Whiston Parish Church, St Mary Magdalene; Whiston, Rotherham

Welcome

Welcome to the official website of Whiston Parish Church. Situated in the heart of the community, St Mary Magdalene is the parish church serving Whiston Village and the surrounding areas.

On 5th January 2021 the Government introduced new national lockdown restrictions to limit the spread of COVID -19. Although the Government chose not to suspend public worship in England at the present time (and although we have been operating with a robust risk assessment), the Parochial Church Council (PCC) feels that the safety of each one of us is of paramount importance in view of the high risk of transmission of the new variant of the virus. Because of these factors, the PCC has taken the decision to close the church for public worship services for the foreseeable future. Public worship will restart at the earliest possible opportunity.

It is, however, still possible for funeral services to be conducted in church.

Our worship of God and our care for each other continues but cannot be done in this building. Instead we will provide alternate ways of doing this together through the Weekly Bulletin; by making email and phone contact with those who may require additional support; through our Facebook page and by sharing a range of online prayer and worship resources. Details of these and contact details for the Churchwardens and Readers can be found further down the page.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength . . . Love your neighbour as yourself.
There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31)

Guidelines for Church for Services

Dear Friends Download the latest information:
Guidelines for Funerals

Dear Friends, Please find attached the current set of Guidelines for the conduct of church services at Whiston Parish Church. Although the church is currently closed for public worship, funeral can still take place in church using these guidelines.

Greetings from Whiston Parish Church on the 3rd Sunday of Epiphany

‘Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns'. Revelation 19:6

Dear Friends Download the latest information:
Prayers for 24th January 2021
Notes on the Readings and Prayers - 24th January 2021
Opportunities for Worship and Other Resources: 24th January 2021

Our God reigns! In all the flurry of human activity surrounding the pandemic we must never lose sight of God’s presence. He has entered our world in Jesus and has suffered with us. By raising Jesus from the dead God has shown us the way to eternal life. Jesus reigns in glory with God in heaven.

Today as we follow the Epiphany story, we see Jesus revealing his glory in the miracle of Cana in Galilee, changing water into wine and offering new life in abundance to those who were in need. Jesus offers us that new life today transforming our everyday existence and bringing us joy and hope in our troubles. Let us give God the glory as we come to worship him today.

We pray:
Almighty God,
whose Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
Amen

We say or sing: ♫ 𝅘𝅥 𝅘𝅥𝅮

1) Christ, whose glory fills the skies Christ, the true, the only Light, Sun of Righteousness, arise, Triumph o’er the shades of night; Dayspring from on high, be near, Daystar, in my heart appear.	2) Dark and cheerless is the morn Unaccompanied by Thee; Joyless is the day’s return, Till Thy mercy’s beams I see, Till Thou inward light impart, Glad my eyes, and warm my heart.
3) Visit then this soul of mine, Pierce the gloom of sin and grief; Fill me, Radiancy divine, Scatter all my unbelief; More and more Thyself display, Shining to the perfect day.

We pray:
God of all mercy,
your Son proclaimed good news to the poor,
release to the captives,
and freedom to the oppressed:
anoint us with your Holy Spirit
and set all your people free
to praise you in Christ our Lord.
Amen

Extract from Letter from our Bishops (dated 15th Jan 2021)
In this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, may I urge you to pause and to recall the wonderful truth that, as Anglican Christians in the Diocese of Sheffield, we are part of that one body, sharing in one Spirit, and called to the one hope, together with all those who participate with us in one baptism, confessing one Lord in one faith. As followers of the Lord Jesus, we are one with those who have gone before us, centuries before us; and we are one with those who will come after us. We are one with those who serve our Saviour in the Diocese of Bondo, in Kenya, and in the Diocese of Argentina – our two link Dioceses. We are one with those who confess Christ as Lord as Roman Catholics, members of the Orthodox Churches, Baptists and Methodists, Pentecostal, Lutheran and Reformed Churches, independent evangelical and non-aligned churches. Of course, the divisions between us are painful, and we long for that unity for which our Lord himself prayed. But it is good to recall the wider family to which we belong, and commit ourselves afresh to ‘humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace’.

Renewed Prayer for the NHS
It is appropriate in this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity to note this call to prayer which has been issued by the Baptist Union of Great Britain:

Pray for all NHS staff: for their safety, and for energy and peace in dealing with each and every patient.
Pray for those in hospital leadership, for wisdom and for good decisions to give the best outcomes for patients.
Pray for patients; for healing, and for their relatives who feel helpless.
Pray for the rolling out of the vaccine, that it will be effective even against the new strain of Covid-19.
Pray for a reprieve and an end to Covid-19.

GIVING
We look forward to resuming worship in our church, but for the moment If you have giving envelopes please continue to send in one of them with a cheque for the total amount made payable to Whiston Parish Church, Please no coins or notes!

Post to: Mr Alan Teale, 27 Howarth Crescent, Moorgate; Rotherham, S60 3BW

If payment through the bank would be easier, these are the details:

RBS The Parochial Church Council of Whiston St Mary Magdalene
A/C No. 15374552 Sort Code: 16.00.07

If anyone would also like to donate to the running costs of the church, this would also be most welcome. The continued generosity of our congregation is a blessing for us all.

Please contact any of us if you need to talk or simply to have a chat.

Patrick White: (Reader) {tel: 01709 370069} or {mob: 07740 941921}
Colette White: (Churchwarden) {mob: 07712 674675}
Alan Bradbury: (Assistant Churchwarden) {mob: 07711 691594}

Jan Teale: (Reader) {mob: 07745 560580}
Alan Teale: (Churchwarden) {mob: 07803 021201}

Email: whistonparishchurch@gmail.com
Our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/WhistonParishChurch/

Should you wish to speak to a priest, the Revd. Karen Skidmore (tel: 01709 836052) and the Revd. Sue Davies (mob: 07515 881605) are both happy to be contacted.

Take care of each other and remember God is good.

We serve the areas of:

Whiston Village
Grange Estate
Duke-of-Norfolk Estate
Upper Whiston
Morthen
Outlying Areas

Baptisms and Weddings

Church Life

Welcome to Whiston Parish Church

St Mary Magdalene