General Chat

Good morning :-)


Today we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King – the final Sunday in the church’s year – the Sunday before Advent. The gospel presents us with the vision of the last judgement, when the Son of Man comes in Glory.

The Collect (special prayer) for today)

Eternal Father,
whose Son Jesus Christ ascended to the throne of heaven
that he might rule over all things as Lord and King:
keep the Church in the unity of the Spirit
and in the bond of peace,
and bring the whole created order to worship at his feet;
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.



Matthew 25.31–46

‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.

Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.”

Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?”

And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.”

Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’


Cx :-)

Hello all

Florence Nightingale was inspirational and so are all of the NHS workers during this pandemic.
Pray for strength for them all as their workload increases and also for opportunities to rest for those who are very tired.

Good morning :-)

Just a short time ago, we celebrated the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale. Florence was a Christian and a member of the C. of E. It is said that she prayed heavily for God to give her a life-defining task and that she was absolutely tenacious and determined to fulfil her purpose. She would just not rest until she could seize hold of that for what she had been called, nor would she rest until she had taken hold of that for which Christ had taken hold of her.

When she did finally attain that and took it to heart, she revolutionized nursing.

Lord, may we take our meagre talents and use them for your glory. Amen.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Mary Berry – finding and using her talent

Born in 1935, in Bath, Mary was the middle child with two brothers and grew up to be an ‘outdoors’ child.

At the age of 13, she contracted polio and had to spend three months in the hospital. This resulted in her having a twisted spine, a weaker left hand and thinner left arm. She has said that the period of forced separation from her family while in the hospital "toughened her up" and taught her to make the most of every opportunity she would have.

At High School, Mary says that her academic abilities were "hopeless" until she attended domestic science classes. Encouraged by one of the teachers, Mary found that domestic science was her saviour. ‘I found something I was good at,’ she says.

In 1966 she married her husband Paul and they had 3 children. One of their sons died at the age of 19 in a car crash and Mary is now the Patron of Child Bereavement UK.

She is a member of the Church of England and worships at Holy Trinity Church in Penn, Bucks.

Once Mary had found her talent, she took it to its full potential and has encouraged thousands of people to enjoy preparing food. We thank God for this inspiring woman.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Three questions for you...

Q1. A disease which once killed millions? A. Smallpox
Q2. What has been in the news this week? A. Vaccines for Covid
Q3. Who is known as the Pioneer of Vaccines? A. Edward Jenner

In his personal life, Jenner was a devout Christian and held the Bible in high regard. Amiable, quiet and warm-hearted and ever ready with the appropriate Bible verse, Jenner was anxious that his discovery would be used as widely as possible. He once said….“the whole creation is the work of God’s hands. It cannot manage itself.

Born in Gloucestershire he was the son of the local vicar. At the age of 14, he was apprenticed to a local surgeon and then trained in London. In 1772, he returned home and spent most the rest of his career as a doctor in his native town.

In 1796, he carried out his now famous experiment on eight-year-old James Phipps.
He was testing his theory, drawn from the folklore of the countryside, that milkmaids who suffered the mild disease of cowpox never contracted smallpox.

Jenner subsequently proved that having been inoculated with cowpox Phipps was immune to smallpox. He submitted a paper to the Royal Society in 1797 describing his experiment but was told that his ideas were too revolutionary and that he needed more proof. Undaunted, Jenner experimented on several other children, including his own 11-month-old son. In 1798, the results were finally published and the vaccination treatment was born. Jenner coined the word vaccine from the Latin 'vacca' for cow.

We thank God for Edward Jenner and for others such as he, who use their talents to benefit others in such amazing ways.

Cx :-)

Hello all

I've been blessed with seeing my glass half full most of the time, some days are better than others.

Heavenly Lord
you long for the world's salvation:
stir us from apathy,
refrain us from excess, and
revive in us a new hope
that all creation will one day be healed.
In Jesus Christ our Lord
Amen.

Gentle hugs for all in need today.

Good morning :-)


Our talents and gifts…

Three pelicans were flying to a popular lake. As they travelled, they were each lost in thought.

The first pelican thought to himself, “I love my beak. It’s magnificent. No other bird has a beak quite like mine. When I get to the lake, I’m going to parade along the bank, showing off my beautiful beak and all of the other birds will be jealous.”

The second pelican thought to himself, “I love my beak and I need to protect it. I can’t afford for it to get damaged, so I’m going to only catch small fish in shallow waters. I know that I can do more, but it’s too risky.”

The third pelican thought to himself, “I love my beak. It’s a beauty and I’m going to push the limits and get the most out of it. I’m going to become the best catcher of fish in the lake. I’ve been given this beak for a reason, so I’m going to work hard and catch the biggest fish out there.”

We’ve all been given unique talents and gifts, however small they may be, for a reason.
Not to show off that we have them.
Not to do the bare minimum with them.
But to fully develop them and use them to their maximum capacity.
We are each here to make a positive difference to the world around us and are all equipped for the task one way or another.

Lord, help us to use our gifts to benefit others in any way we can. Amen.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


Our talents.....

Quilting seems to be a very popular past-time. I remember reading a poem about an old lady who painstakingly made a quilt for her church funds. Her sight was poor and her fingers arthritic but she persevered and prayed, as she stitched, that the quilt would bring happiness to someone.

Unfortunately, come the day of the bazaar, the beautiful quilt was not sold so it was packed into a box and sent for missionary work in Africa.

When it arrived, a missionary packed it up and took it with him on his travels to remote areas. At one place, the African Chief was so taken by the beauty of the quilt that he wanted to keep it.

To cut a long story short, the quilt made by the prayerful old lady in England, was instrumental in opening the gate for the missionary to teach this African Chief and his people about Jesus.

Lord, help us to use our talents, however small they are, to bring the Good News to others. Amen.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Yesterday’s reading of the parable of the talents is so interesting. It reminds us that Jesus has promised to come again and that we are responsible for using the gifts he has given us to the best of our ability.

Whatever our talent is, Jesus is saying that it is important not to hide our talents from others – not to just keep them to ourselves and never let them grow. Instead, it is by going out into the world, by sharing our talents and using our skills to help others that we serve God.

Generous God, you gave us a voice. Help us shout loud for what is right and fair. You gave us ears. Help us to listen to those in need. You gave us talents. Help us share and multiply them for the good of all your people. Amen


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)

Goodness, it's horrible here - wet, grey and windy.......a stay inside day for sure! :-D

I have been upside down here all week - kitchen redecorated and new cupboard doors plus new bathroom sink (it suddenly decided to come away from the wall) and a new bathroom floor because there was a problem with it. I have lived to tell the tale. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz :-D


The Collect (special prayer) for today:

Heavenly Father,
whose blessed Son was revealed
to destroy the works of the devil
and to make us the children of God and heirs of eternal life:
grant that we, having this hope,
may purify ourselves even as he is pure;
that when he shall appear in power and great glory
we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom;
where he is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.


Cx :-)

Don’t worry about being late Cynthia. We appreciate the amount of time you give to this thread in your busy life so thank you for that.

It’s been another interesting topic this week. There were some very brave men amongst the services’ chaplains.

Good evening! :-)

Sorry to be later but its been quite a week and a very hectic morning today. Better late than never I suppose... :-D


To end our look at the chaplains role in warfare……


A wounded American officer, sheltering in a shell hole during the battle in the Ardennes Forest, was amazed to see the unarmed chaplain running towards the front line, dodging bullets, mortar shells, splintering wood from the trees as they disintegrated under the heavy enemy fire, dirt and shrapnel flying in all directions.

He called out to the chaplain, 'Where do you think you are going Father? All hell is breaking loose out there!'

The chaplain, not stopping shouted back, 'I'm going where I am needed.'

That simple statement of the obvious is still as relevant today to all in ministry.



Cx :-)

Hello all

Another fascinating topic Cynthia. Thank you.

Blessings to all who are struggling today.

Take care and keep safe everyone.

Good morning :-)

Another brave chaplain......


Reverend J.Fraser McLuskey, a minister in the Church of Scotland and a Military Cross recipient, dropped far behind German lines with his SAS parish to work with the French Resistance. He jumped unarmed, as all chaplains did, but carried a substantial load in addition to his rations and other equipment. In his pack were prayer books, hymnals, New Testaments, an oak cross, Communion vessels, and a silk altar cloth dyed Airborne maroon.

McLuskey held regular services, although the volume of the men’s hymn-singing sometimes had to be muffled to avoid attracting the interest of a nearby enemy. Other chaplains jumped on D-Day. In a single British airborne brigade, two chaplains were killed and a third captured.

After returning to Britain Fraser McLuskey travelled throughout the country visiting the families of men killed in action with the SAS to explain the circumstances of their death. He also helped set up the Royal Army Chaplain’s Training Centre at Bagshot, Surrey

He was later called to St Columba’s, London in 1960 and remained there until his retirement in 1986. His first wife died in 1959 and he married his second wife, Ruth Briant (nee Hunter) in 1966.

He maintained links with the Army by acting as the Chaplain to the London Scottish Regiment and was also Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1983-84.

Fraser McLuskey died in 2005.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


The service from the Abbey was lovely.....we certainly know how to do things well don't we. I have the decorator here at the moment and, along with my daughter, we all stood for the 2 minutes silence.

Vera, such bittersweet memories for you. In those days, ptsd was recognised as it is today and so many men suffered unimaginable agonies over there wartime experiences......OH's father was much the same. <3

Many chaplains died in the 2 wars.....

Revd Gareth Banting

Gareth B. Banting was the son of Revd Edgar Banting and Charlotte Emily Banting of Plumtree Rectory. He took holy orders after graduating from Cambridge and became the much-liked Chaplain of No. 2 Commando and served in all their campaigns of 1943-1944.

While Allied armies were fighting their way across Europe in the autumn of 1944, a small force of Royal Marine and Army commandos was preparing to capture the Albanian town of Saranda to help the Albanian partisans harass the retreating German forces.

The combined force of No 2 and No 40 Commandos battled on through atrocious terrain and monsoon-type weather conditions. After a bitterly contested battle, the town of Saranda fell on the afternoon of October 9th1944.

The next day, Gareth was attending to the burial of British Commandos and German soldiers when he stepped on an anti-personnel mine. He died while being carried to an aid post, on October 10th 1944, he was 32 years old.

An extract from the No 2 Commando War Diary reads:

"Revd. Banting takes party from 3 Tp. to bury Capt. Parsons, Lieut. Coyle, Gnr. Clarke, and Pte. Lyons. After burial he moved forward to bury German dead in the same position but is blown up on a mine. Stretcher party finds he has died of wounds - carried back to Saranda by M.O. before nightfall."

Gareth was buried the following day at 3pm. Naturally, his parents were devastated to learn of his death. His mother, Charlotte, never fully recovered from the shock.

The memorial headstone to him reads:

CHAPLAIN TO THE FORCES
THE REV. G. B. BANTING. MA.
ROYAL ARMY CHAPLAINS DEPT.
NO.2 COMMANDO
10TH OCTOBER 1944 AGE 32
BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART:
FOR THEY SHALL SEE GOD



Cx :-)

Hello all

I watched the BBC1 service this morning focused around the Unknown Warrior. I stood and observed the 2 minutes silence along with the others and you could have heard a pin drop inside the Abbey.

I've missed being with my church family and villagers at the Remembrance Service and Memorial this weekend and again today.
Brave men who proudly wore their medals and berets and shed tears at the playing of the Last Post and the Reveille. Everyone deep in thought at such poignant times.

Vera, thank you for sharing your own special family memories here today.

We will remember them.

Remembering today all those who have given their lives in conflict wherever and whenever it took place and those who are still suffering physically and mentally.

At 11 am I took a couple of quiet minutes out of the day but found that, instead of thinking of those who didn't come back from the wars, I was thinking of my late father-in-law. He was in Germany and came home after the war ended but it wasn't until the last year or so of his life that he ever talked about his experiences and then only to OH, his eldest son. It was clear that he had a pretty horrific time and must have carried the scars with him throughout his life. When the medals were being handed out he refused to take his. He was patriotic and prepared to fight for his country but he felt that having medals was almost like glorifying the experience and there was no glory in war. He was an ordinary man of quiet courage and I respected him enormously.

Good morning :-)

Remembrance Day.

Another inspiring chaplain......


The Revd. George Kendall, who was pivotal in choosing the body that would become known as the ‘Unknown Warrior’ - an idea which came from Revd. David Railton.

George Kendall was born in Yorkshire and trained as a Methodist Minister. When the First World War broke out, he volunteered to go to France as chaplain with the local regiment. He survived malaria in the Dardanelles and being gassed at the Somme and eventually became the leading chaplain in Belgium and France.

After 1918 he took on the grim task of exhuming all the bodies buried where they fell in Belgium, from fields, ditches, and the ruins of buildings, and moving them to the new war grave cemeteries. He was, therefore, uniquely qualified when charged with finding, exhuming, and bringing to St Pol near Arras the bodies from whom the Unknown Warrior was chosen and transferred to Dover on HMS Verdun.

He selected six corpses without identification marks. He made sure all the coffins looked exactly the same and that there was no evidence of where the bodies came from. The six coffins were placed in a hut and each was covered with a Union Jack. All night they rested on trestles, with nothing to distinguish one from the other. 'The door of the hut was locked, and sentries posted outside. In the morning, a general entered the hut, placed his hand on one of the flag-shrouded coffins and the body therein became the Unknown Warrior.

The Unknown Warrior’s body, that George Kendall, helped to choose, was brought to London and buried on November 11, 1920 in Westminster Abbey. Watching, as the coffin was buried with 100 sandbags of soil brought from the battlefields, were 100 women who had lost their husbands and all their sons in the war, It is now one of the world’s most famous war graves.


Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


That's odd, I distinctly remember posting here yesterday....! Mind you, my internet was coming and going so maybe I posted when I wasn't on line and didn't realise. Apologies for that.

Yes a different Remembrance Sunday - but at least it was still remembered ....the Saturday night Remembrance Service was good - small in numbers but very well produced as was Sunday from the Cenotaph. Lots of churches did online services - which were mixed. Some of the services online are good, whilst others are dire I have found.

Anyway......taking a look at some brave chaplains through the wars...

Woodbine Willie was one of the best-loved chaplains of WW1. His real name was Father Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy. In 1914 he was vicar of St Paul’s Church in Worcester. He was known as a high churchman who ‘loved ritual as an aid to worship’. He also had a real way with people, and it is said that ‘scores of worshippers would queue to speak with him about what he had been saying’.

This ability to communicate with people was to stand him in good stead during the War. He had no time for conscientious objectors writing that ‘every able-bodied man ought to volunteer for service anywhere’ and on 21 December 1915, he was among them.

Four days later he was conducting a Christmas Day service in a village square in France. In Rouen he spent time seeing troops off to the front, giving them New Testaments from one bag and Woodbine cigarettes from another. That’s how he got his nickname of Woodbine Willie.

In 1916 he was at the Somme among the troops on a day when 21,000 were killed and 35,000 injured. In his diary, he wrote about accompanying the men digging trenches into No Man’s Land. He wrote,

‘Fear came. There was a pain underneath my belt. Of course, I had to go. It was the parish. We crept out. We could not get out into the two-foot ditch that they had made, it was crowded with men. We went along the edge. I whispered some inane remark as I passed by and was rewarded with a grin which even darkness could not hide and often when I passed with the muttered comment, “Gaw blyme if it ain’t the padre!” Vaguely I felt that this journey was worthwhile.’

As well as being with the troops at the front line, he marched with them, dug tunnels and trenches, shared jokes, led singing and held services. He sought out the wounded and dying in No Man’s Land, often dragging them back to the trenches for treatment and prayer. He spent time at makeshift hospitals and often went for 24 hours without sleep.

In 1917 he was awarded the Military Cross, and by the end of that year, he had visited and preached at all the British bases in France. His ability to get alongside ordinary soldiers was frowned upon by many of the senior ranks in the Army, but his biographer says ‘the ordinary soldiers heard him gladly.’

In 1929 'Woodbine Willie' was taken ill at a vicarage in Liverpool whilst he was delivering some Lenten addresses. He died at the age of 45 and his body was taken back to Worcester. His body lay in state and thousands came to pay homage - old soldiers kept a vigil. Many packets of Woodbines were placed on his coffin and in his grave.

o Archbishop William Temple, Studdert Kennedy was “One of God’s greatest gifts to our generation”, and, quite simply, “the finest priest I have ever known”. T

We give thanks for this extraordinary man.

Cx :-)

Yes, a very different Remembrance Day all over the world.

Today, churches held small services, those that have been able to re-open or to stay open. November 11 is still the day that Canada celebrates and remembers .............. the day for all parades and services at Cenotaphs across the country, free travel on transit and free parking for veterans from about 9 am to 6 or 8 pm in many places, and a Statutory Holiday, with many people getting the day off.

Places where people are working, stores, shops, etc etc usually stop for 2 minutes at 11 am.

Much will not happen this year .............. no large services at the Cenotaphs, no parades to and from the Cenotaphs, although many Legion Halls will be open for spacially distanced and no more than the maximum number of attendees allowed for that venue (usually 50, but can be smaller or larger depending on the size of the inside space).


Yesterday, we had a crack down in BC on some of our "freedom" as a result of record numbers of positive covid cases. Two adjoining health regions in southern BC, including the one where I live, have had to close large halls, only the residents of the house allowed (no visitors, even of family), immediate cancelling of limousines and party buses. This was announced at 3:00 pm yesterday and took effect at 10 pm last night ............ so immediately, no dallying round. The bans will last for 2 weeks, until November 23, and can be extended.

Churches are still allowed to have services as long as attendees can maintain spatial distancing of 6'or more and there are fewer than 50 inside the church.

OH went to church this morning, he said there were about 22 people at the Anglican church. No-one attended to Baptist church across the street, although the Filipeno members have been attending for several weeks.

No veterans, Scouts/Guides. or Cadets have been out selling poppies as they usually do, but boxes of poppies have been put near the check-outs of places that have been willing to have them previously.

OH bought 2 from the box at our coffee shop when he went down there this afternoon, as we have for the last 3 or 4 years


Stay safe