Weekly News

Benefice Office Opening Hours
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Weekly News

30th March 2025
 
Mothering Sunday

If you are new to this church, it is lovely that you can join us today. We produce this sheet on a weekly basis which you can also have emailed to you along with other information about the benefice. If you would like to go onto our regular mailing list please call 01327 350459 or email tovebeneficeoffice@gmail.com

The Collect
God of love, passionate and strong, tender and careful: watch over us and hold us all the days of our life; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Post Communion
Loving God, as a mother feeds her children at the breast you feed us in this sacrament with the food and drink of eternal life: help us who have tasted your goodness to grow in grace within the household of faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Lectionary Readings for Sunday:

New Testament Reading: Colossians 3: 12 - 17
Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Gospel: Luke 2: 33 – 35
At that very time there were some present who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as they
did. Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish just as they did.”
Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the man working the vineyard, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good, but if not, you can cut it down.'"

Please click here (or on the image) for This Weeks Daily Readings
 

Benefice Prayers 

We pray for those who are sick at this time and remember those who have recently died and pray for their families:

Continuing Prayers for
Linda Wibley
Christine Williams

Sick
Tim Lewis                     
Ann Taylor 
David Shield   
Nai Piper
Phyllis Wright
Joan Brennan
Babs Stuchbury
Sally Watts

Rest In Peace
Stuart Dunkley
Matthew Lambert
Martin Gale
Dee Jones-Hayes
Margaret Knowlton
Hazel Pargeter

Benefice Notices

The Prayer Course
Starts on Tuesday 11th February. Our Lent course for this year, we will be running two sessions on Tuesdays, at 10am – 11:30am and in the evening at 7:30 – 9pm for 8 weeks at the Chantry House. 2025 is a Year of Prayer in our diocese and an opportunity to immerse ourselves in prayer and its different forms, some with more words, some with fewer or indeed none. All the resources are online https://prayercourse.org/about/ The themes for each session are: Why Pray, Adoration, Petition, Intercession, Unanswered Prayer, Contemplation, Listening, and Spiritual Warfare. Life, including church life can be very busy. We try to do more and more thinking that it will help us achieve our goals. It is easy for prayer to be squeezed out. I hope that these times will help us to pause and focus on God and our prayer lives. For more information call the Benefice office on 01327 350459, or email tovebeneficeoffice@gmail.com

Clocks Change
Reminder clocks go forward at 1:00 am on Sunday 30th March


St Lawrence Easter Lilies:
If you would like to donate money for Easter lilies in memory of a loved one, please leave your donation at the Benefice Office in an envelope, written clearly with the names of those you wish to be remember.


The funeral of Hazel Pargeter, formerly of Greens Norton, will be on Tuesday 1st April 2025 at 1:15 pm at Milton Malsor Crematorium.

Purificators
If you have any of these for use at home Communion, can you please return them to St Lawrence.

The St Lawrence rota for volunteers undertaking Sidespersons, Readers, Chalice Assistant and Intercessors are now being prepared for May, June and July - if you could please advise of your unavailability to volunteer.tovebenfice@gmail.com that would be appreciated.

Benefice Mothering Sunday Family Service 
30th March 10:15am
We will be having a at St Lawrence Church Towcester. Bishop Debbie will be preaching and presiding at this all age service.

Quiz Night
St Marys Easton Neston at 7:00 pm on the 29th March. Come along and test your knowledge at our quiz. There will be drinks and refreshments available to purchase. It’s £2.50 per person with teams of 4/6. Register your team with the Tove Benefice Office. Tel: 01327 350459 or email: tovebeneficeoffice@gmail.com.
Please could we have donations of cakes for the Benefice Mothering Sunday Service - 30th March 10:15am at St Lawrence Church Towcester. Please contact Eileen Reid on 01327 323180

Wednesday Holy Communions in Lent
10:15 am at St Lawrence, Towcester and 12:00 noon at St Bartholomew’s, Greens Norton followed by a soup lunch.
Please do come along.

Clothing and Rags 
Recycling fundraising at St Lawrence now being accepted until Sunday 30th March. Clothes, belts, bags and shoes. No Bedding items. Donations in church or to the Vicarage garage. Thank you.

Churches of St Bartholomew’s Greens Norton, St Lawrence Towcester, St Mary’s Easton Neston and St Michaels Bradden
Preparation of a New Electoral Roll
Under the direction of the Church of England the Electoral Roll has to be completely renewed every six years rather than revising the existing roll. Next week we will start the process. You will receive an email from the office Monday or a form in the post if we do not have an email address for you. Please complete and return your form as soon as possible. The Electoral Rolls will be open until the following dates:-
St Lawrence Towcester       Monday 21st April 2025
St Bartholomew’s                Monday Monday 14th April2025
St Mary’s Easton Neston     Monday 14th April2025
St Michael’s Bradden          Monday 21st April 2025

What is the Electoral Roll? What am I signing up to?
The Electoral Roll is a list of people who are eligible to vote in certain church elections, such as choosing representatives to the Parochial Church Council (PCC), which helps to govern the local church. To be on the electoral roll, a person must be a baptized member of the Church of England or a related church and be at least 16 years old. Being on the roll shows active membership and involvement in the life of the church. It also ensures that only those who are part of the church community have a say in decisions that affect the church's direction and activities. The roll is updated annually and is important for maintaining democratic participation in the church's governance.

RIP Diary 
This is now in church please indicate with a tick if you would like your loved one/relative to be remembered, or add new.

Communion
Please can we ask and remind people to refrain from dipping (intinction) their wafer into the wine when receiving communion. Those administering the chalice do not wish to cause upset at the communion rail. The reason for non-dipping policy is on the bishop’s advice and twofold: firstly one of hygiene and secondly because we have members who are gluten intolerant. If you feel unable to receive the wine from the chalice then receiving in one kind means you are making a valid communion. Thank you for your understanding.

Easton Neston Church and Churchyard visitors
If you have previously registered your number plate for access to visit St Mary's Easton Neston Church and Churchyard and it is not working the gate, please would you let Bev know on 01327 354385.

Please click here, or on the image, for This Months Services