Month: December 2021

Christmas 2021

Below are the Christmas Services at St. Edmund’s this year:

11 AM Sunday 19th December 2021: Sung Mass with Carols

7 PM Friday 24th December 2021: Sung Mass with Carols

10 AM Saturday 25th December 2021: Said Mass with Carols

11 AM Sunday 26th December 2021: Sung Mass

O Come O Come Emmanuel

To mark the first of the Great O Antiphon days in the final week of Advent leading up to the celebration of Christmas, the Church Union and The Society, which is supported by Forward in Faith, are delighted to issue this wonderful recording of the Advent hymn ‘O Come, O Come. Emmanuel’ by the choir of Saint Stephen’s, Gloucester Road. The hymn picks up on the messages of the O Antiphons, which address Our Lord by one of His messianic titles from the Old Testament. This linking of the Old and New Testaments is a striking and profound dimension of Advent from which we can learn much as we prepare for Christmas.

The Church of England has released a single which will hopefully be the Christmas Number 1 this year. Fore more details and how to download see here: https://www.churchofengland.org/media-and-news/press-releases/church-england-release-first-ever-christmas-single

The Church of England has released a video for Christmas. It can either be watched of the Church of England’s YouTube channel, or here:

Wishing you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.

Covid-19 Update

It is now mandatory to wear a face covering in places of worship, and other public places, following changes to the rules and guidance on Covid-19 by HM Government last week. Please endure that you wear your face covering when coming to St. Edmund’s. There would usually be a carol service this afternoon (3rd Sunday of Advent), however this will not be going ahead this year. There are exemptions to wearing a face covering, which Rev. Hugh Burton has helpfully listed for us here:

From the latest C of E guidance – some of the exemptions from the face covering requirement:

• There are exemptions on wearing face coverings for those leading a service or giving a reading.
• There is a reasonable excuse exemption which allows people to remove a face covering whilst singing if they wish to do so. However congregations may wish to consider the use of face coverings while singing depending on the local circumstances.
• These exemptions are made to enable communication, particularly with those who rely on lip-reading, facial expressions or clear sound; they do not exempt clergy and other leaders from wearing face coverings in other situations or during other activities.
• young children under the age of 11
• not being able to put on, wear or remove a face covering because of a physical or mental illness or impairment, or disability
• if putting on, wearing or removing a face covering will cause you severe distress
• to eat or drink, but only if you need to

For further guidance on HM Government’s Covid Plan B, please see here: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

We look forward to seeing you at our services through Advent and Christmas, but please keep safe.