Page 2 - br-october-2019

October 2019 October 2019
meetings and all the other things of a busy benefice, in the way that we have
managed to do these past months. DATES FOR
As you know, we’ll be a benefice team and with this we need to establish a
workable pattern for everyone with a good and healthy work-life balance; one of YOUR DIARY
the reasons for our becoming a benefice is exactly for this reason. Revd Sandra’s
usual working days will be Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday and we ask 2019
everyone to respect this please. If the benefice does go on to be extended, the
priest in the Lulworths will work on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. This means that
there will always be a priest on duty in the benefice, usually two, as I work six days Key: FG-Floral Group, AL-Autumn Leaves, TA– Twinning, WI-Women’s
(my day off is Tuesday) and Rev Jenny and Rev Judy will also provide cover as will Institute, PiP-Pop in Place, GC-Gardening Club
our other colleagues. Those who work part-time will be able to do so and we can
all properly take our day(s) off with everyone knowing when we are (and are not)
October
on duty and available.
As you’ll understand, when a new team is formed things take time to settle and this 1st GC: Harvest Supper
will be the case with us for the next few months. Thank you to everyone for
bearing with us in the past few months. In two of the churches, Wool and Bere 8th FG: R Thompson, Up the Garden Path
Regis the number of Sunday Services has been reduced (Wool x 3, Bere Regis x 1)
and in all three churches some of the times of Services has changed to enable 9th AL: Tony Bates, Stunning Wildlife Photography
clergy and worship leaders to cover the services and travel from one church to
another. With this in mind it has been really lovely to see people moving around 12th PiP: Presentation Evening with Shaun Marx 7.30
the churches when there isn’t a Service they can attend in their own church- this
friendship and fellowship is to be very much encouraged. However, I also know 13th Havest Lunch - Briantspuddle Village Hall 12.30
that it may come as a disappointment to some that we’re not going to
immediately return to the Service pattern that existed before Revd Charles retired. 16th WI: The Watercress Company
There are a few reasons for this which I explain briefly here:

After Revd Bob Naylor sadly died, Rev Charles hardly reduced his workload at all 25th Purbeck Film Festival at Briantspuddle Village Hall 7.00-7.30
(only by 1 x 8am Service) despite the fact that both he and Revd Bob had worked
together to cover Services and that Revd Charles was only supposed to work for
Sunday +2 days. Such a pattern is unsustainable.
In order to ensure that all of the Services are able to be covered, timing is crucial. It
is not possible, for example, for a minister to get from Affpuddle to Wool in time if
Services are only an hour or even an hour and a quarter apart. In the main we
would wish to model good practice, never rushing from place to place for worship,
but having time for prayer and pastoral conversations too.
We need to give Rev Sandra time to settle in and for all of to work together to
determine the best times, and forms, of the Services we can offer. This can only be
done when we’re all in place.
The Thrive Questionnaires from all 3 churches have produced lots of really good
feedback with suggestions for the introduction of new Services, stopping some
others, and changing times and locations as well as, in a very few cases, keeping
things just as they are. We need time to reflect on all this- the provisional feedback
th
will be given on 29 September at the 10am Benefice Service at Wool.

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