All Saints Margaret Street.

Dear friends,

Christ the Saviour is born!

What a wonderful series of liturgies we have seen at All Saints’ over the past week as we have celebrated the Nativity of Our Lord. I write with a huge sense of gratitude in my heart to all those who have made our celebrations possible.

The music through the whole of Advent and especially over the past week has been breathtaking. I want to thank Stevie, our Director of Music, Jeremiah, our Associate Director, and Tilly our Organ Scholar, along with our whole choir for the wonderful musical feast which they have laid on for us. Their professionalism, endless energy, humour, and skill are so admirable and I am very grateful to them all for a wonderful week. The period from Christmas Eve to Day was a particularly exhausting stretch for them, but they rose to the challenge of three High Masses in 24 hours with Stakhanovite rigour and energy!

Our servers have also shown great dedication and commitment and I am so impressed by the large number of complex liturgies at which we fielded a full serving team – thank you to everyone in the sacristy!

We owe a significant word of thanks to all those who helped prepare for the great liturgies of the past few days in any way: those who organised our live-streaming; constructed the crib; arranged flowers; cleaned and tidied; changed the hangings and frontals. We are particularly grateful to John Forde for the many hours he has dedicated to upkeep and preparation of our building over the past few weeks.

Huge thanks should go to all those who have contributed to hospitality and welcome through the whole of December. Not only have we served refreshments to the many people who worshipped with us over Christmas Eve/Day, but we saw a huge number of people attend carol services at All Saints’ – a total of 11 carol services between Advent Sunday and Christmas Day! I am grateful to all who organised this effort, and especially to Kate, Chris and Janet for their heroic efforts brewing up gallons of mulled wine and serving a total of 1,400 mince pies!

God has used all this hard work on the part of so many to produce a Christmas at which very significant numbers of people have worshipped with us. It has been a joy to see so many newcomers and visitors, tourists and travellers, as well as locals and city workers encountering the Lord in our beautiful church.

A huge number of people have attended a Christmas service of some kind at All Saints’ this year. The time, effort and energy we have put into raising Christmas attendance over the past few years has produced significant fruit. Our total Christmas attendance this year (i.e. all attendance from carol services plus the Masses of Christmas Day added together) is 2836, a significant increase on previous years.

Thanks be to God for this sign of life and vitality in his Church! It is a real accomplishment for our parish to know that such a large group of people have heard the Good News of the Saviour’s birth proclaimed to them here in Margaret Street. I am grateful to everyone who has contributed to this great effort.

Let us give thanks together for all that God has done in our midst over the past week and let us commit ourselves afresh to making the Good News of the Saviour’s birth known to all whom we come into contact with over the coming days. Christ is born and in him we find our salvation and our only hope!

Fr Peter

Changes to service times this week

Please note that there will only be one celebration of the Mass on weekdays next week until New Year’s Day – i.e. there will be no evening Mass on 30th, 31st Dec, or 1st Jan. Our normal Mass pattern resumes on Thursday 2nd January.

This Sunday, 27th December, there will be no 5.15 pm Mass, nor Evensong and Benediction.

Attendance last week

For your prayers

The Friends of All Saints’ Margaret Street:

29th – Pat Philips, Dr Colin Podmore, Nick and Cecilia Powell, Johann Powell, Susan Prain, Vasileios Psomas, Simon Rainey, Heikki Repo
30th – The Sisters of All Saints
31st – Friends of All Saints’ in need
1st – Carlos Remotti-Breton, Dr Steve Rice, John Rick, Fr. Peter Roberts, Hilary Rodger
2nd – Greg Round, Jamie Rundle, Mary Sherred, James Shrimpton
3rd – Ingrid Slaughter, Naomi Slippe, Vaughan Snook, Harvey Solomon-Brady
4th – Richard and Louise Stallwood, Iain Stewart, Madeleine Storer, Ian and Veronica Summers, Colin Symes, Ann Tacchi

The sick:

Bishop Christopher Chessun, David Craig, Tony Hawkins, Fr Harry Hodgetts, Arthur Johnson, Michael Lamprell, Elizabeth Lyon, James Rodger, Fr James Rosenthal, Jan Smith.

The faithful departed:

29th – Katherine Mundy Dn, Brian Lee
30th – Elaine Boyton, Mona Crompton, John Freebairn-Smith, Malcolm Melville Pr, Elizabeth Young
1st – Ethel de Rougement, Trevor Burnett-Brown, Nicholas Luff
2nd – Hugh Glaisyer Pr
3rd – Berdmore Compton Pr (II Vicar of All Saints), Eileen Prior
4th – Henry Howell, John Wylde Pr, Joan Banyard, John Auton
5th – Ernest Waggett, Timothy Shaw, Emily Finnis, Tom Ryder Pr, Mary Park, Constance Tweed

Services this week

Friday 27th December – S. John
12 noon Low Mass

Saturday 28th December – Holy Innocents
12 noon Low Mass
6.30 pm Vigil Mass of Sunday

Sunday 29th December – Feast of the Holy Family
8.30 am Low Mass
11 am Solemn Mass
N.B. There will be no 5.15 pm Mass or Evensong today.

Monday 30th December – of the Christmas octave
12 noon Low Mass

Tuesday 31st December – S. Silvester
12 noon Low Mass

Wednesday 1st January – Mary the Mother of God
12 noon Low Mass

Thursday 2nd January – Ss. Basil & Gregory
12 noon Low Mass
6.30 pm Low Mass

Friday 3rd January – Most Holy Name of Jesus
12 noon Low Mass
6.30 pm Low Mass

Saturday 4th January – Christmas feria
12 noon Low Mass
6.30 pm Vigil Mass of Sunday

Sunday 5th January – Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord
8.30 am Low Mass
11 am High Mass
5.15 pm Low Mass
6.00 pm Epiphany Carol Service & Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament