The third Sunday after Epiphany and St. Mary's Church was well attended for the service, which was in the caring hands of Bishop Dewi Bridges. The processional hymn was 'Christ is the King, O friends rejoice'. After the Collect, the morning's readers, read from the Bible. The first reading by Mrs. Ellen Powling was from the prophecy of Isaiah, and Mr. Peter Samuel gave the second reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians. Bishop Dewi gave the third reading from the Gospel of John. Psalm 40 followed the readings. Bishop Dewi gave the sermon. "When I was Archdeacon at St. David's, I remember listening to the BBC Sunday church service, when David Jenkins, the Bishop of Durham, said in his sermon 'Jesus Christ is the human face of God'. As this is the week of Prayer for Church Unity, the God who revealed himself in the person of Christ must be worshipped. "I went to an orchestral concert in Malvern - the music of Strauss. All the sections of the orchestra worked together to produce a harmonious sound that transported us to 19th century Vienna. If only the Christian church could be like this, working together, then our prayers for unity would not be in vain. "God is as he has shown himself through Jesus Christ and therefore there is hope. We are all important in the sight of God - every Christian an important witness. The Christian church should not be a group of individuals going their separate ways, but we should be like the orchestra, moving in harmony under God's baton. "All the armies that marched and all the monarchs that have reigned have not made as much of an impact on our lives as this man - Jesus. There may be disappointments along the way, but in this week of prayer, united observance is a must and it will not be in vain - for God is love, He gave his son, not to judge the world, but to save it. Mrs. Kate O'Neill led the intercessional prayer. The offertory hymn was, 'Alleluya, sing to Jesus'. The Eucharist was celebrated at both altars and led by Bishop Bridges. During Communion, the choir sang 'O Thou who at the Eucharist'. The final hymn was 'God is love, let heaven adore Him.' On Tuesday, January 29, there will be a meeting at Church House at 7 pm to co-ordinate refreshment arrangements for the induction of the new Rector. Would all church organisations please arrange for a representative to be present.
