Coronavirus (COVID-19)
In the light of the advice from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York all public worship has been suspended until further notice. Therefore, St John’s Hyde Park is now closed and no longer available for private prayer and reflection. The clergy will be praying regularly for all who are sick, anxious or isolated as well as for our national leaders, medical staff and researchers, along with all those whose lives have been affected by this crisis. We will also have in our thoughts those members of our own congregation who are particularly at risk and are in isolation.
This means there will be no communion or other public service in the coming Sundays or during the week. This coming Sunday, we will be live-streaming an act of worship from the vicarage at 10:00 am, and a recording of this service will be available online. A Facebook account is not required to watch either the livestream or the archived live-stream services.
The clergy will also be live-streaming Evening Prayer (BCP) at 5:30 pm Monday through Friday. Orders of service will be available for download on our Welcome page.
If you would like to pray with a member of the clergy, please call 078 0147 6474 or email or WhatsApp one of the clergy team directly to arrange a convenient time. We also invite you to visit our Prayer Requests page if you would like to request that the clergy, staff team and community of St John’s pray for you, a family member or a loved one.
Easter at St John’s 2020
The Vicar, Churchwardens and Staff of St John’s wish you all a Happy Easter! It’s not quite like Easter, and it’s only at St John’s in spirit, but, this Sunday, we will celebrate the resurrection of the Lord in a service live-streamed from the Curate’s house at 10:00 am. You can also download an Order of Service on the Welcome page. Do take note that, during the live-stream of the service, the demand can be high and the audio-visual quality may vary, but you can still watch after the service has finished (and the quality is often much better then).
You can also join us for coffee by Zoom afterwards. If you would like an invitation to join us, please e-mail us. Fizz is, as ever, entirely appropriate, but you will have to provide your own on this occasion.
We are disappointed not to be in church this Sunday, but we will have a proper celebration of Easter later in the year once the church has reopened.
Midweek Services
Join us for Evening Prayer (BCP) at 5:30 pm Monday through Friday (the Order of Service is available on our Welcome page). A Facebook account is not required to participate in our live-stream worship services.
Please note: there will be no evening prayer on the Easter Monday bank holiday.
Need help or just want to feel connected?
Call the office – we have a simple message: Ring! Ring! Ring! We will continue to set-up virtual groups via WhatsApp and Zoom over the coming days, but, in the meantime, anyone who is shut-in and needing help or just wanting to chat, please give us a ring, and Steve, Dan, Bryan and Andre will do their best to help.
Help Us Keep Going
The impact of Covid-19 is being felt by all and it is understandable that some are feeling the effects more than others. During this time, the church is also feeling the effects. Although the building is closed there are still salaries and fixed costs we have to pay. At the same time, there are no collections on Sunday mornings and giving via the Gift Aid envelopes has gone as well – over £500 per Sunday in total. This is in addition to the loss of car parking income and church rentals If you normally put something in the collection plate on Sundays and are still able to contribute, please consider sending it by bank transfer. As long as it comes through with your name in the detail, it will still qualify for Gift Aid. You can send your donations directly to our bank account. Our bank details are:
Sort Code: 40-11-58
Account #: 80108251
You may even want to consider setting up a standing order every month or quarter. Alternatively, you can save up your donations and bring them along with you when St John’s reopens. If you would like more information about this, please contact Bryan Sollenberger at parishadmin@stjohns-hydepark.com.
Alternatively, we are nearly at our target for our Rainy Day Appeal (see below) and we need a last bit of help to reach our target of £40,000.
Vicar’s Coffee Morning!
Steve and the team would like to invite you to grab a cup of coffee and join us on Zoom for a quick get together on Wednesday morning at 11:00 am. Please download Zoom onto your PC, laptop or mobile phone beforehand. Please also text the Vicar (07801 476 474) or Dan (07786 076 690) your email address before 9:00 am. You will then receive an email with a meeting ID link, which you can click to join the meeting.
Spread the Love
At this time of increased anxiety for so many people, and with much that is unknown, we want to reassure all members of our community that they are members of the St John’s family, and we encourage everyone to stay in touch with one another by telephone, social media, email or text. Encourage one another, make each other laugh and be there to listen and help where needed, but let’s learn to be the body of Christ in a new way that enables us all to stick by government guidelines for social distancing while we are unable to meet together.
Help Hogg Help the Vulnerable
Hogg & Son, our local chemists in Kendal Street, are looking for volunteers to distribute medications. If you can help, please contact them directly either at 37 Kendal Street or by phoning 020 7262 7169.
New Assistant Curate
We are delighted to announce that Georgina Elsey will be joining us in July. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Georgina’s ordination has been postponed until September. The present plan is that Georgina will still become a member of team St John’s in July and move into Archery Close, but she will do so as a licensed lay worker. Georgina is training for ordination at Cranmer Hall, Durham and a flyer introducing Georgina is available in the porch.
Rainy Day Appeal
Raised: £38,136
Target: £40,000
Two years ago we undertook some very essential repairs to the roof, gutters and parapets. If you look up on the outside north or south sides of the church, you’ll notice the beautiful new stonework. To fund the works, however, we had to borrow £200,000 from the Diocese of London.
We are now 95.3% of the way to our goal of raising £40,000 to cover this year’s repayment commitment and interest. Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far. Please see Bryan Sollenberger if you can help us raise that last 5%!
A Big Gay Night Out
Dick Whittington (an adult Panto) December 2020! There’s nothing like planning ahead – and tickets for this year’s panto at Above the Stag are now on sale! If you are interested in coming to the Panto on Tuesday, 8 December 2020, please contact Ian Smith ASAP. Tickets are £28 and will sell-out quickly (even this far ahead!).
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Stay and Play
The community playgroup which usually meets weekly at St John’s on Thursday mornings from 9.30-11.30 am will not be meeting during the Coronavirus crisis.
