From the Operations Manager

Hello all,

Since my last update on the Estate at All Saints Ecclesall I am pleased to confirm that all the major lighting repairs and replacements in Church have now been completed! One large barrel light is still missing, high up in the ceiling. This has been removed to allow our lighting contractors to look at ways to retrofit the housing to accommodate LED bulbs, but all other work included as part of this project is now completed. Thank you to all who have kept such a vigilant eye on this process.

We now move on to the south side stained glass windows and are awaiting the outcome of grant applications to remove, repair and replace them to prevent future water ingress.

The plaque on the side of the tower remains under review as we await quotes from a number of sources and subsequent grant applications. A series of poultices have been applied to the internal damaged plaster work to see which is the most effective at drawing out the contaminates, we await the outcome of these trials to enable us to move ahead with the most effective solution.

Within the Ops Team We bid a fond farewell to Tani recently as she handed the reins of PA to the Vicar back to Elaine who we warmly welcome back from maternity leave, and we are thrilled to have Olivia back with us for a few weeks, both in toddlers and the office, while she is on a break from University.

As always thank you to all members of the Operations Team, and those volunteers we work closely with in particular the newly formed Social Committee, for all of their help, support and diligence in preparing for the Coronation service and more recently the Deanery Baptism and Confirmation service, I am grateful to work with each and every one of them. 

As always, if you have any questions about any of the above, or anything to do with the building or operations of All Saints, please don’t hesitate to contact me via the office.

Many Thanks
Stephanie Osman

From the Safeguarding Officer

Safeguarding in a Christian context is gospel work – it is an expression of our love for God and for each other, and in particular our response to the command to ‘Act justly, love mercy and walk humbly before our God (Micah 6:8).

When we are ‘doing’ safeguarding we are not just filling in forms or following procedures. No-one was ever protected simply by a piece of paper! Following procedures is vital but it is not at the heart of what safeguarding is about. Fundamentally safeguarding is about the use and misuse of power and the protection of the vulnerable. Safeguarding is at the heart of our Christian faith which believes that each person is made in the image of God but also acknowledges our fallibility and our capacity for sin.

A Christian approach to safeguarding recognises both these things – each person is made in the image of God and yet human nature renders everyone, even those whom we consider ‘good’ capable of causing harm to others. As Christians, therefore, we approach safeguarding with a commitment to protect people from harm, especially when they are vulnerable – and with a realistic view of what even apparently good people are capable of.

Scripture repeatedly points us towards those for whom God has particular concern – the widow, the orphan, the stranger, those who are marginalised and often powerless (Isaiah 1:17; Leviticus 19:33). Proverbs 31:8 calls us to speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable be they children or adults. The needs of the vulnerable were at the heart of Jesus’ ministry and they need to be at the heart of ours too.

Kate Gerrish Parish Safeguarding Officer

From the Curate

This Sunday we begin two summer sermon series at the morning and evening services.

At 9.15 and 11am we will journey through the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ most famous teaching, to hear his vision for the good life. Our Lord will speak to us about what it means to have a kingdom lifestyle in all areas of life – whether in our witness, prayers, and giving; in our words, thoughts and sexual ethics; in our attitude to money and those less well off; in how we judge others, love our enemies, and avoid religious hypocrisy. Through it all we will see more of our Heavenly Father’s goodness, and what it means to become more like him.

Each week let me invite you to read Matthew chapters 5-7 before coming to the services (it will take less time than listening to a sermon at All Saints!). Let’s pray that we will all grow in our whole-hearted devotion to God, seeking his kingdom first in our lives. 

At our evening service we will be delving into the depths of being a worshipper. We were made to worship and it is more than singing a song. It is connecting our very being into the heart of God and overflowing with love for Him! This is what we will be exploring over the coming weeks at our 6pm services.

Looking further into the summer, Holiday Club is Monday 7th – Friday 11th August, from 9.15-12.00 each morning, with a fantastic programme of bible stories, games, songs, art, sports, treasure hunts and more for children aged 3-11. It promises to be a wonderful week, please be praying for Rosie, myself and the team as we prepare, for many young families to connect with church, and for young lives to be changed. And please consider who you could invite to Holiday Club. Book here.

Revd Simon Oatridge

From the Associate Vicar

Pentecost

This week we celebrate Pentecost – that moment when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church. Jesus had Ascended into heaven and he had told his disciples to wait until the Holy Spirit fell. As it did, God spoke in languages that all understood.

All cultural and religious boundaries were broken and everyone was united to God. This marked the start of the great expansion of the church. In the power of the Spirit, people were healed, empowered and filled with the love of God.

The world was changed by that moment and so can we be changed. This Pentecost, let’s remember our need for the Holy Spirit in our lives and the transformation that comes from saying that simple, ancient and profound prayer – ‘Come Holy Spirit!’

Roland

From the Mission Support Group

'‘I have done what was mine to do, may Christ now teach you what you are to do’

St Francis of Assisi said ‘I have done what was mine to do, may Christ now teach you what you are to do’ That sums up our desire for Mission Sunday. We may all be called to mission but perhaps we are not so sure what that means for each of us. We are organising the mission Sunday services to help us address that challenge. We wanted to explore the five marks of mission that define our mission strategy. We’ll do that by finding out more about each of the five marks of mission and exploring how some of our mission partners have responded. To that end we have lined up what we hope will be some engaging and stimulating presenters at our five stations, one for each of the five marks of mission which are:

1. To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom.

2. To teach, baptise and nurture new believers.

3. To respond to human need by loving service.

4. To seek to transform unjust structures of society.

5. To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth.

We can all get involved in our unique mission call by learning, praying, giving and above all engaging, but we cannot do everything, hence ‘what is mine to do?’. Our prayer is that our time this Sunday will, for all of us in our different ways, be inspiring and helpful to enable us to refine our understanding and engage more fully in our own call and service. That might mean connecting with one of our partners more directly or simply being refreshed to follow your own sense of call.

With love Simon Musgrave (on behalf of the Mission Support Group

From the Wardens

In almost every walk of life, there are patterns & rhythms - starting points & finishing points. The same is most definitely true in church life where we have a whole series of patterns both theologically & practically each with their own significance.

Once a year in our church as in all other parish churches we hold our Annual Parochial Church Meeting and just in case you’ve not picked up on the recent notices, this year’s meeting is in church on Wednesday May 24th at 7.30pm

At that meeting we see church administrative starting points & endings. We will see a changeover of church wardens & we will vote new members onto the PCC as well as hear updates on the church’s financial position.

But perhaps most importantly it’s where together as a church family we will hear from Mark our vicar as he looks ahead & encourages & challenges us all to consider where we might play our part within the church family, as together we seek to reach out into our community to share the love of Jesus over this next year.

Please come & join us on May 24th. Your church & the community need you!

Alison, Richard & Sue.

From the Vicar

“Open to the Spirit” might well be the theme for a quiet day or a description of someone’s spirituality. Certainly, openness to the things of God is something that is a character virtue and an attribute to aspire too as individuals. What if there was a company of people for whom this all resonated as individuals and they all worked together for a common cause under the leading of that same Spirit?

Perhaps I am reflecting too early on a well-worn Pentecostal theme – unity in the Spirit, but this is one of the important values underneath our annual gathering entitled “Behold I set before you an open door….” (Wednesday May 24th 7:30 our APCM).

You will have heard much already and now I repeat my invitation to join us. There are some really exciting open doors for us to walk through together that will be presented, and then summarised on the following Sunday’s if you happen to be away. For many of our paid staff this will be their first annual meeting and for many of us this will be one of the first specific asks for sign up coming from the front(!).

Every community of faith needs to start somewhere and my hope and prayer, is that a united sense of responding will give us all heart that the Lord might even seek to give us more of Himself and His blessings by laying before us greater challenges for faith and obedience. Join us in prayer please for an openness to the Spirit of God and a willingness for God’s people to unite in obedience and loving unity on the evening and in the months ahead.

Yours in Christ’s service,

The Revd Canon Mark Brown

From the Treasurer

My maternal grandfather was a Chartered Accountant and inspired me to become one too! He was Treasurer for his church for 20 years. Roger Manterfield our Giving Treasurer has served in that role, and previously as our Treasurer, in total for over 20 years. I give thanks to God and have huge admiration for their commitment in serving with these responsibilities for such a long time. 

I've been the  Treasurer for All Saints for 3 years so far. Virtually every week  brings a new request or challenge but I feel it is a real privilege to be asked to offer my time, skills and experience to support and advise the PCC in the stewardship of our finances. The statutory accounts for 2022 are complete and audited and await PCC's approval on 9 May. I look forward to providing a summary of the church's finances in my presentation at the APCM on 24 May, helped by some colourful slides! They include comparing 2022 with our finances for the previous 3 years as we journeyed through the Covid pandemic and also look to the future.  

Thank you to everyone who contributes to the life of All Saints financially.  With over 80% of regular income coming from the church family every £ gifted makes a difference to what we can do as we seek to meet Jesus through the Open Door.

Julia Newton