Dear St Mary’s, 

Every year before entering the season of Advent, we have a run of special services – All Saints, Remembrance Sunday and Christ the King Sunday, which comes towards the end of November; this Sunday, we can add another special service to the list: Climate Sunday. 

As this year’s UN Conference on Climate Change (COP29) begins in Baku, Azerbaijan, our service this Sunday (17th November) will reflect on the Christian theology of Creation Care and the ethical imperative for Christians to take action in light of the destructive impact that burning oil, gas and coal is having on our world. 

We’ll share Holy Communion at both 9am and 10.30am, with Revd Ola Franklin presiding. Both services will be led by St Mary’s parishioners, with a sermon from Shilpita Mathews, an environmental economist and a trustee for the Christian climate charity Operation Noah. 

We will have supervised children’s groups at 10.30am with a Baby Lounge available in the South Vestry at both services. For those unable to join us in person, we’ll live-stream the 9am service to our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/StMarysE17). 

Advent and Christmas 2024 at St Mary’s and in the Parish of Walthamstow 
St Mary’s Advent and Christmas schedule is now available, with banners and flyers being produced later this month. While Advent begins on Sunday 1st December and runs for four consecutive Sundays, we’ll have special services throughout December, including two evening carol services, community carols on The Drive and Attlee Terrace, three Christingle services on Christmas Eve, and a 10.30am Christmas Day Family Communion service. Please be aware that there are two services which require booking this year: Orchestral Carols on the evening of Sunday 15th December and Quiet Christmas on Saturday 21st December. A full schedule with booking links is at www.stmaryswalthamstow.org/christmas. 

Tonight at St Mary’s: 7.30pm Vestry Sessions Gig Exploring E17 Film Scores 
We’re excited to welcome The Vestry Sessions to St Mary’s: a new music series offering affordable one-hour shows covering a range of genres, from jazz to classical. The first gig is tonight (Thursday 14th November, doors at 7.30pm, music at 8pm) where a mostly acoustic ensemble will perform film scores with a connection to East London and Walthamstow. Tickets are £12.50 on the door or can be purchased in advance for £10 each by clicking here, or by going to www.wegottickets.com and searching for ‘Vestry Sessions’. 

Crochet and Knitting Group to Meet on Saturday 16th November  
St Mary’s has started a crochet and knitting group which has now met for the last few Saturdays in our Exhibition Space in the church extension, and has already had a great response. Crochet and knitting are both brilliant ways to relieve stress and anxiety, make friends and get creative. The group will meet again this Saturday 16th November, 10am-Noon. Bring wool, needles, crochet hooks and whatever you’re working on; if you’re a beginner, come along but let us know in advance so we can provide wool and crochet hooks! For more details, email Revd Jacintha Danaswamy at . 

Bottles and Silver/ Gold Coins Needed for 23rd November Christmas Fair Fundraiser 
St Mary’s will host a Christmas Fair on Saturday 23rd November, 11am-5pm, which will include a craft market, refreshments and family activities in and around St Mary’s; as well as looking for volunteers to help us run several St Mary’s stalls, we’re also collecting bottles of any kind for a bottle tombola as well as silver or gold coins of any amount for a separate fundraiser. You can leave bottles in the church and coins in the white donation box. For details on volunteering or making donations, email . For more information on the fair, visit www.stmaryswalthamstow.org/ChristmasFair. 

Welcome Service for the New Archdeacon of West Ham: Sunday 24th November, 4pm
On Sunday 24th November at 4pm, St Mary’s will host a Welcome Service for the new Archdeacon of West Ham, Ven Mike Power, who is replacing Elwin Cockett, who recently retired. The Bishop of Barking, Rt Revd Lynne Cullens, will be in attendance at the service as will leaders and clergy from around the archdeaconry. All are welcome to attend. 

Macbeth Coming to St Mary’s on Monday 25th November 
The group ‘Shakespeare in the Squares’ is doing an autumn and winter season in London churches and will be coming to St Mary’s on Monday 25th November at 7.30pm with a performance of Macbeth. Tickets are available at www.shakespeareinthesquares.co.uk. 

EcoTip: Climate March in Central London on Saturday 16th November 
Mike Forbes will lead a group from St Mary’s and the Parish on the March for Global Climate Justice in Central London this Saturday 16th November. If you’re interested in joining Mike for the march, meet him at 10.45am at Walthamstow Central by Costa Coffee, or go directly to the march meeting point at 1a St Giles High Street, WC2H 8AG, at 11.30am.

Please pray this week for:

• For all victims of abuse, particularly praying for those who have been abused in church or religious settings and have been let down by faith or institutional leaders 
• For transparency in the Church of England, and for efforts to create a Safer Church 
• For all safeguarding officers and clergy in our Parish and around the Diocese of Chelmsford and Church of England, that every effort is made to keep people safe 
• Those most vulnerable to climate change, that their voices would be heard at COP29 
• For efforts to create community cohesion amidst a rise in global right-wing populism
• All who are lonely or struggling with their mental/ physical health, for healing/ support 
• Places of violence, tension and conflict around the world 
• For Advent and Christmas preparations in our church and Parish, that many people would experience the love of God this December and feel welcomed into church 
• All who are experiencing relationship breakdown of any kind, for support and help 
• For all those who are struggling in their work, or who long for work/ opportunities 

Next Week in the Welcome Centre (18th November to 23rd November)

Monday 18th November 
Waltham Forest Community Choir, 7.30-9.30pm 

Tuesday 19th November 
Tai Chi, 7-9pm 
Walthamstow Singers (in the church), 7-8.30pm 

Wednesday 20th November 
HulaFit, 6.30-7.30pm 

Thursday 21st November   
Baby Massage, 10.30am
FoodCycle (free community meal), 6.30pm 
The Singing Room, 7.30-9.30pm

Friday 22nd November 
Sing and Sign, 11am-12.15pm 

Saturday 23rd November 
Walthamstow Welcomes Cafe (free help with confusing paperwork), 10am-Noon (www.stmaryswalthamstow.org/WalthamstowWelcomes)

Reflection: ‘Be Strong and Courageous’ 

Revd Tim Scott writes: 

Joshua 1:9 reads: ‘Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go’. 

During Morning Prayer this past Wednesday, I reflected on three things:

First, words from the Book of Revelation set for the day (Revelation 7:3): ‘Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees’. This verse seemed particularly relevant as the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) takes place in Azerbaijan from 11-22 November. As we pray for that gathering, I wish to thank all those who have put together the special Climate Sunday services for St Mary’s this Sunday which has been deliberately planned to coincide with COP29, and we pray for strong and courageous leadership at that conference. 

Secondly, I reflected on the life of Charles Simeon (1759-1836) who, in the Anglican Cycle of prayer, was remembered on Wednesday. For over 40 years he was vicar of Holy Trinity, Cambridge, and a founder of the Simeon Trust whose trustees are the patrons of the Parish of Walthamstow. Inscribed on the pulpit of Holy Trinity, Cambridge, were these words: ‘Sir, we would see Jesus’ (John 12:21). It made me reflect on the question: do my actions point people to Jesus or are they a stumbling block?

Which brought me to my third reflection following the publication of the independent Makin report on the Church of England’s handling of allegations of serious abuse by the late John Smyth, which this week led to the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury. In my view, his resignation was the correct thing for him to do, but that is not the end of the matter. The Bishop of Chelmsford has written: ‘We should make no mistake, the Archbishop’s resignation does not alter the challenge for the whole church. The content of Makin should shake us to the core, call us once more to repentance and renew us in our determination to work for a better, safer future.’ 

My own reflection led me to five thoughts, which I shared at Morning Prayer:

To pray for victims and survivors of abuse, many of whom have been re-traumatised. 

To give thanks for both survivors and those within the church institution who have spoken out courageously and spoken truth to power. May we follow their lead. 

To pray for those in positions of leadership at every level, including our Diocesan and Parish Safeguarding officers, as we all commit ourselves to ensure our churches are safe spaces. 

To reflect on the temptation that we may have to protect our own reputation or the reputation of the institutions of which we are part, and to pray that we may resist this temptation and instead to hear and act on the uncomfortable voice of truth and challenge. 

To pray that we act with humility, transparency and courage and never be a stumbling block to people who seek to experience the love, hope, healing and light of God.   

I have found this a hard reflection to write and I am very conscious that words as well as actions can hurt, so if I have written in an unhelpful way, I apologise. 

Details of our safeguarding procedures and contacts are on the bottom left hand corner of St Mary’s website, which can be found at www.stmaryswalthamstow.org/safeguarding. 

Safeguarding is a key priority for us at St Mary’s, and we are always working to strengthen and review our own safeguarding procedures and processes to ensure that we do all we can to build a safer church. If you have any safeguarding concerns or questions, do be in touch. 

With my love and prayers, 

Tim