Remember, Remember… – St Peter and St Paul

…the 5th of November, Gunpowder, treason and plot. It will be 410 years since Parliament passed the Observance of 5th November Act, commonly known as the “Thanksgiving Act”. Sponsored by Edward Montagu MP, who claimed that the “divine intervention” that had kept the king safe deserved official recognition. The act kept 5 November free as a day of thanksgiving and, in theory, made attendance at Church mandatory on that day as well as on Sundays.

In fact, this month is all about remembering… starting with our first communion service on All Saints day, or Hallowmas as Shakespeare called it, when we traditionally remember the departed faithful. On the continent, this feast is marked by great celebration with brass bands marching through churchyards and huge pots of chrysanthemums placed all around. At St Peter and St Paul’s there is natural decoration provided by the autumnal colours of the trees, and the splashes of red from the poppies that people are starting to wear in their buttonholes in anticipation of Remembrance Day itself. Less organised, but no less beautiful. Our Remembrance service will be held on Friday, 6th November at 6.30, and I am sure I don’t have to remind you that all are welcome!

You may need to wrap up a little though: winter is coming in and the church is getting chilly. Heating is one of the things we hope will be sorted out under the Heritage Lottery programme, our application for which is progressing well. In the meantime, not being able to hibernate like the bats (at least we will have a diminution in the bat droppings over the coming months), the Maintenance Co-operative, which is also Lottery sponsored, will be coming to Algarkirk on Fri, 27 Nov, to give some really useful tips on what we can do to protect not only our beautiful churches and precious objects, but also our own homes and the wildlife in our gardens against the cold and damp of winter. It will be an all day course, starting at 10 in the Village Hall. A yummy free hot lunch will be provided. To register, contact Stella on 07776 156274.

We are also moving our Crafty Cake and Coffee mornings into the Village Hall (Weds, 25th Nov, 10-12). The sharing of ideas and skills, the refreshments and the chance for a chat will some lovely people will continue as before, but with heaters!

Don’t forget either that if you are interested in taking part in one of our heritage training courses, you will need to book a place by emailing the heritageskillscentre@lincolnshire.gov.uk with the course name and they’ll steer you to the right information. Or you can call them on 01522 552434. We have (Tues, 3rd Nov) Stone carving; (Mon, 9th Nov – am) Tour Guide Training with Dr Matthew Godfrey who is an expert on church architecture; and (Sat, 14th Nov) Wood carving in the Village Hall. You don’t have to have any experience for these workshops; they are all free of charge and everyone so far has found them to be a fascinating and rewarding experience. Remember, there is a warm welcome for everyone!