What's in this week?
Worship with us:
Our Sunday Service of Holy Communion is online for the majority of people; only those people with specific ministries essential for worship are able to attend in person.
We are open for Morning Prayer on a Wednesday at 9am, staying open for private prayer until midday.
Whilst nowhere can guarantee 100% safety, we have a thorough risk assessment for this and all activity in church.
Join us in worship! Head to our YouTube Channel to join us Live at 10am on Sunday, and access other videos. You can do that by clicking or tapping on this link:
Join us afterwards! We meet up after the service at 11am. After the live service, grab a coffee and click or tap on the link below to join us on Zoom:
New this week
Holy Week and Easter
Our church will be open for Private Prayer throughout Holy Week.
You can just turn up, and stay as long as you like.
Monday 29th March and Tuesday 30th March 7.30pm-9pm.
Wednesday 31st March 10am – 12noon and 7.30pm-9pm.
Maundy Thursday 1st April 8pm - Midnight for the Watch before the Sacrament.
Good Friday 2nd April 9:30am - The Watch continues until Midday.
There is also a live streamed service at 7pm Monday to Thursday in Holy Week and at 9am & 2pm on Good Friday. See the website for info: Holy Week & Easter >
Easter, the celebration of life conquering death is the most significant time of the year for Christians, and the return to worship on Easter Day will bring with it the additional celebration of the permanent restoration of our public worship. Even then, social distancing measures will still be in place, but a return to normality is ever closer. There will be two services, Easter Vigil Eucharist at 6am and Easter Day Eucharist at 10am. Signing up to come to services may still feel very strange, but it helps us to plan for numbers, ensure social distancing, and keep records for contact tracing. Each service has limited numbers, but you can join a waiting list if the service is full.
Sign up for an Easter Eucharist by visiting the Holy Week and Easter page and scroll down to Easter: Easter Day Services >
Pray at Home resource guide from the Church of England
You might like to print off a prayer leaflet to use at home during Passiontide, Holy Week and Easter.
Many thanks
Many thanks to the people of St Mary’s for their support and prayers, during the time my granddaughter Amy Herbert was recovering from serious injuries due to a fall. The good news is that Amy is making excellent progress and ‘back to school’ through online tutorials. She’s applying to universities for September.’ Edith Furness
John Hallatt, Karen, Lesly, Stephen, Liz and all the family wish to thank everyone for their cards, thoughts and prayers in memory of Anne and which were very much appreciated at this sad time.
Judith, Robert and Suzanne would like to send heartfelt thanks for all the cards, support and prayers over the past few weeks. They also send a special thanks to all the staff for their care, love and support during this difficult time which brought comfort and strength and was so very much appreciated.
TRAIDCRAFT
As we approach Easter we are conscious that many like to support Traidcraft for their chocolate etc. Please feel free to contact Traidcraft direct as we will be unable to run the stall before then by browsing their website: www.traidcraftshop.co.uk. Many thanks and hope to be back soon. If you’d like a Traidcraft catalogue instead, let the office know.
Best wishes, Rick and Anne
St Mary’s Electoral Roll
The church’s Electoral Roll is the register of its voting members; it is a list of those qualified to attend and to vote at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting. Electoral rolls provide an indication of the real membership and strength of the church. Any baptised adults (16 years or over) who live in the parish, or those who have worshipped regularly at St. Mary’s for at least six months and are committed to being part of the life of the local Church of England congregation are able to join the Electoral Roll. Contact Rosie by email at rosietate@me.com if you aren’t on the Electoral Roll already as now is the time to join!
Donations for Easter flowers
If you’d like to make a donation for flowers in church over Easter you can pay by a Bank Transfer (BACS). Our bank details are: HSBC Sort code:40 46 28, Account no: 01444948. Please add a reference to the payment so we know that it's for the Easter flowers. You could also donate by cheque made payable to: St Mary’s Monkseaton, PCC and again, please put a note with the cheque to say that it's for Easter flowers.
Scam emails!
We’ve been informed that there are some spam emails going around which look like they are from someone you might know. If you receive an email which seems unusual, always check the email address to see who it’s really from. If it’s unknown to you, you can report it as spam or put it in the junk and of course do not click on any links within the email.
For info please remember that the staff at St Mary's will never ask you to buy things for them or on their behalf. If in any doubt at all please get in touch with us to check.
A year ago!
Would you believe it’s a year since the pandemic started and the first Sunday of our church closing due to the lockdown was Mothering Sunday 2020! That day we had a recorded service and we are still doing this now - albeit a live-streamed one! However, we shall look forward to Easter Day and beyond!
Thought for the Week
Last week, as part of my training for Reader ministry, I visited Newcastle Central Mosque in Benwell. This took place virtually of course, like all of our activities at the moment. Usually when guests are received at the mosque, the focus is on sharing a three-course meal. As someone who loves to eat and loves to cook, you can imagine how disappointed I was to miss out on this opportunity to taste some interesting dishes and perhaps to pick up some new recipes.
It quickly became clear that our hosts were equally sad that they couldn’t offer their customary feast, but we discovered that hospitality doesn’t depend on food. Their eagerness to make us feel comfortable and obvious delight in opening up their world to us were enough to make us feel very welcome. They shared what they could, with the promise that we should return, when restrictions are lifted, to enjoy the meal that we had missed.
One of the things which most struck me was that they referred to each other throughout as brother and sister. It was clear that the various activities of the mosque and their shared beliefs and practices gave them a sense of being part of an extended family. But what impressed me most was their eagerness to engage with the world around them, whether that was through delivering food parcels to families in the local area suffering the economic effects of lockdown; working with organisations like Citizens UK; or spending time with visitors like us. I left with the overwhelming impression that to be a Muslim was to belong to a community, but one with a generous heart to those “outside” it.
In our St Mary’s weekly Lent group meetings on Zoom we are exploring how to explain our faith, looking at the challenges of communicating why God and the Church are so important to us. Last Sunday we practised sharing briefly with each other a detail of something significant in our own faith story. For many of us it’s not easy to put into words something that feels so personal, but when we try we may enjoy discovering a clearer awareness of God’s presence in our lives and a deeper sense of belonging together. Listening to and encouraging each other in this way is offering real hospitality, even without the coffee and cake or tea and biscuits that we would ordinarily share. It might also be good practice for meeting Jesus in others who don’t share our faith. Margaret Evans
Diary & Reminders
Meetings this week via Zoom
Sunday 14th March 4pm Lent Course Session 4 Click here to join meeting, or follow the link in your email.
Monday 15th March the Service Planning Group meets at 7.30pm
Wednesday 17th March Finance Group meets at 7.30pm
100 Club
The winners for March are: £50 Angela Crossfield, £30 Gwen Branton, £20 Mary Danskin.
Dave Haddock Plants
This year, Dave is continuing with his plant sales, with a third of the money going towards St Mary’s. Now is the time to be thinking about spring and summer plants. There are many new additions to the catalogue including Lawn Turf as well as Insect hotels, Hedgehog House, Log Stores, Bird Boxes and Bat Nesting Boxes! So do go over and have a look! Don't forget to mention St Mary's when you order!
For your prayers this week
Your Prayers are requested for
Edith Smeatham
Janet Baker
Peter Schofield
Jennifer Stephenson
Olya Bouchard
Don
Alan and Margaret Stears
Rose Ketteringham
Martin Cooper
Rest in Peace
Ken Riley
Helen Watson (Anniversary)
Don’t forget, you can add someone to the prayer list by emailing or phoning as usual, but you need to get their permission before adding them to the sick list. You can also use the form on the website here to submit a prayer request online.
This Sunday's Hymns & Readings
Remember that News and notices from previous weeks are all available to read by clicking "notices" at the top of the page. Sign up below to receive our weekly email by joining our mailing list.