St Peter and St Paul Church News
A Very Special Service
Our usual 10am on Sunday 11th September was a special service upon the death of our dear Queen, Elizabeth II. Even at short notice, the church had been suitably decorated for this solemn occasion.
Rev Biddy Saunders and Rev John Leonard led the service with a special prayer for the Queen. This was followed by the singing of the hymn ‘God Save our Gracious King’ for the first time which was very moving, especially for older members of the congregation who had been singing God Save our Gracious Queen for perhaps 70 years.
The service was followed by light refreshments and fellowship in the hall.
Ride and Stride
This inter-church annual fund raiser for Leicestershire Historic Churches Trust occurs on the second Saturday in September on the weekend beginning ‘Heritage Week’. This year we only had one person who was prepared to cycle round the nearby villages to Syston; — the loyal cyclist Terry Farmer, who has participated for many years now. Luckily the weather was kind and he remained dry. Terry visited eight churches on a route between Barkby to Birstall and back home to Syston. He raised £240 in sponsorship for the Trust, half of which returns to our church to help with the upkeep of this wonderful ancient building.
Meanwhile the Parish Church in Syston remained open all day on Saturday to sign in cyclists from other churches. There should have been a Cream Teas event in the afternoon but this was postponed to 24th September out of respect for the royal family.
Church Open
The church was then kept open for a couple of hours on that Saturday afternoon for anyone who wished to come and leave a message in a book of condolence and perhaps to say a prayer. Thereafter the church was open for two hours each afternoon for the remainder of the week.
It was with the greatest sadness that we discovered that recent repairs on the flagpole and rope were not good enough, and we were unable to fly the flag at half mast as the rope broke again.
Harvest Festival
Sunday 2nd October at 10am is our annual Harvest Festival service. This is always a warm and welcoming service of thanksgiving for the wonderful gifts we receive from the Lord. If you would like to join us on this special occasion, you’d be very welcome. And if you’d like to bring a gift of food (that will be distributed to a food bank), then please bring some item(s) of food, preferably in a packet or tin.
There will be refreshments in the hall afterwards.
In the afternoon the church will be open from 2.30 till 4.30pm should anyone wish to see the specially decorated church.