​St. John's - in -Bedwardine Parish Church has had a mission partnership link with Revd Juan Carlos and Penny Marcés for over twenty years. It was good to welcome them to St. John's over the weekend of 19-21 July.

It was both a joyful and a sad occasion as members of St Johns choir gathered on June 23rd to say good-bye to Olivia Kellie.

Are you interested in singing? We have a vibrant choir who support our services and they are always interested in new members joining them, whatever their standard.

The meeting in July was a little different as we met Paul outside the Guildhall in Worcester and he took us around the centre of Worcester to see some of the 400 Ale Houses, Inns and Coaching Houses that used to be in Worcester.

I am not what anyone would call a tranquil person. Sitting still is anathema to me, while my mind needs to be active constantly; my idea of light holiday reading is an 800-page history of the place I am visiting. Just occasionally, however, I can find myself at peace and – ironically for someone who thinks civilisation stops where the streetlights run out – it is most often when confronted with rural sunsets.

The June talk from Paul at Discover History was all about the 1920s, a decade of contrasts with people coming out the austerity of the war and starting to enjoy themselves but the General Strike occurred and by the end of the decade people were already starting to think about war again.

“I hope you’ll feel better soon;” “I hope you have a good holiday;” “I hope I get a question on … in the exam;” “I hope to be able to come to the party.”
Hope is a small word which we all use, probably on a daily basis, but what exactly do we mean by it?
The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines hope as: “expectation and desire combined.” In reality, it’s one of those words which will mean different things to different people depending on their circumstances.

The Worcester Red Pack are supporting the work being done in the Churchyard by building a Bug Hotel and then working on their Naturalist badges in the Churchyard over a 4 month period.

Bishop Graham reflects on his visit to Morogoro.
“Bwana asifiwe” were the Swahili words I kept hearing during a recent visit to Tanzania. It’s used as a greeting and means “Praise the Lord”.
As a group from the Diocese of Worcester visiting our sisters and brothers in Christ in the Diocese of Morogoro, we were caught up in many times of praise. Together we sang and prayed, talked and danced. People, young and old, seemed to almost burst with joy; the women clicking their tongues from side to side in their mouths to make the unique ululating sound.

The Flower Ladies have done the church and congregation proud with a magnificent display of flowers for Easter Sunday.