Welcome to St Mary's Shortlands

A lockdown video update from Revd Gary Best

Following the recent announcement of national restrictions from 5th November, St Mary's services in the coming weeks will be as follows:

Monday - Saturday

9.00am         Morning Prayer (streamed via Facebook).   Click here for the order of service. 

Sundays

10.30am      Holy Communion (streamed via Facebook).   Click here for the order of service

If the Facebook links above don't work, then try the St Mary's Facebook videos page (look for a red "live" or "premiere" button).  You can also find previously recorded services there.

Sometimes you will see a "pop up" message saying that you need to sign up to Facebook - you don't need to do this. If this happens, simply click the "not now" option.  For more tips and troubleshooting read our guide to watching online services without a Facebook account 

The church will continue to be open for private prayer and reflection on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, 10am to 3pm.

Arrival is strictly through the South Door and, upon arrival, hand-sanitiser is available. When leaving the church, please exit using the North Door.  Whilst in the church, please observe social distancing (2 metres) at all times.

Within the church, seating is clearly indicated.  No hymn or prayer books are available and there is no access to the kitchen, toilet or meeting facilities. Government guidance requires that a register is maintained of all visitors and kept for 21 days to assist with ‘track and trace’ should it be required.

Please do not enter the church building if you have any underlying health issues that might be a concern, or if you are feeling unwell for any reason.

Visit our Coronavirus page for more information on how to access these services and other information about our response to Coronavirus.

If you are aware of anyone within our community who may be in self-isolation, unwell or alone during these challenging times, St Mary's has a team of people available to provide both pastoral and practical support to those that need it.  If we can help in any way, please email the vicar, vicar@stmaryshortlands.church, or phone on 020 8460 0262.  Please leave a message if your call isn't answered straight away.

Pewpaper Sunday 29 November

St Mary's latest Newssheet

Stewardship
Thank you to everyone who has been able to make a stewardship contribution to St. Mary’s during the past few months as we have lived through the impact of coronavirus, a virus that has affected each and every one of us. Whether through an increase in monthly giving, as a new donor, or as a one-off payment, your generosity has been received with sincere thanks, generosity that greatly helps in keeping your church alive.

Restrictions on access to the church have now been lifted, which is wonderful news for us all, but we are still a long way off from ‘normal service’ being resumed. Because of this, I would respectfully ask that if you are able, please could you consider how you might be able to continue in financially helping St. Mary’s, perhaps as a new donor through a standing order, or through increasing your current giving. Christian giving is part of our discipleship, a response to God's love and today, like no other time, the life of the church continues even through these exceptionally challenging times.  Many people are working tirelessly, learning new skills and adapting how worship is presented and it is through all of this, that the love of God continues to radiate through our community. 

If you are considering joining the stewardship scheme at St. Mary’s, please fill in the stewardship scheme form, and set up a standing order with your bank, using the following details: Nat West Bank sort code 60-04-02, Account Number 42417112 (you can use this standing order form).  If you pay tax, please do also complete and return a gift aid form - this allows us to reclaim tax on your donation at no cost to you.

If you wish to give a one-off payment, you can:

• use the above bank account details (please let us know if sending an online payment so we can identify the payment)
• make a cheque out to St Mary Shortlands PCC, which can be dropped off at the vicarage as part of your daily exercise regime

Thank you for your continued support of St. Mary’s and ensuring that we continue to share the love of God within our community.

Safeguarding
As a church we take our safeguarding responsibilities very seriously: we are committed to ensuring our church and hall buildings are safe places for all.  If you have any concerns about safeguarding you can contact our Parish Safeguarding Officer, Kay Coleman, on 07879 337567.