Tag: faith

Week beginning Sunday 22nd February 2026

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Rubaitul Azad on Unsplash

“Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”

That is a quotation from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (please excuse the gender-specific language).  I have long treasured these words, since I know that, when faced with my frailties and enduring imperfections, the easiest way to avoid the pain is to lie to myself.  It usually does not start out in a grand manner – rather, I pretend something didn’t really happen; or I excuse my own bad behaviour as I was tired.  There are many other ways of avoiding – but in the end, this is about lying to oneself.  And Dostoevsky points out that lying is only the first dangerous step.  What follows is that we become uncertain about the truth about ourselves.  Deep down, our self-respect is lessened – and so our respect for others decreases.  It is a long slippery slope.

Yet Lent is a time to pause – a time for a truce, with ourself and God.  Can we notice and admit those little indications that things are not going well?  And that we are ready to take some responsibility for this?  This is not self-abasement; rather, Lent is a season for increased truth-telling.  Rejoice in what is going well (that helps with noticing when things don’t).  And when there are painful moments of recognition, simply acknowledge that.  I find it so easy to jump immediately to promising to do better, or beating myself up for not being perfect.  Wait!  First, tell yourself the truth – action and reformation will follow later.  God’s grace is required for that; and God’s timing is not to be rushed.

1 Peter 5 has these comforting words: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that God may exalt you in due time. Cast all your anxiety on God, because God cares for you.”  Lent does not promise instant change.  Rather, it is a season for starting afresh, offering us a time for patience, humility and honesty.  Let’s see where that lead us.

 Revd Bob

Services this Sunday – 22nd February – Lent 1

8am – Holy Communion – All Saints

10am – Sung Holy Communion – St Mary’s

10:30am – Café Church – The Holy Spirit – All Saints

The Week Ahead

Mon 23rd Feb

10:30am – Tiny Tots, All Saints

Tue 24th Feb

10:30am – M4T, St Mary’s Parish Rooms

 7:30pm-9:00pm – Lent Groups, Vicarage

Wed 25th Feb

9:00am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints

2:00pm-3:30pm – Lent Groups, St Mary’s Parish Rooms

Thu 26th Feb

10:00am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s

Sat 28th Feb

12:00pm-1:30pm – Saturday Lunches, St Mary’s

Sun 1st Mar

10:00am – Creative Church, St Mary’s

10:30am – Holy Communion & Junior Church, All Saints

 6:30pm – Evensong, St Mary’s

Blessings,

Rev’d Lizzie

Week beginning Sunday 15th February 2026

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Ahna Ziegler on Unsplash

This coming Wednesday is Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent. This year we have picked Let me go there: the spirit of Lent by Paula Gooder for our Lent disciplines. This book is divided into six sections, one for each week between Ash Wednesday and Easter:

  1. The Wilderness: Desolation and Redemption
  2. On Recognition: Jesus and the Wilderness in Mark
  3. Who Are You? Jesus and the Devil in Matthew
  4. Testings: Jesus and Testing in Luke
  5. Follow Me: The Call to Discipleship
  6. If You Want to Follow…: The Character and Cost of Discipleship

Each week has a short bible passage and a reflection for each day of the week. At the end of the week, there are questions to reflect on the passages and how they relate to our lives and experiences. We will be using these questions during our Lent groups on Tuesday evenings and Wednesday afternoons in Lent. To allow enough time to read the week’s material in advance, the Lent groups will start on the 24th and 25th of February.

The book is available in paperback or e-book formats.  There are copies at the back of the churches. Please see Lizzie for more details.

As Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, there will be a service of Holy Communion with the imposition of ashes, instead of the normal Thursday communion service. The remaining services for the coming week will be as usual:

Sunday 15th February

10:00 amSt Mary’sHoly Communion
10:30 amAll SaintsHoly Communion

The coming week:

Wednesday 18th9:00 amAll SaintsCeltic Morning Prayer
10:00 amSt Mary’sHoly Communion
Sunday 22nd8:00 amAll SaintsHoly Communion (said) 
10:00St Mary’sHoly Communion
10:30All SaintsCafé Church

Wishing you the blessings of a good and holy Lent.

Mark

Week beginning Sunday 8th February 2026

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
By Matija Bradaška – http://www.mks-sticna.si/slo/raziskuj/razstave/zbirke/slike

This week marks a brief return to Ordinary Time, as we observe the Second Sunday before Lent. In this week’s gospel, Jesus encourages the disciples to look beyond material possessions and self-interest, instead directing their hearts towards others and the Kingdom of God. 

A great example of this way of living can be found in St Valentine, the saint we’ll be exploring this week at Muddy Messy Church. Valentine was martyred on 14th February, a day that is still widely celebrated today, although the focus has shifted more towards romance. The Church, however, remembers St Valentine for his faithfulness, courage, and trust in God, even when that trust came at great personal cost. His life reflects Jesus’ call to live without fear, to let go of the need for comfort or security, and to place our trust in God’s love. 

This week’s Worship 

There is a lot going on this weekend with plenty of opportunities to join us for worship: 

8:00 am Holy Communion, All Saints 

10:00 am Holy Communion, St Mary’s 

10:30 am Messy Muddy Church-St. Valentine, All Saints 

7:15 pm Generations, All Saints 

The week ahead 

Mon 9th Feb

10:30 am – Tiny Tots, All Saints 

Tue 10th Feb

10:30am – M4T, St Mary’s Parish Rooms 

Wed 11th Feb

9:00 am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints 

Thu 12th Feb

10:00 am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s 

Sat 14th Feb

12:00 pm -1:30 pm – Saturday Lunches, St Mary’s 

Sun 15th Feb

10:00 am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s 

10:30 am – Holy Communion, All Saints 

A prayer for this week 
Loving God, 
You invite us to trust you and to seek you. 
Help us to notice your presence in our lives. 
Free our hearts from worry and fear, 
draw us closer to you, 
and shape us by your love, 
so that we may love generously 
and care for those around us. 
Amen. 

Blessings,  

Charlie  

Week beginning Sunday 1st February 2026

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Roman Suslov on Unsplash

There is something about how rituals originate and begin that I find really interesting. This week the Feast of Candlemas (or the Feast of the Presentation) is celebrated by the Church. Various rituals and ways of marking this feast have been given to us as a church over the years, mainly to do with blessing and light. St Marys will have Choral Evensong connecting us to some of the traditional canticles and music that has been formed over centuries. All Saints has developed its own tradition of encouraging people to bring a candle to our Holy Communion at 10.30, which is then blessed and lit and taken back to our homes and communities as a symbol of God’s light in the world. It is a feast that is warmly welcomed particularly at this time of year when many of us are longing for longer daylight hours and warmth.

Rituals often come from a human need, a need to mark an occasion, a moment, a season. They say something, about stopping and noticing. They are often simultaneously solemn, creative and celebratory – things that we all need in balance to continue the creator’s formation of us in our daily lives. May we all know the blessing of this feast as we begin February and mark this pivot moment between Christmas and Easter.

Services this weekend – 1st February

10am – St Marys – Creative Church 

10:30am – All Saints – Candlemas Holy Communion with Hymns and Junior Church

6:30pm – St Marys – Choral Evensong for Candlemas

The Week Ahead

Mon 2nd Feb

10:30am – Tiny Tots, All Saints

Tue 3rd Feb

10:30am – M4T, St Mary’s Parish Rooms

Wed 4th Feb

9:00am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints

Thu 5th Feb

10:00am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s

Fri 6th Feb

11:00am – Living After Loss, St Mary’s

Sat 7th Feb

10:00am – Coffee Morning & Book Sale with Bristol Repair Café, All Saints

12:00pm-1:30pm – Saturday Lunches, St Mary’s

Sun 8th Feb

8:00am – Holy Communion, All Saints

10:00am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s

10:30am – Messy Muddy Church-St. Valentine, All Saints

7:15pm – Generations, All Saints

Blessings

Revd Lizzie

Week beginning Sunday 11th January 2026

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info

“I shall sustain you in courage and confidence”

Issiah 42:4
Photo by Oliver Cole on Unsplash

After the New Year has been celebrated, and we start to see the Christmas Trees being put out for collection January can feel like one of the longest months of the year and so I reach eagerly, like a hungry child, for these words at the start of 2026. And what a promise it is – The promise of God to sustain us in courage and confidence. 

The Church looks in different ways at “Who Jesus is” in the month of January, and this week it sees us dwell on the Baptism of Jesus. At the very start of his adult ministry Jesus is baptised in the river Jordan and he hears the voice of God from heaven. There are words of affirmation, ones which like Isaiah give him courage and confidence for his ministry. We all need times of feeling sustained, of being given courage and confidence in life’s journey and so I hope and pray that at this time, in this moment, we all are able to quieten the noise that so often surrounds us and hear God’s promise to us all.

Services for this Sunday – 11th January

8am – Holy Communion  – All Saints

10am – Sung Holy Communion – St Marys*

10:30am – Muddy Messy Church – St Mungo – All Saints

7:15pm – Generations

Coming up this week, we have:

Mon 12th Jan

10:30am – Tiny Tots, All Saints
Tue 13th Jan

10:30am – M4T, St Mary’s Parish Rooms
Wed 14th Jan

9:00am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints
Thu 15th Jan

10:00am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s
Fri 16th Jan

11:00am – Living After Loss, St Mary’s
Sat 17th Jan

12:00pm-1:30pm – Saturday Lunches, St Mary’s
Sun 18th Jan

10:00am – Holy Communion, St Mary’s
10:30am – Holy Communion, All Saints
6:30pm – Epiphany Carols, St Mary’s

*Please be aware that the heating is not working in St Marys Church currently, so do wrap up warm, bring a hot water bottle/blanket/cushion and we will do all that we can to provide warmth and welcome*

Muddy Messy Church start a year of looking at SAINTS – and begin with St Mungo – What do we know about this person? What can we learn about their lives – for a engaging way of looking at faith creatively then why not come and along and see what we can discover as a church.

In courage and confidence

Revd Lizzie​​

Week beginning Sunday 21st December 2025

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info

A Very Nearly Happy Christmas

As Christmas draws closer, this weekend marks the turning point from Advent to Christmas. The weekend sees Carols around the Yew Tree (All Saints) and Carols by Candlelight (St Mary’s) start to move us from Advent to Christmas. Schools have broken up for the holiday and many people are now travelling like the magi did across field and mountain to be with family and friends. If you have people visiting then do extend our warmest invitation to our worship at Christmas to them as well as yourselves.

As we get ready for those final preparations that then I wanted to share with you a poem I am fond of at this time of year from Malcolm Guite – O Emmanuel –  I have always found it helpfully reflective on why we celebrate with Joy, Love and Hope this Christmas

O come, O come, and be our God-with-us
O long-sought With-ness for a world without,
O secret seed, O hidden spring of light.
Come to us Wisdom, come unspoken Name
Come Root, and Key, and King, and holy Flame,
O quickened little wick so tightly curled,
Be folded with us into time and place,
Unfold for us the mystery of grace
And make a womb of all this wounded world.
O heart of heaven beating in the earth,
O tiny hope within our hopelessness
Come to be born, to bear us to our birth,
To touch a dying world with new-made hands
And make these rags of time our swaddling bands

​​Services this Christmas are as below. Look forward to seeing you at both All Saints and St Mary’s.

Sunday 21st December

10am – St Mary’s – Sung Holy Communion

10.30am – All Saints – Holy Communion with Carols

6.30pm – St Mary’s – Carols by Candlelight

Wednesday 24th December – Christmas Eve

4pm – Family Carols with Christingle -St Mary’s

7.30pm – Carols by Candlelight – All Saints

11.30pm – Midnight Mass – St Mary’s

Thursday 25th December – Christmas Day

10am – Family Communion with Carols – St Mary’s

10.30am – All Age Communion with Carols – All Saints

Sunday 28th December

8am – Holy Communion  – All Saints

10am – Holy Communion with Carols – St Mary’s

10.30am  – Cafe Church – All Saints

Blessings

Lizzie

Week beginning Sunday 7th December 2025

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash

The church’s seasons and year are often shown through different colours. Frontals, vestments change colour according to where we are in each year. Advent, like Lent, is the colour purple. Purple is the colour of royalty (and of bishops!) but more importantly it is for the church the colour of penitence. So here in the second week of advent our readings start to focus on repentance, starting with the prophets this is a call to change.

What is it that this Advent we are willing to ask, brave enough to pray to change in us so that we might be ready? What are we prepared to put down, give up, make up, pivot to or away from to be as ready as possible for Christ (mas)? For each of us that will be something different. Is it a temptation that we need to be honest about? Is it a relationship that needs attention? Knowing what our weaknesses might be, holding them up to the light of God and examining them gently, carefully in prayer, can be the beginnings of this movement. As Paul notes this week it is a time of “encouragement” for us to a place of harmony. Like all good harmonies, it doesn’t mean that we will all sing the same note, or even start or end at the same time – but that when we do this examination of ourselves, that the resulting music with all others is one that brings blessing to the world. 

As well as St Mary’s Christmas Fair this Saturday (11-2pm) we have as worship the following.

Services this Sunday – 7th December 2025

10:00am – Toy Service with the Rainbows, Brownies and Guides – St Mary’s

10:30am – Holy Communion with Band and Junior Church (Nativity rehearsal) – All Saints

6:30pm – Advent Candlelit Procession  – St Marys

The Week Ahead

Mon 8th Dec

10:30am – Tiny Tots, All Saints

Tue 9th Dec

10:30am – M4T, St. Mary’s Parish Rooms

Wed 10th Dec

9:00am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints

Thu 11th Dec

10:00am – Holy Communion, St. Mary’s

Fri 12th Dec

1:00pm-2pm – Christmas Concert – Veterans Band, St Mary’s

Sat 13th Dec

12:00pm-1:30pm – Saturday Lunches, St. Mary’s

Sun 14th Dec

8:00am – Holy Communion, All Saints

10:00am – Holy Communion, St. Mary’s

10:30am – Advent service of the word,  with Nativity rehearsal, All Saints

4:30pm – Nativity, All Saints

6:30pm – Generations, Avonmeads 10Pin Bowling

May you have a Joyful Advent.

Revd Lizzie

Week beginning Sunday 30th November 2025

On By Sam ToogoodIn Uncategorized, Weekly Info
“Grocery Store at Christmas” by Michael Kappel, CC BY-NC 2.0

Dear Friends in Christ,

Supermarkets are a constant pointer to what time of year it is. The cycle from season to season seems to get swifter and also increasingly blurred. 

We’ve had Halloween, with every possible opportunity taken to shove witches and skeletons onto anything. Some of the items are creative and entertaining, but its created a massive selling opportunity completely out of proportion to the event itself. And of course, the moment its done there’s Christmas merchandise in all its forms, only punctuated by the massive hype around the recent growth of Black Friday (and I’m no more immune to this particular hype than anyone else-the temptation to score that bargain that I don’t actually need is very alluring).

But what of Christmas? What are we actually encouraged to engage with over the next 4 weeks is the season of Advent? Most people’s only contact with Advent is via the plethora of admittedly lush Advent calendars. There’s nothing wrong with this, but surely the season of Advent is more than this.

Advent’s a period of reflection. It’s a thoughtful, positive anticipation, the excitement of Christmas set alongside the invitation to see beyond the busyness and prepare us to meet with God and truly rejoice with arrival of Christmas as we celebrate the birth9 of Jesus.

This Sunday – the 1st Sunday of Advent (30th November)

8:00am Holy Communion (BCP) – All Saints

10:00am Benefice Sung Holy Communion – St. Mary’s

4:30pm Christingle Service – All Saints

The Week Ahead

Mon 1st Dec

10:30am Tiny Tots – All Saints

Tue 2nd Dec

10:30am M4T – St. Mary’s Parish Rooms

Wed 3rd Dec

9:00am Celtic Morning Prayer – All Saints

Thu 4th Dec

10:00am Holy Communion – St. Mary’s

Fri 5th Dec

11:00am Living After Loss – St. Mary’s

Sat 6th Dec

10:00am Coffee Morning, Book Sale & Bristol Repair Cafe – All Saints

11:00am Christmas Fair – St Mary’s

Next Sunday Second of Advent (7th Dec) 

10:00am Toy service with Guides & Brownies – St. Mary’s

10:30am Holy Communion – All Saints

10:30am Junior Church – All Saints

6:30pm Advent Sequence – St. Mary’s

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, evermore. Amen.

Blessings,

Fr Kester de Oliveira 

Week beginning Sunday 23rd November 2025

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Mattia Poli on Unsplash

This Sunday’s gospel reading has one of the most amazing examples of faith in the bible. While Jesus was hanging on the cross, amid all the mocking of the passers-by, one of the criminals being executed with Jesus says “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom”. I have no idea what that criminal thought Jesus’ kingdom and rule might look like or how and when it might come to be. Yet, despite the apparent hopelessness of the situation, there was still faith and hope enough to believe in Jesus.

This can be an inspiration to us today. Even when Christ’s kingdom seems far and distant, we still have faith in his just and gentle rule. Despite the very real presence of evil in the world, we still work for and look for the kingdom of God. In the event of tragedy, we look forward to the fulfilment of that kingdom, when there will be no more tears. Faced with our own weaknesses and failings, we turn back to Christ and ask for him to rule in our hearts.

As we start to turn our attention to Christmas, we are reminded that Christ is king, even when we cannot see it or understand it. He calls us to follow him day by day. There will be opportunities to reflect on this more this Sunday at 8.00 am at All Saints and 10.00 am at St Mary’s.

At our 10.30 am Café Church service at All Saints, we will continue our look at the Nicene creed. This month, we will be thinking about God the Father, the creator. What does it mean to call God Father? What can creation tell us about God? What other names and titles do we use for God? All this and more will be up for discussion.

This gives the following services for this Sunday 23rd November:

8.00 am  All SaintsHoly Communion (said)
10.00 am  St Mary’sHoly Communion
10.30 am  All SaintsCafé church

We have our normal pattern of services for the coming week. Next Sunday we have a Benefice service at St Mary’s. As such, there will be no 10.30 am service at All Saints. However, there will be a Christingle service at 4.30 pm. This gives the following services for the coming week:

Wednesday 26th9.00 am All SaintsCeltic Morning Prayer
Thursday 27th10.00 am St Mary’sHoly Communion
Sunday 30th8.00 am All SaintsHoly Communion
 10.00 am St Mary’sBenefice communion
 4.30 pm All Saints Christingle

So let us pray together in the words of the collect for this Sunday, the festival of Christ the King:

God the Father,
help us to hear the call of Christ the King
and to follow in his service,
whose kingdom has no end;
for he reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, one glory.
Amen

Yours in Christ

Mark

Week beginning Sunday 16th November 2025

On By Sam ToogoodIn Weekly Info
Photo by Nelli Chaitanya on Unsplash

“The end is nigh” wails a lonely figure in the distance, as the clouds darken and huge waves appear out of the sea, threatening impending doom and destruction. 

Whether it is disaster movies, or thriller novels, or bleak poetry, then there is a way in which there seems to be a human fascination with what might be depicted as “The end times” .

Armageddon, The Day of Judgement or The Final Reckoning is something that for centuries people have contemplated and worried about. A very natural response to times of change or shifts in power and environment. 

Of course, in a disaster movie, then there is often a heroine or hero whose skills are tested to the limit, but who ultimately succeeds in rescuing the world and humanity and that is why I find them so good to watch. I want to see someone save the world!

This time of year we often start to hear in the readings at church things that resonate with that disaster picture. Jesus in Luke’s gospel this week talks about famines, fighting, persecution and rebellions and we are invited to reflect on how we cope with the ever changing world around us. The big question the disciples ask is “WHEN”…let us know when disaster will strike so we can prepare, get ready…..or run away.

Jesus avoids that question. He asks them to be aware, stay alert and put their faith and trust in a way that saves without heroics, but promises that staying in close step with Jesus and his way will bring us through the storms ahead that help us find life.

This week’s worship – Sunday 16th November 2025

10am – Sung Holy Communion – St Marys

10:30am  – Holy Communion with Hymns – All Saints

The Week Ahead

Mon 17th Nov

10:30am – Tiy Tots, All Saints

Tue 18th Nov

10:30am – M4T, St. Mary’s Parish Rooms

Wed 19th Nov

9:00am – Celtic Morning Prayer, All Saints

2:00pm – Bible Book Club, Venue TBC

Thu 20th Nov

10:00am – Holy Communion, St. Mary’s

Fri 21st Nov

11:00am – Living After Loss, St. Mary’s

7:00pm – “Christmas Choir” Practise, All Saints

Sat 22nd Nov

12:00pm – 1:30pm – Saturday Lunches, St. Mary’s

12-3pm – All Saints Christmas Fair

Sun 23rd Nov

8:00am – Holy Communion, All Saints

10:00am – Holy Communion, St. Mary’s

10:30am – Café Church, All Saints

Blessings

Revd Lizzie

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