Crucifixion of St. Peter by Luca Giordano
Feast of Saint Peter
Bible readings: Acts 12.1-11 & Matthew 16.13-19
A Sonnet for St. Peter
Impulsive master of misunderstanding
You comfort me with all your big mistakes;
Jumping the ship before you make the landing,
Placing the bet before you know the stakes.
I love the way you step out without knowing,
The way you sometimes speak before you think,
The way your broken faith is always growing,
The way he holds you even when you sink.
Born to a world that always tried to shame you,
Your shaky ego vulnerable to shame,
I love the way that Jesus chose to name you,
Before you knew how to deserve that name.
And in the end your Saviour let you prove
That each denial is undone by love.
(by Malcolm Guite used with permission)
And the chains fell off his wrists (Acts 12.7)
This week, we celebrate the Feast of St. Peter, that impetuous fisherman and Christ’s dear friend. He fell down, messed up – even grievously, when he betrayed the Lord he loved – got back up and tried again. This man: full-hearted, loving, yet a man of many mistakes, was the person Jesus called his rock, the rock upon which he would build his church (Matthew 16.18). And because Christ’s love was able to restore Peter after his betrayal, Peter was able to move forward, knowing himself forgiven. May his example give us the courage we need to bring our mistakes to the Lord, so that we too experience forgiveness and thus reconciliation with the God who is always ready to meet us. In this way, let us feel our own chains falling away… – Josie
St. Peter in Prison (The Apostle Peter Kneeling) Rembrandt van Rijn
Weekly newsletter/blog and website
Please send all information for the Sunday newsletter/blog by Wednesday evening to Josie at penleeclusternewsletter@gmail.com and communications@penleecluster.org.uk. If you would like to write the biblical reflection for the newsletter on any particular week, please contact me for details of upcoming Sunday readings. – Josie
Civic Service
Feast of St John the Baptist Church, Penzance – 23rd June
Last Sunday at St. John’s Church we held the annual Civic Service where we celebrate the feast of St John the Baptist. Well over 80 people walked in the parade and joined us for our service, along with many others; in total we had around 130 in church. As well as being the Civic Service the occasion was also our quarterly cluster service where the four churches in our cluster (St. John’s and St. Mary’s churches in Penzance, St. Peter’s Newlyn and St. Pol de Leon in Paul all worship together).
The Mayor Cllr Stephen Reynolds read our lesson from John’s Gospel, 1:1-14, a reading which we often associate with Christmas(!), as it’s read at virtually every Carol Service and certainly every Nine Lessons and Carols! Stephen then gave a short and interesting talk on this year’s service theme of ‘Together we Shine’: he focussed on ‘together’. We were very fortunate in having the Venerable Clive Hogger who was installed only three weeks before as the Archdeacon of Cornwall. Clive then, carrying on with the theme, gave us an illuminating talk which focussed on the ‘Light’; thus in the words of Clive after the service – to the mayor – together they did indeed shine!! Neither had communicated with the other beforehand, thus we saw a Godincidence between them!
Our worship was accompanied by Roz Peskett, who very ably led us in both the Golowan Prayer, first in Cornish and then English, and later the Lord’s Prayer in Cornish –with encouragement for the congregation to join in line by line.
During our service we were entertained by BOWS, a youth string band (a Musicability ensemble) who accompanied our first hymn and later played ‘Kozaris’, a Greek folk song written by Ben Concau, who was a young teenager then living in Truro when he composed this. It was fantastic to see accomplished young people sharing our worship.
Our four churches had a representative from each church lead our prayers, focussing on Families and Children (Barbara -St. John’s), Fishing and Seafarers, and our rescue services (Lynda – St Peter’s), Hospitality and Night Church (Josie – St. Mary’s) and Farming (Chris – St. Pol de Leon). Our children from the two C of E schools in our area (St. Mary’s on the prom and Madron primary schools) walked in the parade carrying the Cross of St. John, and attended the service, staying behind afterwards for a biscuit or two!
Thank you to all who helped and encouraged others to do so! Particular thanks go to Barbara, Roz (and her family), Vicky, and Brian who organised the big clean up – and to everyone who came along to help. You know who you are, and all played your part – so you too shone together!! – Derath
2024 Community Manifesto
As we prayerfully and reflectively consider who we are going to vote for in the General Election this week here is a reminder that there is another way you can influence what happens in our local community – by contributing to the Community Manifesto which is being organised by Cornwall Poverty Forum. With a huge thanks to those who have already submitted proposals for this year’s Manifesto, it is still not too late for you to make your contribution with proposals on how Cornwall could be a place that is a fairer and more just place for us to live in. All the proposals will be gathered together and presented to the newly elected Members of Parliament. Your suggestion can be just a couple of sentences long … or a longer more detailed idea.
Further information at https://cornwallindependentpovertyforum.com/community-manifesto/ Or send directly to Andrewy@cornwallindependentpovertyforum.com. – Andrew Yates
Barnabas back home after her epic voyage…
On Friday 19th April the 143 year old Barnabas, an historic old Cornish Lugger, embarked on a 1,400 mile Celtic Voyage. Many folk from Newlyn along with a TV film crew came to cheer and wave her off! Before they left, the crew of six wanted God to bless her just before they left Newlyn old harbour for Ullapool where she was to have two new masts fitted, and take part in Lugger Fest. In the nine week voyage, the crew changed a few times, with a couple of constant crew members who had the voyage of a lifetime! Visiting many ports or mooring just outside many in the UK (England, Wales, Isle of Man, N Ireland) and also some in the South of Ireland, they enjoyed some beautiful sunny weather and calm waters, together with some extremely squally weather, when the going was very tough indeed. The crew met many old friends along the way, and made many new friends too! To complete the circle of prayer we gave thanks to God for keeping Barnabas and all her crew safe during their mammoth adventure. I’m now hoping for a book with tales of their time aboard! – Derath
Paul Church Talk
‘A daughter’s drug addiction, its legacy and lessons’ – Paul Feast, Tuesday 2nd July
This is not an easy story to tell or to hear, but it’s a rare chance to walk in someone’s shoes and learn the effect on a family of a daughter’s drug addiction, recovery, relapse and recovery: how they all coped, how they survived and what could have made their journey less traumatic – the good as well as the bad. £5.00 entry. Nibbles/wine 7pm, talk at 7.30pm, followed by debate and more nibbles/wine.
St Pol de Leon Church, Paul
Tours of the church on Wednesdays during July and August, from 11am to 1pm. Come to coffee from 10am and then learn about the history of this lovely church. Visitors and locals welcome.
NightChurch Volunteer Wanted!
I am looking for a volunteer to join our NightChurch Wednesday team! We have a core team on Wednesday who volunteer at St Mary’s from 6pm-8pm, and we’re looking for someone to join our community. As the weeks pass, the distinction between volunteer and visitor is becoming increasingly blurred, which is what it’s all about! We are looking for someone who would be able to commit regularly to Wednesday evenings (of course we work around holidays!). Duties include eating cake, drinking tea/coffee, spending time with our brothers and sisters on the fringe, and doing jigsaws or art activities. We are looking for someone who really has a heart for spending time with those on the fringes of society, who are often shunned by others. Full training will be given. Please email me on nightchurchpz@gmail.com if you’re interested. – Alice
Songs of Praise at St. Hilary’s Church
Sunday 7th July
Come and sing with Songs of Praise! The longest running religious TV show in the world invites you to a special event at St. Hilary’s. You are warmly invited to a Songs of Praise recording of hymns and songs at St. Hilary’s. All are welcome, so please join us! The recording will take place on Sunday 7th July from 2.30pm – 6.30pm, at St. Hilary’s Church, Saint Hilary, TR20 9DQ. To book your free tickets, please email singwithus@ctvc.co.uk and tell us how many tickets you require, your name/s, contact number, email and if any person is under 18. This email is monitored during office hours, and we will reply swiftly. Many thanks for your support; we look forward to hearing from you. – Songs of Praise Team
Sponsorship needed for the Cluster Kids Holiday Club 2024
Can you kindly help sponsor a child for a day for the holiday club? We are offering five spaces to children who are living in poverty but not eligible for free school meals, at a cost of £30 a day. If you can help, it would be greatly appreciated. Any amount is welcome and the above is just an indication of costs for a day (£30). The scheme will run for 4 weeks. Molly and Jane are planning bike trips, forest skills, roller-skating, beach games and scavenger walking hunts . If you feel you can assist please do email Jane at jane.haskings@penleecluster.org.uk.
Celtic Morning Prayer
Each weekday morning on zoom at 8am. Zoom link: https://tinyurl.com/2byzouwk
Julian Meeting
The Julian Meeting will be on zoom this Sunday, 30th June, at 6pm. Zoom link: https://tinyurl.com/yc2ft23e
Prayer Requests
If you are concerned about someone and would like their name included in the Prayer Request Group’s weekly prayer list, please do email Mel at mlevesconte@hotmail.co.uk by 7pm on Tuesday evenings. Thank you.
COMING SOON…
Inclusive Church Annual Lecture and AGM
Inclusive Church is a network of churches, groups and individuals uniting together around a shared vision, that of a church which celebrates and affirms every person and does not discriminate. This year, the lecture is titled Faith in Transition and will be given by Alex Clare-Young.
Alex Clare-Young is a minister in the United Reformed Church, an activist, academic, writer and creative. You can find out more about him here.
Both the lecture and AGM will take place on Thursday 11th July at 7pm, via zoom. If you would like to attend, you can book tickets here:
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/inclusivechurch/e-bomalj
Fundraising Concert for NightChurch
Rhys – Saturday 20th July at St. Mary’s PZ
Our friend Rhys, also known as the ‘The NightChurch Mystery Pianist’, will be giving a concert at St. Mary’s on 20th July to raise money for NightChurch. Doors will open at 7.00pm for a 7.30pm start (and we expect the concert to end by 9.30pm).
