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The season of Lent begins on Wednesday 22nd February this year.  We will mark this beginning with a service of Holy Communion, with the Imposition of Ashes, at 10am in St Peter's Church at Brooke.

Throughout the season there will be opportunties for prayer, study and fellowship; all helping us to prepare ourselves for Holy Week and the celebrations at Easter.

This year we are re-introducing a week day Communion Service on Thursday mornings in March, with the option of coffee and Bible Study to follow for those who wish.  We will keep Mothering Sunday with a celebratory service, inviting community organisations to join with the regular congregation, and offering the opportunity to remember those mothers we cannot be with on the day.

Full details of all our Lent offerings, including an invitation to join the Hempnall Group for their Lent talks: "Local but not parochial....", please see our "Lent, Holy Week and Easter" booklet, which is on the Resources Page and featured on the Home Page.

The Feast of Candlemas, on the 2nd February, marks the end of the Christmas season.  We turn our attention from the stories of baby Jesus to the stories of his passion, death and resurrection.

We celebrated in style in the Brooke Benefice with a candlelit service on Sunday evening and a service for Brooke Primary School on the day itself.

It was wonderful to welcome people from across the deanery to our Candlemas Communion service.  They were greeted by a lantern lit path and the church was aglow with candles.  During the service the candles for use in all our churches this year were presented and blessed, keeping an ancient tradition.  St Peter's Choir gave us a special rendition of the Nunc Dimittis during the Gospel reading and the prophetess Anna made a guest appearance to share her story of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.  The celebrations concluded with coffee and special Candlemas cake in the Church Rooms.

For a second year the children of Brooke Primary School processed through the village, carrying their handmade lanterns to the church for their own candlemas service.  Year Five and Six children led our worship and acted out the Presentation story.  Candles for use in worship at school were blessed and the school choir led us all in singing "shine Jesus shine".  The children left church to go out and be lights in the world.

We now enter a brief period of "Ordinary Time" before Lent begins and we turn our attention to preparing for our Easter celebrations.

Looking forward to working together in 2023 as we wait to see what God has in store for us.

ADVENT 

in the Brooke Benefice

Another Church year begins as we keep the season of Advent.  It is a time of preparation, as we ready ourselves to celebrate Christmas, and remind ourselves that we await the coming of Jesus in majesty.  In our services we will be linking into the Diocesan theme for the year : being pastoral, and we will be introducing some contemporary Christians who have offered their pastoral services in the work of God.

There are full details of all our services here, on the web-site, and everyone is welcome to come along.

This Sunday is the last of the Church year: the feast of Christ the King.  Our worship will be a great celebration of Christ's coming reign and we will be thinking about our membership of the Kingdom of God.

As we celebrate, we'll look back over the year and look for all the signs of God's kingdom breaking into our lives.  We'll remember those who have come for Baptism and those who have begun their married life in our churches.  We'll give thanks again for all those who have gone before us and set us such a rich example of faithful service and discipleship.  As we pray together, we'll remember our commitment to doing our bit to grow God's kingdom and our calling to "tell the good news".  

Everyone is welcome to our special celebration service which is at Kirstead Church at 10.30am on Sunday (20th November).  If you can't come in person, why not join us on Zoom.  If you've got something else on that morning then use your phone or smart speaker to set an alarm for 11am and spend one minute joining in with our worship wherever you are.

As we continue our month of "Creationtide", this week is the beginning of our Harvest Thanksgiving services.

Have you enjoyed a wide variety of food this week?  Is your garden full of fruit and vegetables?  Do you have clean water in your taps?  Were the shelves in the supermarket stocked when you went shopping?  

If the answer to any of these questions is "yes" then come and say "thank you" to God for all this provision.

Everyone is welcome to come to a service - even if you've never been before.  You can join in, using the booklets we provide, or just sit and take in the atmosphere.  Why not come and give us a try?

Full details of all our havest services are in the events section of our web-site.

It is with sadness that we acknowledge the death of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  Her life of dedicated service to our country has been an example to us all and we give thanks for all that she has given us.

All our churches are open for private prayer, with books of condolence available.  Our services on Sunday 11th September will begin with short Acts of Commemoration.  There will be a Service of Commemoration on Sunday 18th September at 3pm in Brooke Church.

Please join in praying for King Charles and the Royal Family at this time.

Congratulations!

Many congratulations to St Peter's Church at Brooke who have been awarded their Bronze Eco-Church Award.  The award takes note of the church's commitment to the environment through worship, buildings and grounds, community projects and personal lifestyle.  Working towards it has involved supporting Climate Justice projects, taking care of the conservation areas in the churchyard, changing the lightbulbs to LED and organising regular creation themed worship.

Huge thanks must go to John Ash who has been our "Eco-Champion" and has put in hours of work to ensure that we scored well on each category.

We hope that over the coming months some of our other churches will begin to work for their Bronze award - and who knows Brooke might try for silver next!

St Peter's Church at Brooke is delighted to be welcoming back 

Coro '94

as they sing 

Music for a Summer Evening

on Saturday 30th July at 7.00pm

The award winning choir was formed in 2014 from alumni of the "Cantate Youth Choir".  Many ex-members have developing careers in music with some singing with the Bach Choir, the BBC Symphony CHorus, the London Philharmonic Chorus and the Birmingham Symphony Chorus.

We look forward to an evening of songs old and new from their reportoire.

For further details please see our events pages.

Like so many other groups and communities we are busy putting in place our plans to celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.  As well as joining in with what's going on in our villages we'll be offering opportunities to celebrate together on Sunday 5th June.  You'll find further information in our events pages.  

The key message is that everyone is welcome.  After two years when we haven't been able to meet up, this will be a wonderful opportunity to come together to celebrate.

Dip in and out, choose which bits to come to - or stay all afternoon.  It will be great to see you there.

(By the way .... the weather won't stop our fun, we'll just move to the Church and Church Room)

This Christian Aid Week we are supporting the charity's campaign to help families in Zimbabwe.  In our service this morning we heard about the lives of two of the many women who are struggling to raise families on the increasingly drought ridden farmland which is a result of global warming.  We thought about how we might act in love in three ways:

• by making a donation to support the projects that are helping these families.
• by raising awareness of climate injustice
• by praying for strength and resiliance for all those who are going through these times.

If you would like to find out more about this week's campaign you can do so here: Christian Aid Week 2022

If you would like to make a donation to Christian Aid's work, you can use our e-envelope, which you will find here: Brooke Benefice E-envelope

Thank you for taking time to consider those who need our help.

Alleluia!  He is Risen!

Thank you to all those who made our keeping of Holy Week so special.

Wasn't it wonderful to be together in church on Easter Sunday with no restrictions - and to see so many people.  

Look out for more information coming soon about all the services and events going on this Eastertide.

How wonderful it is that this year we will be able to gather together to make our way through Holy Week and to celebrate Easter at the end.  After 2020's Easter at home, still in the shock of the first lockdown, and then last year's experience of restrictions on public worship being lifted just for Easter Day, we are a lot closer this year to a "normal" keeping of the season.

We recognise that Covid is still with us and so we will still be taking steps to keep everyone as safe as possible.  There is plenty of room in our churches for people to space out and lots of fresh air!  You are welcome to wear a face covering if you wish to and we continue to provide hand sanitiser at the door.  Please be considerate of other people and check how comfortable they are with you sitting close to them.  We will make sure that some of our services during this time are on Zoom, so that those who wish to remain at home can do so without missing out.  But we hope that as many people as possible will come in person this year - to celebrate the fact that we can!

There will be a variety of services and activities during the week, each one reflecting the mood of the day and helping us to journey with Jesus to the cross and the resurrection.  Everyone is welcome.  You don't need to have been to anything in church before; there will be someone to show you where to sit, our Orders of Service give you everything you need to join in if you wish to, and there will be people around who can answer your questions afterwards.

May you all have a blessed Holy Week, which touches your heart and deepens your faith.

National Day of Reflection 2022

Wednesday 23rd March was the date of the first national lockdown, a marker for the beginning of the Corona Virus pandemic in this country.  Two years on we are encouraged to pause and reflect on our experiences.  For many of us there are losses to mourn, not only of loved ones who died, but for family occasions missed, social events cancelled and livlihoods damaged, but there are also things to celebrate.  The lessons we learnt about working together, neighbourliness and care were invaluable, as were the things we discovered; like the usefulness of technological communication.  It was not just a "bad time" to be forgotten, but a time to grow and change too.  

As we reflect on all that has passed we also have the opportunity to look to the future too.  The pandemic is far from over and individuals and families are still suffering, not just with positive Covid tests, but with the long term effects of the disease and the economic consequences of spending so much time at home.  That said, the positive outcomes are lasting too and this day of reflection may provide us with the chance to review their impact on our lives, to "check out" how we are doing at maintaining the sense of community we discovered and to face the future with renewed hope.

Have a look at our events pages to find out how you can take part in this year's National Day of Reflection.

In these days of darkness for so many people,

please take the time to pray for peace.

Most Holy God and Father,

hear our prayers for all who strive for peace

and all who fight for justice.

Help us, who today remember the cost of war,

to work for a better tomorrow;

and, as we commend to you the lives lost in terror and conflict,

bring us all, in the end, to the peace of your presence;

through Christ our Lord.

Amen

As the excitement of Christmas celebrations fades, the beginning of the new year can seem a bit grey and bleak.  The weather is often cold and wet, and the light levels are low.  Combined with the continuation of the Covid pandemic, it can be difficult to feel joy and hope.

                      BUT…..!

These early months are full of the promise of what is to come.  Each day, although we hardly notice it, there is more daylight and less darkness.  If we keep watch we will begin to notice the early shoots of flowering bulbs, lying dormant since last year, or planted with hope in the autumn.  The stark tree branches will begin to bear buds and a green haze may well start to be visible as this year’s leaves are born.  Slowly the brown leafy sludge will begin to dry and the verges and footpaths will re-emerge.  By the time we reach the end of March we’ll be putting the clocks forward and starting to get used to lighter evenings.  The daffodils will be nodding in our gardens and the primroses blooming at the roadside, and our expansive Norfolk skies will once again be blue.

The life cycle of creation can do so much to boost our spirits and to give us hope that we too, like the flowers and plants and animals, can be renewed.

Whatever each of us is experiencing at the moment, it is important that we are watchful, noticing the spring signs in our own life; the kind deeds, the loving words, the warm smiles.  It is these things that will renew our hope.  And it is important that we remember that we can bring the gift of spring to others, when we find positive ways to interact and show our care.

May your February and March be filled with the promise of spring and your joy and hope overflow to those around you.

February 2nd is the Feast of the Presentation of Christ - better known to many as Candlemas.

We celebrate this light filled end to the Christmas season on Sunday 30th January at 6.30pm with a candlelit service at St Peter's Church in Brooke.  Everyone is welcome to join in this family friendly service filled with music and candles.

As an exciting new venture we will also be joining with Brooke Primary School on 2nd February.  After a special assembly in the morning, the children will be making lanterns ready for a procession to church in the afternoon.  They will then take part in a service where we will remember the story of Jesus being presented in the Temple.  We're all looking forward to sharing the day with the children.

Whilst we hope to keep our churches open for prayer and worship, we are taking extra precautions at the moment to keep visitors and congregations safe.  It is a legal requirement to wear a face covering (unless you are exempt) in a church building at the moment and we've put signs up to help you remember.  It's wonderful that we are all allowed to join in with singing, but we're being cautious and keeping our masks on for this.  There's hand santiser by all our doors, so please use it to help us keep the surfaces, books and other things you might touch clean.  If you come to a service, we'll still ask you to sign in and leave a contact number in case there is any risk of contact with the virus.  We'll let you know if that's the case.

If you are hesitant, please let us know.  There's always plenty of space, so we can find you somewhere to sit away from other people.  We'll do our best to keep at least one service each Sunday on Zoom, so that you can join us from home if you would rather.

Let's hope that all these precautions are temporary and that, before too long, we can go back to the greater level of freedom we were enjoying last year.  While they are in place though, let's all take care of one another and try to encourage each other along and let's continue to pray for those who are suffering the virus or its knock on effects, for those who are working in the NHS and other essential professions and for those who have been bereaved.

Sending Christmas greetings to all.

"The light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness cannot put it out."

As the season of Advent dawns we find ourselves once more in a period of watching and waiting as the "omicron" varient of Covid 19 reveals itself.  It feels as if the uncertainty of the pandemic has increased again and all our planning and hoping is less confident.  In the benefice, until instructed otherwise, we will continue to hold services and events "in person", taking care with ventilation and welcoming the wearing of face coverings, but not enforcing them.  Our biggest hope is that we don't return to the "no singing" rule - another Christmas with no carols would be hard to bear.

The waiting of the Advent season is very different from the waiting linked to Covid 19.  It is expectant waiting.  Not waiting to find out the results of tests and investigations, but waiting for a promised event in which we can have confidence - we just don't know when it will happen.  As we count the days we wait for our yearly reminder of the birth of Christ, our Saviour; celebrated at Christmas.  We wait too for his promised return in glory, to judge and rule the earth.  We do not know when this will be, but the assurance that it will happen may provide us with the hope we need to keep working for good, to keep faith with God and to keep living life to the full.

As we continue to take great care, let us also enjoy the freedoms of the moment and prepare to celebrate together this year.

November is the month to remember.

We have the opportunity at the very beginning of the month to remember our loved ones who have died, linking to the feast of All Souls.  This year we are offering two opportunties for people to come to church to remember, both a formal service and an open time to "just be".  Many people have been bereaved in the last eighteen months or so, and some are still grieving for time they were not able to spend with a loved on at the end of their life, or for a funeral that was struck by the regulations.  If you know someone in this situation please encourage them to come along, it might help a little with their journey.

As we have in the past we join with the Nation on Remembrance Sunday to keep the tradition of holding in mind all those who have given their lives in the service of our country.  We hope to be able to hold services "in person" this year, but also to share the Brooke service on Zoom for those who would rather stay at home.

Amazingly the last Sunday of the month takes us into Advent - the beginning of a new church year.  We will be marking this with a special evening service.  Keep an eye out as details of our plans to celebrate the feast of Christmas begin to emerge.

.....come and try my summer Churchyard Trail.

Cecil the caterpillar has laid a trail in the churchyard at Brooke and is inviting children and families (and anyone else) to come and explore during the month of August.  You can pick up a trail sheet in the church porch and then make your way through the churchyard looking for clues.  There's a sheet for Key Stage One children, and a more challenging one for Key Stage Two youngsters.  If you fill in your name and contact details you can enter our prize draw.  There will be two lucky winners at the end of the month.

We look forward to welcoming you along.

The afternoon of 10th July saw an optimistic group gather in Maureen's beautiful garden for a strawberry tea.  Groups of six were gathered around beautifully laid tables, with much excitement as people greeted one another after such a long time of being unable to socialise.  Raffle tickets were on offer, the tea was brewing and bowls of shiny red strawberries were being delivered....when......the heavens opened!  Not to be deterred, the umbrellas were unfolded and all carried on with much laughter and companionable chat.  Strawberries were followed by a selection of delicious home made cakes.  The afternoon raised over £200 for St Peter's funds.

Thank you to all who organised, baked and served.  We hope that everyone has dried out by now.  Well done for making the most of the afternoon despite the English weather.

Pentecost Praise!

Once more, having held our nerve against the grey clouds, we met for an outdoor service on Sunday - to celebrate the Feast of Pentecost.  Our worship had a party theme, with games, bunting and cake, as we celebrated the birthday of the Church.  Being outside meant that we could leave off our face coverings and it was wonderful to stand at the front of a group of people and see their beaming smiles at last.  We were also able to sing together and thanks must go to our three organists who shared the music making for us.

We heard about the arrival of the Holy Spirit in our Bible reading and remembered this amazing event throughout our worship.  We had the opportunity to reflect on the place of the Holy Spirit in our own lives and to re-commit ourselves to the Spirit-led work of sharing God's love in our communities.

After our worship we were able, for the first time in a year, to socialise with one another, catching up on news, drinking coffee and delighting in being together again.

More outdoor services are planned during June.

Having defied the weather we were able to hold our Outdoor Songs of Praise service on Sunday evening.  Nearly thirty people gathered - safely socially distanced - in the churchyard at Brooke and we sang our hearts out.  Our theme was "praising God" and each of the chosen hymns, in its own way, did just that.  The birds joined in and our local churchyard pheasant even helped out with the prayers.

Look out for more outdoor services in the coming weeks....

.....and for our next Songs of Praise.

We have all missed singing together as part of our worship.  On Sunday 2nd May, weather permitting, we will be able to join our voices in praise once more at an outdoor service. 

We will gather in the Churchyard at Brooke at 6.30pm to share in "Songs of Praise" with hymns chosen by congregation members.  Social Distancing will remian in place, so we will not be able to socialise yet, but we can worship together. 

See the events notice for further details.  

We look forward to seeing your there - and do invite your friends.

The Brooke Benefice joins the Nation in mourning the passing of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Services this week will include prayers for the Prince and for Her Majesty the Queen and the Royal Family as their grieve.

You will have heard  and seen the many tributes, both formal and personal, to the Prince which have shown the huge influence that he has had on the life of our Nation and others across the world and the impact and inspiriation that he has been in individual lives.

We will continue our participation in the week of mourning, ringing the bell at Brooke in line with other national times of ringing.  There will be opportunties for private prayer at Brooke on Wednesday from 10am to 4pm and at Seething on Thursday from 10am to 4pm.

We will hold a Service of Commemoration for the Duke, in line with many other parish churches across the country, on the evening before his funeral.  This will be at 6pm on Friday 16th April at St Peter's Church, Brooke.  People will be able to attend in person, with social distancing in place, but the service will also be live on Zoom.  You can find the links and Order of Service elsewhere on this web-site.

God of our lives,

we give thanks for the life of Prince Philip,

for the love he shared among us,

and for his devotion to duty.

We entrust him now to your love and mercy,

through our Redeemer Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Our social event for April is an evening of amateur sleuthing as we join our local detective in tracking down the dastardly killer.  You can join in on Zoom from 7.30pm on Saturday 24th April as we work together to find out "who done it".  

If you like all things detective related, you can take on the challenge of our themed quiz with questions about professional and amateur detectives from books, film and television.  A wonderful opportunity to test your knowledge.

We look forward to your company - as we go sleuthing together.

Happy 

Easter!

Sending best wishes to all.

How different Holy Week 2021 will be from last year.  Although we tried hard to worship and pray together we could only rely on using the same material and committing to the same times.  Not long after Easter Zoom came along for us and revolutionised our lives.  It means that, although we cannot be physically together most of the time, we will be able to keep Holy Week 2021 together, in the spirit of our Benefice vision.

We have been able to organise a service for each day and you will find details of them in the events section of this web-site.  As the week goes on you will be able to download and print off the Orders of Service, so that you can take a full part in what is going on.

For two of our services those who wish to will  be able to come to church in person.  Social distancing and face coverings will remain in place and we will still be unable to sing as a congregation, but it will be lovely to see each other none-the-less.  See the separate articles for further details and booking arrangements.

As we move cautiously to the first step of the Government road map on Monday, hopefully we will  be able to begin to feel less isolated and shut in.  Whilst we take full advantage of our new freedom, it will be good too to take time to walk with Jesus on the way of the cross in the coming days.

WIth blessings for a holy week.

Next Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the lockdown in which we have all been living to some extent ever since.  In that year vast numbers of people have died, some from Covid 19 itself and others for many different reasons.  For each of those people there have been numerous others who have been bereaved.  To add to their grief and sense of loss many people have not been able to attend funerals, or to arrange the funeral that they would have liked and many have also been deprived of the opportunity to meet afterwards to share their sadness....and all those amazing memories and funny stories.

Marie Curie Cancer Care and the Church of England have worked together to create a National Day of Reflection to mark that first anniversary in a way that honours all those who have died or been bereaved.  Nationally a minutes silence will be kept at 12 noon and church bells will be chimed.  Throughout the day there will be other ways for people to pause and remember the dead, whilst supporting the bereaved.

In the Benefice we will share in a service of reflection, both on-line and in person, remembering those who have had funerals in this benefice in the last year and those who have been bereaved, as well as joining in with that national moment of silence.  There will be the opportunity to light a candle and the church at Brooke will be open for private prayer.  Further details of the service are in the events section of this web-site.

As we look towards the promised day when we can go out freely and meet one another again, we pause to remember those who are gone before us and those who mourn their passing.  May they rest in peace.

We stand on the brink of this year's Lent.  Given the current lockdown restrictions we have planned for our events and services to take place on-line.  Lent is traditionally a time to really focus on God at the centre of our lives.  We may do this by "giving up" distractions, by taking up a new discipline of prayer or by making a new attempt to live out our faith in service to others.

There will be several opportunities to do this together this Lent.  You may like to make a committment to join in with Morning Prayer on Thursdays at 10am, or with Compline on Tuesdays at 8.45pm as a prayer discipline.  Alternatively, you may like to take part in our "Poems to Ponder" study group.  Download each week's poem from the web-site (or sign up for our weekly e-newsletter by contacting Lynn at chapman.lynn@btinternet.com).  Spend time with it over the week and then come along on a Tuesday evening at 7,30pm to share your thoughts, and to hear what other people think.

St Peter's Church at Brooke remains open for private prayer on Wednesdays and Sundays, so do go there if you are missing the opportunity to pray in church.  We hope very much to be able to get back to worshipping in person (for those who want to) before too much longer.

Greetings to all on this Candlemas Day.  We have reached the end of the Christmas cycle and its time to pack away the cribs and to think about Lent and Easter, which lie just around the corner.  There is no need, however, to pack away the hope and light that we've been enjoying for the past forty days.  That message goes on.

News of the vaccine roll out seems good, and many of you have already had your first dose.  We are also beginning to see signs that our endurance of the January lockdown is also reducing the number of hospital admissions for Covid - a wonderful sign of hope.

As we continue to journey through this strange time, which will last for a while yet, we will need to draw on our store of hope to get us through.  Maybe remembering back to our Candlemas celebrations will help us to grasp the power of light in the darkness, and inspire us to continue to seek for joy in the midst of all that we are experiencing.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!

Our year of worship got off to a wonderful start on Sunday when Bishop Alan joined us for our Epiphany service and Daniel and Rebecca were Confirmed.  It was a very special morning.  Thank you to all those who made it possible.

Due to the current restrictions and the increasing infection rate that the new strain of Covid-19 has brought us we may need to make changes to our usual pattern of services at short notice.  We intend to go on using Zoom for our main Sunday services (and others where appropriate) so you will always find us there and it may be that some services take place in church for those who like to attend in person.  Please keep an eye on this web-site and look out for our weekly e-mail bulletins so that you have the most up to date information about what is happening.  

I'm sure that you will join me in continuing to pray for those who have Covid and for those who care for them, along with those who are alone or fearful and those whose jobs and livelihoods are threatened by the pandemic.  I hope, as well, that you will join me in seeking to remain hopeful, in looking for the many positive things that are happening in our local setting as well as wider afield and in attempting to care for each other in the coming days.

May 2021 bring you many blessings,

Lynn

Sending Christmas Greetings to all.

This Christmas may you be filled with the light and hope that the Christchild brings and may you know the peace of which the angels sang.

With blessings for this season and the year to come.

Advent is the season that opens a new church year. It offers us the opportunity to pause and to prepare ourselves for the forthcoming feast of Christmas.  Often, in the midst of all the practical things that need to be done, we neglect to prepare spiritually.  There are many things that can help us with this but two have been especially provided this year for us by the Diocese of Norwich, of which our Benefice is part.

At 9pm every Tuesday and Thursday until Tuesday 22nd December you can join our Bishop (and others in the Diocese) for the service of Compline, a beautiful, reflective way to draw the day to a close in prayer.  You can download and/or print an order of service here:  Compline Order of Service
There doesn't appear to be a direct Zoom link, but the other Zoom details (every time) are:  Meeting ID 819 7861 5511  Password:  771181     Telephone:  0203 481 5237

Alternatively......
It's still not too late to sign up for the electronic Diocesan Advent Calendar, which arrives as an e-mail each morning, offering the opportunity to pause and think Advent thoughts amidst everything else that's going on.  This link will take you to the page you need, where you enter your e-mail address and name to register:  Advent Calendar Sign Up Page

I hope that you will use these opportunities as encouaragment to deeped your relationship with God as we begin another year of church life.

May your Advent be blessed and help you to welcome the Christ-child once more into your heart this Christmas.

If you have a favourite poem, why not come and share it (and perhaps the reason it is a favourite) on Saturday 21^st November at our zoom Poetry Evening.  This will start at 7pm, it is a fund raising event for the Benefice and the cost to take part is £5.  Please email or telephone me if you would like to take part and put £5 either through my door (22, Brecon Road, Brooke) or Lynn's (The Vicarage, Brooke).  You will be given the zoom code on Friday the 20^th.  I look forward to seeing you there.  John Ash, 01508 550116 johnrvash@gmail.com

November brings us an opportunity to remember.

On the 1st of November we remember all the saints, those who have lived their lives within the Christian faith.  We remember those whose stories have made them famous, some handed through generations, and those whose quiet faith is known only to God.  We give thanks for thier example and remember that we are the saints of our generation.

The 2nd November is All Souls Day when we remember all those who have died.  This year we've moved our remembering to the afternoon and evening of 1st November to make it possible for as many people as possible to join in.  With so many people affected by the Coronavirus Pandemic it seems more important than ever to offer opportunities to remember those we love who have died in very personal ways.  St Peter's Church at Brooke will be open in the afternoon for people to use as a space to come and remember and then, in the evening, there will be a special on-line service of Commemoration.  There are more details in the events section of the web-site.

Our annual Remembrance Service will take place on Remembrance Sunday, 8th November, but for safety reasons we've made the decision that it will take place only on-line this year.  The details are in the events section of the web-site.  We know that many people will be disappointed by this but we have worked hard to make sure that all our villages are included and we will live in hope that we can gather at our war memorials again next year.

Everything that we plan at the moment has to be subject to change, so do keep an eye on our web-site as a way for us to let you know of any changes.  If you subscribe you can receive e-mail notifications when new content has been added.

As the days begin to get shorter and the restrictions become more restrictive....the Benefice Council put their minds to what we might do to create some social opportunties for our community.  Meeting up together is unlikely to be possible in the coming weeks (and perhaps months) so we thought we'd turn our attention to the possibilities that technology is offering us.

Following the success of the weekly coffee morning during the main lockdown time, we have decided to experiment with holding a virtual Afternoon Tea.  You will, unfortnately, need to supply your own tea and cake, but you are most welcome to come along, to see friends, and to have a chat.

Our first attempt will be on Wednesday 14th October from 2.30pm in the afternoon.  You don't have to be there at the beginning, guests can drop in at any time, and leave when they are ready too.  We will continue to use Zoom as our chosen platform.

You'll find all that you need to join in on the events pages of our web-site.

I look forward to seeing some of you there,

Lynn

A huge "Well Done" to all those who took part in Saturday's Cycle Ride.

Liz, Gwyneth, Carrie and Martin set off on their bikes and rode 19 miles, visiting 13 churches along the way.

Travelling by car John and Stephanie visited 26 churches all over South Norfolk.

Daniel (and Dad, Robert) started in Wymondham and cycled all the way to Brooke, covering 26 miles and visiting 27 churches.

All reported how much they enjoyed the day - and the fortunately wonderful weather.

At the moment sponsorship has raised about £800 to be shared between the Norfolk Churches Trust and parishes in our Benefice.  It's not too late to donate - you can contact any of the participants if you would like to make a contribution.

Daniel sent the following:

Thank you so much to everyone who sponsored me for the Norfolk Churches Trust sponsored bike ride. I aimed to cycle to 15 churches covering 15 miles and set a goal of raising £100. I was so happy to have raised over £400 more than the original target I had set myself. On the day, I cycled to 27 churches and covered 26 miles. So far, I have raised £575 for the Norfolk Churches Trust and the Brooke Benefice. Thank you so much again to everyone who generously sponsored me!

A big "Thank You" to those who took part and to all those who sponsored them.

12th September this year is the date for the annual Norfolk Churches Trust Cycle Ride.  People from across the diocese will  be taking to their bicycles (and cars and walking boots) to spend the day visiting as many churches as they can.  Sponsored by friends, family and kind benefactors, they will raise money for the ongoing work of the Norfolk Churches Trust - and for their parish churches.

The Norfolk Churches Trust helps parishes to maintain their historic church buildings.  They care for some "redunant" churches and offer grants to others for building projects and repairs.  The parishes of our benefice are all members of the Trust and have benefited over the years from generous gifts.  The annual Cycle Ride offers the opportunity to make a contribution back to the Trust and to raise some money for our churches too.

This year, amongst others, we have a new rider in Daniel.  Once he found out about the event he decided that he could combine his love of cycling with his interest in churches and raise some funds for the Benefice along the way.  He plans to cycle from his home in Wymondham to his "second home" in Brooke on the day, hoping to visit at least fifteen churches along the way.  The route is about fifteen miles.  We are all hoping for good weather and looking forward to meeting him when he arrives at St Peter's.  

If you would like to sponsor Daniel you can do so by:

Visiting his JustGiving page, where you can make and on-line donation:  Sponsor Daniel 

or

Contacting Lynn (01508 558479, chapman.lynn@btinternet.com) and asking to be added to a paper sponsorship form being kept at the Vicarage.  You will be asked to deliver your sponsorship money, in cash or by cheque to the Vicarage (or the Vicar) after the event.

Thank you for your support and "thank you" Daniel (and others) for your support of this special event.

Following some cleaning and lots of guidance reading and risk assessing, St Margaret's Church at Seething is now ready to be opened for private prayer.  The church will be open from 12pm to 4pm on Sundays and from 10am to 4pm on Thursdays.  There are instructions in the porch so that all hygiene precautions are taken, in an attempt to make the building "Covid secure".

We know that some people have been missing being able to pop in on their daily walks and so we are delighted that they will now have the opportunity to enjoy the hallowed quietness of Seething's beautiful church once more.

The last few weeks have been a steep and exciting learning curve as we have opened St Peter's Church at Brooke for private prayer and for Sunday Worship following its closure in March.  Extensive risk assessments have been carried out and procedures and policies have been drafted and published.  Lots of soft furnishings and books and papers have been removed from the church to make it easy to keep clean and access to some areas has been closed off for the same purpose.  We are extremely grateful to Liza our lovely cleaner who has been so accommodating and has floors and pews gleaming in the sunshine again.

Twice each week the church is open for people to visit and make their own private prayers.  There are clear signs about what to do and people have been coming along for a few minutes, or a little while, to enjoy the peace and quiet of the church.  It's not quite the same as being able to wander in just when you want to and just at the moment you can't light a candle or leave a prayer card, but it's good to know that those who wish have access to St Peter's once again.

We've had three Sunday services in church now too.  The screen is up at the front and the gift of mobile broadband has made it possible to join up with those who are worshipping at home, via Zoom.  There have been some hairy moments, but we are beginning to get the hang of it and everyone agrees that it's probably the best we can do until we are all able to be in church again.  Huge thanks go to Brian and team who have been recording hymns and music to add to our services.  Those in church find it very hard not to be able to sing a long, but we look forward to the day when this will be possible again.  We have now removed the booking system for services as we feel able to cope with the numbers of people who wish to attend and so far we haven't had to turn anyone away.

Sunday services are planned throughout August so, if you're ready to come back to church, do come along to St Peter's and join in.  Zoom will continue too for the time being - the link and joining details are on the web-site.  We hope that in the coming weeks we can work on opening another of the churches in our benefice - so look out for news of that soon.

It is with great joy that we are able to re-open St Peter's Church at Brooke for public worship this week.  There will be a Benefice service of Morning Worship on Sunday 12th July at 10.30am.  We hope that this will be the pattern for the next few weeks.

So that everyone can make a choice about whether they wish to attend church or not, we will continue to offer our worship on Zoom at 10.30am as well.  Through a generous gift it should be possible for this to include those in the chuch, so that we continue to worship as one community.

Due to social distancing those who wish to come to the church will need to book a place.  There are full details of the arrangements in the "Re-opening our churches" section of the web-site.  Those who wish to join on Zoom will find the link on the "What's on" page, or in the weekly benefice e-mail.

This is a first tentative step towards returning to worshipping together in body as well as spirit.  It will not be as we have known it in the past, but it is an opportunity for those who wish to worship in the church building to be able to do so once more.

St Peter's Church at Brooke is also open for private prayer on Sundays (12pm-4pm) and Wednesdays (10am-4pm).

One of the things I have missed over the past 12+ weeks has been walking up the Church Path in Brooke and looking up to see the statue of St Peter above the porch entrance before entering the church.

 Why? Peter was an ordinary fisherman – skilled at his work no doubt and not particularly well educated. He became a trusted and liked follower of Jesus, but he was not perfect – so there is hope for us all.  And thinking of this as I pass the porch gives me a feeling of confidence- confidence that we do our best in whatever God has set us to do and sometimes we will fall short – but God will still love us.

Peter of course was commissioned by Jesus with the rest of the disciples “to make disciples of all nations”.  He was successful in this traveling around spreading the ‘good news’ finally ending up in Rome.  Here Emperor Nero was persecuting Christians and Peter’s fellow Christians implored him to leave Rome to spare his life.  He did not run away and was put in prison where he converted his gaolers Processus and Martinian.  He was taken from the prison and crucified, head downwards at his own request for he declared himself unworthy to suffer the same fate as his Lord.

It is not surprising that so many Churches are dedicated to St Peter, the disciple who carried out Jesus’ teaching to the letter (and to death) and a saint to be an example to us all.  So taking two extreme examples Brooke and St Peters Basilica in Rome.  On the face of it they may not have any similarities – but of course they have.  St Peter’s in Rome may be more lavishly decorated (and have more gold) but both places provide a meeting place for Christians to praise God, to pray and hear the Good News of Jesus Christ, and have done that for many hundreds of years.

I sometimes think that St Peter would feel more at home in our Church, his coming from a village and a working family background, but who knows, he may prefer the enormous crowds in Rome to be able to carry out Jesus’ commission to make disciples of all nations.  When I was in St Peters in Rome there were certainly hundreds of people from all nationalities.

Over the last 12 weeks my days have comprised gardening, doing odd jobs that I had been putting off (for years) and a bit of painting as the Thursday art group cannot meet.    The challenge I set myself this week was to paint an icon – a painting of a saint on wood.  My effort of St Peter is below – nothing like the icons I have seen in Russian Orthodox Churches – but I enjoyed doing it!!

Our churchyards offer almost unique environments for the natural world.  They have been largely untouched for centuries, certainly not dug over or planted, and they are havens for wildflowers and wildlife.  

The Benefice has been trying to consciously conserve these areas over the last few years.  Sadly a planned conservation survey across our churchyards has had to be postponed, but we hope that it will happen in due course.  None-the-less work has continued to manage the churchyards so that people can visit graves - and at the moment so that we can hold funerals in them - but also to make them as natural as possible.

In Brooke the "WIldlife Friends" are a group who began to meet in the autumn of 2019.  Whilst sharing their interest in the natural world - and a cup of tea - they have also made practical steps to clearly mark out conservation areas and to provide sanctuary for wildlife.  They have also worked hard to ensure that those who visit the churchyard at St Peter's are able to spot for themselves all that is there. This has mainly happened at present through a noticeboard near the entry.

Work has been going on even in lock-down and the noticeboard has been updated to reflect the wildlife features of this early summer time.  A corrogated iron sheet has been placed in a suitable spot  in the hope that it will encourage amphibians, and an upturned dustbin lid has also been installed to offer water to our feathered friends.

Do make the most of the encouragement that we are receiving to be outside at this time and visit one of our churchyards.

Dear Friends,

As we enter the period of time between the Ascension and Pentecost, we are invited to join with our Christian brothers and sisters in the "Thy Kingdom Come" project.  This was started by our Archbishops a few years ago and challenges us, in these nine days, to pray for God's kingdom to come in a focussed and intentional way. 

You could do this...
by praying the Lord's Prayer slowly each day, taking time to consider what it is that we are praying for in this prayer.
by exploring and using the many on-line materials available, including prayer lists, reflections and virtual resources.

or

by taking up our Bishop's invitation to join him each evening at 9pm to say Compline together.
You will find the Order of Service and Zoom codes for this here:  Compline Information

It would be lovely to think that at least one person from our Benefice joined in with this each evening.  Compline is a wonderful service which draws the day to a close and invites reflective and gentle prayer.  Being together, albeit virtually, with our Bishop and many others from across the Diocese will also give us a sense that we are part of something so much bigger than our small local congregation.

I hope that we can each find a way in the coming days to bring ourselves back to our relationship with God, at the centre of all we are and do, and to pray for God's kingdom to come.

With my prayers,
Lynn

This is Christian Aid Week.

Like so many other things this annual fundraising appeal has had to change its way of working.  This year there will be no door to door envelope collection and there won't be big breakfasts or Christian Aid coffee mornings.  It's not all "off", however, instead Christian Aid have thought up new ways for us to pray and donate so that their work can go on.

In spite of a year of planning, just weeks into the current crisis, Christian Aid changed the focus of their appeal for 2020 to combatting the dangers of coronavirus in the developing world.  Everything raised this week will go to help communities without running water, those in need of the basics, like soap and hand sanitizer and those who are living in cramped conditions - especially those who are already refugees as a result of war and injustice.

There are two things that we can do this week to join in with this effort.

Firstly, we can add our prayers to those of countless others, for our brothers and sisters who need our love and support,  across the globe and for those who work for Christian Aid (many of whom in this country have been fuloughed) and in their projects.  You can find resources to stimulate your prayers through this link: Prayers for Christian Aid Week

Secondly, we can make a donation to Christian Aid.  There are many ways to do this which are explained on the Christian Aid web-site.  We have created our own Benefice "e-envelope" which will help us as a Benefice to know how much we have raised.  We set the target at £500, which was the highest it would go, but we usually raise about £1000 across the Benefice, so let's see if we can exceed that £500.  You can find our "e-envelope" here: E-Envelope

Our service on Sunday morning (10.30am - more details on the web-site later this week) will have a Christian Aid theme as we pray together for the work of this wonderful organisation.

In these weeks when some of us have not left home at all, many people have watched the seasons change in their gardens, or out for their daily exercise.  When I began updating our web-site on a regular basis, at the beginning of this pandemic, the daffodils were just in bloom.  Now only their leaves remain and they have been replaced by unfurling leaves on the trees in brillaint green, the bursting of blossom and the appearance of miriad flowers in garden and hedgerow.

Our Benefice Organist, Brian Orland, has been paying very close attention to these stirings of nature and shares with us his photographs of nature "up close".  These were taken in the churchyard at St Peter's, Brooke on one of his daily walks and show us just how important it is to pay attention to detail.  You can see all his photographs in a new album in the gallery, here on the web-site: Close to Nature.

These detailed pictures of such small things that we may walk past in our usual busy lives, remind us of what we miss when we don't take the opportunity to pause.  They remind us too of the attention to detail that our Creator God takes.  If so much care is taken over the formation of each leaf and flower - surely it is taken over us too.  Perhaps in the spaces that our current situation is providing for so many of us, we can sit still, open our hearts to God and allow our Creator to bring us to full bloom.

After some weeks of experimenting and the success of our weekly virtual coffee mornings it was decided that the time has come to try out worshipping together on Zoom.  So, we will continue to gather in our homes this week, but those with internet access, who choose to do so, will be able to join up by video link, for a greater sense of being together.

The gathering will begin at 10.15am to allow everyone to "arrive" and our worship will start at 10.30am.  There is an Order of Service for this service in the resources section of the web-site.  Our organist has kindly recorded the music for our worship, so we're all set to give it a go.

For those who wish to continue to worship at home by less technical means, the weekly sheet of resources is again available, with ideas for reflection and for prayers linked to the Gospel reading of the day.

Whilst we continue to keep our distance from each other in body, we draw near in thought and prayer as we continue our weekly worship together.

Dear Friends,

The last few months have been difficult for many people here in Britain and across the world.   We have experienced the wettest February for years, bringing floods to many parts of Wales and England with families having to evacuate their home and many of their treasured possessions lost.  There have also been floods in other parts of the world, where individuals and governments do not have the help and infrastructure to be able to respond effectively.  This came soon after the terrible fires in Australia and America.  And then, if that was not enough, we (as I write)  have the worry of Coronavirus, how widespread will it be, must we cancel holidays etc.  It  seems as if the floods and pestilence we read about in the Old Testament are revisiting us.  However, I do not think that is the case.  The scientific advice is that the floods, fires and viruses are partly our own making.  Climate change, due to the ‘misuse’ of our planet and its resources, is now having a devasting effect on peoples’ lives as are these new strains of viruses.

So, in short, we are living in very uncertain times.  How do we deal with what is happening around us, how will it get worse (or better) in the future, what can we do?  I am sure many of us feel at a loss and perhaps rather afraid.

If we step back 2000 years, the disciples and Jesus’ close friends must have had similar feelings.  What was happening? Jesus had been tried on untrue charges and then crucified on the cross on Good Friday.  What would happen to them? What did the future hold?  It was a very uncertain time, but they stuck together – the disciples and Jesus’ mother and a few other close friends.  There was obviously a feeling of security and companionship in being together and sharing the difficult time they were experiencing – there was not much very good about that Good Friday.  But it all changed on that first Easter Day with Jesus’ resurrection and we read in Matthews Gospel that he appeared to them and told them that “I am with you always, to the end of the age”.  All was not lost and there was a much brighter future than they had feared.

In our difficult and uncertain times, we can stick together and support each other, doing what we can for each other and the world. Remembering always that Jesus is our Saviour and is with us always to the end of the age.

I would like to finish this letter on a personal note.  I have been through very uncertain times over the past six months dealing with my cancer.  I would like to thank you all for your goodwill messages and prayers.  They meant an awful lot to me and really did help during the difficult periods of chemotherapy and post operation.

May God bless and keep you and may you have a very Happy Easter,

John

John Ash

Lay Reader

We have reached Easter Day!  Let's all hope and pray that the light and hope of the Easter story can find its way into our world in the coming days.

I felt like I should send some Easter Message, but everyone else seems to do it so much better than me.  There are loads of things on line, but the link here will take you to the thoughts and words of the Bishop of Norwich, which I hope will provoke your thoughts in the coming days.

Bishop of Norwich : Easter Message

May you be blessed richly with the hope and light of this Easter Season,

Lynn

One of the things that we usually do on Maundy Thursday is to remember Jesus' last supper with his disciples and the new meaning he gave to the bread and wine as he asked them to remember him every time they shared it together in the future.  For the last few years we have met in Mundham church to join together in the Lord's Supper and to share just as Jesus asked his disciples to do.  Sadly this year that won't be possible as social distancing means that we cannot all be in the same place and we certainly can't share one cup.

Whilst even a few weeks ago we wouldn't have imagined a time when we couldn't take Communion, the Church of England in the Book of Common Prayer has long recognised that there may be occasions when people would not be able to receive the bread and wine in reality.  Instead it has been suggested that people receive "Spiritual Communion", acknowledging that Jesus comes to us spiritually as well as in the elements that we share, and that those who cannot receive the actual bread and wine need not be cut off from fellowship with the church - or relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  You can find lots of information (and some theological debate) about this online at the moment.  A short explanation from the Church of England is available here: Spiritual Communion

For many people Easter Day is one of the most important times of the year for them to receive Holy Communion.  Although there will be no services in church on Easter Day this year the bishops have given clergy permission to hold a service of Holy Communion in their own home on behalf of their congregation.  Having "fasted" from Communion since the suspension of public worship, I will, with great joy, be celebrating Holy Communion at the Vicarage on Sunday at 10.30am, for us all.  So that you can join in if you wish to, I have put the order of service, including a prayer for you to use at the point of sharing Communion, in the resources section of the web-site.  It will be good to know that some of you are joining me in what will be an extra special act of worship for Easter this year.

I join you in looking forward to the time when we can all once more gather around the altar and share together as Jesus asked his disciples to do.

We stand on the threshold of Holy Week 2020.  A Holy Week that will be very different from that we planned for a few weeks ago, and also very different from any Holy Week that has taken place to date.

Much creativity has been happening across the world to ensure that as the Church we are able to journey together through our remembrance of all that led up to Jesus death; before we celebrate his resurrection next weekend.  There are an abundance of downloads, podcasts, live streams and other resources available through the miracle of communication the internet is proving to be.  There are also lots of ideas of things for people to do in their own home, but together.

Whilst our regular daily "Prayer during the day" will continue all week, there will also be other times for us to know that we are worshipping together.  These will include:

10am on Sunday morning when we will remember the events of Palm Sunday. 

8.30pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday when Compline will be said. 

7pm on Thursday when we remember the Last Supper and Jesus' arrest. 

2pm on Friday when we will take an hour to reflect on the story of Jesus' death on the cross.

9pm on Saturday when we carry the new fire of light into our homes as our celebration of Easter begins to dawn.

There are resources for all these events and more in this week's resources booklet, available on the resources section of this web-site.

Tuesday morning saw the closure of all our church buildings for the time being.  It is sad that those who find solace and peace in our ancient churches will be unable to do so for a while, but we must take all precautions to keep people safe as the Coronavirus continues apace.  Hopefully the weather will remain clement and, as part of their daily exercise, people can walk through our churchyards and enjoy the beautiful primrose carpets and the bird chorus from the trees and hedges.  Please remember in your prayers those who are temporarily deprived of their well-loved special places and remember too to give thanks for the beauty of creation which surrounds us.

Our buildings may be closed, but the church in the benefice continues to thrive. Many people have been in touch to say that they joined in with last Sunday's worship on the radio and some also found the Sunday Worship Resources helpful too.  These will appear each week, by e-mail to those on the mailing list, and also on this web-site.  I know that some people placed a lighted candle in their window on Sunday evening as all churches in this country came to the end of a day of "Prayer and Action" and that others joined in today with the 11 o'clock Lord's Prayer.  These acts of united prayer help us to remember that we are part of a wider church, which is active across the world.

On Wednesday we launched our "Telephone Tree" which will see twenty-one households linked by phone calls on five out of the seven days of the week.  It is still possible to join in with this project either by volunteering to phone someone, or as someone who would appreciate the opportunity to chat.  To take part please phone or e-mail the Vicar (01508 558479  chapman.lynn@btinternet.com)  Lots of other help is going on as people share shopping deliveries, pick up essentials and prescriptions and generally look out for one another.

As this new pattern of isolated living becomes more familiar, I encourage you to continue to actively strive to be the Church in our villages.  Please keep praying - it really can move mountains and doing it together, sharing the load, has been proved time and again to be beneficial.  Please keep safe and follow the guidelines that we have been given, so that you don't put yourself - or other people - at risk.  Do offer help, where you can (remember staying at home is a way to help our NHS and other people) but don't be afraid to ask for help yourselves.  We will all do our best to ensure that no-one is alone or in need in our community.

Following advice from the Archbishops all public worship in our churches will be suspended until further notice.

Arrangements are being made to make it possible for us to continue the work of prayer which lies at the heart of our faith and further details will be posted in the coming days.

The Archbishops are encouraging us to consider how to "do church differently" in the coming days and weeks and emphasise the importance of our roll as "bearers of hope" to our communities.

Plans are being put into place in our villages to ensure that people are cared for and helped in this period and it will be important that we support these efforts in any way that we can - whilst maintaining proportionate concern for our own well-being.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch with the Vicar (Lynn 01508 558749, chapman.lynn@btinternet.com) if you have questions or need help of any kind.

I'm sure that we will all be keeing all those with the virus, those who care for them and those who are making important decisions in our prayers.

Although church-going plays little part in most people’s lives these days, many people continue the tradition of  “giving up” something for Lent.  These acts of self-denial often include going without chocolate or alcohol and some people give the money that they would have spent on these things to charity, remembering those who are in need of help or support, in this country or abroad.  There is something to be said for the feeling of success when we manage to keep up the discipline for the full forty days before Easter.

Somehow, in the midst of this tradition, the original intention has been lost for many people.  When the custom began, the act of “going without” was to create a greater awareness of the need for God and to make extra time to spend in prayer and study.  It was not intended to be an act of self-discipline but a time of deepening spirituality and faith. 

In an attempt to return to this intention many Christians now choose to focus their attention during Lent on God’s love and to take action to make this a reality in the world.  The forty days, for them, are filled with attempts to help other people to feel valued and significant.  Some people choose to carry out forty “random acts of kindness”, which can take their recipients by surprise, whilst others take time to catch up with friends or neighbours they haven’t seen in a while, either in person, by letter or on the phone.  For some their Lenten discipline takes the form of being positive about one thing each day, or ensuring that they spend time with family members during the week  -  no “devices” allowed.  Some people do something to love our planet and turn their hand to recycling, reducing their carbon footprint or conserving our wildlife.  There are those who have found their Lenten project to be so life-giving that they keep it up all year!

Sometimes it is good for us to mark out a period of time when we live a bit differently to the rest of the year.  Lent begins on 26th February this year  -  perhaps there is something you could do for forty days (until Easter Day on 12th April) that will make your world, or someone else’s, just a bit brighter and more loving.  You may even find that it begins a whole new way of life……

With every blessing,

Lynn

This edition of the magazine spans two years and gives us the opportunity to look back over 2018 and forward to 2019.

The last year seems to have been overshadowed by uncertainty. Firstly, the uncertainty of the weather. A long cold winter followed by a very short spring and then the hot very dry summer. This of course was what had been predicted as an outcome of our changing climate, but it still comes as something of a shock. It certainly brings home the need to change some of our practices regarding emissions and to think about being much better stewards of the world. And then there has been the political uncertainty of Brexit which, as I write, an agreement is still to be reached on. I sometimes sit and ponder what sort of world we are giving to our grandchildren. Closer to home we have the retirement of Bishop Graham who has been a source of inspiration with his very human and caring approach to the Diocese of Norwich. I know his Christian Ministry has touched many people of all faiths or of none. His successor will not be known until well into next year, so we move into another period of uncertainty.

It may appear on the surface that 2018 was a miserable year but of course there have been many good things to reflect upon. The success of the Brooke Village Hall Café, the appointment of a new head at the school and I am sure you all have your own good memories, perhaps of holidays or special occasions such as weddings or birthdays.

Christmas will soon be upon us, and at that first Christmas things were also uncertain. Mary and Joseph lived in a country under Roman occupation, with many rules. One of them was the need to register in your home town. For Mary and Joseph this meant a difficult journey for a very pregnant Mary, not jumping into the car, or on a train or bus but walking, and riding on a donkey. Then there was the uncertainty of not knowing where they could stay and when the baby would be born. On failing to find a room at the inns in the area they were offered shelter by a kind inn keeper, but in a stable at the back of the inn. Not what they had anticipated but it was warm and dry. When Jesus was born God singled out the ‘ordinary’ shepherds to be the first to hear the good news and the first to see the baby. What a thrill it must have been for them, an experience that surely changed their lives.

Looking forward to 2019, the future may be uncertain, but we can go forward in hope, doing our bit to help others not just locally but in the world, and rejoicing when things go well. Mary and Joseph set forth on an uncertain journey, but it was one that changed lives. With God’s help, we pray that the same will apply to us in 2019.

May God bless you and keep you.

Have a very Happy Christmas and New Year,

John Ash

Lay Reader

Saturday March 3^rd, we dared walk out into the snow-covered roads and paths and down to the Churchyard. It was one of the first days following the several snowfalls of the preceding week that the “beast” had stopped its’ howling. In St Peter’s Churchyard the wildlife felt comfortable enough to venture out and we found the tell tale tracks. Pheasants and partridges had come out of the wood at the north east end and made the snow look like a busy thoroughfare. On the opposite corner, by the boundary with the Old Vicarage, a hare had lolloped its way from the wood to the safety of the wall - it’s tracks longer and larger than a rabbit - more of a longjumper.

Good Friday, March 30^th, soft rain began to fall in the afternoon. The tombstone on the Easter Garden was sealed to represent the after noon when Christ’s body was placed within. A walk into the churchyard revealed the blessings a few degrees of warmth had brought since the “beast” had left us. To be seen still are wild primroses both yellow and pink - not all primroses are yellow, even in the wild. Some have almost pure white flowers while others have a pink or purplish tinge. Under the hedge boundary with Dovecote are the most stunning royal purple violets, like jewelled amethysts in the grass. The snowdrops, though, are showing their final flowers before hiding underground for another year. Up from underground venture the small burrowing mammals; photographed here a clear hole, probably for a mouse, under the lea of an old gravestone, perhaps Mrs Tittlemouse getting ready for her spring cleaning! What will a few more degrees of warmth reveal in April?

View the Churchyard Spring 2018 photo gallery for more images.

On Advent Sunday the Benefice Gathered to launch our new Growth Plan.  The result of a year of planning, the plan details our hopes and prayers for the coming year as we seek to commit ourselves to God's mission in our Benefice.

Areas of planning include continuting our exploration of Cafe Church and informal forms of worship, planning for conservation in our churchyards and extending the welcome that visitors receive in our open churches.

The full growth plan and the action plan which arises from it are available in the resources section of our web-site.

St Peter's Day was celebrated in a new venture this year with a Songs of Praise service held in the open air between the meres in Brooke.  Despite the uncertain weather a small congregation gathered, sheltered by the trees as the sun tried to shine and the rain stayed at bay for a while.  The local ducks took an interest, leaving the water to have a look at the goings on, but swiftly returning when no food was offered.

Our singing was led by a group of (mainly) recorder players, recruited from the congregation and the hymns rang out across the water as we joined in with well known favourites like "Lord of the Dance" and "Praise my Soul the King of Heaven".  We heard about St Peter and had the opportunity to pray with fish.

The highlight of the evening, however, was the production of a dramatised bible story by some of our Open and Book team and friends.  The possibilities opened by the meres were exploited to the full and the story of the calling of Peter and the miraculous catch of fish took on a new light as our St Peter (aka John Ash) set out across the mere in his boat and brought back his huge catch of multi-coloured fish.

It was agreed by everyone that this was a wonderful way to worship and to share time together and a future event will be planned.  Perhaps our very own St Peter will walk on water next time!

See the Gallery for further photographs.

Dear All,

A recent shopping expedition to a “major Supermarket” revealed an aisle already dedicated to Easter Eggs and other chocolate treats for the season. For many this appearance so soon after Christmas seems out of place – but it is not so far from the direction of our attention in church.

Visitors to our churches will have observed the presence of our crib scenes right up to the very beginning of February, when we keep the Feast of Candlemas. This festival marks the end of the Church’s celebration of Christmas and we turn to look towards Easter. For Christians, however, a sudden jump from Christmas to Easter does not take place without a consideration along the way of all that Jesus experienced and taught in the lead up to his death and resurrection. Much of this takes place in the season of Lent, which begins with Ash Wednesday on the 18^th February.

As I write the terrorist acts in France are dominating our news and many in the world are asking huge questions about how atrocities of this sort can take place. There is suspicion of all forms of religion, as some fanatics seem to lose their humanity in the pursuit of their claimed beliefs. In our relatively quiet villages it can be hard to imagine the fear and insecurity in which many people live, and difficult to find ways to stand beside them.

Perhaps this Lent, as we prepare to commemorate the suffering and self-giving of Jesus, we can make it our special intention to stand beside all those who suffer and all those who give of themselves in service as we hold them in prayer. Our Easter celebrations will rejoice with the message of resurrection hope, that good can triumph and light can overcome darkness. Maybe we can be vessels of that hope for our world, and in our trust and belief, help to spread hope to all those who have lost sight of it.

May God bless you all,

Lynn

Supporting the Suffering Church in the Holy Land Meeting Medical Needs.
Throughout Lent we will be supporting this appeal - look out for further details of events and opportunities.
More details are available on the Diocesan Web-site: www.dioceseofnorwich.org/lent.

Lent Study Groups offer the opportunity to meet with other Christians to consider our faith. This year in the Benefice we will be considering the texts from Scripture which tell the story of Jesus’ last days in Jerusalem and his death and resurrection. We will use a variety of methods including discussion, reflective story-telling, lectio divina, and the thoughts and ideas of Biblical scholars through the ages. We will also consider how the traditions and services of Holy Week and Easter help us to commemorate and experience for ourselves these events, so that our understanding grows not only from what we read but also through what we do.

There will be two groups running throughout Lent, one on a Monday afternoon and one on a Wednesday evening. You are welcome to attend which ever group suits you, and to “mix and match” if you wish to. Each session will be complete in itself, although together they will make a good overview of our keeping of Holy Week and Easter.

Sessions are as follows:

Entering Jerusalem

The Last Supper

Trial and Execution

Waiting

Resurrection

Groups will meet:

Monday 2.30-4.00pm Long Meadow House, Thwaite

Monday 23rd February, 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, March

Wednesday 7.30-9.00pm The Vicarage, Brooke

Wednesday 25^th February, 4^th, 11^th, 18^th, 25^th March

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Download your own copy of the leaflet "Lent, Holy Week and Easter in the Brooke Benefice 2015" from the Resources link at the top of the page.

Palm Sunday
Sunday 29th March

Palm Sunday procession and Eucharist
10.00am Kirstead Church

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday
in Holy Week
30th, 31st March, 1st April
Compline 8.30pm
Mon, Brooke, Tues, Seething, Wed, Brooke

Maundy Thursday
Thursday 2nd April

The Lord’s Supper and The Watch
6.30pm Mundham Church

Good Friday
Friday 3rd April

Family Activity morning
10.30am Brooke Church and Hall

The last hour at the foot of the Cross
2.00pm Thwaite Church

Easter Eve
Saturday 4th April
The New Fire and
Renewal of Baptismal vows
5.00pm Brooke Church

The Easter Vigil
8.00pm Seething Church

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Download your own copy of the leaflet "Lent, Holy Week and Easter in the Brooke Benefice 2015" from the Resources link at the top of the page.

Sunday 5th April

The First Eucharist of Easter
A formal service of Holy Communion to celebrate the Resurrection—”early in the morning on the first day of the week”. Liturgy from Common Worship, with hymns.
Followed by a light breakfast.
7.00am Kirstead Church

Holy Communion on Easter Day
A traditional service of Holy Communion with the liturgy from the Book of Common Prayer.
9.00am Thwaite Church

Family Service with Holy Communion
Easter worship for all ages and stages including hymns, readings, activities and Holy Communion.
Followed by refreshments
and an Easter Egg Hunt
10.30am Brooke Church

Dear All,

Thank you for your wonderful welcome to the benefice. I have been overwhelmed by your warmth and friendliness. Hopefully, over the coming months, I can begin to get to know you better and start to put names to faces. A huge “thank you” too, to all those who held the fort during the interregnum and worked faithfully to keep everything going.

As this magazine is published we stand at the very beginning of the Church’s year, the season of Advent; what a place to make a new start! Many people will be aware of the use of Advent as a time of preparation for Christmas – especially through the tradition of Advent Calendars (many of which involve chocolate!). It is indeed a time when Christians prepare themselves to celebrate the feast of Christmas, recalling how God came to earth in human form as a tiny baby at Bethlehem. They try to make sure that they are ready to welcome their Lord Jesus into their lives in a more hospitable way than that first birth amongst the straw and the animals. Advent is also, however, a time of preparation for something that will be even more wonderful: the expected return of Jesus as King over all.

We only have to read the newspaper or turn on our televisions to be made aware of the huge unrest and suffering that there is in our world, indeed in our own country. As Christmas approaches many of us will try to remain conscious of the needs of others, less fortunate than us, as we make preparations for our festivities. Perhaps we need to bear in mind that promised Reign of God, where war will be no more and the hungry will be fed. When the new calendar year comes and many make New Year resolutions maybe we need to consider how we can work to bring in that Kingdom here in our villages. How can we allow God’s love to shine through all we do and how can we allow Jesus’ example to rule all our actions?

I hope and pray that in your Advent you may find time to ponder as well as to prepare and that your Christmas festivities and New Year rejoicings may be enriched by the things you discover.

May God bless you all,

Lynn

 In the last fortnight I have attended two talks which in different ways dealt with spirituality. 

 In a world of ‘must have’ and instant communication, spirituality (to do with understanding our inner self) is important I believe, if we as Christians are to act responsibly in the world in which we live.   

The first talk was about Julian of Norwich, who as many of you may know lived in Norwich in the 14^th century, and whilst very ill at the age of 30 experienced a number of visions.  She recovered from her serious illness and spent the next 40 years locked in a room adjoining St Julian’s Church.  Here she not only gave advice and comfort to those who visited her but also wrote down what she had learnt from the visions in a book “The Revelations of Divine Love”.   This book, the first ever to be written by a woman, took 20 years to write and is now regarded as a spiritual classic throughout the world.  Her clear thinking and deep insight speak directly to today’s troubled world.  She was clearly ahead of her time and her understanding of God’s love was that of a tender loving mother, as well as that of a father – more 21^st century than 14^th !!   

The second talk was given by Brother Sam of Hilfield Friary in Dorset.  He is a Franciscan brother and very much in today’s world.  He suggested that our spirituality was formed by a mixture of:  the environment; the community in which we live or have lived; those on the margins of society that we come into contact with; and our prayer life.  His discussion linked all four areas to the life of St Francis who was not just a lover of animals as he is so often portrayed, but a well-educated man who renounced his well-off background to work in the world, providing love and care to those in need of help, the poor and the sick, but also with a deep understanding that everything; humans, birds, animals, rocks, landscape, etc. are all from God.  We are after all, made up of the same chemical element building blocks so are all interdependent. 

 The message that I took from the day was one of a need for us to engage in practical sharing both in our community and in the world, doing things together and seeing the world more through Gods eyes.

 You can visit Hilfield Friary in Dorset or attend one of their courses and The Revelations of Divine Love can be bought or borrowed from the library – I recommend the latter, and the former if you are in that area or are in need of spiritual refreshment away from home.

 May God keep and bless you.

 John Ash

 Lay Reader

 01508 550116; sjash@waitrose.com

In the absence of a Vicar, if I can be of help or if there are any issues you would like to discuss please do not hesitate to contact me (phone or email).

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