Cicely Hollingsworth's funeral

The funeral service for Cicely Hollingsworth, who died on 20 December, will be held on Wednesday, 14 January 2015 at 3pm at St Thomas Becket Anglican Church.

Happy Christmas!

Almighty God, you have given us your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin: grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Collect for Christmas

Christmas flier with Chaplain's message.

"At Christmas, when we speak of peace and goodwill, how should we respond to the many atrocities, acts of violence and hardships that we hear about throughout the world? What can we do to make a difference? I think the first, and perhaps the most powerful, is prayer," writes Father Matthew in his Christmas message. You can find the whole message along with a list of Christmas services at St Thomas Becket and Bishop Robert's Christmas message in the Christmas Flier.

CofE weekly podcast with Libby Lane

This week's Church of England podcast features an interview with Libby Lane, who is to be the first woman bishop in the Church of England, on her reaction to the news, dissenting views, her hopes and the challenges ahead. You can find the podcast on the CofE website front page or follow this link.

Dramatised Gospel and Peace Light of Bethlehem

This Sunday's Family Service with Holy Communion at 10.30 will include a dramatised Gospel with assistance from Junior Church. Also, the flame of the Peace Light of Bethlehem will be brought to us from the Church of the Nativity. If you want to share the light and take it home, please bring some way of carrying it (a lantern, for example). Members of the Scout and Guide Movement distribute the light, brought from Bethlehem to Austria, throughout 30 European countries and beyond. You can read more about the Peace Light here in English and in German.

First woman bishop announced

Revd Libby Lane is to be the new Bishop of Stockport, and the first woman bishop in the Church of England. She is currently Vicar of St Peter's, Hale, and St Elizabeth's, Ashley in Cheshire. She will be consecrated as Bishop of Stockport on 26 January 2015 at York Minster and will serve as a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Chester. Follow the links to the announcement on the Church of England website and a background story on the BBC website.

Bishop Robert's Christmas Message

This Christmas "we need to feel again the shocking reality of God becoming incarnate in conditions of extreme vulnerability and deprivation," Bishop Robert reminds us in his Christmas Message, and says this reality carries responsibilities for us. You can read the whole of Bishop Robert's Christmas Message or listen to it as an audio file on the Diocese in Europe website.

Christmas Services at the Anglican Church

You don't have to be an Anglican to come to church at St Thomas Becket. We welcome everyone. On Christmas Eve we will have a Children’s Christmas Service at 4 pm and Midnight Mass at 11.30 pm. There will be services of Holy Communion at 10.30 am on Christmas Day and New Year's Day in addition to our usual Sunday Services. You can find details of Christmas Services by clicking on the link on the right of this page and of all other services on the services page.

Please support the Bishop's appeal

Bishop Robert's Advent Appeal is raising funds for the Sant’Egidio project in Italy which offers emergency help to migrants who land off the Sicilian coast, raises awareness of their rights as asylum seekers and eventually assists their integration into Italian society. It focuses particularly on young people and children. Full details are available on the Diocese in Europe website. Please give as generously as you can. Donations can be made in church and will be collected and sent to the Diocesan Office.

Wandering from Aumühle after all

The next walk with Church Wanderers this Saturday, 13 December, will start at Aumühle after all. Please meet at Ausmühle S-Bahnhof at 11:36. (From Hamburg Hbf you need to take the S21 to Aumühle at 11:04.) The walk through pretty country, woods and along the Bille river to Reinbek will take no more than two hours, so there'll be plenty of time to get back for the the Carol Service! Please let Nicki Schiller know if you are coming by 10pm on Thursday, 11 December - nicki.schiller [at] gmx.de

What does it mean to be small?

Is bigger always better? Is being small being a failure? What does it mean to be a small church community? On five evenings in January and February we are going to "visit Bethany", the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, the siblings who welcomed Jesus in a simple way. For more information about the Small church Reflection Meetings, please download the PDF.

Carol Service this Saturday, 13 December

Our service of nine lessons and carols is on Saturday 13 December at 6pm, followed by refreshments. Please come to this very popular service and bring your friends.

Carols and hot chocolate on 5 December

Because we can't sing ALL the carols and songs at our traditional carol service, Mothers' Union is inviting us again for sing-along Christmas carols on Friday 5 December at 6pm. As if that weren't enough to give you a lovely warm feeling, there'll be hot chocolate on offer, too. Admission is free, but donations to church funds are welcome.

Bazaar success and raffle winners

A big thank you to everyone who helped make the Church Bazaar on 22 November a success, whether by working behind the scenes, helping on the day or buying what was on offer. This year's event made over EUR 14,000 to support the running expenses of the church, up on last year.

Are you a lucky winner?
Please check your raffle tickets. You could have won a prize. Click on the link to see the list of winning tickets and how to claim a prize if your number's come up.

First woman bishop expected in the New Year

Now that the Church of England has signed the legislation enabling women to be appointed bishops into canon law, an announcement of the first woman bishop is expected in the New Year. Four bishoprics are currently vacant, with a further five appointments of suffragan bishops due. You can read the Church of England's announcement here and a background article on the BBC website here.

Church Recording Project launch on 24/25 November

Next Monday and Tuesday 24/25 November sees the launch of the Church Recording Project that BRIDFAS (British Decorative and Fine Arts Society of Hamburg e.V) has initiated with the Anglican Church. A Church Recording expert from London is coming to Hamburg for two days to give the volunteer team some training and go around the church identifying the specific areas to be recorded. There will be a launch event in the church on Monday 24 November at 6pm. All are welcome and there is still pleanty of opportunity to get involved. For more information on the project and the launch, please click the BRIDFAS logo on the right of this page or go to the BRIDFAS website.

Bazaar - helpers still welcome

Don't forget, this Saturday, 22 November, is the Church Bazaar from 10.30am to 4pm. Daniel Loarte would still welcome helpers on the day. You can contact him on daniel.loarte (at) gmail.com. Please tell your friends about the bazaar. Even better, bring them along.

In quires and places where they sing...

It's choral evensong today at St Thomas Becket sung by the Anglican Consort, STB's own chamber ensemble. The service starts at 1900 hrs and features music by William Byrd, Thomas Weelkes and Daniel Purcell. See more on our Facebook page.

CofE launches podcast

The Church of England has launched a weekly podcast looking at events in the news and featuring exclusive interviews. The first edition includes Archbishop Justin Welby speaking about journalists working overseas, reports from WW1 battlefields in Belgium and an interview with a vicar who also runs a fireworks company.

Remembrance Sunday

This Sunday, 9 November, is Remembrance Sunday
There will be a service of remembrance at 10.30am in honour of all who have died in the service of their country. Wreaths will be laid both at the church and at the Commonwealth Graves at Ohlsdorf Cemetery following the service. Poppy Crosses will be on sale for €2 to support our church. Poppies will also be for sale in aid of the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.

Fadi solo at STB

Don't miss Fadi Gaziri's special performance of music from his first solo album, 'Northern Lights', original music inspired by his travels around Scandinavia, on Sunday, 14 December at 7.30pm. Tickets cost €10 (concessions €8). See Fadi's website for more information or download the poster.

Shop till you drop on 22 November

Get your presents, Christmas cards and much more at the St Thomas Becket annual bazaar on Saturday 22 November from 10.30 am till 4 pm. New this year is a special lunchtime auction. Shop till you (almost) drop for English preserves, homemade cakes, DVDs, CDs, videos and records, accessories, greetings cards, second-hand books, crafts and decorations. Our café in the gallery plus African and Indian specialities for lunch are guaranteed to perk you up for a renewed shopping burst. There will be a Grand Raffle with exciting prizes, a children’s corner and much more...

St Thomas Becket Church does not receive money from German Kirchensteuer or from the Church of England and so is completely dependent for its financial existence on donations and revenue-generating activities like the Church Bazaar.

Please invite your friends, neighbours, colleagues, distant cousins and, of course, come and buy. Click on the links to download a flier or a poster.

Jazz, Pop, Sing and Swing

Everyone is invited to a charity concert and get together in aid of the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket on Saturday, 8 November 2014 at 8pm. There will be songs by George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Barbara Streisand, Harry Belafonte, Robbie Williams and many more performed by Stefanie Maria Nissen, soprano, Galathea B. von Meer, contralto, and Tetyana Szcessny, piano. In the second half there will be a chance to sing along. The event is also on Facebook, so please invite your friends.

Autumn Becket News out now

The latest Becket News is available. Pick up your copy in church or, if you prefer to read it online, click here.

William Shakespeare requests the pleasure

William Shakespeare would like to invite you to his 450th birthday party on Friday 10 October at 7pm. He has laid on food, wine, the Hamburg Players and musician Fadi Gaziri to ensure a lusty and merry evening at the Anglican Church, and all for a mere five ducats. Euros also welcome. You can find the flier here.

Sounds of coastal Peru meet European jazz

An exciting evening of Afro-Peruvian Jazz is on the cards when PERFEKTOMAT takes to the St Thomas Becket stage on Saturday 4 October at 7pm. Joscha Oetz's quintet fuses the sounds and rhythms of coastal Peru with European jazz-sensibility. Central to this endeavour is the cajon, a Peruvian instrument now popular in Europe. Entrance is by donation in aid of the church. Read more or download the flier here.

Marching through the heather

No, nothing to do with the vote on Scottish independence, but the next walk with the Church Wanderers, who are off to Fischbeker Heide on Saturday 13 September with the aim of enjoying the heather in bloom. There are two routes, a short one of about 5km and a longer one of about 9km. Please bring a picnic and travel on the S3 train departing Hamburg Hbf from Gleis 4 at 10.58 (dep Altona 10.44, Landungsbrücken 10.50). Try to get in a carriage near the front and get out at Harburg Rathaus to catch a relief bus to Neugraben and then the 250 bus to Fischbeker Heideweg, arriving soon after 11.30. Please let Cicely know by 12 noon on Friday, 12 September if you plan to come: cicely-hollingsworth (at) t-online.de, tel: 040/86 07 90, mobile: 0162 635 93 98.

Gap year with a difference

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is opening up Lambeth Palace to adults aged 20–35 to spend a year living, praying and studying together as a radical new Christian community. Read more on the Archibishop's website or listen to him talking about the project to Edward Stourton on the BBC's Sunday programme

"Interesting" items for auction, please

A new feature of this year's Church Bazaar on 22 November will be an auction. We need some "interesting" items for auctioneer Manfred Struck to put under the hammer. If you have something "antique" or "collectable" that you would like to donate, please let Father Matthew know.

Choral evensong with the Anglican Consort

STB's new chamber choir, the Anglican Consort, will be singing choral evensong in the church on 11 September at 7pm. Music director Yotin Tiewtrakul says: "The Anglican Consort will sing pieces by Henry and Daniel Purcell. Father Matthew Jones, chaplain of our 400-year-old Hamburg parish, will conduct this distinctive Anglican service where beauty meets spirituality." You can find details of the music on STB's Facebook page.

Next church recording meeting

You are invited to the second Church Recording meeting at St Thomas Becket on Tuesday 9 September at 6 pm. The meeting, to discuss next steps, will take about an hour.

Pat Pledger of BRIDFAS, who is coordinating the project, reports that the person in charge of church recording for NADFAS in London (the head office of the Decorative and Fine Arts Societies) will come to Hamburg later in the year to provide some training, take the group around the church and point out details and aspects that should be considered.

Pat will also be bringing some Church Recording Manuals to the meeting. She says, "please think about giving this project your support and come along to our meeting anyway to see what it is all about - there are no strings attached". For more information, click on the BRIDFAS logo on the right of this page or visit the BRIDFAS website.

Flea market premiere a success

St Thomas Becket's first ever flea market was a great success, coming in over budget at more than €1200. Well done to Deb Zeni for organising it and to everyone else who helped make it happen.

Please support our flea market

Our summer flea market takes place next Saturday, 16 August, 9am - 4pm. Please come and help in any way you can. We need people early to put out tables and carry the goods. We need sellers and people to give fliers to passing people on the footpaths.
Most importantly, please come and buy!

Come and support STB at British Flair on Sunday

British Flair is taking place this weekend, 9 and 10 August at the Hamburger Polo Club (Jenischstraße 26, 22609 Hamburg), with plenty of fun for all the family. The Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket is performing a musical comedy routine on Sunday at 3pm on the Small Stage. Please come and support Matthew, Yotin and the rest of the team and help raise money for this year's British Flair charity, the Förderverein für Stadtteilarbeit in St. Pauli Süd e.V. The easiest way to get there is by S-Bahn to Klein Flottbek (Botanischer Garten). See the British Flair website for more information.

Shady stroll this Saturday

In view of the heat, the Church Wanderers are proposing to stroll gently under the trees in Ohlsdorf Cemetery on Saturday 9 August, meeting at the main gate at 10.15 am. If you want to join in, please let Cicely know as soon as possible: cicely-hollingsworth (at) t-online.de, tel: 040/86 07 90, mobile: 0162 635 93 98.

Like poking around in corners?

Can't resist a mystery? Good at photography or making lists? Then the BRIDFAS church recording team would love to hear from you. BRIDFAS is working with us to compile a church record of the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket, known to many as the Englische Kirche. The project is still in its early stages, but there will soon be plenty of practical help needed, such as compiling records of silver, wall plaques and memorials, and textiles. You don't need to be a BRIDFAS member or part of the church to get involved; everyone's welcome. To find out more, click on the BRIDFAS logo on the right of this page or visit the BRIDFAS website.

No Worship@17:00 this Sunday

The Contemporary Worship Service "Worship@17:00" planned for 20 July will not take place.

Synod says yes to women bishops

The Church of England's General Synod has voted in favour of women bishops. The vote on the measure was carried by the required two-thirds majority in all three houses: Bishops, Clergy and Laity.

You can read how the houses voted, the reactions of Archbishops Justin Welby and John Sentamu and what happens next on the Church of England website.

Synod vote today on women bishops

The General Synod of the Church of England is currently meeting in York. Synod is due to vote today (14 July) on legislation to admit women to the episcopate. A livestream of the Synod meeting can be found on the Church of England website.

Read all about it!

The summer edition of Becket News is out, a bumper edition packed with news. Pick up your copy in church or read it here.

Bishop-designate builds his team

Bishop-designate Canon Robert Innes has appointed Ian White, an EU regional funding specialist, and David Fieldsend, an EU representation expert, to join the Bishop’s Office team in Brussels to strengthen links with the European Institutions. You can read more about the appointments on the Diocese in Europe website. Canon Robert will be consecrated on 20 July in Canterbury Cathedral and formally welcomed as the new Diocesan Bishop in Europe on 4 September in the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Gibraltar.

Church Wanderers picnic in Stadtpark

It has become a tradition for the Church Wanderers to share a picnic lunch in the Stadtpark in July, and this year you are invited to come along on Saturday, 12 July to the exit from the U-Bahn station Sierichstrasse at 11.00am. Please come equipped with something on which to sit, food and drink to share and happy smiling faces. Eileen Liebender will be in charge, but there is no need to tell her whether you are coming. Just turn up.

Calling all writers

Your Becket News editor writes: We are already into June and it's time again to think of Becket News, as the next issue is due at the end of this month. What's planned for the next quarter? How are activities and groups progressing? Do you want to promote/share/just let people know what goes on?

PLEASE send your articles, event news, reports on activities and information by Saturday June 21 at the latest to becketnews [at] aol.com.

You can e-mail as early as you like, the earlier the better to organise the content and layout. Photos are great, and a few words to go with them even better. In any case, please let the editor know if you will be submitting anything so space can be planned.

European Anglican available online

Not in church to pick up your copy of European Anglican? You can read it online and download it from the Diocese in Europe website. The current issue features an interview with our new bishop, a focus on church music and lots of news and views from around the diocese.

Wanderers off to Ratzeburg

Stuart Cooke has kindly planned the Church Wanderers' next outing to Ratzeburg this Saturday, 14 June.

Meet outside the Reisezentrum at Hamburg Hbf at 10.15 to catch the 10.27 R20 train towards Rostock. Get off at 10.58 in Büchen and change onto the R21 (direction Lübeck) dep.11.10. Arrival time in Ratzeburg 11.29. From the station, take a bus towards the city centre, alighting at Lüneburger Damm where there is a choice of a longer or shorter walk.

The longer route (10 kms) goes around the Großer Küchen See with a stop for a picnic lunch by the Fachauer Mühle and ends up at the cathedral, where there is a new café, the Bischof's Herberge, for K. u. K.

The shorter walk (with the possibility of a boat trip and/or a stroll through the city centre) follows a lakeside path and also ends up at the cathedral. Please bring a picnic lunch and be prepared for some light rain showers.

Important
The journey is part of the HVV network, so if you have a season ticket, please make a point of finding out whether your particular ticket is valid for the Gesamtbereich at weekends or not and whether you can take another person for free. Please let Cicely know by 6pm on Thursday 12 June if you plan to come, including what ticket you have, if any: cicely-hollingsworth (at) t-online.de, tel: 040/86 07 90, mobile: 0162 635 93 98.

Summer Flea Market - donations welcome

STB needs items to sell at the Summer Flea Market at church on 16 August. We welcome donations of furnishings, household goods, games, porcelain, you name it. No fleas, please. Please bring things to church on Sunday or ring to arrange a time to drop them off.

Prayer is theme of parish retreat

Father Matthew is arranging a parish retreat at Ansverus Haus in Aumühle on 19-21 June on the theme of prayer. The cost per person is EUR 112. Please add your name to the list by the church door if you would like to attend or speak to Fr Matthew.

First church recording meeting, 15 May

A first meeting on the planned Church Recording Project will be held in the church on Thursday 15 May, 2014 at 6pm - all welcome. In this joint project between BRIDFAS Hamburg and the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket, groups will work together on different areas of the church, such as metalwork, stonework, textiles, paintings, windows, library, compiling and photography. We need as many hands as possible, including people who can offer some sort of expertise in these areas. Participants will be able to offer as little or as much work or help as they wish and the recorders will be a mix of those from within BRIDFAS and the church community, as well as anyone outside who wants to get involved. For further information, see the BRIDFAS website.

Hafengeburtstag this weekend

Don't forget it's the Hafengeburtstag this weekend, 9-11 May. The roads will be busy and parking near the church will be scarce. Maybe it's yet another Sunday when public transport would be better.

No walk tomorrow

The Church Wanderers' walk for tomorrow, 10 May 2014, has been cancelled.

New Bishop announced

The next Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe will be the Reverend Canon Dr Robert Innes, currently Senior Chaplain and Chancellor of the Pro-Cathedral of Holy Trinity Brussels. For details see the Diocese in Europe website. You can find an interview with the new Bishop by Diocesan Communications Officer Paul Needle here.

Choral evensong this Thursday

Our very own St Thomas Becket Consort is singing choral evensong on Thursday, 8 May at 7pm. All the music is from the great Tudor period of English choral composition, with the introit by Tallis, the canticles by Gibbons and the anthem by Byrd. You can find more information on STB's Facebook page.

Hamburg Marathon: leave your car at home

On Sunday 4 May it's the Hamburg Marathon. There will be no vehicle access to St Thomas Becket, as we're within the marathon route. Please leave your car at home and come by public transport instead. Leave yourself plenty of time, too, because the trains and pavements will be full.

Wanderers off to Dithmarschen

On Saturday, 12 April, the Wanderers will be off for a walk in Burg (Dithmarschen), led by Eileen Liebender. The 10/12km route leads through lovely countryside and then along the towpath of the Kiel canal.

Walkers should meet at 9.10am at Altona main station, outside the Reisezentrum, to buy sufficient Schleswig-Holstein Tickets for those taking part. You will be catching the 9.33 NOB train arriving at Itzehoe at 10.21 where you will change on to the RB train leaving for Burg at 10.47.and arriving at 11.06. Eileen will meet the train.

Please bring a picnic for lunch, but the aim is to to go for K u. K. at the "Hacienda" (set price - eat as much as you like, even if it is still Lent!) before returning to the station for the train home.

Eileen doesn't need to know how many are coming, but if you have any questions please call her on 04825/1855.

Attacca la musica!

Music by Vivaldi and Handel and a premiere of five songs by Katja Krüger are on the programme at St Thomas Becket on Saturday, 12 April at 5pm. The "Sicilian programme" will be performed by Claudio Branca and Jana Lubach, violin, Hjördis Krüger, soprano and Emré and Yunus Simsek, Saz, with the Inselfinken and Sonntagsorchester conducted by Susanne Schott. Admission is free but donations are welcome. For more information see Musikinsel Finkenwerder or telephone 040/ 679 535 05.

Hot off the press

The new edition of Becket News is out. Click here for the latest news and views from STB.

Mark Lyndon charity appearance

Actor Mark Lyndon will be giving a charity performance in the church of his popular one-man show "How to be a Hamburger" on 20 March 2014 at 7.30pm. Admission is free, but donations in aid of the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket and Hamburger Leuchtfeuer Hospiz are very welcome. Miss it if you dare!

Copy deadline for Becket News

The next edition of Becket News is due at the end of March.

The editor would appreciate articles, event news, reports on activities and other information for inclusion by Saturday 22 March at the latest. Please send to becketnews (at) aol.com.

Wandering along the Elbe

This coming Saturday, 8 March, Nicki and Johann Schiller will lead the Church Wanderers on a walk along the Elbe from Schnackenbek to Lauenburg with its historic town centre.

Please meet at the 8800 bus stop outside Bergedorf station to catch the 10.45 bus (direction Lauenburg), alighting at Schnackenburg. Those coming by train from Hamburg, please note that the S21 dep.10.04 from Hbf arrives Bergedorf 10.25, or the 10.14 arriving 10.35 should also enable you to catch the bus. Allow plenty of time, as the next possible bus would be Schnellbus 31 at 11.24.

Tickets to Schnackenbek and Lauenburg are in the HVV Gesamtbereich. If you have a season ticket for Grossbereich only, you will need an "Ergänzungskarte für 2 Ringe", costing €2 one way, available on the bus or on the internet. Others should buy a Tageskarte for Gesamtbereich, unless you are driving by car to Bergedorf, of course.

Please bring a picnic lunch and come with smiling faces, even if the sun is not shining.

Important Please let Nicki know by the evening of Friday, 7 March if you are planning to come. If you have any questions, please contact her:
email: nicki.schiller@gmx.de Tel: 04104/69 55 37
A call or text message to 0176 30 393 063 will reach her for any last-minute messages on the day of the walk.

Lent looms

It's Ash Wednesday on 5 March. There will be two services of Holy Communion and Imposition of Ashes: at 10.30am and 7pm.

If you've signed up for the Lenten study course, don't forget that the first session is on Wednesday, 12 March at 7pm in Fr Matthew's flat. The group will be looking at the film "Chocolat" and using the study guide "Christ and the Chocolaterie". Please speak to Fr Matthew if you haven't put your name down but would still like to attend.

Lent Appeal
We will be collecting during Lent for the Bishop's Lent Appeal. This year's appeal is in partnership with Christian Aid for money to support the education and empowerment of over 1,000 women in Afghanistan. Read more on the Diocese in Europe website.

Rachel Harris solo at STB

Servicegoers yesterday (23 Feb) got a sneak preview of Rachel Harris's coming concert when she provided solo violin meditations during the parish eucharist. She will be playing works by J.S.Bach, Telemann and Pisendel in a programme entitled "à Violino Solo" on Saturday 1 March at 7.30pm in the Anglican Church of St Thomas Becket - admission free. We're in for a treat!

Singers sought for Stainer's Crucifixion

Would like to join the parish choir to sing The Crucifixion by John Stainer on 10 April? If so, our choir director, Yotin Tiewtrakul would like to hear from you. You can find details of the project, rehearsals, and how to reach Yotin here.

General Synod paves way for women bishops

The General Synod of the Church of England has voted to pave the way for the legislative process to enable women to become bishops to be completed this year. The legislation now goes to the dioceses for approval. An audio interview about the latest approval of legislation with the Bishop of Rochester, James Langstaff, who chairs the steering committee on the issue, is available here.

50th St Ansgar Vespers

The 50th Ecumenical St Ansgar Vespers take place on Monday, 3 February at 7pm in the Hauptkirche St. Petri. Organised by the ACKH (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Christlicher Kirchen Hamburg), of which STB is a member, the service honours Ansgar, the first Bishop of Hamburg, and gives thanks for the bringing of the Gospel to this city. Further details on the ACKH website.

Aound the Alster with the Wanderers

The Church Wanderers will be going once round the Außenalster on Saturday, 8 February, a short walk (7km) so as to be back in time for the Altobasso concert in the evening. Meet at Dammtor station by the exit facing the bus stops at 11 am and bring a packed lunch, though a visit to Bobby Reich for a bowl of soup may be tempting as well.

Please let Cicely know by midday on Friday, 7 February if you are planning to come: cicely-hollingsworth (at) t-online.de, tel: 040/86 07 90, mobile:0172 635 93 98.

Time machine in the cathedral close

BRIDFAS (The British Decorative and Fine Arts Society of Hamburg e.V.) welcomes guests to a lecture by Jon Cannon on English medieval cathedrals on Thursday, 20 February.

Entitled "A Thousand Years of History: Medieval Cathedrals", the lecture uses the English cathedrals as "time machines" to the medieval period, tracing their story from the revolutionary birth of English Christianity in about 600AD, through the great rebuilding that followed the Conquest of 1066, to the decades around a century later when gothic was invented in an atmosphere of febrile change and political tension. See full details on the BRIDFAS website.

Venue is the DESY Hörsaal (Notkestrasse 85, 22607 Hamburg). Doors open at 7.30pm and the lecture begins at 8pm. Guests pay an entrance fee of €12 (students €5).

BRIDFAS is planning to start a Church Record for our church. This will be a joint project with volunteers from within the church community and members of BRIDFAS. If you're interested in getting involved, you can find out more by clicking on the logo on the right of the page or following this link.

New Pause for Thought

With barely six months to go till the Commonwealth Games open in Glasgow, Pause for Thought focuses on running to win. Click on "Pause for Thought" on the left of the page or follow this link.

Come into my garden - Music of love with Ensemble Altobasso

Traditionally the poetry of the 'Song of Songs' has been interpreted as expressions of the relationship between Israel and God or the soul and God. But why not discover it again as erotic poems similar to the Arcadian poetry of the Greco-Roman world? Ensemble Altobasso (Ralf Grobe - Bass, Elisabeth Schwanda - Recorder, Katrin Krauß - Recorder, Barbara Hofmann - Viol and Isolde Kittel-Zerer - Harpsichord) will be doing just that on Saturday, 8th February 2014 at 7pm in the church, performing music by Monteverdi, Buxtehude, Bach and others, including the premiere of a composition by Hans-Dieter Renken. Admission costs €18 (concessions €15).

Becket news hot off the press

Issue 57 of Becket News is out now. Click on the link to catch up with the latest news, reports and previews.

Becket News needs roving reporters
Your Becket News editor does a fantastic job of putting together each edition, finding photos and laying out the text. However, an editor's job is to edit, not write all the original material! There are many exciting things going on at STB of interest to BN readers, many of whom are not resident in Hamburg or can’t come to church as much as they would like. But readers can only find out what is going on if someone writes about it. This is an appeal to anyone who is responsible for an activity or feels they have something interesting to say to provide short articles for BN. A good tip is to do this immediately the event has taken place and not wait until the copy deadline – it really does help to reduce the workload of the editor and make the job more fun if he doesn’t have to keep chasing people at the last minute.

And while we're on the subject, your webmaster also would like to issue a plea to remember to send announcements of events for her to include on the website. The ideal is a short text with essential details and, if required, further information provided either as a PDF or link. Many people coming to STB for the first time say they are encouraged to do so by the ‘up-to-date’ website: the website is often the very first contact someone has with our church community, and it includes the latest edition of BN. But like the editor of BN, the webmaster’s role is to disseminate information, not to be the producer of it all.

Wandering and lunching on 11 January

The Church Wanderers' first walk of 2014 combined with a New Year's lunch at the Gasthof 'zum Falkenstein' will be on Saturday, 11 January.

Meeting point is Othmarschen station - exit Statthalter Platz - to catch the 286 bus to Blankenese departing at 10.52. If coming from town, you need to catch the S1 arr. Othmarschen at 10.47 (dep. Hbf 10.29, Stadthausbrücke 10.33 and Altona 10.41) and get off at the back of the train.

The exact route for the walk before lunch will be decided on the day. Those wanting to walk off their lunch afterwards can head through the woods to Blankenese, Sülldorf or Rissen. Others can catch the 286 back to Blankenese. Please note that there will be a replacement bus service between Blankenese and Othmarschen due to engineering works on the S1.

Please e-mail Cicely by Thursday, 9 January if you plan to come: cicely-hollingsworth (at) t-online.de.

Becket News deadline today!

A reminder that today (2 January) is the deadline for contributions to the next edition of Becket News. Please send to becketnews (at) aol.com.

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