Services
Sunday 20th December, Advent 4
| 9.30am | Little Gaddesden | Joint Parish Worship | (JR) |
| 9.30 am | Services page | Online Sunday Eucharist | (JR) |
| From 3.00 pm | Services page | Lessons and Carols |
The service will be recorded and made available online on the Services page.
Monday 21st December
| 6.30 pm | Zoom | Little Gaddesden – Carols on the Screen |
Tuesday 22nd December
| Zoom | No Café Zoom for the next two weeks |
The information below for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and 27 December has been superseded – please see the Front Page or the Revised Christmas Services and Notices post.
Thursday 24th December, Christmas Eve
| 2pm – 5pm | Little Gaddesden | Crib Storytelling walk through | (see below) |
| 11.30 pm | Great Gaddesden | Midnight Mass – to help us manage numbers, please pre-book your place with Helene on a_dmin-church@outlook.com | (JR/GM) |
Friday 25th December, Christmas Day
| 8.00 am | Nettleden | BCP Holy Communion | (JR) |
| 9.30 am | On-line | Joint Family Worship | |
| 10.00 am | Little Gaddesden | Singing of carols around the newly planted Christmas tree in the churchyard |
Sunday 27th December, Christmas 1
| 9.30 am | Great Gaddesden | Joint Parish Worship | (JR/GM-pr) |
| 9.30 am | Services page | Online Sunday Eucharist |
Notices
Some of the information below has been superseded – please see the Front Page or the Revised Christmas Services and Notices post.
Coronavirus
Now that the second lockdown has finished, public acts of worship have restarted at our three Parish Churches but online services also continue. See the Services page.
Little Gaddesden Church is open for private prayer at the limited times shown on the Front Page of the website.
Crib Storytelling
Christmas Eve, 2pm – 5pm: Crib Service for Little Gaddesden. Families will be asked to walk through the church listening to the Christmas story and to view the nativity in the sanctuary. Social distancing will be observed and face masks should be worn. A one-way system will be in operation. Please come any time between 2.00pm and 5.00pm.
Midnight Mass, 11.30pm Christmas Eve
Midnight Mass – to help us manage numbers, please pre-book your place with Helene on a_dmin-church@outlook.com. Thank you.
Christmas Day
Christmas Day, 10.00am at Little Gaddesden: Come and sing carols around the newly planted Christmas tree in the churchyard. Wrap up warm and come and join us.
Café Zoom
Tuesday morning’s Coffee and Cake sessions are now online. We are getting together virtually by Zoom on Tuesdays from 10:30am to 12:00noon. Contact Hilary Catchpole at h.catchpole@btinternet.com, preferably a day or so beforehand, to ask for joining details for this week’s Café Zoom. You’ll need to make your own coffee…and bring your own cake!
Wednesday Podcasts
If you feel that The Archers and the Today programme have become a little unbelievable, then you need to listen to something you can truly believe in: The Berkhamsted Team Worship Midweek Podcast! Your chance to opt out of lockdown and escape the vale of tiers for a few contemplative minutes in the middle of the not-very-busy week.
Every Wednesday a ‘podcast’ is published on the Services page. It’s simply a radio programme on the internet, and no more difficult to tune in to than switching on your kitchen radio! The advantage is that you can listen at any time from 10am on Wednesday. After a few days it will then be accessible on the Services Archive page.
The programme is usually 15 to 20 minutes in length. The theme of each programme is centred on festivals and saints’ days in the church calendar. So far, we’ve heard about St Swithun, Mary Magdalene, and Florence Nightingale, amongst others. The Collect for the day, and the appointed Psalm are usually included, along with a Bible reading, before a short homily or contemplation by the Vicar, or one of our Readers. Interesting and challenging music choices are becoming a feature.
Don’t be scared of ‘podcasts’… they are your friend!
POD = ‘programme on demand’… it’s just like catching up with your favourite programme on the BBC iPlayer. If you want to comment or complain about the content, just add your thoughts to the comments section on the Services page of the website.
Jonathan Kempster
Midweek Discussion Group on Zoom
The Midweek Discussion Group meeting via Zoom on Wednesday evenings are now under way.
The sessions start with a general welcome chat to hear how everyone is getting on, then some discussion often centred around a Bible passage, with a short time of prayer at the end. Everyone will be considered to be fully present if they have signed in, but there is no need to say or share anything. You can spend the whole time ‘mute’ if you wish!
There are the usual protocols about confidentiality, as anything shared must be respected as being confidential to the group. All are welcome, but if inviting others please contact Anthony first.
The next ‘meetings’ are as follows:
- 13 January – topic to be decided
- …and thereafter – also to be decided
Sign is at 19.55 hrs and the sessions end at 9.30pm sharp. The Zoom invitation is sent a few days beforehand, usually with some background material.
Please contact Anthony Archer on anthony.archer@bridgewaterassociates.co.uk or 07721 504125 with any questions
Regular Giving
Please remember that the church continues to function with limited services, so we do ask that you continue with your regular financial giving to support the ministry. If you normally give weekly in church, you may like to consider paying direct through your bank account. Click or tap here to visit the Donate Page to find out more.
Pay by Text
We now have the facility to donate to Little Gaddesden church by text. Just text LITTLEGADD plus the amount you want to donate (between £1 and £20) to 70470, for example ‘LITTLEGADD10’ to donate £10.
Texts will cost the amount donated plus one standard rate message.
Do you need any Financial Help?
If you, or anyone you know, is in financial difficulty, the Vicar has access to a hardship fund. Please feel free to contact him in the strictest of confidence on 01442 214898 or at vicar@littlegaddesdenchurch.org.uk.
New Video and Audio Recordings
There are high definition video and high quality audio recordings of this week’s services on the Services Archive page.