Welcome from Catherine Edenborough

When Covid-19 first started, we were told it was going to a bit like a bad seasonal flu-type thing that would last a few months and then would be over.  Then it was going to last over the summer, perhaps until September and then things would be moving on again, and as time goes by, it becomes clear that we just don’t know how long it will be before we can hug somebody and not think about it. It’s clear that there is not going to be a clean and tidy ending, when we can all say ‘thank goodness, that’s over’.  The reality is that things will never be exactly as they were again.

And we have all experienced it in different ways.  There’s been terrible loss of life, suffering and separation from loved ones.  There have been knock-on effects with job losses, redundancy and uncertain futures.  We are all sharing in an experience but having very different experiences of it.

Personally I feel very fortunate not to have been severely affected by it so far.  For me this experience brings home how much of life I have taken for granted until now.  So much of life appeared to be in my control and I know now that it really, really wasn’t!  That sense of control was all an illusion. I knew it in my head but now I am experiencing it in a physical, lived-out way.

And in that sense I am taking this time as a positive.  It is shaking up so much that I took for granted and calling it into question.  It’s becoming an opportunity to let go of things that either have an unhealthy hold or place in my life, or I am just too comfortable with and have never thought about before.  I’m thinking why not stop doing this and start doing that?

It brings me closer to God too because that feeling of being out of control naturally draws me deeper into God and makes me more conscious of my reliance on God’s presence.

I came across this poem by Leslie Dwight, which sums up what I am saying here and frames the experience in a positive sense.

What if 2020 isn’t cancelled?
What if 2020 is the year we’ve been waiting for?
A year so uncomfortable, so painful, so scary, so raw – that it finally forces us to grow.
A year that screams so loudly, finally awakening us from our ignorant slumber.
A year we finally accept the need for change.
Declare change. Work for change. Become the change.
A year we finally band together, instead of pushing each other further apart.
2020 isn’t cancelled, but rather the most important year of them all.

Catherine Edenborough
Cathedral Curate

Visiting the Cathedral

The Cathedral is now open daily from 10.00am to 2.00pm and on Sundays from 11.45pm to 2.00pm. A huge thank you to all the volunteers who have offered their time to enable us to open. You can find more information about what to expect when you visit, including the safety measures we are taking here.

Please note that due to weddings and funerals, opening times will be limited on:

• Saturday 1 August: no visiting after 1.30pm

• Thursday 6 August: no visiting until 11.30am, midday Holy Communion will go ahead

Our daily midday services of Holy Communion continue, as does our online worship.

Holy Communion - Sunday 2 August

We look forward to welcoming you in person to the Cathedral on Sunday morning, when we will be holding four services of Holy Communion. It is still possible (at time of sending) to pre-book a place at the 8.00am, 9.00am, 10.00am and 11.00am services through Eventbrite.

With the Cathedral now reopened for public worship, flowers have returned.  We are most grateful to the Flower Guild for their skill and expertise in volunteering to create these wonderful displays.  Each pedestal though does cost around £100 in flowers to create so if you would like to make a donation toward this cost in memory of a loved one or to recognise a significant life event please contact our Head of Fundraising Sophie Henstridge-Brown at sophie.henstrdge-brown@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk. Your donation will be acknowledged and thanked in the weekly notices, with your permission.

Clergy preaching away

On Sunday 2 August the Dean is presiding and preaching at St Mark’s, North End.

Face coverings in the Cathedral

Dean Anthony write: '“As these notices were about to be issued, the Prime Minister made a series of announcements relating to Covid-19. The most significant change for the Cathedral is that from Saturday 8 August onwards the wearing of face coverings will be mandatory for those attending public worship. This applies to both the congregation and those leading worship.   Until then, wearing face coverings is strongly advised rather than mandatory. We already have a whole series of measures in place to ensure that our worship is safe as well as spiritual, and this new announcement adds an extra dimension to that. Whilst we will not insist on the wearing of face coverings until the 8th, this new advice is clear and before that date worshippers are strongly advised to take it into account when coming to the Cathedral. We look forward to seeing you, and assure you of a warm welcome!”

“Good to Go” Covid-19 accreditation

The Cathedral is pleased to have been awarded the “Good to Go” accreditation from Visit Britain.  Acquiring this Industry Standard mark means that the Cathedral has followed government and Church of England COVID-19 guidelines, and has a Risk Assessment in place and processes to maintain cleanliness and aid social distancing.

We will continue to review our current practice and take into account any updates in Government and Church of England advice.  The clergy, staff and our volunteers will continue to work to ensure the Cathedral is as safe a place as possible to visit.

In the notices this week:

• New bus route in Old Portsmouth on Sundays

• Safeguarding Committee

• Cathedral Repair Works

• Cathedral Bells

• Friends of the Cathedral

• Weekly reflection from the Portsmouth Cathedral Ministry Team

• Online Resources

• Contactless donations

• Give as You Live

• Ecclesiastical Trust130

• Supporting Portsmouth Cathedral

• Online worship including the order of service for Sunday 2 August

• Regular details of prayers and intercessions and ways to contact the Cathedral.

New bus route in Old Portsmouth on Sundays

We are delighted to hear that a new bus service, the number 25, will be starting up from Sunday 30 August. The route will start and terminate at The Hard, serving shops in Southsea, continuing via Albert Road to Bransbury Park and on to the Hayling Ferry.

The service will run 7 days a week, with six return journeys on Sundays stopping right outside Portsmouth Cathedral.

We are really grateful to everyone who has worked to start this new service, and to Portsmouth City Council who are subsidising it.

Safeguarding Committee

Canon Kathryn Percival has taken over as Chapter Lead for Safeguarding from Canon Jo Spreadbury. This planned change was delayed due to COVID-19.. The Lay Safeguarding Representative remains Marian Pottinger. An updated Safeguarding Policy and Safeguarding Policy Statement were agreed by Chapter when it met on 15th July and a routine meeting of the Cathedral’s Safeguarding Committee was held on Thursday. Contact details and the policies can be found here.

Cathedral Repair Works

The scaffolding on the south side of the Cathedral is to enable repairs to the windows on the Quire roof to be carried out and it is hoped that this work will be finished by the end of this coming week. This is part of the planned preventative maintenance programme. 

Cathedral Bells

We are delighted to welcome our bell ringers, a small number of whom will be ringing a limited number of bells before our 9.00am, 10.00am and 11.00am services from this week. We are particularly grateful to the Tower Captain, Ben: Steeple Keeper, Stephen and Tower Secretary, Peter for working with us on Risk Assessments and practical solutions to make ringing possible again.

Friends of the Cathedral

The 2020 Yearbook has now been sent to members of the Friends. The Yearbook includes details of events that we hope will take place in 2021 and the AGM which is planned for the afternoon of Sunday 11th October 2020. If you have not received your copy or would like to know more about membership please contact the Friends' Office.

Weekly reflection from the Portsmouth Cathedral Ministry Team

For the past few weeks we have been sharing a short reflection from members of the Ministry Team. You can see all of the previous videos on our YouTube channel here.

Online Resources

A reminder that resources for prayer, worship, and family activities at home can be found on our website here

Contactless donations

The next time you visit the Cathedral you might notice our new contactless donation points. Provided by Goodbox, they allow people to make a donation by contactless card or phone in the Cathedral for the first time.

We hope that, alongside the two donation boxes for cash donations, contactless giving will make it easier for visitors to give a donation. This will be very important in helping the Cathedral to become financially sustainable.

We are hugely grateful to Nicky Taylor, Finance Officer, for working for over a year to get contactless giving set up.

Give as You Live

Support Portsmouth Cathedral whilst doing your usual online shopping! Simply sign up to Give As You Live and Portsmouth Cathedral will receive a donation every time you shop through their website.

Sign up here and add ‘Portsmouth Cathedral Development Trust’ as your charity of choice. Do also set a donation reminder to remind you to shop via Give As You Live.

Ecclesiastical Trust130

Insurance provider Ecclesiastical are marking their 130th anniversary by donating £130 to a church or Cathedral when a new home insurance policy is taken out before 31 December 2020. If you decide to take a policy with Ecclesiastical this year, please take advantage of their Trust130 promotion and nominate Portsmouth Cathedral. You can find out more on their website here.

Supporting Portsmouth Cathedral

Over past weeks we have been sharing some of the profound financial challenges that Portsmouth Cathedral faces. The Cathedral team has done everything possible to reduce expenditure and Chapter has approved revised budgets for 2020 and 2021 which see deep cuts of almost 40%. Even with such drastic measures, we will be unable to achieve balanced budgets and to continue our ministry in the way we aspire to without the support of our congregation.

We know many people are facing financially challenging circumstances. If you are able to, please consider making a new or increased regular or one-off donation to support our work. Every gift is hugely valued and very gratefully received. If you are a UK taxpayer, signing up for Gift Aid will enable us to claim an additional 25% of your donation from HMRC.

Ways to make a regular donation:

• By Direct Debit – via the Parish Giving Scheme by calling 0333 002 1271. Lines are open Monday-Friday between 9.00am and 5.00pm. You will need your bank details ready as well as this reference information: Church name: Portsmouth Cathedral, Parish Giving Scheme parish code: 290629001

• By Standing Order – please contact sophie.henstridge-brown@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk for our bank details and reference number

Ways to make a one-off donation:

• By bank transfer – please contact sophie.henstridge-brown@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk for our bank details

• By cheque – payable to ‘Portsmouth Cathedral Chapter’ and sent to the Cathedral Offices

• Online here. Please note that online donations incur a fee from the online provider, if you wish us to receive all of your donation and Gift Aid, please use bank transfer or cheque.

Thank you to everyone who has generously increased their giving recently, we are hugely grateful.

If you would like to talk about how your gift can make a difference, please contact our Head of Fundraising Sophie Henstridge-Brown on sophie.henstrdge-brown@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk.

Online worship

Monday-Saturday                            

8.15am Morning Prayer                    
5.30pm Evening Prayer              
Compline is paused for the month of August returning on 1st September

Sunday

8.00am Holy Communion (BCP)
9.00am Holy Communion,
5.30pm Evensong followed by online refreshments at 6.30pm
Compline is paused for the month of August returning on 1st September

How to join the services

You do not need to be a member of Facebook to join the services. Please use this link when the service is about to begin. You will see a prompt asking you to join Facebook; just click ‘not now’. Orders of service for our Sunday Eucharist’s, Compline, and special services, can be found on the Resources Section of our website here

Order of Service for Sunday 2 August

The order of service for Eucharist on Sunday 2 August can be found here.

How to join the online Refreshments via Zoom

Coffee Hour will be hosted on Zoom at 6.30pm. In order to maintain security details will be sent with our emailed notices.

Prayers and Intercessions

Cathedral Prayers

All those affected by COVID-19

We remember the following for whom prayer has been asked by members of the Cathedral Community: Christopher, Clare, Sally, David, Bob, Derek, Nigel, Trevor, Izzy, Jenifer, Jenny, Des, (baby) Jonah, George, Clare and all those in need.

All those who have died: Mary Dunning, John Carpenter, Mark Noble, Carolyn Harry and Renee Chilton RIP.

Requesting an addition to the prayer list

To add someone to the prayer list, please email info@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk

Getting in touch

We know that this is a lonely and anxious time for many people. Please feel free to get in touch if we can help in any way, or if you just want to hear another voice!

Over August, the Clergy and lay staff will be taking holiday. Please bear with us if it takes us longer to get back to you than usual.

By phone:                                                                                                                                      

The Dean: 023 9282 4400                             

Canon Jo Spreadbury: 023 9275 2335

Cathedral Curate, Catherine Edenborough: 023 9282 3300 extn 221 (Usual days at the Cathedral: Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday)

Messages can also be left on the Cathedral phone system 023 9282 3300 and will be responded to as necessary.     

By email:

The Dean Anthony.Cane@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk

Canon Jo Spreadbury Jo.Spreadbury@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk

Cathedral Curate, Catherine Edenborough: Catherine.Edenborough@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk

For pastoral matters pastoral@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk

General matters info@portsmouthcathedral.org.uk