Advent 3
TODAY
8am HOLY COMMUNION in Church
10am HOLY COMMUNION in Church
NEXT WEEK
Monday 18th December 9.00am Wroughton Infant School – Church
Tuesday 19th December 9.00am Morning Prayer – Church
1.00pm Graveside Service for Elizabeth Hillier
Wednesday 20th December 9.00am Wroughton Junior School – Church
Thursday 21st December 9.00am Morning Prayer – Church
SUNDAY 24th DECEMBER 2023
Advent 4, Christmas Eve
8am HOLY COMMUNION in Church
Preacher: Revd Chris Hunter
Sidesperson: David & Lynda Pell
3pm & 5pm CHRISTINGLE SERVICE in Church
Join us at either 3pm or 5pm in church for our popular Christingle Service. We will be singing carols, hearing the Christmas story, having fun and lighting our Christingles. Car parking is limited, so please walk up the hill if you can!
11.30pm MIDNIGHT HOLY COMMUNION SERVICE
Preacher: Revd Barbara Abrey
Intercessor: Peter Ferguson
Reading: Isaiah 9. 2-7
Reader: Mike Mason
Altar Servers: Jean Ford and Andrew Kirk
SUNDAY 25th DECEMBER 2023
Christmas Day
10am ALL AGE HOLY COMMUNION in Church and on YouTube
Preacher: Revd Chris Hunter
Live streaming the 10am service
The 10am service will be live streamed on You Tube. Please visit our YouTube Channel on https://www.youtube.com/@WroughtonWichelstoweParChurch (or search for Wroughton and Wichelstowe Parish church) and press the ‘subscribe’ button.
‘Sunday Club’ dates
Our Sunday morning group for primary school aged children takes place in the Vicarage during the 10am service, usually on the 1st and 3rd Sundays (except in November!). Future dates are:
| Date | Adults- lead/support |
| 17/12 | Joan/Helena T |
| 7/1 and 21/1 | TBC |
Small Groups
If you would like to join a small group, please contact the leaders of the groups below and find out where there is space. We would love to have everyone involved in a small group.
| 22 Kellsborough Avenue | Mondays 10am-11.30
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Now on break till 8th January 2024 | Lillian Wicks
Louise Bessent |
| 12 Artis Avenue | Tuesdays at 7.30pm | Carolyn Kirk | |
| Church Hall | Alternate Tuesday evenings | Nick Orman | |
| The Vicarage | Wednesday evenings during term time. | Karen & Phill Harrison | |
| Church Hall | Saturday men’s breakfast | Mike Mason |
Why don’t we have flowers in Advent?
Some people have recently questioned why we don’t have flowers in church during Advent. Particularly, why don’t we have flowers at the carol service, when we have lots of visitors in church and want the place to look nice?
The answer is liturgical: it is to do with the shape of our worship.
During Advent, like Lent, we are in a penitential season, calling to mind the things in our lives we wish to reject and leave behind in order to move closer to God. Many people give things up, again similar to Lent, in order to put aside distractions and to focus on prayer and spiritual growth. Acts of abstinence also provide opportunities to offer our resources, so we might take the money we would have spent on chocolate, alcohol, eating out or other indulgences and use this for charitable giving. All of this is part of our activity of preparing to meet Jesus, not only the baby in the manger but the universal king who will one day be revealed in glory.
And, finally, all of this sobriety is our preparation for Christmas, when we really cut loose. When we reach the feast of Christ’s birth, we want to break out as much colour as we possibly can, and to have as great a contrast as possible to fully emphasise our celebrations.
So there aren’t flowers in church during Advent, giving us a chance to put aside distractions, to prepare for Jesus’ coming and to really throw ourselves into our Christmas celebrations at the end of this season. Revd. Chris
Actors for Christingle
For our play at both Christingle services we need about 11 people. There are some lines, but nothing long and scripts can be carried if needed. Please speak to Barbara if you are able to help. You will need to be at both 3pm and 5pm. A short run through after Christingle making on Christmas Eve morning would be helpful.
Community Christmas Card
To save you sending cards to all your church friends, there is a Community Christmas Card in church for you to sign. As you will be saving some money, there is a box for donations to the Children’s Society.
Church – Heating
As you will be aware the heating system in Church has not been working recently. Many of the radiators have been removed due to the building work. However, we expect the remainder of the heating system to be working again by Sunday 26th November.
Church – Replastering
The North Aisle will not be accessible due to the builders replastering. However we still should be able to have access to the west end for coffee.
Upper Churchyard Working Parties
Thank you to everyone who’s been helping with maintaining the upper churchyard ….. and of course also to our lovely community volunteers who do such a great job in the lower churchyard. Over the winter we’re going to try and have a working party once a month for the upper churchyard – on the first Saturday of each month from 9am to approximately 11am. So the next one will be on Saturday 6th January. You don’t have to come regularly, and you don’t have to use a mower or strimmer – there are always other jobs to do…… We have been given some money for a ‘cake fund’ to keep the troops happy 😊 Dates will only be cancelled if the weather is blowing a gale or very heavy rain…..!
WILD FLOWERS OF WROUGHTON CALENDARS
High quality desk and wall calendars by Wroughton Monthly’s wildlife writer BOZ. Desk calendars £6.50 and wall calendars £8.50. For delivery or collection call 07884 108434/ 01793 812589 Dr Keith Hooper. Also available at the parish church.
Tearfund – Rubbish Campaign
Last week the third round of negotiations on the UN Global Plastics Treaty took place in Kenya. The treaty needs to hold big polluters to account, massively reduce plastic production, and end the impacts of plastic pollution on people living in poverty.
Plastic waste has an enormous adverse impact on communities across the globe, particularly in the many countries where waste is not collected…… people get sick, animals die, rivers are blocked, flooding increases….. and the situation is getting worse all the time as plastic has nowhere to go and mountains of waste continue to rise….. he talks made some progress but stalled on the issue of reducing plastic production, which is key to reducing the estimated 400 million tons of plastic waste a year. The next round of talks are in Canada in 2024. Please follow and support our mission partners, Tearfund, who campaign tirelessly on this issue, and continue to pray that the treaty will ultimately have successful outcomes. Eco Church Group
Eco Top Tips – practical ways to take better care of God’s creation
December – Eco Christmas ideas
- Be creative in the gifts you give this Christmas; make sure your desire to be loving is not damaging the environment.
- Getting ready for the festivities of Christmas. Buy as much locally produced, in season food and particularly veg as you can. Try not to over cater and waste food.
- Wrap and rewrap. Why not reuse your wrapping paper. Take a bit of care unwrapping your presents (it adds to the gift experience), save the paper and reuse next year.
- Enjoy the feast of Christmas! Don’t forget to recycle your rubbish. Don’t waste unwanted presents find new homes for them through the charity shop or on ebay.
- Get ready with your environmental New Year’s Resolution. How will your care for creation in the coming year?
Floodlighting
The Church will be floodlit on Friday 22nd December by Julie Gabe in memory of Vie & Eric Whyte.
If you would like the Church to be floodlit for a special occasion (cost £20.00) Forms are available in Church or online please return to Janet in the Office or email office@wroughton.com.
Funerals
We commend to God’s care and keeping those who have, died recently Elizabeth Hiller, Francis Cowley,
James Young and Isabel Habgood. We pray for all those who mourn the loss of a loved one.
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The Church Office will close for the Christmas period on Friday 22nd December and re-open on Tuesday 2nd January. The Office will be closed on Thursday 4th January 2024.
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| The Parish Office, Priors Hill, Wroughton, SN4 0RT Open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 9am to 1.30pm
01793 812050 office@wroughton.com Revd Phill Harrison – Vicar 01793 812301 vicar@wroughton.com Revd Chris Hunter – Curate 01793 814987 curate@wroughton.com Church Twitter Account – @WroughtonWichel Find us on Facebook – Wroughton and Wichelstowe Parish Church Please follow us for all the latest updates from Wroughton & Wichelstowe Parish Church.
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CHRISTMAS SERVICES
Wroughton & Wichelstowe Parish Church
Christmas Eve – Christingle Service
3pm and 5pm
Join us at either 3pm or 5pm in church for our popular Christingle Service. We will be singing carols,
hearing the Christmas story, having fun and lighting our Christingles.
Car parking is limited, so please walk up the hill if you can!
Christmas Eve
8am A quiet Holy Communion service using traditional language
11:30pm Midnight Holy Communion Service
Christmas Day
10am All-age Holy Communion
For more information please email or phone the church office: 01793 812050
