Viewing all items in Resource Category: St James The Least of All
The elderly Anglo-Catholic vicar, Eustace, continues his correspondence to Darren, his nephew, a low-church curate recently ordained…
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren I am sorry I was not alive during that wonderful four-year period when Oliver Cromwell abolished Christmas; no Christmas parties, no carol services, no cards to send and no frantic last-minute shopping. That man was a hero. Planning for Christmas at St James’...On the best ways for a vicar to disrupt Christmas
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren Your suggestion that we should hold a sponsored hymn-singing bicycle ride through the village as a way of raising money was well-meant, but I am not wholly convinced it would suit our clientele here at St James the Least of All. You may...On the ferocity of the church’s Bridge drive
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren I am unsurprised that the cleaning lady took exception to you dismantling your motorbike in the church vestry. Clergy vestries are the final repositories of rotting hymn books, ancient cassocks with a certain aroma, buckets with holes in, which are kept “just in...Beware what lurks in the church vestry…
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren I think your idea for both our Confirmation groups getting together for a weekend away – socially distanced, of course – was excellent and our meeting last week drew most of the plans together. We didn’t take any minutes, so let me record...On how to survive a weekend away with the young people
- The Rectory St James the Least My dear Nephew Darren When the churches reopen for public worship (whenever that is!) I hope you will come and take Evensong one Sunday. But, thinking of your visit last August, I would prefer you used the pulpit when preaching. How could Colonel Brockle complete ‘The Times’ crossword and...On the perils of leaving the pulpit
- The Rectory St James the Least My dear Nephew Darren When producing material for your magazine or church services, beware the computer spell-checker. We once let our own system check a Christmas carol sheet and, on the night, found ourselves obliged to sing “away in a manager”, mangers apparently being unknown to our machine. If...Beware the spell-checker on your special service sheets!
- The Rectory St James the Least My dear Nephew Darren Your decision to hold a Summer weekend Arts Festival in church, bringing culture to your inner-city streets, was most commendable. Pity, how it all turned out. The Friday evening started well with the concert of Scott Joplin piano music. Obviously knowing that the pieces were...On why holding an Arts Festival in church is not a good idea
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren It seems that the basics of parish ministry are no longer taught in theological colleges. Don’t you know anything about consulting your diary in public? When you are asked if you are free on a certain date, accepted practice is to open it...On the perils of a Scout camp
- The Rectory St James the Least My dear Nephew Darren Your decision to place a notice board outside your church seems a good one – and its design in blue plastic with luminous red detachable letters seems entirely in keeping with the aesthetics of your building. Make sure that it is lockable, however, as an...On how to run your notice board
- The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren This year, the rigours of Lent have taken second place to a far more pressing matter: the installation of a lavatory at St James the Least of All. Personally, I entirely disapprove of this additional sign of decadence in our moral...On the nonsense of having a lavatory at church
- The Rectory St James the Least My dear Nephew Darren While it was good to see you when you visited us last Sunday, your suggestion to our churchwardens that chairs would be far more comfortable than our pews was not well received. You must remember that significant in any congregation firmly believe that the more...On why pews are better than chairs
- The Rectory St. James the Least My dear Nephew Darren Your idea for our two churches to hold a combined New Year’s Day walk was an admirable one, although I could sense a certain clash of cultures when your party arrived at the starting point with boots, waterproofs and GPS equipment. Our own group, rather...On how to mix town and country – or not