FROM THE RECTOR: A time for forgiveness…
Lent should be an intensely personal time in terms of our relationship with God. It is a period in the church when the liturgy, hymns and prayers encourage us to look inward, to examine more closely our faith and seek to strengthen it in our understanding of the love of God, and neighbour. To do so properly necessitates a humbling of ourselves before God.
One of those most humbling times of the Church year comes right at the start of Lent at the beginning of the service on Ash Wednesday and the imposition of ashes, which we held a few weeks ago. At this service, as I make the sign of the cross on each person’s forehead, with the ashes I repeat the words: Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return. There is nothing more humbling than publicly recognising our mortality. In that humbling action we are pulled up to recognise the glorious gift of our life, its preciousness and our responsibility to use it best for the good of those around us, the common good, and the glory of God.
Lent does not have to be a time of agonising denial. Instead, it should be a few weeks during which we psychologically step back and look at our lives anew, from a different perspective. In the busyness and clamour of daily life, it is all too easy to lose track of what is important in life. What is important in life is that we have the true confidence to live it fully, and in so doing, be fulfilled and able to assist others to truly live the life they are born to live.
With God’s love and blessing for an enriching and freeing Lent,
Fr David
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Regular church opening and service times
The church is open for public worship and private prayer every Monday to Friday from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm, continuing to maintain God’s physical presence in the City of London.
Our regular services are Choral Mass with sermon on Wednesdays at 1.10 pm, and Said Masses on Tuesdays at 8.10 am and 12.10 pm and Thursdays at 12.10 pm.
MUSIC AT CHORAL SERVICES IN MARCH
Wednesday 4 March in the week of The Second Sunday of Lent. Communion Service in C Wood. God so loved the world Stainer. Fugue XIII Roseingrave
Wednesday 11 March in the week of The Third Sunday of Lent. Mass for three voices Byrd. Verse Tomkins
Wednesday 18 March of The Feast of S Joseph. Missa in honorem Sancti Josephi Peeters. Joseph fili David Feroci. Fugue in G minor, BWV 578 Bach
Wednesday 25 March The Feast of The Annunciation of Our Lord. Missa ‘Dixit Maria’ Hassler. Ave Maria Arcadelt. Ave maris stella de Grigny
LOOKING AHEAD TO HOLY WEEK AT ST BOTOLPH’S
Monday 30 March – Monday in Holy Week – Said Mass at 12.10 pm
Tuesday 31 March – Tuesday in Holy Week – Said Mass at 8.10 am, Said Mass at 12.10 pm
Wednesday 1 April – Wednesday in Holy Week – Said Mass at 8.10 am
Arma Christi – the Instruments of the Passion: choral music and words for Holy Week at 1.10 pm
with St Botolph’s Choir including music by Victoria, Palestrina and Tchaikovsky
Thursday 2 April Maundy Thursday – Choral Mass with Maundy Ceremonies at 1.10 pm with St Botolph’s Choir including music by Victoria and Palestrina
RECTOR’S SABBATICAL
It is customary for priests to be granted a sabbatical, usually three months, roughly every decade of ordained ministry. Fr David will be taking such a sabbatical this year and will not be available, nor be in the parish, from Easter Monday until Monday 6 July (though he will be returning for the Feast of St Botolph at the church on Wednesday 17 June). All Masses and occasional services will be taken by other priests during this period, except the Tuesday 8.10am Mass which will be suspended until September.
THE BELLS OF ST BOTOLPH ON THE BBC
News just in from our Tower Captain, John Adams – St Botolph’s bells were featured in BBC Radio 4’s regular Sunday morning programme ‘Bells on Sunday’ on Sunday 1 March.
You can hear the bells and find out some more about them on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002s2zv