Church Matters – February 2020 How hard do we find it to cross the threshold of the Church? This is a question that works both ways. For those who are not regular Church goers it can be difficult to step across the threshold and enter a Church building – for many and varied reasons. And for those who do regularly attend Church services it is not always easy to take the things which they find so valuable within across the threshold and out of the building. If the Church is to have any relevance in society then this sense of division – of there being a visible or invisible barrier between the worlds inside and outside of Church – needs to be broken down. When Jesus walked this earth, even before there were such things as Church buildings, he was aware of this potential problem. In the Sermon on the Mount he told his disciples to “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Followers of Jesus were not to hide their light under a bowl, they were to let it shine for all to see. Unless light is allowed to shine out it cannot achieve its function – which is to lighten dark places. So, for those of you who do regularly go to Church, don’t keep the light you find there to yourselves, but share it with the world outside; by what you do, how you act and what you say. There is a danger, though, that our Church buildings themselves can appear to be dark places. The following is a set of lyrics from a song by the secular group Snow Patrol:- Slowly the day breaks apart in our hands And soft hallelujahs flow in from the church The one on the corner you said frightened you It was too dark and too large to find yourself in. (from ‘The Lighting Strike’ on the album ‘A Hundred Million Suns’) Of course this is only a song lyric and we cannot read too much into it. However, returning to our old Church in London over New Year reminded me what a transformation was made to that building when the solid wood entrance doors were replaced with fully glazed doors. What happened inside the building was no longer a mystery and to step across the threshold was not to step into the unknown. And on dark winter evenings the warm glow of light spilling out from within issued an unspoken welcome. Now this sort of action isn’t suitable for all Churches – particularly our older historic buildings. But the principle of our Churches being filled with light, and warmth, does apply. It’s all very well us trying to save energy, but if in doing so we make our buildings dark and cold then no-one will wish to enter and find the true light within. And if you are amongst those who rarely enters a Church building, then please don’t wait until the next Christening, Wedding or Funeral to go again. Ask someone you know who does go to give you a tour round their Church, and discover what you are missing. Churches are places where God can be encountered and where the light of Jesus shines. They are almost always places filled too with a sense of peace – a commodity we can all value. I wish you light and peace during this winter month. Keith Browne

The Sampson’s Unlocked Project CRUX (Cherished, Restored, Unlocked, Church) team would like to thank you all for helping to make this first year of its fundraising activities more successful than we ever imagined possible. Almost £8,000 has been raised so far and is being put to good use preparing St Sampson’s pathway for both lighting and a mains water connection. This should be started in the new year. Many thanks to Baker Estates who have donated five dumpy bags of sand and 100m of water pipe. We feel very encouraged.

Some of the highlights: To help the major funding applications, everyone in the community was invited to a ’Community Meeting’ at South Hill Parish Hall, Golberdon in November 2018, to discuss ways our communty could use the church.

An Information Open Day was held at St Sampson’s at the beginning of December where people could come in, chat and find out what the funding need was all about. CRUX then having distilled the results of these, formed an action plan for the year.

First of all on 25 March 2019, a ‘Toddle Waddle’ for JAMM (Just another manic Monday) families was held at South Hill Parish Hall on the theme of St Sampson’s adventures in Cornwall. This was followed in May by an adult equivalent called ‘Beating (walking) the Bounds’ which involved a 3 to 11 mile circuit around the parish. That evening, the Bulls Head hosted a Quiz night for St Sampson’s Unlocked. Then, after a perfect ‘Open Gardens’ event in part of what was the Old Rectory garden at South Hill, in mid June we decamped to the Old Rectory garden in Stoke Climsland for a Vintage Fête, the high point of the year’s activities and which so many people helped to make a great success. A new ‘Open Garden’ in Callington quickly followed this, and then in August a Painting event for young and old was held on the grounds of St Sampson’s. Half a pig was roasted at the South Hill Horticultural show and finally, bringing us up to the present, a fun games night was on order in October at South Hill Parish Hall, Golberdon. Lots of events are being planned for 2020, starting in January when it is our turn to organise the monthly quiz night. We will also be holding a meeting early in the New Year about the suggested community project to manage the churchyard for wild flowers and wildlife.

Conversations with our architect and specialist advisors are ongoing concerning the installation of toilet and kitchen facilities, window and ceiling repairs, heating and flooring. In addition lots of funding applications are being written. Keep in touch by following St Sampson’s Unlocked on Face book. If you have any suggestions or would like to get involved in any aspect of this project, please do get in touch with Judith or Miranda judithayers@yahoo.co.uk 01579 384617 mlawranceowen@icloud.com 01579 382863

So, we’re back into the Christmas season again, and one that might prove just a little different from recent years. As I write this article I have yet to see the 2019 John Lewis TV advert, or indeed any promise that it will arrive this year (a quick scan of their website is remarkably lacking in any information), so that may be different. But perhaps TV may not be so dominated by the retail sector this year.

It will of course have an air-time rival – the General Election called for 12 December. And I don’t think that it will be just air-time that is challenged, but perhaps the thinking capacity of many people across the nation. We have become so conditioned to think about Christmas from Halloween and Fireworks Night onwards, I suspect that having a General Election placed in its path may delay any thoughts of Christmas preparations. Perhaps John Lewis are playing a canny hand. If you’ve followed the political debate, perhaps wearily, over the past months and years then there’s no doubt that an Election offers some hope of a new form of government that might move beyond the division, wrangling and unpleasantness that we now experience at Westminster. I’m sure that those who are closely involved in political parties are convinced that success in the Election will bring a decisive break-through, but I’m not so sure.

I recognise that in all my voting life there has always been an element of favourable presentation of statistics and political spin, but it now seems to be a valued art-form, with clarity and truth hard to come by. To me, from an earthly and human perspective there are no obvious answers to the challenges this country faces, irrespective of which party wins. If you’ve ever been to a carol service you may have heard the following: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.” This comes from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, who himself was writing in troubled times. He was speaking about the birth of Jesus, and how his birth will bring something new into the world. I find it intriguing that amongst the many things that Isaiah could have said about the birth of a child, he was prompted by God to speak of government and peace. Many Christians will understand exactly what Isaiah was saying. When someone accepts the gift into their lives that Jesus is, then often what happens is a gradual change from chaos to peace – a sense of earthly affairs coming under the beneficial governance of God. I think it’s a gift that’s available to individuals, organisations, counties and nations – and to neglect the gift courts problems. To paraphrase one of the Psalms – unless the Lord builds it, the builders build in vain. My closing prayer for us all at the end of 2019 is that the light of Jesus Christ may truly dawn in our lives, homes and this nation. May you have a blessed and peaceful Christmas.

Tony Stephens 01579-371496 revtonystephens@icloud.com

So, another quirky news article headline catches my eye – “How smart car technology could help you sleep” (Lifestyle section of The Guardian, 24 February). The article speaks about a new development by engineers at Ford, the car-maker. They have adapted the Lane-Keeping technology that can be found in many new cars so that it can be incorporated into a double bed. At this point I have to add that I did check the date of the news article, and yes it was 24 February, not 1 April.

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