Dear friends,

Things are decidedly autumnal as I write but there is some more late-summer weather in the offing. I hope you have time to enjoy the outdoors whilst the weather is good.

For those who have to miss the Harvest Festival service in Capel on Sunday there is opportunity aplenty to donate non-perishable food and household items for our distribution to Leatherhead START and the Dorking Foodbank. These support services are now more needed than ever and the church is open from 9 – 4 today so you can drop off your gifts for us to pass on. Tins of food and dried pasta, grains and pulses are always welcome but also items like toothpaste and deodorant. I will try to publish a list soon with urgent requirements as this is very much an ongoing project.

The 4th of October is St Francis Day, which marks the end of Creation tide in our churches. Below, you will find a prayer from his namesake, Pope Francis. In the Netherlands the 4th of October has a long tradition of children being allowed to bring their pets to school. I can’t remember what the rules were about bringing cats but I remember bringing my pet rabbit, successive guinea pigs and several hamsters. Unfortunately the latter never lived long because they were escape artists and our cat was fast. In school the day was all about the natural world and the joy of creation.

Whilst we celebrate harvest and alleviate poverty by donating food locally and money to East Africa (see inside notes) we mustn’t forget the devastation caused by manmade climate change in Pakistan. I recommend you look at the Christian Aid campaign for climate justice this week.

I hope you all have a good week,

Dineke van den Bogerd

A prayer for the Earth

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe
and in the smallest of your creatures.
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.
Pour out upon us the power of your love,
that we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace, that we may live
as brothers and sisters, harming no one.
O God of the poor,
help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,
so precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives,
that we may protect the world and not prey on it,
that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts
of those who look only for gain
at the expense of the poor and the earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,
to be filled with awe and contemplation,
to recognise that we are profoundly united
with every creature
as we journey towards your infinite light.
We thank you for being with us each day.
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle
for justice, love and peace.

Amen

(Prayer by Pope Francis; from ‘Laudato sí’)

Given the success of last weekend’s murder mystery evenings I had hoped for some pictures but alas: all avenues came to a dead end in that respect. Instead, I give you a picture I made last weekend of one of 53 dolmen (prehistoric burial places) in the east of the Netherlands.

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As our nation mourns the loss of our beloved Queen Elizabeth II the outpouring of tributes and thanksgiving for such a much loved and respected monarch has been phenomenal. Our late Sovereign Lady has been referred to as Elizabeth the Great, which would be a very fitting title in time considering the length and distinctiveness of her long reign.
A clergy colleague of mine commented after having queued early on to view the Queen lying in state, as he walked past her Majesty’s coffin and out into the morning sunrise, he felt as if he was literally walking out of the second Elizabethan age…

The news of her death shocked us all didn’t it and even though Her Majesty looked extremely frail in her final public photographs, it was hard to believe after seeing her brilliant beautiful smile of welcome to our new prime minister Liz Truss, that shortly afterwards her life would draw to a close. Yet among the obvious sadness that follows such a loss of someone who has been a constant in all our lives, there has been a wonderful atmosphere of warmth and thankfulness throughout. From the incredible detail of the ceremonial and formal, yet intimate too, as the Royal family have led us through those amazing first ten days of national mourning and invited us to mourn and give thanks with them. And the nation has responded. Whether with the somewhat pilgrimage nature of the queue for Westminster Hall as thousands queued overnight and more to pay their respects to the Queen lying in state or as many more thousands travelled from all over the nation and beyond to visit the capital and lay flowers at Green Park, and outside other royal residences, the mood has been one of gratefulness, kindness, support and a deep respect and love for our late Queen.

As we lay flowers in Green Park I was struck not only by the amount of flowers and the messages of appreciation but at how beautiful London looked in the late September sunshine, the leaves still green, dappled in the sunshine. The flags lining The Mall, the uniqueness of being able to walk over Westminster Bridge in the middle of the road – all traffic suspended for the time being. Truly remarkable times….

Autumn sets in now as we continue with our Harvest Festival in church followed by harvest teas. We will be donating foodstuff to Dorking Foodbank and taking up a monetary collection to send to Christian Aid for the East Africa Hunger Crisis. After the worst drought in 40 years people there are facing the threat of famine and harvests have failed, livestock has died and there are water shortages. Please do contribute if you can. You can donate online at canid.org.uk/hungercrisis <canid.org.uk/hungercrisis> or call 08080 004 004.

At the end of the month we approach the season of All Saints and All Souls and the latter gives us an opportunity to gather to remember our loved ones no longer here. A special service of comfort for all those who have been bereaved will be held at Capel Church on Sunday 30th October, followed by teas. Lists for the name of loved ones will be in church leading up to the service. With the Queen’s passing we are all reminded of our loved ones and of loss past and present. All are welcome to the service however long ago your loss occurred. We will remember them together.

Finally, a thought…. the Queen was quoted as having said “I have to be seen to be believed”. Many have been fortunate to have met or seen Her Late Majesty, and many would have liked to have been able to have visited her Lying in State. St Paul speaks of faith as being not looking at what can be seen, but looking at what cannot be seen. For he says, what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal. Amen to that!
God save the King.

With my love and prayers
Rev Liz

Dear friends,

Thank you, Liz, for doing the honours and writing the weekly notes. It’s not as you haven’t got enough on your plate this week!
Once again, the readings this week are special and we don’t follow the blue sheets tomorrow. I draw your attention to the national commemoration tomorrow at 20:00. For those who seek comfort in company there will be a short ceremony around the flag pole in Capel.

I have just come back from a few lovely days in the west: Cheddar gorge and Llanthony Priory, Wales. My phone would not charge and it gave me a most wonderful sense of detachment from our fast-moving world, dictated by technology. The connection with nature was all the more deeply felt. It was bliss for a few days but I am also relieved that the phone did charge overnight after our return and I don’t have to spend lots of time trying to retrieve contact details for the people in my life!
Having no phone has meant that I have no pictures to show so I have another week to work that one out.

May I draw you attention to the Murder Mystery evenings next weekend? Today is the last day of sales and there are still some seats left both in Ockley and in Capel so please contact Corinne for your booking:

07718 346294 or capeleditor@gmail.com

Have a good week all,

Dineke

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My apologies for re-sending this info but due to a hiccup I cannot be sure that my previous email reached all of you.

As promised I send you the notes for this week. Also attached are the revised readings and prayers for the services of commemoration in our churches tomorrow morning.

The choral evensong will go ahead in St Peter’s, Newdigate and I hope you are looking forward to joining.

Lastly I would draw your attention to the murder mystery night. Places can be booked up to and including next Saturday, the 17th. You will not receive a ticket but rest assured your place will be secure once you have booked. Yvonne, the cast and the caterers have worked hard to give us two evenings of entertainment in aid of our church funds and they deserve our support.
If you could help by donating worthwhile raffle prizes that would be highly appreciated. Please contact Jessie or Helen before the night if you do.

Blessings,

Dineke van den Bogerd

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Dear friends,

Never had I imagined that my first message to you would be of such sadness: the country has lost a great monarch.

In this period of mourning each service on Sunday morning will be one of commemoration.
Cafe church in The Crown has been cancelled and the service in Capel will be held at 10:30h in St John the Baptist.
Ockley St Margaret’s will have a service of Holy Communion during the period of mourning at 09:30h

There will also be a Service of Prayer and Reflection remembering her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Details of this will be issued in due course. The weekly notes were ready for print but had to be altered. I will send them to you as soon as I receive them from our vicar.

The Church of England is encouraging online condolences which can be found on the Church of England website www.churchofengland.org. The link to submit your message of condolence is found on the home page. There is also an online ‘Light a candle for Her Majesty The Queen’ on the same page.
Importantly both churches will be open all day for quiet prayer and reflection, if wished flowers can be laid and candles lit. There will be books of condolence for those who have no access to the online condolences register.

We must remember the Royal family and pray that they find solace in their grief and comfort in each other. Let us pray that King Charles can find his own way to bring together country and family, guided by his creator.

Blessings,

Dineke van den Bogerd

Dear friends,

Please find here your post-Debbie weekly news sheet. Things have changed a bit since I edited the notes in the past and this week there has been no email distribution of the notes. The aim is to get that sorted for next week. Have a good Sunday rest.
God bless,

Dineke

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Dear friends,

This is my last email to you all, I have really enjoyed putting the weekly sheets together each week, but am delighted that Dineke has agreed to take over – thank you Dineke.

We move next week so as you can imagine much of this week has been spent cleaning and tidying, however I have found time most days to walk in our lovely countryside which looks particularly beautiful now it has had a bit of rain. I even spent a wonderful walk with a close friend on Ranmore getting soaked, somehow the rain added to the beauty of the area. I’m trying to walk my favourite walks so not only have I been to Ranmore, but have done my favourite loop on Denbies, walked from Betchorth to Brockham and back along the river, walked the 5k circular walk on Holmwood and today we have walked from the Volunteer in Holmbury St Mary over to Abinger, then up to Abinger Roughs and back via Paddington Farm. Many of you will know these walks well, I have walked all of them countless times over the 25 years we have been here, and yet I never tire of the changing beauty of all. There are so many more favourites to do, that I shan’t manage them all before we leave – so we will have to return!

This week we have a joint service at Capel at 10.30am tomorrow with Rev Martin Gilpin presiding – thank you Martin for giving up your time to come and take our service.

We also have church teas at Capel on both Sunday and Monday (bank holiday) this week. Please do come along and sample Joy’s wonderful cakes, there are always others to have a chat with.

Photo of the week this week – my favourite bench on Leith Hill – the recent scrub clearing means that it now has the most stunning views, and the heather has just flowered.

Thank you again for all your cards, emails, and kind gifts, my apologies that I haven’t been able to write to you all personally, but will try to do so once we are settled in our new home. I’m sure you all recognise that this is a very special community and I have been privileged to be part of it.

With love and prayers

Debbie von Bergen
debbievonbergen@icloud.com
07774 784008

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‘Creator God, you made the earth that is in it … transform our hearts and minds so we learn to care and share. And we pray for the day when everyone has all they need’.

Celebrating Harvest 2022 with news of events including Harvest Festival Celebration lunch at Ockley on September 25th, ‘Murder on the Catwalk’ a light hearted play by Janet Smith being performed at Ockley village hall on 23rd September and Capel Village Hall on 24th September.

Happy Emerald (55th) wedding anniversary to our joint sponsors Tina & Peter Fairbrother and John & Margaret Dale.

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