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DECEMBER 2003

Dear Friends

“And is it true? And is it true? The most tremendous tale of all?”

These words were written by John Betjeman and come towards the end of his poem “Christmas”. You can almost sense the awe and wonder behind those lines.

The answer to the question is a resounding “YES, IT IS TRUE!”

Paul, on trial before King Agrippa, was able to say this about the events concerning Jesus: “For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped the king’s notice, for this has not been done in a corner” (Acts 26:26).

In case we are ever tempted to think otherwise, we can be absolutely sure that the Gospel records concerning the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus are true. We need have no suspicions about that.

The next few weeks will be busy ones for all of us: cards to send, shopping to buy, presents to organise, decorations to put up, visits to arrange – and the list goes on. So here are some Christmas suggestions!

· Let’s resolve now, before we get too caught up in the rush, that with God’s help we will have the right perspective on Christmas.

· Let’s make sure we enter into the joy of celebrating the amazing truth that God really has provided a Saviour for us – his Son Jesus – born into this world, born to set us free from the penalty of our sins by his death on the Cross.

· Let’s make the most of all the opportunities of this Christmas season. Full details of our special Christmas services are included in the magazine (as well as on the Christmas leaflet). Do come to what you can, and please invite others as well.

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him” (1 Jon 4:9).

With warm Christian greetings for a very happy Christmas, full of the joy of our Saviour’s birth, to all of you.

Yours,
Robert Bashford

FROM THE CHURCH REGISTERS
We extend our prayers and sympathy to the relatives and friends of those committed to God’s care:

Funerals: 7th November Pat Cowan, aged 81 years
19th November Gladys Stevens, aged 92 years


NOVEMBER SERMON TAPES
All tapes of the sermons preached on Sunday mornings and evenings in November are available on request from Elizabeth and Nigel Hadley (Tel: 831067) as usual. Tapes £1 each.



SERMONS IN DECEMBER
7th December 10.30am “Abraham – God’s friend; The ultimate test”
(Gen.22)
6.30pm “The talents” (Matt.25:14-30)

14th December 10.30am “Wake up to Christmas” (Christingle Service)
6.30pm “The sheep and the goats” (Matt. 25:31-46)

19th December 7.00pm “Love in a manger” – The Old School Hall
(Family Carol Service)

21st December 10.30am “Advent hope, the momentous event” (2 Peter 3)
6.30pm “What is Christmas all about?” (Carol Service)

24th December 11.15pm “A night to remember” (Christmas Eve)

25th December 10.30am “The indescribable gift” (Christmas Day)

28th December 10.30am “Maranatha”
6.30pm To be announced


SPECIAL CHRISTMAS SERVICES

Sunday 14th December
10.30am Christingle Family Service with Nativity Play “Wake up to Christmas”

Friday 19th December
7.00pm Family Carol Service (NB this service takes place in the Old School Hall Garlinge) “Love in a manger”

SPECIAL CHRISTMAS SERVICES

Sunday 21st December
6.30pm Candle-lit Carol Service
“What is Christmas all about?”

Wednesday 24th December
11.15pm Christmas Eve Lord’s Supper
“A night to remember”

Thursday 25th December
10.30am Christmas Day Family Service, followed by optional shortened Lord’s Supper
“The Indescribable gift”




ISAIAH 51:12
What a comforter in Jesus,
Every moment of the day,
In us, with us, through us, by us,
Helping us in what we pray,
In us while to him we call,
With us when we trip and fall,
Through us as we speak to others,
By us as the devil smothers,
Seeking to bring in discord,
WHAT A SAVIOUR, WHAT A LORD

WENTWORTH GARDENS

To anyone driving north or holiday-ing in Derbyshire, I can recommend a detour to Wentworth Gardens. This estate is north west of Rotherham, very close to the M1. There is a long and complicated history to Wentworth including family rivalry. Unfortunately, the house and castle are no longer open to the public, but the gardens have been attractively restored and entrance is free. What is really impressive and unexpected is the metal plaque above the wrought iron gates saying:
There is healing in a garden
Where one longs for peace and pardon
Once past the gate
No need to wait
For God is in the garden.

What a wonderful way of promoting the Good News.

Pat Bailey


MUSTARD SEED RELIEF MISSION
Love in a Box – 2003

Thank you to all who helped with the shoeboxes and the knitting of gloves, hats and toddler tops and also for the donations. We were able to deliver 55 boxes to Deal where they are being sorted for dispatch.

Colin Spicer will be leaving on the 5th December for Romania and then will be returning for Christmas and then will leave for the Ukraine as their Christmas is not until 6th January.

A team from Eastbourne is hoping to go to Basra. We ask for your prayers as they introduce them to this practical demonstration of love, for lives to be touched and healed, for the refugee children at each distribution point, for good travelling conditions and the safety of the teams.

Colin Spicer from Deal will be speaking at our Christian Encounter meeting on Wednesday 11th February 2004. So please come along and see how these boxes were received.
Marion Myers


FRIENDS OF KENT CHURCHES - SPONSORED BIKE RIDE

What a glorious day! Saturday 13th September had perfect weather conditions for cycling – day-long sunshine and a gentle breeze. Cycling around the quiet roads of Romney Marsh, Chris and I enjoyed the early autumn colours of the hawthorn hedges and the wide ranging views across the Marsh to the hills along its northern edge. Hospitality at the Marsh churches is renown, especially the bread pudding at Brenzett! Sitting between the four splendid Norman arches that support the tower at New Romney and enjoying an excellent cup of tea and mammoth slices of fruit cake was another of the day’s delights.

We started our tour at the church of St Rumwold, Bonnington at 10am and were immediately asked if we were going to have our lunch at Ruckinge. Arriving there about an hour later it seemed rather churlish to decline something from their magnificent spread, but it was rather early and we had a long way to go! Were we on a cycle ride or a moveable feast?! We enjoyed our packed lunch sitting outside the tiny church of St Thomas Beckett at Fairfield, with just the sound of the sheep and the wind in the rushes for company.

After our previous sponsored bike ride on the Marsh a few years ago when we bit off more than we could comfortably chew, we were careful this year to plan a less ambitious route. We had some favourites that we did not want to leave out, but we also decided to visit some that were new to us and to avoid busy roads as much as possible. The traffic in New Romney came as something of a shock after cycling along a grassy track between the fields. In all we visited 16 churches, arriving back at St Rumwolds’ just after 6pm. Stopping in Birchington to buy fish and chips, we met two more cyclists. They had cycled from Ramsgate and then had a puncture. They had spent all afternoon trying to repair it and seemed to have bought and returned to the shop about three pumps. They were either the wrong type or didn’t work! When I produced a pump from the back of our car that worked and fitted, I was nearly hugged. True to tradition we ended our day half asleep in front of the Last Night of the Proms!

P.S. Do look up St Rumwold – he was quite an amazing little fellow and if you want to know more about the Marsh churches I recommend this book:

The Churches of Romney Marsh published by The Romney Marsh Historic Churches Trust

I would like to thank those members of St James who sat in the church and welcomed cyclists and walkers to St James. In all we had 38 visitors. My thanks also to Nigel Hadley for also cycling and supporting the Friends of Kent Churches. Nigel, Chris and Jose raised a total of £245.11, half of which (£122.81) is returned to St James. Thank you to all those who sponsored us.
José Gibbs

ALL WE WANT IS PEACE


Lord, please help us
Down here on this earth
Stand up and make a stance
Most of us need a second chance
Our way of finding justice
Doesn’t work at all
The earth that you created
Is starting to crumble and fall
They shoot and they kill
Then they get a wicked thrill
Happy to see the people lay and die
The thought must go through their minds
WHY, WHY, WHY
We were not put here on earth
To do this to other people
All we want to do
Is live in peace and harmony
The rat bags of this world
They are cruel and not fair
Some people say we don’t care
The best thing for this is prayer


By Robert Bradley



JESUS SAID: “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” Mark 5:19


THE MOST FAMOUS VERSE IN THE BIBLE

There is a verse in the Bible which has been translated into more than 2000 languages. It tells of a God who loves us with an everlasting love.

The verse recorded in the following 27 of the best known languages is understood of three-quarters of the earth’s population:-
Afrikaan, Arabic, Chinese, Danish, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Sinhalene, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tamil and Welsh. The verse is John 3:16.

(As printed in Gideon Bible Helps)

SATURDAY SHOP

The attendance at the Saturday Shop in November was not particularly high but despite the low turn out the magnificent total of £226 was raised. Our thanks go up to God for his watchfulness and out to all who helped and supported in any way.

There will be no Saturday Shop in December as the Christmas Fair takes place on 6th December.

CHRISTMAS FLOWERS

Please note that this year the Christmas Tree will be decorated on Friday 12th December for the Christingle Service being held on Sunday 14th followed by decorating the Church, for the Christmas services, on Friday 19th from 9.30am.

As usual, help would be very much appreciated particularly for flower arranging, supplying flowers or foliage and helping on the day.

Daphne Dickens

CHRISTMAS FAIR

Just a reminder that the Christmas Fair will be held in the Old School Hall, Garlinge on Saturday 6th December at 10.00am.

Admission is free but there will be a charge of £1.50 to visit Father Christmas in his renowned grotto – a magical experience for children of all ages! Any contributions, offers of help or queries please contact either of us.

PLEASE SUPPORT THE FAIR AND, THEREBY, ST JAMES’. All friends, neighbours and relations welcome!

Teresa and Wally Merry
THANK YOU

To all of you who sent in articles for the magazine during the last year a big “Thank You”. Without your support the magazine would not be viable so please keep your contributions flowing.

Thank you also to all our distributors and to Elaine for ensuring that the magazine is ready each month in its finished format.

Have you thought about inviting friends and neighbours to subscribe to the magazine thereby helping to spread the word? If so, then please contact Elaine or myself. Ed.

BEIT-LÉHEM

There are at least ten places throughout the world called Bethlehem, certainly one city. But we are concerned at this season with only one – an unpretentious hilltop town which gave its name to all the rest. Beth-léhem, the “house of bread.”
It stands a jumble of higgledy-piggledy on the crest of the Judaean hills, terraced with olive and vines and with a winding main street clinging to the edge of precipices. Nothing in the approaches, as the constant stream of coaches and cars roars round the bends, to distinguish it from any other – except perhaps shop signs such as “Holy Land Store” and “Holy Manger Restaurant” – which strike the eye as oddly moving rather than irreverent. For this is Arab country.
Nothing either, at first glance, to explain why Jesus should have been born here of all places. Yet appropriate after all. For this was the birthplace of David, His ancestor. And David’s patrimony, the home of Boaz and Ruth, was later to become the Inn. History completing the circle. “House of Bread” …. One of the offerings in the Holy Place and perhaps the inspiration of Our Lord’s words: Man shall not live by bread alone . . .
Up the road climbs, past steep side-streets and alleys where craftsmen work unseen as they have for centuries past on silver and mother-of-pearl, to the summit of Beit-léhem, the basilica of the Church of the Nativity.
Only a child can, without stooping, enter by the tiny door, filled in no doubt to keep out cattle but nevertheless symbolic of the declaration: Except ye . . . become as little children ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. The door leads into a Crusader church, containing the remains of the oldest in Christendom – that built by Queen Helena, mother of Constantine, in AD326 – and then into other shrines, Latin and Eastern Orthodox. (None, oddly enough, belonging to the Anglican Communion, which claims jurisdiction over none of the Holy places). But the focal point is below: a tiny oblong, windowless grotto festooned with gold and silver lamps, blackened with candle-smoke of many centuries – the side of the Manger of the Inn, they say.
Today this rock-hewn vault is pillared in alabaster, sheathed in marble, In a niche near the foot of the stone steps leading into it a silver star is set into the floor. It is inscribed in Latin: Hic de Virgine Maria Jesus Christus natus est (“Here Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary).
A step away, in an alcove, is what used to be a bare rock shelf. Here, tradition says, the Babe was laid in swaddling clothes. Now it is covered with silver, decked with brocade. Thus having the trappings of devotion obscured the original stark simplicity.
In brief intervals between Communion rites, celebrated well-nigh continuously by priest of many nations, processions of pilgrims stoop to touch both spots with their lips. Even so, authenticity is not now capable of conclusive proof: all vestiges of the Inn long since crumbled into dust.
But after all, what is more important than being able to establish the precise spot on the surface of the earth where the Son of God was born is the fact that He was born – and we can be certain indeed that He was born in this immediate vicinity. Tradition is sometimes the only source of history, and can prove the most convincing form of evidence.
About a mile down the slopes from Beit-léhem is Shepherds’ Field, containing a number of caves where shepherds used to huddle in shelter from the cold, while tending their flocks. We do not know which cave it was to which the Angel brought the tidings of great joy, but we can see Beit-léhem was in easy view of it, and evidently the shepherds reached the Manger within a few minutes.
We do not know, either, which star it was- the “Star out of Jacob” predicted by Moses 1,500 years earlier – which led the Wise Men. Some astronomers have reason to believe it to have been a comet.
But since Beit-léhem is on a hilltop and visible afar off it is apparent that the village would have been pinpointed beyond mistake.
Here, as elsewhere in the Holy Land, one has to make a determined mental effort nowadays to divest these simple places of the over-elaborate paraphernalia superimposed on them down the ages.
But somehow, even to the unbelievers, there remains an almost overpowering sense of Presence in the Manger. The Christian recognises it as the Holy Spirit.

Because this is where Christmas began.

Taken from a St James’ Parish Magazine dated December 1969

DECEMBER DIARY

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