October edition of the Parish Magazine “Connections” available in church.
During the “Scarecrow Festival” weekend, the plans for the church extension were displayed in the Transept. They will remain there for some weeks to allow as many people as possible to examine them. There has been a lot of favourable comment for the design and the facilities we hope offer our congregation and the community at large, as we make St. Mary’s Church fit for purpose in the years ahead. For a selection of the illustrations and the floor plan see adjoining page.
Eira Jervis RIP – The church community was saddened to hear of the passing of Eira Jervis after many months of illness. Eira was born, raised and married in Wenvoe and her adult life was spent in the service of others in the community. She served on the Wenvoe Community Council for many years, and has been Chairperson during that time. She was a faithful member of the congregation and undertook the church hall bookings in her spare time. For many years she was the village hairdresser, working from home and then later opening the salon at the rear of the village stores. She was an active member of the Wenvoe Historical Group and provided the foreword to the Tempus book on “Old Wenvoe” Condolences are extended to Viv, her husband and to her sons and their extended families. Well done thou good and faithful servant.
A reminder that the Community Remembrance Service takes place at 10.00am on Sunday 11th November starting in church and proceeding to the Village War Memorial by 11.00 am. This year is the Centenary 1918-2018 of WW1 and so is a very special occasion as we remember the Armistice. We also remember the 100 years of the Royal Air Force and the part they played in both World Wars. We will remember them.
Blessings to all our readers and a welcome awaits you at St Mary’s.
Parry Edwards
Vision 20/20 St Mary’s Church Extension
Here are a few of the drawings showing the proposed extension to St Mary’s Church, Wenvoe to provide a hall and kitchen and toilet facilities on the north side of the church and a balcony in the nave at the west end. Further plans can be viewed in the transept of St Mary’s. If you have any questions or comments about these designs then please contact Jon on revjonormrod @yahoo.co.uk.
The provisional plans were designed and drawn by the architect, the late Richard Dean, who sadly died whilst working on this project in September. It is still the intention of the PCC to proceed as we can use this concept as the basis of our design. More details will follow later, in the meantime our prayers go to Richard’s partner Jo at this sad time.
A Buffalo Called Wenvoe
On a recent trip to India, Gary Smith, the Pastor at Vale Village Church bought a buffalo and gave him the name Wenvoe! You may wonder why. Since the church was started they have partnered with the charity that Gary runs who have been working in India since 2005.
Partnering with a Gateway ministry in Rajahmundry, Andra Pradesh, Ignite, Vale Village Church, Message Wales and many other churches and individuals have paid for the construction of more than 25 churches. In addition, they developed a 300+ pupil school for Dalit children. Dalits are the lowest caste in India and used to be called “untouchables”. They are from some of the poorest villages and were it not for the Gateway School many would not have access to education. This English medium school teaches most of the same subjects as in the UK plus Hindi, the Indian national language and Telegu, the language in that part of the country. Since its inception it has produced excellent results.
Six years ago money was also raised to build a children’s home on the school compound. The 25 children housed there are either orphans or “semi-orphans” meaning they have lost one of their parents and the surviving parent is simply too poor to care for them. This is where the buffaloes come in! We are establishing a small herd to provide milk for the children and also possibly generate an income for the children’s home. Gary shared some information:
“When I was visiting this August I saw that there are currently 4 buffalo on the land. Rotation means that only 2 are currently providing milk. Now clearly I am not a herdsman but I tried to understand the facts and this is what I discovered. Each buffalo produces about 3 litres of milk. The children’s home needs 9 litres per day. So with only 2 currently available to milk it meant they were buying milk to meet the shortfall. A quick call home to our church and we decided to gift them one to get them over the current ‘crisis’. In order to ensure this supply remains constant we will need to find a way to provide a further buffalo. In addition they need to pay a stockman. In simple terms an additional buffalo in milk would provide the income for the whole operation. Ultimately we want to raise the funds for a total of 10 buffalo. This would feed the kids, pay the stockman, provide a small income and have capacity for buffalo not to be providing milk.
I discovered a few other things. Milk from cows is not consumed in India. That is because it curdles in the heat and also the Hindus consider it to be a sacred animal. Also because Hindus are vegetarian and Christians do not eat beef there is almost no value in buffalo meat. Meaning male calves are worthless. The most surprising discovery is just how expensive buffaloes are! Wenvoe the buffalo cost almost £1,200! This is expensive by most standards but in India it means the herd is incredibly precious to their owners”
If you would like to sponsor a buffalo, the cost is £1,200. Or if you would like to make a part cost donation for any amount, please make a cheque payable to Ignite and post it to 17 Rectory Close, Wenvoe, CF5 6AQ
