Monthly Magazine

"The Grapevine"

MARCH 2010

Editor: Graham Clark
Email: graham@clarkalvechurch.freeserve.co

THE RECTOR WRITES …

SPECIAL DAY, SPECIAL PLACE

My dear friends

  Getting married is one of life’s most important events. What better place to get married than in one’s parish church!

  Churches are very special places. There are some things about a church wedding that you just can’t get anywhere else.  Here are ten reasons for getting married in church.

1.         A church wedding adds a spiritual dimension to marriage.  Receiving God’s blessing when embarking upon married life is an invaluable source of help and strength.

2.         The vows made in church are unlike those made anywhere else.  You can only make promises as big as those in the wedding service when you marry in church.  And these vows, made in public, help couples stay together and grow together.

3.         Church weddings are able to blend ancient tradition and modern experience so as to reflect the unique personalities of those being married.

4.         Church buildings offer outstanding beauty.  Old or new, intimate or grand, the Church of England’s 16,000 churches are some of the nation’s most stunning wedding venues, and two thirds of them are listed.

5.         Church buildings offer centuries of history.  In Alvechurch, people have stood on the same spot for a thousand years to pledge their love to each other.  It is possible to feel one is becoming part of history by marrying in the same church as relatives.  Thanks to a new law, it has never been easier to do this.

6.         Couples can be very involved in making choices about their church wedding.  A church wedding can be as lavish or as simple as required.  Couples can choose Bible readings and hymns of their choice.  The Church of England has even got a website to assist the planning of a wedding.  It is www.yourchurchwedding.org.

7.         A church is the proper place to get married.  Churches are peaceful and serene and have an atmosphere that makes marrying there a special experience.  I recently attended a wedding held in a hotel.  The place where the bride and groom stood to exchange their vows was the place that had been occupied by the baked beans and hashbrowns served at breakfast only a couple of hours before.  It just wasn’t right!

8.         A church wedding isn’t just about the big day.  A church is a place to which one can return over and over again to say thank you for the blessings of marriage and celebrate all the subsequent rites of passage in life.

9.         Everyone has a legal right to be married in the parish church where they reside, irrespective of whether or not they are baptized (christened) or attend church.  Because the Church of England is the national church, it belongs to everyone, and everyone who is single (or widowed) has a right to be married in church.

10.       Church of England weddings are not expensive.  It is possible to be married in church for as little as £319.50.*

From what I have written, you may think I am touting for more church weddings.  You bet I am! 

I love weddings.  It is one of the happiest parts of my job.  I have come to know some wonderful people over the years who have been married in St Laurence Church.  Their church weddings were very special to them and to me. 

If anyone would like to find out more about being married in St Laurence Church, either go to the church website or give me a phone call.

With all best wishes

Your sincere friend and Rector

DAVID MARTIN

*[Reading of Banns, Marriage Service and Marriage Certificate]

A RARITY

The final film in this year’s Alvechurch Film Society’s season is the 1988 Winner of the Oscar for the Best Foreign Language Film, entitled Cinema Paradiso. 

Set in Italy, this unashamedly sentimental rite-of-passage film is a charming reminder of the lost magic of cinema-going.  The stars are cinema projectionist Philippe Noiret and his adorable young assistant Salvatore Cascio.  But it is the patrons of the village cinema in Sicily who give the film its irresistible flavour, entering into the spirit of each and every movie.

Cinema Paradiso is being screened in The Ark on FRIDAY 5 MARCH.  Doors open at 7.30.pm and there is a Licensed Bar.  Admission is £6. 

SUCH KINDNESS

When news of the Haiti earthquake reached Alvechurch, a carboy was placed at the back of the parish church to receive donations for the Disasters Emergency Fund.  Within the space of just a few days, £487. 78 had been donated by church worshippers.  This sum has been forwarded to the DEF to assist with the relief effort. Meanwhile, the church  continues to hold the people of Haiti in its prayers.

MOTHERING SUNDAY

Mothering Sunday falls on SUNDAY 14 MARCH.  There will be a special service in St Laurence Church at 10.30.am.  (This replaces the usual 9.30.am and 11.00.am services).  The service will focus on famous or little-known mothers, including Monica, Mary McAleese and Doris.

Posies of spring flowers will be given to children at the service for them to pass on to their mothers with their love.

The young people’s drama group will present a sketch and there will be well-known hymns to sing.

A warm invitation is extended to all families in Alvechurch to come to church on Mothering Sunday and thank God for mothers.

THE CRUCIFIXION

One of the most popular pieces of church music is Stainer’s Crucifixion.  Written in 1887 by John Stainer, the work has been performed by church choirs, large and small, for over a hundred years.  Many people will have sung it at some time of other.

To cater for this group, the church at Belbroughton is mounting an All-comers performance of the work in Belbroughton parish church on WEDNESDAY 24 MARCH, commencing at 7.45.pm.  Anyone interested in taking part (or going along and listening) can find out more

on www.bfchoir.org/schedule.html. or by speaking to the Director of Music, Mark Checkley on 0121 451 1186.

PALM SUNDAY

Palm Crosses will be distributed at all services in St Laurence Church on SUNDAY 28 MARCH.

Palm Sunday is the day the Christian Church remembers Christ’s triumphant procession into Jerusalem riding upon a donkey to the accompaniment of palm –waving crowds.  There will be a procession around the inside of the church at the 11.00.am service and also, a dramatic reading of the story of Christ’s Passion, with members of the congregation reading the individual main parts.

A working party will meet on THURSDAY 25 MARCH at 7.30.pm in The Ark to make the palm crosses.  If you haven’t done this before, come along, bringing with you a pair of kitchen scissors.  All offers of help gratefully received.

MAUNDY THURSDAY

The day Jesus met with his disciples in the Upper Room, washed their feet, and then instituted the Eucharist, is Maundy Thursday.  This year it falls on THURSDAY 1 APRIL.

There will be a service in the parish church at 7.30.pm at which the events in the Upper Room will be recreated.  This is always a most moving occasion.

As the service draws to its close, the altar is stripped of all its furnishings as an account of the events in the Garden of Gethsemane is read. The altar is then left bare for GOOD FRIDAY, to symbolise the desolation of the day.

“Could you not watch with me one brief hour?” Jesus chided his disciples on that fateful night….

LENT COURSE CONTINUES

This year’s Lent Course is based on the film Touching the Void.  There is a warm welcome at each of the eight venues listed below to anyone who would like to join a Lent Discussion Group.  Please telephone the host/hostess to let them know you are coming.

PUDDINGS GALORE

The January meeting of the Pudding Club took place in the candle-lit Upper Room of The Ark and featured an impressive array of puddings.

As guests arrived they were given a glass of mulled wine as a final farewell to Christmas!  The savoury starter was Roasted Red Pepper Soup, containing red onions and tomatoes, with crusty bread, served by Sue Thompson. 

Then followed the puddings.  Elizabeth Martin served a homemade Lemon Meringue Pie that combined a sharp citrus edge with light, sweet meringue.  Jill Bevan served her Chocolate Surprise Pudding, which has been a cherished recipe in her family for over thirty years.  She even gave a demonstration of turning out the pudding from its dish so that the liquid chocolate ran down the sides of the sponge in rivulets.

Next came a homemade Bread and Butter Pudding served with rum custard by Cathy Collinson.  It was moist and moreish.  Then came a Vanilla Pannacotta with orange liqueur sauce, made by Janet Wright - a pudding to die for!

The evening was concluded by Le Roule Garlic and Herb Cheese, Somerset Brie, Shropshire Blue, English Stilton and Canadian Cheddar Cheese and biscuits.  Red, white and dessert wines were on hand, with the Muscat de Beaumes de Venise proving the most popular of the dessert wines.

The evening was judged a great success by the pudding lovers of Alvechurch.  The next meeting of the Club is on Saturday 12 June.  Guests’ tickets are £10 and can be ordered from Elizabeth Martin on 0121 445 1087.

HAVE YOU BEEN BAPTIZED?

Many adults, for a variety of reasons, have never been baptized.  The Rector will be starting preparation classes next month for those who would like to become members of the Christian Church.  Adults are prepared for baptism and confirmed into full communicant membership of the church at the same time.  Anyone who would like to know more should contact the Rector on 0121 445 1087 or Email him on davidmartin@lynkserve.net.

YOUNG PEOPLE’S CONFIRMATION GROUP

This year, the Rector will be running a young people’s Confirmation Group for those aged 11 or over.  Three young people have already put their names down for this group.  If other young people are interested in confirming their faith, and becoming communicant members of the church, they should have a word with the rector.

DAFFODIL SUNDAY

The gardens of Madresfield Court, near Malvern, will be open to the public on SUNDAY 14 March from 2.00.pm for Daffodil Sunday.  The sixty-five acre gardens boast a wealth of wild daffodils that are one of the joys of Springtime.  There is also a famous Rock Garden and Maze (which is infinitely more ingenious than that at Hampton Court!).  Madresfield Court used to be the residence of the Lygon family.  It achieved fame by featuring in Evelyn Waugh’s novel Brideshead Revisited.  All proceeds from Daffodil Sunday go to Madresfield and Guarlford Parish Churches.

FROM THE REGISTERS

FUNERAL

February 19               Dennis Thomas Stanley       aged 95

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