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.
The guidelines for what we are doing for each church are here:
St Mary’s Fowlmere: Stage Four safety measures – Fowlmere
St Laurence’s, Foxton: Stage Four safety measures – Foxton
All Saints’, Shepreth: Stage Four safety measures – Shepreth
St George’s, Thriplow : Stage Four safety measures – Thriplow
Services this week
We are now returning to our more usual pattern of servcies
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
17th October
9.30 am: Communion at St George’s Church, Thriplow*
11.00 am Holy Communion at All Saints’ Shepreth
11.00 am All Age Worship at St Mary’s Fowlemere
See below for the link to the Holy Communion Service at Thriplow on 26th September
View from the Rectory
September 2021
There is an old Sunday School song that tells us:
“Jesus bids us shine.
You in your small corner and I in mine”
The sentiment is important because it is urging each of us to live the best life we can where we are; which is exactly what Christians aspire to do. But the idea of us inhabiting our own small corner even in small villages is increasingly outdated and incorrect.
Over the past twenty years or so our communities have increasingly become global and the past two years have, more than ever, showed us how interconnected we are, not just in our villages but throughout the world. In August we were told that the impact of global warming had brought us to Code Red, the most urgent warning there is. We have all seen for ourselves the impact of severe weather events with deadly floods and fires throughout Europe and North America. We are regularly told that the amount of resources we consume affect the world we live in.
I was listening to a meteorologist talking on the radio the other day and he was explaining the cause of the severe weather events in the Northern Hemisphere. Apparently they are being driven by what is happening in the arctic which is now the warmest region in our hemisphere and has caused a distortion of the Jet Stream to bring hot and cold air to unusual places which is causing our weather to go haywire. What is happening in the Arctic is affecting everyone who lives north of the equator.
Over the past two years we have seen how a virus emerging in China can impact the whole world and how we, without knowing it, can pass deadly infection on to someone else. In theory we have always known that but it has never penetrated our consciousness and impacted our behaviour as it does now.
Some people are furious that their rights have been impacted by the pandemic; they have been confined to home, made to wear masks and to have vaccinations they don’t want. But is life about rights? We might not like things we are asked to do for each other but we have responsibilities to ourselves and to each other. I am more than ever aware of the fact that what I do impacts not just on my neighbour but on someone I have never met who lives on the other side of the world.
In the Bible Cain mocked God by asking, ’Am I my brother’s keeper?’ having killed and hidden the body of his brother Abel: well we may not be our brother’s keepers but even if we don’t realise it what we do impacts others. We saw that in such a positive way in the past eighteen months when our communities came together to care for and support each other during the worst of times. I pray that that community spirit continues and that we continue to be more aware of those around us. I hope though, that when we are showing love and care we no longer direct it only in our own small corner but share it with those we unknowingly impact as well.
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
