ChadNet – no 200 – Sunday 21st January 2024
Welcome to this week’s edition of ChadNet – the eBulletin of St Chad’s Church, Pattingham with Patshull.
In this week’s ChadNet:
- View from the Pews – Angharad Allingham
- Sunday 21st January – Third Sunday of Epiphany : Fourth Day of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
- This week
- Sunday 28th January – The Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Candlemas)
- Work on the church
- The Well Foodbank – donations and prayers needed
- Holocaust Memorial Day
- Lent Fellowship Lunch – Sunday 18th February
- Dementia Friendly Church – weekly prayer
- From the Memorial Book
- Giving to the Church
View from the Pews
This week on 25th January Scots all over the world will be celebrating Burns Night. Although our claims to Scottish lineage may be considered tenuous, it is an event my family and I enjoy participating in every year. A Scottish grandfather and a brother who now resides in Scotland with a Scottish wife offers the opportunity to consider myself Celtic and to feel some pride in my links to the infamous ‘Clan MacGregor’.
Each year as we sit down to our traditional Burns Night supper of haggis, neeps and tatties we enjoy an interesting rendition of the famous ‘Address to a Haggis’ by Robert Burns. Great pleasure is taken in the stabbing of the said haggis. Needless to say it is considered an opportunity for quite the performance and it isn’t uncommon for an over zealous performer to cause haggis to fly! As such a key element of our Burns Night enjoyment it did make me think more over this strange choice as the centre piece of the supper. Visually it is not particularly appealing and even less so when the details of the contents are shared and yet this mainstay of Scottish tradition is considered so significant it even has its own poem!
Researching the history of the haggis proved very interesting with some even claiming that it is actually an English invention! There are also significant numbers of people who believe the haggis is derived from a wild creature with four legs and a shaggy mane that lopes up the steep Scottish hillsides with ease. The true origins of this peculiar dish are shrouded in mystery with some claiming Roman links, others believing it can be traced back to the Vikings and even links to French cuisine. Nevertheless, it is Scotland that has embraced it as its own.
History tells us there are two reasons why the haggis became quintessentially Scottish. The first due to the severe economic decline experienced by Scotland in the late 17th Century. Living conditions were drastically affected, due to increased rents following the introduction of enclosure and modern farming techniques, so without land or livelihood the lives of poorer tenants deteriorated markedly. Hence the need for a food source containing inexpensive ingredients that even the poorest could afford. It marked the rise of the haggis and by the middle of the 18th century the haggis in Scotland was thriving.
The second and possibly most important reason for the rise of the haggis in Scotland was political. Following the unsuccessful Jacobite Risings the English resented the Scots and regarded them with undisguised contempt. Food was a common focus of this feeling and the press and cartoons published scathing attacks depicting the Scots as godless barbarians which also included an assault on haggis which the English considered to be an ‘uncivilised’ dish. In true Scottish fashion the Scots did not take this lying down and instead sought to define themselves as ‘different’ from the English taking great pride in claiming haggis as their own. Robert Burns in his poem ‘Address to a haggis’ (1786) acknowledged this connection between food and character and turned it to the Scottish advantage with the assertion that it was the sort of food real men ate.
So as we sit down to our Burns Night celebration later this week I will definitely appreciate the ‘Great Chieftain of the pudding-race’ and the important role it plays in Scottish identity. However, in some ways I am disappointed that the history books haven’t discovered a real ‘wild haggis’ roaming the highlands of Scotland.
Angharad Allingham
Address to a Haggis Robert Burns (1786)
Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o’ the pudding-race!
Aboon them a’ ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm :
Weel are ye wordy o’a grace
As lang’s my arm.
The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hurdies like a distant hill,
Your pin wad help to mend a mill
In time o’need,
While thro’ your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.
His knife see rustic Labour dight,
An’ cut you up wi’ ready sleight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like ony ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reekin’, rich!
Would you like to write a View from the Pews?
We welcome contributions for View from the Pews from anyone who would like to write one. It does not need to be on any particular subject. If you would like to write one please send it to or contact Henry Ibberson ( / 01902 701136).
.Contacts
We do not have a Vicar at the moment. For matters which would normally be dealt with by the Vicar the churchwardens are the first point of contact. The Vicarage phone (01902 700257) is redirected to the churchwardens. When they are not available a message can be left on the voicemail and they will return the call when they are available. Emails to will be received by the churchwardens.
Contact details for church officers can be found on the Contacts page of the church website. You can use if you are nore sure who to contact and the churchwardens will be able to forward it to the correct person.
Notices, which should be received by Friday evening for inclusion in that week’s ChadNet, and other communications in relation to ChadNet should be sent to
Articles for the magazine should be sent to (note – this is different to the address used before November 2020 which no longer works).
Sunday 21st January – Third Sunday of Epiphany : Fourth Day of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
At 10 am there will be a service led by the Youth Group in church.This will be followed by a short service of Holy Communion, led by Revd Sue Watson, to which you are all most welcome. Coffee, tea and biscuits will be available after the service.
In the Parish Prayer Diary we pray for:
Those who live and work in Hall Close, Dodds Field. Hall End Close.
In the Trysull Deanery Prayer Diary we pray for:
St Benedict Biscop. Wombourne.
This week
The church will be open every day. Look out for the “church open” sign outside the porch.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity continues until Thursday.
On Monday at 2.00 pm the Funeral of Revd Paul Snape takes place in church.
On Tuesday Prayers for Peace will be said in church at 6 pm. Please do join us and if you would like more information or are willing to lead a session, please contact Mary Hayward ().
On Wednesday at 10.00 am there will be a service of Holy Communion according to the Book of Common Prayer, led by Revd Paul Brown, in church which will be followed by tea, coffee and cake.
After the service the church will be open from 10.30 am until at least 11.00 am as a Place of Welcome when anyone who wants to will be welcome to share in the coffee, cake and chat, whether they have been to the service or not. Those attending will receive a warm welcome.
There is NO Who’s for Lunch this month.
On Wednesday at 6 pm the Pattingham Shower Singers meet in church. All are welcome – just come and sing and have fun! If you need more information, contact Alix at .
At 7 pm on Wednesday Choir Practice takes place in church. Anyone interested in joining the choir should contact any member of the choir.
Sunday 28th January – The Presentation of Christ in the Temple (Candlemas)
At 10 am there will be aservice of Holy Communion, led by Revd Paul Brown, in church. Coffee, tea and biscuits will be available after the service.
At 4 pm at The Church at Perton there is a service for the Covenanting Churches of Wolverhampton West. All are welcome to attend.
At 6.30 pm there will be a Service in the Iona style, led by Ken Scott, in church.
In the Parish Prayer Diary we pray for:
Those who live and work in Letchmere Lane, St Chads Close, Yew Tree Road, Retreat Gardens.
In the Trysull Deanery Prayer Diary we pray for:
St Paul, Pendeford.
Work on the church
Contractors are starting work on various repairs and work to the church this week. There will be scaffolding and the contractors will be working in and around the church. The church and churchyard will remain open but please take care while using them. Access to the toilets will be kept unlocked.
The Well – the Wolverhampton Food Bank
All at the Well are extremely grateful for the donations over the past year. You may be aware from recent press articles, however, that the Well is in need of our help as it has been an extremely challenging year. Reduced donations of food and toiletries have meant fewer referrals being accepted and there has also been a significant decrease in financial support, resulting in a big trading deficit. The trustees have been advised that the position is untenable going forward and without a significant increase in income and reduction in costs.
The PCC is considering ways to help over the coming months and there are ways in which we can all help. Please pray that God will guide and support the principals and trustees at the Well as they reflect on the way forward. For those able to do so details of financial donations can be found at the Well’s website at <https://www.thewellwolverhampton.co.uk/donatefull>.
The box remains at the rear of the church for donations of food and toiletries and the wishing well for donations of cash.
Holocaust Memorial Day
On Friday 26th January at 11.00 am City of Wolverhampton Council and Interfaith Wolverhampton are holding a event to mark Holocaust Memorial Day at Georgian Suite, Wolverhampton Art Gallery. For more information contact Jill Parker.
Lent Fellowship Lunch
On Sunday 18th February, which is the first Sunday in Lent, there will be a chance for everyone to join together for a lunch of soup, bread & cheese. This will be an opportunity to extend the fellowship that has grown in the successful gatherings after morning services.
The lunch will be held in church and will commence at 12 noon to give time for the usual refreshments after the morning service.
To give an idea of numbers attending we would ask you to put names on the list available on the table at the back of the church, ideally by Sunday 4th February.
A voluntary donation of £5 is suggested with proceeds going to the Bishop’s Lent Appeal.
Lent Lunches
Lent Lunches will be held on Wednesday 6th and Thursday 21st March. More details will be available in due course.
Dementia Friendly Church
Weekly Prayer
Prayer for Alzheimer`s
Dear Lord
Your word says that you will keep the minds of those who fixate on you in perfect peace. At times it is hard to recollect certain things and it is a struggle to push through this condition, but we thank you for being our everlasting peace. We pray that you are always at the centre of our mind, because when we have you we have everything. Your divine peace is what surpasses all understanding.
Amen
(guidedbyprayer.com)
If you would like to suggest (or write) a prayer for inclusion in this series please let Tracey Williams, our Dementia Friendly Church Co-ordinator, know.
From the Memorial Book
Those whose anniversaries occur between 14th and 28th January.
Cis Harris – 14th January 1990
Mary Elizabeth Hughes – 15th January 1980
Horace Charles James – 15th January 1987
Kathleen Parker – 15th January 2005
Sheila Galbraith – 17th January 1987
Eileen Mary Rowley – 17th January 2005
Annie Guest – 18th January 1994
John Neville Hayward – 18th January 2009
Peter Victor Lingford – 19th January 2001
Raymond H Sampson – 20th January 1990
Mabel Pritchard – 20th January 2006
Jim Pritchard – 21st January 2004
Geoffrey Victor Giles – 21st January 2019
Ivy Rhodes – 25th January 2001
George Lloyd – 27th January 2000
Rex Pellow – 27th January 2011
You can see all the pages of the Memorial Book on the Memorial Book Online page of the Church website.
Giving to the church
Details of the various ways in which you can give can be found on the Giving page of the website.
We have a JustGiving page to enable people to make one off donations. It’s at www.justgiving.com/pattingham-church. You will be asked if you want to make a contribution on top of your donation. If you do it will go to JustGiving and not to charity. If you do not want to make such a contribution select “other”. If you are a taxpayer please consider gift aiding your donation.
You can make a bank transfer to our bank account (Account name: Pattingham Parochial Church Council – Sort Code: 20-97-78 Account No: 50655023).
If you are paying by cheque please make the cheque payable to “Pattingham PCC” or “Pattingham Parochial Church Council“.
ChadNet
This bulletin is sent to those who have requested it. We now have 126 subscribers but there may still be some people who are not aware of it and would wish to receive it. The weekly bulletin for each Sunday will normally be sent on the preceding Friday or Saturday. Additional bulletins may be sent if required. It is only being sent to those who have requested it.
If you know of anyone who might be interested please tell them about it and ask them to sign up using the form on the website (www.pattinghamchurch.org.uk/web/information/chadnet/sign-up-to-chadnet/) or by email to
St Chad’s Church, Pattingham with Patshull Registered charity no 1151604