October
and the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ [Keats] is upon us when the last fruits incarnadine’ [Rilke, previous page]. Actually, of course, the mild, extended summer is barely over and we’ve hardly started the mists and mellow fruitfulness though the leaves are turning and some dropping with alarming speed. Different summers produce such different autumns I wish I had the forethought to note them down. A plentiful crop of berries is said to presage a hard winter though I’ve always thought it rather reflects the right conditions in April and May or thereabouts. But it’s a nice idea – nature storing up bounty for the dark weeks ahead.
October is the month for our Dedication Festival. Churches who don’t celebrate a patronal festival use the Sunday nearest the 7th October, designated by the church for Dedication. As it happens our church was dedicated on 7th October 1747 so we justifiably make the most of that date – which gets neatly round the vexed question of why no one in 1747 thought to write down which St John they meant. At the service in the morning we will be invited to rededicate our lives to God in the following words:
Act of Rededication
Churchwardens
Father Stephen, we invite you as servant and shepherd of this congregation, to offer once again a prayer of dedication for this Church.
Vicar God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, accept, sanctify and bless this place. The Lord with his favour ever mercifully behold it, and so send upon it his spiritual benediction and grace, that it may be the house of God to him, and the gate of heaven to us. Now I invite you all to renew your own dedication to Christian discipleship
All
Almighty God, you have called us in your Son to witness to your love; accept this offering of our lives in your service, to the glory of your holy name, and the good of all your children. Amen.
Vicar Almighty God, who has called you to his service, grant you grace and strength to fulfil the same, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
What else does October bring?
Music: Two of a Kind on 5th October brings together Malcolm Archer and Barry Rose in a tribute to Martindale Sidwell on what would have been his 90th birthday and Geoffrey Dancer returns to us with a Piano Recital on 14th; South Hampstead High School will also be visiting with a concert on 9th.
Preparation: The drama group are busy rehearsing for their November production of A Tale of Two Cities and plans are in hand for the Scratch Verdi Requiem on 11th November. You won’t want me to remind you about the Christmas Market [18th November] but I’m going to anyway because now’s the time to be looking out unwanted gifts for the fabric fund gift stall and making things for the produce stall – Mincemeat, Christmas cakes and puddings all sell well. And there’ll be a good selection of charity cards for sale. And it’s fun – come on, it is, you know it is. A chance to shop and chat and sample the Friends of the Music coffee and home made biscuits and face the fact that Christmas is going to come, however much you try to avoid it. Put the date in your diary. Confirmation classes are getting underway ready for the Confirmation Service on 10th December at 6pm. And I fear before long schools and choirs will be starting on their Christmas Carols.
There’s learning too: The Sunday School are preparing for the new year with a bible morning on 14th, and the Servers for their role with a training session that afternoon. The Study Centre term starts on 11th with a bible based programme entitled Do you understand what you are reading? [Acts 8.30]. Full term’s programme on page 19.
And then there’s Operation Christmas Child: see page 13 for details of our shoebox appeal.
You may remember that last month I mentioned the state of the boiler. Well, dig your warm clothes out because the problem is still with us but the heating isn’t. We HOPE to have a new boiler and flue in place before the weather turns cold but if it catches us out there’s really nothing we can do but pile on the sweaters. You have been warned!
Mother Sarah starts her new Bible Study group for women only this month, the date will be announced on the pew sheet, and if that sounds sexist there’s nothing to stop the men getting their own group together……… Meanwhile the Wednesday morning and Thursday evening groups continue – see the diary for dates.
I’m planning a blitz on the hassocks this autumn and would welcome some help. The first meeting of what I hope will be a monthly sewing group is on Thursday 5th October at 10am in the choir vestry. [We can discuss timing that day and find what suits us best.] It’s boring work but not bad if there are a few people to talk to while you sew – or if you prefer, you can collect the materials and take them home. There are a number of hassocks in desperate need of repair but it won’t take forever if we stick at it for a while. Embroidered church kneelers apparently began in Winchester Cathedral in the 1930s – I don’t know if any of them are still in use; ours only date from 1962 so they’ve got plenty of life left in them but all that praying is playing havoc with the rings and backing.
October is census month, so if I look more than usually preoccupied and seem to be wandering aimlessly about the building during Sunday services it may be because I’m counting the congregation, the Sunday School, the Creche, the people roaming around the churchyard trying to keep their children happy – even the number of dogs [not strictly asked for on the forms but I have been known to squeeze them in]. Numbers are collected throughout the country during October and contribute to the statements about rising or falling numbers of churchgoers that crop up in the press from time to time. So be there and be counted! I seem to recall that God didn’t approve of census-taking and came down rather hard on David but things have changed since Old Testament times and number-crunching is all the rage so the church can’t be left behind!
And finally Thank you to everyone who contributed Harvest Gifts – the Simon Community were most grateful.
Judy East
October
Judy East