Christmas 2020
Christmas 2020
THANK YOU to those of you who came to church and walked round our Nativity Trail on Christmas Eve and over the previous 2 Sundays. We hope you all enjoyed it. Lower down there is an explanation of the stations around the trail followed by a slideshow of photographs.
To ensure we adhere to government guidelines:
1) You must wear a face mask or visor when you enter church then sanitise your hands.
2) Use the QR code in the porch if you have the NHS App. Otherwise, one member of a family must have their name recorded on a list of attendees.
3) Keep 2 metres apart from each family group.
4) At the services, numbers are restricted so please reserve your seat with Fr Mark. Complete the form on the Contact Us page of the website. There is a telephone number on that page too.
https://www.stbartswednesbury.com/contact-us.html
To ensure we adhere to government guidelines:
1) You must wear a face mask or visor when you enter church then sanitise your hands.
2) Use the QR code in the porch if you have the NHS App. Otherwise, one member of a family must have their name recorded on a list of attendees.
3) Keep 2 metres apart from each family group.
4) At the services, numbers are restricted so please reserve your seat with Fr Mark. Complete the form on the Contact Us page of the website. There is a telephone number on that page too.
https://www.stbartswednesbury.com/contact-us.html
NATIVITY TRAIL SLIDESHOW
1) The trail starts with a welcome from our reindeer.
2) This is followed by 'Light':
- Light is a recurring theme in the bible. It is mentioned many times.
- Light is something that keeps us safe.
- Just a few examples are car headlights, streetlights, a lighthouse!
- Light makes us feel safe and keeps us safe.
- Jesus said, “I am the light of the world!”
- He also said, “Let your light shine before others.”
- How are you a ‘light’ to others?
- There is an explanation of the meaning of the Christingle.
4) 'Hometown' - Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem. So on our trail there is a display about our town.
5) 'Caring' - like the shepherds who cared for their sheep, our key workers have been caring for us during the pandemic. A display of photos and quotes from a variety of key workers along with knitted and crocheted key worker dolls made by people in the community.
6) At this station, people could light a candle and say a prayer. 'Take a moment to quieten your mind and remove all distractions from around you. Reflect on where you are in life, what you would like to pray for and the promise God has made to you. Ask God to comfort you and speak to you.'
7) Star of Bethlehem (made by Mario Castillo).
8) Crib and trees.
9) Lady Chapel - Mary cared for her son. At this station people could remember their loved ones by writing a message on a star and hang it on the memory tree.
10) 'Hope' - artwork and baubles done by children from St John's C of E Primary Academy.
11) A final message of hope from Councillor Elaine Costigan.
CHRISTMAS NATIVITY TRAIL
Those people who attended the Nativity Trail on 13th and 20th December and on Christmas Eve enjoyed it. Thank you for supporting us.
THANK YOU TO:
(The Trail allowed a ‘pilgrimage’ to be taken around the church. Various stations provided readings, reflections and prayers; candles could be lit at one of the Stations for loved ones you have lost and miss, especially at this time of year. At another Station the name of a loved one who cares/cared for you, like Mary cared for Jesus, have been hung upon a memory tree in the Lady Chapel. There was a music station, too, with music from CDs (no singing can take place inside church). The final station looked at Hope for 2021.)
CHRISTMAS NATIVITY TRAIL
Those people who attended the Nativity Trail on 13th and 20th December and on Christmas Eve enjoyed it. Thank you for supporting us.
THANK YOU TO:
- The Children’s Ministry co-ordinators and Fr Mark who have kindly helped decorate the church and created the displays for each Station on the trail.
- The Co-op for kindly donating a Christmas Tree and decorations.
- Some of the children at St John’s C of E Primary Academy for creating some artwork and baubles for the final station called HOPE. (Thank you to the staff for arranging this.)
- The key workers who provided us with photos and their thoughts about their jobs and how they feel about being called a ‘Hero’ (Station 3).
- People who have kindly knitted or crocheted key worker dolls for display on Station 4.
- People from the community who provided us with their positive thoughts about our town (Station 3).
- Councillor Elaine Costigan for a final message at the end of the trail.
(The Trail allowed a ‘pilgrimage’ to be taken around the church. Various stations provided readings, reflections and prayers; candles could be lit at one of the Stations for loved ones you have lost and miss, especially at this time of year. At another Station the name of a loved one who cares/cared for you, like Mary cared for Jesus, have been hung upon a memory tree in the Lady Chapel. There was a music station, too, with music from CDs (no singing can take place inside church). The final station looked at Hope for 2021.)
FROM THE 'MESS' TO MESSIAH
This film by the Bible Society’s storyteller, Dai Woolridge, takes us on a journey through scripture from the ‘mess’ to Messiah. It might not be to everybody’s taste but it does make you think – an imaginative way of telling the story. Use this link.
This film by the Bible Society’s storyteller, Dai Woolridge, takes us on a journey through scripture from the ‘mess’ to Messiah. It might not be to everybody’s taste but it does make you think – an imaginative way of telling the story. Use this link.
OTHER NOTICES:
- The Bible Society has teamed up with Movement Day UK to produce a powerful video series. There are 4 Advent prayer videos and they will be released each Sunday at 9 am, beginning today (29th November). There are daily short Advent prayers calling on God to come and restore, comfort, heal and transform the places we live in and the people we care about. Click on this link for today’s video. https://www.youtube.com/watch? For more information go to this website. https://ocomeemmanuel.com
- 4 WORDS 4 STORIES (YouTube video by Dai Woolridge) - a lovely message for us all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RTyb26EC6U&fbclid=IwAR0fXJdMXhEp0b40TPTbRfDaw22vJ-0lObmgR9rFyasssLBSaOIldCNRyrs - Not everyone is living in a family situation at the moment, so the Bible Society has come up with 5 ways to encourage each other and focus on Jesus this Advent. Use this link to find out more.
