Dear Friends

Many services of the Church have the prayer:

Also we pray for the blessed and
ever-remembered founders of this holy church …

Are you willing to be a founder of the Church in Eastleigh for whom prayers will be offered until the Lord comes again?

The Church we have approached in Eastleigh has started the process for welcoming us, for which we are most grateful.  We need now to decide what we want: how are we to witness the saving death and resurrection of Christ in Eastleigh?

I would like to hear back from you all with your ideas, but also I appreciate that it is difficult to come up with an idea from scratch.  I would, therefore, make this proposal:

• We meet on one Saturday per month.
• We book the Church (if available) from 3.30 pm – 6 pm.
• We have a service starting at 4 pm.
• We stay afterwards for fellowship.
• We ask all to bring some food for a joint meal.
• After, or during, the meal we have a short spiritual talk.
• We finish by 5.30 pm, allowing 30 minutes for any additional clearing up.
• We look to the possibility of extending this to two Saturdays a month, or even more regularly.

How does this seem to you?  Would you be able to come to these meetings?  What services would you want?  The obvious would be Vespers but this would require we have some people to sing: can you volunteer yourself?  Would you like a different service: the Paraklesis or Compline?  Would you be willing to be there at 3.30 to help get the Church ready and welcome guests?

We hope, of course, that this ministry can grow, that we may be able to offer the Liturgy on a Sunday in the future: yet we must build foundations now for us to be able to realise this.

I wish you all a joyful celebration of the Nativity of our Lord that he may be born in each of your hearts.

Your prayers!

With love in Christ

Fr Alexander
[email protected]