Welcome
The Four Church Benefice is a group of village churches in South Cambridgeshire comprising of St Mary’s Fowlmere, St Laurence’s Foxton, All Saints Shepreth and St George’s Thriplow.
We aim to reach out to every member of our community offering them occasions to meet with God within our worship and life together, to take opportunities to explore their faith and to receive support and help during the milestones on life’s journey.
Our Rector Revd. Angela Melaniphy is available to all members of the community. Please don’t hesitate to contact Revd Angela either, through the website or, by email – see link below, or telephone 01763 208195 should you need pastoral support or would like her to pray for anything that is concerning you.
Please continue to look after yourselves and STAY SAFE and let us know if you need any spiritual or practical support. Three of our churches are open for individual private prayer during the week (Sadly it isn’t possible for Shepreth Church to be open) and we are now worshipping fortnightly at each church. For fuller details go to the Calendar Events Section. We still have networks of people providing help where needed and we can put you in touch with the right people to support you.
Support our Churches During Covid-19
Following the relaxation of restrictions on 19th July you no longer need to book a space to worship and we are no longer are keeping a 2 metre distance from other people. However we do ask you as a matter of courtesy to others to continue to wear face coverings because the services are indoors
We will update you as soon as we are able about when we expect to sing in church and how we will be receiving communion
Services this week
There are services in two of our churches every week
We will continue to record a service every week which will be available via a link from the website by 1.0pm each Sunday.
* denotes recorded Service
If you know anyone who doesn’t use the internet but would appreciate the service recorded on a CD please let Revd Angela know.
Services this week
25th July
9.30 am Holy Communion at Laurence’s Foxton *
See below for the link to the Holy Communion Service at Foxton on 25th July
View from the Rectory
April 2021
Those of you who read my blog will be very familiar with my lovely Ginger Cat Erik (The Red!). He featured regularly because he was such an integral part of my life and it was such a comfort to have his loving and supportive company during this last difficult year.
Erik was a rescue cat found on the streets of Cambridge in March 2018 and taken to the Cat Protection League because of an infected wound on his face. I adopted him in September 2018 and when he came to me he was described by the CPL as being ‘a very shy boy’. The truth was he was an extremely traumatised individual and probably suffering from PTSD.
I named him Erik after Erik the Red, the famous Norwegian explorer, as he was ginger and had had a very adventurous life. Homing Erik took enormous patience and care. For his first month he lived in an upturned cardboard box in my prayer room. It was two months before he ventured downstairs and six months before I thought he considered the house to be his safe home and was confident to let him outside.
Having Erik living with me has been incredibly rewarding because slowly, gradually he learned to trust; to not expect whenever I came near that he would be hit or kicked. He was courageous, gentle and loving, confident and even bossy. Sadly he became ill, developing a growth on his spinal cord that meant that in March we had to say farewell to him. I was devastated because I have had such a short time with a truly remarkable chap – but comforted by the fact that he had had two and a half very good years.
So why am I telling you Erik’s story? Well not to blow my own trumpet because I received far more from Erik than I gave to him; but because his story is one of redemption and hope, of rescue and salvation. It has strong echoes of the Easter story. Like Erik the human race was lost and wandering in an alien environment.
We were damaged by our experiences and needed rescuing. In Jesus Christ God came to earth to live amongst us and in offering himself for us on the cross brought us out of slavery and because he rose from the dead brought us new life. He has transformed our situation in the same way that love and care and respect transformed Erik’s situation.
The Covd19 Vaccination programme has had a similar transformational effect on our lives. It has given us hope and new life, enabled us to slowly reduce the restrictions on our lives and to start again anew.
And at this Easter tide as we remember God’s love that reached out to us to bring us new life and new hope let us take the opportunity to turn to him and transform us and our lives.
View the previous ‘view from the Rectory’ updates here:
What's Going On?
Getting married in the Four Church Benefice
Some good reasons for getting married in the church:
- A wedding is one of life’s greatest moments
- A time of solemn commitment as well as good wishes, feasting and joy
- A public and life-long covenant, declared and celebrated in the presence of God and before witnesses
