Easter Services - Ranworth St Helen's Church?

BroadsBuccaneer · April 6, 2023

Sorry for the vagueness of this post. Is there anyone in or around Ranworth at the moment that can check to see if there are any Easter services at St Helen's this weekend?

We are visiting and would like to attend the Easter Sunday service.

Thx

Davydine · April 6, 2023

I am not 100% sure, because I wasn't looking specifically, but I think there was a service at 9.30 on Easter Sunday. Certainly the Palm Sunday service was at 9.30.

BroadsBuccaneer · April 6, 2023

Many Thanks. I have tried calling the visitor centre but there is no answer.

Vaughan · April 6, 2023

27 minutes ago, BroadsBuccaneer said:

I have tried calling the visitor centre but there is no answer.

Probably too busy answering irate queries about the new mooring charge.

When not menacing new arrivals with a boathook.

CambridgeCabby · April 6, 2023

Currently St Helen’s doesn’t have a dedicated vicar , and has to share with two other parishes

BroadsBuccaneer · April 6, 2023

19 minutes ago, CambridgeCabby said:

Currently St Helen’s doesn’t have a dedicated vicar , and has to share with two other parishes

Does that mean they may not be there Sunday then? Oh well….

YnysMon · April 6, 2023

Very few churches have their own vicar now. Some stagger their service times, others have a service in a different church each Sunday. Back home in Anglesey, the (Church of Wales - i.e. Anglican) church that my mother used to attend has started having shared services with the Methodists. So the shortage of clergy has a positive side in that it's bringing people together.

We have a 'non-stipendiary' clergyman looking after our church at Willen (i.e. he doesn't get a salary). Originally, he was allocated to another church in our parish, but when we lost our vicar a couple of years ago he covered some of our services and then volunteered to look after us too. He doesn't take all our services, but the majority. I think he's amazing as he still works as a part-time GP and he's doing a lot to encourage new people to come along to join us.

I first met him when he cared for my Mam as her GP during the last few months before she died in 2017. He was just training for church ministry then. The day before she died he visited and prayed with her.

As a small gesture in return for his kindness to our church, I've started playing the organ a couple of weeks each month in his 'other' church. He and I dash from one service that starts at 9.30 to another that starts at 11.30.

socrates · April 6, 2023

As a clergy husband, I know only too well the state of our churches with regards to clergy. We are looking at moving to Norfolk in the next year or so, most of the clergy vacancies are for parishes with at least 3 churches. The last one Madam Reverend looked at had 9 churches spread along the Norfolk coast which is unsustainable as far as doing a decent job is concerned.

Ranworth is part of a team of churches which also incudes South Walsham, and several others. It has been vacant since late last summer.

BroadsBuccaneer · April 6, 2023

It’s such a shame because it’s such a beautiful church. By the sounds of it it doesn’t seem likely that there is anything on this weekend then?

grendel · April 6, 2023

many years back when I was small, we used to attend a country church once a month (dad was a church warden), the vicar was responsible for 4 country churches in about a 5 mile radius and managed one a week, to say we were familiar with the old dusty churches of his parishes would be fairly true, each church probably had about 6 to 8 regulars and events used to take place in the church grounds, the church we attended was about 1/2 mile outside the village, and the death knell was when a major road was built between the village and church, and traffic could no longer get from village to church easily.