From Fr. Marcus

Good Afternoon Folks,
Hope you are having a good day. Here is the link for today’s video. 
An experience of the power of the Holy Spirit May 27

Good Afternoon you lovely people,
I hope you are feeling merry and bright!
Today we had a Zoom Chaplaincy Council Meeting, and among other things started to plan for the reopening of our churches.
It is not as simple as we might have hoped, but this letter is to put you in the picture.
The Council voted last week that we would work towards opening our churches for worship at the beginning of July if it was safe and practical to do so.
Today we agreed that local clergy, and the committees of each church will work together to make sure that everything is in place for a safe return. The wellbeing of all of our folk is most important.
My main concern is that people feel absolutely no pressure to come until they are completely ready. This includes all the officers of each congregation.
The first thing that is likely to happen is that you will receive something from your local Warden, asking gently if you feel that you would be ready to come to church from July. The reason for this is that there will be a limit on capacity, as we will need to follow the government guidelines on that and Social Distancing. What we don’t want is to say the church is open, then have to turn people away because we are full up. So knowing how many may come really helps.
Please don’t be put off by this, if we have too many folk keen to come, we will plan accordingly.
The next thing is that local committees will work out how to implement the Disinfecting guidelines, and ensure that premises are cleaned prior to, during and after each service.
The worship will be a little different. Firstly there will be no touching, so no handshakes or kisses as you arrive, no gathering in groups, seating 2 meters apart in designated seats. Couples or families from the same household may sit together, but individuals separately.
There will be no Service books. Pew sheets will be emailed to those on our lists, and you may bring your own.
The service will be fairly short with little or no singing. The droplets from our mouths are one way the virus spreads, and as we sing, they fly through the air. It is permitted to have a tiny choir, who sit far from others. Any congregational singing needs to be gentle, and masks need to be worn at all times.
The Priest will serve himself, and Communion will be in one kind, just the wafer. The Priest will say ‘The Body of Christ Keep you in eternal life’ once to the whole congregation, and then deliver the wafer, masked and in silence.
There will be no touching during the peace.
There will be no collection during the service, but a retiring collection, which the priest will remind you of. As you can imagine we have been spending our reserves. We have enough to last us until August, but by then we will need to be making some major decisions. At the moment it costs us just under €7000 per month to stay afloat! And as you know we have had no collections, fundraising or income generating activity for months. (If you have any questions about this please get in touch.)
No social gathering afterwards.
So, it will look and feel different, but it will be joyful worship, and a wonderful thanksgiving each week for the countless blessings we receive. Plus we get to take our Holy Communion, which many of us have missed so much.
I need to stress again, that there is no pressure to come. Just because the church is open does not mean that you need to go. Many of our folk will find themselves in some part of the vulnerable spectrum, and you are invited to act with wisdom and caution.
It may be that some of our churches are easier to open than others for all sorts of reasons. If it is not possible or practical, then we will wait. You local priest and wardens we keep you in the loop.
Please be assured that all relevant guidelines will be thoroughly met, and we will welcome our folk only when it is safe and practical to do so from July 5th.
If you have questions, it may be simplest to ask your local priest:
Fr Rodney looking after Gandia and Denia. His email is rodmid169@yahoo.co.uk
Fr Jim looking after Javea and La Fustera. jimbooker57@gmail.com
Fr Marcus looking after Calpe, Albir, Alfas del Pi and El Campello. marcusronchetti@yahoo.co.uk

The future continues to be a mystery, and we will do our best to get to some sense of normality quickly.
For the foreseeable future the Letters and videos from Fr Jim and I will continue, as will the live stream services provided by Fr Rodney and Fr Robin. Much of this will continue once the churches are open, but we don’t have the complete detail of that yet.
We wish you every blessing as we continue to work through all of this together.
As ever,
Fr Marcus

My youtube link for newest video is: –

The following is from Fr. Ray –

A couple of months ago I circulated details of a an online day retreat being given by Los Olivos. They are now running another one on Saturday 30th May. I am forwarding the email to you as it may be something you think worth circulating? As you will see, people need not commit to attending on Saturday as it will be available any time after that. It looks like it could be comforting and suitably positive for these difficult times. If you think it’s worth circulating, perhaps you can do some clever cutting and pasting. And if people want more info they are very welcome to contact me. revrayandrews@aol.com.

Click to view the recording of this morning’s communion service from Frs. Rodney and Robin. Please remember to click the thumb’s up sign to show that you like it, and leave a comment of support.

Click the link to view today’s video –

Click the link to view this morning’s service

There will be a Eucharist service today with Fr Rodney for Ascension Day.   This is live on Facebook at 11am. If you’ve not joined him on a Sunday and want to this morning, simple search for Rodney Middleton  (to help you find him he lives in Orba).    As always, we will let you know the link for YouTube when it is uploaded.  

Click the link to view, and remember to click “like” and to add a comment –

Good Morning my Friends,
I hope you have managed to bring a smile to someone’s face already today.
If things had been different, I would be into week three of my Camino from Porto in Portugal to Santiago in Northen Spain, walking all the way. I can’t tell you how much I am missing that experience, but another day, and we shall give it a go.
On our previous Caminos we have thought of an intention to dwell on each day. Some word or concept that we have allowed to float through our minds, just to see how it unfolded.
The beautiful thing about any sort of pilgrimage is the journey, and the ability just to focus on doing that, and not to try and solve all the problems of the world. And for those who have the gift of faith, to be aware that we walk with Christ beside us.
So, my little intention today, as we walk through this short letter is to think about St Duntsan, who we remember today. I think I like Dunstan because he came from Glastonbury where they have such great festivals, and he became a priest and a monk in the service of God.
He was commissioned to restore Monastic Like in Glastonbury, and from there grew the revival of organized monasticism in England.
Not only was he a great reformer and spiritual leader and spiritual friend to many, but a holy man who loved music and song. Also he was recognised as being great at metalwork, and as a bell founder. He became Archbishop of Canterbury in 959.
Practical, Spiritual, Musical and by all accounts a gentle master.
So, having shared that little bio with my fellow pilgrims we would have wandered through the day pondering what his life might inspire in us.
I know where my mind would have taken me. I would have linked his love of music and song with the modern day festivals of Glastonbury and elsewhere, and I would have dwelt on his practical crafting skills and remembered the ‘Making Workshops’ I used to organise for the Festivals in my last two parishes. How I love those big events that focus on building a sense of community and spirituality by using the gifts that people have to create an atmosphere of real enjoyment and inclusion.
Beach Dreams Festival on Shoreham Beach attracted thousands of participants, many of who were involved in the planning, preparation and delivery of a week of different events in a huge marquee, and a weekend carnival style celebration of Music, Arts and Drama, all revolving around a wonderful Celebration of the Eucharist in the marquee on the Sunday Morning.
What I like about reflecting on St Dunstan is that it reminds us that whatever our gifts or talents, whatever the things that make sense to us, whatever makes people laugh, and realise that they are surrounded by joy and beauty, we can us those things to bring folk together, to create a sense of belonging, a sense of community, an sense of welcome and we can embrace our great diversity, and in doing so, it is possible to see the presence of God at work.
If things were different, in a few days I would have reached Santiago. But in reality the journey is never over, and that is the best thing. So, Thank you Dunstan, and as we like to say when we pretend we are cool ‘Rock On!’
Until next time,
Bless you, Bless you, Bless you,
Fr Marcus