Easter 3

THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER Hymns 106, 105,118, 162

FIRST READING Acts 2.14a, 36-41

But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: 'Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.’ Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what should we do?’ Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.’ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ So those who welcomed his message were baptised, and that day about three thousand persons were added.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM 116

R. I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.

I trusted, even when I said: “I am sorely afflicted,”
O precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his faithful. R.

Your servant, Lord, your servant am I; you have loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving sacrifice I make; I will call on the Lord’s name. R.

My vows to the Lord I will fulfil before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord, in your midst, O Jerusalem. R.

SECOND READING 1 Peter 1.17-23 If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds, live in reverent fear during the time of your exile. You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are set on God. Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.

GOSPEL Luke 24.13-35 Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’ Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures. As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

ST MICHAEL'S NEWS

A very warm welcome to any new readers, and to visitors and newcomers to St Michael's. A special welcome and thanks to Fr Derek, our celebrant this morning. Fr Paul, who is ministering at Perry Street today, will kindly be saying Mass for us on Thursday at 10.30 am. If you are new to St Michael's, do join us for tea or coffee in the Vestry Hall after the service, so that we can welcome you properly.

Offers of food and help are still most welcome as we prepare for our Coronation Big Lunch after Mass on Sunday, 7th May. Come along anyway! – but do sign up on the list in the narthex, and/or speak to Alison, if you are able and willing to cook or assist.

The Princess Project – a local organisation supporting (mainly single) mums and families – is seeking volunteers. Its founder, Emma Tanner, writes:

“Do you have a heart for mums, especially those for whom life is tricky? We are currently recruiting volunteers to join our existing Hub teams in Maidstone and Medway, and to be part of exciting new teams in Tonbridge and Sheerness where we plan to open Hubs in September.

We are also looking for Christian women of all ages with parenting experience who would like to pray for and support mums one-to-one through our Mum2Mum befriending service - our next befriender training course starts on May 27th. To find out more, or to request a role description and application form, please see our website Volunteer | The Princess Project, or contact our office on 01622 230713/ email hello\@princessproject.co.uk. We’d love to hear from you!”

Forward in Faith Members! Could you show the St Michael's flag at St Alban's, Holborn, (Brooke Street, London EC1N 7RD) for the Forward in Faith Festival on 20th May, 12 noon-4pm? Mass of the Holy Spirit with high quality music, hot buffet lunch with wine, some challenging input at the meeting, and Benediction at the end - charge, just £10 per person for what promises to be a spiritual shot in the arm, as well as a chance to catch up, do some networking and hear some stimulating speeches. Bookings, by 28th April, to: admin.assistant\@forwardinfaith.com.

Paperwork for the APCM on 30th April? Much paperwork – including the Agenda, the Minutes of the last APCM, the Trustees' Report, and individual copies of several reports including those of the Tower and the Mothers' Union - is available in the narthex for advance consultation. The list of those present at the 2022 APCM seems to lack some names; Eleanor will be grateful for corrections to this or to any other element of the minutes.

Nomination forms for churchwardens and new PCC members are also in the narthex. Nominations can be accepted at the annual meeting itself, but it does help greatly if we know in advance who is willing to serve. Could God be calling YOU, or someone you know, to stand for election?

Also in the narthex are some helpful and informative FREE leaflets about the Christian life and the sacraments. We sometimes need to explain something (Confession? Anointing?) to an enquirer and realise that, as Catholic Anglicans, we take such things so much for granted that explaining proves difficult. Our narthex should be a place where enquirers and explainers alike can go for instruction and help.

From Our Tower:

Kent County Association: Maidstone, Kent, St Michael and All Angels

Sunday, 16 April 2023 (6–1–24 in C)

1280 Spliced Surprise Major (5m)

384 Rutland; 256 Cambridge, Yorkshire; 192 Lincolnshire (N), Superlative; 27 com.

1. Mike Birkbeck
2. Karen Lebon
3. Jacqueline Barlow
4. Mark Elvers
5. Paul Barton
6. Rod Lebon
7. Elizabeth Barnes
8. Neil Jones (C)

250th together: 1 & 8.
200th as C in this tower.

In thanksgiving for the life of Margaret Jones (Maggie), d.12/4/23, mother of the conductor. R.I.P.

Could you pass this sheet on to someone else who might like to see it?