The Beacon December 2012 - Beacon Parish of Ditchling, Streat ...

40 years ago
From the Vicar (Tony Way):
Very soon we will be part of the Common Market. One of the Continental
customs which I very much hope will filter into our country is the practice many
parents with small children have of taking them into church during a service,
often just for a few minutes. Mothers frequently say to me, “I don’t bring my
children to church because the services are too long, they get bored.” If I suggest
they go out when they feel the children have had enough, they look at me in
blank astonishment. I suppose the reaction is, “What will other people think?”.
But why should they think anything, and what does it matter if they do? Ten
minutes in church catching a service and joining in for a short while – with a
simple explanation and discussion on the way home of what was seen and heard
is surely infinitely better than staying away altogether.
20 years ago
The Ordination of Women (excerpt) by Peter Coster
It is not often that sickness brings benefits, but it enabled me to follow a
momentous debate and voting of the General Synod….
The most salutary comments came from none other than the Bishop of Durham.
… The Bishop was quite upset at the prospect of hurting one part of the church
in order to treat the other fairly, and the energies wasted whilst so many other
issues clamoured for our attention. He urged that whatever the result, we
should go forward together. In this he echoes the sentiments expressed by
Bishop Eric in November’s Diocesan Newsletter: although a strong opponent of
the proposal, unlike Durham, our Bishop laid great emphasis on the need to
remain together, to understand and be generous in our responses to others who
may not share our views.
Answers to quiz on page 17
1. Santa Claus is coming to town
2. The Holly and the Ivy
3. Frosty the Snowman
4. Away in a Manager
5. Ding Dong Merrily on high
6. White Christmas
7. Hark the Herald Angels sing
8. Good King Wenceslas
9. We three Kings of Orient are
10. Little Donkey
11. Mary’s boy child
12. The first Noel
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