All Saints Margaret Street.

Dear Friend,

Trinity 13

On Monday we celebrated Our Lady’s Assumption with not only a joyous High Mass, as in years past, but also with a street procession. This is only the second time we’ve walked the procession, which honours the Mother of God while also bearing witness to the busy crowds that something other than shopping happens on and around Oxford Street. We hope it also suggests to them that, wherever they live, they might seek out a church where they can find the gospel, the sacraments and a warm welcome.

Thanks to the Incumbent and Sacristan of St Magnus the Martyr we had a splendid statue of Our Lady of Walsingham borne on a litter which somehow evoked both continental excess and English restraint (beautifully enhanced by Jean Casteldine’s flowers). A very effective team distributed leaflets explaining the procession and drawing attention to the plight of Christians in Syria and Iraq. We weren’t sure how well this would work on a Monday evening, but the numbers were pleasingly larger than last year (when the Mass was at noon on a Saturday) and having lustily sung our way round most of our small parish boundary we concluded with the Salve Regina before our own distinctive statue in church. Following the lead of our Jesuit friends in Mayfair (who call their major statue of Our Lady after their street address) I think we should begin to refer to her as Our Lady of Margaret Street. Wine and food were shared at some length in the courtyard, for which thanks are due to the catering group, as they are to stewards, servers, musicians, sidespeople and everyone else who took part.

Both Fr Alan and I have noticed that since the murder of Fr Hamel in his little church near Rouen there has been a marked increase of friendliness on the streets around here to the presence of a clerical collar. We have both had more conversations than usual which indicate that people are glad to know that the church is here and open. There was a warm reaction from a great number of those who saw the procession on Monday (and some people joined it and came into church at the end). It is not always easy to know how best to witness to our faith, but it is noticeable how many people welcome the invitation when it is joyfully and generously offered. The parable of the sower comes to mind: we cannot know the fruit that will grow, but we are called to emulate the Lord in sowing the seed in any way we can. If this is what we do well, then we should make it easy for people to know we are here, and that our faith matters to us. Let’s pray that it will be an even bigger celebration next year. May our Lady pray for our parish and our city and for all who find their way into All Saints, however they are gathered in.

Yours in Christ,

Fr Michael Bowie, 

Assistant Priest
All Saints Margaret Street  

Please pray for those who have asked for our prayers: Asia Bibi, Alixe Bainbridge-Spring, Peter Brentnall and family, Br. Michael OSB, James Cary-Elwes, Fr Andrew Davis, Mark Dougly, Kate Down, Maureen Fellows, David Fettke, Ghislain Hamelin, Lewis Harvey, Gwyneth Hopkins, Maria Keen, David Kennett, Raymond King, Andrew Laird, Tom Leader, Miriam Nelson, Fr. Robert Norwood, Oliver Orr, David Pearce, Agnes Poitevin-Navarre, Canon John Rees, Bill Rodger, Bishop John Salt, Alma Sheard, Dorothy Skidmore, Stella and Helen Skinner, Rose Stephens,  Judy Stewart, Tony Tomlin, Christine van Dyck, Lynn Van Keulen, Robert Walmsley, Jenny Ward & Baby Emily and Joy Wright. 

For the recently departed:  Alice Harford, Jacques Hamel (priest), Darlene Horton,  Gus Bialick, John Barnes (Priest), Cynthia Drury and Michael Hartley.

Remember past priests, benefactors, friends, and all whose year’s mind occurs this week including:  George Jeynes, Leroy Lawes, Marion Ginger, Elsie Faithfull, John Hawkins (Priest), Patricia Jones, Peter Vickers, Mary King, David Harris (Priest), Linda Clark, Irene Harford, Elvira Dibley, Robert Corbin (Priest), Ellen Noble, Lucy Cook and Dawn Hart.

For full service information: www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk.

WORSHIP THIS WEEK:

SUNDAY 21 AUGUST, TRINITY 13

HIGH MASS, 11am
Preacher: Fr Michael Bowie
Missa Brevior – James Sherwood
O mes très chers frères (from Quatre petites prières
de Saint François d’Assise) – Poulenc

There is no Sunday lunch service today.

EVENSONG & BENEDICTION, 6pm
Preacher: Fr Victor Stock
Sumsion in G
I will lift up mine eyes – Walter

WORSHIP NEXT WEEK:

SUNDAY 28 AUGUST, TRINITY 14 
HIGH MASS, 11am
Preacher: Fr Michael Bowie
Missa Brevis – Britten
Ave Maria – Timothy Byram-Wigfield 

EVENSONG & BENEDICTION, 6pm
Preacher: Fr Julian Browning
Byram-Wigfield in E   
Tota pulchra es, Maria – Duruflé

PARISH NOTICES 
Thank you to everyone who assisted in the advance preparations, promotion for, running of the Feast of the Assumption High Mass and Procession, and post Mass refreshments, last Monday 15 August.

We were even more successful than when the occasion fell on a Saturday in 2015, with some 175 attendees drawn from far and wide. The impact of the procession on Oxford Street and within the parish on a beautiful sunny Summer evening was significant. Look out for the photographs on Facebook and on the front cover of the September edition Parish Paper.

Please Note: The date of the 2017 Parish Retreat in Ely has been changed. The new date for the 2017 Retreat will be 19-21 May, replacing 24-26 March. If you already have this event in your diary with the previously published dates, please update now. Please contact Martin Woolley if you have any queries about the Retreat.

NEW STOCKS OF CHRISTMAS CARDS FOR ALL SAINTS
We now have a large number of photographs taken of the Church and special services over the last couple of years. We have been working with the expertise of congregation member Judith Mather of the National Gallery to select the best images and arrange for high quality/reasonable cost reproduction. We hope to have the new card designs available in early September. If you know that you might want to use these, subject to final image/price, perhaps you would let Dee Prior in the Parish Office (Tel: 020 7 636 1788 or e-mail: astsmgtst@aol.com) know of your interest to help us to decide on the number we might want to print.

VICAR’S FUNDRAISING PILGRIMAGE – SPONSORSHIP MONIES RECEIVED NOW UP TO £14,512 – Please send in any last cheques so we can finalise the collection of Gift Aid.

Fr. Alan completed 566.5 km of his fundraising walking pilgrimage before knee injury called a halt to his heroic endeavours. If you have/would like to sponsor him and help achieve his target of £20k for the Diocese of London’s projects for persecuted Christians in Iraq and Syria, please send cheques to: PAROCHIAL CHURCH ALL SAINTS, Parish Office, All Saints, 7 Margaret Street, London W1W 8JG. We will process gift aid and forward funds to the Bishop of London’s Lent Appeal 2016. Donations received to date (with applicable Gift Aid) total £14,512 – please help to close the gap with the target.
 

PILGRIMAGE TO ITALY IN 2018

Fr Gerald Beauchamp and Fr Michael Bowie are planning a pilgrimage to Italy in May 2018. Ideas so far include Assisi and Loreto. There will be a meeting on Tuesday 18 October, 7.15pm in the All Saints Margaret Street Parish Room (off the courtyard) to look at possibilities. All welcome.
If you would like to come in 2018 but are unable to attend the meeting please register your interest with Fr Gerald (gerald.beauch@btconnect.com). Thank you.

Saturday 10 September 11.30am
WALSINGHAM DEVOTIONS followed by 12 NOON MASS at All Saints. All welcome. 

ALL SAINTS’ NEXT ORGAN RECITAL Sunday 18 September, 7.15pm (following Evensong & Benediction) 
CHARLES ANDREWS, Associate Director of Music, All Saints. 
Programme details to follow.  

SERVICES & EVENTS FOR AUGUST and SEPTEMBER 2016 BEYOND ALL SAINTS

COMPLINE at ST CYPRIAN’S – coming up Thursday 25 August, 9pm
Compline is a service of evening prayers forming part of the Divine Office of the Western Christian Church, traditionally said (or chanted) before retiring for the night. It is planned to recite the office of Compline at St Cyprian’s on the last Thursday of each month at 9pm. It is a short, reflective service, comprising psalms, prayers and a hymn, said or sung. We will observe silence before and after the service, which we hold in the choir, in candlelight and the minimum of artificial light. Laypersons will lead compline, and all are welcome. The date for the next service will be Thursday 25 August.

ST CYPRIAN’S Clarence Gate, NW1 6AX
Saturday 3 September 3pm 
CHORAL EVENING PRAYER & BENEDICTION 
Responses: Ayleward
Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis: Stanford in G
Anthem: Bairstow – Save us O Lord
With the S^t. Cyprian’s Singers directed by Julian Collings.

WEST LONDON SYNAGOGUE EVENT – MIDWIVES OF FREEDOM
Sunday 4 September, 3pm
West London Synagogue, 33 Seymour Place, London W1H 5AU
Churches Together in Westminster have asked us to publicise a wonderful storytelling event being held to celebrate the European Days of Jewish Culture and Heritage. The organisers say: “There will be two captivating story tellers coming to delve into the shared Jewish and Muslim stories of the women surrounding Moshe/Moses/Musa, in their show ‘Midwives of Freedom’. This is a fantastic performance and it is truly a delight to have Adele Moss and Jumana Moon joining us. As well as the storytelling we will also be providing an exquisite afternoon tea and a guided tour of West London Synagogue.”
Booking essential: RSVP to alex.cameron@wls.org.uk so that they can ensure enough cakes are provided! The West London Synagogue looks forward to seeing you in September.

ACCIDENTAL SAINTS: FINDING GOD IN ALL THE WRONG PEOPLE
ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL, Tuesday 6th September, 6:30-8pm
Nadia Bolz-Weber and Richard Coles are two of the freshest voices in contemporary Christianity and will reflect on what being a saint might mean in the 21st century. To register for free places, please go to www.stpaul.co.uk/adultlearning. Admission is free.

ST CYPRIAN’S FESTIVAL WEEKEND
St Cyprian’s Church, Glentworth Street, NW1 6AX

Thursday 15 September, 7.30pm High Mass 
Preacher: Ven Luke Miller, Archdeacon of London

Friday 16 September, 6.30pm Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas performed by Francis Holland School

Saturday 17 September, 7pm Quiz Night – Form a team of 6 people or join a team on the night.

Price: £10 per person, to include light refreshments. Contact Chris Self: chris_self@btinternet.com or 020 7723 2938 for more details or to register your team.

Sunday 18 September, 10.30am Parish Mass

ST MARY’S BOURNE STREET TALKS 
One of London’s principal Anglo-Catholic churches, closely connected with the intellectual thought of the Catholic tradition in the Church of England, will be holding a number of lectures in memory of the distinguished personalities who were instrumental in the life of this church. On Thursday 22 September the talk will be by the Right Rev’d and Right Hon the Lord Williams of Oystermouth, former Archbishop of Canterbury on, when his topic will be, ‘The Malines Legacy: a vision for Anglican – Roman catholic dialogue? Admission is free and the lecture will be held in the church.

ALL SAINTS MISSION ACTIVITIES:- 
The charities we had agreed to support through the Lent Appeal 2016 (and including applicable Gift Aid) received the following sums:-  

Marylebone Project – £2,666.67 – emergency refuge and rehoming project for homeless women. 
Us (formerly USPG) – £2,666.67 – work with those experiencing Aids and HIV in Zimbabwe.  
London Diocese Lent Appeal – £2,666.66 – this year supporting Syrian and Iraqi refugees through charities Open Doors and Aid to the Church in Need.  
Thank you to everyone who contributed to this great achievement – a significantly enhanced total collected through the Lent Appeal compared with recent years – of £8,000. 

ONGOING SUPPORT for HOMELESS PEOPLE through: 
MARYLEBONE PROJECT run by the CHURCH ARMY – A Day Centre, Residential and Transitional accommodation provider, re-settlement project and Educational and Training Unit for women. The Emergency Bed Unit – for which we have for some years helped to provide the funds for one of the 4 beds – offers a safe haven and refuge for women escaping domestic violence, financial crisis, sexual exploitation and mental health issues. 

Year Round Support – we also support the Marylebone Resettlement Project with non-perishable food and toiletries or household necessities like cutlery or bed linen/blankets. Thank you to everyone who contributes food and household essentials via the basket in Church or handed in to the Parish Office. Please continue to donate these so we can help more people in need.  

Day-to-day Support – we respond to the needs of homeless people who visit the church, providing luncheon vouchers for the West London Day Centre for rough sleepers who apply to the office and donating £1,000 towards the Soup Kitchen at the American International Church in Tottenham Court Road this year. We also allow individuals, who need a place to shelter or sleep during the day, to rest in the back of the church. We have created an information resource for Church Watchers, giving useful advice to homeless and vulnerable people seeking particular support or services. In the face of a rising tide of homelessness in London, please help us fund and support people in need through our Mission activities. Want to help someone sleeping rough but don’t know how? 
Call Streetlink on 0300 500 0914 and they will get a visit from the local Street Team who can put them in contact with the services they may need. 

FURTHER COMMUNICATIONS OR ASSISTANCE FROM ALL SAINTS MARGARET STREET:- 
* If you would like to encourage others to take an interest in All Saints/keep up with what is happening here, please forward this email on to them, or to people you would like to invite to services or tell them about our websitewww.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk, which has a full colour 360 virtual tour for viewing the wonderfully restored interior of the Church – seewww.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk/history/virtual tour – before a visit or if unable to travel. 

* If you know of others (near or far) who would like to receive this regular update on what’s happening at All Saints please encourage them to sign up for the email on the All Saints website – see the tab News & Events> Weekly Newsletter. 

* If you would like prayers offered at All Saints, please email the Parish Administrator Mrs Dee Prior at: astsmgtst@aol.com. Or make use of the prayer request facility on the website at: www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk/prayer. 

* If you would like any pastoral assistance, please do not hesitate to contact:

The Vicar, Prebendary Alan Moses: alanmoses111@gmail.com. 
Or Assistant Priest Fr Michael Bowie: mnrbowie@gmail.com.

DAILY SERVICES AT ALL SAINTS 
On major weekday feasts, High Mass is sung at 6.30pm 

SUNDAYS in Church 
Low Mass 6.30pm (Saturday), 8am and 5.15pm. Morning Prayer 10.20am
HIGH MASS and SERMON, 11am and   
EVENSONG, SERMON and BENEDICTION, 6pm. 

MONDAY – FRIDAY
Morning Prayer 7.30am
Low Mass – 8am, 1.10pm and 6.30pm
Evening Prayer 6pm
(Except Bank Holidays – 12 noon Mass only)

SATURDAY 
Morning Prayer 7.30am
Low Mass – 12 noon and 6.30pm (First Mass of Sunday) 
Evening Prayer 6pm

Confessions 
A priest is available for confessions/counsel Monday – Friday from 12.30-1pm and at 5.30pm Monday – Saturday, or by appointment. (Special arrangements apply in Lent and for Holy Week.)

www.allsaintsmargaretstreet.org.uk and e-mail: astsmgtst@aol.com