st nicholas’ church, chislehurst lookoutst nicholas’ church, chislehurst. due to the uncertainty...

April/May 2020, DIGITAL

LOOKOUTBest Parish Magazine, Diocese of Rochester, 2010 & 2014

St Nicholas’ Church, Chislehurst

Due to the uncertainty surrounding the Coronavirus outbreak, this edition of Lookout comes without a printed edition for the first time since this parish magazine was first produced, over one hundred years ago.

You will notice that the format is different in that there is no diary of church services, no lectionary of readings and no articles about forthcoming events, such as those received from the Mothers’ Union and Chislehurst Society etc.

Despite working in unprecedented circumstances, both Tim and June have written their Reflections on Holy Week and Easter and Peter has written prayers that are relevant to the situation we all face. I would like to thank them and all the other contributors to the April/May magazine.

If you have spare time during your social distancing or self-isolating please consider writing a contribution to the June/July edition, sharing with readers ways you have coped and what you’ve found enjoyable/funny about a situation that brings both challenges and opportunities.

EDITOR

This digital edition of Lookout comes with a layout adapted to read more easily on your computer, tablet or mobile, while maintaining many familiar features from the printed magazine. Let us know what you think. Enjoy the read and keep safe.

OLLYDesigner

LOOKOUTSt Nicholas’ Church, Chislehurst

FRONT COVER: The Church March 2020 by Gabriella Somerville

CONTENTS

REFLECTIONS 3

PRAYER FOCUS 6

HUTS IN A LANDSCAPE 7

BIBLICAL FATHERS: JACOB 11

LICENSED LAY MINISTERS 15

MEMORIAL OF RICHARD FOSTER 16

THE NEW CHURCHYARD PATH 18

CHIDDINGSTONE VILLAGE AND ITS VINEGAR BIBLE 19

LOOKOUT April/May 2020

REFLECTIONS

Below, Rev’d June Hurn will give us some reflections on the resurrection of Jesus. First, Rev’d Dr Tim Boniface offers some thoughts on Holy Week. What is Christianity saying about God, if we take these events as central to our faith? Much of this article was written before the period of social distancing in response to the Coronavirus—it all still applies!—but the final reflection takes in a little of what Good Friday might say to us in this time.

PALM SUNDAY“Behold, your king comes, humble and riding on a Donkey”, said the prophet Zechariah, and so with Jesus seated on a colt, making his way through the city gates, the crowds shout ‘Hosanna!’ Here is the one who will save us, they are saying; here is the one who will restore the land to the people of God. This looks like what we’re hoping for. Yes, Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem has hugely political overtones. The hope for a ‘Messiah’ was hard to separate from the feeling of desperation for freedom from Roman rule. I suspect there was more than that in the mix, though. Jesus’ ministry and teaching up to this point had reached deep into individual lives too, and the news of his transformative presence among the poor and needy must have also been a cause for celebrating his arrival into Jerusalem. There is, of course, a well-rehearsed paradox here: that the ‘king’ should enter a city in such obvious humility, on a donkey’s foal. We are reminded that a kind of ‘might-is-right’ triumph is simply not fitting

for describing what we learn about God through Jesus. As we enter holy week, Jesus’ story is already chipping away that the idea that the God of the universe is best understood as a powerful monarch who will sweep away our enemies. However, the paradox of the king on a humble donkey is only the start of how the events of the coming week will challenge peoples’ expectations of Jesus and ideas about God.

JESUS CLEANSES THE TEMPLE“You have made it a den of robbers.” The Temple: such a powerful symbol of worship and national confidence in being God’s people. Having been welcomed into Jerusalem as the deliverer, the one who was sent by God to be on their side, what was Jesus doing attacking the temple? The tables are turned literally and metaphorically, as the person who was supposed to be restoring the kind of national

religious life that the Temple symbolized causes havoc and speaks (well, probably shouts) deeply critical words. His criticism seems to focus on the ways Temple leaders made money by effectively charging pilgrims to pray (‘you have to buy this to sacrifice’…etc.). Yet even here people are, as Mark puts it, ‘spellbound’ by his teaching. This is certainly one of the last straws for the religious authorities, though, for at this point the search for a way to kill Jesus intensifies. I know this might seem quite a clichéd response, and no doubt it has been expressed this way countless times before, but are there tables in our own religious or cultural life that Jesus, as portrayed in the gospels, might overturn? To tell the Holy Week story from the perspective of church life and ignore the discomfort and disruption that Jesus caused for established religion would suggest a major blind spot. So if we’re going to shout ‘Hosanna’ on Palm Sunday, might we need to be ready to be disrupted, too? What might need to change? What tables might Jesus turn over in our life together?

MAUNDY THURSDAY 1. “He washed their feet”. The scene is more intimate now, more personal, making it easier to imagine encounters with Jesus on a one-to-one level. He gathers with his closest friends—those whom he has inspired and taught and led—perhaps for nearly three years. They know him as master and teacher, although he doesn’t deny that, he does tell them that in God’s way of doing things, being master and teacher means being a servant. Not just in words, either: Jesus goes on to do what a servant does. He washes their tired dirty feet. Despite their concerned protests that this doesn’t fit the script, he treats them as the privileged guests and himself as the servant. If, as Christians, we want to take seriously the teaching about Jesus as God incarnate then we have to reckon with this scene telling us something about what God is like. That God somehow longs to serve us, to give to us, and that this is

THOUGHTS FOR THE DAYS


something that requires some willingness on our part. In the case of the disciples, this meant acknowledging and letting go of a deep resistance to being served and loved like this. This might be the case for us too. As we will see, the loving serving Jesus models is not the kind of thing that makes everything easy or ‘fixes’ everything for us—just look at the events that follow this intimate meal.

2. “This is my body…, this is my blood.” We don’t know exactly what kind of meal the ‘Last Supper’ itself was, but it was certainly deeply connected to the Jewish Passover, that being the time of year when all this took place. Here, symbols of God leading the people of Israel to freedom, and of the promise of freedom in the future, are reinterpreted around Jesus himself. Gifts and signs of freedom, of forgiveness, of the kingdom of God are—Jesus seems to say—actually now signs that are about him. Sharing bread and wine, as we do at Holy Communion, is not just about something Jesus taught or did, but about his very self. We’ve seen how the events of Holy Week keep asking us to think about God in particular ways, and here it is no different. Here we find ourselves talking about God who gives God’s very self for us. God’s nature, if you like, is revealed to be self-giving. God’s life is for our life.

Yet the challenges to how we think about God do not end here. Immediately after the supper, Judas goes out to bring the authorities to arrest Jesus. Suddenly we’re not only thinking about God through humility, servanthood and self-giving; but also thinking about God and betrayal. The life of Jesus, through whom we see the life of God, is as one who is betrayed. God is present here, in one of the darkest things that human beings can do to one another. It’s tempting to see this as simply tragic; yet through the symbols of the last supper Jesus has promised that this will be somehow for the freedom and forgiveness of God’s people.

GOOD FRIDAY“They crucified him.” What does it mean to think about God present as this man who is betrayed, unfairly tried, tortured within an inch of his life and then publicly executed? We can never touch the depths of what we recall this day. It draws us to one of the deepest mysteries of Christian faith—that in an horrific, unjust, politically motivated death, we are drawn to see the mercy love and work of God. Yet to offer one thought: the cross asks us to trust that God does not abandon even the most horrendously evil corners of the universe. Indeed, when Jesus cried ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me’, I think, paradoxically, this might be telling us that God does not abandon the places where people feel totally, utterly and completely abandoned by God. Don’t, for one minute, think that this makes it easy. God’s presence amongst suffering and evil does not look like what we might want it to: legions of angels, thunderclaps and lightening bolts to scatter Jesus’ enemies. I want lightening bolts and thunderclaps to end the suffering in the world, especially at the moment, of course I do. Good Friday doesn’t answer the angry questions we have about suffering. It doesn’t tell us that the world can always continue as we’ve known it. But Good Friday is asking us to trust that the loving mercy that binds the universe together is present amongst even the most horrendous evils; and that because of God’s presence in those places, there is hope, and the possibility for transformation, even beyond death.

This is a strange and perhaps frightening period of time. Humanity faces an existential threat, and it can feel like the world we know is hiding away somewhere. Jesus words, ‘why have you forsaken me?’, may be echoed by many. The disciples experienced that too, feeling forsaken and lost for a while. The world they had known—following Jesus for years, and being shaped and inspired by his ministry and friendship—that world disappeared. We too have to change how we live for while, and part of this change may leave us feeling lost or forsaken. But we must ask ‘if we have to change, what are we going to change to’? To a sense of failure and doom? This needn’t be. Totally unexpectedly, two days from Good Friday, the disciples would find themselves challenged to believe that in amongst and alongside the pain and grief of the cross there had been a sign of hope for transformation, hope for a new kind of faith, hope for forgiveness, and way of seeing the world. None of this lessened the pain of the moment, but that pain, injustice and fear simply do not get the last word as far as Christianity is concerned.

As we’ve been reflecting all along, if we take seriously the idea of Jesus as God among us, then here God enters the darkness of death and suffering—and because God has done this, there is hope for transformation. Words like this are never enough; but God is enough.

REV’D DR TIM BONIFACE

TIM’S REFLECTIONS, CONTINUED...


REFLECTIONS

THE FOUR GOSPELS ON EASTER“Christ is Risen, Alleluia!” and our response is, “He is Risen indeed! Alleluia!” What is this wonder that we affirm? Does Easter Day, because we celebrate it year after year, still move us deeply? One thing is certain, there would not be Christians here, and all over the world, praising God, Praying, Working, Singing, Worshipping, if Jesus had not risen from the dead!

The Church in past years celebrates Easter with all night and early morning services, with new fire and candles, with wonderful flowers and joyful hymns. All over the country there were chocolate eggs in abundance, Easter egg hunts, bunny rabbits and holidays. This year is different! We are all celebrating Easter in our homes alone or with our families.

The accounts of the Resurrection by the four Gospel writers differ from one another in various details, but they do have one thing in common. They share a fine knack for dramatic understatement.

Matthew, Luke and John reach the climax of their stories only to whisper. Mark ends quite suddenly with silent, terrified women running away from the empty tomb. The other Gospels say a bit more, but even so, the stories are so ordinary, so mundane. A man is mistaken for a gardener in the early morning and asks Mary, “Why are you crying?” Someone walks up behind a couple of disciples and casually asks, “What’s been happening?” A stranger shouts from the shore of the lake, “Have you caught anything?” There are no dazzling lights, no angel choruses, no brass bands, and no cheering crowds. Instead, Jesus is recognised when he does something that his disciples had seen before. The tone of his voice when he simply said “Mary” is what caused Mary’s astonished recognition. The way he broke the bread gave him away in Emmaus. On the shore of the lake, with a simple instruction to cast their net on the other side of the boat, Jesus blesses the disciples with a catch of fish more than they could have hoped for. They had gone back to their ordinary lives, having followed Jesus for three years. They had seen people healed; heard radical teaching. They had gone with him to Jerusalem and been with him when he was arrested. They had known about or seen him crucified. They had seen him afterwards in the upper room and Thomas had declared, “My Lord and my God!” And what do they do? They go fishing. They go back to their ordinary lives – and Jesus came to them as they fished and blessed them. Just as he comes to each of us in our everyday lives and blesses us with more goodness than we can imagine.

What the disciples experienced on that shore is what Christians everywhere experience when they come together to celebrate Christ’s Resurrection. The power of Jesus is not stunning as the world recognises the spectacular. It is not about razzle and dazzle or eye catching special effects. Instead, it is the quiet way of Jesus with his people forgiving their failures, recognising their limitations, but in grace setting them to do his work every day, anyway.

Grace means new beginnings. Even though we frequently fall back in failure, Jesus keeps accepting us as we are, and, at the same time, gently calls us to grow more and to come further along the journey of discipleship. Every day we pick ourselves up; shake ourselves down, to continue our growth in Grace in the Resurrection life which Jesus alone gives. And so, we celebrate Easter today and all through the year. “Christ is risen! Alleluia!! “He is risen indeed! Alleluhia”.

REV’D JUNE HURN


PRAYER FOCUSCome and see what God has done, how awesome his works on man’s behalf.He turned the sea into dry land;they passed through the waters on foot.Come, let us rejoice in him.He rules for ever by his power,His eyes watch the nations.

Psalm 66, verses 5 -7b

ReflectionThe psalmist recalls Israel’s miraculous escape when Pharaoh’s soldiers had them trapped by the Red Sea, all looked lost but God opened up a dry path through the waters to save them; in the Dunkirk miracle of 1940 our troops were trapped on the beach and all looked lost…. King George 6th called for a National Day of Prayer to be held on 26 May 1940. God stayed the hand of the enemy; by 6 June over 300,000 soldiers had been rescued.

Whether the problems that worry you today are personal, national or global, God knows your need; he wants you to lay the burden on him, to remember with thanks the ‘insurmountable’ problems of the past which are now resolved, to ask him to show you the solution to the problem and to be willing to follow his lead.

FatherWe want your help immediately to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic infecting our loved ones; about the financial damage it might do to our institutions, to smaller businesses and to our own pockets. We pray for politicians here and overseas directing their countries’ resources. We pray, too, for doctors and nurses striving to protect and cure patients. We ask that as individuals we all play our part and comply with the guidance given on how to mitigate the spread of the disease, Amen

FatherWe are very concerned about the warming of the planet due to human activity and the dire predictions for all mankind if the present trend of consumption of the earth’s resources is not curbed. We thank you for the ingenuity of humans to come up with fresh solutions to problems and we pray that across the globe scientists might work together and share research so that advances can be made more effectively, Amen

FatherWe know that as Christians we should change our ways, review our diets and be prepared to consume less so that the poor of the world can have more. Give us the discipline to welcome those necessary changes in our life styles. We thank you for the prophetic voice of Greta Thunberg, challenging the world to change now in order that there will be a world for our grandchildren and great grandchildren. Will you bless and protect her from her detractors, Amen


PITCH PERFECT

HUTS IN A LANDSCAPEA coat of tar is a great preservative against the constant lashing of on-shore winds and salt spray, hence the colour of the huts pictured here, located as they are close to the sea.

“Prospect Cottage, its timbers black with pitch, stands on the shingle at Dungeness”, writes Derek Jarman as he begins his 1989 diary, where he lovingly records every detail of the making of a garden that still attracts pilgrims from all over the world. Nearly 30 years after his death Prospect Cottage, with its distinctive yellow paintwork and idiosyncratic garden are deemed so significant that in January this year the Art Fund launched a £3.5 million appeal to preserve them. Jarman (1942-1994) was a man of many talents: poet, painter, writer, theatre designer, film-maker, but his garden may well prove to be his enduring legacy.

Dungeness is dotted (dare one say littered?) with a curious collection of fishermen’s huts, some well-presented, some frankly tatty. It’s hard to tell which are full-time homes, part-time retreats or still in the hands of working fishermen. Harder still to see where the boundaries of each property might lie. None of the shingle is enclosed. Jarman fans hoping to get a close-up of the rear or side gardens of his cottage are asked to respect the privacy of local residents, so it might be more public-spirited to consult the glorious photographs in Derek Jarman’s Garden (Jarman & Sooley 1995). A few interesting monochromes can be found in Modern Nature, the Vintage paperback of his 1989-1990 diaries. His knowledge of what grows naturally on a stony shoreline and what can be cajoled into taking root if tended gently, combined with a quirky choice of artistic garden ornaments made Prospect Cottage and its setting not merely attractive but unique.

By contrast the red-roofed former beach hut, situated in Rye Harbour Nature Reserve may be the most instantly recognisable and frequently photographed building for miles around but it is far less well documented than Prospect Cottage and its garden. It lies further inland now than when it was built. The sea has retreated over the years. Nevertheless, the windblown saltmarshes on which it stands and its proximity to the little River Rother making its way behind it, past Camber Sands into the sea, justify its coat of pitch. There is no other protection from the elements.

Not much is known about this bright feature of the seashore. The best information comes from a web page (http://www.ryeharbour.net/picture/number178.asp?st=hut) contributed by the great-grandson of the last known owner. She was a Rye resident who had it from the 1930s until her death in the 1950s. Apparently the family was gathered at the hut in 1939 on the very day war was declared. Her great-grandson recalls the scary wartime experience of clutching his gran’s


hand as they walked down to the hut along a narrow path set between the mine fields that had been laid against the possibility of invasion. His web page is fascinating.

The landscapes of the red-roofed hut and Prospect Cottage could not be more different though both locations are a nature-lover’s delight. Dungeness, fine shingle and large water-smoothed stones, is home to a variety of shoreline plants, rare moths, insects and birds. My patience has occasionally been rewarded in the summer months by sightings of a harbour porpoise cavorting in the sun-speckled sea. A few miles west of Dungeness, the red-roofed hut is visible for miles across a varied landscape stretching from the Rother estuary westwards. Shingle, grassland, saltmarsh and reed beds host a huge variety of plants and birds. More than 280 species of birds have been recorded, some very rare, and 455 varieties of plants. My own excited sighting of a seal basking on a sandbank was dismissed scornfully by a local as commonplace.

You can admire the front of Prospect Cottage from the comfort of your car as you make for the lighthouses, the grim nuclear power station and the pleasant café of the Romney Hythe and Dymchurch Railway terminus. If you fancy taking your own photo of the very photogenic red-roofed hut, it’s a longish walk from a free car-park along a smooth path leading to the sea.

ANNA SLOWEY

REGISTER

BAPTISMSSunday 9 February

Sadie Ida-Grace Valks

Sunday 16 FebruaryRafferty Cass Diamond-Murray


We are not local to St Nicholas, living in Petts Wood, but were instantly drawn to this beautiful setting because of the friendly congregation, approachable clergy and wonderful sense of community and belonging.

My journey in faith has been life-long. I was raised a Roman Catholic in Surrey; my Primary School being linked to our church; I attended a Convent secondary school and the University I attended also had a faith background. My family were heavily involved in church life - my mother giving the sacrament at mass, my sisters and I being altar servers and as I grew up, I also became a reader. I would not, however say I was particularly religious; it was more of a sense of family that I had as a child growing up within the church community. Everyone knew everyone else; everyone cared for each other. It was this sense of belonging and love that I wanted for my own future family, and at St Nicholas, it is the same: we

PROFILE

SARAH ARMSTRONG

I have recently taken on the role of Sunday School coordinator at St Nicholas Church. My husband Kev and I have been attending St Nicholas for about five years now and in that time we have been blessed to welcome our daughter, Lily, who is about to start school in September (where on earth has the time gone?!) and our son, Jack, in July of last year.

IMAGE: Sarah with husband Kev, Lily and baby Jack

look out for each other; we help each other; there is a sense of belonging. I delight in watching Lily play with the friends she has grown up with whilst the adults chat having coffee after church; how she is confident to speak to the adults who genuinely take an interest in her well-being from week to week; it fills my heart with gratitude when people come up and ask how my son is feeling, as they remember the previous week he had been poorly. I am very aware of how lucky we are to be a part of this family.

As a deputy head teacher of a local Greenwich school, I was keen to get involved in Sunday School when the opportunity arose a few years ago. The Sunday School team is a fantastic group of people who are selfless with their time and enthusiasm to involve our younger generation in the important messages the Bible gives us. They put in so much thought and time for planning, resourcing, delivering and reflecting on lessons for their children and it is a pleasure to be a part of that team. The second and fourth Sundays are wonderful opportunities for our children to come together to start with a prayer and song before going to their age-appropriate sessions where they hear a Bible story, discuss and interpret the message it has for us today and develop their understanding of the message through engaging activities, games, songs and craft in a safe, friendly environment. It is a delight to see the children running back to their parents at the end of a session to share what they have made and what they have learnt. Madeline Clark has done a phenomenal job coordinating the team for many years and I know it is down to her dedication and support that the Sunday School is in the strong position it is today. I know I speak for the whole Sunday School team, past and present, when I express my gratitude for all she has done and will continue to do for our children.

When Rev’d Alan asked if I would take the lead, I was initially quite overwhelmed but this very quickly gave way to excitement at the prospect of continuing and building upon the great work that already happens with our younger members of the church. I have already experienced amazing support from the team and the wider congregation with Sunday School and I am really looking forward to seeing what we are able to achieve, with our wonderful children in the future, together.

SARAH ARMSTRONG


The younger of twins, we are told that Jacob was born holding on to his brother Esau’s heel. Jacob’s name means ‘he grasps the heel’ or ‘he deceives’ and Jacob lived up to this when he and his mother Rebekah cheated Esau out of his birth-right and blessing.

Jacob struggled with God his entire life, as many of us do today. But as Jacob matured in faith, he depended on God more and more. The turning point for Jacob came after a dramatic, all-night wrestling match with God. From that day forward, Jacob was called Israel which means ‘he struggles with God.’ For the rest of his life Jacob walked with a limp, demonstrating his dependence on God and how he had learned to give up control to God.

BIBLICAL FATHERS SERIES

JACOBJacob is remembered as one of the great patriarchs of the Old Testament, but at times he was also a schemer, liar and manipulator. God first established a covenant with Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham which continued through to Isaac, then Jacob and his descendants. Jacob’s sons became leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel.

The story of Jacob in the Bible can be found in Genesis 25-37, 42, 45-49

Key VersesGenesis 28:12-15He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (NIV)

Genesis 32:28

“Then the man said, ‘Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.’” (NIV)Jacob was born in Canaan and fathered 12 sons, who became leaders of the 12 tribes of Israel. One of them was Joseph, a key figure in the Old Testament. Jacob persevered in his love for Rachel and proved to be a hard worker – a shepherd and prosperous owner of sheep and cattle. He was a clever man and sometimes this trait worked for him, and sometimes it backfired on him. He used both his mind and strength to build his wealth and family.

Sometimes Jacob made his own rules, deceiving others for selfish gain. He did not immediately trust God to work things out. Even though God revealed himself to Jacob, he sometimes took a long time to become a true servant of the Lord. Jacob favoured Joseph over his other sons, leading to jealousy and strife within his family.

Have I, like Jacob, decided to fully place my trust in God? If so, what are the benefits? If not, what is stopping me? We often worry about falling short, but as with Jacob, God works with our mistakes and bad decisions. Jacob’s story teaches us how an imperfect person can be greatly blessed by God.

LYNTON GOLDS

JACOB CONTINUED


On Saturday 29 February I attended the Bishop’s Study Day at Christ Church, Chislehurst. The conference was led by Neil Hudson, Senior Associate at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LiCC) and supported by Bishop James and Bishop Simon.

Following an inspirational keynote address about the value of everyone within the church, we were asked to consider five key steps.

Who are we? What are our personalities & backgrounds?What does this mean? For our families, our church & communities?What now? What does God want of us?Let’s do this! Can we do what is being asked of us?What’s happened? Have our actions had any consequences?

We were given a definition of being a disciple - as “someone learning to live the way of Jesus in their context at this moment.” We were then challenged to ask and answer the following question.

What is helping me to live as this sort of disciple of Jesus, at this moment in time? It was agreed that one challenge facing many Christians today is staying “red” (or rather staying “switched on”) in an increasingly grey, secular world. The speaker suggested that a fruitful life could be achieved by following the SIX M’s.

Modelling Godly characteristicsMaking good work (for the glory of God)Ministering grace and love (responding to your context)Moulding culture (making a difference)A Messenger of the GospelA Mouthpiece for truth and justice

The first three require CONSISTENCY and the last three require COURAGE.

As Christians, a further challenge is not just to be DISCIPLES but to be COURAGEOUS DISCIPLES as we go about our daily lives bringing joy to others through our interaction with each other across our diverse networks of life.

The conference ended with us being divided into small groups to answer the following questions.Where are we? (Describe the places where we spend much of our time e.g.: workplaces, voluntary groups, networks, church groups etc)What brings us joy in these places?What challenges do we face in these places, as Christians?What does our church already do to support one another in these challenges?What else could our church do that would help?What could we do in our church to support others?

As St Nicholas Church moves further into its interregnum, it becomes even more relevant and necessary for us to value each other and appreciate what each one of us can bring to our church and so further enrich our community. Our response to the challenges of the future rests in our hands! May God bless us all.

LYNTON GOLDS

REFLECTIONS ON THE BISHOP OF ROCHESTER’S STUDY DAY


THE MEMORIAL

CAPTAIN LORD THOMAS BERTIE This memorial in the North aisle is potentially one of the most valuable in our church. It is certainly rich in its ornateness. It is sculpted by the leading Eighteenth Century sculptor, Jan Mikael Rysbrack, a Flemish sculptor who came to London in 1790. His work is probably that of the depiction of the naval skirmish in low relief with the rest of the work being done by monumental mason, Sir Henry Cheere. Rysbrack has 16 monuments in Westminster Abbey, a fine statue of Sir Isaac Newton in the V & A and the mounted statue of King William III in Bristol. His work is to be treasured here and children can learn, as they have been led to, from the NADFAS trail of this church, about the images of cannons (not the same as Canon Rev’d Alan Mustoe!) ensigns, drum and globe created in this memorial.

Why is Rysbrack’s work here in Chislehurst? I can only think that it relates to a statue Rysbrack completed for Lord Bertie’s father, the 1st Duke of Ancaster in Lincolnshire. Lord Thomas Bertie was the fourth son of the Duke, with his second wife, Albinia, daughter of General Farrington; yes, the same name as the school. The family lived at Bertie Place, the site on which the school was built in 1911. The Bertie family and the Selwyns – marble memorial over in the South aisle - were cousins and between them their families begat, shall we say, the Lords of the Manor of Chislehurst!

The memorial contains fine words and ones which we might all be proud to have as a legacy ‘Sacred to the virtues that adorn a Christian and a sailor, this marble perpetuates the memory of Thomas Bertie. His eminent abilities in his profession and admirable qualities in his private life, rendered his death universally regretted’.

Bertie became a naval officer in 1744, in command of a sloop called the Drake, promoted to a 20-gun ship, The Phoenix, which captured a French 24-gun ship called The Neptune and then promoted in 1745 to command a 50-gun ship, The Winchester. But his career was cut short. Sent to the East Indies with the Winchester, he was ordered back to England, aged only 29, but died on board ship in the English Channel on his journey home. His body was transferred to Chislehurst with great pomp from Plymouth in August 1749.

St Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors (along with pawnbrokers, repentant thieves and prostitutes), a ship is the symbol of our church primary school and as St Nick was the original secret Santa.

JOANNA FRIEL

Captain Bertie’s memorial in the Church


EXPLAINER

LICENSED LAY MINISTERS When I was sitting in church waiting for the morning service to begin, a member of the congregation asked me what the difference was between readers and licensed lay ministers. Not able to fully answer the question, I decided to ask one of the key leaders on the LLM ministry training team. Here is their response:

“Readers are lay ministers who on the whole have a liturgical and teaching role in the church. It may feel a very limiting role for a lay minister who feels a calling to more than this, or whose ministry is not about leading worship, preaching or teaching. Most dioceses still use the term readers. Rochester decided to stop using the term and moved to licensed lay ministers. We still have Readers and they offer a very significant ministry in their parishes, we just do not train people for Reader ministry any more.

In Rochester the LLM title indicates someone who has a leadership role in the church (beyond just leading worship). A licensed lay minister may exercise leadership through any number of ministries not just leading worship preaching or teaching. For example, an LLM might be a chaplain in a school or a hospital. It is a much more flexible ministry than a Reader. For example, an LLM could have a ministry in leading aspects of pastoral care which would not fall comfortably into a traditional Reader ministry.

Rochester decided to have licensed lay ministers to create a strong parity of lay ministry and to be sufficiently flexible in order to respond to new shapes of lay ministry as they emerge in our changing culture. The LLM model is a collaborative ministry with their incumbents and others in the leadership team.

Some other dioceses use the term licensed lay minister but what they tend to mean is Reader, not the more extensive role that our LLMs may have. For example, it is possible for an LLM to have responsibility for a congregation where an incumbent has more than one church building and more than one congregation within a benefice.

LLM is a wider ministry than that of Reader. For Rochester the LLM provision includes those who have a calling to ministry that is liturgical, teaching, pastoral, evangelistic.”

I hope that this article helps answer the question.

LYNTON K GOLDSLicensed Lay Minister

The mid-nineteenth century was a time of population growth as well as migration into urban areas like London. Walthamstow, the focus for Foster’s activity, grew from 3006 inhabitants in 1801 to 124 thousand in 1911. In 1840, it had one Anglican church, by 1911 there were eighteen.

The first new church in which Foster was involved was St Mathias, Stoke Newington. It was consecrated in June 1853 and was the first of many. In addition to his concern for the lack of church buildings he considered that the church was out of touch with ordinary people. He wanted services with energetic sermons that would stir the imagination and be relevant to the thoughts and feelings of the poor. He saw it as his duty as a merchant who had made his money in London, to improve the moral and physical welfare of its inhabitants.

Foster was thrifty, abstemious and absent-minded, especially when it came to recognising and remembering people. He was not really sociable, but liked walking and visiting old buildings and churches. He enjoyed the country and in the 1870s bought three farms. He objected to bazaars and raffles as a means of raising money for church buildings and rejected any appeals to contribute. Through legacies and his partnership, each year he had an increasing surplus of funds. He regarded tithing as important. Between 1858 and his death on 23 Dec 1910, he gave away £380,000. Perhaps what sums up this amazing and generous man, is the inscription, carved by Eric Gill, on the foundation stone of St Barnabas, Walthamstow: ‘This church of St Barnabas Walthamstow is to be built at the cost of Richard Foster, a merchant of London, as a thank offering to Almighty God for numberless mercies during a long life. This stone was laid by the aforesaid Richard Foster on the 4th September 1902, being the day on which he completed his 80th year.’

Richard Foster moved to Chislehurst to avoid the increasing noise and pollution of Clapton, yet who kept true to his vision and Christian faith. He was buried in St Nicholas Churchyard and his ornate gravestone can be seen near the mortuary shed.

EDITORWith thanks to the Chislehurst Society

RICHARD FOSTER MERCHANT OF LONDON AND PHILANTHROPIST

Richard Foster’s gravestone in the churchyard, by Peter Appleby

Richard Foster was a partner in a family banking business whose activities centered mainly on Brazil and it was from this that his wealth was derived. From his youth he was a devout member of the Church of England and on his 21st birthday donated the £2 that his mother had given him to the National Society for its expansion work. This philanthropy continued all through his life and was the driver behind all that he did.

£380,000in 1910 is equivalent to:

£45 millionin 2020

I WILL POUR WATER ON HIM THEY IS THIRSTY ...On the corner of Church Row and Watts Lane stands a large granite drinking fountain. As you leave the refreshment of the Tigers Head, I wonder if you have ever noticed this memorial, dedicated to the Reverend Charles Janson M.A. Who was this man and who put the drinking fountain there?

With much gratitude to the resources of the parish magazine from 1890, I’m able to tell Charles’s story. He was the youngest son of William and Eliza Janson, the youngest, in fact, of 11 children. The widowed Eliza came to Chislehurst, from Tottenham, in 1868 and settled in a large house called Raggleswood in Lubbock Road. The house is no longer there, but of course a road is named after it.

Young Charles went to Oxford University but died at Lake Nyassa (now Lake Malawi) aged just 32 in 1884. He was a missionary associated with the Universities Mission to Central Africa which was a society established by members of the Anglican Church within the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, and Dublin. It was firmly in the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the Church. Founded in response to a plea by David Livingstone, the society had two major goals: to establish a mission presence in Central Africa, and to actively oppose the slave trade.

Their first expedition was more or less disastrous. The area chosen as a base, near Lake Nyasa, proved highly malarial. The mission’s early years were deemed “a miserable failure”.By 1874, Bishop Edward Steere pursued the mission’s aim of returning to establish a presence at Lake Nyasa. Rather than attempting the arduous river navigation that had doomed the first mission, groups set out for the lake overland, developing a network of mission stations as they went.

Charles Janson, along with another missionary, William Percival Johnson, reached the lake in 1884. They said it reminded them of the Sea of Galilee. But it was the rainy season and Charles fell victim to dysentery and apparently ‘fell asleep on Shrove Tuesday at noon’. Bishop Steere said ‘no one should have been chosen more clearly than Charles Janson, to join the Kingdom of Heaven’. He is buried by the lake, under a cairn of stones. His name was subsequently given to a steamer that the UMCA later commissioned for use in ministering around the lake.

The History of the Universities Mission describes how Charles’s last journals show him appreciating glowing hills, wooded vales and a hippopotamus taking an early bath! The inscription on the water fountain says that it was ‘erected by those who valued his friendship and admired his devotion’, but I have not been able to discover who those admirers actually were.

However, perhaps we can be the friends of Charles Janson today by restoring the water fountain on our church boundary; perhaps we will be able to literally provide water for those that are thirsty; perhaps with the funds of both The Chislehurst Society and the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain Association and some little help from Thames Water, under the guidance of Andrew Wilton, water will one day flow again from this rather magnificent structure. We are working hard to conclude the restoration of the fountain but inevitably it means getting the relevant permissions from the Diocese and then getting Grant Applications in place. It is all coming together and we hope the water will once again flow through the Janson fountain before the year end in the memory of an ardent young man and ready to refresh the next generation.

JOANNA FRIEL

Janson Water Fountain featuring Tim’s saxophone!

THE NEW CHURCHYARD PATHWhile quinquennial works were being undertaken in the church and churchyard last year, a long-felt need was addressed - the Memorial Garden along the north wall of the churchyard had been accessible only across uneven ground, scattered with graves and their stone kerbs. This was a hazard to walkers and effectively prevented wheelchairs and the disabled visiting the spot. The Churchyard Committee, headed by the Rector, decided to create access from the north path (from the north-east gate to the west gate) to the Memorial garden.

The task wasn’t an entirely simple one. What with the irregular ground and the scattered graves, a convenient route was far from obvious. It was important to provide a firm, reliable surface for users that was also a visual enhancement of the Churchyard. A tarmac path like the others already in place was considered, but it was felt, would not be visually attractive. Our architect, Chris Kiernan, worked with the Committee to decide on the route and came up with a handsome design incorporating red and dark bricks, snaking northwards from the path and terminating in a roundel with a central stone dated ‘2019’, close to a shady seat on which visitors could rest before or after visiting the Garden.

The path is now installed, with the support of a generous bequest by the late Michael Cooling, and its soft red bricks do indeed enhance the Churchyard while greatly improving the amenity for all who wish to come and enjoy the tranquility of the spot.

ANDREW WILTON

BIBLE STUDY

CHIDDINGSTONE VILLAGE AND ITS VINEGAR BIBLEChiddingstone is unique in that, apart from the church and the castle, it is owned by the National Trust. It was purchased by the National Trust in 1939 with a legacy from John Arthur Fallows of Bournemouth and provides one of the best examples of Tudor living today.

A popular theory is that the village takes its name from a large sandstone rock formation, situated on its outskirts, named the Chiding Stone and that the stone was used as a seat of judgement. Chiddingstone is very picturesque and was used as a setting in the 1985 film ‘A Room with a View’ and Michael Winner used the village as a setting in his production of ‘The Wicked Lady’.

St Mary the Virgin, Chiddingstone is a large 13th Century parish church which enhances the look of the village, and is perhaps the fourth built on that site. There is a gazebo dating from 1736 built by Henry Streatfeild in the churchyard which leads down into the Streatfeild family vault. Inside the church is a copy of the Vinegar Bible, a version of the King James Bible printed in 1717 by John Baskett who had attained the title of ‘printer to the King’s most excellent majesty’ in 1709. Baskett was to become a powerful character in the world of printing.

Born in 1645 in Salisbury, he was the son of a gentleman, Roger Baskett. In 1682 he was apprenticed to the London stationer Edward Dorrell and after being released from his indentures in 1690 he began to secure his own business.Printing the Bible was an important and lucrative business of many printing houses including both the Cambridge and the Oxford University Presses. In 1711, Baskett, who was by then the King’s printer, joined the Oxford University Press. Baskett had gained a reputation for unscrupulously buying up competing Bible printing businesses and absorbing them into his own, leading him to a precarious financial situation and a dodgy legal position. Despite this, Baskett was successful in many aspects of his printing work.

Baskett and his supporters wanted to improve both the quality and the appearance of the Bibles being printed and decided to produce a folio edition of the King James Bible that would reflect the decisions made by the original translators that had somehow become lost in the intervening years. It was envisaged that this Bible would be a presentation piece for use in churches and the homes of the aristocracy. An experienced proof-reader, William Denison, was employed to ensure the text was as accurate as possible and additional correctors were also drawn into the process. In November 1713 the first print run began, with three printed on vellum, some on fine paper and the others on standard. When it was eventually published in 1717 it was criticised by the clergy for its omissions and misspellings. So why the nickname, the Vinegar Bible? The chapter heading in Luke 20 should read ‘The parable of the vineyard’ instead it reads, ‘the parable of the vinegar’ hence the title the Vinegar Bible!

What happened next to Baskett and his Bibles? By 1718 the Oxford press was mortgaged to the hilt, although it remained the major Bible printer in England and was still the King’s printer. These valuable bibles have managed to find their way around the globe and can be found in the world’s major libraries where it is regarded as one of the UK’s finest Bibles.

MARGARET DREW

AN INVITATIONI have known my Jewish friend Beverley for at least twenty years. We both share a love and passion for dancing. Following my licensing as a lay minister, she invited me to her synagogue in Bromley which hosts regular meetings for the Council of Christians and Jews. For those of you who do not know, the Council of Christians and Jews (CCJ) is a leading nationwide forum for Christian-Jewish engagement:

• Celebrating the history and diversity of both communities,

• Facilitating constructive dialogue,• Enabling meaningful learning experiences; and• Providing opportunities for transformative

change.

This engagement takes place in communities across UK through many branches as well as through various programmes. There are three tranches to CCJ’s programmatic work: Education, Dialogue and Social Action. When facilitating Christian-Jewish engagement, CCJ ensures that the following core values remain central:• Promoting understanding• Valuing difference• Demonstrating empathy and respect• Challenging prejudice

CCJ was founded in 1942, by Chief Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz and Archbishop of Canterbury William Temple, among others, in the midst of growing awareness of the Holocaust and rising antisemitism in the UK. Since then, CCJ has established itself as the leading nationwide forum for Jewish-Christian engagement.

Her Majesty the Queen has been the Patron of CCJ since 1952. In October 2017 CCJ began a year of celebrations for its 75th anniversary and the theme was: “How Good It Is To Dwell Together”For three quarters of a century, CCJ has been a leading player in inter-faith engagement. It has provided an open tent for people to come together, share ideas, learn about one another and build a stronger, more tolerant society.

Dwelling together does not require assimilation, conversion or complete cohesion. Rather it demands the opposite – that we are able to live together despite our differences, open to conversation and invigorated by each other’s differing experiences and practices. It provides space to celebrate similarities and values that people share, while acknowledging that diversity is what makes dwelling together so rewarding, so valuable, so pleasant, so good.

On Tuesday 5 November we listened to Rabbi Chava Koster. She was speaking about her experience growing up in Holland during the Nazi occupation. Despite the difficulties she and her family endured, she was not bitter, but full of hope. She recommended we read, not the diaries of Ann Frank but the reflections of a lesser known writer, namely Etty Hillesum who wrote “An Interrupted Life, the diary and letters of Etty Hillesum, 1941-1943.” I recommend you dip into her work. It is moving and intensely spiritual.

Lynton Golds, LLM

DIGITAL EDITION TO ENJOY AT HOME

Stay At Home • Protect the NHS • Save Lives

ST NICHOLAS CHURCH, CHISLEHURST Parish Office, Village Hall, Church Lane, Chislehurst, BR7 5PE.

General Enquiries: Parish Administrator - Selina LindsayMonday to Friday: 9am – 1pm. Personal callers welcome.

Tel: 020 8467 0196 • Email: [email protected] • Web: stnicholas-chislehurst.org.ukRegistered Charity No.1131855.

Assistant Priest Rev’d June Hurn, Hawk’s Wing, Hawkwood Lane, BR7 5PW 020 8467 2320 Curate Rev’d Dr Tim Boniface, [email protected] 020 8295 4111 (Day off - Friday)Readers Peter Ridge, [email protected] 020 8467 5453 Desmond Watson, 9 Highgrove Close, Chislehurst BR7 5SA 020 8295 2168 Wardens Sarah Cordwell, [email protected] 020 3561 1615 Anthony Faulkner email: [email protected] 07843 529406Licensed Lay Ministers Theodora Chamberlain 07977 465 698 Lynton Karmock-Golds 07495 736 672PCC Secretary Zoe Warren 07739 698724Treasurer Peter Ridge, [email protected] 020 8467 5453 Organist/Choirmaster Michael Bell, 1 Wesley Oak, Prince Imperial Road, BR7 5LX 020 8295 1811 Stewardship Officers Val and Desmond Watson, 9 Highgrove Close, Chislehurst BR7 5SA email: watsonbon@ btinternet.comSafeguarding Officer Susie Hemming-Clark, [email protected] 020 8468 7945 Village Hall Bookings Parish Administrator 020 8467 0196

Lookout Editor Margaret Drew, 28 Norlands Crescent, BR7 5RN 020 8402 3569 email: [email protected] Designer Olly Oechsle, [email protected] 07709 212 685

st nicholas’ church, chislehurst lookoutst nicholas’ church, chislehurst. due to the uncertainty...

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