7 Dec Treefest Carols

St Mary Redcliffe
Treefest Carol Service
Thursday 7 December
1pm

Welcome to St Mary Redcliffe
Singing the song of faith and justice
as a thriving, inclusive Christian community
as a recognised, welcoming heritage destination
as a church that makes a difference in the parish and
beyond
Welcome to this Carol Service. Whether you have stumbled upon
this by a happy co-incidence or you have planned to come, we hope
this service enables to give you a short break in amongst what can
be a busy time.
This booklet will guide you through the service and please do join in
with what you feel comfortable with.

Welcome and introduction
Opening Carol- O Come All Ye Faithful
O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
come, and behold him, born the King of angels;
Refrain:
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
Christ the Lord.
God of God, Light of Light,
lo! he abhors not the Virgin's womb;
very God, begotten, not created;
Refrain
Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation,
sing, all ye citizens of heav’n above:
“Glory to God, in the highest”;
Refrain
Reading – Christmas by John Betjeman
“The bells of waiting Advent ring,
The Tortoise stove is lit again”

Carol- O Little Town of Bethlehem
O little town of Bethlehem,
how still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
the silent stars go by.
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
the everlasting light;
the hopes and fears of all the years
are met in thee tonight.
How silently, how silently,
the wondrous gift is giv'n!
So God imparts to human hearts
the blessings of His heav'n.
No ear may hear His coming,
but in this world of sin,
where meek souls will receive Him still,
the dear Christ enters in.
O holy Child of Bethlehem,
descend to us, we pray;
cast out our sin and enter in;
be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels,
the great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
our Lord Emmanuel!

Reading – Luke 2.4-20 The Message Translation
“Glory to God in the heavenly heights,
Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.”
Carol- Once in Royal David’s City
Once in royal David’s city
stood a lowly cattle shed,
where a mother laid her baby
in a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little Child.
He came down to earth from heaven
who is God and Lord of all,
and His shelter was a stable,
and His cradle was a stall:
with the poor, and meek, and lowly,
lived on earth our Savior holy.
Not in that poor lowly stable,
with the oxen standing by,
we shall see Him, but in heaven,
set at God’s right hand on high;
when like stars His children crowned
all in white shall wait around.

Reading- Talking Turkeys by Benjamin Zephaniah
“ Be nice to yu turkeys dis christmas
Cos’ turkeys just wanna hav fun”
Carol- We Wish you a Merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year
Refrain: Good tidings we bring to you and your kin
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year
Oh, bring us some figgy pudding
Oh, bring us some figgy pudding
Oh, bring us some figgy pudding
And bring it right here
Refrain
We won't go until we get some
We won't go until we get some
We won't go until we get some
So bring it right here
Refrain
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year

The Blessing
Christ the Sun of Righteousness shine upon you,
scatter the darkness from before your path,
and make you ready to meet him when he comes in glory;
and the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be
with you and remain with you always
Amen.
If you are worshipping in church, you are invited to give to
the life and ministry of St Mary Redcliffe Church using our
contactless donation point as you leave.
If you are worshipping online or in church, you are invited to
give here via our website www.stmaryredcliffe.co.uk
If you are a regular member of our
congregation, whether in church or online, you
are encouraged to give regularly using the
Parish Giving Scheme which you can sign up
for here at www.parishgiving.org.uk or using
this QR code

Christmas Services 2023
You are warmly invited to our Christmas Services this year:
TreeFest Family Carols Saturday 9 th December, 6pm
Christingle Saturday 16th December at 3.00pm
Nine Lessons & Carols by Candlelight Saturday 16th December at
5.30pm & Sunday 17th December at 5.30pm
Carol Service with Salvation Army Band Tuesday 19th December
at 7.30pm
Carols at Lunchtime Thursday 21st December at 1.00pm
Christmas Eve Crib Service at 4.00pm & Midnight Eucharist at
11.30pm
Christmas Day Holy Communion at 8.00am & Family Eucharist at
10.30am
Sunday 31st December 2023 Holy Communion at 10.30am
Looking Ahead
Marking the 10th anniversary of the film
Interstellar, musician Roger Sayer performs
music from the film on our world-class church
organ. Scan the QR code to find out more and
book tickets.

Treefest
Please take the opportunity to look at all the trees displayed this
year. Each tree represents a business or a charity that is either
trying to get their message heard or raise awareness for different
issues.
All profit made from Treefest will be split between two different
charities: Bristol Women’s Centre and The Hub. Some information
about each charity:
Bristol Women's Centre run by The Nelson Trust is a charity that
brings belief, hope and long-term recovery to people experiencing
addiction and multiple-disadvantage.
‘Our Bristol Women’s Centre is a one-stop-shop service from which
we support some of the most disadvantaged, marginalised and
stigmatised women in our community. At Bristol Women’s Centre,
women we work with can access practical and emotional support
addressing a range of needs including; trauma, abuse, exploitation,
criminal justice involvement, physical health difficulties,
unemployment, homelessness, poverty, substance misuse and
mental illness.
Our Women’s Centre is a safe-women-only space providing trauma
and gender-responsive support, helping women and their children
to heal and thrive. At the centre women can access innovative inhouse
services such as; free onsite creche provision, weekly lunch
clubs, shower and washing machine access, use of IT suite,
therapeutic groups and additional therapies as well as dedicated
one-to-one key-working.’

The Hub is a community engagement charity that is part of the St
Mary Redcliffe Church family. They work closely with the local
community by serving and addressing the diverse and complex
needs.
The Hub is based within the local estate, under Waring House, and
is for everyone in Redcliffe.
From local youth groups to drop-in sessions, The Hub provide a
range of services for the local community. These include helping
people access services, providing support to young people, offering
a safe space for people to come into and sign-posting people to
help they may need. The Hub partners with a number of Bristol
charities and local businesses, such as Somali Kitchen and Bristol
Women’s voice.