Notice Sheet 24th March 2019

We can claim the tax back from your donation if it's given in the Gift Aid envelope. Please complete with your address, date and box ticked. Help us to receive this vital extra income. Thank you. LOOP SYSTEMS have been installed at Masham, Healey, North Stainley, Well and West Tanfield for the benefit of those who are hard of hearing. Please switch the button on your hearing aid to the 'T' position.

THE CHURCHES OF HEALEY, MASHAM, NORTH STAINLEY, WELL WITH SNAPE & WEST TANFIELD Third Sunday 8.00 a.m. Masham Holy Communion of Lent 10.45 a.m. Masham Holy Communion March 24th 10.45 a.m. West Tanfield Holy Communion 4.00 p.m. Healey Evensong 4.00 p.m. Snape Evensong

WEBSITE for the Masham Group of Parishes: www.mashamparishes.org

Tuesday 26th

2.30 p.m.

North Stainley Annual Parochial Church Meeting in the Church

Wednesday 27th

10.00 a.m. 11.00 a.m. 3.45 p.m.

Masham Holy Communion Children’s Work meeting in Masham Church Young people’s Confirmation group in Masham School

Thursday 28th

12.30 p.m. 6.00 p.m. 7.00 p.m.

Lent Lunches at the Bruce, West Tanfield St. Mary’s Youth Club in Masham Town Hall Masham Food for Thought

Saturday 30th

10.00 a.m.

Flower arranging at the Vicarage

Mothering Sunday March 31st

10.45 a.m.

West Tanfield

Holy Communion

Fifth Sunday of Lent 7th April

8.00 a.m. 9.15 a.m. 9.15 a.m. 10.45 a.m. 10.45 a.m. 10.45 a.m.

Masham Healey North Stainley Masham West Tanfield Well

Holy Communion Holy Communion Holy Communion Holy Communion Holy Communion Holy Communion

LENT MEDITATIONS 2019 “The Art of Lent” by Sister Wendy Beckett This year the Lent Meditations will follow the book compiled by Sister Wendy Beckett, which combines a picture for each day, with her thoughts on silence and meditation, joy, peace and love. The pictures are all powerful expressions of her themes, and are very varied. We will use selected pictures and her thoughts about them as the starting point for meditation. There will, as always, be music, candlelight and silence. Everyone is welcome to come. The meditations will be held on Sunday evenings at 6.00 pm at Cogden House, Market Place, Masham, and will last about one hour. Dates: March 31st; April 7th. The Art of Lent by Sister Wendy Beckett is published by SPCK and can be purchased on line; it is also available as an e-book. LENT LUNCHES IN WEST TANFEILD In aid of St. Nicholas’ Church funds and Herriot Hospice Homecare. Thursday 28th March 12.30 p.m. at The Bruce Wednesday 3rd April 12.30 p.m. at The Bull Soup and sandwiches for donations of whatever people feel they would like to give. It would be helpful if people could book their places at the communal tables in advance. Please telephone 01677 470678 RIPON & BEDALE FOOD BANKS During Lent Healey, Masham, North Stainley, Snape, Well and West Tanfield churches are collecting donations for Ripon Food Bank. There is a box at the back of each church. Items to include: Fruit Juice, Sugar, Tinned Tomatoes, Tinned Fruit, Pasta & Pasta Sauce, Beans, Toilet Rolls, Tinned Vegetables, Tinned Fish, Tea, Coffee. Please – no baby food, any items containing alcohol or any homemade goods Toiletries are also very welcome. WEDDING OF GEMMA LODGE & BEN FIELDING at Masham on Saturday 6th April at 3.00 p.m. There is an invitation to all in the St Mary's Church community to come to the wedding and share cake and wine afterwards.

REFLECTION Today’s Gospel reading is enigmatic and alarming. The focus seems to be on seizing the moment for repentance, rather than assuming that life will potter along to a gentle conclusion. The Galileans who were executed by Pilate or the people killed by a collapsing building were not getting their just desserts; they got caught up in things beyond their control and had not time to sort out their lives. The fig tree has no idea how close it came to being chopped down today. Seize the moment; do not out it off for a tomorrow that may never come. MARCH 31st – MOTHERING SUNDAY There will be a united service of Holy Communion at St. Nicholas’, West Tanfield at 10.45 a.m. Please note that this is the only service in our group of parishes on that day.

FLOWERS FOR MOTHERING SUNDAY There will be a working party at The Vicarage on Saturday 30th March at 10.00 a.m. to arrange small bunches of flowers for the service on the Sunday. All ladies present at the service will be given a bunch of flowers. CHURCH ANNUAL MEETINGS For the election of churchwardens and members of the Parochial Church Council Nomination forms are at the back of each church Masham Sunday 7th April 2019 after the morning service Two members of the Parochial Church Council & one member of Deanery Synod to be elected North Stainley Tuesday 26th March. 2.30 p.m. in the church Well with Snape Thursday 11th April 7.00 p.m. in Well Institute MASHAM CHURCH (2000) TRUST SOCIAL EVENING Monday 1st April. 7.00 p.m. in St. Mary’s Church. With glass engraver Jenny Stourton. All welcome. Come along and find out about the work of the Trust. ST. MARY’S MASHAM POP-IN COFFEE Tuesday 2nd April – outing to Swinton park for coffee and scone. Cost £2. Leave the church at 10.45 a.m. Please contact Lesley Hunter if you would like to go. Telephone 01765 689828. FOOD FOR THOUGHT St. Mary’s Church, Masham @ 7.00 p.m. Supper, followed by a talk. Tickets from Kate (Tel. 01765 689255 or email [email protected]) at £4.00 each. Following the work in the north aisle and the installation of our new kitchen we will be using the renovated and comfortable space created as a result of the project. Drinks - if you want an alcoholic drink please bring your own. Thursday 28th March: Michelle Moyle: ‘The Sharakat Project’ Michelle is the Project Coordinator at The Sharakat Project and is passionate about seeing the community change from the inside out. The Sharakat Project is the outreach project of St Paul’s Church, Manningham. The project aims to serve and build capacity in the local community in a way that fosters well-being, includes the marginalised and encourages cross cultural and cross faith, neighbourly relationships. The local community is one of acute social and economic disadvantage; it is one of the most deprived parishes in the country ranking 12689 out of 12775 parishes on deprivation scales. The majority of local residents are Mirpuri Pakistani heritage with minorities of white British, Indian, Bangladeshi and a growing number of Eastern European heritages. There are also increasing numbers of asylum seekers and refugees moving into the area. The church brings people together through a number of different community groups that run through the week enabling friendships to be established across barriers of faith and culture.

Thursday 4th April: Diane Bell: ‘Walking by Faith not Sight.’ Before retirement Diane Bell worked for Leeds Children's Social Care as a fostering and adoption social worker. She coordinates pastoral care in an Anglican Resource Church in Leeds and is also the UK representative of WIN Nepal, a charity providing care for orphaned or abandoned street children. Diane will be sharing something of her journey of faith as she responded to God's call in her life. MASHAM CHURCH TREASURER & SECRETARY Masham Church needs to find a new treasurer and secretary as soon as possible. With regard to the treasurer, banking and Gift-Aid reclaim are done by someone else. If you are willing to consider taking on either of these vital positions please speak to one of the churchwardens or the Vicar. 1 CORINTHIANS 10: 1-13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness. Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not become idolaters as some of them did; as it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play.’ We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by serpents. And do not complain as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it. LUKE 13: 1-9 At that very time there were some present who told him 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 others 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 look ing for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, “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 round it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.” ’