HPR June - St Leonard`s Church

MAGAZINE OF THE PARISH OF ST LEONARD
Flower Festival June 2013 – a look back
80p
A FATEFUL ENCOUNTER
SECRETS OF THE CRYPTS SKULLS AND BONES
June 2014
No 827
Church Services
Sundays
ST LEONARD’S PARISH CHURCH, Oak Walk
8.00am Holy Communion BCP (said)
9.30am Parish Communion
6.30pm Sung Evensong
ST MICHAEL’S METHODIST-ANGLICAN CHURCH CENTRE
Rampart Road
7.30am
11.00am
11.00am
11.00am
Holy Communion (BCP) – alternate Sundays
Morning Worship – 1st & 3rd Sundays
Matins and shortened Holy Communion (BCP) – 2nd & 5th Sundays
Methodist Holy Communion Service – 4th Sunday
HOLY CROSS CHURCH, Jubilee Close, Palmarsh
11am
Holy Communion – 1st, 3rd & 5th Sundays
Morning Worship – 2nd & 4th Sundays
Weekdays
St Leonard’s
St Michael’s
Monday &Tuesdays
Thursdays
Tuesdays
8.00am Morning Prayer
9.15am Holy Communion
11.00am Holy Communion
Baptisms and Marriages: Apply to the Parish Office (Tel 262370)
Parish Office open: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 9.00am – 12.30pm
Website: www.stleonardschurchhythekent.org
T
The Parish is served by three churches: St Leonard’s, Holy Cross and the
St Michael’s Methodist-Anglican Church Centre.
Our mission is summed up in the following statement:
Proclaiming the Good News of God’s love through Jesus Christ and showing that love
to all people.
The whole worshipping congregation in each church in our parish has responsibility for
the delivery of that message but you may find useful information in the Parish
Directory on the inside of the back cover.
HYTHE PARISH
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HYTHE PARISH REVIEW
June
Dear Friends,
Since coming to Hythe I’ve only met about four people who liked football
– and so although our ultra-select band are having a great time at the
moment, it must be pretty tough for almost everyone else. The season
had barely finished before the build-up to the World Cup got underway.
And once that’s over, there’s hardly any time at all before the new season
starts. But that’s the way life often is – with a few winners and a lot of
losers.
And although football matches are (in my completely unbiased opinion!)
far more interesting than those involving either oval balls or that curious
combination of leather and willow, all sport (even the dullest) is premised
on the idea of a clear result. The Hawk-Eye system that’s now used in all
the major sports means that close-call decisions can be made on a
properly scientific basis – which in turn improves the odds of the best
team winning. But not always – and that’s part of the interest.
The role of chance in sport is always significant – but mustn’t ever be
dominant. If the outcome of sporting encounters was entirely random,
they would lose all their fascination. Just as they would if the results were
entirely predictable. It’s the way chance and skill and training and
planning all interact, that makes the outcome so deliciously balanced that
it holds our attention.
But however the results are arrived at (and ignoring those encounters that
give rise to draws and ties) the end of the season or tournament always
has a clear winner. A team or an individual triumphs, and vanquishes the
opposition. In football there are league champions at one end – and those
who slip into the outer darkness of relegation to a lower tier at the other.
Just like life - with a few winners and a lot of losers.
Over recent years there’s been much discussion about the proper place
of sport in schools, with (in very broad terms) those on the political right
emphasising the importance of competitive team games – and those on
the left emphasising the importance of co-operation and individual goalsetting. The former see the way sport teaches children that in life there
are a few winners and a lot of losers as character-building, whilst the
latter see it as demoralising and dispiriting.
3
Life is very much like sport, in that outcomes are not always fair –
something which those at the sharp end of things find difficult. Someone
gets cancer or heart disease despite having lived an active and dietconscious life, whilst another person smokes and drinks heavily and lives
to be a hundred. The role of chance is significant (lucky genes maybe) –
but not overwhelming (otherwise there would be no statistical evidence to
support the health-giving properties of particular kinds of food or lifestyle).
As in sport, there are clear winners and losers. Chance plays a part – but
education and wealth and networks and effort play an even bigger part.
The children of the comfortable are almost guaranteed to become
comfortable adults themselves. Wealth trickles down the generations well
enough – but remains in the same streams. Poor families tend to remain
so, decade after decade. And so do rich families.
Is this all character-building? Or is that a myth (in the sense of a story)
told by the comfortable for the benefit of the comfortable? And how does it
all interact with the Christian message of a radically-minded, antiestablishment itinerant preacher, who came to a premature and decidedly
sticky end? There’s an obvious tension, given the way the Church of
England sits at the very heart of the establishment, and as such is a key
part of the whole apparatus of the state – whilst at the same time
professing its undying support for those in dire straits at the bottom of the
heap, whose difficulties can in large measure be attributed to policies
enacted by that same state.
Given the apparently intractable nature of the problems it’s small wonder
most people simply close their eyes and hope all this tricky ethical stuff
will simply go away. But of course it won’t – and the thing about taking
Christianity seriously, is that we should be a lot less ready to ignore other
people’s problems, even (maybe especially) when they look as if they
might impinge on us.
But the seductive simplicity of the binary sporty world view, with its clear
winners and losers, is dangerously attractive – maybe particularly so for
religious people. We’re so used to the language of sheep and goats, the
saved and the damned, insiders and outsiders, that we can easily take it
all for granted. And the fact that the idea is so hard to resist, is surely a
large part of the reason why we’re only the second church in the diocese
to become part of the Inclusive Church network.
Sport is a lot of fun, and a wonderful distraction. But (whatever Bill
Shankly said) it must never be confused with real life. In particular, the
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way that the concept of winners and losers is built into the very fabric of
sport, must never be allowed to trump the Gospel message of self-giving
love and concern for those in need. Or to determine the way we view and
treat those who, for whatever reason, have never been (and will never be)
anywhere near one of life’s podiums.
Yours in Christ,
Tony
Editorial Jottings
As I explained in my jottings last month this edition is late in being
published as I have been on holiday in France. Monty the dog and I
enjoyed two weeks of camping in some lovely locations and walking in
the Alpilles – a little ridge of limestone hills in the south of Provence. To
walk up valleys of lush Mediterranean vegetation and at the top enjoy
views right across the Camargue to the sea in one direction and back
towards Mount Ventoux and the pre - Alps in the other was quite literally
breath taking.
There is absolutely no truth in the rumour that I disappeared to recover
from organising the Treasure Hunt (see page 13 ) or to avoid cleaning the
new glass doors! Before I go away again I will endeavour to share the
secret of removing the finger prints from the doors: I had no idea that
people would have such difficulty in using door handles! Joking aside, I
think you’ll agree that the doors are a wonderful addition to St Leonard’s.
There have been many favourable comments about the doors from
people both within, and having no connection with, the church. I was
delighted to receive this “note to the editor” from Janine Umbers – “I went
to Evensong on Easter Sunday. It was such a delight to climb the steps
and enter through the splendid new welcoming doors and find the Church
inside filled with light and flowers in joyous abundance. Thank you,
Flower Team. At the Service-end Berkeley gave us a tremendous carillon
on the organ which shook the rafters and had us all a-tremble, a-tremble.
Thank you, Berkeley.”
And so to this month’s edition of the magazine; I hope you feel the wait
was worthwhile. There are a number of events happening this month
which are previewed, as is the new “JAM on the Marsh” about which you
will find details on page12 . Do look at the “Through the month of June”
section. Back to normal next month – the July magazine should be
available on June 29th.
Pat Chipping
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Through the month of
JUNE
Friday 6th
2.30pm
Meeting Point
St. John’s Hall,
Albert Lane, Hythe
Speaker: Kay Cunningham – Pilgrim’s Hospice
Saturday 7th
7.30pm
Caroline Bergius (piano) & Meinhard Holler (cello)
St. Leonard’s Church
Tuesday 10th
10.30am
Julian Meeting – St. Leonard’s Church
Sunday 14th
4.30pm
Choral Evensong – St. Leonard’s Church
John Fryth Singers from St. Mary’s Church,
Westerham
Saturday 28th
7.30pm
Folkestone Choral Society – St. Leonard’s Church
See page 24 for details
Monday 30th
4.00pm
Standing Committee – the Vicarage
7.30pm
Norton Knatchbull Jazz & Guitar ensembles
St. Leonard’s Church
Readings for June
June 1st (Seventh of Easter)
June 8th (Pentecost)
Acts 1:6-14
1 Peter 4:12-14,5:6-11
John 17:1-11
Acts 2:1-21
1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
John 20:19-23
June 15th (Trinity Sunday)
June 22nd (First after Trinity)
Isaiah 40:12-1,27-end
2 Corinthians 13:11-end
Matthew 28:16-20:
Jeremiah 20:7-13
Romans 6:1b-11
Matthew 10:24-39
June 29th (Sts Peter & Paul)
Zechariah 4:1-6a,10b-end
Acts 12:1-11
Matthew 16:13-19
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PARISH REGISTERS: 27TH APRIL – 31ST MAY
Baptisms
4th May
25th May
25th May
25th May
Zachary Danny Andrew Brown
Aubree Hollingsbee
Archer Alfred Bentley
Vienna Payne
Weddings
3rd May
17th May
24th May
31st May
Chloe Stokes and William Talbert
Lisa Fox and Jonathan Cribbens
Kelly Ann Hathaway and Benjamin Pull
Jade Roberts Cadenhead and Martin Roberts Cadenhead
Rest in Peace
29th April
Graham Eric Paul aged 90
th
29 April
Joyce Olive Kernan aged 84
th
9 May
Julia Helen Alexander aged 95
th
29 May
Lilian Eva Durkin aged 90
Holy Cross News
Holy Cross Church is still that loving Church which
brings people together to join in the friendship there.
I have recently returned to Holy Cross after a brief period
away. When I went to the Lent lunch I was made so
welcome by all the ladies who were there and when I went to the Sunday
service I felt just like the Prodigal Son returning; the love that enfolded me
was wonderful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Watch the Church notices - we are planning a Strawberry Cream Tea at
Holy Cross. We look forward seeing you all there.
With the love of Jesus Christ,
Tony Clarke
Wrong Staff
Several years ago the then Bishop of London reported to the General
Synod that before attending a church function he had said he would bring
his pastoral staff. “And how many seats will you want?” came the reply.
Peterborough, Daily Telegraph
7
Prayer Prompts for June
1st - Hythe Bay School
2nd - The Mayor and Town Council
3rd - Bishop Trevor
Prayer for June
4th - The new PCC
Show us good Lord, how to be
frugal, till all are fed; how to weep,
till all can laugh; how to be meek,
till all can stand in pride; how to
mourn, till all are comforted; how
to be restless, till all live in peace
and how to claim less, till all find
justice. We ask this in the name of
Jesus
Amen.
5th - Our Lay Readers and ALMs
6th - Archbishop Justin
7th - Tony and Pat
8th - St Leonard’s
9th - Our Churchwardens
10th- The Julian Meeting
11th - Our choirs
From “An Iona prayer book”
12th - Our Treasurer
13th - Palmarsh School
14th - The bereaved
15th- Holy Cross
16th - Church finances
17th - Holy Cross after school club
18th - Suzanne Murray-Jones in Pakistan
19th - The Methodist ministry team
20th- The work of Porchlight
21st - Servers in our churches
22nd - St Michael’s Methodist – Anglican Church Centre
23rd - The work of CINDI(K)
24th - Local industry
25th - Peace in our world
26th - The Rainbow Centre
27th - Local hospitals
28th - Age UK
29th - Pilgrim’s Hospice
30th – The Standing Committee
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9
CHORAL EVENSONG Saturday 14 June at 4.30pm
On Saturday 14 June the John Fryth Singers will be visiting St Leonard
Church to sing Choral Evensong. Everyone is welcome. This choir is an
extended form of the choir of St Mary's Church, Westerham. Each
summer their Director of Music (Michael Barlow) takes them out for the
day, to visit a place of interest and to sing Evensong in an historic church,
such as Dunstable Priory, Rye Parish Church, St Bartholomew-the-Great
in Smithfield, London and Arundel Parish Church.
The music for their visit to Hythe will include the following:
Introit Hymn to the Trinity (Tchaikovsky)
Responses Ayleward
Canticles Stanford in C
Anthem I was glad (Parry)
+ two psalms and two Trinity hymns
The service starts at 4.30pm
Guided walks around Hythe
Do you know what the ‘Moot horn’ is, and where you can see it?
These and many other questions about our town are answered every
week by the Hythe Civic Society town guides. They are a mine of
information, so if you are interested in history or just local gossip from the
past; have lived in the area for one or for 40 years; are 10 years old or
110, we guarantee that you will learn something you didn’t know from our
experts!
Come and join us! The leisurely walks take place every Thursday and
first Saturday of the month, June to September inclusive; meet
10.30am outside the Town Hall – no need to book.
Cost 50p including leaflet (crypt extra).
Parties of 10 or more by appointment –call 266118
Also every day (Mon – Sat) during Hythe Festival week, 30th June to
5th July – see programme for details.
See you soon!
( and you will see the Moot horn!)
10
Graveyard Inscriptions and Discoveries – Part 5
I have no new information to give you this time, but have instead a plea
for help.
I have recorded the inscriptions on the plaques on the small Garden of
Remembrance adjacent to North Road. Most of the people whose ashes
are interred there lived relatively recently, so information about them is
not available through the usual sources available to a historian. If you are
a close relative of any of the people listed below and would like a short
biography ( e.g. parents, residence, occupation, marriage, children, any
achievements) included in the record of burials at St Leonard’s, please
contact me by email at [email protected] or write to the Editor,
who will pass your letter to me.
The people concerned are:
George Reuben Thorpe 1917 – 2014; Colin Laycock 1939 – 2010;
Bertie Albert Dearman 1902 – 1988 ; Thomas George Dearman c 1935 1970; Kathleen Violet Pain c 1924 – 1974; Arthur Edward Whitlock 1890 1970; Ethel Mary Whitlock 1899 - 1877; Percival Albert Lascelles 19172003; Lauren Georgina Brady died 2004; Marian Wood1921 – 2002;
Megan Wright 1919-1991; John Geoffrey Lloyd Wright c. 1943 – 1971;
Geoffrey Wright 1922-1982; Henry Arthur Churchill; Ethel Churchill;
Arthur Bertram Cox 1925-2009;William Douglas Underhay 1918-1972;
Jean Margaret Underhay 1925-2010; Margaret Hall .1936 – 2012;
Leonard Henry Smith; Ruth Smith; Joan Vera Smith; Jesse Bean c. 1915
- 1974; Lilian Frances Richards c. 1915 - 1967; Horace Edgar Wratte c.
1904 – 1963; Florence Edith Elizabeth Wratte c. 1909 - 1969; Margaret
Edith Lilian Cooper 1939 – 2003; Esmond Love c. 1919 – 2006
Anne Petrie
Friends of St Leonard’s Church – Annual General
Meeting
The Annual General Meeting of the Friends of St Leonard’s Church will take
place on Monday 16 June 2014 at 6.00pm in the north transept of the church.
For more information about this meeting, or if you would like to consider joining
the Friends committee, please contact the Secretary, Brin Hughes:
 01303 264470 or email to [email protected].
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Hythe to be a centrepiece in JAM’s new vibrant festival
11th - 20th July sees the launch of JAM on the Marsh; a vibrant, annual
arts festival of free and ticketed events from Hythe to Lydd, run by JAM.
With music at its core, the festival will include photography, art, family
events, poetry and theatre. Please see the separate booklet for full
details.
.Within
this exciting festival, St. Leonard’s will resound to Handel’s everpopular Coronation Anthems – including Zadok the Priest. The newly
renovated Ballroom of The Mercure Imperial will sparkle with some of the
greatest songs of opera as it hosts a sumptuous Opera Dinner,
including works by Delibes, Lehar, Mozart, Puccini and Verdi’s famous
Quartet from Rigoletto. The children from Hythe Bay Primary school
will whizz down the RH&DR track to join four other Marsh schools at the
Marsh Academy Theatre to give a lively performance in celebration of the
first year of a three year Singing Playgrounds music project. Furthermore,
RH&DR Hythe will host a stunning photography exhibition of the
Marsh by award-winning photo-journalist Justin Sutcliffe. As well as
in the terminus, the exhibition will continue into every train carriage, New
Romney and Dungeness stations and RSPB Dungeness.
Across the Marsh, the festival will also include the Mayor’s unveiling of
a new mural for New Romney by IMOS Foundation artists followed by a
children’s mural trail, Rachmaninoff’s sensational Vespers, a beautiful
strings/oboe concert including Barber’s Adagio and Vaughan Williams’
Oboe Concerto and an afternoon countertenor/pianist recital of
Vaughan Williams, Finzi and Bridge. You can also enjoy a recital of TS
Eliot’s poetic masterpiece Four Quartets, two performances by horsedrawn theatre company, Sabotage Theatre, and an organ recital by Tim
Parsons. As a rare treat, celebrity composer Paul Mealor of hits
Wherever You Are (Military Wives) and Ubi Caritas (Royal Wedding) will
introduce an evening of music that has influenced him, performed by the
up and coming Mousai Singers.
The JAM on the Marsh bus will run throughout the festival, taking
audiences to and from our events. Travel must be booked in advance.
There is something for everyone in JAM on the Marsh.
For info and tickets, go to www.jamconcert.org/season or call 0800
988 7984. Alternatively, tickets are available at Brandon's Music
Shop (01303 264429)
Sarah Armitage – Head of marketing
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The Treasure Hunt
The recent Treasure Hunt at St. Leonard's Church was a great success.
Being presented with an A-Z question sheet of facts and figures that
needed to be discoverd from both inside and outside the Church proved
to be quite daunting. How many times was Frederick William Butler Mayor
of Hythe? What happened to Henry Deedes who died in 1848? Whose
inscription is on the base of the font? How old was May Jane Mackeson
when she died? What is to be found above the arch to the choir vestry?
Where would you find a leaflet asking 'Why bother to think about..? (and
have you bothered to read any of them yet?) Finding the answers proved
to be very frustrating and even more so when you thought you knew the
answer but you didn't, when you were convinced where you should be
looking but you were wrong, and when you looked around and everybody
else seemed to have almost completed the question paper!
I should have asked for my answer paper back so that I can recall the
information. Fortunately people worked together sorting out the clues and
we all sat down to enjoy fellowship with a ploughman's supper and more
provided by the usual suspects. Very many thanks to Dr. Pat Chipping,
the new Church Warden, for preparing the questions and her colleagues
for making everyone so welcome, along with all those who prepared the
refreshments and cleared up afterwards. Now I know a little more about
the contents of the Church building (and certainly the new glass doors are
a splendid addition) maybe I should spend a little more time thinking
about why it is there and try to discover what faith and belief is all about.
The hunt for the real 'treasure' of life continues.
Dudley Shipton
Canterbury Cursillo Picnic
will take place at The Friars,
Aylesford Priory, Aylesford, Kent. ME20 7BX on Friday 13th June 2014
commencing at 7.00 pm with a Eucharist service in St Joseph's chapel.
This will be followed by "bring-your-own-picnic" on the lawns of The
Friars. All welcome whether part of Cursillo or not. Please leave dogs at
home! If you would like a lift or have a space in your car, let Penny
Mattocks know so we can all share the trip together! Tel 268441.
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A Fateful Encounter
The fliers are out for the Shepway Foodbank which supports families in
actual need of food. The ‘Bank’ is governed and managed by the
Folkestone Rainbow Centre, a Company limited by guarantee with
charitable status. It seems astonishing that in the 21st Century, Society is
still having to call on voluntary effort in this way for such a purpose, yet
we look back on Victorian times and the ‘Coal and Candle Distribution
Society’, and the ‘Bread and Blankets Fund’ (for the ‘honest poor’ only of
course!) with horror. Charles Dickens was a man who (we now know)
made large donations to individuals and causes, but he was less
interested in organised charities (unless he was in personal charge), and
still less in government responsibility and the administration of relief
through taxation. Thomas Barnardo took a different line: by the time he
died in 1905, the Charity he founded and the ‘Support Network’ as we
would call it which he set up, was running 96 homes caring for more than
8,500 children. Following his death his work continued and still today
Barnardo’s helps more than 200,000 children, young people and their
families every year, working closely with Social Services and Church
Foundations.
I am fascinated by the energy and achievement of so many Victorians;
Thomas was a prime example. He was born in Dublin in 1845, the tenth
surviving child of the family, and brought up in a prosperous Protestant
home. He was destined for a business career but at 17 or so had what he
called a ‘Damascus moment’, insisted on a full re-baptism by immersion,
(his father did not attend: he thought one normal christening quite
enough), and began to undertake poor visiting in the slums (risking
infection) and teaching in a ‘Ragged School’. Then, after attending a
Lecture he was ‘called’ to become a Missionary in China, but was advised
he would be more useful there if he first qualified as a doctor. So he
moved alone to live in London and began his studies, but continued his
good works, including starting and running his own Ragged School, and
helping people through the devastating cholera outbreak of 1866 which
broke up many families for whom no succour but the Workhouse was
available. He had read his Dickens and often said he was meeting
Dickens’ characters as he toured the slums.
14
The ‘fateful encounter’ took place one night of bitter cold in 1867 as he
closed his school. This was the conversation which started it all, recorded
later by him. He had dismissed his ragged class and only Jim Jarvis
remained. The boy begged to stay in the warm room for the night but
Barnardo told him to go home to his mother:
‘Ain’t got no mother, sir,’ said Jim.
‘Well, then, off to your father.’
‘Ain’t got no father neether, sir.’
‘Well, then, off to your home, wherever it is.’
‘Ain’t got no home, sir.’
‘Then go to your friends, wherever you live.’
‘Ain’t got no friends, sir. I don’t live nowhere.’
Barnardo, incredulous at first, scrutinized the lad: his spare frame, his
bare feet and legs, his scanty clothing all worn to rags, although the
weather was freezing. Could it be that he was telling the truth? And was it
possible that there were other children in a similar plight in this great city
of London? Barnardo determined to find out the truth.
‘Are there other poor boys like you without home or friends?’
A grim smile lighted up the urchin’s pinched face.
15
‘Oh, yes, sir, lots of ’em – more’n I could count!”
And he led the incredulous Barnardo to a nearby ‘hide’ and opened his
eyes to a degree of misery even he had never suspected.
Barnardo found lodgings for Jarvis, but (unlike Dickens) was not content
with individual charity; China was forgotten, and by judicious publicity, by
prayer, and by his own driving energy, he found the money to set up the
first Home and added the sign ‘No destitute child ever refused admission’.
To say this was to go against all his instinct and training, for the Bible
forbad debt: he was committing expenditure he might not be able to meet
and there were some who criticised him for doing it.. Fortunately, his faith
and natural feeling influenced him more than the Church’s teaching – God
would provide. And indeed God did, especially after Lord Shaftesbury,
himself a great public benefactor of extraordinary energy, invited him to
dine with an influential group of men and challenged him to show them
homeless children; he showed them 73 in one spot within 45 minutes’
walk of his Lordship’s front door!
It has been calculated that that encounter with Jim Jarvis had transformed
the lives of 60,000 children at the time of Barnardo’s death. The
organisation never stood still. Residential and workshop accommodation
was set up, money-making enterprises started (eg, wood chopping).
Eventually, after his marriage, a home for girls, even ‘bad’ girls, was
opened, where domestic training was given, and from the Royal
household down, many were glad to give jobs to ‘Barnardo girls’. There
was emigration too, to a new life in Canada – this is contentious today,
but by all accounts it worked well (not as in Australia) and Barnardo
visited to make sure it was working well. Wherever he toured, former
Barnardo children greeted him with joy and gratitude. The work
continued, changing where necessary to meet changing needs. In WW1
children whose mothers had been killed were taken into a Home ‘for the
duration’ while their fathers were still at war. In WW2 it was refugees who
were housed. As needs changed again, the Homes were closed (though
there are still three residential Schools) and the work took a different
form: services offered today include counselling for children who have
been abused, fostering and adoption services, vocational training and
disability inclusion groups. Perhaps, like Lord Shaftesbury’s guests, many
of us would be surprised at the misery and want within a mile or so of our
homes and indeed this was the theme of Tony’s March Parish Letter
16
which gave a new meaning to the stock Lenten phrase ‘going without’.
Hence the invitation to support the work of the Rainbow Centre.
Mike Umbers
Trinity Sunday
Canon Norman Woods would like to share with everyone a
celebration of the 50th anniversary of his Ordination to the
Priesthood, which took place on Trinity Sunday, 1964, in St Paul’s
Cathedral, London. On 15 June (Trinity Sunday) Norman will be
presiding and preaching at the 9.30 Parish Eucharist at St
Leonard’s. This will be followed by a ‘Bring and Share’ lunch to
which everyone is invited. Wine and other drinks will be
provided.
The Epilogue
In last month’s issue my contribution was headed as the sequel to the
resurrection of Jesus but this time I want to use the term “epilogue”
concentrating on the last days in the earthly life of our saviour. The more
I study the narratives of these few days as given to us by the gospel
writers (excepting St. Mark) the more fascinating I find them. In my
reading I try to transport myself into the scene, wondering how I should
react to Jesus and his teaching.
St. Luke says that the disciples were both startled and terrified and
thought that they were seeing a ghost. However ghosts do not talk:
instead, a very real Jesus gave them full instructions as to what to do
after his departure, concluding with the promise that he would be with
them until the end of time. That surely was re-assuring, even though it
would be difficult to visualise how this would happen. Some reminders of
what Old Testament prophets said, even the law of Moses and the psalms
predicted what would ultimately be fulfilled.
The farewell must have been dramatic; led by Jesus to a mountain (or
maybe Bethany) we are not sure absolutely which, He blessed those
disciples and a cloud descended upon them. Shortly afterwards the mist
cleared and Jesus was not to be seen.
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How do you interpret these events? If you believe in the mystery of the
Incarnation, that is the birth of Jesus into this world as a human being,
then it makes sense that there needs to be an account of his departure.
Jesus may be out of sight for the unbelieving but the spirit which
descended upon him at his Baptism will be just as real as that which filled
the disciples on the day of Pentecost some ten days later - and which is
promised to each of us at our Baptism, renewed at Confirmation and
becomes a “driving force” in daily life.
The recognition of this spiritual power unleashed on us must be quite
obvious when one reads the lives of the saints and holy men and women.
But for the majority, we may not go down in history books, indeed may
never be recorded – except in the heavenly realm. One such person as
I have described may well surprise you – her name is Delia Smith the
well-known TV cookery queen, and also chairman of Norwich City
Football Club. She is a theologian whose religious writings are not as well
known as they should be. Apart from “A feast for Lent” and “A feast for
Advent”, her book “A journey into God” written in 1988 is a straightforward
account of her faith journey. I used it myself for Lent this year and found
it stimulating. For example, she makes simple the many difficult aspects
which bother readers who are trying to make sense of the Christian life.
Her understanding about the Holy Spirit is particularly comforting. “Trying
to communicate the Holy Spirit can’t be done” she says; but look at it this
way, “It may be something we understand but are not able to define”. Try
working that one out! So do not give up hope.
Desmond Sampson
(Delia Smith’s book may still be in print. Spire books – Hodder and Stoughton
ISBN 0-340–49043–8. Our library is very obliging in obtaining books!)
Revealing some secrets of the crypt’s skulls and bones
We now have a database of information from all the 1020 skulls on the
crypt’s shelves, thanks to the diligent work over the past four years of the
independent osteologists in the St. Leonard’s Osteological Research
Group who have profiled each skull. From this database it is clear that the
‘warriors slain in battle’ theories – Anglo-Saxons, Danes, Vikings, those
killed in the Battle of Hastings – can now be dismissed. Not only is there
an absence of wounds on the skulls (less than 1% have obvious wounds),
18
but the analysis of the skulls shows that
47% are female, 34% male, 8% juveniles,
and 11% could not be determined as either
male or female. The skulls are therefore a
normal representation of the population in
Hythe and the surrounding area in the
medieval period. The proportion of children
and young people is higher than might be
expected; childhood mortality reflecting the
less developed medical care at that time.
Three particular skulls have obvious
wounds – one with a hole on the top
caused by a dagger or similar weapon
plunged through the skull but partially rehealed, another with a severe dent on the
side from a stone or other heavy blunt
object, and a third sliced on the back by a
sword, which did re-heal! Two skulls have
striking evidence of disease – one with a hole and tumour growth
alongside, which was typical of secondary symptoms of primary lung
cancer, and another with huge eye sockets identified as being due to the
over-production of thyroid hormones. A feature of the skulls is the high
proportion of a disease called Cribra orbitalia – 22% compared with
English medieval populations’ 10%. The disease is identified by the pinprick holes round the eye sockets and was a symptom of anaemia, said
to be caused by poor diet. Recent international research has linked the
disease to malaria in swampy or marshy areas, and our proximity to
Romney Marsh may explain why so many Hythe skulls are affected.
X-raying the skulls
Teeth are in surprisingly good condition, though with some tooth loss, but
they do not have holes (or fillings!) due to the absence of sugar in the
diet. They are worn down due to the coarse food, and one set of teeth is
worn on both sides indicating that the individual used his teeth regularly
for occupational tasks.
The focus in the future is on how we can find out more about the people’s
lives and ailments from their skulls and bones.
Mike Pearson
St. Leonard’s Liaison with Universities and research groups.
19
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20
Norton Knatchbull Jazz
& guitar ensembles
Monday 30 June, 7.30pm
St Leonard’s Church
Tickets £10 (£8 for Friends) – free admission for those under 18.
Farewell to Angela
Tony made a presentation to Angela on Easter Sunday; he and the
congregation wished her well in her move to the West Country
21
22
Report from the Parochial Church Council
The PCC met on May 8th in St Leonard’s church.
Tony welcomed Pat Chipping as a new churchwarden and three new
PCC members – Jenny Brandon, Carolyn Flanagan and Sean Mc Nally.
The following decisions were reached: Servery - final plans were seen by the PCC at a previous meeting
and we had now received approval from the DAC enabling us to
apply for a faculty. The PCC agreed to the proposal unanimously.
 Commemoration plinth in Churchyard - This was discussed at the
last PCC where a design for a plinth to be placed next to the ashes
interment area in the churchyard had been agreed. Formal
agreement was now required and agreed unanimously.
 Tony reported on a meeting with the Diocese that he had attended,
along with Brian and Jane, which had been called because of our
default on our Parish Share last year. The Diocese considered that
direct ministry costs amounted to £63,000 so that we were not
meeting the costs of that ministry. Members agreed that it was highly
unlikely that the finances to meet the cost of the Parish Share would
be forthcoming but agreed to meet a representative from the
Diocese at a future PCC meeting.
 The Commonwealth War Graves Commission had approached Brin
Hughes with a view to marking the grave of John Henry Trueman
who is buried in our churchyard alongside his parents. Ian Dodd
from the Diocese has given his approval but PCC agreement is
required. The PCC was unanimous in its agreement that this
project should be supported.
 Tony stated that as the church is approached from the town the new
glass doors cannot be seen to their full effect because the view is
blocked by overhanging trees and bushes from a garden further
down the hill. It was agreed that KCC Highway’s department should
be approached as it is clear that the road is being progressively
overgrown by the foliage in question.
The next PCC meeting is on 10th July at 7.30pm at Holy Cross.
Pat Chipping
23
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26
Parish Directory
Vicar
Rev Tony Windross
266217
Readers
Miss Flora Laundon
Mr Mike Cox
266447
260144
[email protected]
Churchwardens
Dr Pat Chipping
Mrs Jane Spencer
267857
260524
[email protected]
[email protected]
ALMs
Mr Geoff German
Mr Tony Clarke
237056
261693
[email protected]
[email protected]
Treasurer &
Freewill Offering
Mr Brian Bishop
269871
[email protected]
PCC Secretary
Mrs Christine Blackman
269179
[email protected]
Director of Music
Bell Ringers
Secretary
Friends of St
Leonard’s Church
Hythe Parish
Review Editor
Advertising
manager
Proof reader
Dr Berkeley Hill
Mr Mike Swan
265312
265212
[email protected]
[email protected]
Mr Brin Hughes
264470
[email protected]
Dr Pat Chipping
267857
Mr Sean McNally
263883
12, Coastguard Cottages CT21 6HN
[email protected]
8, Summer Close CT21 4DR
Mrs Joy Robertson
266186
“Haytor”, 85 St Leonards Rd CT21 6HE
Methodist
Minister
Local Preacher
Secretary
Treasurer
Revd. Kevin Taylor
261500
[email protected]
Dudley Shipton
Rosemary Walls
Alan Ewart-James
260291
279196
265316
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
The Vicarage, Oak Walk CT21 5DN
[email protected]
[email protected]
PCC members: A list of all PCC members is posted in each of the Churches, or a list may be
obtained from the PCC Secretary on request.
Deanery Synod Representatives: Mr Brian Bishop, Mr Geoff German, Mr David Owen.
We are also extremely fortunate to have the help of the following Ministers to whom we express
our thanks - Sister Christine Morris, Church Army; Rev Desmond Sampson; Rev Canon John
Wright.
PCC Registered Charity No 1144695
Parish Secretary: Mrs Pat Henley
The Parish Office is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 9.00am – 12.30pm.
Telephone: 01303 262370
E-mail: [email protected]
All post to: The Parish Office, c/o The Vicarage, Oak Walk, Hythe, Kent CT21 5DN
Website: www.stleonardschurchhythekent.org
27
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