All Saints Margaret Street.

Dear Friend,

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”   (Hebrews 12. 1-2)

These words which conclude Sunday’s reading from Hebrews are familiar to regular worshippers at All Saints as they are also used at All Saintstide.

In Hebrews, they conclude a litany of Old Testament figures who had lived “by faith.” Jesus comes at the end of this list because he is the “pioneer and perfecter of faith;” the one who has completed the pilgrimage to God on which all the others had set out.

Hebrews was written to encourage Jewish converts to Christianity facing persecution and wondering if they had made a mistake. Should they not return to their old faith?  He assures them that Jesus as the fulfilment of the faith of their forebears. If they suffer, he did too, “for the sake of the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross and disregarded the shame.”

While many of our fellow-Christians experience persecution today, our situation is rather different.  We are more likely to be discouraged by statistics of decline or reports of scandal; to be worn down by widely-held assumptions that science has made religion no longer intellectually credible or that it is the source of all the world’s ills (often without any serious thought being given to the truth of either of these assertions). 

So, where are we to find encouragement?  The litany of the faithful in Hebrews concludes with Jesus, but that is not the end of the story. It resumes and continues to this day in the calendar of the Church’s saints.  In them we celebrate figures who have also lived and travelled by faith, looking to Jesus, who both shows the way to God and makes it possible for us. 

Many of them faced problems as seemingly unsurmountable as those which challenge us. Their work often began in small and apparently insignificant ways but grew through their faith and perseverance. They faced the apathy or hostility of their contemporaries; even sometimes of fellow-believers. They demonstrate for us the transformative power of the vision of the kingdom of God and the grace of God in making that vision a reality.

For us, as for them, that power to persevere is found in looking to Jesus, which means listening to him as he speaks to us in the gospels,  allowing our lives to be shaped by his life of self-giving love, finding the strength to persevere in that life in his sacraments and Christian community. 

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Alan Moses

Vicar of All Saints Margaret Street
Area Dean of Westminster – St Marylebone

Please pray for those who have asked for our prayers: Asia Bibi, Alixe Bainbridge-Spring, Peter Brentnall and family, Br. Michael OSB, James Cary-Elwes, Fr Andrew Davis, Mark Dougly, Kate Down, David Fettke, Ghislain Hamelin, Lewis Harvey, Michael Hartley, Gwyneth Hopkins, Maria Keen, David Kennett, Raymond King, Andrew Laird, Tom Leader, Miriam Nelson, Fr. Robert Norwood, Oliver Orr, David Pearce, Agnes Poitevin-Navarre, Canon John Rees, Bill Rodger, Bishop John Salt, Alma Sheard, Stella and Helen Skinner, Rose Stephens, Tony Tomlin, Christine van Dyck, Lynn Van Keulen, Robert Walmsley, Jenny Ward & Baby Emily, Joy Wright and Jean-Yves Darcel.    

For the recently departed:   Brian Welby-Cooke, Catherine Hancock, Alice Harford and Jacques Hamel (priest), Darlene Horton and Gus Bialick.

Remember past priests, benefactors, friends, and all whose year’s mind occurs this week including: 
William Rivington, Mildred Terry, Adriana Grosinski, David Tweed, Veronica Lee, Alexander Lee, Dorothy Lane, David Russell, William Cargill (Priest) and Harry Allan.

For full service information: www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk.

WORSHIP THIS WEEK:

SATURDAY 13 AUGUST, 11.30am Walsingham Devotions and Mass
 

SUNDAY 14 AUGUST, TRINITY 12
HIGH MASS, 11am 
Preacher: Fr Barry Orford 
Missa Orgelsolomesse , K 259 – Mozart 
Hymn of the Cherubim – Rachmaninov

There is no Sunday lunch service today. 

EVE OF THE ASSUMPTION 
SOLEMN EVENSONG & BENEDICTION, 6pm 
Preacher: The Vicar, Fr Alan Moses 
Stanford in A 
Ave maris stella – Monteverdi 

WORSHIP NEXT WEEK:
THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY,
Monday 15 August – High Mass and Outdoor Procession, 6.30pm.
Preacher: Father Julian Browning
Missa Brevis in D, K194 – Mozart
Ave Maria – Parsons 
This is the second year that there will be a circular outdoor procession (with choir, brass & drum) of the statue of Our Lady of Walsingham from Church along Oxford Street in the evening and back to Church.
The Feast of the Assumption is our major annual celebration of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. On this day, we thank God for Mary, the first Christian, and ask her prayers for all persecuted Christians.
Please make this as successful as our annual Corpus Christi procession, enjoyed by so many, by joining us for this special feast and encouraging your friends to come and take part in this act of witness to our faith on the streets of central London. Let’s ‘Hail Mary’ with gusto in these challenging times! Refreshments will be provided after the service and procession – all are welcome.  

SUNDAY 21 AUGUST, TRINITY 13
HIGH MASS, 11am 
Preacher: Fr Michael Bowie 
Missa Brevior – James Sherwood 
O mes très chers frères (from Quatre petites prières 
de Saint François d’Assise) – Poulenc

EVENSONG & BENEDICTION, 6pm
Preacher: Fr Victor Stock
Sumsion in G
I will lift up mine eyes – Walter

PARISH NOTICES 

If anyone is able to volunteer as a steward or a bearer for the Assumption Procession on Monday 15 August, please get in touch with Cedric Stephens.

UPDATE ON THE VICAR’S FUNDRAISING PILGRIMAGE & WHAT TO DO ABOUT SPONSORSHIP MONIES 
Fr. Alan completed 566.5 km of his fundraising walking pilgrimage before knee injury called a halt to his heroic endeavours. If you have/would like to sponsor him and help achieve his target of £20k for the Diocese of London’s projects for persecuted Christians in Iraq and Syria, please send cheques to: PAROCHIAL CHURCH ALL SAINTS, Parish Office, All Saints, 7 Margaret Street, London W1W 8JG. We will process gift aid and forward funds to the Bishop of London’s Lent Appeal 2016. Donations received to date total £14,300 – please help to close the gap with the target.
 

SERVICES & EVENTS FOR AUGUST and SEPTEMBER 2016 BEYOND ALL SAINTS

COMPLINE at ST CYPRIAN’S – coming up Thursday 25 August, 9pm
Compline is a service of evening prayers forming part of the Divine Office of the Western Christian Church, traditionally said (or chanted) before retiring for the night. It is planned to recite the office of Compline at St Cyprian’s on the last Thursday of each month at 9pm. It is a short, reflective service, comprising psalms, prayers and a hymn, said or sung. We will observe silence before and after the service, which we hold in the choir, in candlelight and the minimum of artificial light. Laypersons will lead compline, and all are welcome. The date for the next service will be Thursday 25 August.

WEST LONDON SYNAGOGUE EVENT – Sunday 4 September, 3pm
West London Synagogue, 33 Seymour Place, London W1H 5AU
Churches Together in Westminster have asked us to publicise a wonderful storytelling event being held  to celebrate the European Days of Jewish Culture and Heritage. The organisers say: “There will be two captivating story tellers coming to delve into the shared Jewish and Muslim stories of the women surrounding Moshe/Moses/Musa, in their show ‘Midwives of Freedom’. This is a fantastic performance and it is truly a delight to have Adele Moss and Jumana Moon joining us. As well as the storytelling we will also be providing an exquisite afternoon tea and a guided tour of West London Synagogue.”

Please RSVP to alex.cameron@wls.org.uk so that they can ensure enough cakes are provided! The West London Synagogue looks forward to seeing you in September.

ST CYPRIAN’S FESTIVAL WEEKEND
St Cyprian’s Church, Glentworth Street, NW1 6AX

Thursday 15 September, 7.30pm High Mass
Preacher: Ven Luke Miller, Archdeacon of London

Friday 16 September, 6.30pm Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas performed by Francis Holland School

Saturday 17 September, 7pm Quiz Night – Form a team of 6 people or join a team on the night. Price: £10 per person, to include light refreshments. Contact Chris Self: chris_self@btinternet.com or 020 7723 2938 for more details or to register your team.

Sunday 18 September, 10.30am Parish Mass

ST MARY’S BOURNE STREET TALKS 
One of London’s principal Anglo-Catholic churches, closely connected with the intellectual thought of the Catholic tradition in the Church of England, will be holding a number of lectures in memory of the distinguished personalities who were instrumental in the life of this church. On Thursday 22 September the talk will be by the Right Rev’d and Right Hon the Lord Williams of Oystermouth, former Archbishop of Canterbury on, when his topic will be, ‘The Malines Legacy: a vision for Anglican – Roman catholic dialogue? Admission is free and the lecture will be held in the church.

ALL SAINTS MISSION ACTIVITIES:- 
The charities we had agreed to support through the Lent Appeal 2016 (and including applicable Gift Aid) received the following sums:-  

Marylebone Project – £2,666.67 – emergency refuge and rehoming project for homeless women. 
Us (formerly USPG) – £2,666.67 – work with those experiencing Aids and HIV in Zimbabwe.  
London Diocese Lent Appeal – £2,666.66 – this year supporting Syrian and Iraqi refugees through charities Open Doors and Aid to the Church in Need.  
Thank you to everyone who contributed to this great achievement – a significantly enhanced total collected through the Lent Appeal compared with recent years – of £8,000. 

** Letters of appreciation have been received from Us and the Marylebone Project and can be seen on the Church noticeboard. ***

ONGOING SUPPORT for HOMELESS PEOPLE through: 
MARYLEBONE PROJECT run by the CHURCH ARMY – A Day Centre, Residential and Transitional accommodation provider, re-settlement project and Educational and Training Unit for women. The Emergency Bed Unit – for which we have for some years helped to provide the funds for one of the 4 beds – offers a safe haven and refuge for women escaping domestic violence, financial crisis, sexual exploitation and mental health issues. 

Year Round Support – we also support the Marylebone Resettlement Project with non-perishable food and toiletries or household necessities like cutlery or bed linen/blankets. Thank you to everyone who contributes food and household essentials via the basket in Church or handed in to the Parish Office. Please continue to donate these so we can help more people in need.  

Day-to-day Support – we respond to the needs of homeless people who visit the church, providing luncheon vouchers for the West London Day Centre for rough sleepers who apply to the office and donating £1,000 towards the Soup Kitchen at the American International Church in Tottenham Court Road this year. We also allow individuals, who need a place to shelter or sleep during the day, to rest in the back of the church. We have created an information resource for Church Watchers, giving useful advice to homeless and vulnerable people seeking particular support or services. In the face of a rising tide of homelessness in London, please help us fund and support people in need through our Mission activities. Want to help someone sleeping rough but don’t know how? 
Call Streetlink on 0300 500 0914 and they will get a visit from the local Street Team who can put them in contact with the services they may need. 

FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS OR ASSISTANCE FROM ALL SAINTS MARGARET STREET:- 
* If you would like to encourage others to take an interest in All Saints/keep up with what is happening here, please forward this email on to them, or to people you would like to invite to services or tell them about our websitewww.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk, which has a full colour 360 virtual tour for viewing the wonderfully restored interior of the Church – seewww.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk/history/virtual tour – before a visit or if unable to travel. 

* If you know of others (near or far) who would like to receive this regular update on what’s happening at All Saints please encourage them to sign up for the email on the All Saints website – see the tab News & Events> Weekly Newsletter. 

* If you would like prayers offered at All Saints, please email the Parish Administrator Mrs Dee Prior at: astsmgtst@aol.com. Or make use of the prayer request facility on the website at: www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk/prayer. 

* If you would like any pastoral assistance, please do not hesitate to contact:

The Vicar, Prebendary Alan Moses: alanmoses111@gmail.com. 

Or Assistant Priest Fr Michael Bowie: mnrbowie@gmail.com.

DAILY SERVICES AT ALL SAINTS 
On major weekday feasts, High Mass is sung at 6.30pm 

SUNDAYS in Church 
Low Mass 6.30pm (Saturday), 8am and 5.15pm. Morning Prayer 10.20am
HIGH MASS and SERMON, 11am and   
EVENSONG, SERMON and BENEDICTION, 6pm. 

MONDAY – FRIDAY
Morning Prayer 7.30am
Low Mass – 8am, 1.10pm and 6.30pm
Evening Prayer 6pm
(Except Bank Holidays – 12 noon Mass only)

SATURDAY 
Morning Prayer 7.30am
Low Mass – 12 noon and 6.30pm (First Mass of Sunday) 
Evening Prayer 6pm

Confessions 
A priest is available for confessions/counsel Monday – Friday from 12.30-1pm and at 5.30pm Monday – Saturday, or by appointment. (Special arrangements apply in Lent and for Holy Week.)

www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk and e-mail: astsmgtst@aol.com