Portsmouth Cathedral Notices Sunday 26 July Seventh Sunday after Trinity
Welcome from The Dean
Some of you will know that although my family are from Tunbridge Wells, I grew up in Cape Town. It’s not something I talk about a lot, but I’ve recently found myself thinking more about those years in the light of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement. I left South Africa way back in 1981, and at that time you could give a cash value to how much black lives mattered as compared with white lives; per pupil education spending, for example, was more than ten times greater for white children.
I was not a churchgoer then (that’s another story) but I do remember how some Christians tried to justify apartheid in biblical terms. This was laughable, given that the Bible begins by affirming that all human beings are created in the image of God (Genesis 1.27), and in its final book of Revelation (chapter 5, verse 9), speaks of God’s kingdom comprising people from ‘every tribe and language and people and nation.’ Laughable, but also a lesson in how easy it can be to use religion in a self-justifying way; not necessarily deliberately, but because it’s usually far easier to see other people’s prejudices than one’s own.
In 1989, while training for the priesthood, I went back to South Africa for two months and studied in a seminary located in a black township. I listened and learnt from my fellow ordinands, not least about how they were constantly made aware of their blackness in a way I rarely had to think about being white. That listening and learning continues to this day; from the so-called Windrush generation, from those deeply affected by the death of George Floyd, and indeed from residents of Portsmouth such as Councilor Ben Dowling, whose mother is Vietnamese, who just this week in a Council debate spoke of being told to, ‘go back where you come from’.
Prejudice and discrimination, as I learnt in my childhood, means that some lives are valued more than others. Apartheid may have gone, but racism and inequality have not. That is why it is still necessary to assert that ‘Black Lives Matter’, and for all communities – including cathedrals – to reflect on how inclusive and welcoming they really are.
With my prayers and best wishes,
The Very Reverend Dr Anthony Cane
Dean of Portsmouth
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.
Public Worship
Sunday 26 July
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.
Weekdays
There will be a Holy Communion (in one kind only) in the Nave at 12 noon each weekday. The Cathedral will remain open at this time and numbers in the Cathedral will be limited to 30 in total.
Online Worship
We know that not everyone will be able to visit the Cathedral. We will be continuing our online services as normal on Facebook (see below for details), including a live-streamed service of Holy Communion every Sunday morning at 8.00am (Book of Common Prayer) and 9.00am.
“Good to Go” Covid-19 accreditation
The Cathedral is pleased to have been awarded the “Good to Go” accretion 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 a process 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:
Safeguarding Committee
Chapter Meeting News
Cathedral Repair Works
Video to ‘Diocesan School Leavers’
Cathedral Bells
Friends of the Cathedral
IDWAL (Inter-Diocesan West Africa Link) Newsletter)
Weekly reflection from the Portsmouth Cathedral Ministry Team
Online Resources
Supporting Portsmouth Cathedral
Online worship including the order of service for Sunday 26 July
Regular details of prayers and intercessions and ways to contact the Cathedral.
Safeguarding
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.
Chapter Meeting News
Chapter met on 15 July 2020 and reviewed progress on a number of fronts including:
New Vision and Strategy to be launched at the APCM in September Unanimous approval was given by Chapter to the new Vision and Strategy designed to lead our actions over the period leading up to our Centenary in 2027. The Vision and Strategy will be launched at the APCM on Sunday 13 September. The Dean and Chapter noted their thanks for the input from all parts of the Cathedral community in bringing together this new vision for our collective future.
Financial Performance Chapter reviewed the Cathedral’s financial performance and were pleased to note that the projected deficit is decreasing and is now expected to be under the projected circa £220,000 budgeted. It was recognised that there continue to be challenges ahead as income from events was likely to decrease still further and our costs including Covid-19 related expenses were rising. The Chief Operating Officer noted that there are still very significant challenges associated with our structural deficit that will need to be addressed in terms of expenditure control and increased revenue including congregational giving.
Increased congregational giving The generous increase in both regular and one-off congregational giving since 1 April 2020 was noted with thanks. The Chief Operating Officer noted some comparative research with other English Cathedrals that still shows total planned giving at Portsmouth at or near the bottom of all cathedrals
Grants and awards Since the last meeting of Chapter, the Cathedral has been grateful to receive additional Covid-19 related grants from the Church Commissioners and the City of Portsmouth.
Cathedral Sustainability Funding (CSF) - “Digital Cathedral.” Chapter also noted our successful application for three years of funding from CSF to support our marketing and communications function. This successful bid led by Sophie Henstridge-Brown our Head of Fundraising and Events, will enhance our marketing and digital offer including the hiring of a new digital marketing lead.
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. This is part of the planned preventative maintenance programme. With lockdown easing other delayed scheduled works will now be restarted. It is hoped that the refurbishment of the South-West door, made possible solely through the generous donations of members of the congregation and charitable trusts including the Limoges Trust and Portsmouth Cathedral Development Trust, will be completed by the autumn.
Video to ‘Diocesan School Leavers’ Service
Our Diocesan School Leavers’ Services for children in Year 6 have gone online this year, in the form of a video, which is designed to be watched in both schools and homes. The annual theme this year is ‘Standing Together’. Although this seems ironic in the circumstances, its implications of hope and solidarity seem more important than ever, and the schools have found many creative ways of exploring it. As well as wonderful input from the children themselves, the video contains contributions from our Cathedral clergy and organist. You can find it here
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..
The IDWAL (Inter-Diocesan West Africa Link) Newsletter
The IDWAL July 2020 newsletter is available on the Cathedral’s website.
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
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
8.30pm Compline
Sunday
8.00am Holy Communion (BCP)
9.00am Holy Communion,
5.30pm Evensong followed by online refreshments at 6.30pm
8.30pm Compline
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 26 July
The order of service for Eucharist on Sunday 26 July can be found here.
How to join the online Refreshments via Zoom
Coffee Hour will be hosted on Zoom at 6.30am. 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, Reuben, Izzy, Jenifer, Jenny, Des and all those in need.
All those who have died: Mary Dunning, John Carpenter, Joseph and Bernadette Dodds 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!
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, 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