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Published: Friday, 26 October 2018 17:23
This year, Remebrance Sunday falls on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, and the two minute silence will, of course, be observed at the eleventh hour. In addition, the services will make the centenary of the cessation of hostilities in the 1914 - 1918 war.
The dates are in the on-line Calendar in this web site, but just for clarity, the following services are to be held on November 11:-
08.00 Holy Communion (Book of Common Prayer); Bucklers Hard Chapel
10.00 Remembrance Service Beaulieu Abbey Church; (includes reading of the Roll of Honour and Two Minute silence)
15.00 Remembrance Service; St Paul's Church East Boldre
Please try to arrive in good time, as experience tells us that these services will be very well attended.
The speaker at the Beaulieu Abbey Church service will be the Rev'd Robin Nash, formerly Vicar of St Alban's and St Luke's in Bournemouth. The speaker at the St Paul's East Boldre service will be the Rev'd Lynda Mead.
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Published: Wednesday, 17 October 2018 15:59
Generous God; Generous People
Despite living in a prosperous area, despite having large reserves, your Finance Committee is seriously concerned about the state of the Abbey Church finances. Why? It is an age old story. As our expenditure increases, our planned giving from members of the congregation and the community is decreasing. We still receive gifts, usually earmarked for projects to beautify our Church building. But our budgeted Income and Expenditure account (planned income versus known expenditures) shows a deficit of around £5,000, and the discrepancy between income and expenditure is rising. And this for an annual budget of just over £100,000!
We do have restricted reserves, which are there to assist in funding large building projects. The annual interest from these reserves goes a long way to financing year on year maintenance of the building. But our annual planned income from individuals is decreasing, and this is not, even in the medium term, sustainable.
From Sunday 21 October, we will distribute an explanation of our position, and our request for help. We have identified four groups of people; those who already contribute via the Parish Giving Scheme, those who contribute on a regular basis via Standing Orders, those who are registered for Gift Aid, and those who are registered in the Electoral Roll of the Parish. Members of those groups will receive this material, either by hand if they are regular congregation, or via post.
Please read this material carefully. Please consider regular giving via the Parish Giving Scheme, or by Standing Orders. If you have any questions, please talk with the members of your Finance Committee, listed below. Many thanks.
Andrew Percy (Treasurer and Chairman), Mike Dawkins , John Hughes, Peter Melhuish (Church Warden) and Mick Wigfield
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Published: Saturday, 13 October 2018 17:09
With great regret, the concert scheduled for Saturday October 20, in Beaulieu Abbey Church has been cancelled.
Hopefully, there will be many opportunities in the future to enjoy this exciting orchestra.
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Published: Saturday, 06 October 2018 11:06
With Mick Wigfield, I recently attended a diocesan course on "Encouraging Generosity and Christian Giving in a Rural Setting". In many ways it was an inspirational morning, with speakers sharing many examples of ways in which generous gifts followed prayer and generous acts. The course was timely, as we face a deficit on our current 'annual income and expenditure account' and your Finance Committee is discussing ways to address this. We can, all of us, think and pray about giving. I have some copies of an excellent Anglican publication, "Generous God; Generous People" (which is a five week set of Bible readings) and I am happy to let folk have them on extended loan. Just ask!
On a practical note, I have placed extra forms regarding the Parish Giving Scheme at the rear of the Abbey Church. Do please consider becoming a member of that scheme. Giving via the scheme has many advantages both for the giver and the receiver!
Peter Melhuish
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Published: Thursday, 04 October 2018 09:06
For many years, pilgrims have travelled the Camino, the pilgrims' way to Santiago del Compostela, a town in Galacia in Northeastern Spain. There are various routes, some starting from distant European cities, and all converging on Santiago, the city named after Saint James. In earlier days, pilgrims walked, often taking many months. Today, many walk the Camino in stages; their pilgrmage dictated by time availability, travelling by car or plane to their various starting points. And some cycle! John Hughes is away from Beaulieu Abbey for around three weeks as he cycles many hundreds of kilometres towards the famous city. He started at Santander on the northern Spanish coast, and he joined the most popular and the oldest walking route which started from the Pyrenees near Bayonne. God bless all travellers on the Camino!
