Posts from 2025
News for 23rd November & The Week Ahead
Dearest friends, I write this from the clergy conference in Walsingham with the Bishop of Oswestry and my brother deacons and Priests. It has been a week of ‘hope’. It’s been encouraging to see so many parishes that are flourishing and growing, and speak to so many Priests who see so much to be thankful about. I am thankful for you. I am thankful for the energy and enthusiasm, for the love you show me and my family, and for…
Rosary Group at St. Luke’s
The Rosery Group will be meeting at 10.30 on Saturday 22nd November at St. Luke’s, everyone is more than welcome, please do come and join us to pray using the Rosary and for refreshments afterwards.
News for 16th November and the week ahead
Dearest friends, When we think of Jesus as King I often wonder if we are missing a great deal of His teaching. Jesus told us time and time again that He wasn’t the King that the Jewish people were expecting – coming with horses and chariots to free them from the rule of the Romans. He entered Jerusalem in triumph on Palm Sunday not with horses and chariots – but on the back of a donkey. So why then do…
News for 9th November & The Week Ahead
Dearest friends, War is just about the worst thing that we humans practice on each other. The moment we declare war on each other the rules of decent human love go out the window. We dress this up by saying there are rules of war, that you can do this – but you can’t do that. You can arrest a soldier but you mustn’t mistreat him. It’s of little comfort when the aim appears to be to kill as many…
News for 2nd November and the week ahead
Dearest friends, Why do we pray for the dead? Some will tell you that praying for the dead is simply an exercise in futility. The person you are praying for is already dead, they’ve lived their life and presumably made their own decisions about that life, their actions and most importantly – their faith in Jesus Christ. What more can we do now they are gone? The simple truth is that we know God is merciful. In multiple parts of…
Quiz night with fish or sausage and chips
Come and join us for a friendly quiz at St. Luke’s with either fish and chips or sausage and chips, please bring your own drinks, tea and coffee will be provided. The cost is £10 which includes the food, to be paid on the night. It is very important that you put your name down on the list in church and meal choice. If you are unable to put your name on the list please email sl.secretary@slsj.co.uk the latest date…
News for 26th October and the Week Ahead
Dearest friends, What a terrific Sunday we shared last week. A beautiful mass at St. Luke’s with +Paul, celebrating our Patronal feast. And what a feast it was! A brilliant array of food and conversation after mass that lifted the heart and reminded us of the lovely community of Christ we are. Then, in the evening, a gentle celebration of Evensong – although gentle is the last word I’d use for the singing! We lifted the roof off with our…
News for 19th October and the Week Ahead
Dearest friends, What does the future hold? If only we could get our crystal balls out and see… fortunately, the Holy Spirit guides and supports us as we figure out where we go next. This Sunday, we come together at 4 pm for a joint Evensong followed by an hour of discussion about what we would like to see in our parishes over the next 10 years. In many ways, our future is thrust upon us. We have a shared…
News for 12th October and The Week Ahead
Dearest friends, Rejoice! What a wonderful Sunday we shared last week. Not only did we experience the love and joy of shared worship in the morning but we also launched our new church, Explorers, in Heathfield. We were joined by 14 children who visited us from across Newton Abbot and Bovey Tracey. We started with learning about Creation and the very beginnings of our life and universe before singing that great hymn ‘My God is So Big!’ complete with actions.…
New Archbishop of Canterbury
A letter from Fr. Matthew to the Parishes of St. John the Evangelist Bovey Tracey with Heathfield and St. Luke’s, Milber on the appointment of the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. Dearest brothers and sisters, This morning it has been announced that the Bishop of London, the Rt. Rev’d & Rt. Hon Sarah Mullally DBE has been nominated by the Crown to be the next Archbishop of Canterbury. I would like to express my personal congratulations and encouragement to Bishop Sarah.…
News for 5th October and the Week Ahead
Dearest friends, This Sunday sees the very first Explorers at St. Catherine’s School in Heathfield. We’ve deliberately kept the advertising low key and we’ve reached out to a few families by word of mouth. We’re praying that two or three families will come through the door on Sunday and come to know our wonderful people and the love of Jesus. They’ll do this through song, craft, prayer, and conversation – but it’s the parents who will be really changed by…
News for 28th September ad the Week Ahead
Dearest friends, I’ve always thought of faith in God as something that needs to be rooted. There are lots of ways to be rooted, if we look to creation we see roots that run deep, roots that skit across the surface, roots that seek and spread wide. All of these root systems achieve the same thing in the same way – they feed the plant and make it stronger. In our case we want to be stronger in our faith…