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On Sunday 2 February we celebrated Candlemas, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, at the Parish Church. In this great festival of Our Lord, which take place 40 days after Christmas Day, Jesus is presented as the light to enlighten the nations: all people everywhere. The first part of the service included the blessings and distribution of candles and a procession. Unlike in the modern use, candles are blessed at the altar, lighted, and then distributed to the congregation, highlighting the fact the light of Christ, though represented by many individual flames, is one. These initial rites replace the penitential rite for the Mass and are adapted from the English Missal. In our celebration the Sanctus and Agnus Dei were taken from Francois Couperin's “Mass for the Convents”, published in 1690, and newly edited by our organist from manuscripts in Versailles and Carpentras. The plainchant sung by All Saints’ Choir is from a Parisian Gradual published in 1696. The organ music before, during and after Mass consists of extracts from the same Couperin Organ Mass. After Communion the choir sang the anthem “O Thou, the central orb” by Charles Wood.
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 The Announcement of the Date of Easter and of other principal feasts on Epiphany dates back to a time when calendars were not readily available to people. Since the date of Easter changes every year in accordance with the lunar calendar and many celebrations of the liturgical year also depend on this date, it was necessary to make known its date of in advance.
Although we now have calendars and personal diaries, many of which include religious feasts and lunar phases, this Epiphany proclamation still has value. It is a reminder of the centrality of Easter, of the celebration of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord, for believers. On the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, the proclamation takes place after the Post-Communion prayer. Where possible, it should be sung by a deacon, or cantor. In their absence, the celebrant may sing or proclaim it according to this formula: The Proclamation of Easter and the Moveable Feasts for the Year 2025 Know, dear brothers and sisters, that, as we have rejoiced at the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, so by leave of God’s mercy we announce to you also the joy of his Resurrection, who is our Saviour. On the fifth day of March will fall Ash Wednesday, and the beginning of the fast of the most sacred Lenten season. On the twentieth day of April you will celebrate with joy Easter Day, the Paschal feast of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the twenty-ninth day of May will be the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the eighth day of June, the feast of Pentecost. On the twenty-second day of June, the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. On the thirtieth day of November, the First Sunday of the Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom is honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen. This year has brought many joys and blessings from God. Our congregation has been growing both in numbers and in commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. The year opened with the celebration of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, on the last Day of Christmas Octave, 1 January, and a few days later with our first Epiphany Carol Service at which we blessed the incense, charcoal, and candles used in divine worship and the chalk used for home blessings. Both services were encouragingly well attended. Our preparation for the holy seasons of Lent and Easter started with the burning of palm crosses to make the ash used on Ash Wednesday. During Lent we reintroduced a regular service of Stations of the Cross, we were visited by Bishop Richard of Bedford, and we had the honour of hosting the Marie Curie's Day of Reflection in partnership with Houghton Regis Town Council. All Saints' out-of-date sound system was finally replaced thanks to parish fundraising and the contributions of Central Bedfordshire and Town councillors. The most important week of the Christian calendar, Holy Week, opened with the celebration of Palm Sunday. Over the course of the week we welcomed hundreds of people coming to celebrate the Passion, Death, and glorious Resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Fr Diego travelled to Walsingham for the Chrism Mass celebrated by Bishop Norman of Richborough, and Thomas Whitehead Academy attended Mass at All Saints' on Maundy Thursday. In April we celebrated High Mass for St George's Day for the fist time. Father Yenda from St Mary' Sundon deaconed the Mass and provided us with wonderful red vestments for the liturgy. At the end of Mass the people received a blessing with the relic of the Martyr. A group of pilgrims from All Saints' travelled to Walsingham for the National Pilgrimage in May and we held a special celebration of Corpus Christi, again with the invaluable help of Fr Yenda. The Mayor's Civic Service also took place in April at the Parish Church and it was really well attended and beautiful occasion, which this year also included a civic procession from All Saints' View to the church via the Memorial Path. Regular worship with Thomas Whitehead academy featured the celebration of Mass twice a term, weekly gatherings at All Saints', and the Blessing of a new Reflection Garden in July. Parish volunteers welcomed pupils from several schools who visited All Saints' to complement their local history and RE curricula. We have had also the great pleasure of working with Christian brothers and sisters from other denominations in the schools of our town. In October we welcomed Bishop Richard of Bedford to Houghton Regis for the second time this year! Bishop Richard administered the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation , commissioned our two Lay Leaders of Worship, and commissioned our Eucharistic Assistants - the youngest of whom is 14 years old! It was a particular pleasure to see so many individuals saying "Yes" to God and embracing vocations to the Christian life and to lay ministries. Remembrance Sunday was marked by the Solemn Requiem Mass at the Parish Church and the Act of Remembrance on The Green. The preacher at the Requiem was the Revd Tim Haines, the Baptist Minister for Bidwell West. The whole occasion was marvellously supported by the uniformed organisations of our Town. A new purple altar frontal and a purple lectern fall, made using upcycled fabric, were presented to All Saints' just in time for Advent. Advent and the first week of Christmas saw a record number of schools children, worshippers, and visitors through our doors for the various carols services, events, and celebrations we hosted. We welcomed the pupils from All Saints' Academy, and Revd Tim Davis, their Chaplain, for their Christmas services for the first time. We also introduced Joyful Voices a new, ecumenical carol service for the LGBTQ+ community of Bedfordshire and their friends. The Mayor's Carol Service, the Christmas Fayre, Carols by Candlelight, and Midnight Mass were very well attended indeed. 2024 has been a challenging year on many fronts: the loss of beloved members of our church family, vandalism in the churchyard, urgent repairs needed to the roof, and severe constraints on our parish finances (which continue to run a deficit of £30k year-on-year). But this year has also been a great year for growth and commitment to the faith, and for the renewal of our buildings, with new projects for the future beginning to take shape. For all these things, for all the graces, mercies, and blessings we have received from the Lord, let us always be thankful and sing his praises! For the tireless work of our our parish volunteers, let us be grateful and cherish their invaluable efforts! Our traditional service of Carols by Candlelight took place on Sunday 22 December, the Fourth Sunday of Advent. Thanks you the efforts of our volunteers, All Saints' looked beautiful and ready to welcome so many worshippers from across the town. Our next Carol Service will be at the End of the Christmas Season, on Sunday 5 January; the feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. Just before schools broke up for the Christmas holidays we celebrated the second School Mass of the Autumn Term with Thomas Whitehead Academy. The theme for the Mass was "Advent Celebration", bringing together elements of both Advent and Christmas. Pupils led the readings and composed the intercessions. Parents and members of the congregation we also invited to attend the Mass. Photos Copyright: Thomas Whitehead Academy, used with permission.
On Saturday 14 December we held Houghton Regis Christmas Fayre at All Saints' Parish Church. The fayre was organised to run alongside the Christmas events planned by the Town Council at Houghton Regis Library. Hundreds of visitors came through our doors and the fayre was accompanied by handbell ringers, carolling from our choir, and music by our organist. We are very grateful to all our parish volunteers, members of PCC, and churchwardens for running such an engaging and fun event in the run up to Christmas. On Sunday 10 November we marked Remembrance Sunday with a Solemn Requiem for the fallen service personnel who lost their lives in the two World Wars and while on duty since then. The service was followed by the Act of Remembrance at the Memorial Stone. Father Diego, the Priest-in-Charge of Houghton Regis, celebrated the Mass, the Rev Tim Haines, from Bidwell West, preached, and members of Houghton Regis Youth Council led the intercessions and read the Roll of Honour. It was great to welcome the Deputy Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, the Vice-Chair of Central Bedfordshire Council, and our Town Mayor to the service, along with members of Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, a large number of Scouts, members of the Girl Guides and local volunteers associations. We are extremely grateful for the hard work of all who made the service and the parade to the Green possible, and especially so for Houghton Regis Town Council. On Sunday 27 October we welcomed Bishop Richard, Bishop of Bedford, to All Saints’ for a special service of Baptism and Confirmation. It was great to welcome new brothers and sisters into the family of the Church and encourage those taking the next step in the Christian journey though Confirmation and the reception of Holy Communion for the first time. At the same service Bishop Richard commissioned Eucharistic Assistants to help with the distribution of Holy Communion during Mass, and (if needed) to take the Blessed Sacrament to the sick. The bishop also commissioned two Lay Leader of Worship to help with the liturgical life of our parish. Our congregation is becoming very diverse, and this was reflected by the age and background of the candidates for both the sacraments and the lay ministries. We give thanks to God the Father for his continuing blessings and graces to our parish community and for constantly bringing more people to new life in His Son. Photos Copyright: All Saints Houghton Regis PCC This week school volunteers from All Saints' joined volunteers from Houghton Regis Baptist Church to lead an RE interactive learning session hosted for Year 5 pupils of Thomas Whitehead Academy. In the session we explored a few different ways in which Christians express the glory, beauty, and loving nature of God. We looked at sacred art, music, icons, and stained glass windows. Pupils were encouraged to learn about the use of art in Christianity and to reflect on differences between denominational approach to it. As the session was interactive, the pupil spent half of the time crafting little stained glass windows with coloured paper and card and to draw and colour icons and sacred images. We are very grateful to Houghton Regis Baptist Church's congregation for the hospitality and to Stef, our coordinator in this Churches Together initiative. Photos Copyright: Thomas Whitehead Academy, used with permission. This week we celebrated the first School Mass of the Autumn Term with Thomas Whitehead Academy. The value for the first half of term was Courage and in the readings we looked at God's instruction to Joshua to "Be Courageous" (Joshua 1:1-9) and Jesus' great commission to his disciples (Matthew 28:16-20). As is it our custom, the pupils led the readings and composed the intercessions. Parents and members of the congregation we also invited to attend the Mass. Photos Copyright: Thomas Whitehead Academy, used with permission.
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