The Beacon January 2013 - Beacon Parish of Ditchling, Streat ...

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‘The Fruit of the Spirit is Love’In Victorian England many incumbents remained in their parishes until theydied. Bishops often reached a great age and they seldom retired. A goodexample of three venerable priests in action could be seen at a ConfirmationService at St Margaret’s on Monday, May 14 th 1877. Presiding at this servicewas Dr Richard Durnford, Lord Bishop of Chichester. Already aged 75 and apopular and well respected figure in the Diocese, Bishop Durnford continued inoffice until 1895. He enjoyed robust health and went climbing in the Tyrol untilwell into his eighties. He died in 1895, aged 93 – still Bishop!“There were a total of 86 candidates forBishop Durnford to confirm as they kneltbefore him at the chancel steps”Presenting 12 confirmation candidates at the service was 82 year old WilliamFitzhugh who had been Rector of Streat since 1821 and continued his ministryuntil he died at Streat Rectory in 1881. And then presenting the 38 candidatesfrom Ditchling was the Vicar, Thomas Hutchinson, the youngest of ourtriumvirate, at 74! But, alas, our Vicar was already in poor health with failingeyesight and, in his last years in the parish, often had to be carried into churchin a bath chair and then lifted into a pew. He was to die in 1883 – still the Vicar!To help prepare for the confirmation, Mr Hutchinson called on the help of hiscurate, Robert Helme – a comparative youngster at 47! A man of considerableprivate means, he lived in Hurstpierpoint with his family. The youngest priest atthe service was thirty four year old John Woodward, Rector of Plumpton, whopresented his 13 candidates. He had been at Plumpton for three years andremained there until 1913. With four candidates from East Chiltington and 19from Burgess Hill (their ‘parish clergy being absent’) there were a total of 86candidates for Bishop Durnford to confirm as they knelt before him at thechancel steps.Perhaps what would have most impressed us would have been the way ‘the fineold church was magnificently decorated with flowers’. The font – then along theSouth Aisle – was decorated with flowers and ferns around a central whitecross. The windows were full of bouquets of flowers set in moss. The pulpit,reading desk and the eagle lectern were ‘prettily ornamented with flowers’, butthe centrepiece was the floral cross on the altar with more flowers on either14
side. And there under the cross were the words from Galatians 5: ‘The Fruit ofthe Spirit is Love’. Three hymns were sung, the Bishop preached impressivelyfrom John 13, the candidates were confirmed into full membership of theirChurch. As the Bishop and the clergy left the church and made their way intothe churchyard, they would have been struck by the lovely arrangements ofbunches of wild flowers on all the burial plots. What also was noted was that‘the venerable parish priest (Thomas Hutchinson) was most pleasantly greetedby many parishioners, both rich and poor.’So, a lovely insight into church life in Victorian Ditchling and into thecontributions made to such a memorable occasion by three venerable priests!!Richard AllenNB The quotations are from an article in the Hastings and St Leonards Observerfor May 19 th 1877.15
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Page 6: Fr David writes2013: Another year,
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