St John’s Book Club
St John’s Book Club next meets on Monday, 23rd April, when they will be discussing The Bell by Iris Murdoch. See Michael King for further information.
Bible Book Club
Bible book club meets once a month to read and to discuss the gospel reading for the coming Sunday and concludes with Compline. Meetings take place on the last Tuesday of the month – the next meeting is on 24th April. For further information, speak to one of the clergy.
Whitsun Carols, 20th May 2018
A unique musical service at 6pm concluding our annual cycle of carol services which tell the events of the Christian year. At Whitsun Carols we commemorate the events from Easter to Pentecost, with readings and musical selections from the choir and guest musicians including Sheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov, Easter from Vaughan Williams’ 5 Mystical Songs, They Are All Gone into the World of Light by Tavener and Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance No 4. A reception with the first of the summer Pimms will follow.
St John’s Big Pub Quiz
Our popular quiz night returns on Thursday, 7th June, in St John’s at 7pm. Tickets will be £15 and include dinner and entry. Invite some friends and form a team of 6 to 8 or come on your own and join a team. The quizmaster for the evening is from The Victoria.
Culture Vultures visit Lambeth Palace
On Friday June 8th at 10.30am we have a guided tour of the state rooms at Lambeth Palace, SE1 7JU, London residence for nearly 800 years of the Archbishops of Canterbury. We will have the chance to explore the rooms and chapel, watch a video and hear about the history of the Archbishops of Canterbury. The tour finishes at approximately 12 noon, when we adjourn to the acclaimed and adjoining Garden Museum café for lunch: www.gardenmuseum.org.uk. There is no set menu: we select from the ‘menu du jour’ and pay on an individual basis. Meet at the Palace entrance, Morton’s Tower, at 10.15am. This is the red brick Tudor gatehouse built in 1469 by Cardinal Morton and is visible from the road. Payment to Margaret (cheques preferred) of £13 for the tour, including £1 tip for our volunteer guide, to secure your place.
Ordination of Dan Warnke and Summer Barbecue
Dan Warnke, our next assistant curate, will be ordained deacon on Saturday, 30 June, at St Paul’s Cathedral at 3pm. Dan will officially join the staff team at St John’s on Sunday, 8th July. As part of the celebrations on that Sunday, we will be holding our annual summer barbecue following the 10am service.
Celebrate!
Marking a special birthday? Celebrating an anniversary? Wanting to remember that special person? St John’s can help! To honour a loved one or to commemorate a special event, you can sponsor some music or flowers, have fizz & refreshments after the service - there are lots of possibilities. If you would like to observe a special occasion or honour someone special, speak to Bryan Sollenberger.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Children’s Community Choir
Thursdays, 4.10pm
The Children’s Community Choir is open for children 6 years old and above, sessions will be 30 minutes long and children will sing different genres of music. If you are interested in bringing your children along please let Robert know.
LORD MAYOR’S CORNER
So pleased to see many familiar faces at last Thursday’s community concert, held in aid of Opening Doors London. A really super evening! Also last week, I hosted a reception in honour of frontline workers from the emergency services, to thank them for their work in keeping Westminster safe and for responding to major incidents. I met with Ruth Hunt, CEO of Stonewall, to discuss a range of LGBT+ issues and also chaired a meeting of the Full Council. I joined many of the Heads of Government attending the Commonwealth Meeting at a banquet at Guildhall - interesting speech by the new President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa. On 21 April, I laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in connection with the Royal Society of St George.
On 22 April, I will be at the finish line of the London Marathon on The Mall, cheering my team of 15 runners who are taking part in the annual race in aid of my mayoral charities. Good luck to them all! On Tuesday I am attending two special events - the unveiling of a statue in Parliament Square of Millicent Fawcett and attending Evensong and The Interment of Ashes of the former Dean of Westminster Abbey, Dr Wesley Carr. Wednesday sees me back at the Abbey for a Service of Thanksgiving on ANZAC Day and that evening I shall be hosting a thank you reception for my marathon runners. On Thursday evening I’m celebrating 150 years of youth work at St Andrew’s Club followed by an ANZAC memorial unveiling on Horseferry Road. I am also meeting with the CEO of Marylebone Cricket Club to discuss positive support offered to LGBT+ players and fans. Finally, I have two arts-related events this coming week: the opening of a Chinese Arts Space on Leicester Square and an exhibition of Greek art at the Hellenic Centre, Marylebone.
St James & St John School Gate Gossip
Our children are now back from their two-week Easter Break and it is a strange coincidence that the weather has improved noticeably with their return to school. But the beginning of spring term means that the dress code has switched to summer uniform which is very broadly welcomed as temperatures have begun to rise. While our children again get used to being back to their classrooms, there are various upcoming trips/events to which they already look forward: Year 3 children have a trip planned to the Natural History Museum to learn about earthquakes, while year 2-6 have the sports morning at Paddington Recreation Ground to anticipate.
Under Five’s Playgroups
An international playgroup aimed at Russian speakers meets in St John’s on Wednesdays at 10am. Other playgroups meet on Wednesdays at 3.45pm and Thursdays at 10am. Suggested donation for all groups: £2. Information about the playgroups can be found at www.HPPplaygroup.weebly.com and www.HPPrussian.weebly.com for the Russian speaking playgroup.
