Newsletter - July 2007

Publicising these organisations and events does not imply endorsement of all they do.

NEWS RELEASE FROM THE ARCHBISHOP'S OFFICE - 27th June 2007

Margaret Sentamu has been appointed honorary lay canon in recognition of the work she has done as Senior Secretary of the Ministry Division at Worcester Cathedral. The news release below is forwarded for your interest. Please note that photography is available on request.
Thank you,
Elizabeth Addy

HONORARY CANONS OF WORCESTER CATHEDRAL APPOINTED

Seven new honorary Canons have been appointed at Worcester Cathedral in recognition of their work in both the diocese and the wider Church.  Appointments are made by the Bishop of Worcester in consultation with the Chapter of the Cathedral. Honorary canons form a bridge between the diocese and the Cathedral and meet to reflect and advise on the life of the Cathedral. There are a limited number of posts – Lay Canons and clergy outside the diocese hold the position for a five-year period, while clergy from the diocese remain Canons while they serve in the diocese.

The Honorary Canons installed in a service in the cathedral on 27 June were:

Two Honorary Lay Canons have also been appointed for a five-year period:

Father Kevin Kavanagh, Priest at St. Joseph’s RC Church in Warndon and the Roman Catholic Ecumenical Officer for the Archdiocese of Birmingham and the Revd Elizabeth Welch, Moderator of the West Midlands Province of the United Reformed Church have both been appointed as Ecumenical Canons of the Cathedral.

The Bishop of Worcester , the Rt Revd Peter Selby said: “I am delighted to be able to honour the work of all these individuals by making them Canons and I know they will all bring different and very valuable contributions to the life and work of Worcester Cathedral. By making these appointments I am expressing the thanks for the whole church for the work that each does in living out their mission and ministry.”

Margaret Sentamu commented: “I am honoured and delighted that Bishop Peter , together with the Dean and Chapter of Worcester Cathedral, has asked me to become a Lay Canon, in recognition of my work at the Ministry Division, over a 15-year period. I fully subscribe to the enormous contribution made to the Church of England by its laity up and down the country, and to become a lay canonry is extra special”.

Michael Huskinson, the Diocesan Registrar, said: “ Bishop Peter ’s invitation to become a Lay Canon came as a complete surprise to me and was one which I was honoured and very pleased to accept.   I was appointed Diocesan Registrar and Bishop’s Legal Secretary in 1992 and since then I have come greatly to enjoy and value my close association with successive Bishops of Worcester and with the diocese as a whole.  I now very much look forward to establishing a similar relationship with the cathedral through being one of their Lay Canons” 

Honorary Canons are distinct from Residentiary Canons who are on the staff of the Cathedral.

REST BENEDICTION

Bless to me, O God, the moon above my head.
Bless to me, O God, the earth on which I tread,
Bless to me, O God, my wife and children all,
Bless, O God, myself to whom their care doth fall;
Bless to me my wife and children all,
Bless, O God, myself to whom their care doth fall.
Bless, O God, the thing on which mine eye doth rest,
Bless, O God, the thing to which my hope doth quest,
Bless, O God, my reason and what I desire,
Bless, thou God of life, o bless myself entire;
Bless my reason and what I desire,
Bless, thou God of life, o bless myself entire.
From Poems of the Western Highlanders

Sent in from Pew News the weekly news sheet for the whole group of parishes connected to Stamford Bridge.

YEW TREES

There are few trees that can be traced back in time as far as the Yew tree, which is thought to have descended from paleotaxus rediva, which was found more than 200,000,000 years ago. This species is long-living, self-regenerating, and evergreen. It is not surprising then that we find it in many churchyards today.

Many churchyard yews are over 900 years old and were planted after the Norman Conquest during a spate of church building. However the most common were introduced only from County Fermanagh from 1780, the Irish Yew, Taxus fastigiata.

So what made early Christians place a yew in the churchyard? Well, sometimes it may well have been the other way round – the Christians ‘converting’ a pagan site for Christian worship.

Whichever came first, the church building or the Yew tree, it is clear that Yews convey a wealth of meaning largely due to its reputation for long life. This is due to the unique way in which the tree grows.

Its branches grow down into the ground to form new stems, which then rise up around the old central growth as separate but linked trunks. Meanwhile the central part may decay leaving a hollow tree but with the indistinguishable new growing life around the original tree. So the yew has always been a symbol of death and rebirth, the new that springs out of the old; resurrection life.

Because it is a slow-growing tree, it is a tight-grained wood, tough and resilient, used in the past for spears, spikes, staves, small hunting bows and eventually the famous long bow of the Middle Ages. The arrows were tipped with poison made from the yew. The entire tree is poisonous: wood, bark, needles and seed, all except the fleshy part around the seed. Hence it is often called,‘The Death Tree’.

In churchyards the yew trees were usually planted in a deliberate manner, with one often beside the path leading from the funeral gateway of the churchyard to the main door of the church – a symbol of resurrection hope for the mourners and a practical place for the priest and clerks to await on a wet or windy day.

This month: Have a look in a churchyard at a yew and consider where it is planted and what it is currently being used for. What does it say to you about life everlasting and resurrection, and death?

Also sent in from Pew News the weekly news sheet for the whole group of parishes connected to Stamford Bridge.

News From The Office of the Archbishop of York

2 July 2007

“Minster Man” becomes York City ’s Patron

York City FC has announced today that the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, is to become the patron of York City Football Club – known locally as the Minster Men.

Dr. Sentamu, who purchased his new season ticket in May, followed the team throughout last season following his arrival in York as Archbishop and has become a regular at home matches.

Accepting the club’s invitation the Archbishop said: “Football can be a great force for unity in a city such as York . The Chairman and directors of the club have invested time, money and effort into re-building this club with the community at its heart. I am delighted to have been offered the opportunity to become part of that project.

I am hopeful that this season York will find its way back into the Football League and that I will be able to support the club in its search for a new home for future generations of fans. And as the original man from the Minster I am of course delighted to lend my voice in support of the Minstermen.”

Jason McGill, Managing Director of York City Football Club, said “We are extremely honoured the Archbishop of York has accepted our invitation to become the Club’s patron. He is an inspirational figure who has taken a keen interest in the Club and our role in the community and we really welcome his involvement.

This is an exciting time for York City with the prospect of a new stadium for the Club and the community and we are delighted the Archbishop will be joining us and our fans on this great journey. ”

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