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Parish of St.Cuthbert, Benfieldside

Sunday Worship
8.00a.m. Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer)
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST (Common Worship)
6.00p.m. Evening Prayer
+ Choral Evensong (BCP)
Taizé Vespers

Sunday School meets at 10.00a.m. in the Church Hall during term

Weekday Worship Please see the

Calendar &
Morning Prayer: 8.30a.m. Monday - Friday Pewsheet for
Evening Prayer: 5.00p.m. Tuesday alterations to this
Midweek Eucharist: 10.00a.m.Thursday pattern.

Parish Office
Arrangements for Baptisms, Marriages, etc. should
normally be made in the Vicar’s vestry in church on
Tuesdays at 5.30p.m. - please phone first if possible.
For Spiritual Advice & the Sacrament of Reconciliation
(Confession), please contact the Vicar.

Clergy & Readers

Vicar: The Revd Martin Jackson
St. Cuthbert’s Vicarage, Church Bank, Shotley Bridge
01207 503019
mobile phone: 0797 226 2412
e-mail: martin.jackson@durham.anglican.org
Readers: Mrs. Rosie Junemann 01207 583998
  Mr. Paul Heatherington 01207 506282

Parish web-site: www.communigate.co.uk/ne/saintcuthberts

Parish Blog: www.saintcuthberts.blogspot.com
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PARISH CALENDAR - MARCH 2009

Sunday 1 THE 1st SUNDAY OF LENT
(Genesis 9.8-17; 1 Peter 3.18-22; Mark 1.9-15)
8.00a.m. Eucharist
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST
& Sunday School
6.00p.m. Evening Prayer
Mon. 2 2.00p.m. Mothers’ Union - Church & Hall
Tues. 3 9.30a.m. Deanery Clergy meet for Chapter - Consett
7.00p.m. Eucharist with Service of Penitence
Wed. 4 7.30p.m. Lent Course - Vicarage
Thurs. 5 10.00a.m. Eucharist
Sunday 8 THE 2nd SUNDAY OF LENT
(Genesis 17.1-7, 15-16; Romans 4.13-25; Mark 8.31-38)
8.00a.m. Eucharist
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST
& Sunday School
6.00p.m. Evening Prayer
Mon. 9 12.30p.m. Ecumenical Lent Lunch - Baptist Church Hall
8.00p.m. St. Cuthbert’s Hall AGM - Church Hall
Tues. 10 12.30p.m. “Second Tuesday” Lunch Club - Church Hall
7.00p.m. Eucharist & Stations of the Cross
Wed. 11 7.30p.m. Lent Course - Vicarage
Thurs. 12 10.00a.m. Eucharist

Thurs. 12 7.30p.m. “This is the Way to Amarillo”

An Entertaining Evening with author, George Miller
£5 in aid of the Hall Building Appeal - in St. Cuthbert’s Hall

Sunday 15 THE 3rd SUNDAY OF LENT

(Exodus 20.1-17; 1 Corinthians 1.18-25; John 2.13-22)
8.00a.m. Eucharist
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST
& Sunday School
6.00p.m. Taizé Vespers
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Mon. 16 12.30p.m. Ecumenical Lent Lunch - St. Andrew’s URC

7.30p.m. PCC Meeting - Vicarage
Tues. 17 7.00p.m. Eucharist & Stations of the Cross
Wed. 18 7.30p.m. Lent Course - Vicarage
Thurs. 19 10.00a.m. Eucharist

Friday 20 March FEAST OF ST. CUTHBERT OF LINDISFARNE

7.00p.m. SUNG PATRONAL EUCHARIST
Preacher: The Revd. Gary Birchall, Area Dean
Followed by a Bring-and-Share Supper in the Hall

Sunday 22 THE 4th SUNDAY OF LENT – MOTHERING SUNDAY

(Lent 4: Numbers 21.4-9; Ephesians 2.1-10; John 3.14-21)
8.00a.m. Eucharist
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST FOR ALL AGES
6.00p.m. Evening Prayer
Mon. 23 12.30pm Ecumenical Lent Lunch - Blackhill Methodist Church
Tues. 24 7.00p.m. Eucharist - Celebration of the Annunciation
Wed. 25 ANNUNCIATION OF OUR LORD TO THE BVM
2.00p.m. Mothers’ Union Lady Day Service - Stanley
7.30p.m. Lent Course - Vicarage
Thurs. 26 10.00a.m. Eucharist
Sunday 29 THE 5th SUNDAY OF LENT – PASSION SUNDAY
(Jeremiah 31.31-34; Hebrews 5.5-10; John 12.20-33)
8.00a.m. Eucharist
10.00a.m. SUNG EUCHARIST
& Sunday School
6.00p.m. Evening Prayer
Mon. 30 12.30pm Ecumenical Lent Lunch - St. Mary’s, Blackhill
2.00p.m. Eucharist - at Derwentdale Court
Tues. 31 7.00p.m. Eucharist & Service of Healing

APRIL
Wed. 1 7.30p.m. Lent Course - Vicarage
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View from the Vicarage

Cracked Cisterns?
No, it‟s not another fabric problem with crumbling loos and bathroom
fittings… The reference is actually to words from the Prophet Jeremiah:
My people have committed two sins:
they have rejected me,
a source of living water,
and they have hewn out for themselves cisterns,
cracked cisterns which hold no water. (Jeremiah 2.13)
It‟s a two-fold reproach. First, that God‟s people have lost sight of God
himself: he‟d led them from slavery in Egypt into a promised land, but
they‟ve forgotten that he is the source of their guidance - they just don‟t pay
attention to him any more. And secondly, having made themselves self-
reliant, they‟ve found their own resources to be an empty hope. It must be
from Jeremiah that we get the phrase, “It just doesn‟t hold water.” That‟s
what the Israelites find when they surrender the worship of God and a
proper sense of their calling for false idols, materialism and neglect of the
poor. And that‟s what we find in our society today.
The recent “Atheist Bus Slogan” campaign has paid for buses to be
emblazoned with the rather half-hearted half-thought: “There‟s probably no
God - so stop worrying and enjoy your life.” But will people stop worrying?
Why shouldn‟t you believe in God, and enjoy your life. And is enjoyment
(hedonism) all there is to life? It‟s not just the Recession that‟s making
people doubt this. In her chart-topping song, The Fear, Lily Allen sings:
I want to be rich and I want lots of money
I don‟t care about clever I don‟t care about funny
I want loads of clothes and I want a **** load of diamonds
I heard people die while they are trying to find them
It‟s sad - and the chorus admits as much:
I don‟t know what‟s right and what‟s real anymore
I don‟t know how we‟re meant to feel anymore
When do you think it will all become clear
„Cause I‟m being taken over by the Fear
So, is reality to be found just in what you can see, touch, get and grab?
Let‟s welcome Lent as the opportunity to attune ourselves once more to the
true source of reality - God as we find him in Jesus Christ.
Martin Jackson
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Mothers’ Union News

nd
Monday 2 March
2.00p.m. Service in Chuch
followed by a talk given by Joan Wardrobe on MU Work in
Prisons
th
Wednesday 25 March
2.00p.m. MU Lady Day Service - St. Andrew‟s Church, Stanley

Dyson’s “Do”
Thanks to everyone who supported the Coffee Morning
with additional attractions on Saturday 14th February in
the home of Sammie & Alan Hewlett. Dyson wasn’t much
to be seen - but there was a nice gallery of cats and a good
company. In all £320 was raised.
Proceeds will go towards the refurbishment of the lower ground floor of the
Church Hall. Look out for the next event supporting the appeal - an evening
with author George Miller on Thursday 12th March..


2nd Tuesday Lunch Club

… continues to provide food and friendship

12.30p.m. Tuesday 10th March in the Church Hall



100 Club - Winners

February
1st Prize £25 No. 63 Joyce Shaw
2nd Prize £15 No. 17 Joan Locke
3rd Prize £10 No. 8 Olive Booth

Details on how to join the 100 Club from our organiser,

Jennifer Lambert, phone 505018.
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Lent – a season for prayer, study & worship

Please use wisely the opportunities Lent gives us……
¶ Make a commitment to be regular in worship:
• especially by joining in the Eucharist each Sunday.
¶ Make extra time for worship:
• midweek Eucharists - 7p.m. Tuesdays & 10a.m.Thursdays
• further opportunities each Tuesday (see Calendar)
¶ Take time for reflection at home:
• make some time each day for prayer in quiet.
• use the parish’s daily prayer sheet & prayer cycle.
• resolve to get to grips with the Bible.
¶ Join in study, discussion and reflection as we follow our Lent
Course, Faith, Hope and Love. Wednesdays at 7.30p.m. from 4th
March at the Vicarage. Details in church /and on the pewsheet.
¶ Be generous - support the USPG Lent Appeal, or use money
saved in Lenten discipline for some other good purpose.
¶ Join in Ecumenical Lent Lunches,
12.30p.m. on these four Mondays in Lent:
9 March – Blackhill Baptist Church
16 March – St Andrew’s URC
23 March – Blackhill Methodist Church
30 March – St Mary’s RC Church

Readings for Sunday Evening Worship

Please use these readings, whether or not you are able to join us at the 6p.m. service
Sunday 1 March Ps. 119.17-32 Genesis 2.15-17; 3.1-7 Romans 5.12-19
Sunday 8 March Ps. 135 Genesis 12.1-9 John 8.51-59
Sunday 15 March Ps. 11, 12 Exodus 5.1-6.1 Matthew 10.16-22
Sunday 22 March Ps. 13, 14 Exodus 6.2-13 John 12.1-8
Sunday 29 March Ps. 34 Exodus 7.8-24 Luke 22.1-13
Sunday 5 April Ps. 69.1-18 Isaiah 5.1-7 Mark 12.1-12
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Amarillo, Phoenix, Las Vegas

the songs but what do you know about the
places, the people, the lyrics and the
performers?

An Evening with George Miller, author of

“This is the Way to Amarillo”

As featured on BBC TV‟s

Look North
& Tyne Tees TV‟s
North East Tonight

George Miller will be talking

about his entertaining journey
across America to find the way
to Amarillo!

7.30p.m. Thursday 12th March

St. Cuthbert's Church Hall
Church Bank, Shotley Bridge
Tickets £5.00 (including Wine)

Contact Jennifer Lambert 01207 505018

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Two great clerics of the Derwent Valley

When we bought our house in Benfieldside Road in August 1986, we did
not intend to live in it for some years, but I thought it was only good clerical
etiquette to write to Ian Robertson, as the parish priest, to let him know
what we had done. In reply I received a charming letter, which may
perhaps be shared now with the readers of St. Cuthbert‟s Magazine.

th
12 August 1986
Dear Harry,

I‟m delighted to know that your search for a house has at length
succeeded. What a tribute to your good taste and sound judgement that
you have been led to Benfieldside - to the very heart of it, in fact;
congratulations!

So far from being “dismayed,” I am very much looking forward to seeing

you both. Let your part in the affairs of S. Cuthbert‟s be as prominent, or as
obscure, as may seem convenient to you; I have every respect for your
sense of propriety, and from the day of your induction at Medomsley, and
the speech you made at the reception afterwards, I have known you to be
“of the old-fashioned sort” (your words) so you need not be in the least
apprehensive about the possibility of causing me embarrassment.

I have had a little more definite news about my retirement, which is to take
place (or rather, I suppose, “begin”) next June; the prospect of finding a
place to live is a bit more definite than it seemed earlier in the year. But no
doubt I will tell you a bit more about that later.

With every good wish,

Yours sincerely,

Ian

PS. Your Benfieldside address is almost back to back with our Dick
Ridgley; he is a staunch churchman and will no doubt keep you up to date
with parish affairs; at the same time, though no gossip, he will take care
that I am not allowed to ignore you!


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We were sorry to learn of Ian‟s death on December 4, 2008. Averil and I
had known him for 40 years or more as a friend and , when we were in
Medomsley Vicarage, a clerical neighbour. He had been 57 years in Holy
Orders, 27 of them as Vicar of Benfieldside.
Our sorrows deepened at the news of the death of another old friend and
colleague, Eric Simpson, on December 21. Eric and I shared some years
together at St. Chad‟s College in Durham. He had been ordained 51 years,
and was for 29 years Vicar of Chopwell.
So two great clerics of the Derwent Valley have passed from the sceme.
We must give thanks for them. May they rest in peace.
Harry Lee

And a much-loved former churchwarden…

Though we reported the death of Arthur Eld
in our last issue, his funeral followed only after
we went to press. The numbers present bore
testimony to the high regard in which he was
held - and it was good to welcome so many
whose lives he had touched, not least the
Leadgate Gleemen who sang for him. Sylvia
thanks all who contributed to the British Heart
Foundation in his memory, raising £640 of
which £400 came from a collection in St.
Cuthbert‟s - and she writes:

Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for your love, prayers and support during the past
months which have been so difficult.
St. Cuthbert‟s Church has played a large part in Arthur‟s life: as choir
master, PCC member, Church Warden - especially odd job man!
I have so many happy memories of the choir and the young choristers with
whom he enjoyed working. There were ups and downs through the years in
his church life, but he always bounced back.
Thank you for your friendship.
Sylvia, Shirley and Shaun

To that we must return our thanks for Arthur - truly unique and irreplaceable
person, and for the gift of his faith, friendship and service!
10

Stained Glass in St. Cuthbert’s

Paul Heatherington, one of our Readers,
continues his series …

Lydia - a powerful businesswoman

The image of Lydia in the organ aisle shows a
well-dressed beautiful lady. Lydia was living in
Philippi when Paul, who was on his Second
Missionary journey (between 51-54 AD), met
Lydia. They met on the Sabbath by the river,
where they had gone to pray and worship God;
the Romans had authorised the Jews to use the
riverside in Philippi for worship.
Lydia was a ‘worshipper of God’. That means
she was a convert to Judaism. Lydia accepted
what Paul said about Jesus and became a
Christian. Not only Lydia, but her entire
household were baptized. Lydia persuaded Paul
and Silas to stay with her. ‘If you have judged
me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at
my home.’(Acts 16:15) Later, when Paul and
Silas were imprisoned, Lydia visited them and
attended to their needs.
Although Lydia’s name appears only twice in
Scripture (Acts 16), Lydia has several firsts: she
is the first convert in Europe; the first Christian
businesswoman; and when she opened her home
for Christian worship, it was the first home
church in Europe and the meeting place of the
first European church.
Lydia was a well-heeled and prominent
businesswoman. She sold articles dyed purple.
Although Lydia was a busy woman, she was not
too busy to take time for hospitality, as the
stained glass window seeks to show. Her right
hand has her palm outstretched in a welcoming
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gesture. Her left hand supports a basket, which seems to be crammed with
bread. Generous determined women are hugely important to the Church, as
Lydia herself proved. Generations of women have since copied her
example. The Dorcas and Lydia windows were erected in 1915 in memory
of Anne Annandale, ‘a true friend of all charitable organizations of this
parish,’ by her devoted husband.

NOTES
Philippi was a city in Macedonia in Europe.
Purple: Purple dye was not produced cheaply until 1856. In the ancient world,
purple was a difficult colour to produce. The rich and deep purple dye was
obtained from mollusc shells and, because it was highly prized and highly
priced, it was often associated with the rich and powerful.
Lydia: Lydia was from Thyatira, a city in the western province of Lydia in
Asia Minor. Asia Minor means 'Lesser Asia'; it corresponds approximately to
present day Turkey. Lydia’s name might possibly have its origin in the place
name, that is, ‘someone from Lydia’.
Annandale was the name of the family which for generations were paper
manufacturers in Shotley Grove and Lintzford

In my next article the Dorcas window will be described....

Paul Heatherington
________________________________________________________

Celebrating St. Cuthbert

Friday 20th March at 7.00p.m.
SUNG PATRONAL EUCHARIST
Preacher: The Revd. Gary Birchall
Vicar of Burnopfield, Area Dean of Lanchester
followed by a shared buffet supper.

Please bring something to eat that can be shared with others.

Bring a guest… Bring yourself!
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Notes & News

Hall News
This month we‟re advertising the Hall‟s Annual
General Meeting - which is at 8p.m. on Monday
th
9 March. It‟s one of those things we‟ve got to
have because the Hall is a charity in its own
right, even though the Parochial Church Council
is the Managing Trustee. So come if you can!

There‟ll be the opportunity to hear the latest plans - and you should be able
to see them as well, since the plans for the fitting out of the lower ground
floor have now literally been drawn. We‟re presently waiting to hear more
about landscaping below the car park, and we‟ve requested a tender for a
handrail from the car park to the new entrance.
Meanwhile a reminder that the Hall itself is available for hire - for
community use and private social functions. It‟s appreciated greatly by its
regular users, and has been popular for Baptism parties, children‟s birthday
parties, Golden Wedding Anniversaries etc…
To find out more, contact the Bookings Secretary, Mrs. Linda Short, on
01207 503750.
________________________________________________________

The Brownie pack is one of the Hall‟s “User Groups” - and

very valued they are! They would like us to know that they
are once more collecting “active kids” vouchers from
Sainsburys this year. So if you go there to do your shopping,
please think of bringing them in! Thanks…
________________________________________________________

We‟re sorry to carry the news of the death of the Revd. Ron Johnson. Ron
moved into the parish following his return to the North East after a ministry
of school Chaplaincy at Eton and Eastbourne Colleges. His first
acquaintance with the Church of England was at Christ Church, Consett -
and it‟s in that parish that he has given valuable assistance in recent times.
He‟s also become known to a number of our own parishioners through
house group contacts - and it‟s good that members of St. Cuthbert‟s were
amongst those who were present at his funeral, led by Peter Sinclair, Vicar
of Consett, and Gary Birchall, our Area Dean. The diagnosis of Ron‟s
cancer and his terminal condition came as a shock, and his death in mid-
February came sooner still than expected. We share the sorrow of his
family and the people of Christ Church. May he rest in peace.
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Annual Parochial Church Meeting & Reports

th
On Sunday 26 April, we will be holding our Annual Parochial
Church Meeting. This is the occasion when we elect churchwardens
and members of the Parochial Church Council. The meeting will
follow on after the main Sunday Eucharist - so go over to the Hall, get
a cup of coffee and hang on! We hold the meeting in the morning to
attract more people, and give a greater sense of involvement in the
mainstream life of the parish. And we‟ll do our best to keep things
quite brief and to the point.
So this is to ask you to start getting ready for the Annual Meeting -
please get ready! Nomination sheets for the office of churchwarden
(2), and the PCC (12 members, serving one year), will be found in
church in due course. Standing for office, proposing someone else,
and voting are all matters for careful (and prayerful) consideration. We
look at our financial position too - if you‟d like to see detailed Parish
Accounts in advance, please ask Irvine Macnair.
Before the meeting we need to revise our Electoral Roll - the list of all who
may vote at the meeting. If you‟re on the Roll already, that‟s fine. If you‟re
not, are uncertain as to whether you are, or want to know more, contact the
Vicar, a Warden or Kelsey Buchanan, our Electoral Roll Officer. Forms for
nd
new members need to be returned by Thursday 2 April. The qualification
for membership is to be 16 years of age or more, together with residence in
the parish or attendance at St. Cuthbert‟s over a period of 6 months.
Before the meeting we want to be able to print as many reports of parish
organisations as possible - and we would like to include them in the April
issue of this magazine. So please let the Vicar or our PCC Secretary, Jill
nd
Barron, have them as soon as possible, and no later than Sunday 22
March. Send them by e-mail if at all possible. This way we can curt down
on a lot of typing and copying, allow as many people as possible to read
the reports, and keep the Annual Meeting shorter! Thanks…

St. Cuthbert’s Hall Annual General Meeting

Please join us at 8.00pm
on Monday 9th March 2008 in the Hall

St. Cuthbert’s Hall provides facilities for the whole

community - Registered Charity, no 1070977
14

The Annunciation of our Lord

to the Blessed Virgin Mary - 25 March
“On this day the Father made our salvation known to Mary by the message
of an angel.”

Traditionally known as „Lady Day‟, the festival of the Annunciation of our

Lord is one of five commemorations in the Anglican calendar of Mary, the
mother of Jesus. Her conception is celebrated on the 8 December and her
th
birth on the 8 September. The other two festivals are The Visit of the
Blessed Virgin Mary to Elizabeth on the 31 May and The Blessed Virgin
Mary (the Assumption) on the 15 August.

The story of the Annunciation is recorded in scripture in Luke 1. In the sixth

month after the conception of John the Baptist by Elizabeth, the angel
Gabriel was sent from God to Mary at Nazareth, a small town in the
mountains of Galilee. Mary, a young innocent girl, was engaged to be
married to Joseph, who was a descendant of the royal family of David.
When the angel greeted Mary she was troubled. But the angel went on to
tell her that she had found favour with God, would conceive and bear a son
who was to be named Jesus. Jesus would be great and would be called the
Son of the Most High. He would inherit the throne of his ancestor David and
would rule for ever. Mary was astonished and asked how this could be,
since she was a virgin. The angel explained that the child who would be
called Son of God would be born by the power of God and the Holy Spirit.
In just the same way her cousin Elizabeth had conceived in her old age and
was now in the sixth month of pregnancy. Nothing will be impossible with
God. And so Mary responded in trust and obedience: “Here I am, the
servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word”.
th
The celebration of the Annunciation probably originated in the early 5
Century. In the eastern Orthodox tradition it is held in such high regard that
it is always celebrated on the 25 March, even when this coincides with
Good Friday or Easter Sunday. In the Western churches the feast is moved
to prevent it falling during Holy Week, Easter Week or on a Sunday.

The 25 March is close to the vernal equinox, as Christmas is to the winter

solstice. So the Annunciation and Christmas were two of the four „quarter
days‟ in mediaeval and early modern England, marking the divisions of the
fiscal year – the others being the Nativity of John the Baptist (24 June) and
the feast day of St Michael (29 September).
 15
The Annunciation is a frequent subject of poetry and art. Paintings by
Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio, and Murillo are among the most
famous. The best-known poems are, perhaps: „Annunciation‟ by John
Donne, „Ave Maria Gratia Plena‟ by Oscar Wilde, „The Annunciation‟ by
Edwin Muir, „Mary and Gabriel‟ by Rupert Brooke and „The Annunciation‟
by Elizabeth Jennings.
From Rosie Junemann

We’ll be celebrating this Feast at St. Cuthbert’s at the 7p.m. Eucharist

th
on Tuesday 24 March (the Eve of the Feast).

from „Mary and Gabriel‟ by Rupert Brooke (1887-1915)

“He knelt unmoved, immortal; with his eyes
Gazing beyond her, calm to the calm skies;
Radiant, untroubled in his wisdom, kind.
His sheaf of lilies stirred not in the wind.
How should she, pitiful with mortality,
Try the wide peace of that felicity
With ripples of her perplexed shaken heart,
And hints of human ecstasy, human smart,
And whispers of the lonely weight she bore,
And how her womb within was hers no more
And at length hers?
Being tired, she bowed her head;
And said, “So be it!”
The great wings were spread
Showering glory on the fields, and fire.
The whole air, singing, bore him up, and higher,
Unswerving, unreluctant. Soon he shone
A gold speck in the gold skies; then was gone.

The air was colder, and grey. She stood alone.”

16
 17

Finding God in Each Moment of the Day

Do you know the popular series of books entitled Where’s Wally? These
books are filled with very detailed cartoon drawings in each of which is
hidden Wally. He is dressed in a red and white striped ski cap and glasses
and the challenge is to find Wally. You have to search for some time to pick
him out of the crowd, but Wally is always there!

In many ways, like finding Wally, we need to develop the skill of identifying
God‟s presence in our daily lives. One approach that can help us to find
God throughout the day is to do a daily review of our day with God. It can
provide us with a means of seeing where God has been at work during our
day. It‟s an opportunity of remembering how God has been at work and
how we have responded to him. As the psalmist says, „On my bed I
remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night‟ (Ps 63:6).

What does this look like in practice? Here is a step by step guide:
1. Be still for a moment, and quiet your mind.
2. Acknowledge that Jesus is present. Invite him to guide you.
3. Recall the beginning of the day, when you first woke up. Watch that
scene, as if on film. What is your reaction to what you see? Talk to
God about it.
4. Continue through the film of your day, going from scene to scene.
As you reflect on each one, some scenes may fill you with
gratitude, others with regret. Speak directly to God about this. You
may also want to pray for those you encountered during the day.
5. End your review with a prayer of thanksgiving for God‟s mercy and
love. Ask him to refresh you as you sleep.

As you begin reviewing your day with God regularly, you can expect to see
two things beginning to happen:

Firstly, you will become more aware of recurring negative patterns in your
life, which will challenge these wrong attitudes and habits and increase
your desire to grow and change.

Secondly, you will become more aware of God‟s presence in the ordinary
moments of your life. And when you start experiencing the reality of God‟s
presence with you every day, it‟s not ordinary any more!
Paul Hardingham - Parish Pump
18

Signs and Symbols: The Sanctuary

When you think of a „Sanctuary‟ you probably think of somewhere safe: in a
retreat, perhaps a refuge from harm, or a shelter in a storm. In the Middle
Ages one could flee from the law to a place of sanctuary for so many days.
Even today one hears of cases where people have moved into the
sanctuary of a church building to prevent their being taken either by the
police or perhaps the immigration authorities.
The word Sanctuary comes from the Latin, „sanctus‟ meaning „Holy‟, so
hence a church or other sacred place would count as a place of „sanctuary‟.
In a church the most holy place is considered to be where the bread and
wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ himself –
the altar. Hence the close area around the altar is called „The Sanctuary‟.
You can normally see where it begins by it having steps rising up to it and
there being a rail around it. The rail reminds people that they are
approaching a special place, and not to enter unless authorised to do so.
Some people will genuflect or bow to the altar (give it reverence) when they
pass in front of it – whether a service is taking place or not - as their
recognition of the uniqueness of what takes place there at the
consecration.
In the days of the Temple in Jerusalem only the priests could enter the
sanctuary, and the most central area – the Holy of Holies – was entered by
only one priest on one day of the year. Hence the importance that
Christians place on the tearing apart of the temple cloth when Christ died
on the cross – the Holy of Holies is now visible and accessible.
Have a look at some different churches’ sanctuaries – how do they mark
that this place is special? In your own life, what would you mark as
special? Jo White - Parish Pump

Mothering Sunday
at St. Cuthbert‟s
22nd March 2008 at 10a.m.
You are invited to join in a special Eucharist for all ages
Other services at the regular times of 8a.m. & 6p.m.
 19

The Prayer of Distress

May the cross of the crucifixion tree
Where the wounded back of the Christ we see
Deliverance grant from distress to me,
From death, from spell-binding to keep me free.
The cross of the Christ with no flaw at all,
Full outstretched to me to answer my call;
O God, bless unto me my mainmast tall
Ere I go forth and whate‟ver may befall.
What harm soever for me in it be,
O let me not take it away with me,
For the sake of Christ who from guile is free,
For the sake of the King, of virtues he.
In the name of the God of life above,
In the holy name of the Christ of love,
In the name of the Holy Spirit-Dove,
The Three-One together my strength enough.
Ancient Celtic prayer of Tiree
**
Fulbert of Chartres (c 970 – 1028) was the son of a peasant family in
northern France, who rose to become bishop of Chartres. Publicly, he
was renowned for his witty and brilliant sermons. Privately, he was
conscious of his lowly origins and of the transience of worldly success.

Cannot escape myself...

Jesus Christ, the beginning and the end, the resurrection and the life, the perfect
man who gave him life for sinners, I worship you, I adore you, I sing aloud your
name. I am one of those whom you saved, whom you set free, when you died
on the cross. You redeemed me from the slavery of sin. And yet I cannot
escape the over-powering sense that I am still a wretched sinner, that my every
action is worthless or evil. .. I am so stubborn that I cannot learn.. Lift the
burden of wickedness; break down my stubbornness; root out my pride. Let me
receive your life-giving love. Let me be free.
20

From the Parish Registers

Holy Baptism
1 February Amelia May Jude
30 Granary Court, Consett
8 February Lucy Louise Wright
46 Rosedale Avenue, Blackhill
May they continue to follow Christ

Funerals
29 January Arthur Robert Eld aged 74 years
Ashfield, Shotley Bridge
13 February Ronald Stanley Porter aged 74 years
Benfieldside Road, Blackhill
23 February Annie Golightly aged 98 years
Shotley Park
24 February Elsie Benson aged 94 years
Brockwell Court, Consett
May the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace
____________________________________________________________

Trust the past to the mercy of God, the present to his love, and the future
to his providence.
St. Augustine

Useful Church Contacts:

Churchwardens: Liz Parker, 178 Benfieldside Road 505156
Linda Short, 9 Sherwood Close   503750
PCC Lay Chair: Peter Thompson, Wheldon House, Ebchester 560454
PCC Treasurer: Irvine Macnair, 10 Kempton Close. 505828
PCC Secretary: Jill Barron, 141 Benfieldside Road 504352
Sunday School: Carol O’Malley, 13 Spring Close, Ebchester 561884
Church Hall: Linda Short, 9 Sherwood Close  503750