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Welcome to the Benefice web site for the churches of St. Mary's Berkeley, All Saints' Stone and St. Michael's Hill (please see the individual links to our church web sites). To contact the Vicar, Richard Avery, please us the 'Contact Us' link on the left. The diary is at the bottom of this page or use the 'Calendar' link in the left hand margin. |
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Jesus had a team of twelve around him. Those disciples gave up their day jobs and spent time together with him. We have a team of eleven coming to spend time with us. No fishermen or tax collectors, but several youth workers, an engineer, teacher, musicians, cycling enthusiasts, rugby fans, and even a speech writer for a former prime minister.
These men and women are at Trinity College, Bristol preparing for ordained ministry in the Church of England. But already they have considerable experience of ministry. They are going to share their skills, gifts and faith with us from Palm Sunday to Easter Day. Together we will explore the Easter Experience.
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Written by David Frith
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Monday, 01 March 2010 00:00 |
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Have you too been shocked by how fast the time seems to go by? “Goodness me, February is nearly over, and it doesn’t seem any time since Christmas!”
There is no doubt modern life is much faster-paced than even a few years ago. The latest technology means we can get information even faster, and so the pace of work and life speeds up to match; we can get lots of emails sent in the time it would take to write one letter. The reply to the letter could take days; we are often irritated if our emails aren’t answered the same day! So partly we are responsible for the pressure we put on ourselves: the volume of things that can get done increases, so do our expectations, and as a result the time appears to fly by; OK if things are going well, when a swift-paced life is interesting and exciting, but when we start to fall behind, we’re forever catching up, and life becomes harder and more laborious.
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Five Marks of Mission
A Lent Course from CMS
Wednesdays 8.00 - 9.30 pm
at The Vicarage, Church Lane, Berkeley
24 Feb—24 Mar
With introductory talk at Ash Wednesday Holy Communion
7.30 pm 17 February, All Saints, Stone
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Written by Richard Avery
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Monday, 01 February 2010 00:00 |
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Winter came with a vengeance this year and it has made daily life difficult at times. Then, in mid-January, we heard news of terrible destruction in Haiti. The earthquake there put our troubles into perspective. Events like this can help remind us that we have a great deal to be thankful for, but they also raise some hard questions from a faith perspective.
Whenever a major natural disaster takes place. in which many lives are lost, many are injured or left homeless, then some people question how we can believe in a loving God. The situation may be compounded by selfishness, wickedness and greed, such as the actions of developers and councils in Gloucestershire who built homes in areas prone to flooding. In Haiti many buildings had been erected without proper regulation of the structures in a known earthquake zone. However, severe quakes cause destruction even in areas where the human population is well-prepared. So who is to blame? God?
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