On New Year’s Eve, join us at St Mark’s at 11am for a Kitty Milroy Matins – a service of morning prayer which Kitty Milroy would have recognised.
Kitty Milroy, the artist who painted the murals in St Mark’s, lived between November 8th, 1885 and November 8th, 1966, and worked on the murals between 1911 and 1920. As a regular churchgoer, she would have been familiar with Matins, or Morning Prayer as it is now usually known. It is a service without communion and is a mixture of prayers, psalms and readings.
The service will include a mix of old and modern language and will include the Benedicite, a hymn of praise on which the murals are based.
When Christmas hurts Thursday, December 21st, 6pm, St Mark’s Church.
The season of goodwill isn’t good for everyone. Sometimes it is a struggle, particularly perhaps if we have lost someone, or if it brings back bad memories. Sometimes we are lonely or living in circumstances that mean that it feels hard to celebrate. Sometimes we just want a break from the relentless commercialisation and pressure of Christmas.
Every year we hold a quiet, reflective service for anyone who finds Christmas hard, or just wants to stop for a moment and rest. This year it is on Thursday, December 21st, at 6pm, at St Mark’s Church. All welcome.
The December/January parish magazine is now out with the usual mix of news and what is on, plus prayer and reflection. There are all our Christmas services, news of the Farnham poetry competition 2024, and events going into the new year. Please do have a read and send us your own comments, articles and reflections, and share the magazine with friends and family too.
Don’t forget our wonderful advertisers as well. If you use their services, please let them know that you saw their advert in our magazine.
To send us a comment, article, piece of news, reflection or poem, click here.
To download the magazine, click on the button below:
Remembrance Sunday is on November 12th this year and there will be services at each of the churches in the Parish – 9.30am at St John’s and 10am at St George’s. There will be an Act of Remembrance at the Hale War Memorial at 10.45am, where there will be a two-minute silence at 11am. Councillors Tony Fairclough and Sally Dickson will be attending to lay a wreath on behalf of Farnham Town Council. This will be followed by a service at St Mark’s itself.
There will also be an Act of Remembrance at the War Memorial in Badshot Lea following the St George’s service which Councillors Mark Merryweather and Chris Jackman will be attending. Anyone wishing to attend that who has not been at the service is asked to arrive for around 10.50am.
There will also be an Act of Remembrance at Weybourne Village Hall at 4pm which Councillor Matthew Brown will be attending. This will be followed by tea in the hall.
The November parish magazine is now out with the usual mix of news and what is on, plus prayer and reflection and a poem this time. Please do have a read and send us your own comments, poems and reflections, and share the magazine with friends and family too.
Don’t forget our wonderful advertisers as well. If you use their services, please let them know that you saw their advert in our magazine.
To send us a comment, article, piece of news, reflection or poem, click here.
To download the magazine, click on the button below:
Kitty Milroy, the artist responsible for the murals in St Mark’s Church, has been commemorated with a plaque on the ‘Famous Names of Farnham’ wall in Farnham’s town centre.
The plaque was unveiled on September 21st by Cllr Alan Earwaker, Mayor of Farnham; Nick Seversway, who led the work in organising the restoration of the murals and who is an expert on Kitty Milroy; and Rev’d Lesley Crawley.
The plaque now takes its place on Farnham’s ‘wall of fame’, in South Street, celebrating local luminaries, including writer and politician William Cobbett, racing driver Mike Hawthorn and cricketer Graham Thorpe.
Kitty Milroy (pictured below) was born Eleanor Catherine Milroy in 1885 in Newnham, Hampshire, but lived almost all her life in the Farnham area. From 1906 onwards, she enrolled in the Slade School of Art — a renowned centre for innovation in mural art — which had recently opened its doors to female students, and between 1911 and 1920 she created the murals in St Mark’s. between 1911 and 1920. They represent local scenes and Biblical passages and the figures in them were modelled by locals at the time. In 2021 they were restored by conservators Rickerby and Shekede.
Pictured clockwise from top left: Kitty Milroy; members of the parish Arts and Crafts committee at the unveiling – from left: Chriss Green, Nick Seversway, Bob Shatwell, Jean Sanders, Lesley Crawley and Alan Crawley; Kitty’s plaque; apple tree from Kitty’s murals; figures from Kitty’s murals.
If you go down to church this Sunday (October 1st), be prepared for a surprise. Along with the singing there will be barking, maybe a little squawking and squeaking, and even some slithering when we hold a pet service at each of the churches.
Pets of all shapes and sizes will be welcomed to St John’s at 9.30am, St George’s at 10am and St Mark’s at 11am, for a service to celebrate our pets and ask for God’s blessing on them. Anyone who doesn’t want to bring their pet but still wants to celebrate them and have them blessed is encouraged to bring a photo of the pet. Children are welcome to bring toy pets and come dressed as animals too.
We are holding the service on the first Sunday of October as it is close to the feast day of St Francis of Assisi which is on October 4th. St Francis was known for his love of and care for animals and is often depicted with them. Our pets bring us great joy and are part of God’s creation so we want to celebrate them and give thanks for everything they give us. For many people having a pet is an enormous comfort and can help our mental health by reducing stress and anxiety. They can also be great companions especially to people who are on their own.
The services will be chaotic and great fun, so please come along! However, there will also be an earlier communion service at St George’s at 9am for people who prefer their worship without animal accompaniment!
On September 24th, celebrate the good gifts of the earth at our Harvest Festival services, held at all three churches. You can then also join us at the Harvest Supper, held at St George’s on the evening of September 29th.
There have long been celebrations around the time that crops are harvested each year, but the harvest festival that we know today probably dates from Victorian days. The first one is said have been the brainchild of the Rev’d Robert Hawker, priest of a church at Morwenstow in Cornwall, who in 1843 invited people to a thanksgiving service for the harvest.
The modern harvest festival is a time to give thanks to God for the gifts the earth provides and it is also an opportunity to share food, particularly with people who do not have enough. That is why the parish collects tinned and dried food for Farnham’s Foodbank.
The services will be at 9.30am at St John’s, Hale, 10am at St George’s, Badshot Lea, and at 10am at St Mark’s, Upper Hale, where we will first celebrate Apple Day with apple-y music, apple snacks and apple pressing. The harvest service will be at 11am at St Mark’s.
The Foodbank is currently in need of tinned fruit, UHT puddings, tinned meat and chocolate treats and these can be offered at the altar during the service and will then be passed on to the Foodbank.
Harvest Supper
On September 29th we will celebrate again with a Harvest Supper at St George’s from 6pm. It’s a fun evening for the whole parish with a meal, entertainment and a raffle. Tickets are available at each of the churches; Adults £10, children (under 16) £5, or by calling 07842761919 or emailing news@badshotleaandhale.org. If you can offer to be part of the entertainment, please let Kris know: warden.stgeorges@badshotleaandhale.org.
The Parish of Badshot Lea and Hale 