30 July 2023
10:00 | 
Posted by
Dr Platts |
A very busy weekend at St Mary's with our Church Fete on Saturday, when we were blessed with blue skies and dry weather if a little windy! All the usual stalls and activities, the Fete was opened by the ' King and Queen' who had also appeared at the Sidlesham School Coronation! The Tug of war competition between the village and the Chichester City Band was won this year by the village! Revenge for the Band's victory last year!
Some very tired people came to church this morning for our Eucharist. We had a joyous thanksgiving for the Fete a wonderful community event and a financial success which helps to keep us on the road!
The Choir sang 'Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring' by J S Bach as the Anthem. The Sunday School children bought us their thanksgiving poster and the thank you cubes they had made.
There was coffee after the service.
A reading from the first book of Kings.
At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night;
and God said, ‘Ask what I should give you.’
And Solomon said,
‘You have shown great and steadfast love
to your servant my father David,
because he walked before you in faithfulness,
in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart towards you;
and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love,
and have given him a son to sit on his throne today.
And now, O Lord my God,
you have made your servant king in place of my father David,
although I am only a little child;
I do not know how to go out or come in.
And your servant is in the midst of the people
whom you have chosen, a great people,
so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted.
Give your servant therefore an understanding mind
to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil;
for who can govern this your great people?’
It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.
God said to him,
‘Because you have asked this
, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches,
or for the life of your enemies,
but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right,
I now do according to your word.
Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind;
no one like you has been before you
and no one like you shall arise after you.
Romans 8: 26-39
A reading form the letter of Paul to the Romans.
The Spirit helps us in our weakness;
for we do not know how to pray as we ought,
but that very Spirit intercedes
with sighs too deep for words.
And God, who searches the heart,
knows what is the mind of the Spirit,
because the Spirit intercedes for the saints
according to the will of God.
We know that all things work together for good
for those who love God,
who are called according to his purpose.
For those whom he foreknew
he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son,
in order that he might be the firstborn
within a large family.
And those whom he predestined he also called;
and those whom he called he also justified;
and those whom he justified he also glorified.
What then are we to say about these things?
If God is for us, who is against us?
He who did not withhold his own Son,
but gave him up for all of us,
will he not with him also give us everything else?
Who will bring any charge against God’s elect?
It is God who justifies.
Who is to condemn?
It is Christ Jesus, who died,
yes, who was raised,
who is at the right hand of God,
who indeed intercedes for us.
Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution,
or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
As it is written,
‘For your sake we are being killed all day long;
we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.’
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height,
nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us
from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus put before the crowd another parable:
‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that someone took and sowed in his field;
it is the smallest of all the seeds,
but when it has grown
it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree,
so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.’
‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field,
which someone found and hid;
then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has
and buys that field.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
in search of fine pearls;
on finding one pearl of great value,
he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net
that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind;
when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down,
and put the good into baskets
but threw out the bad.
So it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will come out
and separate the evil from the righteous
and throw them into the furnace of fire,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
‘Have you understood all this?’
They answered, ‘Yes.’
And he said to them,
‘Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven
is like the master of a household
who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.’
23 July 2023
This morning, after a stormy night of weather, the sun shone upon us as we came together at 10 am for our Parish Eucharist. We had a wedding yesterday and so were able to share the lovely flowers.
The Gospel today was the story of the wheat and the tares, or weeds. In this story Jesus tells us that the good and the bad plants are intertwined at their roots and cannot be separated until the harvest. Father Chris developed this story in his sermon, we are all some good and some bad, and there are good and bad people in the world, what can we do? We have to feed and grow the goodness in us and at the end we will be part of the harvest.
The Ladies of the Choir sang 'Pans Angelicus' in the setting by Cesar Franc as the anthem.
The Sunday School Children spent their session in the Church Yard, where the decorated their Journey Sticks with flowers and other pieces of greenery that they found as they travelled around!
It is only a week to the Fete come along on Saturday at 2pm and join us!!
Genesis 28:10-19a
A reading from the book of Genesis.
Jacob left Beer-sheba and went towards Haran.
He came to a certain place
and stayed there for the night,
because the sun had set.
Taking one of the stones of the place,
he put it under his head and lay down in that place.
And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth,
the top of it reaching to heaven;
and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
And the Lord stood beside him and said,
‘I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac;
the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring;
and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth,
and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east
and to the north and to the south;
and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring.
Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go,
and will bring you back to this land;
for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.’
Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said,
‘Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!’
And he was afraid,
and said, ‘How awesome is this place!
This is none other than the house of God,
and this is the gate of heaven.’
So Jacob rose early in the morning,
and he took the stone that he had put under his head
and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it.
He called that place Bethel.
Romans 8:12-25
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
brothers and sisters, we are debtors,
not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—
for if you live according to the flesh,
you will die;
but if by the Spirit
you put to death the deeds of the body,
you will live.
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear,
but you have received a spirit of adoption.
When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’
it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit
that we are children of God,
and if children, then heirs,
heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—
if, in fact, we suffer with him
so that we may also be glorified with him.
I consider that the sufferings of this present time
are not worth comparing with the glory
about to be revealed to us.
For the creation waits with eager longing
for the revealing of the children of God;
for the creation was subjected to futility,
not of its own will
but by the will of the one who subjected it,
in hope
that the creation itself
will be set free from its bondage to decay
and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation
has been groaning in labour pains until now;
and not only the creation,
but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit,
groan inwardly while we wait for adoption,
the redemption of our bodies.
For in hope we were saved.
Now hope that is seen is not hope.
For who hopes for what is seen?
But if we hope for what we do not see,
we wait for it with patience.
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus put before them another parable:
‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared
to someone who sowed good seed in his field;
but while everybody was asleep,
an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away.
So when the plants came up and bore grain,
then the weeds appeared as well.
And the slaves of the householder came and said to him,
“Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where, then, did these weeds come from?”
He answered, “An enemy has done this.”
The slaves said to him,
“Then do you want us to go and gather them?”
But he replied, “No;
for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them.
Let both of them grow together until the harvest;
and at harvest time I will tell the reapers,
Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned,
but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’
Then Jesus left the crowds and went into the house.
And his disciples approached him, saying,
‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.’
He answered,
‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man;
the field is the world,
and the good seed are the children of the kingdom;
the weeds are the children of the evil one,
and the enemy who sowed them is the devil;
the harvest is the end of the age,
and the reapers are angels.
Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age.
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his kingdom
all causes of sin and all evildoers,
and they will throw them into the furnace of fire,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
Let anyone with ears listen!
16 July 2023
Having survived a wild windy night, with the wind still pretty strong, we made our way to church for Matins. The Psalm set for today was Psalm 65 which recounts the joy of the earth in the growing crops and animals. Often used at Harvest it went well today with our readings from the King James version of the Bible.
The Choir sang the Benedictus in the setting by CV Stanford in B flat. And as the anthem they sang 'Thou Visitest the Earth' by Greene, Hilary Platts sang the solo and we were accompanied by Joanna on the electric piano in harpsicord mode.
Father Chris spoke about the Gospel readings from St Matthew which we will be using over the next few weeks. They are Parables told by Jesus, today the Sower of the seed. These stories have many layers, and carry a universal message which we probably shouldn't over analyse
There was coffee after the service.
The Fete is fast approaching only 12 days to go! Help of all kinds still needed and entry forms for the Mini Show should be given to the church Wardens! Most importantly do come along on July 29th at 2pm in the Vicarage field!!
Isaiah 55:10-13
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
Thus says the Lord:
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
For you shall go out in joy,
and be led back in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall be to the Lord for a memorial,
for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
Romans 8:1-11
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
There is therefore now no condemnation
for those who are in Christ Jesus.
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus
has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
For God has done what the law,
weakened by the flesh,
could not do:
by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh,
and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,
so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us,
who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
For those who live according to the flesh
set their minds on the things of the flesh,
but those who live according to the Spirit
set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
To set the mind on the flesh is death,
but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God;
it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot,
and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh;
you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you.
Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
But if Christ is in you,
though the body is dead because of sin,
the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,
he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies
also through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake.
Such great crowds gathered around him
that he got into a boat and sat there,
while the whole crowd stood on the beach.
And he told them many things in parables, saying:
‘Listen! A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path,
and the birds came and ate them up.
Other seeds fell on rocky ground,
where they did not have much soil,
and they sprang up quickly,
since they had no depth of soil.
But when the sun rose, they were scorched;
and since they had no root, they withered away.
Other seeds fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew up and choked them.
Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain,
some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Let anyone with ears listen!
Hear then the parable of the sower.
When anyone hears the word of the kingdom
and does not understand it,
the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart;
this is what was sown on the path.
As for what was sown on rocky ground,
this is the one who hears the word
and immediately receives it with joy;
yet such a person has no root,
but endures only for a while,
and when trouble or persecution arises
on account of the word,
that person immediately falls away.
As for what was sown among thorns,
this is the one who hears the word,
but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth
choke the word, and it yields nothing.
But as for what was sown on good soil,
this is the one who hears the word and understands it,
who indeed bears fruit
and yields, in one case a hundredfold,
in another sixty, and in another thirty.’
09 July 2023
This morning at our 10 am Eucharist we had in our minds those who live and work on the Sea as we celebrated Sea Sunday. Being so close to the sea ourselves we prayed especially for the crews of the Lifeboats, the fishermen, and the Coast Guards, but also remember those who work on the ships that bring our food and goods to us over the sea.
We had two choir contributions during communion, the whole choir sand 'O for a closer walk with God,' setting by C V Stanford as the anthem, and one of our Junior Choristers, Amelia, sang a solo of the verses of 'Spirit of God' from the organ loft, supported by the choir in the chorus. Well done Amelia!
There was coffee after the service and of course we are all gearing up for the Church Fete on the 29th of July If you can help please contact the Church Wardens, and in an case we would love to see you on the field between 2 and 4 pm on the day its self!
Zechariah 9:9-12
A reading from the book of the prophet Zechariah.
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the warhorse from Jerusalem;
and the battle-bow shall be cut off,
and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
Romans 7:15-25a
A reading fromt he letter of Paul to the Romans.
I do not understand my own actions.
For I do not do what I want,
but I do the very thing I hate.
Now if I do what I do not want,
I agree that the law is good.
But in fact it is no longer I that do it,
but sin that dwells within me.
For I know that nothing good dwells within me,
that is, in my flesh.
I can will what is right,
but I cannot do it.
For I do not do the good I want,
but the evil I do not want is what I do.
Now if I do what I do not want,
it is no longer I that do it,
but sin that dwells within me.
So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good,
evil lies close at hand.
For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self,
but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind,
making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.
Wretched man that I am!
Who will rescue me from this body of death?
Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jersus Christ according to Matthew.
At that time Jesus said,
"To what will I compare this generation?
It is like children sitting in the market-places
and calling to one another,
“We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn.”
For John came neither eating nor drinking,
and they say, “He has a demon”;
the Son of Man came eating and drinking,
and they say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!”
Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.’
I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
because you have hidden these things
from the wise and the intelligent
and have revealed them to infants;
yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father;
and no one knows the Son except the Father,
and no one knows the Father except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
Come to me, all you that are weary
and are carrying heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me;
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’
07 July 2023
Saturday 29th July, from 2-4pm on the Church field
Come and join us for a fun afternoon for all the family. Browse the stalls,
try your luck on the coconut shy, enjoy some food and drink, whether you
fancy a BBQ or some delicious cake, listen to the Chichester City Band
play. With free entry and lots to see and do there is something for
everyone.
We look forward to seeing you on the day.
The Church Field
Church Farm Lane
Sidlesham
West Sussex
PO20 7RE
More information at www.sidleshamfete.co.uk
02 July 2023
This morning at 10 am we had an all ages Eucharist as it is the first Sunday of the Month.
As it is the feast Of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Father Chris talked about Our Patron Saint St Mary our Lady in his sermon. He asked us if we had a hero, many replies from different people including Florence Nightingale, Ernest Shackleton, Galileo, Richard Feynman, all from different walks of life. Father Chris said his hero was St Mary, who showed all the characteristics of a hero, courage, determination, persistence, and more when she accepted the role God gave her to be the mother of Jesus. This feast remembers the visit of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth and the support she gave in such unusual circumstances. But why is our church St Mary our Lady? it is the only one in England with that designation! If it were Roman Catholic it would be 'Our Lady of Sorrows' or some similar designation. No we have this name St Mary Our Lady, and it reminds us that St Mary is very much part of our Christian Family.
The Choir sang 'The Lord Bless you and Keep you' setting by John Rutter as the Anthem.
There was coffee after the service.
The Fete is getting closer! If you can help in any way please talk to the Church Wardens or Father Chris. Please do come along and join us on Saturday 29th July from 2pm on the field for the actual event!!
Zephaniah 3:14-18 8 am only
A reading from the book of the prophet Zephaniah.
Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter Jerusalem!
The Lord has taken away the judgements against you,
he has turned away your enemies.
The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall fear disaster no more.
On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
Do not fear, O Zion;
do not let your hands grow weak.
The Lord, your God, is in your midst,
a warrior who gives victory;
he will rejoice over you with gladness,
he will renew you in his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing
as on a day of festival.
I will remove disaster from you,
so that you will not bear reproach for it.
Romans 12:9-16
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
Let love be genuine;
hate what is evil,
hold fast to what is good;
love one another with mutual affection;
outdo one another in showing honour.
Do not lag in zeal,
be ardent in spirit,
serve the Lord.
Rejoice in hope,
be patient in suffering,
persevere in prayer.
Contribute to the needs of the saints;
extend hospitality to strangers.
Bless those who persecute you;
bless and do not curse them.
Rejoice with those who rejoice,
weep with those who weep.
Live in harmony with one another;
do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly;
do not claim to be wiser than you are.
Luke 1:39-56
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Mary set out and went with haste
to a Judean town in the hill country,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the child leapt in her womb.
And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit
and exclaimed with a loud cry,
‘Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And why has this happened to me,
that the mother of my Lord comes to me?
For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting,
the child in my womb leapt for joy.
And blessed is she who believed
that there would be a fulfilment
of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’
And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
And Mary remained with her for about three months
and then returned to her home.
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