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St Swithins Church Fund Raising Events
Baptisms,Weddings and Funerals by arrangement with the Priest in Charge: Pattern of Services by Sundays in the month 5th Sunday 8.00am. Holy Communion BCP Under 5s Study Groups Services in the same Benefice Contact Nos for Priest, Reader, Warden Clergy, Reader and Officers Benefice of Quinton and Welford w. Weston - We want to keep St Swithin’s alive and well and used by all in our villages, and welcome everyone for special occasions like weddings, and baptisms and funerals, and indeed for many other events. It has been doing it since 1283 and with the help of local people it can go on doing it for a long time to come. Years ago, the Church swanked around, had plenty of money and many wealthy patrons. Parsons were gentry and lots of people were made to think that they were not "worthy" to come to Church. A lot of the wealth was in land, and you only need to look around and see how many `great houses` are now in the hands of the National Trust to realise that the value of such historic resources has shrunk over the years. The Church Commissioners now administer all these historic resources, and most years they they do rather better than most Investment Managers. (Of course if they have a hiccup it gets in the papers!!!) Parsons now get pensions, and most of them keep on taking services while they can still stand up. But although the papers will headline `The Church Commissioners Millions`, the fact is there is not nearly enough money to keep the Church of England up and running. Every year we are asked by the Diocese (that is the group of parishes under the Bishop of Gloucester) for a set amount of money that goes towards clergy stipends, pension contributions, and in-service training; the upkeep of Churches and Vicarages; the training of new clergy; and all the other things it takes to keep the Church of England running. It is called the Parish Share. In the current year is £16,500. If we don’t pay the share in full, we could find ourselves sharing a Vicar with even more parishes, or in the end, the Church could close. On top of the Share we have insurance, heating and lighting, and minor repairs to the Church, and necessary supplies - like light bulbs, If you can help us by donation we would be most grateful. But really what God wants is people - to take an interest in the Christian faith, to join us at regular services, to learn to love Jesus Christ, and to pass on that love to their children. Unless that happens, St Swithin's will just be a museum.
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