Monday 1 April 2013

Annual Parochial Church Meeting - 24 April

The Annual Parish Meeting (APM) and the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM) - the church's AGM -  will be held on Wednesday 24 April (not the incorrect date I previously supplied to the Doodle editor - sorry about that).


Why two meetings, you may ask? The APM is to elect the two churchwardens who will serve for the following year.  Anyone on the civil electoral register – anyone entitled to vote in government elections – or on the church electoral roll may attend the meeting.  The APCM immediately follows and is to receive the accounts, the fabric report and the report of the Parochial Church Council (PCC), and to elect the PCC and sidespersons for the following year.  Anyone on the church electoral roll is entitled to attend.  We have six elected members of the PCC.


Please join us on 24 April! We promise not to elect you as PCC member or sidesperson unless you actually volunteer!



Easter Day

Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
 
We came together on Easter Day to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That's what Easter is about - not Easter eggs or cute bunnies, but God sending his own Son to redeem mankind from our sins.

Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Good Friday

Good Friday is a major event in the Christian calendar, when we recall Jesus' crucifixion.  Crucifixion is a particularly nasty form of execution, reserved in Roman times for the lowest in society.  Jesus was executed like a common criminal.

There were two events to mark this important day.  Firstly, there was a Walk of Witness in Branston, where a small group from our local parishes walked around Branston behind a wooden cross, held aloft in turn by members of the group.  We stopped at various points to mark the Stations of the Cross, with each stopping point being marked by a reading and a prayer.  The walk started and finished at All Saints, Branston, and we were glad of the (hot) drink and (not hot) hot cross buns which greeted our return.  I'm not sure that everyone who saw us understood what we were doing, but it was good to demonstrate that there is a worshipping Christian community in the locality.

The second event was at Dunston Methodist Chapel, when nearly 30 children from five local parishes, including Nocton, came together for a packed programme of activities and worship.  All involved thoroughly enjoyed the day.  Further children's activities are planned for later in the year - keep checking the blog to find out more!

Maundy Thursday service

24 people attended All Saints Church on Maundy Thursday to commemorate the Last Supper - Jesus' final meal with his friends before his arrest, trial and crucifixion.  In keeping with the sombre mood, at the end of the service the sanctuary was stripped, with all hangings removed, leaving the altar stark and bare.  This process was accompanied by Nicholas Bennett singing Psalm 22.  At the end of the service, the candles in the sanctuary were extinguished and the congregation left in silence to ponder again the enormity of what happened that night in Jerusalem, 2000 years ago.

Nocton Doodle - out now!

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