Letter from the VicarDear FriendsAgain I open my letter by expressing heartfelt thanks for such an excellent response to All Saints Day, All Souls Day and Remembrance Sunday. I have been deeply moved by the way in which the Parish has responded to these occasions , as indeed to all the other invitations during the past seven months. The response to the Daily Eucharist and Daily Office (Morning and Evening Prayer) has been outstanding, and I congratulate those who have availed themselves of the opportunity to celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession). You clearly as a Parish Church have every reason to be proud of yourselves, and all I can say from the bottom of my heart is "well done". At the time of writing, we still have the Feast of Christ the King, and our Christmas Bazaar to look forward to. I have taken the opportunity of inviting the congregation from Saint Martin's Barnehurst to join us on the Evening of Christ the King, for Evensong and Benediction. Every Friday morning since the beginning of May, our 9.30am Eucharist has been celebrated in Saint Martins and those of you who have attended have commented on how very welcome you have been made.< /p> Saint Martin's holds a special place in my own life, because it was in their Church and Hall that I attended Nursery school. As a young Priest I took many services in the Church when Canon Albert Spears was the Vicar, and again during a period of Interregnum in the late 1980's, Mr Douglas Maxim was also a great friend to St John's Erith during a fairly long Interregnum when my father was Churchwarden, and on several occasions during the 1970's Douglas and myself shared Choral Evensong in Saint Johns, with one of us singing the office, while the other preached the Sermon<./p> Both Canon Albert Spears, Douglas Maxim and others from Saint Martins Barnehurst have been great friends to Saint Augustine's in the past, particularly during the Incumbancy of the Rev'd Ronald Smith, during periods of Interregnum, and following the Fire. We thank God for these friends, and I know that from my Pastoral visitation of the Parish, I am not alone in saying this. From the point of view of your reading my December letter you might have expected me to have written something about Christmas. I have not forgotten, but it is my intention to visit everyone during December and to bring a Christmas card to the homes of our regular worshippers so as to wish you personally a very Happy Christmas.Neil Bunker 1st December 2004
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The above is the lead article from the parish magazine for December 2004.
Index of the previous magazine articles
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