St Thomas à Becket
Pews News
Priest-in-Charge: The Reverend Lucy Sullivan
Tel: 01243 941 551 Email: mthrlucy.pagham@gmail.com (Rest day: Friday)
Churchwarden: Mr Alex Brockhurst
Tel: 07792 544259.; Email: churchwarden@paghamchurch.org
Churchwarden: Mr Mike Wake
Tel: 07899 705632; Email: churchwarden@paghamchurch.org
Safeguarding Officer: Mrs Jan Brockhurst
Email: safeguarding@paghamchurch.org
Find us online: www.paghamchurch.org // @StThomasPagham
Registered charity number 1134842
SUNDAY 23rd april 2023
third sunday of easter
Sunday 23rd 08:00 Holy Communion (St Richard’s only)
EASTER 3 09:30 Parish Eucharist
Monday 24th 09:00 Morning Prayer (church)
ST GEORGE
Tuesday 25th 17:30 Evening Prayer (Zoom)
ST MARK 19:00 Tuesday@7 (church)
Wednesday 26th 17:30 Evening Prayer (Zoom)
Thursday 27th 09:00 Morning Prayer (church)
10:00 Holy Communion
Friday 28th No public worship today
Saturday 29th 10:30- 12noon Coffee, cake and conversation
St Catherine of Siena (The Mosse Hall, Gossamer Lane)
Sunday 30th 08:00 Holy Communion (St Richard’s only)
EASTER 4 09:30 Parish Eucharist
Hymns
Introit: 88 Brother, Sister let me serve you
Gradual: 241 Good Christian’s all, rejoice and sing
Offertory: 2 Abide with me
Final: 754 Ye choirs of new Jerusalem (omit v 3)
The Collect (Opening Prayer) for the Third Sunday of Easter:
Almighty Father, who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples with the sight of the risen Lord: give us such knowledge of his presence with us, that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life and serve you continually in righteousness and truth; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
New Testament reading: Acts 2: 14a, 36- 41
On the day of Pentecost, Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.
Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.’
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what should we do?’ Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.’ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.
Psalm 116: 1- 7 The response to the psalm is “Gracious is the Lord and righteous”
New Testament Reading: 1 Peter 1:17- 23
If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds, live in reverent fear during the time of your exile. You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are set on God.
Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.
Gospel Reading: Luke 24: 13- 35
Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Prayers of Intercession
The sick and those who care for them: Rosie Sims, Barbara Crew, Karen Cox, Jim Fowler, Sheila King, Dawn Spurway Pearson, Nicola Simpson, Betty Smith, Mike Hatzfeld, Andrew Naylor, Colin May, Tyler Rankin, Max Davey, Leslie Francis, Dickie Roots, Elizabeth, Pam Browning, Margaret Easton, Beatrice Tucker, Julie Green.
Anniversary of death: John Lewis, Hilda Boddy, Alan Dudley (25th); Pamela Clift (27th); Ronald Reed (28th); Ernie Webb, Derek Willson (29th)
We pray for peace and especially for and with the people of Ukraine. We pray for all those caught up in conflict, and for those seeking safety and refuge on these shores.
For urgent prayer, contact Gillian Purvis (267597) or Pat Rush (262561) to start the Prayer Chain.
Post Communion Prayer: Living God, your Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: open the eyes of our faith, that we may see him in all his redeeming work; who is alive and reigns, now and for ever. Amen.
Next week’s readings: Fourth Sunday of Easter
Acts 2: 14a, 42- end; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2: 19 – end; John 10: 1- 10.
Being With- Course Exploring Christian Faith and Life
We will be running a course for those exploring the Christian faith after Easter, starting on Monday 15th May and running for the next 11 weeks (10 sessions in total 19:30- 21:00, no session on Monday 29th May). Devised and created by Samuel Wells and Sally Hitchiner of St Martin-in-the-Fields. The course is an introduction to Christianity with a difference. At its heart is the idea that God’s greatest desire is to be with us in Jesus. If you would like to know more about this course please speak to Mthr Lucy.
The Coronation in our church community
Coronation Prayer Books
With thanks to a generous donor the small prayers books released by Church House Publishing for the Coronation are available at the back of church- please do take one/ two per household to use in your family prayers, copies have also been purchased to share with the local schools. These books have been produced to encourage our church communities to pray: for The King, our nation, and the world; to explore the symbolism of the Coronation service; and to reflect on Jesus, the Servant King.
The Coronation Vigil at St Thomas à Becket, Pagham.
On the eve of the Coronation – Friday 5th May- there will be special service of Evening Prayer at 18:00 at St Thomas à Becket, Pagham. To pray for King Charles III and Camilla the Queen Consort as they make their final preparations and for their calling to a life of public service.
The Coronation of King Charles III is an historic moment in the life of our nation. The ceremony itself is rooted in longstanding tradition and will reflect the King’s role today and in the future. Throughout the weekend, themes of community life, volunteering and service will be highlighted and celebrated. We start our celebrations in prayer for all that is to come.
The Coronation BBQ at St Thomas à Becket, Pagham.
Following the Vigil Service (above) there will be a joyous gathering in the churchyard for the Pagham Church BBQ (in the church if the weather isn’t with us! Food available from about 7pm), with bring and share salads and desserts. Please sign-up on the list at the back of church if you hope to come, to help us with catering, and a note of what you can contribute to the bring and share. Donations on the day.
The Coronation Big Lunch at St Richard’s.
Sunday 7th May ~ 12:30pm (following the 11:15am service). A two-course hot lunch with joyful music, great company, and the opportunity to toast our new King. Suggested minimum donation £10 per person- please sign-up at the back of church, please speak to Mthr Lucy if cost is prohibitive.
The Coronation Big Help Out at St Thomas à Becket.
Monday 8th May 10:00- 13:00 the final part of the Coronation weekend sees the encouragement and invitation to help out in the local community. At Pagham church we are putting the call out for volunteers to help with some tasks around the church and church centre- more details to follow. If you are able to help out, then please come on down for all or part of the time on Monday 8th May to lend a hand. This is advertised on the National Big Help Out website, so I hope we might meet some local volunteers too, but please don’t leave it all to them! The more the merrier!
The Collection plate– If you would like to make an offering, please use the contactless Payaz machine or the collection plate, both can be found by the door. Thank you for your generosity.