Parish Jottings

Millennium Garden Maintenance

In April, a group of volunteers, “Henley in Bloom Gardening Buddies”, tidied up Holy Trinity’s Millennium Garden. The garden had become overgrown and required some intensive work to be done to bring it back to its former glory. After Sally Rankin, whose idea it was, had asked, Elizabeth Hodgkin, the organiser of the Gardening Buddies, for help, it was readily forthcoming. The group intends to regularly maintain the garden on a twice-yearly basis.

Diocesan Affluence

Do you have money to burn, or, are you ‘Just About Managing’? Perhaps you are living in poverty and did not realise it. An interesting report, entitled “For Richer for Poorer” has been recently published by the Diocese of Oxford. The report aims to enable deaneries and parishes to consider poverty and how the Bible calls us to respond to it. The meaning of poverty is complex, poverty comes in many different forms; various causes contribute to poverty. When reading the report, people who lived through the hard times of the 1930’s and 1940’s, and, even the 1950’s, may cast a smile at the modern-day interpretation of poverty. However, it is only fair to say that the report assists in identifying where pockets of genuine hardship might be located; deprivation can more noticeably exist alongside extreme affluence.

The Oxford Diocese may be considered to be more affluent than many others are, but the term poverty be said to be living in relative poverty when compared with those who are greatly better off than they are. You can read the full report on the Oxford Diocesan website.

A Word for Today and Every Day

What is your word for today? You may, or may not, have one. For example, ask yourself: Do you live a balanced life? What are the keys to spiritual growth? Is solitude the secret of transformation? Do you work too hard? This booklet is a wealth of thought and stimulation. The booklets are free; they are a gift in words for every day of the year. Pick up a copy when you are next in church.

Trinity School SIAMS Report

The Church of England’s Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS), which took place in February of this year, has given Trinity Church of England Primary School an inspection grade of “Outstanding”, saying, “The school, through its distinctive Christian character, is outstanding at meeting the needs of all learners”. The report praises the mutual and substantial partnership between church and school, notably through the efforts of the vicar, the Reverend Duncan Carter.

The lower path leading through the Millennium Garden at Holy Trinity church