Morning Praise
The church leadership plan to have an online service available every second Sunday.

All Age Worship Service
Alistair Ghinn is putting together an All Age Worship style online service via YouTube every alternate Sunday.

It would be nice if we watch the services together at 9:30 am on Sunday, when our usual church meeting would have happened, so that we are worshipping together while being apart!
(You are welcome to watch it any time that suits you!)

Just a reminder that the deadline for the August 2020 connect magazine will be 9 July 2020. If you have any news or reports to share, please send to editor.churches@hotmail.co.uk by the 9th.
 

COVID Thank You

I have received a request to place a personal thank you from one of parishioners for support they have received from neighbours and friends during the lockdown. I thought that there might be more people who would like to publicly thank those who helped them. Let us use this opportunity to celebrate village life!
If there is enough interest, it would be good to have a ‘shorts’ style article in the August issue. Please send me a short note with your thanks to reach me on editor.churches@hotmail.co.uk by the deadline of the 9th of July.
Linda Fitzmaurice

St Stephen’s Church and St Leodegar’s Church, as a Benefice, is running a prayer support ministry in our churches, called the Prayer Hub. We believe in the power of prayer and want to be able to pray for one another.

If you have a prayer request and would like people to intercede for you, please contact me so that I can initiate the prayer hub. To ensure accuracy in passing on your prayer requests, it is preferable that concise requests are submitted in writing (email to editor.churches@hotmail.co.uk and text messages to 07886873690 will be acceptable). If you are submitting a request on behalf of someone else, please ensure that you have their permission to do so. First names or initials can be used for sensitive issues. If you have asked for prayer, when appropriate, please send updates so we can keep praying specifically or give thanks when prayers are answered.

Prayer requests will be treated confidentially. Only the intercessors on the prayer hub will know about needs and will never discuss it with anyone. The church leadership team is part of the group. You don’t have to be part of our churches to submit a prayer request.

We are also looking for more people to join our prayer chain as intercessors (people who pray). If you are interested in becoming an intercessor, please contact me,Linda Fitzmaurice

When lockdown occurred and we were unable to hold our Quiet Garden meetings at Fishbourne, we had expected that, in time, we would be able to take up the programme where we left off.  It is quite obvious now that this will not be happening.  The freedom to ‘be’, which is such an integral part of Quiet Garden, will have to be restricted; restrictions which are likely to make negative demands on us.

All four of the enabling group being over the age of 70 (two well over 80), are the wrong age to stabilise the situation and lead the Quiet Garden into the future, possibly needing the necessary technological input which none of us has.

We have therefore decided that, after 7 years, we should completely close the present Quiet Garden, leaving freedom for the wonderful spirit of the Quiet Garden Movement to move each of us into closer communion with each other and God in Trinity through what is emerging and which we cannot as yet discern.

In these uncertain times, I wish you and your church many blessings. Sue Harrison

We are doing everything to ensure our services continue throughout the complex and ever changing Covid-19 situation, without compromising the safety of our patients and their loved ones. By adapting the way we deliver our care, we’re currently providing support to more than 300 patients in West Sussex, playing a key part in the healthcare system.

Our Living Well Centre maybe closed, but our councillors and therapists continue to offer practical support to patients at home through calls and teleconferencing.

From 15 June we have started to re-open our shops with Chidham, Chalcroft, Midhurst, East Wittering, the Retro and Vintage shop on Eastgate Square, Chichester, and our Donation and Furniture Centre on Terminus Road, Chichester.

Read more at www.stwh.co.uk

Virtual Morning Praise Service this weekend

Watch this playlist on YouTube for an online virtual Morning Praise Service: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLISQfaOG4ju-kNVuG0FvDmWwXltodvBHB

The Rectory needs you!!

Now your gardens and houses are all tidy and clean. Garden sheds are all in order.

How would you like to come and join us on the 11^th July from 10am –12 noon.

During our interregnum, we as a benefice are responsible for the upkeep of the premises. If you feel you would like to be part of this team please contact me. Tel: 537190

We will be looking at having two teams, one for the garden and one for the house. It would be really great if we could have 6 in each team. I must point out however that following the governments guidelines we have to stick to the 2m rule where possible or 1+ with a mask. These guidelines are important and because of this we will only allow 2 persons from each family.

If you have been part of one of our workforce groups at St Stephen`s you will appreciate the fun that can be had.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Lynn Mears

Churchwarden St Stephen`s

Dear Friends

It’s great news that our churches are now open for private prayer (St Leodegar’s on Saturdays from 1pm – 4pm and St Stephen’s on Sundays and Wednesdays also from 1pm-4pm) and  we hope that many of you will be able to take the opportunity to spend a bit of time, praying quietly, in one or other of our churches. Thank you to those who are making this possible.

You will also be aware of the government’s announcement this week that, from 4^th July, churches can provide services of worship, although without singing. This, also, is great news and we look forward to the day when we can begin to meet and worship together, whatever form that takes.

At this stage we are awaiting guidance from the Diocese as to what we will be able to do and what measures we need to put in place. As you will appreciate, once we know this guidance, we will need to take time to put appropriate measures in place, both to provide the best form of worship we can and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all who come.

In view of this, we wanted you to know that we will let it be known, through our various forms of communication, when our services will restart and what form they will take. We hope it won’t be too much longer but please do wait for further advice.

Thank you

Stephen, Kat, Joan, Lynn, Peter and Robert