The Church of England has shared a special ‘front room’ service recorded on an iPad by Archbishop John Sentamu with his wife, Rev Margaret Sentamu, at Bishopthorpe Palace.
You can watch this virtual service here:
Author: Dorothee Möller
Shared prayer for Sunday 29 March
Nicki Schiller shared the following prayer with us for this Sunday, The Fifth Sunday of Lent:
Heavenly Father, we thank you that although we cannot come together today in Your house because of the restrictions brought about by the corona virus, we can still come close to You and to each other in our prayers. Please send us Your Holy Spirit, Lord, as we pray to you from our hearts.
We thank you for modern communications technology which makes it possible for us to contact our friends, our families, our neighbours and our church members although we cannot visit them in person. Do not let us forget those who are old, lonely, sick or sad in these difficult days and who may be in need of a phone call , a mail or a letter. When this time of trial is past, let us continue to reach out to those who need us.
Lord, the early spring with its birdsong, the flowers , blue sky and the sunshine still make us happy despite our worries. May this quiet time when so many of us must stay at home give us more time to appreciate your world and think about how to treat your creation with care and respect instead of thoughtlessly helping to destroy it. Could it be that we human beings are more of a threat to our planet than the corona virus is to us?.
We bring before You all the countries of the world where the virus is already active. Have mercy on your suffering children Lord, give strength to all those who care for them. We thank you for the thousands who have recovered and hope that the shared suffering of this present time will make many people see more clearly the importance of peace, justice and friendship between all nations.
Father, give hope to those who are helpless and desperate at this time, to those who are stranded far from home, to the refugees on the Greek islands whose homes have been destroyed, to those here in Hamburg who cannot stay at home because they have no roof over their head. Comfort them with the assurance that we are all at home in You, Father, and send them the practical help they need.
You have sent us locums to minister to us while we search for a new chaplain and we are grateful for the wonderful work they did. Now that the present pandemic has made it impossible for another locum to come, we are not alone. We believe Your Son, Jesus Christ, is with us when we pray together and that this is true, not only till the end of the corona crisis, but till the end of time.
Father God, we bring before you ourselves, our families our friends and neighbours and ask you to protect us all from evil. May we grow in love for You and each other so that this Lent will be a time when we learn to live lives more pleasing to you and celebrate Easter together rejoicing in Christ’s victory over sin and death.
Psalm 130 for Sunday 29 March
Since in the current situation the choir cannot come together to chant the Psalm for you, here’s our choirmaster Yotin reading it for us instead:
Mothering Sunday 2020 – Watch the recorded live stream / listen to the sermon here
Dear All,
As many of you already know, Father Pete with the support of his wife Penny live streamed the Eucharist on our Facebook page this morning. A recording is now also available on YouTube here:
Father Pete has also separately recorded the Gospel and his sermon again, to be found here:
We would like to thank him wholeheartedly for bringing the church into our homes during these difficult times.
Gospel reading and sermon for 15 March – Third Sunday of Lent
Dear all,
in lieu of our regular Sunday service our locum priest, Father Pete, has prepared a recording of today’s Gospel and his sermon for you to listen to online.
The video is embedded below and can also be found here.
Want to talk to someone? Please reach out to us!
If you are feeling anxious or are in isolation and need to talk to someone, please get in touch with the locum chaplain Fr Pete Wright or if you prefer to speak German, either of the churchwardens Susanne Hergoss or Madeleine Resühr. They are supported by a team of volunteers who are available for a chat.
All three are available by email through chaplain (at) anglican-church-hamburg.de and Father Pete can be reached at the chaplain’s flat by phone at 040 4392334.
Please find further phone numbers on our contact page:
COVID-19 Coronavirus Information in English
Dear All,
Public health information from Hamburg’s health ministry in English can be found on
https://www.hamburg.com/residents/settle/health/13702364/coronavirus/
Unfortunately the daily press release updates are only available in German.
There is a telephone hotline set up with the following number: 428 284 000.
If you suspect you have been infected with COVID-19, call 116 117.
As Bishop David Hamid did in his blog, we would also like to share this prayer with you that the Jesuits in the US have circled:
Jesus Christ, you travelled through towns and villages “curing every disease and illness.” At your command, the sick were made well. Come to our aid now, in the midst of the global spread of the coronavirus, that we may experience your healing love.
Heal those who are sick with the virus. May they regain their strength and health through quality medical care.
Heal us from our fear, which prevents nations from working together and neighbours from helping one another.
Heal us from our pride, which can make us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders.Jesus Christ, healer of all, stay by our side in this time of uncertainty and sorrow.
Be with those who have died from the virus. May they be at rest with you in your eternal peace.
Be with the families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair. May they know your peace.
Be with the doctors, nurses, researchers and all medical professionals who seek to heal and help those affected and who put themselves at risk in the process. May they know your protection and peace.
Be with the leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to invest in long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks. May they know your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.
Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace.
Jesus Christ, heal us.
IMPORTANT: Services cancelled until further notice
Dear All,
following the decision of the Nordkirche and the Erzbistum Hamburg we (churchwardens Dr. Madeleine Resühr and Susanne Hergoss) decided to follow this decision. So there will be no services or any other programmes in our church for the time to come. If there will be a decision later on to open the church again, we will let you know as soon as possible. We are very sorry for this sad news, but there is no other way to keep us safe.
Dr. Madeleine Resühr and Susanne Hergoss
Churchwardens
Englisch Bischöfliche Gemeinde St. Thomas à Becket
Church of England
Zeughausmarkt 22
20459 Hamburg
A big Thank You to the community
Thank you to all of you who so generously donated to the funeral appeal for Sammy Quaye, Uncle Sammy. We raised a substantial amount, more than we thought possible, which will be a big help to Sammy Junior and the family and meant that Sammy could be given the funeral and the farewell he deserved.
The response to the appeal, from members of the present congregation, former members and friends of the church, was really heart-warming and a wonderful example of the solidarity and community spirit which marks our church. And it emphasises the fact that everybody who knew Sammy held him in high esteem.
In fact, the funeral director told us that he was extremely impressed and moved by how the church community had rallied round to help in a time of need. He said he had never come across anything like it before in any other church. We can be proud of our close and inclusive community.
Sammy Jr and his family are overwhelmed and deeply appreciate your generous help.
Father Leslie licensed as Archdeacon of the East, Germany and Northern Europe
On 17 th October our chaplain, Canon Dr. Leslie Nathaniel, was licensed as Archdeacon of the East, Germany and Northern Europe by the Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe, The Rt Revd Dr Robert Innes.
The ceremony was held in Holy Trinity Cathedral, Brussels during the concluding Eucharist to the annual Bishop’s Council for which members from around the Diocese had gathered.
Father Leslie takes up his new responsibilities with immediate effect.
There will be an opportunity to bid him farewell on Sunday, November 17. He will be the celebrant and preacher at this Eucharist at 10.30 in our English Church, St Thomas à Becket. We hope many friends will be able to be present.
We will miss Father Leslie, but pray for God’s rich blessings on this challenging ministry.
