Worship and News this week
Sunday 8.30
Sunday 10:10 – Livestream Eucharist only
Provision has been made to do this safely. We are also continuing the Sunday Livestream. The ‘Worship Home Page’ has full notices and Liturgy sheet and also the Livestream link for use at home – or you can click this link: This weeks NEWS and Sunday Service sheet for use at home
Covid Period Blues ? – Scroll down for helpful resources
‘The March For Men’ September Walking for
‘Prostate Cancer UK’ – Walk complete
Forecast of funds raised £3229 – We’d love to have your support
Mr Andrew Tait of St Hilda’s completed the 31 day walking challenge a group of St Hilda’s and St Saviours men young and old completed a ‘safely straggled’ Otford Circular Walk. Nine men, friends and family of St Hilda have been affected by prostate cancer and ‘Prostatitis’. We’d love to have your support – see the September March for men page.
St Hilda’s is the Church of England
Parish Church of Crofton Park
We Worship God in Christ Jesus. We believe he enfolds us in the fellowship of his Church both those with whom we worship here in earth, and the Saints in God’s nearer presence. We believe everyone has purpose to be revealed in God’s love as the Holy Spirit works in our lives. Our beautiful Church building and style of worship express for us the beauty, truth and goodness of the Life God offers us. If you come, you will meet great people who will be happy you have come to stand before God’s Altar, willing to Worship, Grow and Serve with us. As Christ opened wide his arms on the cross for all people, so we believe that God embraces us in our different backgrounds, gifts and struggles for his good purpose, he accepts and works with people where they are. We ask from all who come a readiness to worship alongside others who are imperfect yet who find their true unity and purpose in Christ, and who look forward to discovering who we may be through his Love at work in our lives.
Covid Virus – Struggling with Isolating ? Help is at hand
There are teams locally who want to help you. Almost every street has a group of friends and neighbours – don’t be afraid to ask a neighbour you already know.
Two locally co-ordinated groups which have organised teams across our ward are:
Crofton and Honor O
ak Park Mutual Aid http://croftonaid.org See their web page for guidance and links to useful information.
If you need help: http://croftonaid.org/i-need-help/
If you want to offer help: http://croftonaid.org/i-can-help/
and
DCR1 Mutual Aid Group See the national web page for guidance and links: website https://covidmutualaid.org/
Direct local telephone: 07515 875 560
Both groups split into localities along the lines of the local polling station areas (ours is DCR1). If you are just off the map but nearby, it’s OK to ask for help.
Covid Virus – struggling mentally? Some of these links might help –
Apathy – Why it Matters if You Stop Caring About Anything
When Working from Home stops being fun – Reasons you might be feeling low
Overthinking – Why You Do It and How to Stop
Fear of Death – When Pandemic Makes Us Face Mortality
Made Redundant Thanks to Covid-19? Coping With Losing Work
On Each Other’s Nerves? How to Navigate “Coronavirus Relationship Conflict”
Surviving Lockdown With Family – This Can Help
Overreacting, or “Triggered”? Pandemic and Prior Mental Health Issues
Reaching Out Hard? 12 Keys to Getting Support
Covid Virus – struggling spiritually? Many people are finding this a time to reconnect to their Faith : when life is ‘interrupted’, we can sometimes find our inner ‘core’ awakened – the ‘core’ where the Holy Spirit gives us both Life and Strength. Through his presence we connect to others in Worship and Prayer. If you are fearful, offering that fear to God can change things; you can turn your anxiety into a prayer for others in need, and by so doing, you open your heart to God’s transforming presence. Here is a traditional prayer of St Augustine – you might like to say it to focus your intention. First, lift all your fearful thoughts and feelings to God as if you were offering him a gift (you may feel this is odd, but to God it is a wonderful gift He has been waiting to receive from you). Lift up those in need, and then use the following (or another prayer – perhaps ‘Our Father’) to declare your deepest intention and desire for others to be helped:
Watch, O Lord, with those who wake, or watch, or weep tonight,
and give Your angels charge over those who sleep.
Tend Your sick ones, O Lord Christ,
Rest Your weary ones,
Bless Your dying ones,
Soothe Your suffering ones,
Pity Your afflicted ones,
Shield Your joyous ones,
and all for Your love’s sake. Amen.
Many people have found that connecting to a worshipping congregation through live streamed services is a great experience. You are welcome to join us on our Sunday Live Stream from Church – check out our Worship home page:
Live Stream and Eucharist sheet for use at home
Unrest and upset in the current period : Post-modernist movements come centre stage. It is good for us to consider what it means, what opportunities and learning it affords and how to respond powerfully and graciously.
The stressful nature of this period has impacted on us all. The needs and tensions of our societies, and of groups and causes within them, have been exacerbated and highlighted in our lives. How should we be in the world with each other? This is a big issue of human living – one that is at the heart of God’s concern for our full well-being. How might Christians respond to various movements and cultural phenomena of the era that secularists call post-modern? Understanding more deeply what is happening is important. Christians rightly do not just sit around uncaring. But how do we properly engage with social justice issues? With whom might we be making common cause? Should we do so without careful theological reflection? I am reminded of the French Revolution, where the clergy initially supported the demands for reform. Below are links to two articles : the first from a traditionalist Protestant intellectual point of view. It’s well researched and clearly written to illuminate, to challenge, to help us re-root our bemused minds in God’s revelation of Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life; and not just to help us speak from a position of critical discernment, but also to take to heart elements of post-modern insights which help us review our interpretation of our faith, and improve our presentation of it. Grace.http://www.reformedtheology.ca/pmodernity.html
As a good Anglican I have also sourced a very useful article written by a Catholic author in 2010. Like the angling of our two eyes to achieve depth of vision, this should give a richer perspective on how we must be as servants of the Eternal God in a world of temporal cultures and evanescent human social, intellectual and political movements. This author helps review the context and strands of thinking and to look further how they can help us speak more cogently to people whose minds have been formed by the highly stimulated and strange abstraction of modern culture.
https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/what-is-postmodernism
I would be interested to hear her reflections on current times, particularly on the espousal of violence against persons, institutions, and the ‘cancel culture’.
Post-modernism would seem to many Christians to be at best a ‘two edged sword’: a useful perspective to have in a ‘kit of tools’ to bring into play as needed, but when globalised (totalised) as a world view, and allowed to dominate all other disciplines, to become a corrosive force truly destructive of intellectual wellbeing and the cohesive living it purports to be enabling. For Christians who have espoused post-modernism there are significant challenges to our whole understanding of the meaning and nature of things, not least to the Biblical witness to God’s revelation in the life of mankind – which post-modernists would consider to be a ‘totalizing meta-narrative’, in their view a bad habit of naughty people (of course that view might itself be considered to be a’totalising meta- narrative’ – but shhh! don’t say that in front of them).
Many Christians would feel we fit more comfortably with the position called ‘Critical Realism’ which embraces both theology and science – there is a Truth, but it is not simple and we are on our way to discover it through many different means and ways – and not least for Christians by following One in whom we find The Way, The Truth and The Life. Post-modernism stresses that truth is entirely relative and subjective (I think this is important to understand, as many of us who appreciate aspects of a ‘post-modern’ approach may well not accept at all its potential level of disdain for the quest of understanding, or its level of exultation of the validity of individual subjectivity). Post- modernist criticism uses tools to deconstruct the ‘stories’/grand schemes we consciously or semi-consciously inhabit, and reduces all elements to binary structures, with designated power relationships being the base level of life – no love, no standard of excellence or beauty, no mediation of higher meaning or purpose – just power relationships as defined by them, and the cures proposed by their disciples – hence the accusation that it is fundamentally Marxist and a reductionism project with a narrow and cynical agenda. In doing so it can seem a very narrow and harsh lens which often produces highly opinionated people, whose narrow focus, and entitled sense of their right to critique others, prevails over an adequate examination of their own shadow or a review of their own personal immaturity and inner despondency.
If you look at the complexity of the world through a single narrow jaundiced lens, no matter how cleverly you analyse it, everything in it will all be tinted yellow. A model which seems to me to represent the best of thinking is to view any aspect of experience through the multiple lenses the best of each refined discipline offers us – like looking through the multiple individual facets of a cut jewel. Even if these views apparently arrive at opposing conclusions, nonetheless collectively they do offer a window on reality, and collectively illuminate something of its truth. It seems to me that the new physics, both in its method and observations, was taking us to that place, along with the multiple lenses developed disciplines offer us (however, this takes a breadth of commitment to education that demands a great deal of effort). Critics of the children of post-modernism point out the origins of its approach in the outflow of academics from the collapse of the communist experiment. Critics see these people as having a narrow grasp on knowledge and history, and a poor ability to integrate studies at depth, with a reductionist and cynical power-motivated agenda underlying the whole project – the ‘problematisers’ themselves being seen by some as the most problematic of all. It would seem that others see the disciples of post-modernism very differently from the way they see themselves, and believe they might rightly use the tools of their own trade to ‘deconstruct’ their own position more profitably than criticising others. We are all fallible and must cut each other some slack – forgive that you may be forgiven – and don’t presume to ‘pluck the speck out of your sisters eye …….’.
Trigger warning – Emile Paglia is uncompromising in her disdain for the state of American academia and for postmodernists – if this frank attack might in way hurt your feelings you are advised not to watch.
Linking Lives Visiting scheme new lead Staff member We are pleased to announce that St Saviour’s Church Brockley Rise has appointed a new facilitator and project worker. Sam has started in September – we pray for his every blessing in the post. St Hilda’s is the support partner to St Saviour’s – the Linking Lives scheme works across both our parishes. https://www.stsaviourschurchbrockleyrise.org/
Our Mission is – ‘To call people to the fullness of Christ’
by committing ourselves:
to Worship with awe and love
to Serve with generosity and humility
to Grow by being and making disciples
The rest of this page is historic material
Live stream link :
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0WOhyk3ipWaQuionX65rxA
Response Current Covid19 Emergency 2020
The Church Building may be currently closed for worship; but the Church as the Body of Christ is always living and active as she breathes the Holy Spirit and is united in heaven and Earth. We continue to hold in the highest place in our hearts those sick or vulnerable, those offering front line services especially our health workers. Daily prayers are offered at home. There has been wonderful response among church members supporting each other and thinking of new ways to fulfil, our calling to worship together. If you need us please call or email – pastoral provisions are working well by phone and services are to be live streamed on Sundays and at other published items from the Vicarage. Do see the Worship Home page above for Sunday Eucharist sheet and sepcial resources for Sunday including a link for live streaming.
Site and Site management through the ‘lock down’
We have a key worker supporting nursery on site: so a skeleton office with functions for site maintenance H &S etc remain live. these are at at reduced level to minimise journeys for staff.
Christmas Fundraising 2019 Update – total for Childrens Society £986
We were pleased to welcome so many to all our services and to host the special service for Stillness School, and the Humy Mummies concert. The christingles were much enjoyed Together we have raised at noteworthy £986 for the Childrens Society.
We offer a rich experience of worship and teaching in the Church of England’s Catholic (High Church) tradition, and enjoy playing our part in our area. We share our buildings, with over 35 groups offering community based activities on our site, and with families for parties on saturdays. We collate and deliver a community oreintated church magazine ‘Impact’.
Safeguarding St Hilda’s takes the safeguarding and care of children and vulnerable adults very seriously. Our Safeguarding officer Stella can be contacted on 07832345934 or the Diocesan Safeguarding Team on 020 7939 9476. For Further information and helplines that can support you: click here for our Safeguarding page.
Our building is a feature Grade 2 Arts and Crafts Structure now 109 years old. We recently completed a major restoration of roofing and high level masonry.
Alpha at St Hildas 
We offer the ‘Alpha course’ its freindly, relaxed and open, and you are welcome to join us our next course starts inseptember 2020 – contact: Father.bates@sainthildas. See our ‘Alpha’ tab for more details.
Regular Service times – follow this link
Our Misison is – ‘To call people to the fullness of Christ’
by committing ourselves:
to Worship with awe and love
to Serve with generosity and humility
to Grow by making new disciples
Join us for St Hilda’s for ‘Cuppa and chat’ Tuesdays 11am-1pm – games and social – Quiz every 2nd Tuesday entrance via Main Door in Courtrai Road. See twitter feed for photos.
Alpha Course up and running – New Course starts end of September 2019
We have run Alpha for the first time building up our experince ready to Welcome enquirers again in September 2019. Are you thinking of renewing your connection to your faith? Would you liketo find out what the Christian faith offers in a non judgemetnal and open group- do make contact if you like join us this autumn
The church is open to visit and for * quiet reflection – on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 10.30 -6pm; Saturdays 11 – 5pm; Sundays 9-12.30 pm; and Wednesdays 3- 6pm: Once the warm roof and restoration is achieved, we hope to have funds to staff the office have even more open hours.
Get to know us better:
https://twitter.com/Saint_Hildas
https://www.facebook.com/pages/StHildas-Crofton-Park/407085809455036
Food Bank Forest Hill – leave contributions in our Crucifix Door Porch
Since Harvest 2017 St Hilda’s has collected over 270kg of foods and toiletries etc to help families in need. ‘My Jamii Cafe’ has been a local collection point for the food bank for some time – and we are happy to welcome contributions at the Crucifx Door Porch – leave them in the porch if no one answers the buzzer – but if you will, do put in a note with your email address. The Food Bank need particular items from time to time – canned meats, vegetables, fruits, and breakfast cereals are always good, and also babies’ nappies, baby food toothpaste and lavatory paper.
9 metre ‘Mobile’ art work: a pillar of flames over the font
mobile above font
Pentecost mission flames painted by members over the weeks since Whitsunday have been assembled into a very attractive 9 meter high mobile. Each flame represents in colour each person’s commitment to offer their gifts to St Hilda’s to enable new Christians to be made and new members to find a home and an purpose in our congregation
Lent Jars 2018 are for three Practical Action Projects in Asia, Africa and South America
St Hildas Ash Mob on front of the Bridge news paper – see photos on twitter feed to left
7 Confirmed at Southwark Cathedral
4 Teengers and two Adults were confirmed at Southwark Cathedral on Nov 25th by the Bishop of Kingston. St Hilda’s members were the most numerous supporters at the service and we were proud so many came out to witness to our candidates how important this event and commitment will be for their lives.
St Hilda’s Member elected Deputy Young Mayor of Lewisham
We are proud of one of our younger members who polled the most first place votes in the recent election for young mayor; with the second place votes taken into consideration he has acheived the post of deputy young mayor for this year.
9 metre ‘Mobile’ art work: a pillar of flames over the font
Pentecost mission flames painted by members over the weeks since Whitsunday have been assembled into a very attractive 9 meter high mobile. Each flame represents in colour each person’s commitment to offer their gifts to St Hilda’s to enable new Christians to be made and new members to find a home and an purpose in our congregation
Warm Roof Fund Local Appeal 
Exceeds 25k Target by £3753
The Lewisham 3 Peaks Challenge walkers and their sponsors brought in £1733. Jays Budgen’s fundraising though the plastic bag charge has added a further £2001 . The final total of the local appeal is £28753.65
A big thank you to our local donors and to our major grant funders for fiancnce support and encouragement.
Photo right : Our Vicar Father Stuart with Laura Barnham who organised the event.
News from the Church of England
