From the Vicar

New staff - It was a pleasure during October to welcome the Revd. Dr. Denise Yeldham as Assistant Priest. This is a half time post, and Denise will normally be on duty Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Denise comes to us after serving a curacy in Plymouth, following training for the ministry at Westcott House, Cambridge. Prior to that she had a substantial career in the NHS as a consultant psychiatrist. I am grateful also to Denise’s husband, Tony Kyriakides-Yeldham, who is Chaplain at Charing Cross Hospital, and has kindly offered to give some help with our 8am Sunday service.

Organ Saga - We now have a large hole where the old organ once was, and much of the new organ is lying on the church floor. Work has been delayed by the unforeseen discovery of asbestos followed by the even more unforeseen discovery that the men who removed the asbestos also removed a crucial section of the floor that the new organ will stand on. I expect work to proceed swiftly now, in order to have the new organ in use for Christmas. The Inaugural Concert of the new instrument will be on 25th April, to allow time for it to settle in.

Hearts of Love is an initiative to fill the church with decorated cardboard hearts on the weekend of 19-20th November, each of them illustrating what its maker loves. Many of these will come from local schoolchildren, as well as from church members, and with help from the Chelsea College of Art. We hope that this project will be a way of extending the links between St. Stephen’s and our local community.

November Piano Concerts - Rosemary Field, our Director of Music, is once again offering a short series of half-hour lunchtime concerts. These will be on Mondays 7th, 14th, and 21st November, featuring music of the Romantic period. Entry is free, with a collection for the Organ Fund.

A chance to meet. Amy Marks is bringing together an under 30’s group to discuss matters of faith, and also a group for 15-18’s called Explore. Contact Amy - amy@sswsj.org. For information on a group for 30’s and above, contact Jenny Walpole – jebwalpole@yahoo.co.uk




Mission Action Plan - For some time our PCC has been working to distil our current priorities as a church, and the basis for them, into a short document. This is the result:

Our aim as a church is to be a welcoming community that celebrates the joy and the challenge of the Christian faith; and to be a place to which we come to worship God, in order to go out and live more faithfully in the wider world.

“The parish church that is genuinely open to God’s mission and accessible to its community, and where people with unlike life stories can encounter one another as friends in our highly compartmentalised society, is an ancient idea that is always fresh.” Richard Chartres, Bishop of London

We believe that our mission is substantially expressed through faithfully sustaining the life of an Anglican parish church in the centre of London, rooted in worship and in the local community.
__________________________________

Following sustained review, we have identified 5 areas for particular attention at this stage, in order to strengthen and develop the regular life of our church as a vehicle for God’s mission:

1. Spiritual development: to help us grow as Christians, whether newcomers to the church or established members.

2. Children and young people: to value the contribution of our younger members, and strengthen the provision that we make for them.

3. Increasing our awareness of the wider church: both in our own city, and globally.

4. Staffing: to pursue options for further staffing, in order to develop the church’s potential for ministry and mission.

5. Organ and bells: to replace our church organ, developing our musical life, and if possible to ensure the future use of the bells.

As you will see, some of these are well in hand, and others will be getting continuing attention from the PCC.

Philip Welsh, Vicar


From the PCC.

At its September meeting the Parochial Church Council confirmed additional payment to the diocese in respect of the new part-time post of Assistant Priest; learned that enquiries have been initiated about grant support for bells; were updated about the organ, including the discovery of asbestos; agreed a final version of the Mission Action Plan for wider publication; supported a detailed proposal for the Hearts of Love weekend; raised concern about Stewardship giving; formally reaffirmed our Child Protection Policy.

At its October meeting the Parochial Church Council welcomed and agreed the Outreach Committee’s proposals for our charitable giving; received an encouraging budget update, and discussed the need to promote Christian Stewardship, to be initiated by the Financial Committee; learned of proposals to improve the kitchen facilities at Napier Hall; agreed to further extension of the Director of Music’s contract by two years; agreed that our Pastoral Assistant should be an additional Communion assistant.

A reference copy of PCC minutes is available on the table in church.