Welcome
The Shirwell Mission Community comprises eight Churches in seven rural parishes in North Devon:
Bratton Fleming; Challacombe; East Down & Arlington; Kentisbury; Loxhore; Shirwell and Stoke Rivers.
The Mission Community
Services during
April & May 2018
The Mission Community lies within the Shirwell Deanery and covers an area of just under 50 square miles with a population of approximately 2600.
The parishes extend north east of Barnstaple to the Exmoor National Park and the Somerset border.
The Rector is Revd Rosie Austin, who lookes after the seven parishes. She is assisted by a curate Revd Martyn Tyrrell, two retired clergymen, Rev Chris Tull from Challacombe and Rev Mike Miller from South Molton.
Rosie lives in Bratton Fleming, the largest of the parishes and placed centrally within the Mission Community.
Martyn lives in Shirwell, the second largest parish.
All enquiries for weddings, funerals and baptisms should be made to Rev Rosie Austin:
Telephone 01598 711962
Email: rosieaustin@live.co.uk
Prayer Walks 2018
During the week of 10th May – 20th May, we will be committing time to prayer. It will be part of a ‘wave of prayer’ happening across our country during that week, praying for our communities.
ALL ARE WELCOME TO JOIN IN whatever your belief, tradition, or denomination….
For further details please click here.
|
Date |
Place |
Time |
Service type |
|
April 1
Easter Sunday
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Kentisbury Challacombe East Down Stoke Rivers Loxhore |
09.30 09.30 09.30 11.15 11.15 11.15 11.15 |
Family Communion Family Communion Family Communion Family Communion Family Communion Easter Service (not communion) Family Communion |
|
April 8
2nd Sunday of Easter
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Stoke Rivers Challacombe |
09.30 09.30 11.15 11.15 |
All Age Worship Holy Communion No Service No Service |
|
April 15
3rd Sunday of Easter
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Kentisbury East Down Loxhore |
09.30 09.30 09.30 11.15 15.00 |
Holy Communion All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Holy Communion All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Evening Prayer |
|
April 22
4th Sunday of Easter
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Stoke Rivers Bratton Fleming Challacombe |
09.30 09.30 11.15 15.45 18.30 |
All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Holy Communion No Service Messy Church Evening Prayer BCP |
|
April 29
5th Sunday of Easter
White |
Stoke Rivers |
11.15
|
Team Service |
|
May 6
6th Sunday of Easter
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell East Down Loxhore |
09.30 09.30 11.15 11.15 |
Holy Communion Morning Worship Holy Communion Holy Communion BCP
|
|
May 10 Ascension Day |
Starting from Challacombe shop |
18.30 |
Ascension Day Tour And Service |
|
May 13
7th Sunday of Easter
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Stoke Rivers Challacombe |
09.30 09.30 11.15 11.15 |
All Age Worship Holy Communion Morning Worship Holy Communion |
|
May 20
Pentecost
Red |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Kentisbury East Down Loxhore Bratton Fleming |
09.30 09.30 09.30 11.15 15.00 15.45 |
Holy Communion All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Holy Communion All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Evening Prayer Messy Café
|
|
May 27
Trinity Sunday
White |
Bratton Fleming Shirwell Stoke Rivers Challacombe |
09.30 09.30 11.15 18.30 |
All Praise (Celtic Liturgy) Holy Communion Holy Communion Evening Prayer BCP |
Area and parishes of the Mission Community
Rector’s Ramblings May 2018
Thy Kingdom Come
The words, ‘thy kingdom come’ are familiar ones taken from the Lord’s Prayer. This is the prayer we believe Jesus taught his disciples and which many people know by heart even two thousand years on.
What does it mean? A Kingdom seems rather an outdated concept. And even when Jesus taught the prayer the idea of God’s kingdom needed some explanation. So Jesus talked in pictures and stories to help us understand. It is like the yeast in bread, or a mustard seed that grows into a tree. It is like a pearl of immense value. It belongs to those who are poor in spirit, and to children. Most of all it is the place where God is King – and therefore his ways of love and justice and mercy and peace rule.
So when we pray, “your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven”, we are praying that love and justice and mercy and peace ‘win’ here in our own lives and communities. And conversely that hatred and injustice and bitterness and conflict are overcome. We all perhaps have sensed times when we get a glimpse of heaven in this world, where the world is what it should be. Praying is about talking and walking with a God who loves us, is a way of declaring our earnest desire that all would be well, and sets the direction of our lives and actions.
“Thy Kingdom Come” is a global call to prayer for all and any to engage with. It focuses on the period of time between Ascension Day (when Jesus left this world after his resurrection) which we celebrate on 10th May this year - and Pentecost (the day the Holy Spirit came to empower and equip his newly formed church) which we celebrate on 20th May. The Bible tells us that during this time, men and women gathered together ‘constantly in prayer’ (Acts 1:14).
There are short and accessible prayers and film clips available online to help those who want to find out more. See www.thykingdomcome.global
So please join us as we pray. Look for the page or posters for ‘prayer walks’ which lists dates, times and places for these short walks around every parish in our mission community. We will be walking and praying for individuals and communities and for our world, that God’s kingdom would come and that love would win.
Blessings,
Rosie