When I was an Army chaplain one of the regiments I served with had its own Kirk Session. One of its young elders was an absolutely fanatical Glasgow Rangers supporter. In a year when Rangers came second best to city rivals, Celtic, I introduced the hymn, At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, by saying that verse three was especially for one of our elders. Verse three begins – “Humbled for a season….” I’m not sure I was forgiven until the following season!
Friends, Once again, all change! Lock down II commenced this week and for the next four Sundays we revert to offering worship, via the live stream and Dial-in only i.e. worshippers cannot attend in person (in the pews.) However, as Lucy communicates on our Social Media – “Although the building might be closed, the church is very much open.”
Worshipping online, staying in contact with friends and neighbours, offering prayers for others and supporting the church financially, are all expressions of continuing faith and church life. Some activities can, and will, continue in our halls – Knightsbridge School use the Lower Hall for recreation, Monday to Friday; Support Groups also continue to meet; and by later this month, we hope that St Columba’s will be operating as a feeding station for homeless guests, three nights each week – via ReStart (Fridays) and GlassDoor (Saturdays & Sundays.) If that hospitality can be achieved and sustained throughout the winter, it would represent a wonderful contribution to some very vulnerable people, in a time of extreme need. Please keep those charities (staff, volunteers and guest) and our own staff in your prayers. And remember, if you feel that you would like attend the Church for private prayer, please get in touch with the office This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to organise an appropriate time.
"Christian faith does not assume a life (or world) of continuous security and familiarity. It is fed by scriptures that speak of transience, mortality, provisionality, interruptions and leavings. But, they also whisper that the endings are always beginnings - the leavings, open a door to arrivals that could not have been experienced otherwise. In other words, the loss can be seen as a gift - what Walter Bruggemann calls 'newness after loss.' Peter Millar
A gentle reminder that the clocks change this weekend, permitting that extra hour for R & R! As the light shortens most of us feel a shift in the year; and thoughts of hibernation come to mind. In the media there is much advice on how to survive the winter in the year of Covid. A warm coat and getting outside for some fresh air is the oft-repeated advice. In addition to that piece of common sense, maybe we can add the companionship of our church community and the strength and belief of our faith. At the heart of our faith is the consolation that we are not alone, and that we are loved, even when we don’t particularly feel it. At St Columba’s, Pont Street and St Andrew’s, Newcastle I hope our shared faith will keep us making the effort to stay in touch and enquire after others. I hope too, our shared faith will inform the work that is undertaken by staff and volunteers to feed our homeless guests over the coming weekends of winter or the many alternative ways that we seek to love God and our neighbour as ourselves.
Along with the other bits of news, we share for a second week, the message from the Stewardship Team
This week’s message comes from the Stewardship Working Group.
Weathering the storm
We live in strange times. Many people, and many churches, have suffered greatly through the pandemic. While there have been significant bumps in the road for St Columba’s over these last few months, we have been blessed in many ways. Though we have lost around £55K in hall hire bookings since April this year – in an ordinary year, a considerable source of income for us - a generous legacy we received in 2019 has allowed St Columba’s to weather the storm so far in 2020. Many churches don’t have this level of financial support to fall back on, and we are very grateful to all those who give to St Columba’s in their will.
The broadcast of the Caledonian Lecture from St Columba’s this week was definitely a highlight. Mary Miller’s talk on Jane Haining - the “extraordinary life of an ordinary woman” was profound and moving. It was enhanced by wonderful Scottish, Hungarian and Jewish music from our guest musicians, and there were good messages added by the Hungarian Ambassador to the United Kingdom and the British Ambassador to Hungary. Please do take the chance to view it and recommend it to others, if you haven’t already done so. Jane Haining’s story of service and bravery towards the wartime Hungarian Jewish schoolgirls in her care is inspiring and deserves to be more widely known.
The office is open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m, Monday to Friday.
There is a 24-hour answering machine service.
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Find us
St Columba’s is located on Pont Street in Knightsbridge in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The Church is within easy reach of three London Underground stations – Knightsbridge (Piccadilly Line), South Kensington (Piccadilly, Circle and District Lines) and Sloane Square (Circle and District Lines).
St. Columba's Pont Street London SW1X 0BD
+44 (0)20-7584-2321
office@stcolumbas.org.uk
Getting here by tube
Knightsbridge Station
Take the Harrods exit if open (front car if coming from the East, rear car if coming from the West). Come up the stairs to street level, carry on keeping Harrods on your right. Turn right into Basil Street. Carry straight on into Walton Place with St Saviour’s Church on your left. At the traffic lights, St Columba’s is to your left across the street. If the Harrods exit is closed, take the Sloane Street exit, turn right into Basil Street. Carry straight on past Harrods with the shop on your right, into Walton Place as before.
South Kensington Station
Come up the stairs out of the station and turn left into the shopping arcade. Turn left again into Pelham Street. At the traffic lights at the end of Pelham Street cross Brompton Road, turn left then immediately right into the narrow street of Draycott Avenue. After just a few yards turn left into Walton Street. Carry on walking up Walton Street until the traffic lights at the corner of Pont Street. Turn right and after a few steps you will be at St Columba’s!
Sloane Square Station
Cross over the square into Sloane Street. Walk along Sloane Street until the traffic lights at the corner of Pont Street. Turn left into Pont Street. St Columba’s will then be in sight.
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