Jean Peel and Pat Lewis have decided to go for it – arrange a church visit to the play! After much deliberation and perusing of brochures, we have a suggestion for you to consider. It may be worth saying that we have also rung several companies and apparently booking has been brisk and many of the possibles we had thought of are already full.

Thursday 20th May – Monday 24th May 2010

Flying from Heathrow with four nights half-board in Hotel Seeblick in Bernried, Bavaria. Cost £769 (not £699 as in brochure due to fuel surcharges) which includes a category 3 seat at the play. If you want to upgrade that is possible. We require a deposit of £150 by 8th December which will be refundable if you change your mind for whatever reason before 31st March 2009. After that your own travel insurance should take over.

On 18th October, a bright sunny autumn day, a group of parishioners from St Margaret’s, Halstead and St Katharine’s, Knockholt visited the cathedral at the invitation of Canon Philip Hesketh.

Our guide, Helen Colvin, started the tour outside and showed us the cobbles in the road marking the site of the original church built in 604AD by Ethelbert, and we spent some time looking at the beautiful Romanesque front of the present cathedral, originally a monastery built by Bishop Gandulf.

A selection of Christian reading is available for anyone to borrow. These books and some CDs of John’s sermons are kept in a box – please feel free to borrow them, just sign your name in the notebook. The box will be at the back of each church – in St Margaret’s for the months of December, February, April, June, August and October, and in St Katharine’s for the alternate months, January, March, May, July, September and November.

Margaret and Gillian

Advent Meditation: Preparing for Christmas (Wednesday evenings)

Find time from the bustle of December for a time of quiet, led, contemplation followed by shared thoughts on the theme of Christmas. This will be held at Claire Allberry’s house, The White Cottage, Old London Road, Knockholt. They will be from 8.15pm to 9.15pm on the following Wednesdays in December.

3rd December – Prophecies
10th December – The Event
17th December – The Aftermath

All are most welcome!

This day on “Exploring prayer” will be led by The Rev’d Susanne Carlsson, the Diocesan Coordinator for Spirituality and Spiritual Direction. She has a much appreciated ministry in the Diocese for wise and gentle encouragement in the adventure that is Christian prayer. I can thoroughly recommend this day!

The venue is at The Convent of the Sisters of St. Andrew, Edenbridge. It would be very helpful to know names of people who would like to go, then we can arrange transport etc. The cost will be a “donation” of £12 per person, and we will have to provide our own lunch. Regrettably, there are no facilities for children.

Further details from the Rector in due course.