BEVERLEY MINSTER MAGAZINE · 2014-05-29 · it was ‘Vocations Sunday’. As a bishop, 1300 years ago, John was noted for helping people hear God’s call on their lives, and nurturing

BEVERLEY M INSTERMAGAZINE

The Parish Magazine of Beverley Minster, All Saints’ Routh, St Paul’s Tickton, St Leonard’s Molescroft and St Peter’s Woodmansey

J U N E 2 0 1 4 | £ 1 . 0 0

SAUL REFLECTS ON HIS VISIT TO THE WW1 BATTLEFIELDS

EDITORIAL

B e v e r l e y M i n s t e r M a g a z i n e / 2

THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

Welcome to the JUNE edition of the Minster Magazine. The cover photo is of Saul Phillipson, a choir member, who writes about his visit to the WW1 battlefields.

Contributors this month are: Sally George, Emily Hoe,Jeremy Fletcher, Marjorie Neaum, Robert Poyser,Fiona Mayer-Jones, Saul Phillipson,Steve Rial and Paul Hawkins.

Contributions for future editions to:

[email protected]

the editorial team

C H O I R T O U RWhat think ye of Christ?

In a little Gospel Hall in Scotland, these words are highlighted in banner form above the preacher’s platform. You cannot avoid seeing them and they stick in your memory! They ask a question that is fundamental to everyone’s future in the hereafter.Read John 3 v 16; for the answer that “God so loved the World...”Think about and pray about the words and then answer the question from the heart!On the 19th July this year I will celebrate 52 years since I answered that question and accepted Jesus as my Saviour. YOU CAN TOO by answering the question from the heart!What think ye of Christ!

Robert Edwards

You may have noticed that the choir has

been quite an active organisation of late

doing things not normally associated

with a group whose primary purpose

is to sing. We have been busy raising

money with a quiz night, extra concerts

and Bank Holiday catering featuring an

extraordinary array of amazing cakes

supplied by the choir.

We have a plan! In October half term

this year we plan to go on tour – a first

for the Minster Choir. Rather than three

weeks in the Maldives as first suggested

we are going singing in the West Country.

We start at a small church behind

Gloucester Cathedral, ‘St Mary de Lode’

noted for its 12th century East End and

Roman mosaics underneath, and then go

on to sing the Sunday services at Bristol

Cathedral. On our journey home, we

return to Gloucester to sing evensong at

the Cathedral there.

Choir tours are a great way for the choir

to get to know each other better and

also a unique opportunity for us to act

as ambassadors for Beverley Minster in

far flung places. Do look out for further

events connected with our tour happening

over the next few months.

Robert Poyser

Fiona is anointed by Archbishop John Sentamu at her Institution and Induction as the Vicar of the Benefice of Northallerton with Kirkby Sigston in All Saints’ Church, Northallerton on Sunday 18 May. She was supported by a large group from the Minster.


T H E V I C A R ’ S P A G E J e remy F le t cher

May was an incredibly full month for the Minster parish. If I needed any more convincing that our mission and ministry is varied, exciting and challenging, then just a few days in the last few weeks would prove it.

The centrepiece was our celebration of St John of Beverley. His day is May 7, and we celebrate him on the Sunday following. As it happened, our Archdeacon, David, had asked to hold his Deanery Visitation (for the admission of Churchwardens) on that day, and we wished David well as he prepares for his new ministry based in York. On May 8 we made our annual trip to Harpham, John’s reputed birthplace, and sang at his well.

On May 11 we welcomed the Archdeacon of York, the Venerable Sarah Bullock to the Minster as our preacher in the morning, and the Very Reverend Michael Sadgrove, Dean of Durham, in the evening, for the ‘county’ John of Beverley service. Sarah and Michael adopted different styles for their sermons (as can be seen from my two pictures) , but both challenged us to follow the example and call of St John.

Sarah reminded us that in the wider church it was ‘Vocations Sunday’. As a bishop, 1300 years ago, John was noted for helping people hear God’s call on their lives, and nurturing them in ministry. Not least among these was Bede, who then wrote the history of the English church, in a way which has encouraged people ever since to know more of the love of God. Michael noted this, and asked us to work out how we could follow John’s example in reaching out to people ‘on the edge’, especially those in need of healing. I’m glad that Michael wants to include St John in Durham Cathedral’s calendar: a proper inclusion of a great northern saint.

I had that challenge much in my mind when we welcomed Bishop Nick and Catherine Drayson back to Beverley. Nick and Catherine’s work in northern Argentina might well have been familiar to John: much travel, isolated communities, turbulent social situations, and bringing the gospel to communities sometimes for the first time. Our hog roast was a wonderful gathering, and Nick and Catherine

challenged us to work out how we too might reach ‘up’ to God, ‘in’ within the church, and ‘out’ to our community. We also heard how Nick needed a new vehicle, and people gave generously on the night.

I’m not sure that the ‘truck’ Nick would have in mind is the kind which brought a bride to church on May weekend. This was no gimmick: she drives one like this for a living! But it was a great source of interest, especially for the many who were enjoying our monthly ‘Shoppers’ Lunch’. May sees the wedding season into full swing, and we await new modes of transport through the summer.

We also said farewell to Fiona, our curate, and many of us went to Northallerton to make sure they look after her there. June will be busy too. Look out for Fiona’s successor, Gareth Atha, who will be joining us at the end of the month. There is more to come…

Jeremy


In the quiet of St Katharine’s chapel, James talked to me about his music and his faith, as he prepares for his final exams and the next stage of his life. How was he feeling? It’s been a brilliant

experience, exhilarating, although on a very steep learning curve. The glorious Minster – it definitely has the ‘wow’ factor and despite its size and grandeur, it’s a welcoming church. People have been exceptionally warm and friendly. How did he become interested in organ-playing? He said he more or less fell into the position of organist when he was 14, as there was no-one else at the time, playing for services every Saturday night and 3 times on Sundays at his church, Holy Souls’ Roman Catholic Church, Scunthorpe. Very soon after starting, his biggest moment came with playing for the Christmas Vigil, which was the most important event of the year. He had started learning the piano only 2 years before, at 12, without any lessons, although he did read music easily due to playing the clarinet and having sung since the age of 5. James said he was fortunate to “fall across” an excellent organ-teacher, Alan Phillips, the organist at Messingham, North Lincolnshire, who was an inspiration to him and helped him master his keyboard and improvisation skills.Why was music so important to him? His friendship group were all into various musical activities, particularly the choir, the Scunthorpe Co-operative Junior and Upper Choir which helped develop the youngsters’ musical abilities. The choirs performed all over the UK and at one Proms season and abroad, memorably to St Mark’s Venice and Notre Dame in Paris. Music has never been a slog, James said, because it’s pleasure, work and faith combined: in this he feels very blessed.Are his family musical? Not at all, but they have always been supportive. Only his grandmother used to play the piano. His three siblings are all sports mad and he used to be a very keen badminton player himself. He’s sad that there has been no time for sports since starting his degree at Hull University.How did he become an organ scholar? He simply saw an advertisement, thought it would

be a great thing to do, applied, was interviewed by staff of the music department and by Robert in the Minster, (he was blown away by its beauty and by the size of the organ - he had never seen so many stops!). It was a very long day, he remembers, but one which set him firmly on his future path. The scholarship provided a grant which has helped to pay for lessons and travel. It’s been invaluable.How has working in an Anglican church been for him, a Catholic? For him, spirituality and faith are extremely important and have been since he can remember. He even thought once of becoming a priest, but now sees his calling to teach, use his music and become part of the church community, wherever he is. It has been a most interesting and educational experience; he has seen that there are no real divisions between the denominations and he feels his understanding of faith has broadened considerably. Best, most memorable time? When the choir performed Langlais’ Messe Solennelle at Candlemas for the first time, the service had such a presence. He remembers finishing the Gloria right at the end of the service and gazing round at the choir who were all beaming, It was a huge achievement to pull off such a complex and moving work!Funniest moments? The funniest moments have been extensive! Robert makes the work at the Minster both exciting and hilarious, obviously being serious at times also. One particularly funny incident he recalled was during rehearsal one evensong when he was up in the loft accompanying the choir for the anthem. The piece was supposed to finish in a calm and quiet fashion, so he decided to use the quiet 32’ pedal stop to add a deep rumble, ending the piece in a dignified way. However, as James put it, ”to operate this stop when your hands are busy you need push a toe piston with a spare foot. Grappling away trying to find this toe piston without looking down I accidentally hit the 32’ reed, giving the very opposite effect. The choir and Robert received a huge awakening! Robert then shouted up to the loft ‘Try the other one!’ - in my defence they were very close together!”Scariest time? He was in his first year and not used to locking up the minster and setting the alarm. Practising till late at night by himself was fairly daunting and looking down from the loft at a pitch black nave did not fill him with confidence!

What next? As soon as he completes his BMus he will head back to near Scunthorpe, to teach music at Winterton Academy under the School Centred Initial Teacher Training scheme (SCITT). He is looking forward to it immensely as he’ll be joining a very strong music department, taking lessons 4 days and studying for 1 day a week. “I’m not going for good,” James said,” I’m continuing my organ lessons with Robert and singing with the Minster choir when I can and definitely going on the choir tour in October.” He hopes to see more of girlfriend Lynsey, a musician also, who will be starting her first teaching job nearby in North Lincs. They’ve known each other 4 years and she’s a constant support to him.James finished on a high note, well, on many notes in fact, as he gave his first Minster organ recital on May 17th. How did he feel about this? It was nerve-racking, but exciting. For your future, James, we wish you every success and happiness.

MN

…… and a note from his tutor at the Minster, Robert Poyser…...James, our organ scholar, is leaving us at the end of May after three years. His organ scholarship at the Minster combines with duties at Hull University which have included directing the Chapel Choir and coordinating the music for Founders Day services, evensongs and carol services. James leaves us to pursue a career in music teaching, starting with a graduate placement at Winterton school. Beverley Minster has benefited over the years from many fine organ scholars who have contributed much to its musical life and James is the latest in this line. We have enjoyed some splendid and sensitive liturgical playing from James. He has also regularly sung counter-tenor in the choir, helped out with choir practices and conducted the choir in services. His all-round musical contribution has been enhanced by his friendly, mature and relaxed manner which has made him a popular and vital member of our music team. I am sure that his dedication to sacred music will flourish throughout his career and that he will be an inspiring teacher of many future musicians. Thank you for all you have done for us James and best wishes for the future.

A SCHOLARSHIP APPRECIATED

J A M E S L O N G D E N M O V E S O N


For the past 2 years or so, Steve Rial has been greeted as he dismounted from his bike at the entrance to the tenfoot opposite Beverley Minster by a very friendly cat, who has padded behind him into the office, miaowed for biscuits, then, purring contentedly, settled itself comfortably on Steve’s lap, until he had to start working. At the end of the day, the cat would be waiting at the foot of the steps or ladder Steve had gone up, miaowing again, weaving in and out of his legs until some more food and another cuddle was forthcoming. Steve is the senior of 2 ecclesiastical craftsmen (Paul Hawkins is the other), whose job is to maintain and repair the fabric of the building, inside and out. Understandably, it’s full-time and full-on. They are employed by the Minster Old Fund, although there was no mention of cat care in their job description.

Steve confessed to me that he was never a cat lover, always preferring dogs, but he was bowled over by his adopted friend, a truly lovable, gentle creature, who he thinks is a female: a beautiful silvery-blue shorthair with amber eyes (possibly a Russian blue as the tail is faintly ringed). He called her Cat. Cat had been hungry and seemed lonely when Steve first met her. He wondered whether her owner had been hospitalised or taken into a home. After a time, he worried what happened to her at weekends, but found out to his relief that 2 families feed and water her, and she is as loving and grateful to them all. During the week, she stayed loyal and devoted to Steve. And then when stonemason Andy Gomershall arrived to start carving the new pinnacle, she quickly added him to her entourage. Having carried out her usual early morning routine with Steve, Cat repeated it with Andy, with

much miaowing, more biscuits, then curling up to sleep alongside the mason anywhere she could find in the yard. Andy promptly named her Dusty as her shiny fur dulled with the dust of the Tadcaster limestone he was fashioning. He found her the friendliest cat he had ever known. She spent her days peacefully, not bothered by the noise, comfortably installed, her presence comforting.

As Andy completed the pinnacle, he had to decide what he would carve for each ofthe four grotesques at the corners of the hoodstone. He gained inspiration for one in his new-found friend (quite aware she was at least two-timing him).Thus is Dusty (alias Cat) now immortalised in masonry, in the act of catching a blue tit (Andy had seen her going for the wildlife around the workshop). She is in good company, with a bagpipe playing beaver on another corner. The fabulously crafted new pinnacle will be placed in position toward the middle of May and Dusty (alias Cat) will gaze down on Minster worshippers, visitors and townspeople as they go about their business for hundreds of years to come.

Steve told me that he and Andy had really missed Dustyrecently when she had not been

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C A T ’ S H I G H R I S E T O P O S T E R I T Yaround much and looked quite poorly, but she sprang back to full health again with their TLC and nourishing biscuits and so she should be present for the ceremony to raise the new stonework, no doubt offering pawprints by way of autographs.

MN


A R E F L E C T I O N

My name is Saul, I’m fifteen years old and I’m a member of the choir at the Minster. I’m studying history for my GCSE and it is for this reason that I joined a school visit to the First World War battlefields in early April this year. And so it was on the 9th of April at 7.30am we boarded our coach down to Dover from which we crossed the channel into mainland Europe. Then we travelled by coach and eventually arrived in the town of Diksmuide where we were to stay for the next three nights at the Hotel Pax. From here over the next couple of days, we would visit the battlegrounds and cemeteries around both Ypres and the Somme.

Ypres was our first destination. So on the morning of the 10th after a sumptuous breakfast of cold meats, cheeses and croissants, we boarded the coach and after a relatively short journey arrived in the town of Ypres itself. Our first port of call was the In Flanders Fields Museum or as it was formerly known, the Cloth Hall: that is before its total destruction during the 1914-18 conflict. The building that stands on the present spot is a complete replica, paid for by the war reparations imposed on Germany due to the Treaty of Versailles. The current building is now a major tourist attraction and

I don’t mind telling you it is enthralling and thought-provoking as the displays replicated the whole of the western front; its tactics, underlying politics and the daily lives of the men and women who conducted this war. But that wasn’t it, afterwards we continued to three cemeteries: Tyne Cot, Essex Farm and Langemark Cemeteries. Tyne cot is a British colonial cemetery. A vast majority would agree that this sheer number of graves would have a profound effect upon anyone. I do not recollect the exact number of graves but I’m relatively sure that it was in excess of ten thousand. The next cemetery we visited was the Essex Farm cemetery which is situated right next to what was a field hospital. However this was not the most remarkable thing about this site, it was that the youngest body on the site was of a fifteen year old boy who could have been myself only a century earlier. This coupled with the dank and claustrophobic operating rooms was enough to make one shudder at the thought of the horrors of war. Last but not least we come to the Langemark Cemetery. This is perhaps the saddest of all the memorials I saw for it is a German cemetery. Each of the headstones accounts for six German heads and they all lie face down to show Germany’s defeat. However the true horror of that cemetery is that it contains the bones up upwards of forty five thousand men. The headstones alone accounted for twenty

thousand and arguably the worst part is a massive grave concealed in the centre of the cemetery containing the bones of twenty-five thousand German soldiers; (one of the pictures shows a life size model of the grave on the surface).

However, our tour guides hadn’t finished with us yet. We were then packed back onto our coach and whisked away to Hill 62 reconstruction. Now the curious thing about Hill 62 is that after the war, the family of the Frenchman who owned that piece of land decided to leave it as it was, trenches and all and keep it as a museum. The fun part is that you can still walk around the trenches which are surprisingly shallow due no doubt to the small stature of the men at that time and to them slowly filling with mud. After this rather muddy excursion we were driven back into Ypres where we attended the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate. The sound of the bugle trio sent a shiver down my spine as I am confident to say it did for everyone there. Curiously haunting, its sound reverberated within the pale arch of chiselled stone, bouncing off the endless names chiselled into that self-same rock. Standing silent with the huge crowd, as a babe squalled and was rushed away, I scanned the walls for names; relatives, friends’ relatives, anything. The truly humbling thing was the origins of the names:

BATTLEFIELD

V I S I T 2 0 1 4


K.A.R (King’s African Rifles), Gurkhas (Nepal). From far and wide came the soldiers to fight in the conflict known as The Great War. And so it was after the ceremony with heavy hearts we clambered wearily back upon the coach and arrived back at the hotel where we fell into bed and did not stir till the next morning.

On our final day of exploration in Europe, we were to visit the Somme. After a good two hours of coach journey, we arrived at the Vimy Ridge memorial site where there was also another trench reconstruction and some trench tunnels. Sadly we did not enter the tunnels but we had a bit of a wander through the spartan trenches, after which we walked up to the memorial itself. The route to the memorial itself however, was not as simple as it first seemed, for the road was cordoned off, for to either side were sparsely wooded areas with pines. Yet that wasn’t the strangest thing: the strangest was that the ground upon which they grew was covered in small hillocks and valleys, which we realised later when we saw the sign, were shell holes with “…unexploded ordinance..” hidden within. When we eventually navigated the lines of cordons we saw the memorial. I have to say it took my breath away. As this was a monument to the four Canadian divisions who fought in the war, we were taken around the memorial and were lectured to by a group of Canadian

students, after which we had a brief look ourselves. Again and again on this trip I was astounded by just the sheer number of names chiselled into the rock of the memorial. After this we then took a group photo and then off we went again. Thiepval Memorial and the Lochnagar Crater were to be our next stops. Thiepval was no exception, another great stone monument to human loss. Great slabs of stone hoisted into the shape of a great arch, adding to the effect of being insignificant in comparison to the thousands of men, whose names were chiselled in neat rows onto the limestone. We admired the arch then walked to the museum that accompanied the monument, after which we were shifted off again to the Lochnagar crater. This was just a scar upon the landscape. A great hole the size of a large house measuring 91 metres in diameter (300 feet) and 21 metres deep (70 feet). This huge hole was caused by 60,000 lbs of ammonal on the 1st July 1916; the debris alone reached a height of 1,200 metres (4,000 feet). And so it was that we boarded the coach and returned back to our hotel, much leaden with thoughts of those courageous men and women, to a final meal, then to our beds for an early start in the morning; back to good old England.

On the journey back the next day I found myself with a great deal of time to contemplate

the meaning of all those memorials, and the deaths of so many people; be they German, French or English. I found, as most of my companions on the trip felt a complete and utter abhorrence of this senseless waste of life, but there was a bit more to it than that, for I found my mind not flooded by images of carnage and horror, but instead, one of peace. If those men who accepted the king’s shilling died so ignobly, then surely the best that I can do for those that fought in the field of Flanders, Ypres and the Somme almost 100 years to this day, is remember them. Not as the endless marching columns of figures, but as the men and women behind those names. However, on my part I’m just beyond words to say how honoured I am to have been able to stand on those fields upon which “the earth set

cups for their blood”. Once upon a time, I was told that there are fourteen dead people to every living person on this planet. That scared the hell out of me as a child, and it still does to this day. But we cannot be blinded by such numbers hanging round our necks. Men have said “ten deaths are a tragedy, but a hundred is

just a statistic…” So you ask what I took away with me from this trip, I say: humanity. We will remember them, “In Flanders fields the poppies blow…”

Text and photos by Saul Phillipson


T H E F I R S T A P O S T L E

John 20: 1-18

The Resurrection of Jesus as an event in itself was strictly between Jesus and God – there were no earthly witnesses. No one saw what happened in that tomb after Jesus had been laid inside and the cave sealed. There are witnesses to Jesus’ birth, to various of his miracles and to his teaching. People witnessed the Spirit of God descending upon him at this baptism, and his transfiguration – those moments of glory – and his death on the cross – a different kind of glory. But as for the resurrection itself – no one was there – no one saw it because they were all still in bed that morning, or in hiding. They were witnesses after the fact, which makes me wonder if the point we are to get is not the what or how of what happened, but the therefore, the ‘so what?’ of Easter. However it actually happened, Jesus’ ministry, through the resurrection, has been vindicated. Who Jesus was; what he stood for; it is these that are shown to be un-killable. God’s love for the world; God’s desire for justice, peace, and reconciliation; these are stronger than the worst the world can do. But these witnesses after the fact are our representatives - Peter and ‘the other disciple’ – and Mary most particularly. Mary is first to discover the tomb empty – and she runs to get the others – Peter and

his colleague – they take a look inside – it’s empty – and one of them at least, we are told, ‘believes’ as a result – even though they don’t understand – I find that heartening – that belief and faith can come before understanding – it’s okay to not have everything worked out. So these two see the tomb is empty, believe but don’t understand – and then they ‘return to their homes’. What? They just go home? No dashing to tell others or going to the authorities and making a fuss – one of our bodies is missing – perhaps this was just so beyond their ability to compute that they were in a sense stunned, a kind of shock, maybe. Well, thank goodness for Mary who, for whatever reason, hung around – - already the first at the empty tomb, now the first to meet the resurrected Jesus and shortly to be the first to tell others about it: the first apostle; the first to be sent; the first Easter preacher! Mary doesn’t recognise Jesus until he uses her name. He gives her a message to take to the others ‘say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God”.’ It is, in a nutshell, what he has been teaching them over the previous few days (see John chapter 13 onwards): we hear in what Jesus says to Mary now, echoes of what he said to

her and the others in his teaching at the last supper. He spoke about his need to go away in order that the Advocate will come; he told them – “I am going to the Father” – he said in effect – “I‘ve got to go, don’t hang on to me”. And now he reminds Mary of what he has already said, and she is to go and announce his resurrection and imminent ascension – which will mean the coming of the Holy Spirit. What is happening here is the ever-continuing movement of God forward. Easter doesn’t return Mary and the others to the past – it doesn’t make it “as if Jesus had never died” – it is a progressive action – just as Jesus says to Mary “I am ascending…” there is forward motion. We humans are people of time and place – all our experience is based on what has happened – future exists only in our imagination, which is also a product of our experience. And that can mean that the things we hope for can look remarkably like the way things used to be – if we are ill we might think back to a time when we weren’t and wish it was like that again; if a relationship is struggling we wish it could be like it used to be, once upon a time; we do it even as a society – somehow previous generations were always happier, or more community minded, or more respectful of others, than current. And to be sure – a previous state may well have been better than the present one but resurrection, the continuing ministry of Christ and movement of God, is about taking what


is and transforming it into something entirely new and previously unknown. Jesus isn’t into nostalgia, he isn’t into returning things to the way they were as being the best outcome. If you explore his earthly ministry, his teaching and healings were signs of that – he healed people, yes, but it was never just a ‘return to the way things were’ before they got sick – there was something more involved. That is why being one of God’s people can be risky and uncomfortable, because God is in the business, not of change, even for change’s sake, but of transformation and actual, never-before-seen newness. It is certainly not about what we think is best or even what we think is possible. Our hope as the people of God has to be based on a vision of the kingdom of God that is to come, not on some idealised version of what has already been, as we have experienced it. We need to separate hope from experience because at best it limits us and at worst it can totally debilitate us - does anyone else’s

thinking sometimes go along the lines of “well, tried that and it didn’t work – not going to do that or anything like it again”? We can get it as individuals and we can get it too in any community. But if Easter means anything, it means we can take risks as the risen Jesus ascends and sends us out and goes before us – if we can dare to let go of our ideas of what we think is best, because that is the past – dare to let go of the fears that the past has got us cornered into – that things won’t, can’t, don’t, work out - because they never do. I made an Easter Resolution as I was thinking about this sermon – I’m not going to tell you what it is – it’s not a big thing – but it’s something about which I’m inclined to think – “oh that will never change – it’s always going to be…” and as I was writing this sermon I thought – well maybe I should listen and act on my own urging. I can’t imagine how this something can be different but I don’t have to, and it’s probably better that I don’t try because God knows the past can hang on to us even as we hang on to it. But the resurrected Christ calls us out, ever

onward to more than we can think of or even imagine. So what might your Easter Resolution, your resurrection prayer, be? What is the thing for you about which you are inclined to think “I wish that was how it used to be” or about which you’ve given up hope of it being different or can no longer imagine a future for? What ever it is you are in the best possible place. God isn’t in the business of ‘back to normal’, or how things were. God comes to do a new, entirely different – beyond-our-imagining – thing. And without understanding, sometimes we are to have faith like Peter and his colleague and trust like Mary. So that not just today, but in days to come we can say together …. “Christ is risen – he is risen indeed. Alleluia”.

From a sermon given on

Easter Sunday morning by

Fiona Mayer-Jones in the Minster

N E W C H A I R S F O R T H E M I N S T E ROur chairs are reaching the end of their

life. The PCC has set up a working group

to make proposals for new seating.

Before we choose a design we need to

agree questions of portability, stackability,

comfort, ease of use in worship, and so on.

Please make any comments to members

of the working group: John Dell,

Maureen Kelham, Mervyn King,

Peter Mounstephen, Jeremy Fletcher.

You can email comments to Mervyn King:

[email protected]

If you have sat on some good chairs

elsewhere, let us know! Please make your

comments by Friday 6 June.

B e v e r l e y M i n s t e r M a g a z i n e / 1 0

F R O M T H E A R C H I V E SAs I wanted to see the last of the Spring bluebells we took a trip out on the first Bank Holiday Monday to the woods at Wauldby Scrogs, a good old Yorkshire name, in the shadow of Raywell Hall. We drove through Skidby and I noticed there was an event ‘Handmade Crafts and Vintage Fair.’ In 1930 most things were ‘hand made’ and in the Minster Magazine of that year this was reflected in the Diocesan competition entries by the Girls’ Friendly Society at York. Sixty-five of the Associates and Members of the Beverley Branch attended on Saturday, May 17th.

The successful members in the Minster parish were:-Embroidery: Chair back, 1st, A. Scoffin.

Needlework: Summer frock, 2nd, D. Leighton;

Princess Petticoat, highly commended, E. Gilson.

Leather work: Purse with divisions, 1st, O. Gibson;

Suede pochette (an envelope shaped handbag

used by women and men, C20: from French: little

pocket), 1st, M. Raines.

Cookery: Iced sandwich cake, highly commended, D.

Leighton; Treacle toffee, 2nd, D. Leighton.

The winning exhibits were sent to London to be finally judged with those from other dioceses.

Also in June 1930 the PCC appointed a committee to consider a memorial in the Minster to commemorate the late Canon Nolloth’s 41 years’ work as Vicar (1880-1921). A memorial tablet was decided upon and it was to be placed to the left of the organ screen, near to the door of the Quire through which he passed to go and take the services in the minster. To locate this and to take a photograph was easy from this description.

A memorial of a different kind was announced in the magazine of July 1930. A faculty was granted for two stained glass windows to be placed in the South Transept of the Minster, in memory of the late Mr. John Edward Champney, 1846-1929, (who gave the town its library). I located the window on the east side with the help of our Head Virger John Dell and took a photograph. Out of the Virger’s office he brought a very useful book called ‘The Windows of Beverley Minster’ researched and written by Stephen Pycock, Minster Songman 1996. It showed that the window on the extreme west side was in memory of Mrs. Margaret Champney.

The next magazine we have for the month

of June is 1939 (quite a gap with a few years’ worth of magazines missing). The Reverend L.J. Baggot starts his letter with ‘My dear People’ and announces that a new Curate has been found for the Minster in the person of the Rev. John Ralph Hardwick Moreland. ‘For the past three years he has been Lecturer at Watford Parish Church where he has gained exactly the kind of experience needed here.’ It was unfortunate that the new Curate could not be spared from his present church until the September of that year.

A new item in the Vicar’s letter was the Vicar’s ‘Question Box’. A mother with two young difficult children was asking for advice on wise parenthood, nothing advanced, just some simple rules. The reply came in the form of a recommendation of a little booklet entitled ‘The Difficult Child’ by Dr. Alice Hutchison and Brown’s of Hull would quickly procure a copy. Another recommendation was the Mothers’ Union Journal which would contain articles of first-rate value, so it was well worth being a member.

Text and photos by Sally George


M Y A CWhat a busy season!

Since the last MYAC magazine update we’ve had quite a few major events:

We welcomed an astonishing 150 people into the Parish Hall for our Gruffalo Family Day in April, and due to popular demand we’re running another on Saturday 12 July.

Messy Church was a success the day before Mothering Sunday. As you can see from the photos one key activity was footprint-painting, symbolising the many amazing people who have had an influence in our lives and whose footsteps we walk in.

24/3 was a special time for many folks but especially for the young people (some of whom were there for the duration!), when we explored the stations of the cross and thought about just what Jesus’ sacrifice means for us all personally.

Mini-Messy continues to hold its own every other Tuesday, with a growing vibrant team and a steady number between 20-30 each time (including choristers who come early to take part before choir practice starts!), and we

recently welcomed our youngest member – Emilia-Song who attended Mini-Messy several times in-utero, and put in her first personal appearance last week, born to Holly and Stefan four weeks earlier.

As a Youth and Children’s Team we are welcoming new members to the team (some of whom have grown up through the youth group and are ready to minister back into it), and we’re very excited about the new gifts and possibilities this opens up! There’s a Youth Team Weekend Away in a couple of weeks (just

following the next Youth Café on 6 June – I think we’ll all be ready for a break!) to a retreat centre in Pickering.

REaction schools event is fast approaching again for a three-day special from 16-18 June (prayers would be appreciated).

Cre:8 (Friday evening youth group) is continuing its evolutionary period, providing opportunity for young people to transition from the purely social Emmaus Wednesday evening youth club,

to exploring their faith and having chance to worship and develop as young disciples on a Sunday night at Damascus. Last week we had 5 new young people at Cre:8 who took part in Bible study and discussion – please do hold them in your prayers too.

There are too many good things to mention in one article (what a wonderful problem to have!) so please do come and speak to me or one of the Youth and Children’s Team to hear more about what’s happening. We’d love to chat with you!

Emily Hoe

ssS

Beverley Minster Parish Centre, 38 Highgate, Beverley, HU17 0DN Telephone: 01482 868540 Email: [email protected] Website: www.beverleyminster.org.uk

Beverley Minster Parish Magazine is published by Beverley Minster Parochial Church Council. Views expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the editorial team or the publishers. Copy date for the JULY/AUGUST edition: Friday 20 June

Editorial Team: Content: Marjorie and Julian Neaum ([email protected]) design: Mervyn King (e: [email protected]), distribution: John Grimshaw (t: 01482 871370), proof-reading: June Stephenson.

R E G I S T E R SBaptismsAt the Minster

27 April 2014 Arabella Lynn Pearce

04 May 2014 Poppy May Oetegenn

WeddingsAt the Minster03 May 2014 Daniel Philip Grayson

and Jenna Louise Black

Funerals

17 April 2014 Thomas (Tommy) Bentley (93)

22 April 2014 Sarah Jean Peck (94)

28 April 2014 Elizabeth Ann Munro (78)

12 May 2014 Jean Ashton (84)


MINSTER MAINTENANCEHistorical Roof Repairs

In the past various lead (Pb) repairs have been carried out on the Minster roofs, most have not been very good repairs. One of the first ways to repair the lead was by soldering.

Solder comes from a Middle English word soudur, which is from the Latin solidare meaning “to make solid”. The chemical symbol for lead Pb comes from the Latin word plumbum hence plumber meaning a person who works with lead.

As you can see from the picture below, not a very good solder repair.

The problem with solder repairs is that solder expands and contracts at a different rate than lead, this over time will result in a failure between the solder and the lead.This leads to a fissure in the repair and water then seeps into the fabric underneath.The picture on the left shows how a good repair has been made; this is done by marking a circle around the hole, then an outer ring is marked out, which is then covered with plumbers black (which used to be soot) which holds the solder in the inner circle. The inner ring is then shave hook cleaned, followed by a coating of plumbers’ tallows (animal fat).The area is then very carefully heated with a blowlamp, tinned with a stick of plumbers solder (lead and tin Sn mixed). This area is wiped with a plumber’s wiping cloth, in the past centuries the cloths were made of moles (Talpa europaea) skins. In later eras a dense type of cloth was used which results in what is called a plumbers dot (picture

left).

Even though this is good practice in a soldered dot repair, it will still fail eventually, due to the different expansion rates. In the modern era we now use oxygen and acetylene as a gas welding repair which allows use of lead welding onto lead with less chance of a failure as the repair is made of equal metals.The picture on the left shows a date inscribed onto the Nave roof. There are various markings all over the roofs and this is not good practice as the area will eventually crack and therefore possibly leak water into the fabric underneath.

Steve Rial and Paul Hawkins

BEVERLEY MINSTER MAGAZINE · 2014-05-29 · it was ‘Vocations Sunday’. As a bishop, 1300 years ago, John was noted for helping people hear God’s call on their lives, and nurturing

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