Dear People & Friends of St. Clements,
This coming Sunday 12th June marks the third most important festival in the Christian Year – the Feast of Pentecost. It celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit on about 120 of Jesus’ followers, gathered in a upper room in Jerusalem, as described in chapter 2 of the Acts of the Apostles. Acts 2. 1-21 will be our first Bible Reading on Sunday morning.
In the past, particularly in the UK, the festival was known as ‘Whitsun’ – a corruption of ‘White Sunday’ which refers to the white robes worn by baptism candidates as baptisms often took place at the festival. These days we use red as the liturgical colour, signifying the fire of the Holy Spirit.
As I explained in last week’s message, our preacher this Sunday at our 11am Sung Eucharist for the Feast of Pentecost will be Jack Noonan. I know Jack would very much appreciate your prayers as he prepares to preach at St. Clement’s for the first time. There will be Children’s Ministry led by members of the Hellam Family and the service will be followed by Coffee Hour in the hall on the third floor of Klimentská 18. Please plan to be there!
The other event in the coming week that I want to draw your attention to is on next Tuesday 14th June between 6.30-8.00pm in the small meeting room on the first floor of Klimentská 18 when Major Ruth Stannett will speak about the work of The Salvation Army here in the Czech Republic and further afield. There will be an opportunity for questions and discussion in an informal setting.
Website update
As I promised in my Weekly Message last week, a recording of the whole of the service on Sunday 29th May with the Callington Singers from Cornwall UK, has now been uploaded to our website. You will find it here. If you just want to listen to the sermon, then that is also available separately. On the same page of our website you will find the whole of our Ascension Day Service, also with the sermon available to listen to separately.
Help & Ideas wanted
As previously announced, there will be a Church Family Picnic immediately following a slightly shorter Family Eucharist on Sunday 26th June in the park on Lannova between the Church and the Vltava River. For children’s entertainment, we have arranged a clown with some interactive games like musical Islands, parachute games and balloon sculpting. But we would welcome more ideas and offers of help. Interested – then please speak with any member of your Church Council. If you don’t know who they are how to contact them, click here!
And by way of reminder, here is a summary of what’s happening at St. Clement’s between now & the end of June.
Sunday 12th June at 11am – Sung Eucharist for Pentecost Sunday
Preacher; Jack Noonan
There will be Children’s Ministry, led by Isobel Hellam, assisted by her father David and the service will be followed by Coffee Hour in the hall on the third floor of Klimentská 18.
Tuesday 14th June between 6.30-8.00pm in the small meeting room on the first floor of Klimentská 18.
The Salvation Army with speaker Major Ruth Stannett.
Sunday 19th June at 11am – Sung Eucharist for Trinity Sunday
There will be Children’s Ministry, led by Diane Tvaroha and the service will be followed by Coffee Hour in the hall on the third floor of Klimentská 18.
Tuesday 21st June between 6.30-8.00pm in the small meeting room on the first floor of Klimentská 18.
The Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren (ECCB) with speaker Rev’d Gerhard Frey-Reininghaus.
Sunday 26th June at 11am – Family Eucharist for the First Sunday after Trinity
Preacher; David Hellam. The service will be followed by a Church Family Picnic in the park on Lannova which lies between the Church & the Vltava River.
Thursday 30th June between 12.30-2.00 – Ethics at Lunchtime at Mlýnec, Novotného Lávka 9, Prague 1
The next in our series of lunchtime discussions organised jointly by St. Clement’s and the British Chamber of Commerce in the CR.
Discussion topic “The Big Society – is civic participation essential to a properly functioning democracy”
Full details & how to register can be found here
Best wishes
Ricky
