Sue Mann

31st October 2020

Thank you, so much, for all your harvest gifts and thank you to those of you who have managed to fill a shoebox for our Link to Hope appeal. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.

As I write, we are approaching All Saints’ Day and Remembrance Sunday, for which our services, this year, will be very different from past years but, hopefully, thought provoking and meaningful. Infact, much of what we are doing in church is simplified at the moment and whilst sad that we are unable to accommodate as many people as we would like in services, the simplicity can sometimes draw us back to why we are there in the first place, to the God we worship, and to our dependence upon him. I have recently presided at a few simple weddings with only a handful of people and, in many ways, the minimalistic approach has helped us all to focus upon God and his desire to be an intrinsic part of our lives.

Last month we held our first Forest Church. We were all there in simplicity, in the elements, the wind and a few drops of rain but warmed by a fire and the knowledge that God was with us. The next one will be at Bulphan Churchyard on Saturday November 14th at 4pm. Do come  along if you are able and remember to bring something to sit on!

God is with us in whatever we face at the moment.  But God also calls us to act on his behalf. At a recent clergy study day led by Bishop John, our Area Bishop, we were reminded that, although we are in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, which we are all hoping and praying will come to an end soon, this doesn’t mean that all crises are over; far from it. We are currently also in the middle of an ecological crisis, an equality crisis, a refugee crisis and a homeless crisis, to name just a few. So even when the coronavirus subsides, as Christians and churches, we have a responsibility to work to end all suffering.

With regard to the climate crisis, the Church of England is aiming to be Carbon Neutral by 2030 and our churches in this Benefice have also signed up to become Eco Churches. One of the ways in which we are working towards this is to use less paper. As a result, you will soon be receiving a letter asking if you would consider receiving our online version of the Hobnob magazine instead of a paper copy. Our online magazine has been developed by David Mortimer and Ron Porter and is looking great. If you haven’t yet found it, you can find it at hobnob.org.uk/magazine We fully understand that some people need to receive a paper copy because they have no access to technology and that some copies are put in local hostelries and surgeries etc, but please, if you do have access to technology, do consider the future of our planet, the beautiful world which God has given to us and our responsibility to preserve this for our children’s children, when you make your decision.

We are also in the process of considering our service pattern for the future in order to engage with as many people as possible and a questionnaire has been devised to be sent out to everyone on our database. The first one sent out had some problems so is going to be reissued very soon, using a different provider. If you receive this questionnaire, please could I ask you to take a couple of minutes to fill it in. In order for it to serve the purpose for which it was intended, it is important that as many people as possible complete it.

Thank you for your continued help and support and, as always, please be assured of my prayers for you at this time and do let me know of any pastoral needs.

Take care and God bless,

Sue  

Sue Mann

24th September 2020

During lockdown, the Southend Boys and Girls Choirs, along with past members, gathered online to record the song ‘We are One,’ by Brian Tate, to raise money for NHS charities. The words are:

When we walk, when we sleep, when we rise, we are one.

When we laugh, when we sing, when we cry, when we run, we are one.

And we shall love one another with all our hearts,

And we shall care for each other with all our soul & our might.

When we stand, when we fall, when we rise we are one.

We are one in the cold, in the heat, in the dark, in the sun, we are one.

When we’re hurting one another, that’s the way we hurt ourselves.

With our sisters and our brothers, we will rise.

And we do, and we try; we must live or we die.

We will reach, we will climb, we will rise, we will fly, we are one.

And these words shall be forever within our hearts.

And we shall teach them to our children and remember them in our lives.

When we walk, when we sleep, when we rise, we are one.

When we laugh, when we sing, when we cry, when we run.

We are strong, we belong, we are one!

It was a great opportunity for these young people to engage and work together in a really positive project.

I have noticed over the past couple of months, in some instances, morale begin to wane as, understandably, people acknowledge the reality of the fact that there is not a quick fix to the coronavirus. And, at this time, it is so important to remember that, as a global and local people, we are one. This isn’t to deny our unique God-given characteristics as individuals, communities and churches. But we are facing challenging times and the way we will get through it is to recognise our connectedness and our interdependence.

For priests, especially when faced with difficult decisions, it can sometimes be a lonely road, particularly when people grumble that things aren’t as they would like them to be, or as they once were. It is, of course, crucial to ask questions and reflect, and sometimes this means all of us being prepared to be challenged about our own views or ways of doing things, in order to grow and move forward. That is part of being a Christian and a church. But it is also important, as people of God, to aspire during these times to be a ‘can do’ people. Most of us are encouraged and energised by having ‘can-do’ people around us; I know I need such people to support and assist me in my role. If we remain a ‘can do’ people, we will be a ‘can-do’ church as I hope we have been through the past few months.

I believe, with God’s help, we can work together, as one, to be a ‘can-do’ people, locally, and globally. In this Benefice we have provided 1.5 tonnes of food to the foodbank since March and I am hopeful that we can increase our donations this month when we would, otherwise, have been having Harvest collections at church. Let’s aim to collect the same amount of, if not more, food this October than before. We have also been having some discussions recently about our church governance structures which have resulted in some very honest, challenging and, sometimes, painful discussions, but which have culminated in some very positive mutual support as we find  new ways of being community and working together. Can I encourage you all, as we move forwards in these unprecedented times, to remember that God calls us, to work together as one, as a ‘can-do’ church, in the power of his comforting, challenging and ‘can-do’ Holy Spirit.

With love and prayers for all of you.

God bless,

Sue

What do our services look like?

For many weeks churches were closed and all sorts of things have been done to give people the opportunity to worship.

But in July churches were allowed to open, but all manner of constraints as driven by the current situation. Currently we are only able to hold services in Horndon and Orsett due to their lay out accommodating distancing guidance. These are being done on a week about basis. If you would like to attend please see the guidance https://www.hobnob.org.uk/services/upcoming/ and https://www.hobnob.org.uk/news/what-to-expect-at-sunday-services-2020/. If you do not feel able to attend the services are being live streamed and you are more than welcome to join our worship in this way https://hobnob.org.uk/watch.

To give you an idea of what to expect if you comes along here is photograph from the service in Orsett on August 16th

Orsett Church Sunday 16 Aug photo courtesy of Mark Willett

Churchwarden becomes a Grandmother

In all of the current goings on good news is like hen’s teeth.

But Orsett Churchwarden Janet Wilkins has been able to celebrate becoming a grandparent when her son Andrew and his wife Lisa had a daughter Willow Louise.

Andrew has given permission for us to share this picture of Willow with her proud mummy and daddy.