UPDATE: NEW GOSPEL BOOK.
As mentioned in the pew sheet on the 21st July, we have to purchase a new gospel book. Maureen Baker has very generously offered to pay for the new gospel book in memory of her late husband Gordon. This is a perfect memorial for Gordon as he was an active server, MC and reader.
Very many thanks Maureen and a fitting reminder of a very special member of the Holy Nativity family.
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
Holy Nativity Roofing Update.
29th January 2024.
I cannot believe I am writing this. The roofers confirmed today that someone has got on to the roof to see if the new flashing is lead and has pulled some of it clear of the parapet. On advice from Paul O'Brien Roofing, we chose to use lead free flashing, so they beat a hasty retreat empty handed!!
I don’t know what more to say!
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
Summary of leadership team (PCC) meetings
held on Tuesday 17th October 2023 and Sunday 26th November
Your leadership team discussed the following topics at our last meetings:
- Healthy Churches Survey – the team has put plans in place to work on those aspects of the survey where we did not score as highly as we would like.
- Vacancy – the team is working with All Hallows and Christchurch to prepare an overview of our parishes for the new incumbent.
- Our finances are healthy – we have initiated repairs on the roof.
20th Sunday after TRINITY - 22nd October 2023
29th Sunday of Ordinary Time.
We were pleased to be able to welcome back Fr Clive Welham to Holy Nativity for Sunday Parish Mass. Fr Clive was very well supported by Jess Bhalerao who made her debut as a Holy Nativity Reader – everyone I spoke to said what an excellent job she did. Rest assured we will be seeing her again soon. Thanks Jess! Fr Clive’s sermon was also very well received.
Thanks also to Pete Daly for very good overview of the Healthy Churches Survey and there was a lot to be very positive about in his report.
Apologies for the technical issue with the radio microphone this morning – some soldering is required on the microphone insert!
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
ROBERT STANLEY DYER (Bob)
31st January 1930 – 30th July 2023.
Bob will be received into Holy Nativity at 5:00pm on Thursday 14th September.
His Funeral Mass will be at 10:00am on Friday 15th September. Fr Chris Kinch will be conducting the service.
Rest in Peace Bob.
BOB DYER – Rest in Peace.
I have just been informed by Bob’s family that Bob died at home yesterday 30th July 2023. Bob was 94 years old and had been experiencing mobility problems in recent years. Bob was a very faithful member of the Holy Nativity family and will be sorely missed. More information when we have it but remember Bob in your prayers.
Rest eternal grant to him O Lord, and let light perpetual shine on him – Rest in Peace.
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
TUESDAY 11th July 2023.
The Feast of St. Benedict.
BROADBAND FAULT at CHURCH.
Our Broadband Line, which has been trouble free for a number of years failed this morning. I got hold of BT and had a text conversation with a BT Diagnostics Bot. This finally resulted in the holy grail of dealing with BT Faults, a Fault Reference Number or FRN. Ours is VOL013-785520979951. They will have it fixed by 23:59 on the 14/7/2023
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
PIGEON UPDATE
I attend church at 10:00am this morning and our Pigeons were not in a good place; obviously hungry and not able to fly very well.
They both landed on the ground, so I took the opportunity of opening the doors and herded Pigeon 1 out of the front door! Pigeon 2 seemed a little less keen but eventually, with the help of my Churchwardens stave was also persuaded to vacate the premises.
As it flew off the gent from the pest control company arrived. Good news!
Holy Nativity is now a Pigeon Free Zone or PFZ!
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden and Pigeon Herder.
IMOGEN PHILIPPA:
Imogen is the daughter of Clare Havard and has severe scoliosis and is waiting for spinal surgery which has been put back a couple of times. In the meantime she is wearing a brace and finding it quite hard. At the moment the operation should be in July or August but this is not certain. Prayers please for the whole family as they face this uncertain time.
Phil Goodfellow,
Churchwarden.
PARISH MAGAZINE.
At the PCC Meeting on Monday 15th May it was decided that it would be best to suspend the publication of the Parish Magazine until a new Parish Priest was appointed. The Editor told the meeting that the content was very general and there was little or no local parish news.
Therefore the magazine will be suspended until a new Priest is appointed.
Phil Goodfellow
Churchwarden.
EASTER 2023
Pleased and honoured that our brand new bishop (in post nine weeks) has chosen to celebrate Easter at Holy Nativity in Bristol.
Happy Easter everyone!
The Churchwardens.
EASTER 2023 – BISHOP PAUL,
The BISHOP of OSWESTRY will be with us.
Great news, the new Bishop of Oswestry, will be with us for the following services:-
Maundy Thursday – 7:30 pm.
Good Friday – 2:00pm.
Easter Vigil – 7:30pm.
Easter Sunday – 10:00am.
This will be a great opportunity to meet our new Bishop and for him to meet the people in the parish. Please make every effort to be at these services.
The Churchwardens.
A LETTER From the BISHOP of OSWESTRY.
Dear Fathers, Dear Deacons, Dear Friends,
Praised be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man!
One month ago, I was ordained and consecrated to serve you as your Bishop, your Apostolic Father. I carry with me still the freshest memory of the Ordination Liturgy, most especially the laying-on-of-hands, the anointing with Sacred Chrism, and the placing upon my finger of the episcopal ring: 'Take this ring, the seal of your fidelity. With faith and love protect the Bride of Christ, his holy Church.' May the Lord make me a faithful and devoted spouse.
From the day of my episcopal ordination I have sought to venture forth, to be a Missionary Bishop out-and-about among his people. In this first month alone more than 1,500 miles have been clocked-up in the car manifesting this apostolic ministry among you. My priority has been to visit as many people as possible as soon as possible so that you might know the zeal, concern, and care your Bishop has for you. What a high privilege this has been, and with what warmth I have been welcomed! On each and every visit I have found deep faithfulness, rich devotion to the Saviour and his All-holy Mother, and the promise of new life and the seeds of a Catholic Renewal. Deo Gratias for all you do in the service of Christ the Saviour. In visiting, I have sought to give priority to those parishes most in need and most ignored. There are many more parishes to visit and people to meet, of course - the pastoral task is as enormous as the geography over which our wonderful family of churches is spread - but by God's grace and the prayers of Our Lady a good start has been made.
What has become immediately apparent is that in addition to the urgent need for pastoral care, there is also an urgent need for strategic attention. Pressing questions about the future configuration of priestly ministry in and across our churches is an issue that has waited a long time to be addressed. As you will be acutely aware, dioceses are actively exploring proposals for reorganisation; and whereas we have usually been on the back foot in such matters (waiting to be done unto), it is imperative that we now get on the front foot and present proposals that will ensure a healthy, vibrant future of catholic life and witness in our churches. I am determined to bring forward constructive proposals to each of the diocesan discussions and am busily working with others to that end. As I pray for you unceasingly, I ask you to pray for me, and to pray with focused intention for these strategic conversations.
What is also evident to me after only one month is the need for the See of Oswestry to be sub-divided into four Pastoral Regions. Each Region will have a priest appointed to it to serve as Dean whose role it will be to share in my pastoral oversight of the clergy - in much the same way as an Area Dean might do - and to work with me in organising Regional Festivals, Chrism Masses etc. Such a dispersed See as ours can so easily lack a clear identity and coherence. The Pastoral Regions will serve to build a much stronger sense of identity and common life across the See of Oswestry. I will write to you again with further details about this.
And I have settled on my episcopal motto: Gaudete in Domino semper! The motto 'Rejoice in the Lord' captures perfectly the very spirit of paschal joy that I believe needs again to abound among us and within us, and which I wish to characterise my apostolic ministry among you. Only by a renewed sense of joy in the glory of the Saviour's cross, the triumph of the Saviour's resurrection, and the presence of the Saviour in his Most Holy Sacrament can we announce Christ the Saviour to the world. The Paschal Mystery is our proclamation : let us never tire to proclaim it in all its catholic and converting fullness.
Gaudete in Domino semper,
+Paul Crucis Osvaldi
The Rt Revd Paul Thomas
Missionary Bishop of Oswestry
GORDON BAKER—FUNERAL:
Gordon’s funeral which will be a sung Requiem Mass is going to be on Wednesday 29th March at 11.45am. When we have more details we will let everyone know.
The Churchwardens.
GORDON BAKER – RIP.
The Service of the Word on Sunday was very well attended but was marred by the very sad news that our friend and brother in Christ, Gordon Baker had died. Our sympathies and prayers are with Maureen and the family at this difficult time. When we have more information on the funeral we will post it here.
Rest eternal grant to him O Lord and let light perpetual shine on him.
The Churchwardens.
THIRD SUNDAY of EPIPHANY – 22nd January 2023.
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday of the Word of God)
We are pleased to be able to welcome back Fr Stephen Spencer to Holy Nativity for this Mass on the 22nd January. Fr Stephen will be ably assisted by John Chamberlain and we are hoping that everyone will be able to attend to show support to the priests who give up their free time to help the parish.
The Churchwardens.
Appointment of the Bishop of Blackburn
Bishop Tony Robinson, Chairman of The Society's Council of Bishops, has responded to the announcement of the appointment of the Bishop of Blackburn: "I am delighted that the Church of England has stood by its Five Guiding Principles in appointing the next Bishop of Blackburn. Bishop Philip, as a suffragan bishop in that diocese, has amply demonstrated that he can minister effectively to people and parishes of all traditions and he will make an excellent diocesan bishop. Moreover, his flair for mission and for communication is a great asset for the Church as a whole. We wish Bishop Philip well and pray for him as he prepares to take up this important role."
PARISH MAGAZINE – JANUARY 2023.
As usual there will be no Parish Magazine for January. The Editor sadly omitted to include this announcement in the December issue. Normal service will be resumed for the February edition with all your articles being required by 25th January 2023.
The Editor.
December 2022 Parish Magazine.
We are pleased to be able to publish the Magazine for 2022. Please go to
https://holynativity.org.uk/parish-magazine to download.
ADVENT CAROL SERVICE – 27th November 2022.
Our ADVENT CAROL service is at 6:00pm 27th November, the first Sunday of Advent. Please make every effort to attend as this is a great way to start the season of Advent.
The Churchwardens.
9th Sunday after Trinity – 23rd October 2022
30th Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Last Sunday After Trinity.
Our sincere thanks to the Bishop of Chichester, Bishop Martin Warner for driving that huge distance to take our Mass this morning. It was an excellent Mass and was very well received by the large congregation.
The choir was a little smaller than usual but produced excellent music.
The Churchwardens had a productive meeting after Mass with + Martin with regards to a new Parish Priest for Holy Nativity. + Martin was very complimentary about the church and its importance in Bristol.
The Churchwardens.
14th Sunday after Trinity – 18th September 2022.
25th Sunday in Ordinary Time.
We are very pleased to be able to welcome back Fr Darren Smith to Holy Nativity on Sunday. Fr Darren is the General Secretary of the Additional Curates Society (ACS) and is a great supporter of our parish.
Fr Darren’s intention for Mass on Sunday is a requiem for HM Queen Elizabeth so please make every effort to be with us on Sunday. Churchwarden Pete Daly will be assisting at the Mass.
The Churchwardens.
HARVEST LUNCH:
This is going to be held on Sunday 2nd October after the Mass. It’s a Bring & Share Buffet and there is a list at the back of church for you to list your dishes you intend to bring. For further information from Kathy Gibbs in the first instance.
SUNDAY MASS ROTA - UPDATE
We are pleased to report that due to the generosity of the clergy that assist our parish we have been able to fill every Sunday until the 1st January 2023. Our sincere thanks to all the priests that give up their spare time to preside and preach at our church.
Thank you, all of you.
The Churchwardens.
PROPOSED RESUMPTION OF THE CHALICE.
Clarification on the proposals.
Further to our email and post about the possibility of resuming the use of the Chalice at Communion we wanted to reiterate the rules under which we may resume the use of the Chalice.
- There is no pressure on communicants to take the chalice. In fact, we would positively discourage people with underlying health conditions from taking the chalice. This is very much in line with our guidelines on wearing face coverings.
- As a precaution against infection the habit of dipping the host into the chalice is forbidden. This often results in the wine touching inadvertently the fingers which is not acceptable.
- Communion “in one kind” is as valid a Communion as taking both bread and wine.
Many thanks for your time and please contact us on phil@holynativity.org.uk for any further details.
If you would like to be included on future parish email messages and you are not on the email list please send your email details to the email address above.
The Churchwardens.
Resumption of the use of the Chalice.
Hello everyone,
The PCC have agreed to investigate the resumption of offering the Chalice at the Eucharist.
This follows a relaxation of the restriction by the Church of England.
Taking the Chalice would be entirely up to individuals and there will be no pressure what so ever to receive this part of the Communion. However it is important to note that dipping the host into the Chalice will not be permitted. This practice has been suspended by the Church of England in their guidelines.
If you have any feelings or comments either way please let the Churchwardens know by commenting to this post or in person.
The Churchwardens.
YOUNG PEOPLES EVENT 17th July 6:30 PM.
Churches Together in Keynsham and Saltford (CTKS) are hosting a youth event led by Movement (https://www.wearemovement.net/
) on Sunday 17th July at 6:30pm at St John’s Keynsham. We would warmly welcome any young people from the Holy Nativity Church who are secondary school age and above to join us for the evening. CTKS are celebrating their 30th Anniversary this year and wanted to encourage and include young people from the local area.
Pip Lovell.
COVID UPDATE:
At the PCC meeting on Monday it was decided to relax the requirement to wear a mask in church. However if you wish to continue to do so that is perfectly acceptable. The guidelines from the CoE suggest that church-goers with underlying health conditions such as COPD would be well advised to continue wearing a face covering.
KANNAN SIVA – Muscular Dystrophy Charity Update.
During the month of May Kannan walked 250 mile – some of it on the Camino Way and some of it back in the UK. He has raised in excess of £5,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Charity. This is an incredible effort and he wants to thank everyone from the Holy Nativity family for supporting him in this challenge.
The Churchwardens.
Sad News from Totterdown Methodists.
From: Rachel Burke
Subject: Totterdown Methodist Final service
Dear All,
As some of you already know our final service at Totterdown will be on the 21st August at 3pm. This will be a service of Thanksgiving for all Totterdown has done over the years and music has been apart of this.
If you are free and would like to join us please let me, Philip Carter or Jane Cottrell know. Please feel free to pass this on to anyone else who you think might like to join us.
We would also like to have our instrumental group playing so again so if any of you would like to join that would be lovely.
With Best Wishes
Rachel Hills
Kannan Siva - Walking 250 miles of the Camino Way.
Dear all,
I have been away in Spain and was on course for walking 250 miles of the Camino Way while raising money for Muscular Dystrophy UK
This is a charity close to my heart as I passionately believe in maximising quality of life, mobility and non-addictive methods of pain relief for those suffering with muscle wasting conditions. My wife Sarah developed some symptoms of FSH about 5 or 6 years ago and in the last 3 years her condition has deteriorated considerably. The search for accessible places of interest on holidays etc so that we can all share the joy is never far from mind. Notwithstanding that she remains positive and we are adapting to our new life. Most boys with the brutal Duchennes MD rarely live past their teens and need assisted ventilation.
My pilgrimage was cut short when I was making strides towards the final strait to Santiago de Compostela. I had less than 100 miles to walk (in fact only 89 to honour my pledge for Muscular Dystrophy UK) and I was determined to walk the whole way. I was at Ribadeo: the gateway to Galicia. Then tragedy struck as Sarah’s brother Andrew (52-year-old father of 2 teenagers: Isabel's cousins) was admitted to hospital - seriously ill because of a battle between underling lymphocytic leukaemia and Covid 19. He was in a critical condition so I flew home from Coruna. I am now walking in UK. Sarah is with her brother and although he is still in her hospital he is improving slowly. I believe prayers are making a difference. This is a painful time for our family and I greatly appreciate the support of my wider family: our church.
Phil has already made a contribution and I am grateful. If anyone else feels willing or able to contribute even a modest amount, the link is below.
The Camino (partial) has changed me and brought me even closer to a unified vision of God’s kingdom on earth. I will talk to you about it after church one day (on a weekend where my work pressures do not strangle me)
Carrying Jesus in our hearts in any given moment and “tuning in” gives us a fearless passport to eternity as described by John 3:16. I’ll let you know what my view is. I have been reading the bible and podcasts voraciously. Living in the now to surrender to love in the name of Jesus Christ so that connections keep growing and growing. As does the love of Christ. Happy to share some photos with you at another time
Walked 14 miles to Clevedon yesterday. Better get back on the tracks. Short walk today. Another 69 miles to go in England. I will have to reach Santiago another time…
God bless,
Kannan
Annual Parish Meeting - 15th May 2022.
The annual Parish Meeting or ACPM will be held after the service on Sunday the 15th May. The meeting will be chaired by Churchwarden, Pete Daly.
Minutes of the 2021 ACPM - Click Here
Agenda for the 2022 APCM - Click Here
Churchwardens Report 2022 - Click Here
Tower Report 2022 - Click Here
Safeguarding Report for 2022 - Click Here
Deanery Synod Report - Click Here
Fr Steve Hawkins!
Just had this text from Fr Steve; it reads:-
"Hi guys. I'm out of theatre and back in my room. Bit groggy and painful. Apparently I sang them a shanty when I was coming to in the recovery room and recited Newton's equations of motion!
Love to everyone at Holy Nativity!"
That's great news!!
Pete and Phil
Fr Steve Hawkins.
An update from our much loved retired Parish Priest. Fr Steve is going into the Nuffield Hospital tomorrow for his other knee to be fixed. His operation is scheduled for 12:00 noon so please keep Fr Steve in your prayers tonight and tomorrow.
Fr Steve was a spirited Prop Forward in his Rugby playing days and this inevitably causes problems later in life.
We wish him all the very best for the operation and a speedy recovery!
The Churchwardens, Pete and Phil.
GOOD FRIDAY 2:00pm Service.
HEATING UPDATE
The contractors have been on site today and we are pleased to say that the system is again water tight. The entire system needs testing but that is being undertaken on Thursday. It is therefore hoped that a warm church is the outcome for Mothering Sunday.
The Churchwardens.
KATHY GIBBS
Our Director of Music, Kathy has tested positive for COVID and will be self isolating until a clear result is obtained and then will be 5 days before she can return to work. We wish her all the very best and she will be included in the prayers for next Sunday and we all hope that you feel better soon.
The Churchwardens.
Our candle for Ukraine.
This candle is lit every Tuesday and Sunday as a reminder of our brothers and sisters in that country. They are in our prayers and we hope that this war will soon end.
The Churchwardens
Many very many thanks to the Archdeacon of Bristol, Fr Neil Warwick for coming to Holy Nativity and celebrating Ash Wednesday. He has given permission to post the Gospel and his Sermon on our Facebook page for which we are very grateful.
Gospel Reading for Ash Wednesday
John 8:1-11
while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, sir.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’
Sermon – Ash Wednesday 2022 – Holy Nativity – John 8. 1-11
In a few moments we will receive the mark of the cross on our foreheads.
In our lives we receive and carry many different types of marks. Some marks are visible and recall a certain time or event in our lives. A good example of this are the scars that we carry. As a warm up exercise for a group I was facilitating last year I said, ‘turn to your neighbour and describe to them your favourite scar.’ The room became a hubbub of people pointing to their knee or arm; their eyebrow or hand…and telling the story of how they got that scar and why it was there favourite.
Mine – if you’re wondering – are the scars on both knees I got as I tripped age 6 whilst running with a stick and I could hear my mother shouting, ‘don’t run with that stick.’
One lady said it was the scar for her c-section.
We can also carry marks on our body that are reminders of tough and/or sad times.
And we know we all carry marks inside – made by life’s ups and downs – that we know about and yet are invisible to others. Hurts, guilt, shame, joys, hopes, fears…
In our Gospel there were marks that could have been and marks that were actually made – seen and unseen.
Had the Scribes and the Pharisees been able to throw their stones, the woman’s body would have been covered in bruised and bloody marks.
As Jesus paused he bent down and made a mark with his finger on the ground – twice. And he challenged the crowd ‘let anyone among you that is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her’.
Then marks were made in the ground as one by one people dropped their stones and walked away.
Then the woman left un-condemned, forgiven and with the command, ‘do not sin again’.
She walked away with a mark on her very soul having encountered the forgiveness and grace of the living God, Jesus Christ our Lord.
And in a few moments we receive the mark that makes that forgiveness and grace possible for us – the sign of the cross. The cross marked Jesus – and Thomas demanded to see those marks to believe that Jesus had risen.
The cross is the place where we can pray:
Holy God,
our lives are laid open before you:
rescue us from the chaos of sin
and through the death of your Son
bring us healing and make us whole
in Jesus Christ our Lord
Amen.
As we approach the cross this Lent, let us go with all our marks – seen and unseen – let us share it all with Christ and know – as with the woman in our Gospel account – if we confess and are sincere in our confession that Christ has died and risen for us, he loves us, forgives us and says, ‘Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’
Amen
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER
(A WOMEN LED, GLOBAL, ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT)
Press Release
“I KNOW THE PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU”
2022 is a special year for World Day of Prayer in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This year, we have prepared the World Day of Prayer service. It has been both challenging and rewarding to write about the three countries that make up our area: our landscape, people and culture all shaped by our history. We celebrate our diversity and the contribution made to our countries by the many groups and individuals who have made their home here. We use our Bible text “I know the plans I have for you” from Jeremiah to reflect on some of the issues facing us today: poverty, domestic abuse and disability, finding hope in difficult situations and encouragement in the help we can give to each other.
World Day of Prayer is an international ecumenical organisation which enables women all over the world to share the ideas and concerns of the writing country. Preparation for the day has taken several years. Our International Committee based in New York coordinates the work of National Committees and facilitates the creation of our annual World Day of Prayer service on the first Friday in March. The service out-line, created by the writing country, is distributed to the rest of the world, along with a Bible reflection, country background and children’s and -for the first time -young people’s activities.
All this work will come to fruition on Friday 4March 2022 when services will take place beginning in Samoa and moving on through New Zealand and Australia, across Asia, Africa and Europe and finally the United States and South America before finishing in American Samoa. Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland services will take place in large urban centres, such as Central Hall Westminster, and in remote village churches. We will use modern technology to reach those unable to access a service but hope to be able to extend a welcome and hospitality once released from lockdown.
For further information and resources, together with details of services in your area, see the WDP website: wwdp.org.uk
The local service this year is at Totterdown Baptist Church on the 4th March at 1:30pm.
ASH WEDNESDAY 2nd March.
We welcome the Archdeacon of Bristol Fr Neil Warwick to Holy Nativity to celebrate the start of Lent 2022. The service includes the imposition of ashes and starts at 7:30pm. Please make every effort to attend.
The Churchwardens
NEXT SUNDAY 2nd Before LENT.
The Bishop of Lewes, Bishop Will Hazlewood will be with us!
Please note that + Will is in Bristol next Sunday and we asked him if he would kindly come and preside and preach at Holy Nativity. He readily agreed as you may be aware + Will served his title here as our Curate.
It would be very good if we could have a good congregation for next Sunday so we hope that as many as can attend will make every effort to do so. It will be very good occasion we are sure.
The Churchwardens.
FUNERAL NOTICE
Bernard Glover Coombs
1st April 1937 - 2nd February 2022.
DATE AND TIME
Monday 21st February 2022, 11:30am.
ADDRESS
St Dunstan's Catholic Church, Bristol Road, Keynsham, Bristol, BS31 2BQ.
May he rest in peace.
VACANCY LATEST
At the beginning of February the Churchwardens welcomed the Archdeacon of Bristol, the Area Dean and the Bristol Representative of the See of Ebbsfleet here. Our visitors were impressed with Phil’s work in finding priests to cover our Parish Mass, and of our ongoing outreach with activities such as the food bank collection and art trail involvement. The central message we received back was to ‘remain faithful, remain focussed and remain patient’, as our vacancy will last longer than first envisaged. We pray that this is positive news for the next stage of our church life.
Our special status as an Ebbsfleet parish means that Catholic societies may provide tangible support for us going forward. The wardens have made clear their desire for growth in our parish community, and for a priestly settlement that best facilitates this. Discussions are ongoing as to what this might look like.
In the meantime we, the faithful of Holy Nativity, need to start focussing on a mission plan in preparation for the arrival of our next parish priest – further details on this will follow.
The Churchwardens
LENT COURSE 2022:
You may already be well advanced in the arrangements for keeping Lent in prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Familiar devotions, such as the Stations of the Cross, are a welcome discipline, as is the offer of a Lent book.
Bishop Martin and Bishop Will are offering an online Lent Course entitled, In the Comfort of the Holy Spirit. It is available on the See of Ebbsfleet website now, and each of the five sessions can be downloaded and printed as a separate pdf file.
We will also make it available on the Holy Nativity website HERE.
Dedication of Holy Nativity.
25th January 1958 making it 64 years to the day when The Church was rededicated after being rebuilt after being destroyed in 1940. The photo below is of that service at 3:00pm on the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul.
The Baptism of the Lord, Sunday 9th January.
Apologies in advance but we are unable to live-stream the service from Holy Nativity on Sunday morning. This is due to Churchwarden Phil Goodfellow contracting Shingles over the weekend. NHS 111 has advised staying away for a while until the infection subsides.
The Churchwardens.
Sunday 2nd January 2022
THE EPIPHANY of the LORD & HOLY BAPTISM
We are very pleased to be able welcome Fr Chris Kinch back to Holy Nativity for this important service. We also have the pleasure of Baptising Joshua Michael Bridge on that morning as well. One not to be missed and we look forward to seeing you all there for this service.
The Churchwardens
Festive Spirit to blame?
This graffiti has appeared on the South Wall of the church over the Christmas break. Clearly the work of an intellectual heavyweight the Churchwardens have contacted Bristol City Council for the "Removal Squad" to do their stuff. Bristol is fast becoming covered in meaningless spray painted rubbish we are afraid.
Christmas Day Mass at Holy Nativity.
Our sincere thanks to Fr Stephen Spencer from St Mary Redcliffe for standing in this morning a delivering a wonderful Mass. He was assisted this morning by Abigail Sleight on her first time behind the lectern who also did wonderfully.
The Churchwardens.
CHRISTMAS SERVICES
Due entirely to clergy cover issues this year will be considerably curtail in what we can and not cover.
Christmas Eve – there is no Crib Service this year or Midnight Mass.
Christmas Day – there is one Mass – Mass of the Day which will be held as normal at 10:00am. The President and Preacher is Fr Stephen Spencer who is placed at St Mary Redcliffe but has agreed to help us with this most important service. Fr Stephen will be assisted by Abigail Sleight.
St Stephens’ Day (26th December) – there is no Mass today.
Christmas 2 – Sunday 2nd January. 10:00am with Fr Chris Kinch which will also include a Baptism.
Thanks for your understanding and forbearance during these challenging times.
The Churchwardens.
Bishop of Chichester says Mass at Holy Nat.
Bishop Martin had asked to have a meeting with Ebbsfleet priests after the resignation of Bishop Jonathan and chose Holy Nativity as the venue. We celebrated Mass at 10:00am and then after coffee the priests present had an hour long meeting. Thanks to Stephen Watts, John Chamberlain (pictured) and Mary Goodfellow for making the arrangements. 
James Nash, RIP
We have been advised that James’ funeral will be on Friday 17th December 2021 at 12:00 noon. It will be held at St Augustine’s Church in Downend. The service will take the form of a Requiem Mass.
Parish Magazine for December 2021 published.
The Parish magazine for December has been published and can be found here. Any member of the congregation that would like to produce articles for the magazine would be most welcome to do so.
Editor
ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS CARD:
The Alternative Christmas Card will be available at the back of the Church from Sunday 5th December. Instead of giving lots of individual cards to Church friends this enables you to sign the card and make a donation to our chosen charity which this year is The Matthew Tree Project. This is the Foodbank that we collect produce for on an ongoing basis. Thanks again to John Chamberlain for organising this.
James Nash - RIP
We are sorry to relate that James Nash died this morning after a battle with cancer. We were able to offer prayers this morning for the departed but ask that you all keep the whole Nash family in your personal prayers.
Rest eternal grant unto him O Lord and let light perpetual shine on him. May he rest in peace.
The Churchwardens
Mike Hodge - RIP
Mike Hodge's funeral is on Friday 3rd December at 12:00 noon and will be held at Cannington Parish Church.
Remembrance Sunday – 14th November.
Very many thanks to Fr Robert Ward for singing the Mass this morning and for a minute perfect act of remembrance. We hope to see Fr Robert at Holy Nativity again and would like to thank Bishop Viv for allowing Fr Robert to officiate this morning.
The Churchwardens.
Fr Steve's final morning prayer.
Fr Steve begins his retirement on his birthday which is the 19th October. Thanks for your ministry among us and thanks for being there when we needed you. Have a long, heathy and happy retirement!!
Churchwarden Pete Daly's comments to Fr Steve before presenting him with his farewell present at his final Mass this morning.
The story at the end of Fr Steve’s sermon reminds me of that joke about the parish priest on his final Sunday taking his leave of the longest-serving parishioner, who tells him that his successor won’t be as good. “I’m sure that’s not true” he replies, and she snaps back, “Oh yes it is: I have been coming here for sixty years and every vicar has been worse than the last”. That is certainly not true here at Holy Nativity, where we are used to having great priests.
We know that Fr Steve is a music lover and a keen singer of old British songs. I think our feelings this morning can be best summed up by tweaking the title of a WW1 recruiting hit: ‘Oh we don’t want to lose you, but we know you have to go’.
It would be a bit unfair to suggest that Fr Steve has had more comebacks than Frank Sinatra, but we at Holy Nativity have huge reason to be grateful that you came out of (an admittedly early) retirement to minister to us here, a church that we know you love, from all that you have said and have done here.
We have been truly blessed by your being our parish priest: in celebrating Mass and administering the sacraments, in nurturing our devotional life, in your care and concern for us as individuals, in your preaching, and your sound teaching. And, in responding so pastorally to recent lockdowns, ensuring – along with Phil and Nick – that we had online access to the sacred liturgy and could join together as a Christian family when our church building had to be closed.
We will remember with great affection your highly-organised style, your anecdotes, always told so succinctly, and your regular updates on the fortunes of Bristol Rovers.
But the clock has ticked on and it is now sadly time for you to retire once again. We believe that you will remember us just as we remember you, and to aid you in that I present, on behalf of the whole parish, a small token of our love and esteem. In doing so we ask just three things of you: that you don’t lose touch with us completely; that you have a very happy 70th birthday this week; and that you enjoy a long, healthy and active retirement. From all of us at Holy Nativity, thank you so very much, and God bless.
Fr Steve Hawkins – Final Sunday – 17th October
As most of you know Fr Steve is retiring on the 19th October, his 70th Birthday. We will be hoping that a number of you will be able to say goodbye as he celebrates his final Mass at Holy Nativity where he has ministered for four years. We will be making a presentation of a farewell gift to him from the parish and intend to have drinks and nibbles after the service at the back of church. We look forward to seeing you all on Sunday morning.
The Churchwardens.
Pete Daly is the new Churchwarden of Holy Nativity.
This afternoon Pete Daly was admitted as Churchwarden at Holy Nativity by the Archdeacon of Bristol, Fr Neil Warwick , in a short ceremony in St Stephens Chapel. The picture shows, right to left, Pete Daly, Fr Neil and Phil Goodfellow.
As we approach Fr Steve's retirement date having a full team to work the vacancy process is very important.
Many congratulations Pete! 
Ebbsfleet arrangements - latest news.
The Society's Council of Bishops is grateful to the Archbishop of Canterbury for acting swiftly to put arrangements in place for the See of Ebbsfleet for episcopal cover during the period in which a permanent appointment will be made.
Cover will come from serving Society bishops in the southern province and also from the Chairman of the Council. It is envisaged that, in general terms, the Bishop of Lewes and the Bishop of Chichester will cover the South West area of the See of Ebbsfleet, the Bishop of Richborough and the Bishop of Fulham will cover the South Midlands area of the See and the Bishop of Wakefield will cover the West Midlands.
The Society bishops are grateful to Catherine Williamson for agreeing to act as a first point of contact for Ebbsfleet parishes when a need for episcopal cover arises. Catherine can be contacted via office@ebbsfleet.org.uk.
We suggest that Society priests celebrating Mass in the See of Ebbsfleet should pray for "Bishop Tony and the Council of Bishops" during the Canon of the Mass, should it be their custom to include such prayers. This will reflect the nature of the episcopal cover being provided by a number of Society bishops.
New Heating System has been finished.
The new heating system has been finished and fully tested and is ready to be handed over.
Please see the New Heating System page for more information. Click here.
THE ELLACOMBE CHIMES AT HOLY NATIVITY
When Revd Henry Thomas Ellacombe took up his post as curate at St Mary’s Church in Bitton in 1817, he decided he needed an alternative to the local bell ringers due to their wayward behaviour. In 1821 he created the ‘Ellacombe Chimes’ which meant that, for the first time, the bells could be operated by only one trusted person using a set of pulleys in the church porch.
His invention was subsequently adopted by churches around the world including here at Holy Nativity. There are known to be over 400 Ellacombe chimes in working order in the UK and at least 40 in the other parts of the world. Thanks to our Tower Captain Trevor King the chimes have come into their own particularly in the past year due to Covid-19 restrictions.
ON 26th JUNE CHURCHES AROUND THE WORLD WILL MARK THE 200th ANNIVERSARY OF THE ELLACOMBE CHIMES.
This will involve bells chiming at noon local time in each of the world’s major time zones, beginning with Timaru in New Zealand (11pm BST on 25th June). Over the next 17 hours, the bells will work their way across the world, arriving at their birthplace at Holy Nativity and St Mary’s, Bitton, at noon BST on 26th June. The event will then cross the Atlantic and be heard across the Americas, finishing in Vancouver, British Columbia. We are proud to say that, thanks to Trevor, we will be playing our part in this historic event.
Click here to see the proof which will appear in the booklet.
Holy Nativity Boiler Installation.
The installation starts on the 14th June and we are trying to organise a working party for 8th June to move the rubbish that is in the way of the contractors. The TCCW staff will be able to assist and I was hoping that Holy Nativity people could come along and help. We are planning to start at 09:00 on the 8th and we will be finished before 15:30. Tuesday 8th June at 09:00. Please let me know if you can assist phil@goodfellow.org.uk or 07733 111 800.
The Church Wardens.
Scout Hut Site new houses close to completion.
The site of the old Scout Hut at the back of the church was sold off about 6 years ago for the development of housing. The town houses are nearing completion and are looking very special indeed. Local councillor and one time Scout Leader, Chris Davis has got permission for a small plaque stating that the ground was where Fr Atchley, in the 1930's had paid for the erection of a Scout Hut for the Holy Nativity Scouts.
Kathy Gibbs - 36 years as Holy Nativity's Director of Music.
Congratulations to Kathy for completing 36 years today as Organist and Choirmaster at Holy Nativity Church, Knowle, Bristol. Sadly with Covid we are all missing the organ. 
Holy Communion (BCP) Sheet available.
This booklet has been produced for people who attend the Live streamed Wednesday Mass which is in traditional language and uses the Book of Common Prayer (BCP).
Holy Communion BCP Sheet.
Morning and Evening Prayer booklets available.
Two new booklets are available to download to assist in saying Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer. They are in PDF format and can be printed out as a guide to saying these important services. They are below:-
Morning Prayer
Evening Prayer
New Heating System for Holy Nativity
After 60+ years the PCC has agreed to change the out-dated and expensive heating system to a modern gas powered arrangement. The PCC have engaged UES, a local company to do the work and are hoping to start the contract in May 2021. Tim Clarke, the contracts manager with UES said, "This project is a challenge but we are confident that significant savings will result." Churchwardens Trevor King and Phil Goodfellow are acting as project managers for the church. Two high performance boilers will be installed and will be thermostatically controlled as well as remotely configurable via the internet, This will reduce our outgoing on Gas Oil, of over £9,000 per year quite considerably.