WELCOME TO MELTON TEAM PARISH WEBSITE

Welcome to the Melton Mowbray Team Parish!

There’s so much useful and interesting information about our Team Parish on this, our new website – do take time to explore it.

And, if possible, we look forward to meeting you in person soon.

Every Blessing,
Mary (Barr)
Team Rector 

If you can’t find what you’re looking for, do contact Julia, the Website Administrator by email julia@meltonparish.org.uk.

Team Rector Writes

“Christmas Angels”

Dear Friends,

Do you believe in angels? If you do, then you are not alone. According to a poll commissioned by the Bible Society a few years ago, one in three people in the UK believe in angels and the same proportion feel they have a guardian angel watching over them.

Of course, for some folk angels are in the same category as fairies or chubby cherubs. But that’s far from the Bible’s descriptions of angelic beings. From the Old Testament to the New, the visitation of an angel is always alarming. That’s why when angels appear to deliver a message from God, they begin by saying ‘Fear not’.

This was certainly the case with the angels who feature in Gospel accounts of Christ’s nativity. Think, for instance, of the visit of the Angel Gabriel to Mary in Nazareth to tell her that she would conceive and give birth to a son, who was to be called Jesus. “Do not be afraid, Mary…”, says Gabriel (Luke 1:30). Or again, St Luke tells us that the shepherds out in the fields near Bethlehem were terrified at the sight of the Lord’s angel who came to bring them the news of God’s promised Saviour. “Do not be afraid,” says the angel, “I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people…”.

Most of the Christmas carols we enjoy singing at this time of year also mention angels. For example, Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the new-born King; The angel Gabriel from heaven came; Angels from the realms of glory; The first Nowell the angel did say…, to name but four. In spite of initial fear at the awesome presence of an angel, the message of the angels is one of joy and gladness – a message of good news sung to those in need of the light of hope. In the carol It came upon the midnight clear, the ‘glorious song of old’ the angels bring is one of ‘Peace on the earth, goodwill to all, from heaven’s all-gracious King’. The message of the angels continues to come to our war-torn and weary world; but we need to ‘hush the noise of mortal strife’, in order to hear ‘the love-song which they bring’.

Singing – doing it or listening to it –  is a very good way to drown out the cacophony of negativity that so often surrounds us. There are many Carol Services and other opportunities to hear and sing the song of the angels across the Melton Mowbray Team Parish in the coming weeks. Do invite friends and neighbours to come and sing the Christmas story with us:

“We hear the Christmas angels

the great glad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us,

our Lord Emmanuel!”

May I wish you Christmas joy and peace, as we celebrate again the love-song which the angels bring.

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