The Benefice of St. Bartholomew
Welcome to the website for the Benefice of St Bartholomew
- Details
- Written by Tony Gowers
The Benefice of St Bartholomew covers almost 30 square miles in the south west corner of Wiltshire. The Benefice is located in the Diocese of Salisbury and includes the following Church of England parishes: Donhead St Mary with Charlton, Donhead St Andrew, East Knoyle, Semley and Sedgehill.
Most of the Benefice lies within the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with its exceptional landscapes and superb scenery.
This website will tell you about our six Churches: St. John the Baptist Church in Charlton, St. Andrew's Church in Donhead St. Andrew, St Mary's Church in Donhead St. Mary, St. Mary's Church in East Knoyle, St. Catherine's Church in Sedgehill and St Leonard's Church in Semley.
The site also describes:
- The services and events which have been arranged for the whole Benefice.
- The activities organised for children and younger people in the Benefice.
You can also find us on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/benofbart/
If you have an item that you would like to be included on this website or have suggestions on how we can improve the site, please click here.
*** IMPORTANT - CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) ***
Following the Government’s announcements on 31st October, with effect from 5th November 2020 until the new lockdown ends, churches can be opened only for private prayer, funerals, and to broadcast acts of worship. Our normal pattern of Sunday services in church will be suspended during this time, and instead we will be holding services over the Internet using Zoom.
Latest COVID Update The latest Government guidance states that after the current lockdown ends, services with congregations can be held in churches. Services will therefore resume in our churches from 6th December 2020 onwards, with appropriate social distancing and all the other coronavirus mitigation measures in place as before.
Latest News And Forthcoming Services & Events
Benefice News - 27th November 2020
- Details
- Written by Tony Gowers
Church News
A copy of this week’s Church News can be found here. In addition to news, the document gives full details of all of our services during weekdays, as well as those this coming Sunday and the following Sunday. Do join in with everything that appeals to you.
Sunday 29th November 2020 - Advent Sunday
This coming Sunday’s Zoom services are as follows:
- At 09.30, a Benefice Family Service led by Bob Thackray using Zoom 4. The service sheet for this service can be downloaded and/or printed here.
- At 10.30, there is a Benefice Sung Eucharist led by The Rev’d June Lane using Zoom 3.
- Finally, at 18.00, there is the Benefice Advent Carols led by Toby Carson using Zoom 7.
All these services include hymns and music so you can sing at home. The service sheets will also be shared on your screens. All Zoom sign-in details are set out below.
Prayers during the Lockdown
During the first lockdown, we cheered for the NHS every Thursday. Therefore the Archbishops and Bishop Mullally are calling upon the Church of England to make this month of lockdown a month of prayer. They are inviting us to pray every Thursday for our nation, for its leaders, its health and essential services and all those who suffer, and also, if possible to make some sort of fast on that day.
We are also asked by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to try, if at all possible, to pray each day at 6.00 pm and also to be calm, courageous and compassionate. The daily prayer for this coming week 30th November to 6th December is:
Loving God,
your Son Jesus Christ came that we might have life and have it abundantly;
pour out your blessing upon our nation;
where there is illness, bring your healing touch;
where there is fear, strengthen us with the knowledge of your presence;
where there is uncertainty, build us up in faith;
where there is dishonesty, lead us into truth;
where there is discord, may we know the harmony of your love;
this we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.
More information about prayer during the lockdown can be found on the Church of England website here.
Churches Opening During the Week
Some of our church buildings will be open at specified times throughout the coming week. Details of the opening days and times for each church are shown below:
- St Andrew’s Church, Donhead St Andrew: Tuesday and Friday: 10.00 am to 4.00 pm
- St Mary's Church, East Knoyle: Wednesday: 10.00 am to 12.00 noon; Saturday: 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm
- St Leonard’s Church, Semley: Sunday and Wednesday: 10.00 am to 4.00 pm
These details may change as we gain experience of our ‘new normal’, so please check this page from week to week for the latest information.
Zoom
With many services now being held in our churches on Sundays and some being ‘Zoomed’ at the same time, we require more than one ‘Zoom room' to enable us to Zoom two services from different churches simultaneously. Details of each ‘Zoom room' are shown below.
Important: please ensure that you check in the right hand margin of the this page the Zoom details of the service in which you wish to participate before joining the service.
Zoom 2
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89166753523
Password: 057371
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 891 6675 3523 Passcode: 057371
You can also participate dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Zoom 3
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85640073075
Password: 2020
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 856 4007 3075 Password: 2020
You can also participate by dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Zoom 4
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2872955220
Password: 175430
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 287 295 5220 Password: 175430
You can also participate by dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Zoom 5
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/891662634
Password: 817983
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 891 662 6341 Password: 817983
You can also participate by dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Zoom 6
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3341879558
Password: 345123
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 334 187 9558 Password: 345123
You can also participate by dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Zoom 7
Either click on this link, and then use the password shown:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81694388080
Password: 231020
Or log on using the Zoom app, and use this ID and password:
Meeting ID: 816 9438 8080 Passcode: 231020
You can also participate by dialling in by telephone to one of these phone numbers: 0203 481 5237 or 0203 481 5240.
Click here for more guidance on how to join a Zoom meeting.
Prayer Cycle and Prayer of the Month - November 2020
- Details
- Written by The Rev'd June Lane
Do keep asking for prayers and do please let the Minister know at the beginning of a Service if you wish them to pray for someone in the Intercessions. We tend to be careful about saying names unless someone has asked.
Prayer requests and Thanksgivings please to The Rev’d June (tel: 01747 828427), Julia (tel: 01747 829166), or Theresa (tel: 01747 829188). Perhaps you have a special “Thank-you to God for the memory of a loved one”. Remember that we shall be celebrating their time with us at our All Souls Service.
Prayer of the Month
Sometimes we need to have a little time just to ourselves, and sometimes we can use that time to think about God and our own lives.
Loving God,
Here I sit and wait,
Thinking about life
And this wonderful world around us.
I sit in quiet hope that you will come
To water the barren fields of my life.
To make my life blossom
With flowers and fruit like the earth you created
Be with me day by day I ask,
Help me to live
A life which is a Blessing to others.
Amen