Our Minister Rev David Rees (left), is joined by the
Rev Ernie Bossé (right) and Adam Woodhouse -
Minister in Training- (Centre) for the next nine
months to look after St John’s and 4 other
Churches: Castle Hill, Felixstowe, Saxmundham
and also Leiston LEP who joined Ipswich and East
Pastorate in September 2020 .
These churches and another 17 churches and
chapels are part of the
South Suffolk Area Partnership
April Advance
This is the regular publication containing news of events and our church life.
You could help by sending content to advance@stjohnsurcipswich.org.uk
Also if you have both a printer and nearby members that a print a copy that would be their only means of
reading it. Ensuring you avoid any possible contamination in doing so by using disposable gloves for all stages
including posting it through the door.
Here is a version with coloured pictures & cover
for reading on line or printing
Covid -19 latest news:
We are currently closed
until 18 April.
More Here on
What is happening
next week
Community Sharing on
Sundays of Virtual Service
Options during Covid-19
restrictions
Options Available
Sunday Worship
Rev David Rees
Rev Ernie Bossé
Adam Woodhouse
Direct from the URC
https://devotions.urc.org.uk/
Please Note
we are unable to hire out any rooms due to
covid-19 restrictions.
Why not just sit and listen to the services?
For This Week’s Service Click Here
For Easter Day Service
Good Friday Service
Opening for Individual Prayer and Online Service
and live Services
The
church
is
open
at
10:30
and
the
online
service
or
live
service
will
run
from
10:45
and
finish
before
we
close the church again for the necessary cleaning required
at 11:30.
•
The
idea
is
to
avoid
too
many
people
arriving
at
once.
You
must
stay
outside
St
John’s
until
called
forward
and stay two metres apart from others waiting to enter.
•
You must not enter the building if you have any of the symptoms of Covid 19 or feel unwell.
•
You
will
need
to
have
a
face-covering
on
at
all
times,
from
just
before
entering
the
church,
until
you
are
outside again.
•
There
will
be
a
one
way
system
to
ensure
social
distancing
of
two
metres
is
possible.
This
will
be
marked
by arrows.
•
You
will
enter
the
left
hand
doors
and
turn
left
to
enter
the
sanctuary
(there
will
be
hand
sanitiser
available).
•
As
required
by
Government
for
church
premises,
we
will
ask
you
to
sign
a
form
to
say
you
agree
to
our
keeping
your
details;
once
signed,
we
will
keep
that
whilst
we
are
operating
the
church
in
this
way.
We
will
then
take
your
details:
See
example
of
the
Form
below
which
says
we
will
only
keep
a
note
of
the
date
and
time
of
any
visit
for
21
days.
This
is
to
provide
the
necessary
details
for
NHS
Track
and
Trace,
and
whilst
not compulsory, the elders would urge you to provide this information.
•
A steward will direct you to a seat which will be socially distanced from others.
•
There
will
be
no
singing
possible
and
you
are
requested
not
to
engage
in
conversation
with
others
until
you have left and are outside the building.
•
You will leave the sanctuary via Room 1 as guided by a steward.
Despite all the above, we would really love to see you if you can visit safely.
If you wish to know more about a Risk Assessment please email the Church
Secretary
From the Elders of St John’s
Consent form for places of worship
To
support
the
NHS
Test
and
Trace
programme,
we
are
taking
contact
details
(name
and
telephone
number)
for
all
visitors, as well as recording times entering and leaving St John’s URC Ipswich. We do have a QR Code to scan.
In
line
with
guidance
issued
by
the
Department
for
Health
and
Social
Care,
we
will
keep
your
details
safely
and
in
compliance
with
GDPR
legislation.
We
will
keep
your
visit
details
for
21
days
before
securely
disposing
of
or
deleting
them.
We
will
only
share
your
details
with
NHS
Test
and
Trace,
if
asked,
if
it
is
needed
to
help
stop
the
spread
of
Coronavirus.
We
will
not
use
your
details
for
any
other
purposes
or
pass
them
on
to
anyone
else.
Thank
you
for
your
understanding.
If you agree to providing your information for this reason, please complete the following form:
Name
Tel. No
Signature
Date
St John’s URC Ipswich Diary
Regular Events
Sunday 10.45am Worship for All. Communion first Sunday of each month included with the online service. Monday Tuesday 6.15pm 23rd Ipswich Brownies 7.00pm Improvisations Craft Group (1st Tues each month) 8.00pm Ipswich Folk Dance Club (1st, 3rd and 5th Tues) Wednesday 12.30pm Monthly Church Lunch Club, except July and August. 7.30pm Local AA Group Meeting Thursday 5.00pm 2nd Hamilton Rainbows 6.15pm 40th Ipswich Brownies 7.30pm Elders Meeting (usually 2nd Thurs) 7.30pm Church Meeting (5 meetings per year) Friday Saturday 10.30am Community Coffee for All (2nd Sat in the month) 1.00pm Ramble Group (last Sat each month)
Services will resume on 18 April
10.45 am on Sundays Worship for All
at which you will find a warm welcome
Services last about an half an hour initially. Our Worship Leaders include Ministers, such as our own Ipswich and East Ministers Rev David Rees and Rev Ernie Bossé plus some excellent lay preachers, including our own two lay preachers, Sara Pells and Peter Dawson. Whenever possible we use a screen to project elements of the service including the hymns.
Minister’s Letter
Specification of the Organ
The
1916
two
manual
and
pedal
tubular
pneumatic
organ
by
Bishop
from
the
previous
building
was
rebuilt
with
electric
action
by
W
&
A
Boggis
of
Diss
in
the
new
church.
It
is
placed
in
an
elevated
position
in
the
Worship
Area
and
is
controlled
from
a
detached,
moveable console.
Certain
specifications
changes
were
made
to
take
account
of
the
new
acoustic
conditions
and a few ranks were added.
The Pedal reed pipes (which had been prepared for) were installed in 1993.
Easter, Eggs, Etc.
Easter time is a strange mixture of symbols. Some are overtly Christian such as the palm branch on Palm Sunday or the Cross. Other symbols
come from a variety of sources many predating Christianity. According to Wikipedia, decorated eggs are much
older than Easter, and both eggs and rabbits are age-old fertility symbols. The Passover Seder service uses a
hard-cooked egg flavoured with salt water as a symbol both of new life. The Jewish tradition may have come
from earlier Roman Spring feasts. The ancient Persians also painted eggs for Nowrooz, their New Year
celebration falling on the Spring Equinox (ie around our Easter). This tradition has continued every year on
Nowrooz since ancient times.
The name "Easter" originated with the names of an ancient Goddess and God. The Venerable Bede, (672-735
CE.), first asserted that Easter was named after Eostre (a.k.a. Eastre). She was the Great Mother Goddess of
the Saxon people in Northern Europe. Similarly, the "Teutonic dawn goddess of fertility [was] known variously
as Ostare, Ostara, Ostern, Eostra, Eostre, Eostur, Eastra, Eastur, Austron and Ausos." Despite attempts to
Christianise it, Easter is accepted by the majority of scholars to be a pagan fertility rite in origin celebrating
the rebirth of life in spring.
In the West, eggs have been forbidden during Lent as well as other traditional fast days. Likewise, in Eastern Christianity, both meat and dairy
are prohibited during the fast, and eggs are seen as "dairy" (a foodstuff that could be taken from an animal without shedding its blood).
Another Orthodox tradition is the presenting of red coloured eggs to friends while giving Easter greetings. This custom had its beginning with
Mary Magdalene. After the Ascension of Christ, legend has it that she went to the Emperor of Rome and greeted him with "Christ is risen",
as she gave him a red egg. She then began preaching Christianity to him.
The egg is symbolic of the grave and life renewed by breaking out of it. The red symbolizes the blood of Christ redeeming the world,
represented by the egg, and our regeneration through the blood shed for us by Christ. The egg itself is a symbol of the Resurrection while
being dormant it contains a new life sealed within it.
Well, these days we use chocolate Easter Eggs that don’t quite have this depth of symbolism, though they do taste better. Our symbol of
new life is sweet, fattening and full of smarties or Mars bars. Whether or not you abstained from chocolate during Lent, you are likely to add
extra pounds in the days and weeks after Easter Sunday. For many the Egg is now replaced by a box of Cadbury Milk Tray. I guess Easter for
most is no longer symbolises by the new life at Spring that is transformed by the new life of our Resurrected Lord.
Whether we have eggs or chocolate or bunnies or hot cross buns or none of them, the real question is how do we respond? In the light of
God in Jesus dying on the Cross and three days later rising from the dead, do we dismiss it as another fairy tale along with Easter bunnies
hopping along with a basket of eggs? Do we ignore that first Easter as we eat another chocolate, and yet another? Or do we cut through the
symbols and the myths and accept that Easter has changed history, and it can change our future?
Over this time of Easter, from Palm Sunday though Maundy Thursday, though Crucifixion Friday and especially on Resurrection Sunday, let us
truly worship our God.
Let us joyfully and without hesitation say - He risen indeed!
David
See the Covid Precautions Here
Opening for Individual Prayer and Online Service
and live Services
The
church
is
open
at
10:30
and
the
online
service
or
live
service
will
run
from
10:45
and
finish
before
we
close the church again for the necessary cleaning required
at 11:30.
•
The
idea
is
to
avoid
too
many
people
arriving
at
once.
You
must
stay
outside
St
John’s
until
called
forward
and stay two metres apart from others waiting to enter.
•
You must not enter the building if you have any of the symptoms of Covid 19 or feel unwell.
•
You
will
need
to
have
a
face-covering
on
at
all
times,
from
just
before
entering
the
church,
until
you
are
outside again.
•
There
will
be
a
one
way
system
to
ensure
social
distancing
of
two
metres
is
possible.
This
will
be
marked
by arrows.
•
You
will
enter
the
left
hand
doors
and
turn
left
to
enter
the
sanctuary
(there
will
be
hand
sanitiser
available).
•
As
required
by
Government
for
church
premises,
we
will
ask
you
to
sign
a
form
to
say
you
agree
to
our
keeping
your
details;
once
signed,
we
will
keep
that
whilst
we
are
operating
the
church
in
this
way.
We
will
then
take
your
details:
See
example
of
the
Form
below
which
says
we
will
only
keep
a
note
of
the
date
and
time
of
any
visit
for
21
days.
This
is
to
provide
the
necessary
details
for
NHS
Track
and
Trace,
and
whilst
not compulsory, the elders would urge you to provide this information.
•
A steward will direct you to a seat which will be socially distanced from others.
•
There
will
be
no
singing
possible
and
you
are
requested
not
to
engage
in
conversation
with
others
until
you have left and are outside the building.
•
You will leave the sanctuary via Room 1 as guided by a steward.
Despite all the above, we would really love to see you if you can visit safely.
If you wish to know more about a Risk Assessment please email the Church
Secretary
From the Elders of St John’s
Consent form for places of worship
To
support
the
NHS
Test
and
Trace
programme,
we
are
taking
contact
details
(name
and
telephone
number)
for
all
visitors, as well as recording times entering and leaving St John’s URC Ipswich. We do have a QR Code to scan.
In
line
with
guidance
issued
by
the
Department
for
Health
and
Social
Care,
we
will
keep
your
details
safely
and
in
compliance
with
GDPR
legislation.
We
will
keep
your
visit
details
for
21
days
before
securely
disposing
of
or
deleting
them.
We
will
only
share
your
details
with
NHS
Test
and
Trace,
if
asked,
if
it
is
needed
to
help
stop
the
spread
of
Coronavirus.
We
will
not
use
your
details
for
any
other
purposes
or
pass
them
on
to
anyone
else.
Thank
you
for
your
understanding.
If you agree to providing your information for this reason, please complete the following form:
Name
Tel. No
Signature
Date
Contact Details
St John’s URC Ipswich
Our Postal Address is: St John’s United Reformed Church 1 Cowper Street Ipswich Suffolk IP4 5JD United Kingdom Office Telephone (Answer Machine) 01473 724961 Please Note currently we are unable to hire out any rooms due to covid-19 restrictions. Minister: Rev David Rees (Ipswich and East) email: minister@stjohnsurcipswich.org.uk Church Secretary:Mr Adrian Cubitt email: Secretary@stjohnsurcipswich.org.uk Webmaster webmaster@stjohnsurcipswich.org.uk Website which is https for security www.stjohnsurcipswich.org.ukYou can use the form below for any enquiry
