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A Letter from the Rector
All the Mince Pies are gone, now to the Hot Cross Buns. On the 14th February, Valentine’s Day, it is also Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent.
Lent is a significant period in the Christian calendar that lasts for 40 days, excluding Sundays, leading up to Easter Sunday. It is observed by various Christian denominations and is a time of reflection, repentance, and preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.
During Lent, believers are encouraged to engage in practices such as prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. These practices are meant to help individuals deepen their relationship with God, seek spiritual renewal, and grow in their faith. Fasting involves abstaining from certain foods or activities as a form of self-discipline and a way to focus on spiritual matters.
The origin of Lent can be traced back to the early days of Christianity, when new converts would undergo a period of preparation and instruction before being baptized on Easter Sunday. This period of preparation became known as Lent, derived from the Old English word “Lenten,” which means “Springtime.” Over time, Lent evolved into a season of penance and self-examination for all believers
An important aspect of Lent is prayer. During this season, believers are encouraged to spend more time in prayer, seeking a deeper connection with God and discerning His will for their lives. Many churches offer additional prayer services or devotional resources to support individuals in their prayer journey during Lent.
In addition to prayer and fasting, Lent also emphasises the importance of almsgiving. This involves acts of charity and generosity towards others, particularly those in need. Many Christians choose to give alms, whether through financial contributions, volunteering their time, or helping those less fortunate than themselves.
The symbolism of the number 40 is significant in Lent. It represents the 40 days and nights that Jesus spent fasting in the desert before beginning His ministry. It is a time of testing, preparation, and growth, mirroring Jesus’ own experience.
As we journey through Lent, it is an opportunity for believers to draw closer to God, examine their lives, and make positive changes. It is a time to focus on spiritual disciplines and seek transformation. Ultimately, the purpose of Lent is to prepare our hearts and minds for the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday, the pinnacle of the Christian faith.
We will mark the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday with two services of Ashing. 10am at Lympne church, and 7pm at Saltwood church. This is a Communion service where those present are marked on their forehead with the sign of the cross in ash. A symbol of humbleness, “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
Rev Barry
Diary: St Peter and St Paul, Saltwood
Our regular pattern of worship includes a service every Sunday at 10am. Usually this is Holy Communion (to which all are welcome, whether or not you choose to receive communion) with a Family Service on the fourth Sunday of each month. Other services of Holy Communion, including ‘Book of Common Prayer’ services at Saltwood and Pedlinge, are shown on the website calendar, along with all services and events for the month.
Bubble Church, for families with Toddlers, is held in the Lads’ Club at 10am on the first Sunday of the month; Sunday Club, for children aged 3 – 10 is held at 10am in the Lads’ Club, on the third Sundays in term time.
Some highlights for your diary include:
Thursday 1st – 11.00 – Funeral
Thursday 1st – 19.00 – Choir Practice (and each following Thursday)
Friday 2nd – 09.00 – Prayer in the church (and each following Friday)
Monday 5th – 14,00 – Monday Chats in the Lads’ Club (and each following Monday)
Tuesday 6th – Our Rector’s day off (and each following Tuesday)
Wednesday 7th – 10.00 to 11.30 – Saltwood Toddlers in the Lads’ Club (and each following Wednesday)
Thursday 8th – 14.00 – Afternoon Prayer Group at 34 Harpswood Lane
Wednesday 14th – 10.00 – Service of Ashing at Lympne Church
Wednesday 14th – 19.00 – Service of Ashing at Saltwood Church
Saturday 17th – 10.30 – Coffee Morning at Lympne Church
Wednesday 21st – 14.00 – Cinema Club in the Lads’ Club
Saturday 24th – 10.00 to 12.30 – Book Fair in the Lads’ Club
Saturday 24th – last date for items for the March magazine
Useful Contacts
Rector – Rev Barry Knott: Telephone: 01303 883243 email: rev.barry@icloud.com
Church website: www.saltwoodchurch.org
Community Support Hub: 01303 269602
Parish Pastoral Support: 0300 030 1330
Children & Families Ministry (including weddings and baptisms) – Christine Clover:
Telephone: 0300 030 1662 email: christineclover@lympneandsaltwoodchurches.uk
Lads’ Club Bookings: Jan Heard 01303 266945 email: jan.entendu@gm
Parish Magazine: Beth Lewsey 01303 264577 email: parishmagazine@saltwoodchurch.org
Items for the February Magazine
If you have any items for the March edition of the magazine, please forward to Beth Lewsey, by: 24th February, by email if possible, to: parishmagazine@saltwoodchurch.org or deliver to 20 Castle Avenue. (Tel 01303 264577)
From the Parish Records
Our love and sympathy go to the friends and family of:
John Woodward, whose service of thanksgiving and burial were on 12th January
and
Julia Horton, whose funeral was on 24th January
Intercessions for February
Today we pray especially for:
1 Those who live in Turnpike Hill, Britten Close and Spanton Crescent
2 St Mary the Virgin Elham
3 Those who minister in our residential homes
4 Those who maintain our community
5 Those who live in Rectory Lane and Victoria Place
6 Sunday Club
7 Our local GPs
8 Justin, Archbishop of Canterbury
9 Those who live in Old London Road, Redbrooks Way, Summer Close and Sunny Bank
10 Those unable to attend church, thinking particularly of those known to you
11 The homeless, thinking particularly of those known to you
12 Brockhill Park Performing Arts College – staff and pupils
13 St Martin’s Cheriton, All Soul’s Cheriton and St Nicholas Newington
14 Those who live in Grange Road and School Road
15 The work of the Church Army
16 Those who seek Christ
17 Residential and nursing homes – their staff and residents
18 Sidesmen and welcomers
19 Those who live in Castle Avenue, Lookers Lane and Quarry Road
20 Those who represent us – in parish, district and county councils and in Parliament
21 Those who help lead our worship
22 Those parts of the world suffering from natural disasters and all those seeking to relieve the suffering these cause
23 St Leonard’s Hythe, St Michael’s Anglican and Methodist Centre and Holy Cross Palmarsh
24 Those who live in Brockhill Road and Seaton Avenue
25 The armed forces and their families
26 The Folkestone Rainbow Centre
27 Those coping with debt and unemployment, thinking particularly of those known to you
28 Bob Weldon and Barry Knott, our area Dean
29 Those who live in Blue House Lane, Sandy Lane and the A20, Saltwood
A Prayer for the month of February
Father, 
In this coldest and shortest of months, this month when traditionally thoughts turn to love and the promise of Spring, help us to be thankful and steadfast and to see Your bigger picture in what is sometimes a frightening world, a world where love between nations seems to be in short supply and the future uncertain.
We pray for all those whose lives are in turmoil through a lack of love and justice. Help us to remember the great love You have for Your world and Your people, so great that You sent Jesus to show us how to live, how to love and how to overcome the troubles of the world.
Help us to put our trust in Jesus, to keep our focus on Him, knowing He will never leave us or forsake us. Thank you that His love is stronger than the forces of evil, stronger than death.
In his name,
Amen.
(By Daphne Kitching)
Prayer Ministry at Saltwood
The Prayer Ministry Team invite you to come for prayer, in the sanctuary immediately after the Sunday morning services. You can ask for prayer for anybody and anything…. maybe the health and well-being of someone else or yourself? Or perhaps you have a national or world concern on your mind? You don’t need to share any sensitive details and you will not be asked any intrusive questions. You can bring your coffee with you if you wish. St John assures us ‘This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.’ (1 John 5:14)
Team members will be glad to pray with you where you are sitting in the pews, if you prefer. Just ask one of the welcome team to let us know.
Wardens’ Corner
From Carol Eastell:-
Reminders about Prayer meetings:
 |
Sundays at 9 40 am for a few minutes before the service in Saltwood Church
Fridays at 9 00 am in Saltwood Church |
Prayer Afternoon at the home Penny Forsythe on Thursday 8 February at 2 pm (NB the change of day). We would love you to join us as we pray for our church, the events in the world and also for people known to us who would like prayer.
We would be delighted to welcome newcomers to any of our prayer groups and most especially we would welcome you to come forward for prayer following our Morning Services. As always, this valuable prayer time is in the strictest of confidence.
I am looking to share the leadership of some of our gatherings, mostly in this case our prayer meetings. Is the Holy Spirit prodding you into taking a role in the life of our church? Do you fancy taking a turn and bringing your own ideas for prayer into any of our groups. I would love to hear from you so give me a call or speak to me after Sunday Morning Service. (Carol Eastell 07795 100 441)
I am so pleased that Val Makin has stepped up to the plate and agreed to take on the running of the Lent Lunches. So I do hope you will support her as she takes on this enjoyable, if a bit scary task. Scary because she is a fairly newcomer to our lovely welcoming church family, so please do encourage her and of course make lots of soup and come along to the lunches which are commencing on Saturday 2 March and following on: 9, 16 and 23 March.
From John Campbell: –
Psalm 133 is a great encouragement. It’s very short but highly focussed.
1 Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes!
3 It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.
I want you to notice that the Lord has commanded the blessing in the place where brothers and sisters dwell together in unity. Blessing is not a reward for unity but the divinely ordained consequence of it. The other side of the coin is that we can each remove ourselves from the blessing, which flows like running anointing oil, by actively creating and fomenting disharmony.
Scripture tells us that Satan is the accuser of the brethren. He will use our frail fallen humanity to sow dissent and discontent. There’s nothing he loves more than the free flowing of a critical spirit in church families and communities. We must each and all be on guard against this. If you feel strongly about another person, clergy or laity, (and it has nothing to do with safeguarding or protection), then take it to the Lord in prayer, and not to another person in the congregation. It’s fine to complain within reason about uncomfortable pews or particular hymns, or to kindly point out an administration failure. It is not fine to speak judgmentally against a brother or sister in Christ.
Surely we all want to be in that place of blessing? The psalmist tells us it’s life evermore, with all the awe and wonder that engenders, and it starts now, here, in the place of unity, not when we die! Let’s not jettison such a wonderful gift by careless gossip and unkind talk – at home or in church.
Repeated Post – Reverend Barry’s Day Off.
Barry’s nominated weekly day off is Tuesday. This is the day that suits him best, so I would ask you all not to contact him at all that day by any means – by phone, email, or text. If an emergency occurs, by which I mean something that really, really can’t wait until Wednesday, then please contact one of the wardens.
We take our days off for granted and most of us during our working lives had both Saturday and Sunday off. Barry has only one day off and I am asking each one of us to honour it and protect it.
A Quote to Ponder
With Lent in Mind …
Happy moments, praise God. Difficult moments, seek God. Quiet moments, worship God. Painful moments, trust God. Every moment, thank God. – Anon 
And with Valentine’s Day in mind …
Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction. – Antoine De Saint-Exupery
Just Imagine!
We live in troubled times, with many wars and conflicts scarring our world.
Just imagine how wonderful it would be if all the nations could come together and agree to take turns to compile a service of Christian worship, which would be translated into many languages, so that it could be used across the whole world.
Just imagine how powerful those prayers would be if the nations could agree on a set date to hold the service, so that over 24 hours, as the sun rotates around us, those prayers have been used in every country.
We don’t have to imagine! That is exactly what World Day of Prayer is all about! Formerly called Women’s World Day of Prayer, it is now known as World Day of Prayer, because ALL are welcome to the service, but it is still compiled by the women of the chosen nation.
Do not be put off by the title – you aren’t being asked to attend a whole day of meditation and prayer; just a simple service of less than an hour, concluding with refreshments. Always the first Friday in March, this year that falls on 1st March. Please do come to our local service at the Salvation Army Hall at 2pm. Because of the time taken to organise and translate etc, services are prepared about three years in advance. How poignant that three years ago the women of Palestine prepared the 2024 service. God’s timing is good!
Someone looking in from the outside, without knowing the background, may just see a group of Hythe and Saltwood people – often ladies, often of a certain age (!) – and not understand why I get so excited about this each year. I get excited because I know I am sharing fellowship, using the same words, with others across the whole world. Just imagine!
Beth Lewsey
World Day of Prayer 
Friday 1st March
2pm
Salvation Army, Portland Road, Hythe
ALL WELCOME at this service!
Saltwood Cinema Club
Will be showing
‘THE MIRACLE CLUB’
on Wednesday 17th February
at 2pm at the Lads’ Club
Ballygar, in Ireland in 1967 is a hard-knocks community in outer Dublin which marches to its own beat, rooted in traditions of loyalty, faith and togetherness.
There’s just one tantalising dream for the women of Ballygar to taste freedom and escape the gauntlet of domestic life: to win a pilgrimage to the sacred French town of Lourdes. And with a little benevolent interference from their cheeky and rebellious priest, close friends Lily, Eileen, Dolly and Sheila are the ‘lucky’ few to win this ticket of a lifetime at their riotous local raffle night. Starring Maggie Smith, Kathy Bates and a host of actors and Brenda Flicker as the voice.
Cost £5 per person to include tea and cake
All proceeds to the Lads’ Club Funds
BOOK FAIR!
Saturday
24th February 
10-12.30
In the Lads’ Club
Another chance to replenish your reading matter – and to chat to friends, old and new, over coffee and cake! 
Church Cleaning – HELP NEEDED!
Saltwood Church has a nice group of volunteers working in pairs, to clean the church on a rota basis, usually 3 or 4 times a year. However, we have lost some helpers due to age or ill health and are looking for more volunteers!
The tasks include vacuuming the carpets, sweeping the floors, dusting, cleaning the toilets and kitchen. Ideally the church is cleaned on a Friday, or Saturday morning, ready for Sunday services, but it can be done at any time that suits you when the church is not in use.
If you would like to join this happy band, you would be most welcome. Please ring Mary Hunter on 01303 268423 to discuss.
13th February: Shrove Tuesday
Ever wonder why we eat pancakes just before Lent? The tradition dates back to Anglo-Saxon times, when Christians spent Lent in repentance and severe fasting. 
So on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the church bell would summon them to confession, where they would be ‘shriven’, or absolved from their sins, which gives us Shrove Tuesday. At home, they would then eat up their last eggs and fat, and making a pancake was the easiest way to do this. For the next 47 days, they pretty well starved themselves.
Pancakes feature in cookery books as far back as 1439, and today’s pancake races are in remembrance of a panicked woman back in 1445 in Olney, Buckinghamshire. She was making pancakes when she heard the shriving bell calling her to confession. Afraid she’d be late, she ran to the church in a panic, still in her apron, and still holding the pan.
Flipping pancakes is also centuries old. A poem from Pasquil’s Palin in 1619 runs: “And every man and maide doe take their turne, And tosse their Pancakes up for feare they burne.”
Some people have noted that the ingredients of pancakes can be used to highlight four significant things about this time of year: eggs stand for creation, flour is the staff of life, while salt keeps things wholesome, and milk stands for purity.
Shrove Tuesday is always 47 days before Easter Sunday and falls between 3rd February and 9th March.
(Photo by Dazedream on Unsplash)
From the Parish Magazine 2004
Extracts from our magazine from 20 years ago!
From The history of Pews: “Before the Reformation … people would stand or kneel during the service. When there was a procession, the verger would be at the head to clear a way through the congregation scattered about the floor. There was some seating. Usually around the base of the columns or against the walls. These were used by the elderly and infirm – hence the origin of the expression ‘let the weak go to the walls.’ “
Saltwood Village Society was advertising a talk on the History of the Royal Mail by Dr M Lyons ‘The particular interest of this talk will be focussed on letter boxes which often have a bizarre and unusual history and some of which can still be seen in Shepway. Earlier boxes were made of wood but proved easy targets for robberies.’
Editor’s note: The current situation with the Royal Mail makes me hope it will still be operational in another nineteen years!
(Extracts for March 2004 next month!)
From the Recor’s Letter of February 2004
A little boy went to visit his grandmother. He was in a very bad mood. He felt everything was going wrong in his life: his teachers at school were too demanding. And his sisters were driving him crazy at home, his mother made him do piano practice, and his father made him walk the dog each afternoon. He sat in his grandmother’s kitchen and complained bitterly.
After a while, Grandmother stood up and said:
‘Well, would you like a snack to cheer you up?’
‘Oh yeah!’
Grandmother reached up to a shelf.
‘Here, have some cooking oil.’
‘Yuck!’ said the boy, shocked at her suggestion.
‘Well how about a couple of raw eggs?’ She went to the pantry.
‘That’s disgusting, Grannie!’
Grandmother came back to the kitchen and held out her hands:
‘Would you like some flour then? Or baking soda?’
The boy was getting alarmed: ‘Grannie, those are yucky!’
Grandmother calmly laid out on the table all the ingredients which the boy had rejected. Then she said, ‘Look: raw eggs, flour, oil, baking soda … nothing here you would want, but when they are put together in the right way, and given time, they make a delicious cake’
God works in the same way in our lives. Many times we wonder why he would let us go through bad and difficult times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good! All he asks is that we trust him, and walk close with him, and eventually, out of the raw ingredients of our lives, He will make something wonderful.
So enjoy your pancakes and make your plans for Lent
Lent Lunch Dates
As mentioned earlier in this magazine – Lent Lunches will be served in the Lads’ Club on the 2nd, 9th, 16th and 23rd March. Do look out for more details, but please note the dates in your diary now!
St Stephen’s Church, Lympne
SERVICES AND EVENTS IN FEBRUARY
4th – Parish Communion – 11.00
11th – Family Hooba Service
14th Communion Service with Ashing – 10.00
17th – Coffee Morning – 10.30
18th – Morning Worship – 11.00
25th – Parish Communion – 11.00
A big THANK YOU to all who supported our Coffee Morning in January. The cakes were absolutely delicious and very much appreciated. We raised £166.75 of which £55.00 has been donated to Home Farm Trust, Lympne Place.
SUNDAY CLUB
Meets at The Lads’ Club, Rectory Lane, Saltwood, CT21 4QA,
10-11am during term time.
We have a wonderful time with all sorts of art & crafts, cooking, games and lots of drama. Fun groups for children aged 3-10 years. New faces are always very welcome.
For more information ring: Christine Clover on 0300 0301662,
text: 07379 877846 or email: christineclover@lympneandsaltwoodchurches.uk.
BUBBLE CHURCH
A Sunday church service especially for babies, toddlers and young families. It’s a puppet-packed, Jesus centred, coffee and croissant fuelled, 30 minute kids and families adventure.
Join us on 4 February 2024 from 9.45 am in the Lads’ Club, Rectory Lane, Saltwood, CT21 4QA. Please book your place on the Lympne & Saltwood Benefice website, so that we know who’s coming.
CLEANERS NEEDED
Would you be able to spend a couple of hours or so, say once a month or less, to go on a rota to help keep our lovely church clean and welcoming? You can work alone or with others, at a time to suit you. In addition, a couple of times a year, we organise a bigger group to carry out a deeper clean before Easter and Christmas.
For more information email: Fiona Jarvest: fionajarvest22@gmail.com
LYMPNE FELLOWSHIP GROUP
January saw us once again getting our brains into action with a ‘Bingo Quiz’ – where we were all given individually numbered bingo cards and a set of questions to work our way through. Prizes to the first group to get a line, then the second until someone had completed a whole card. Great fun, and played while enjoying a ploughman’s. Plenty of time for social chat – an afternoon enjoyed by all. Our thanks to Jill for organising the quiz and to Pam and her helpers for providing the lovely food.
Lympne Fellowship normally meets at 1.15pm in the Harry Margary Hall on the 2nd Thursday of the month, with a programme of interesting and informative talks and activities. For further information about our group, please contact Jill Page on 07846 819693
Lympne Coffee Morning
SATURDAY 17 FEBRUARY 2024
10.30am – 12.30pm
Join us for coffee, cakes & savoury bakes
Catch up with old friends and new
(Well-behaved dogs welcome)
Play games or just enjoy a chat
Proceeds to maintenance of the church plus
a donation to this month’s nominated charity:
GUIDE DOGS (HYTHE & DISTRICT GROUP)
SHAL: Studying History and Archaeology in Lympne
Our annual ‘Memories’ January meeting featured Airfield Society organiser, John Simpson, on Lympne in WW1 and 2. The first raid on Lympne was a German Zeppelin which attacked with five bombs killing 15 people who were all part of the Canadian Field Artillery, 5th Infantry Brigade most of whom are buried at Shorncliffe Military Cemetery. Lympne Airfield opened in 1916 with new hangars. The railway was a standard gauge spurring off the mainline at Westenhanger, terminating where Beacon Way now stands. Various types of aircraft were carried in by train on ten wagons for reassembling and flown to the Western Front. In July 1939 the airfield transferred to the Admiralty from the Air Ministry for a short period, and aircraft from Ark Royal took up residence, as well as the Naval Air Mechanics School training men on a Hawker Nimrod and Supermarine Walrus. The Hill family lived in Stone Street, John Henry working at Station HQ. He was there when it was attacked by Stukas in August 1940 whilst the family retreated to their air raid shelter, and he escaped into the woods. At the outbreak of the war there was a requisitioning of properties in the village to house the forces – Port Lympne for the Officers’ Mess, the French House for the Sergeants’ Mess, RAF Personnel at Lympne Place, and WAAF quarters at Bellevue, Danehurst, and Lympne Hall. Lympne Villa became the NAAFI as a shop, café and a place for WAAFS to meet up with aircrews. Seacroft was the Air Ministry Works Directorate and Old Mill Cottage became a hospital. Lympne Castle was a lookout whilst forces were billeted along Stone Street to Newingreen. Contributions from 7 Members about their discoveries or anecdotes from WW2 ended a very interesting session.
At the 20th February meeting Chris Shaw of Shorncliffe Trust will talk on Shorncliffe Barracks & SE Defences.
Castle Green WI
Castle Green WI held the first meeting of 2024 on 12th January and members were welcomed by the President Julie Andrews.35 members and 5 guests attended and apologies for absence were noted.
The President reminded members of the fire regulations for the Lads’ Club and a drill will be held in the summer. Voting slips for the National Federation’s resolutions were collected and will be sent on.
Annual subscriptions are due at the February meeting. Single membership is £48 and dual membership is £23 – 60. Payment can be paid by cheque or bank transfer only, no cash please. Speakers for the coming year were announced.
After a break for coffee and chat, the demonstrator for the meeting was introduced.
Vanessa is a professional belly dancer who started her career late in life. She gave a lively and interesting talk on belly dancing and danced two dances, one freestyle and one more traditional. Vanessa’s dress was an elegant, full-length kaftan style dress, in silver which shimmered as she danced, and her movements were rhythmic and very graceful. Not the traditional image of a belly dancer. She named and demonstrated the various moves of this ancient form of dance which goes back 25,000 years in the Middle East, notably Egypt. Women would gather together to dance and would teach pre-pubescent girls the moves which were intended to strengthen parts of the body used in childbearing.
Belly dancing came to Europe in the Middle Ages, probably to Spain at first and dancers were respected until Islam and other religious groups frowned on this form of dance and it was regarded as shameful. Today there has been a revival of interest and there are many groups in Kent. It now recognised as very good exercise and the UK Diabetic Society has a belly dancer on its poster promoting this dancing as an excellent way to keep fit. Marjorie Mitchell gave a vote of thanks.
The next meeting will be on 9th February.
Marjorie Mitchell
Reminder: PAYMENT for your Parish Magazine
This magazine has been printed for the benefit of those who cannot access the internet. If you need this paper copy, a small charge of 50p per copy or £5 per annum is made to cover the cost of printing. Your payment may be put in the wall safe by the church door.
However, if you have the magazine delivered to you, and have not yet made payment for 2024, please hand the £5 to the person who delivers to you, and they can pass this to our Treasurer, Laurie Maxfield.
Finishing with a Smile …
… When Adam stayed out very late for a few nights, Eve became upset. “You’re running around with other women,” she charged.
“You’re being unreasonable,” Adam responded. “You’re the only woman on earth.”
The quarrel continued until Adam fell asleep, only to be awakened by someone poking him in the chest. It was Eve.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Adam demanded.
“Counting your ribs,” said Eve.
