St George’s Day is on Sunday, April 23, and you are invited to celebrate England’s patron saint at services at St John’s, Hale, at 9.30am, and St George’s, Badshot Lea, at 10am. TS Swiftsure, Farnham Sea Cadets, will take part in the service at St George’s.
St George has been venerated as a saint in England since the 9th century CE though he was actually born in the 3rd century CE in Cappadocia (modern day Turkey), and was probably an officer in the Roman army. He was a Christian and it seems he was killed in the early 4th century, maybe on April 23, because he wouldn’t worship pagan gods.
St George is meant to have killed an evil dragon but the story about this actually originates several centuries after his death. Nevertheless the story stuck and the image of St George defeating the dragon appears on the George Cross, an award created in 1940 by King George VI to reward acts of great courage in times of danger.
This doesn’t stop the friendly St George’s dragon coming to church however.
Every month on the first Sunday we hold a special all-age service followed by afternoon tea at 4pm at St John’s Church, Hale.
There are craft activities, stories, songs and prayers, followed by drinks, sandwiches and cakes, and on April 2 you can learn about the Easter story. All welcome.
Join us as we travel through Holy Week, which runs from Palm Sunday, April 2, to Easter Eve, April 8, with a series of services and meditations across all three churches.
Palm Sunday recalls the story of Jesus as he entered Jerusalem, welcomed as a king but riding on a humble donkey, and there will be services at all three churches – St John’s at 9.30am, St George’s at 10am and St Mark’s at 11am – with palm crosses given out.
Services and meditations in Holy Week
From Monday to Wednesday, April 3-5, there will be a series of short meditations for Holy Week each evening at St John’s at 7.30pm. These will be around 30 minutes long and will give time to reflect and pray.
On Wednesday, April 5 at noon, there will be a communion service at St Mark’s, and on Maundy Thursday, April 6 there will be communion services at St George’s and St John’s at 7.30pm, when the altar will be stripped and a vigil will be held. At St John’s there will also be foot-washing, recalling the act of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet at the Last Supper before his death.
Maundy Thursday is so called because the name derives from the Latin world ‘mandatum’ which means ‘commandment’, and it recalls Jesus’ words at the Last Supper: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another as I have loved you.” So this is New Commandment Thursday.
Stripping the altar is an ancient custom whereby everything is removed from the altar and it reflects the way everything was stripped from Jesus on Good Friday – his clothes, his dignity, his life – and leaves the altar bare for the Good Friday liturgy the next day.
On Good Friday , April 7, there will be Good Friday Liturgy at St John’s at 9.30am. At the same time at St Mark’s there will be a craft session for children aged five to 11, from 9.30-11am, This will be followed by a service at 11am to which parents and carers are also invited, after which there will be hot cross buns for everyone.
You can also join in a Walk of Witness in central Farnham on Good Friday, by gathering in the Hart car park at 11.45am for a silent walk through central Farnham starting at noon, and ending up at St Andrew’s Church for a short service.
At 2pm there will be a ‘Good Friday Hour at the Cross‘ at St George’s, a time for prayer and reflection as we approach the time traditionally held to be the hour that Jesus died – 3pm.
On Saturday, April 8, several people from the parish are being confirmed at an Easter Eve service at Guildford Cathedral at 7.45pm. This is a special service with communion as well as baptism and confirmation, and is a lovely way to celebrate the coming of Easter. Please do join us.
It’s Mothering Sunday – aka Mother’s Day – this weekend (Sunday 19th) and we will be celebrating at all three churches: St John’s, Hale (near the Six Bells roundabout) at 9.30am; St George’s, Badshot Lea (opposite the school) at 10am and St Mark’s, Alma Lane (next to Tesco) at 11am.
Come and join us as we give thanks for all those who care and protect us. Posies for all.
Are you a seeker? Do you enjoy informal, creative services for all ages?
Come to our next Seekers service on Sunday, February 5 at 4pm at St John’s. There will be music, craft, a story, prayers, and sandwiches and cakes to follow. What’s not to like?!
Here are all our Christmas services over the next few weeks. Please do join us whenever you can.
If you are not familiar with church services, don’t worry. There are easy-to-follow service booklets or the words are all on a screen (at St Mark’s), and please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions.
Please do make yourself known to the vicar and other members of the congregation and please be assured, you are most welcome, whatever your beliefs.
Come and join us at any of our Christmas services.
Christmas at St Mark’s
Friday 9th Dec at 6pm – Carols by Candlelight Sunday 11th Dec at 11am – Christingle Service Wednesday 21st Dec at 6pm – Longest night (when Christmas hurts) Saturday 24th Dec at 5.30pm – Crib Service (especially for youngsters, come dressed as your favourite nativity character) Sunday 25th Dec at 11am – Christmas Communion Service for all ages
Christmas at St John’s
Sunday 4th Dec at 4pm – Seekers Carol Service (Family-friendly carol service) Sunday 11th Dec at 6pm – Candlelight Carol Service Saturday 24th Dec at 3pm – Crib Service (especially for youngsters, come dressed as your favourite nativity character) Saturday 24th Dec at 11.30pm – Midnight Mass Sunday 25th Dec at 9.30am – Christmas Communion Service for all ages
Christmas at St George’s
Sunday 18th Dec at 6pm – Candlelit Carol Service Tuesday 20th Dec at 6pm – Carol Singing under the lit tree at St George’s (inside if wet) Saturday 24th Dec at 3pm – Crib Service for Toddlers Saturday 24th Dec at 5.30pm – Crib and Christingle Service for all ages Saturday 24th Dec at 11.30pm – Midnight Mass Sunday 25th Dec at 10am – Christmas Communion Service for all ages
Family service, with carols, for all ages – December 4th, 4pm
Come to our family service on Sunday, December 4th at 4pm at St John’s, and help us create an Advent wreath, and sing Christmas carols.
All ages are welcome at the service – not just families with children – and we need your help to create the wreath. There will be carols and prayers and it will be followed by sandwiches and cakes (see the picture below…)
This Advent, Craig Nobbs, an LLM in the parish, is running a series of Advent Reflections, starting with a Quiet Morning on Saturday, November 26th, from 9am until noon in the Sumner Room at St John’s, and continuing with drop-in sessions at St George’s on Thursdays in Advent from 6.30-8pm.
The Quiet Morning will start with a short act of morning prayer, followed by two or three short readings and reflections, plus time to stop and listen. You can slip in and out quietly if you can’t be there for the whole time.
On the Thursday evenings Craig will be in St George’s Church from 6.30-8pm and will offer an Advent Quiet Time interspersed with prayers and readings every 15 minutes or so. This makes it possible to come even if for a short time, and leave when you wish.
Craig says: “It’s healthy to take time out to stop and think about what Advent might reveal to us as individuals and potentially, as a church. Advent can be about listening and waiting for God to show something of himself to us, however brief. So, how do we wait for God? I’m providing some opportunities to help you take time out and hopefully rediscover how we begin to do so in what are busy times.”
The Parish of Badshot Lea and Hale 