The Church Of The Holy Rood      --      Wool, Dorset, U.K.

New Benefice Service Pattern from May 2019

Messy Church on 4th May

Easter Day - Sunday 21st April 2019

The church looks magnificent - so a big 'thank you' to all the people who donated and arranged flowers. You make our ancient building - and the flowers that God creates to go in it - both look truly beautiful.

There is a page showing the flowers on Easter Day with the photos kindly donated by Gill Webb.

Church Without Walls (Spring Edition), our colour magazine-style newsletter, is available in print, free from Church, and reproduced online here (online is environmentally friendly!).

The new Church and Benefice Office is now open - The office email address is woolchurchoffice@gmail.com . The Office is open for people to pop in on Thursday mornings 10am - 12noon. Contact number is 07851 028117.

Inaugural Service for the new Benefice of West Purbeck - Wed 13th March

Holy Rood was full, for the service to inaugurate and celebrate our new benefice which came into being on March 1st. Many people attended from the West Purbeck Benefice churches - Holy Rood, Bere Regis, and Affpuddle - as well as visitors from the adjacent Benefice of The Lulworths, Winfrith Newburgh and Chaldon. Our Archdeacon, Ven. Antony MacRow-Wood, Archdeacon of Dorset, was also present.

At this service, our vicar, Revd Carol Langford, was given her new Licence, as the first Rector and Incumbent of the new Benefice of West Purbeck, by the Bishop of Sherborne, the Right Revd Karen Gorham.

At the same time, Revd Jenny Alidina was Licensed to the new benefice as an Associate Priest.

The Bishop of Sherborne, the Right Revd Karen Gorham, officiated and preached from the Gospel of St John chapter 15 on our need to be part of the True Vine.

A huge thank you to everyone who helped to organise the Inauguration Service and refreshments afterwards last Wednesday.

It was a great start to this next phase of our common life together.

Blessings, Rev Carol

About the New Multi-Parish Benefice of West Purbeck

The following letter was received in February:

Mission and Pastoral Measure 2011

Diocese of Salisbury

Benefice of Bere Regis and Affpuddle with Turnerspuddle and Benefice of Wool and East Stoke

I am pleased to inform you that the Church Commissioners did not receive any objections to the draft scheme to unite the benefice of Wool and East Stoke and the benefice of Bere Regis and Affpuddle with Turnerspuddle. They have informed me that the scheme will be made on 5th Feb, to come into effect 1st March 2019.

I will send a copy of the sealed scheme to interested parties in due course.

With best wishes.

Yours sincerely

Jill Hockham

Pastoral & Patronage Secretary

Diocesan Mission and Pastoral Committee

Our new benefice had therefore finally been approved and was formally brought into being on March 1st. The three PCCs have met together to consider the way that our parishes will work together as we move forward.

Rev Carol writes about The Benefice of West Purbeck

As many of you will be aware, last month we said farewell to Revd Charles and Felicity

at Bere Regis. They have taken off for pastures new as they step out on the next stage

of their pilgrimage together following Charles’ retirement. Although I was away on

leave at the time, Charles and I were in regular contact and I know from him, and from

many of you, that their final day in the benefice was a very good and happy ending to

their time in Bere Regis and Affpuddle. As you will also be aware, although I have been

very much in the background in Bere Regis and Affpuddle up to now, the parishes

resolved, together with Wool and East Stoke, that when Charles retired we should

become a multi-parish benefice of 3 parishes with me as the first incumbent of the new

benefice and a new part-time colleague to join us in due course. A final public

consultation has recently taken place about this and the good news is that this all went

through without a hitch. I take this opportunity to tell you a little about the formation

of the new benefice and some of our hopes and dreams for the future as we set out on

the adventure together.

In order that everyone was clear about where I am coming from, I led a joint PCC

Meeting of the 3 PCCs in January at Bere Regis School to explain and I gave everyone

the opportunity to object/withdraw before the final deadline a week later. I’m pleased

to report that no-one did (!) and that the new benefice, the Benefice of West Purbeck,

lawfully comes into being on 1st March. The Bishop of Sherborne, Rt Revd Karen

Gorham, will officiate at a Service to inaugurate the new benefice at 7pm, Wednesday

13th of March in The Church of the Holy Rood, Wool followed by refreshments in

Wool School. At that Service I will be licensed as the Vicar of the Benefice and the

Ministry Team, lay and ordained, will be licensed to minister across the benefice. We

are delighted that Revd Jenny Alidina will also join us in the team, to be licensed as an

associate priest. Everyone is very welcome to come to that Service, in which all of the

churches will jointly take part, and we very much hope that you will do so.

For a little while now the Churchwardens of Bere Regis and Affpuddle have been busy

working on the Profile for the appointment of our new colleague. I am very grateful to

them for their hard work and dedication as this should mean that we will be able to go

to advert fairly soon after the new benefice is inaugurated. At the current time I am

working with the profile, adding in things that are relevant to the new, wider, benefice

so that before too long we should be ready to move forward. In due course, a new

part-time colleague will be appointed to join the Benefice Team. He or she will be

appointed on a 0.5 stipend basis, working Sunday + 3 days per week. They will be

appointed as an associate priest in the team (most people will simply think of him or

her as ‘the vicar’ in Bere Regis and Affpuddle although strictly speaking this is me) with

the aim that they will minister across the whole team, particularly to work

collaboratively on missional projects, but with a pastoral focus on Bere Regis and

Affpuddle.

At the moment I, together with colleagues from Wool and

the wider deanery, are covering most of the Services at St John the Baptist and St

Laurence churches.

When our new colleague joins us I anticipate that we will continue to work across the

benefice, primarily based in our own areas but probably leading worship in the other

churches at least once each month. There will be some joint benefice services, as

indeed there have already been in Bere Regis and Affpuddle on 5th Sundays, and things

such as marriage and baptism preparation, Lent and Advent courses will also be able to

be done collaboratively. We will aim to grow Lay Worship Leaders, Pastors and

Preachers to share in leadership. In Wool, as you will read in a separate article, we

have recently taken a step of faith and rented an office for church use in the village

D’Urberville Centre. We hope that this will become a hub for Benefice administration

in the future.

One key way that we will attempt to discern God’s mission and how we may join in

with this in order to engage with those at present beyond the church or even on the

fringes of church life, is that we are to participate in a new diocesan project and

become a ‘Thrive Learning Community.’ A group of people, up to 8, from across the

benefice will meet in Blandford with other benefices for 4x2 non-residential days over

a period of two years. Their job will be to consider ways that the church may grow and develop in order to reach out and build God’s Kingdom in this place.

All in all, it is a very exciting time and we look forward to the future with great hope.

There are always things we can do to help and get involved with. If any of what I’ve

mentioned above appeals to you, admin, the Thrive Course, marriage or baptism

preparation courses, leading worship, pastoral care, preaching please don’t be shy but

be in touch; God has roles for us all. Most of all, I ask you to commit the benefice and

this time in our history to prayer. Please pray for all of the Church Wardens, for me

and for the Ministry Team and for the appointment of our new colleague.

God has great plans for us, he will surely do with us more than we can every hope or

imagine.

With every blessing,

Revd Carol

Pancakes!

Well done to Jenny Hunt and the team for the Pancake Event on 5th March.

Much fun was had, delicious pancakes were served and £275 was raised for church funds; a great result!

Save the Bells

A CENTURY OF RINGING TAKES ITS TOLL

We’re very fortunate at Holy Rood to have an enthusiastic team of bell ringers, who

sound out the call to worship every Sunday morning. Four of the six bells at the top of

the tower were originally installed in the 17th and 18th Centuries (the earliest in 1606)

but when in 1907 two more bells were added they were installed inside a massive

cast-iron frame. The complete assembly needs regular attention to ensure that the

ropes, wheels and bearings remain in good condition.

Phil Miles, one of the experienced members of ringers, works tirelessly to keep on top

of maintenance, filling the oil reservoirs, replacing rope, and when necessary fitting a

replacement stay fashioned from a piece of ash - an important safety feature which

prevents the bell turning full circle and carrying a hapless ringer skywards.

The pierced-stone openings of the bell chamber allow the sound to radiate in all

directions …but they also let in the wind and rain, so corrosion of the century-old

ironwork is a constant problem. Phil keeps on top of this, wire brushing and painting

the exposed metal surfaces as required. However, where the ends of the support

girders enter the walls of the tower, it’s impossible to see the condition of the metal or

to apply any protective coating.

At the 5-yearly inspection of the church in 2017, the visiting architect recorded his

concern that the masonry above these girder ends was lifting slightly, possibly due to

corrosion. With that in mind, we recently called in an expert from a Loughborough firm

of bell founders (the only bell foundry left in the country), who spent a couple of hours

climbing around the frame, taking notes but also giving plenty of useful tips. His report

says that the bell fittings are generally in good order, but that the girder-ends are indeed

rusted and need some remedial work which involves removing overlying masonry – not

something we can undertake ourselves.

The foundry has quoted us £6,849 + Vat so total cost is £8,218 for the basic work to

return the bell frame to good order so that it will hopefully last for another 100 years. If

we are able to assist their technician, we can reduce the cost a little – but conversely, if

the girders have been severely weakened, there may be additional costs associated with

welding in steel plates.

Whichever way, the money has to be found to carry out these expensive repairs. We’re

hopeful that grants are available but no doubt some of the cash will have to be raised

within our village community.

Tony Smale

There are more details and pictures about the bells in the Spring 2019 "Church Without Walls" and some historical notes about them on this website, here.

New Church and Benefice Office in the D’Urberville

The Church Office is up and running. Our email address is woolchurchoffice@gmail.com

The Office contact number is 07851 028117. The Office is open for people to pop in on Thursday mornings 10am - 12noon . The Office is open for people to pop in on Thursday mornings 10am-12 noon.

Girls in Fellowship Together (GIFT)

This is a young mums group that meets in term time only at the home of Mrs Pauline Matthews (01929 462128). From 7.30pm until 9pm on the first and third Tuesdays each month. We chat, have tea or coffee and cake. We end with a thought for the day and a prayer. All mums are welcome. Next one 15th January 2019.

Don't forget our midweek services at the D'Urberville . . .

Holy Rood at the D'Urberville Centre Small Hall -  now on both 1st and 3rd Wednesdays, from 10am-12noon - ALL WELCOME

On the first and third Wednesday of each month, Holy Communion is held at 10am in the D'Urberville Centre Small Hall, followed by Coffee/Tea and cake and chat afterwards.

This mid-week opportunity has proved very popular. The D'Urberville Small Hall (entrance is the one on the left looking at the Hall complex from the road)  provides easier access and parking for those with restricted mobility and gives us all, whatever our mobility, the chance of meeting on a mid week morning to share communion (followed by coffee and cake!). There is no charge for the coffee and cake but any donations would help towards the costs, especially as we struggle to pay for the Hall hire.

There is no mid-week Communion in Church but Sunday services all continue as per our usual pattern.

Church Access Reminder

Parking for Sunday services only, has been reinstated by the school for the time being, but access on foot via the School driveway is restricted to those pedestrians actually attending services, and is NOT open to all.

Dogs are not permitted on the school grounds.

Home Groups

There are three home groups at the moment taking place on different days and at different times. This reflects the early church where home groups were the first churches. Although most members are from Holy Rood, they include members of other churches and you don’t need to belong to any church to join in. Groups decide on a focus for their meeting which they follow for about six weeks although each week stands alone. Groups are informal and friendly and a good way to explore and develop your faith. You are welcome to join for a topic that interests you - for one evening or for longer - you don’t have to sign up for life!

Monday, 7.00pm - started again on 7th January, at 23 Hillside Road - for further details contact Judy Hill 01929 462888.

Wednesday, 7.30pm - started again on 9th January - for further details contact John Williams 01929 462146.

Thursday, 2.30pm - starts again on 17th January at 3 Lampton Close. This group meets on the first and third Thursday of the month during term time.. For more information contact John Matthews on 01929 462128.

Recent Events

and Announcements

Holy Rood at the D'Urberville Centre Small Hall now on both 1st and 3rd Wednesdays, from 10am-12noon

On the first and third Wednesday of each month, Holy Communion is held at 10am in the D'Urberville Centre Small Hall, followed by Coffee/Tea and chat afterwards.

The D'Urberville small Hall provides easier access and parking for those with restricted mobility and gives us all whatever our mobility the chance of meeting in mid weeks to share communion followed by coffee and cake. There is no charge for the coffee and cake but any donations would help towards the cost of the Hall hire.

There is no mid-week Communion in Church but Sunday services all continue as per our usual pattern.

Organists Appeal

Do you play the organ or the piano and if so would you be willing to be part of a team? Do you know anyone else that plays? There is an offer of a few basic lessons for anyone with keyboard skills who might like to have a go . Live music is such an intrinsic and valued part of worship. If you can help please let Rev Carol or one of the Church Wardens know! (See CWW Summer 2018 Edition).

Home groups and other Church groups

Monday Homegroup

The Monday group is ongoing, 7.30pm except in school holidays, usually 23 Hillside Road or 1 Vicarage Close.

All welcome, no knowledge required!  - for further details contact Judy Hill 01929 462888.

Wednesday Homegroup

7.30pm on Wednesdays

Contact details:

John Williams tel: 462146

John Underwood tel: 462827.

Thursday Homegroup

Held on Thursdays at 2.30pm at 3 Lampton Close. This group meets on the first and third Thursday of the month during term time.

For more information contact John Matthews on 01929 462128.

The Tea Pot Club

Contact:

GIFT

Girls in Fellowship Together (GIFT) is a young mums group that meets in term time only at the home of Mrs Pauline Matthews 01929 462128. From 7.30pm until 9pm on the first and third Tuesdays each month, we chat, have tea or coffee and cake. We end with a thought for the day and a prayer. All mums are welcome. Next one 9th January 2018

Contact Pauline Matthews (01929 462128)

If you are unwell or know someone who is . . .

Hospital Visiting

If you know of someone in hospital who would appreciate a visit from a representative of Holy Rood Church, do please let us know. We have no way of knowing who is in hospital unless you let us know. It doesn’t matter if they are not regular churchgoers.

Please contact the vicar (01929 462215, or refer to the Contacts page.)

Home Communion for the sick & house bound

If you or anyone you know is unable to come to any of the services, and would like to receive communion at home, please let the vicar (01929 462215) know, and she can arrange for a member of the Pastoral Team to visit.

Prayer Chain

If you have a specific issue that you would like the members of our Prayer Chain to be praying for you on your behalf, please contact Jane Newbury on 462134.

If you would prefer to talk through an issue in more depth or would like someone to visit you, please let the vicar know on (01929 462215).

Community Information and Announcements

SHARE AND CARE -  PHONE NUMBER

07751 968 944

Having only one person to 'man' a landline phone we have had to introduce a mobile. If you want transport ring 07751 968 944 and leave a message - containing your name, your phone number, and a brief summary of your need. Someone will get back to you quite quickly.

Thank you.

Pewsheet delivered direct to your inbox

You can receive the weekly pewsheet and quarterly "Church Without Walls" direct to you by email each week/month.

Please contact Jenny Hunt on THESKYPILOT [at*] sky.com if you wish to be added to the mailing list.

Information for the pewsheet

Please send to holyroodpewsheet [at*] hotmail.com by the preceding Monday for inclusion.

 *You need to replace the [at*] by @ in the addresses above and remove any spaces.

Thank you to all those who plan their giving towards the work of God’s Church. This really does help to structure the church budget in order to better prepare for and plan our mission in this place. You can give even more efficiently by Gift Aid if you are a taxpayer.

Please also consider setting up a Standing Order with your bank which again is more cost effective by saving on the cost of envelopes. Many of you did that last year and so we have been able to further reduce the number of envelopes needed. So those of you looking for your envelope will notice that your number may well have changed.

If you require further details about Gift Aid or paying through the bank or have any other questions then please do not hesitate to speak to Chris Corteen or contact her on tel. 462642.

Details of forthcoming Services

Are to be found above and also in the Quarterly Bulletin, "Church Without Walls", here.

Help us clean the church throughout the year

Please consider giving an hour to help clean the church. Currently it works out about once a month but the more that help the less often it will be. Cleaning can be done at your convenience as long as we have a clean church on Sunday.

Please, please help; contact Sue Burroughs, tel. 01929 463803 or email sue@whomwah.com for more details.

Wanted - School Governors

There are currently three vacancies for Foundation Governors at Wool CE VA Primary School. Governors play an important role in the management of the school, supporting the Head Teachers, staff and pupils. They need to be able to attend 4 governing body meetings, sub-committee meetings and spend additional time in school, during school hours and supporting events outside of the school day too. It is stimulating and rewarding.

Foundation Governors need to be communicant members of the Church of England or another Christian church. We particularly need parents of children attending the school.

For contact details during the vacancy please refer to the Contacts page.

Share and Care needs Helpers

Share and Care is in desperate of volunteer drivers and a telephone Link person. If you are interested and would like to know more please contact Bridget on 01929 463835.

Church Maintenance

There are many small on-going jobs in the church and the churchyard that need to be done on a regular basis. A small group of volunteers meets on the first Saturday of every month at the church at 10.00am to carry out these tasks. If you feel that you could help in any way or you would like to know more details, please contact the Churchwardens - please refer to the Contacts page.

See the Bulletins page for brief details of planned services and some other future events.

Earlier News and Events

Send mail to the webmaster (see Contacts) with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2004 Holy Rood Church, Wool
Last modified: Sunday, 28 April 2019