To walk up the church path on the cold and frosty Christmas evening and see the welcoming glow of the heaters and the numerous candles was an absolute joy. It set the scene perfectly for our “Midnight Mass” at 9 pm.
The Rev. Claire officiated and the service began with the lighting of the final candle in the Advent Wreath by Ann Kemp and then Claire blessed the crib. The service, as always, on such a poignant occasion was perfect and Claire’s sermon gave us all food for thought. She was very ably assisted by Kath Bills as Deacon. In spite of many of our parishioners being away, the congregation was boosted by several people who were visiting for the holiday. We were especially delighted to welcome Rev. Judith Dunkling to the service and all hope that she will soon be well enough to re-join the Team.
Thanks to Don for playing the organ and especially his final touch when he played “Mary’s Boy Child” which we all sang spontaneously! Special thanks must go to Linda Drew (who was Michael’s little helper for the night) who lit all the candles (about thirty in all, I think) – is this promotion Linda??!! Also, an extra special thank you to Michael, (who very rarely gets a mention here because he writes the monthly bulletin) for all that he does including putting all the heaters on for each service so that we are all comfortable. They were especially welcome on a very cold evening.