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Letter from Nancy December 2020
Dear Readers,
The month of November is a very special month, on 1 November we have All Saints’ Day and on the 2 November All Souls’ Day
 The Patron Saint for November, St Catherine of Alexandria, lived in the 4th century, she was the daughter of the King of Cyprus. Legend records she met her death at the hand of Emperor Maxentius of Alexandria. After converting to Christianity she constantly refused to sacrifice to the Emperor’s gods and protested against the persecution of Christians by Maxentius. She was an intellectual and disputed successfully with philosophers who were instructed to convince her of the errors of Christianity. She was condemned to death by being bound to a spiked wheel. The wheel flew apart and injured many onlookers. Surviving this ordeal she was beheaded by a sword
St Catherine was a popular saint of the middle ages. There are 80 churches dedicated to her in England and the Village of St Catherine’s Avon shares her name. St Catherine is the Patron Saint of young girls, students, philosophers, the clergy and those who work the wheel, like wheelwrights, spinners and millers
St Catherine’s feast day is on 25 November, however, she is easily remembered on the 5 November when Catherine wheels (named after her) are set off
Before you Speak—Think
T Is it true ?
H Is it helpful?
I Is it inspiring?
N Is it necessary?
K Is it kind?
We will be celebrating Advent soon. With all the changes because of Covid-19 things and times are changing rapidly but we must remember the important things that don’t change and are our mainstay
· What is coming?
· What are we waiting for?
On Advent Sunday we remember what it is about. Advent, it comes from the latin ’Adventus’ meaning coming
 Of course we are waiting for Jesus arrival, not just a birth at Christmas, but also for when He comes again, and we must be ready. Advent is a season of hope in which we look forward to the last day when Christ shall come again “To establish His kingdom here on earth”. We see our Advent wreath with its candles and evergreen
· What is it about?
· What does it mean?
The wreath made of evergreen, arranged in a circle signifies continuous life and because it has no beginning and no end symbolises the eternity of God, the everlasting life in Christ. The four candles one for each week in Advent are said to represent the 4,000 years from Adam and Eve until the birth of our Saviour
In our changing world we most likely will not be in a church, as they won’t be open, but it’s good to remember what we should be sharing
 Life is like a book, some chapters are sad, some are happy and some are exciting; but if you never turn the page you will never know what the next chapter holds
On 2 November, All Souls, we remember our departed loved ones:
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord,
May light perpetual shine upon them,
May they rest in peace and rise in glory,
According to your promise,
Grant us a share with them
In your eternal Kingdom
Amen
Until we communicate again, God bless. Keep praying. We have to believe things will get better
All the best, live in hope
Nancy Thackray
St Paul’s Church
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