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10.30am SUNG EUCHARIST
President: Rev. Kevin Maddy, Rector
Preacher: Rev. Dr David Vannerley
Setting: The Johannesburg Service – Bertalot
Acts 9: 1–6
Revelation 5: 11–end
John 21: 1–19
Anthem: Good Christians all rejoice and sing – Archer
Hymns: 103, 102, 104 (omit *), 276ii, 124
Voluntary: Christ the Lord is risen – Bertalot
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Join us in church for our Sung Eucharist at 10.30am or online at any time
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6.00pm CHORAL EVENSONG
First Evening Prayer of Ss. Philip & James, Apostles
Introit: Jesus is risen, alleluia! – Tanzanian melody, arr. Bell and Iliff
Responses: Ayleward
Psalm 119 vv. 1–8
Isaiah 40: 27–end
John 12: 20–26
Canticles: Stanford in B-flat
Anthem: Ye choirs of New Jerusalem – Stanford
Preacher: The Bishop of Dover
Hymns: 214ii, 119, 125
Voluntary: O Filii et Filiae – Dandrieu
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Join us in church for Choral Evensong at 6.00pm or online at any time
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The Collect for the Third Sunday of Easter
Almighty Father,
who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples
with the sight of the risen Lord:
give us such knowledge of his presence with us,
that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
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This week at St Stephen's
Monday 2nd May (Bank Holiday)
9.30am Churchyard Working Party
7.00pm Bell Ringing practice
Tuesday 3rd May
9.30am Holy Dusters (in church)
7.30pm Theology Group (in church)
Wednesday 4th May
10.15am HOLY COMMUNION (in church only)
10.30am Acorn Community Café (in the Church Hall)
5.15pm Trebles' rehearsal
Thursday 5th May
7.00pm Canterbury Cantata Choir rehearsal (in church)
Friday 6th May
7.30pm Full choir practice
Sunday 8th May
The Fourth Sunday of Easter
10.30am SUNG EUCHARIST
6.00pm CHORAL EVENSONG
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<<First Name>>, do share this online version of Pews News with anyone you think might be interested, and encourage them to sign up to receive it by email each week.
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The Bishop of Dover has been spending this week in the Canterbury Deanery and will be at St Stephen's for Choral Evensong this Sunday, 1st May at 6pm. Do join us to hear from our Bishop.
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Christian Aid Week 15–22 May 2022
The Christian Aid Week service that was scheduled for Sunday 15th May has been postponed until Sunday 22nd May at 6pm. The service will be held at Stephen's in place of Choral Evensong; we hope you'll be able to join us. This is because there is a farewell service for Dean Robert at the Cathedral on 15th May and understandably, many people want to be able to attend this.
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The materials for those taking part in the street collection for Christian Aid week will be available in church after the 10.30 service next Sunday 8th May. Anyone who wants to collect their materials at another time should contact Fiona Phillips who is organising the distribution on 077 91 62 93 79.
Online donations can be made at https://envelope.christianaid.org.uk/envelope/ststephenscanterbury
If you can't help with envelope delivery but want to support Christian Aid you can donate here and encourage others to do so too. Why not email the link to everyone on your Christmas card list and suggest they donate the cost of a coffee?
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200 Club
Tickets are available now for our summer 200 Club: £10 per ticket which covers 10 weekly draws during June, July and early August (equivalent to £1 a week). Half of the ticket sales goes into the prize pot, with the other half supporting St Stephen's Church. Tickets are available from Robert Mathews at church on Sunday. For those of you unable to get to church, we're working on a way for you to purchase a ticket online - please bear with us!
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Churchyard Working Party
The Churchyard Working Party will meet again on Monday 2nd May.
We shall begin at 9.30am. Please don’t feel that you must come for the entire morning, but we shall be delighted to see you at any stage during the morning. At least the weather forecast looks reasonable this time!
Please wear stout shoes and gloves, and if you could bring some tools, it would be much appreciated. The Council has strimmed a large area but there is a lot to clear away so it would be great if you could bring rakes. There are also some shrubs to plant so spades and forks would also be useful if you have them.
Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided.
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Steven Moore Percussion Concert
Friday 13th May 2022, 7.00pm in St Stephen’s Church
Steven Moore has thrust himself into the world of solo percussion over the last few years, receiving praise from audiences throughout the UK. Determined to succeed, he returned to the academic world, completing his bachelor’s and Master’s degree with distinction. He has now began work to complete his PhD, researching Marimba performance. Continuously developing his performance skills, Steven has received tutelage from Jason Huxtable, Pius Cheung and Dame Evelyn Glennie. As a soloist, he has collaborated with solo artists and performed concerto’s with various orchestras across the north east. We are looking forward to welcoming him to St Stephen's on Friday 13th May - do join us!
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St Stephen's Eco Group
St Stephen's is currently represented on the deanery Eco Group by James Taylor, and we are grateful for his service. It would be good if James could be supported in his role of Eco Champion for St Stephen's by others, so if you would be interested in joining him in furthering the commitment of our church to become more ecologically and environmentally aware and active, please see James or Kevin.
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After the recent loss of our representative to Christians Together in Canterbury, we are now in desperate need of someone to represent our parish at CTC meetings. If you would be interested in volunteering to help with this, please see Kevin or one of the church wardens.
Praying for Ukraine, Friends Meeting House garden every Friday 7.00–7:30pm
Canterbury Quaker Meeting will be holding a candlelit vigil for peace in Ukraine in the Meeting House garden, every Friday 19:00–19:30 until further notice. All are welcome to join us and bring appropriate banners and placards.
More information is available by emailing canterburyclerk@kentquakers.org.uk or by telephoning the Meeting House warden on 01227 7645612.
Connecting Canterbury
David Hartwell shares the following update:
There has been a huge increase in people and families in fuel poverty, and Connecting Canterbury continues to try and help people by the payment of small, discreet, emergency grants at our Thursday hub at Lily's Cafe, Canterbury Baptist Church, and on Friday mornings at All Saint's Church. In 8 weeks we helped 97 people paying nearly £1900, compared to a total of 190 small grants for the whole of 2021. If you are able to help us continue our vital work please have a word with me, or for details of bank transfer arrangements see below.
Also, having secured support from The Canterbury Christian Council and external trusts, we have appointed Tim Cook as our new part time Network Coordinator. Tim is a member of Canterbury Baptist Church, and will be asked to develop our work ecumenically, and our links to other agencies and charities etc.
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Would like to contribute to the services week by week by becoming an intercessor?
We are very short of intercessors at the present time and consequently people are being asked to do them rather often; it would be good to have some new blood. It is not difficult, you are given the scriptures for the week and the names of those sick to pray for and those whose deaths fall on the particular Sunday. You can make up your own prayers or you can use prayers from the large variety of books available. We can take you through the procedure and give you an opportunity to have a practice to get the feel of doing them. There is always someone available to help you whenever you feel you need support. If you are interested please speak to either Margaret Horwood or the Rector. Thank you.
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News from our Bell Tower
Our Tower is open for ringing practice every Monday evening 7.00–9.00pm. There is no need to book a place in advance, just turn up! If you are interested in learning, contact Jane or Adam - their details are on the church website.
At the moment, there aren't always enough people to ring before every service - if you're missing the bells, have you thought about joining the team so that we can keep this tradition going at St Stephen's?
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Moving forward from COVID restrictions - The PCC agreed to leave these measures in place for the time being at their meeting on 8th March.
Government guidance is that it is no longer a legal requirement to wear a face covering during worship. However, in order to protect each other as much as possible, we would encourage members of the congregation to continue to wear masks if they feel that they are able. For the time being, we will continue to provide more space for social distancing at the back half of the nave. Please respect people's desire for a bit of space. This guidance will be continually reviewed over the coming days and weeks. If you have any questions, please speak to Kevin or the Churchwardens.
| Masks |
Congregation encouraged to wear masks when possible.
Choir remove masks when singing. |
| Hand sanitiser |
Congregation encourage to continue to sanitise their hands as they enter and leave church. |
| Congregation seating |
50/50 full capacity and socially distanced.
The front half of the nave available for those who are comfortable sitting closer together, the rear half of the nave will continue to be socially distanced with alternate rows roped off and only one household per pew. |
| Choir seating |
The choir will sit more closely together to aid singing as an ensemble, but will take a lateral flow test before each rehearsal and service to help protect each other. |
| Processions |
Only clergy process. If during a hymn, then clergy do not sing whilst walking through the congregation. |
| Congregational singing |
Congregational singing reintroduced at services (but encourage mask wearing). Those not comfortable singing or being around those singing should sit in the rear half of the nave in the socially distanced area. |
| Service Sheets |
Continue to use orders of service and quarantine after each use for at least 48 hours. |
| Hymn books |
Reintroduce the use of hymn books, using those on the top two shelves for the Eucharist and those on the bottom two shevles for Evensong. |
| Communion |
Communion in one kind only (no chalice)
Distribution from standing station at the chancel step for choir and from the east end of the nave for congregation. |
| Sharing the Peace |
We will continue to share the Peace in a non-contact way as we have done throughout the pandemic. |
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The Canterbury Society is a civic association registered with the Charities Commission. All its work is done by unpaid volunteers. This includes managing open green spaces in the community, litter picks, assessing planning applications and building designs through to protecting the City’s heritage. There are many members from St Stephens and everyone is invited to join at www.canterburysociety.org.uk.
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Canterbury Food Bank
In these difficult times, Canterbury Food Bank are finding themselves supporting more people in our community than ever. If you are currently unable to afford food, please go to CanterburyFoodbank.org or ring 07718 108875. If you can afford food but can’t get to the shops because you are self isolating you should contact Canterbury City Council, who have set up hubs to provide assistance. Go to http://www.canterbury.gov.uk/help or ring 01227 868598.
Whilst our church and church hall are closed and our Foodbank drop-off points aren't accessible, if you can, do make a contribution at the local supermarkets when you are doing your own shopping. If you're in a position where you could donate some money to help the Foodbank, please visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-canterbury-food-bank-during-coronavirus or https://canterburyfoodbank.org
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If you have an item for Pews News, please send it to pewsnews@ststephenscanterbury.net by midday on Friday. You can also add your news or event to our website by clicking on ‘ News and Events’ and choosing ‘ Submit a News Story’ from the menu. Anything submitted to the website will automatically be sent to Pews News.
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