St. Mary Magdalen, Sheet - Parish Notices

From the Vicar:

The Summer Evensong recently was, I felt, a picture of St Mary Magdalen at its best. The church was nicely full of people who are not usually able to be with us, many of them from the residential care homes in the parish. They were well supplemented by people we see more often, many of whom minister to the homes month by month throughout the year. Willing volunteers transported people to the church; others welcomed them warmly; a full choir led us in a wonderful mix of familiar hymns and chants and just one or two less familiar items, and tea was laid on by more willing volunteers. Thank you to all, particularly to Jenny Parkes, for making this happen. I know the people who joined us had a rare and rich opportunity to Worship God.

Ordinations
This weekend is a wonderfully exciting time for us at StMM as we see the ordinations of two former stalwarts of the church. Lesley Leon was ordained priest last night at St Michael's Basingstoke and celebrates her first Communion at St Mary's Selborne this morning. Susan Judd is to be ordained Deacon in Portsmouth Cathedral this afternoon (29th) at 3pm. Susan and Lesley add to the number of former StMM folk who have been ordained in recent years and with Anderson March in training this is clearly good news for the church.
It is important not to forget however, that all of us are called to ministry in some way, shape or form. Lesley, Susan and Anderson have had a particular calling, but it is not a better one. The vital question for all of us to be asking is, 'What is God calling me to?'
Let us pray for one another as we pray for Lesley, Susan and Anderson
Rob Dewings Signature

God Bless.

Parish Notices

SNIPPETS FROM THE PCC

Snippets from May PCC meeting:

Cathy Castle, Child Protection Officer, set out policy standards for those in contact with young people at St Mary Magdalen.
Wendy Kennedy, Diocesan Secretary, showed presentation and answered questions on the finances of the Diocese and StMM’s place within it.
Charlie Meader, Paula Wigley and Ambrose Barber were all re-elected to serve respectively as Church Treasurer, PCC Secretary and PCC Vice-Chair.
Anne Davidson will continue as PACT Rep for further year.
Jean Dowdeswell was elected as Church Rep on the Group Council.
Fabric Committee to look at developing an Asset Management Plan over the course of the next year .
PCC voted to allocate up to £2,000 to update the PA system.
Imagine project progressing, emphasizing 1% shift in ‘Whole Life Discipleship’.
The Church weekend away will be at St. Rhadagund's on IoW from 21-23 November.
Date of next PCC meeting: Monday the 7th July 2008 at 8pm.

The Rock, the monthly magazine of St. Peter's Petersfield, St.Mary Magdalen Sheet and St. Mary's Buriton, is now available for download from the websites of each of the Parishes!
Just click on the picture on the right and you will be able to download the LATEST edition as a pdf file (Please note: they tend to be quite large files)
Previous editions of the Rock are also available.
The editors would be interested to know what you think if this initiative - obviously we will be able to see how many people have used this facility from the web statistics, but that won't tell us what you think of it!
Please drop the editors an email to let them know your thoughts!

Snippets from the Sheet sheet

Anderson Marsh Anderson is on placement at Portsmouth University from mid April to late July, so will not be with us at StMM for while. We will pray for him particularly next Sunday, but please do hold him in your own prayers.
Susan Judd Susan has finished her training and will be ordained Deacon in Portsmouth Cathedral on Sunday 29 June. This is now at 3pm and not 6pm as previously advertised. If you are able to go along and support her it would be very much appreciated.
2008 Church Weekend Away A brochure and booking form for this year’s Church Weekend Away is now available at the back of the Church or from Jean Dowdeswell. The weekend will again be on the Isle of Wight and will be from 21-23 November.
If you would like more information please contact Jean, Olivia Tottle or Ruth Markby.
Publicity Officer Jean Dowdeswell has now been appointed as the Publicity Officer for StMM. Her role will be to liaise with all the various groups within the church and PACT, and ensure information is publicised in the best way. Articles for the Sheet should still be sent to the Parish Office in the normal way, but if you want something publicised in more detail have a word with Jean.
Supported Organisations To give a greater profile to the organisations we at StMM support, it has been decided that it would be good to pray for them during our Intercessions each Sunday. The Outreach Group have drawn up a list of the organisations pairing an international one with a domestic one and the aim is that we will pray for the pair each month. The two organisations we will be praying for, in the Intercessions during June, are the ‘Acorn Christian Healing Foundation’ & ‘In Ministry to Children (IMC)’.
Further organisations to be prayed for can be found here.
StMM Friendship Lunch The next lunch will be on Sunday 29 June at 12.30pm. These lunches are for ALL with the sole aim of helping us to get to know each other better (no speaker, video, talk etc). More details next month.
Electro Sheet Now that the Church Database has been up-dated, we plan, from time to time, to send out news electronically - hence ‘Electro Sheet’. To reduce the spread of viruses and to maintain individual confidentially, the news will be sent ‘blind’ (e-mail addresses will be keep secret). If I already have your e-mail, you should have received the first of these sheets. If you haven't received it, but would like to get information in this way, please let me have your e-mail address. If you don’t have e-mail, do remember that the pigeon holes at the back of the church are used to pass on information. Please check if there is anything for you before you leave the church each week. Dave Dowdeswell
Keswick 2008 Would you be interested in being part of a church group to attend a Convention Week this July?
If so contact Bob Slade
Historic Churches Cycle Ride This year’s event will be on Saturday 13 September. We at StMM will be visited by cyclists and walkers throughout the day from 10am until 6pm and Stewards will be required to welcome them. If you could spare an hour or more to do this could you please contact Eric Gorvin

Gift Aiders
If you are a taxpayer and do not give to the church via the "Gift Aid Scheme" can we encourage you to think about doing so. It will mean that the church can claim back the tax you have paid thus increase your giving without you paying more.

If you have any questions about the scheme please speak with Charlie Meader or Felicity Poulter.

Gift Aid and standing order forms are available at the back of the church.

How much should we give?
The Church of England recommends that we give 5% of our net income to the Church.
Where does all the money go?
It costs approximately £38,000 per annum to employ each priest in our Diocese, of which just 55% is the stipend. The rest is pension, housing National Insurance and training costs. In addition national and diocesan costs equate to a further £6000 per priest per year. These costs are funded by each parish paying a share, according to its means. The share per church member in this Diocese remains as one of the lowest in the country. In addition is the funding the cost of the day-to-day running and upkeep of each church.

The most effective form of giving, if you are a taxpayer, is by means of the Gift Aid Scheme, which enables your church to claim back from the Inland Revenue 25 pence for every pound you donate. Your treasurer has the necessary forms.
You can also give your time and talents in variety of ways ranging from flower arranging, helping with young people, welcoming at services and visiting the sick, to name but a few.
It is important that we review our giving on a regular basis and give regularly to the church – it is there for us every day!

You can read the Vicar's "Thoughts on Giving" by clicking on the link.

Other news from Organisations we support:
	King’s Arms The King’s Arms is the award winning youth centre set up by the churches in Petersfield six years ago. It is facing some financial challenges and there is a huge opportunity for churches and individuals to reconfirm their support for this fantastic project. Following their recent campaign the King’s Arms have now the equivalent of 200 people giving £1 a week each. The future is looking brighter but more is still needed. If you have not committed to give please pick up a standing order form from the back of church. A big thank you from the King’s Arms! (Message from John Callaghan) The King’s Arms would like to thank the Churches and Christians of Petersfield for their continued generosity. Despite a financial crisis earlier this year, your commitment to providing good facilities for all of the young people of this area has completely turned things around. Should you wish to sign up as a supporter of the King’s Arms, go to www.thekingsarmsonline.co.uk or contact Bill. We are looking for hundreds of local people to become supporters. Thanks again. The King’s Arms is very short of female helpers on a Friday evening between 7-9pm. They need adults to be present, to listen, to chat or just be there with the older teenagers (15/16). If you could help please contact Bill Pearce, Tom or Hannah.
	Join the Tearfund prayer group
	Fairtrade The group working on Petersfield becoming a Fairtrade Town, are really close to being able to apply officially for Fairtrade Town status, and the last phase is just getting local businesses, cafes & community groups to actually tell them that they’re using Fairtrade goods so that they can present a list to the Fairtrade Foundation with their application. They now need volunteers to deliver leaflets to local shops and ask for them to be given to the manager. If you could help with this please contact Seren Boyd, and she will deliver them to you.
	Winton House Centre Sponsored Family Cycle Ride The Winton House Sponsored Family Cycle this year will be on Sunday 22 June at 1.30pm for a 2pm start. The venue is the Town Juniors' Football Club car park on Love Lane. The cost is £2 per person and children up to end of Junior School age need to be accompanied by a responsible adult, but are exempt from the entry fee. Application forms are available from Winton House Centre or can be downloaded from the website - www.WintonHouseCentre.org.uk. Half of the money raised goes to Winton House Centre, and the other half goes to a charity of your choice. The event is being run during National Bike Week and there will be various handouts on the day and chances to win a stay at CentreParcs. There will also be free water and bananas outside the Taro Centre, where there are toilet facilities if needed, and, for their safety there will be a school crossing patrols to help cross bottlenecks. Winton House will also be carrying full public liability insurance.

Church Office ~ Opening Hours

Wednesday 9:15am - 12:45pm
Thursday 9:15am - 12:45pm
Friday 9:15am - 11:30am
Messages can be left on the answer machine - they will get listened to!

Dave Dowdeswell

Do you know anyone who is lonely, unwell, low spirited, housebound, a single parent or a carer?
Do you think they would like a friend to offer support, to chat to and laugh with?
If you do, get in touch with St Mary's Visitors Group through Jenny Parkes.

Visitors Group
St. Mary Magdalen values visiting and those who visit very highly. Visitors often need support and encouragement. However, perhaps turning out on an October evening is not the best way to offer it. This autumn, in place of a meeting , we thought we would ask any visitors who would like to talk over what they do to ring us to make a time to chat.
Please contact: Jenny Parkes

For those of you who watch Songs of Praise on the TV, you will know that the following were voted by viewers as their top 10 favourite songs.
How great thou art
Dear Lord and Father of mankind
The day thou gavest
Be thou my vision
Love divine all loves excelling
Be still for the presence of the Lord
Make me a channel of your peace
Guide me, O thou Great Redeemer
In Christ alone
Shine Jesus Shine

Songs of Praise

At the evening service on 27th November 2005 (I know - that does seem a long time ago!), the following Hymns were "revealed" as the St Mary's congregation favourites:

When I Survey
I the Lord of Sea and Sky
When we walk with the Lord
In Christ Alone
Make Me a Channel
Blessed Assurance
There is a Redeemer
O Let the Son of God Enfold You
Lord I Lift
Great is thy Faithfulness

An interesting comparison?

Communion Wine

We are now buying our wine from the Church Purchasing Scheme (CPS). If you would like to make a donation, in memory of a loved one or to celebrate/give thanks for a specific event, please give the money to Charlie Meader with a note to say it is for wine.
If you wish to have the event and name recorded in the ‘Sheet’, please let Dave in the Parish Office have the details (at least a week before the event).
Heather Bird

Please check your pigeon hole every time you are in church.
The sooner things are collected, the less time there is for them to go astray.
Better still, let Dave in the Parish Office have your email address and much information can be sent to you electronically saving paper and improving the chances of information reaching you!
There is a clipboard at the back of the church for this, or you could email direct to admin@stmarymagdalensheet.org.uk
Thanks for your help!

last updated 29.06.2008