Collect
Almighty God, in Christ you make all things new:
transform the poverty of our nature by the riches of your grace,
and in the renewal of our lives
make known your heavenly glory;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
First Reading
Isaiah 62.1-5
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,
until her vindication shines out like the dawn,
and her salvation like a burning torch.
The nations shall see your vindication,
and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name
that the mouth of the Lord will give.
You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
You shall no more be termed Forsaken,
and your land shall no more be termed Desolate;
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,
and your land Married; for the Lord delights in you,
and your land shall be married.
For as a young man marries a young woman,
so shall your builder marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.
Second Reading
1 Corinthians 12.1-11
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says ‘Let Jesus be cursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit. Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
Gospel Reading
John 2.1-11
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Post Communion
God of glory, you nourish us with your Word
who is the bread of life:
fill us with your Holy Spirit
that through us the light of your glory
may shine in all the world.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu by Canon John Tipping
|
R.I.P 7th October 1931 26th December 2021 |
It has been a great privilege to know Archbishop Tutu. It was in the autumn of 1962 that we both became students at King’s College London, Desmond, as a mature student doing a post-ordination degree, and me as an undergraduate, and ten years younger!
For three years I saw him each day in term-time. He was a delightful person, with a great sense of humour. He and his family came to live in London, helping in local parishes, where his ministry was much appreciated until he returned to his native South Africa.
Desmond came from a family which knew much poverty in one of the townships of Johannesburg. His education was interrupted for two years by tuberculosis, and during his time in a sanatorium, he was regularly visited by Father Trevor Huddleston, ministering in nearby Sophiatown. It made a great impression on the young Desmond that Trevor should
raise his hat to Desmond’s mother as a greeting, unheard of in those days of apartheid, and vocation to priesthood developed from the influence of that faithful priest.
Desmond was ordained in Johannesburg in 1960 and served two curacies before his time in London, after which he was involved in theological education, including projects to train others for ministry. In 1975 he became Dean of Johannesburg, followed by election as Bishop of Lesotho, Johannesburg, and eventually Archbishop of Cape Town, where he was affectionally known as the ‘Arch’!
In all of this time Desmond maintained his opposition to prejudice and injustice, fearlessly challenging the authorities over its policy of apartheid. Cape Town had never before known a black Archbishop, and there was much opposition to his moving into a ‘white’ area. He became Director of the influential Truth and Justice Commission. Other honours followed, as he was awarded a Companion of Honour and in 2017 one of ten Nobel Peace laureates. He continued to travel, and to receive honours and humanitarian awards. Desmond became known as “always the voice of the voiceless”, especially the black people of South Africa.
I treasure the memory of this man of God, small in stature but a spiritual giant. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.
Next Week
Sunday 23rd January
Third Sunday of Epiphany
NOTICES
|
Church of England and Diocese Online Worship There are many online services you can view from the Church of England and our cathedral. Here are some links below. Church of England website https://www.churchofengland.org Church of England Facebook page Church of England YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com St Edmundsbury Cathedral Facebook Page |
|
Food Banks at the East of England Co-op Foodbanks provide a valuable service to those in need in our communities. The Aldeburgh Co-op and Solar in Leiston are doing a grand job in collecting food donations, which are collected regularly and distributed. So please look out for the various collection baskets. The Trussel Trust Organisation Food banks in our network have seen an increase in the number of food parcels given out over the last year due to Coronavirus, so any donations are much appreciated. You can find out which items your local food bank is most in need of by entering your postcode here – https://www.trusselltrust.org/give-food/ |
|
Weekly Benefice Newsletter If you would like something added to the weekly newsletter that is relevant to the Benefice, please do let Claire know and we will do our best to include it the following week. All requests by 4pm on Thursday please |
|
Pilgrims Together on Wednesdays The Pilgrims worship together every Wednesday. We have several dates for the diary as we start 2022: Saturday 15th January from 7pm online Zoom Pilgrim Local Community Storytelling Ceilidh. Our Zoom local story telling Ceilidhs are opportunities for people to share stories about the local area both historical and contemporary. We have very much enjoyed listening to, asking questions, and learning about local events, people, and buildings past and present from our previous 2021 Zoom Storytelling Ceilidhs. If you have a story/information to share, please email: Sue: pilgrimstogether473@gmail.com who will organise the running order for the evening. |
|
Children’s Society 2021 marked the 140th anniversary of the founding of the Children’s Society by Sunday school teacher Edward Rudolf, and still the devoted work continues today of the relief of need among families and children. We are most grateful for the money raised over the Christmas period, including over £300 from the well-attended Christingle in Aldeburgh Church, £171 from Pilgrims Carol Singing at Thorpeness Meare, |
