The following activities are taking place each week. All are welcome to join us:
Sundays
- 8am – BCM Communion Service
- 10am – Contemporary Service (Communion service on the first and third Sunday of the month, informal morning praise on the second and fourth Sunday of the month)
Mondays
- 9-9:30am Morning Prayer on Zoom with St Thomas and St Mark’s – Parish Prayer zoom link
- 10:30am-12 – Zoom Study group on Pennington Church general zoom link
Tuesdays
- 9-9:30am Morning Prayer on Zoom with St Thomas and St Mark’s – Parish Prayer zoom link
- 1.30-4pm – Strictly Come Crafting. 2nd & 4th Tuesday at the Community Hall. Contacts Dorothy Davies 01590 676163 or Shirley Saunders 01590 677628
- 2.30-3.45pm – Friendship Teas 1st Tuesday in month at the Community Hall. Contacts Shirley Saunders 01590 677628 or Pat Wright 01590 678416
Wednesdays
- 9-9:30am Morning Prayer on Zoom with St Thomas and St Mark’s – Parish Prayer zoom link
- 10:15-10:30 – Morning Prayer at St Mark’s Church
- 10:30-11am – Coffee at St Mark’s Church
Thursdays
- 9-9:30am Morning Prayer on Zoom with St Thomas and St Mark’s – Parish Prayer zoom link
- 1-2pm – Fareshare Larder – St Mark’s Community Hall Car Park
Fridays
- 9-9:30am – Morning Prayer on Zoom with St Thomas and St Mark’s – Parish Prayer zoom link
Saturdays
- 9-9:30am Parish prayers at St Thomas Church
Preparation for Lent in February 2023
This Lent we are all invited by the Archbishops of York and Canterbury to explore how we can live well with the mess of everyday life.
A new booklet ‘Dust and Glory’ has been produced that encourages us to take a fresh look at the frustrations and failings that every day brings and, rather than pretending we can always avoid them, seek to learn from them and grow closer to God through them.
Upcoming services for your diary
- 22nd February, 7pm – Ash Wednesday
- 5th March, 8am and 10am – Simon Newham, Lyndhurst Area Dean will be leading our morning services
- 19th March, 10am – Mothering Sunday
- 2nd April, 10am – Palm Sunday, a special service lead by the Bishop of Southampton, Debbie Sellin Please note, there is no 8am service on this day
Lent Course with St Thomas
Exploring Prayer, with Justin Welby: Beginning Sunday 26th February, 3.45pm for 4pm in St Thomas’ Hall. Then for another 4 weeks, ending on Sunday 26th March. A series based on videos featuring the Archbishop, and covering: Asking God, Lament, Confession, Thanksgiving and Wonder.
None of us are experts on prayer and all are welcome – so come and learn more together!
Monday Study Group into Lent
Our group is taking a break next week for half term, but we will reconvene on the 20th February from 10:30am to start looking at our Lent Course for this year, based on the booklet Dust and Glory. There is a 2023 lent book available too: it’s entitled Failure by Emma Ineson and our treasurer Teresa can order us some copies but would appreciate payment from group members (unless that would be a problem on the finance front). The cost is £9.10.
The link for the book is here:
If you would like to join the group, do please contact Jane (enquiries@penningtonchurch.uk) and she will be happy to give you more information on our studies.
Please return your palm crosses
As we move from Epiphany and into the weeks leading up into Lent, please can you bring your palm crosses from last year back to church – as we’ll want them back to turn into the ash for the service of ashing on Ash Wednesday! Please ensure you return your cross by the 19th February, and we hope to see you at 7pm on the 22nd for our Communion service with ashing.
Stainer’s Crucifixion, St John’s Church, Boldre
Coming up on Saturday 4th March at 7pm, a performance of Stainer’s Crucifixion by candlelight lead by members of St Nicholas Singers and Choralia Milford – supported by the Nova Foresta Classica Players.
Supporting the Oxfam Ukraine Appeal, tickets are £15 and are available from Oxfam in New Milton – or also available from Leigh Jerwood, our organist here at St Marks (who is also performing on the night!)
Community Hub at Community Hall
Citizens Advice Outreach available for advice. Step Up Safe Space for clothes & toy swap.
Other services will be added based on your feedback of what would help your community.
A warm space in Pennington: St Mark’s Community Hall, Thursdays 2 – 4pm
Volunteers are being sought to help run a possible ‘Warm Space’ at the hall on Thursday afternoons 2 – 4pm during the winter months. Hot drinks and snacks would be available and would be creating a warm space for the community. If you are interested please let Eve or Teresa know who will pass on your details to the organiser.
Parish Administrator position at St Luke’s church, Sway
Our neighbours at St Luke’s in Sway are looking for a new parish administrator and are taking applications now. The closing date is 5pm Friday 17th February 2023.
More details available on their website here: https://www.stlukeschurchsway.org.uk/about/vacancies/church-administrator/
Parish and Giving Update
The St Mark’s PCC recently met with Debbie, the acting Bishop of Winchester regarding the next steps in interegnum for St Mark’s. Within this meeting, we discussed the challenges that face both ourselves, but also our neighbours St Thomas in Lymington.
Lymington will be appointing their incumbant initially with the intention to appoint for St Mark’s following. The intention here being to ensure complementary skill sets across both parishes. St Mark’s have been in suspension (having a ‘priest in charge’) for over a decade, due to a desire from the diocese to see closer ties between St Mark’s and St Thomas’s – with this roadmap for moving out of intergnum in both parishes potentially helping a closer knit between our churches.
During these early days, our church wardens along with St Thomas church wardens are meeting regularly with the area dean. Combined events with St Thomas’s, including prayer groups, and messy church are already seeing combined success across our churches. Our PCC is also engaging with Christians together, Lymington and Pennington – helping our name be known across the wider Christian community.
St Mark’s PCC would welcome your help as we journey forward, with any volunteers who may be able to help in the aspects of our church life. Such as joining teams for parish visiting, events and refreshments or helping with our study groups; we are also wanting to fill a health and safety role – and would welcome any interested individuals to help in this position.
Financially, we are facing challenges as a church as many of our congregation and community likewise see. We are in the unfortunate position of seeing a large increase in our utility costs. With a rise of over 400%, we will be potentially seeing an increase exceeding £8,000 per year over church and hall. Although we appreciate the financial position of our congregation varies, if you are able to support us further now this would be most welcome. Many of our congregation donate through the Parish Giving Scheme; if you do not currently do so, we ask if you would consider starting – this is a great way for us to manage our finances. Alternatively, our weekly envelope scheme is available as an option too; details for both schemes are available from our treasurer and church warden, Teresa.
You may also want to give through alternative methods too, which won’t cost you to do so. For example, supporting us through services such as Amazon Smile or Easy Fundraising is a great way to use services you may already be using: with a percentage of the price you pay coming back to St Mark’s.
Our PCC would love to hear from you if you have any thoughts for how we may save money, or indeed increase finaces into the church. Do speak to any of your PCC members, or email ‘enquiries@penningtonchurch.uk’ with your thoughts – we’d love to hear from you.
Our thanks to all for your support; our church is not a building, it’s the people within it who meet in a common love of Christ – and it’s together that we can move forward.
Monday study group
Our Monday group continues on Monday via Zoom at 10.30am, moving on now to look at Mary – If you would like to join the group, do please contact Jane (enquiries@penningtonchurch.uk) and she will be happy to give you more information on our studies.
Daily Prayer
With St Thomas in Lymington, we continue to ‘pray for our nation, for its leaders, its health and essential services and all those who suffer’ this week at 9am on Zoom. Led by members of St Mark’s and St Thomas congregations, this now runs Monday through Friday.
Daily prayer is also taking place in St Thomas church from 9am on Saturdays
Coming together, we offer daily prayer for the situation in Ukraine.
Please do join them either by computer or phone:
- https://us02web.zoom.us/j/
- Meeting ID: 895 2990 2640 Passcode: 2020
- Dial in from a landline phone: 0131 460 1196
St Mark’s Flower Decoration
If you would like to give flowers to commemorate an anniversary or other special day, or remember a relative or friend, please enter your name on the poster at the back of church against the date you would like your flowers to decorate the church and/or contact:- Lin Haley on 01590 677904
YouTube and Facebook
All our services can be found on our YouTube channel here. We also post details about or services and events on our Facebook page too, here.
Online Connection Information
Zoom Details
- Pennington Church General Zoom link:
- From a landline phone: 0203 481 5240 Meeting ID: 944 5816 8956 Passcode: 1839
- Parish Prayer Zoom Link:
- From a landline phone: 0203 481 5240 Meeting ID: 895 2990 2640 Passcode: 2020
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/PenningtonChurch
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StMarksChurchPennington