29 January 2023
10:00 | 
Posted by
Dr Platts |
This morning at our 10 am Eucharist we have reached the last Sunday in Epiphany. The Gospel, from St John's Gospel was the story of the Wedding at Cana this is generally though of as the begining of Jesus ministry, as the first miracle he performed. In the sermon Father Chris asked us to think about how we can be like Jesus in this world, how we can do exactly what St Mary said to the servants at the wedding 'just do what He says......' As he now works though us to achieve the Kingdom.
The Choir sang The Prayer of Saint Richard in the setting by L J White as the Anthem.
The children came back into church and showed us their wine glasses as you can see!
Last call for the Uzbekistan evening on the 4th of February, come and try the delicious flavoursome food of Central Asia here in Sidlesham! Tickets from the Church Wardens by Tuesday please
The Sunday School children also heard of Jesus's first miracle at the Wedding in Cana. They made these beautiful wine glasses which I am sure the wedding guests would have loved to had drunk the superior wine from these very superior glasses.
1 Kings 17:8-16
A reading from the first book of Kings.
Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah, saying,
‘Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there;
for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.’
So he set out and went to Zarephath.
When he came to the gate of the town,
a widow was there gathering sticks;
he called to her and said,
‘Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.’
As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said,
‘Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.’
But she said, ‘As the Lord your God lives,
I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar,
and a little oil in a jug;
I am now gathering a couple of sticks,
so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son,
that we may eat it, and die.’
Elijah said to her,
‘Do not be afraid;
go and do as you have said;
but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me,
and afterwards make something for yourself and your son.
For thus says the Lord the God of Israel:
The jar of meal will not be emptied
and the jug of oil will not fail
until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.’
She went and did as Elijah said,
so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days.
The jar of meal was not emptied,
neither did the jug of oil fail,
according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
The message about the cross
is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’
Where is the one who is wise?
Where is the scribe?
Where is the debater of this age?
Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
For since, in the wisdom of God,
the world did not know God through wisdom,
God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation,
to save those who believe.
For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom,
but we proclaim Christ crucified,
a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom,
and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
Consider your own call, brothers and sisters:
not many of you were wise by human standards,
not many were powerful,
not many were of noble birth.
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise;
God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
God chose what is low and despised in the world,
things that are not,
to reduce to nothing things that are,
so that no one might boast in the presence of God.
He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus,
who became for us wisdom from God,
and righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
in order that, as it is written,
‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’
John 2:1-11
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee,
and the mother of Jesus was there.
Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.
When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him,
‘They have no wine.’
And Jesus said to her,
‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me?
My hour has not yet come.’
His mother said to the servants,
‘Do whatever he tells you.’
Now standing there were six stone water-jars
for the Jewish rites of purification,
each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’
And they filled them up to the brim.
He said to them, ‘Now draw some out,
and take it to the chief steward.’
So they took it.
When the steward tasted the water that had become wine,
and did not know where it came from
(though the servants who had drawn the water knew),
the steward called the bridegroom and said to him,
‘Everyone serves the good wine first,
and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk.
But you have kept the good wine until now.’
Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee,
and revealed his glory;
and his disciples believed in him.
22 January 2023
Despite a cold and frosty morning we met at 10 am in good numbers and with a busy Sunday school. We start off in Church and sing a hymn, then after a welcome to all the children go across into the rooms for their activities, joining us again in time for the communion.
Father Chris gave us a very informative talk about the Sacraments, and the sacramentals, including the use of candles and other sacramentals such as crosses, and bowing all of which prepare us for the grace received during sacraments.
The Children had been working on the story in the Gospel of Jesus calling Peter Andrew James and John who were all fishermen to become fishers of men. They had made fish and a net which they showed us.
The choir sang 'As pants the Hart' setting by Simon Novello as the anthem.
There was coffee after the service.
On the 4th of February there will be a Uzbekistan (Central Asian) meal in the Hall. Sign up with the Church Wardens. This food is flavoursome but not too spicy, and the bread is especially delicious, so be adventurous and come along!
Isaiah 9:1-4
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
There will be no gloom for those who were in anguish.
In the former time he brought into contempt
the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
but in the latter time he will make glorious
the way of the sea,
the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness—
on them light has shined.
You have multiplied the nation,
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
as with joy at the harvest,
as people exult when dividing plunder.
For the yoke of their burden,
and the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Midian.
1 Corinthians 1:10-18
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
I appeal to you, brothers and sisters,
by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that all of you should be in agreement
and that there should be no divisions among you,
but that you should be united in the same mind and the same purpose.
For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people
that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters.
What I mean is that each of you says,
‘I belong to Paul’,
or ‘I belong to Apollos’,
or ‘I belong to Cephas’,
or ‘I belong to Christ.’
Has Christ been divided?
Was Paul crucified for you?
Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,
so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name.
I did baptize also the household of Stephanas;
beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.
For Christ did not send me to baptize
but to proclaim the gospel,
and not with eloquent wisdom,
so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.
For the message about the cross is foolishness
to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved
it is the power of God.
Matthew 4:12-23
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested,
he withdrew to Galilee.
He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea,
in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali,
so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah
might be fulfilled:
‘Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—
the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.’
From that time Jesus began to proclaim,
‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother,
casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen.
And he said to them,
‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’
Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
As he went from there, he saw two other brothers,
James son of Zebedee and his brother John,
in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets,
and he called them.
Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.
Jesus went throughout Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues
and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom
and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
15 January 2023
As we have already reached the third Sunday in January our 10 am service was Matins this morning.
We sang the Canticles and Psalm 40, and some Epiphany hymns. The Choir sang 'The Lamb' words by William Blake and Setting by John Tavener as the anthem. For more information about this and other works sung in our services look at our Music blog.
There was coffee after the service.
This February we see the return of our National themed evenings, on Saturday the 4th of February
we will be having a Uzbekistan meal ! Come and try some central Asian food, it's delicious! Tickets available from the Church Wardens £15 each.
8am service
Isaiah 49:1-7
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah
Listen to me, O coastlands,
pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me before I was born,
while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.
He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow,
in his quiver he hid me away.
And he said to me, ‘You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’
But I said, ‘I have laboured in vain,
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my cause is with the Lord,
and my reward with my God.’
And now the Lord says,
who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honoured in the sight of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
The Lord says,
‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’
Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the slave of rulers,
‘Kings shall see and stand up,
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves,
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.
From Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus
by the will of God,
and our brother Sosthenes,
To the church of God that is in Corinth,
to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus,
called to be saints,
together with all those who in every place
call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
both their Lord and ours:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always for you
because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus,
for in every way you have been enriched in him,
in speech and knowledge of every kind—
just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you—
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He will also strengthen you to the end,
so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful;
by him you were called
into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
John 1:29-42
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
John nthe Baptist saw Jesus coming towards him
and declared,
‘Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
This is he of whom I said,
“After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me
because he was before me.”
I myself did not know him;
but I came baptizing with water for this reason,
that he might be revealed to Israel.’
And John testified,
‘I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove,
and it remained on him.
I myself did not know him,
but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me,
“He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain
is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.”
And I myself have seen and have testified
that this is the Son of God.’
The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples,
and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed,
‘Look, here is the Lamb of God!’
The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them,
‘What are you looking for?’
They said to him, ‘Rabbi’
(which translated means Teacher),
‘where are you staying?’
He said to them, ‘Come and see.’
They came and saw where he was staying,
and they remained with him that day.
It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.
One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew,
Simon Peter’s brother.
He first found his brother Simon and said to him,
‘We have found the Messiah’
(which is translated Anointed).
He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said,
‘You are Simon son of John.
You are to be called Cephas’
(which is translated Peter).
Matins 10am
Isaiah 49:1-7
1 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.
2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;
3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
4 Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God.
5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.
6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
7 Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
John 1:29-42
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
35 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;
36 And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
38 Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?
39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.
40 One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
08 January 2023
Today we all met at 10 am to celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany and to remember the arrival of the Magi at the Crib. Our Magi or Kings were representatives of the Sunday School, who came in procession to bring Gold Myrrh and Frankincense to the crib. The Gospel from St Matthew told the story of the Magi and in his talk Father Chris pointed out that St Matthew doesn't tell us how many Kings or Wise Men actually came, nor does he name them, although by tradition there are at least three and they are named Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar. Their place in the story, to acknowledge how special this small baby was and that he was the King, the Priest and the Messiah, also tells us that he came for everyone, not just the people of Israel. Much cause for rejoicing!!
We sang 'We Three Kings' as the offertory, and the Choir sang The Nativity Carol by John Rutter as the Anthem.
At the end of the service Father Chris blessed some chalk for us to mark our houses with the traditional mark 20+C+M+B+23 This is also a prayer asking for blessing on our houses, it is an old tradition that is being renewed!
There was coffee after the service.
Isaiah 60:1-6
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
Nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Lift up your eyes and look around;
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from far away,
and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.
Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and rejoice,
because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.
Ephesians 3:1-12
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Ephesians
I, Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus
for the sake of you Gentiles—
for surely you have already heard
of the commission of God’s grace that was given to me for you,
and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation,
as I wrote above in a few words,
a reading of which will enable you
to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ.
In former generations
this mystery was not made known to humankind,
as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets
by the Spirit:
that is, the Gentiles have become fellow-heirs,
members of the same body,
and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
Of this gospel I have become a servant
according to the gift of God’s grace
that was given to me by the working of his power.
Although I am the very least of all the saints,
this grace was given to me
to bring to the Gentiles
the news of the boundless riches of Christ,
and to make everyone see
what is the plan of the mystery
hidden for ages in God who created all things;
so that through the church
the wisdom of God in its rich variety
might now be made known
to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
This was in accordance with the eternal purpose
that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord,
in whom we have access to God
in boldness and confidence through faith in him.
Matthew 2:1-12
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
In the time of King Herod,
after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking,
‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?
For we observed his star at its rising,
and have come to pay him homage.’
When King Herod heard this, he was frightened,
and all Jerusalem with him;
and calling together
all the chief priests and scribes of the people,
he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea;
for so it has been written by the prophet:
“And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men
and learned from them the exact time
when the star had appeared.
Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying,
‘Go and search diligently for the child;
and when you have found him,
bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’
When they had heard the king, they set out;
and there, ahead of them,
went the star that they had seen at its rising,
until it stopped over the place where the child was.
When they saw that the star had stopped,
they were overwhelmed with joy.
On entering the house,
they saw the child with Mary his mother;
and they knelt down and paid him homage.
Then, opening their treasure-chests,
they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they left for their own country by another road.
01 January 2023
We met for our first Family Service of 2023 at 10 am. It being New Years Day we greeted each other with a Happy New Year! In his Talk, Father Chris talked about names and how we get them, from out family, chosen by our parents, what do they mean? Our Lord was given his name by the Angel who told Joseph to call him Jesus, and at his name every knee shall bow.
We were delighted to hear the news that Lizzie Bailey, one of our members has been awarded an MBE in the New Years Honours list, and after the service we were able to congratulate her in person.
The Choir are in recess this week but will be back next week for Epiphany!
A reading from the book of Numbers.
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying,
Thus you shall bless the Israelites:
You shall say to them,
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you,
and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you,
and give you peace.
So they shall put my name on the Israelites,
and I will bless them.
Luke 2:15-21
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven,
the shepherds said to one another,
‘Let us go now to Bethlehem
and see this thing that has taken place,
which the Lord has made known to us.’
So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph,
and the child lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known what had been told them about this child;
and all who heard it were amazed
at what the shepherds told them.
But Mary treasured all these words
and pondered them in her heart.
The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
as it had been told them.
After eight days had passed,
it was time to circumcise the child;
and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel.
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