St Michael And All Angels Patronal Festival News

Priest-in-Charge Fr John Ainslie (revjohnainslie@gmail.com; 01628 629827)

PRAYER REQUEST SLIPS are available at the back of church if you want to request prayer for yourself, for someone else or for a particular situation.

SERVICES THIS WEEK: Thursday Mass at 10.30am; Saturday Mass of Our Lady of Walsingham at 10.30am; service of Holy Matrimony (Wedding) at 12.45; Next Sunday Harvest Festival Sung Mass at 10.30am.

Next Sunday is our HARVEST FESTIVAL: Please bring contributions of dried food and toiletries which will be presented at the Altar and Blessed, before being taken to Maidstone Homeless Care. This is a great opportunity to show our love of neighbour, as well as provide much needed assistance to those who have so much less than we do. Pupils at our St Michael’s Infants and Junior Schools had their Harvest Festival this week, and their Harvest Offerings are already in front of the Altar.

HERITAGE OPEN DAY / RIDE-AND-STRIDE: Well done everyone who contributed in preparations beforehand, and on the day. Donations towards church funds on the day totalled £180. Catherine and Aston both cycled to various churches and raised a fantastic £400 in sponsorship money !! Thank you to them, and to all who sponsored them.

CHORAL EVENSONG at All Saints Perry Street, Gravesend Sunday 5th October. Our choir will be joining with the choir of All Saints for a traditional service of Choral Evensong at Perry Street at 5pm. All are welcome. We hope their choir will be joining with us for our Carol Service at St Michaels’ on Sunday 21st December.

We are already planning the St Michael’s CHRISTMAS MARKET, Saturday 29th November. So it’s time to think about what you might be able to contribute to the various stalls: Crafts and Gifts, Cakes, Books and Games, Plants and Gardening, Raffle and Tombola. We hope that Father Christmas will once again make an appearance !!

CONFIRMATION: I will be running a Confirmation Course this Autumn for those wishing to be Confirmed – which is an opportunity to make your commitment to God as an adult, and to begin receiving Holy Communion at Mass. If you would like to be Confirmed, or just want to know more, do have a word with me. Fr John.

FOR OUR PRAYERS: We give thanks and praise to God for St Michael and all the angels. We pray for peace in the world, and for relief for those who are living in dark places and through dark times. We pray that our young people would be protected from all influences towards evil, and grow up to know the peace, joy and love of the Christian faith. We pray for Alyce Cooper and Lewis Wright, to be married at St Michaels next Saturday.

We pray for those in need, and especially Glynis Reynolds, Yvonne Young, Jessica O’Sullivan, Lindsay Wheeler, Martyn Nash, Fran, David Green, Norman Farrington, Chris Jenkins, Bridget Humphries and Bob Humphries.

We pray for the recently departed. We remember those who have faithfully served God in this Church in previous generations, and we pray for those whose year’s mind occurs this week: Ann Day, Valerie Brown, David Vaughan, Gordon Harris

FROM THE BELLTOWER: 19 September 2025 London Surprise Minor 1 Jacqueline Barlow 2 Emma Jarvis 3 Jane Kostelnyk 4 Philip Jarvis 5 Mark Elvers 6 Stephen Coaker (C)Remembering the Duchess of Kent 4/9/25 R.I.P.

21 September Pudsey Surprise Major 1 Philip Jarvis 2 Paul Barton 3 Jacqueline Barlow 4 Mark Elvers 5 Jane L Kostelnyk 6 Rod Lebon 7 Karen Lebon 8 Neil Jones (C) Rung following the Holy Baptism of Eva and Martha Dillon and the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham. SUPPORT ST MICHAELS: to make a donation towards the work and worship of St Michael’s Church go to: www.parishgiving.org.uk/donors/find-your-parish/maidstone-st-michael-and-aa-maidstone/