A Prayer for Ukraine
God of peace and justice,
We pray for the people of Ukraine today.
We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons.
We pray for those who fear for tomorrow,
that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them.
We pray for those with power over war or peace,
for wisdom, discernment, and compassion to guide their decisions.
Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear,
that you would hold and protect them.
We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Amen
Archbishop Justin Welby, Archbishop Stephen Cottrell
DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal – World Vision UK
We are very grateful to be in partnership with World Vision who will receive our donations and handle the gift aid. We ask you to be as generous as possible, and to continue to pray fervently for the end of the military operation and for peace. With prayers for you, and for the children and families affected by the conflict in Ukraine.” Bishop Martin How your donation helpsThe funds you donate to this emergency appeal will support emergency response for displaced children and families in Ukraine and neighbouring countries. We will use donations in Ukraine through partners when it is possible. If this is not possible or in the unlikely event we receive more donations than we need for this emergency, the donations will be used to help displaced and refugee populations elsewhere around the world. content.wvunited.org You can donate by visiting the World Vision UK website here: https://content.wvunited.org/en-gb/emergencies/ukraine-crisis-eds-ips-appeal/#donate Aldeburgh Parish Church has pre-labelled |
Services this Sunday for The Alde Sandlings Benefice
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Aldeburgh |
8.00am 10.30am |
Holy Communion Service of the Word |
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Aldringham |
11.00am |
Holy Communion |
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Knodishall |
9.00am |
Holy Communion |
Collect
Most merciful God, who by the death and resurrection of your
Son Jesus Christ delivered and saved the world:
grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross
we may triumph in the power of his victory;
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.
First Reading
Isaiah 43.16-21
Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea,
a path in the mighty waters, who brings out chariot and horse,
army and warrior; they lie down, they cannot rise,they are extinguished, quenched like a wick: Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild animals will honour me, the jackals and the ostriches;
for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed
for myself so that they might declare my praise.
Second Reading
Philippians 3.4b-14
Even though I, too, have reason for confidence in the flesh. If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.
Gospel Reading
John 12.1-8
Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.’
Post Communion
Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us
that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters
we do also for you: give us the will to be the servant of others
as you were the servant of all, and gave up your life and died for us,
but are alive and reign, now and for ever.
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Sermon preached by The Revd James Marston at
Friston 27th March 2022
May I speak in the name of the living God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
“and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
We all know the story that Mary, mother of Jesus, finds herself a key player. We know that as Jesus takes on the mantle of his ministry Mary is never far away, and, as the story begins to climax, and her son faces those set against him in Jerusalem Mary is a witness to it all.
The piercing of the sword to which Simeon refers – is the sorrow of Mary as she watches her son humiliated, shamed, and executed on the cross. Even in this moment of blessing there is mention of pain to come for Mary; “and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
Indeed, I am not sure how Mary will have taken that, celebrating the joy of her son’s birth, to be told that all will not be good news.
And in a way this is what we are having to grapple with at this time; that whilst knowing the joy of the Christian faith, the passion with which we can experience God through communal worship, the fun spent with our friends and family, the happiness of community, we have to live with an underlying pandemic anxiety, fears about war and conflict, as well as the worries of our village community about the future.
We have to hold the joy of our faith and the concerns of life in balance, to see the darker things of life through the lens of faith. And this is no easy task.
Today is Mother’s Day, a day now conflated with Mothering Sunday, a day during which traditionally people would return to worship at their mother church. A time of spiritual homecoming, that has been somewhat forgotten among the celebrations of the slightly more commercial Mother’s Day.
To be honest, although I’m seeing my own mother later today, I’m always slightly uncomfortable about Mother’s Day – for some it is a day of pain and discomfort. And as Christians, we must hold them in our thoughts too. Indeed, I can’t help thinking of a friend of mine who would have dearly loved to have been a mother – and I think about her too today. And it is fair today that not everyone has good memories of their mothers either.
Yet this is a day when we do celebrate all who have and do provide motherly care. And for that reason, we can give thanks.
Our Gospel reading also reminds us that loving and caring in this way is a sacrifice of self-giving. A vocation to which many of us are called and something I know we try hard not to forget in our own church community here in Friston.
So, in this time of Lent – as we aim to draw closer to God and examine our own faith and failings – I would urge you this week to remember that amid the bad news and difficulties we face there is joy and gratitude too and that Mary, who experienced sorrow and pain is remembered and venerated because she always points towards Jesus and therefore to hope.
Let us continue in our journey of faith together and hold on to the hope of the risen Christ, born of Mary and revealed by the whole communion of saints.
Happy Mother’s Day and however you are feeling and whatever you do have a happy and hope filled Sunday.
Amen
Next Week
Sunday 10th April
Palm Sunday
NOTICES
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Church of England Lent Reflections and To keep up with weekly news from our Diocese you can sign up to receive the weekly newsletters here: |
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✟ Church of England and Diocese Online Worship ✟ There are many online services you can view from the Church of England and our cathedral. Here are some links below. Church of England website https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/ Church of England Facebook page Church of England YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel St Edmundsbury Cathedral Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/ |
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✞ Lent Sessions ✞ – UPDATE The address is The Rectory, Aldeburgh Road, Friston, IP17 1NP Thursdays 7pm, Onemana, Alde House Drive, Aldeburgh, IP15 5EE hosted by Jill Brown – beginning on March 3 |
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Weekly Benefice Newsletter If you would like something added to the weekly newsletter that is relevant to the Benefice, please do let Claire know and we will do our best to include it the following week. All requests by 4pm on Thursday please |
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Food Banks at the East of England Co-op Foodbanks provide a valuable service to those in need in our communities. The Aldeburgh Co-op and Solar in Leiston are doing a grand job in collecting food donations, which are collected regularly and distributed. So please look out for the various collection baskets. |
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Pilgrims Together on Wednesdays The Pilgrims worship together every Wednesday. |
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Lunchtime Concert at Aldeburgh Parish Church Monday 4th April at 12 noon Following the huge success of Nadia’s concert with us in October, we welcome Nadia’s and friends, to raise more money for Save the Children. ROBIN SOLDAN – FLUTE NATHANIEL HARRISON – BASSOON NADIA LASSERSON – PIANO Trios by Bach, Beethoven & Donizetti Admission free- a retiring collection for Save the Children
All welcome |
