WELCOME:
Welcome to the Cranwell Parish Church website. We hope you will enjoy reading about the parish church of Saint Andrew and its activities. Better still, we hope that through looking at this website we can encourage you to visit our ancient and beautiful church; or best of all, to join us at one of our services.
HOW WE CAN HELP YOU.
St Andrew's parish church exists for everyone, not just those who worship in the church on a regular basis. Of course, it is committed to enabling as many people as possible to worship at the parish church and to become part of the church community, but there is more to being a parish church than that. In particular, we try to help all those who live in the village, whatever their faith, so if you, or someone you know, needs help then please let us know. Confidentiality is assured.
We can often help at the major events of life: marriage, births and deaths.
MARRIAGE
You are welcome to marry in church whatever your beliefs, whether or not you are christened and whether or not you regularly go to church. For such a special day, we offer a very special and beautiful place. We will do our best to help you plan a personal, meaningful, spiritual and beautiful church wedding. Please contact the priest-in-charge or the churchwardens. The Church of England website is also very useful so take a look at it:
http://www.yourchurchwedding.org/
Try the unique online Ceremony Planner to help you choose hymns and readings. You can even listen to the hymns first.
BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION
In baptism, we thank God for his gift of life and publicly acknowledge his love. In the Anglican Church it is common to baptise young children; this is sometimes known, outside the church, as christening. Baptism is a 'sacrament' in the Christian tradition that is traced back to Jesus himself being baptised in the river Jordan.
Confirmation marks the point in the Christian journey where those who have been baptised as children make a firm commitment to Christian discipleship through prayer and the laying on of hands by a bishop.
Both baptism and confirmation are also appropriate for those of a more mature age who wish to take a fuller part in the life of the church.
For more information please contact the priest-in-charge or the churchwardens.
FUNERALS
A funeral is used to mark the end of a person's life here on earth. Family and friends come together to express grief, give thanks for the life lived and commend the person into God's keeping. This can be a small, quiet ceremony or a large occasion in a packed church.
Everyone is entitled to either a burial service, or a service prior to cremation and to have their ashes buried in their local parish churchyard whether they attended church or not. Please note that at Cranwell certain parts of the churchyard are reserved for the graves of military personnel who died whilst in service or after retirement from the armed forces. Special rules relate to these areas. Please also note that the types of memorial that can be erected in the remainder of the churchyard are defined in the "Churchyard Regulations" issued by the Diocese of Lincoln.
PRAYERS
If you would like us pray for you, but you are perhaps too "shy" to approach one of us, then leave a prayer request on the board by the votive candle that burns all day in the North Aisle. We will pray for you during the weekday services.
Saint Chrystom's Prayer:
"Almighty God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications unto thee; and dost promise, that when two or three are gathered together in Thy Name thou wilt grant their requests: Fulfil now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be most expedient for them; granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen."
HOW YOU CAN HELP US
We need help in lots of ways, but especially:
- Although we try hard, we do not always know when someone in the village is in need of help, even if it is "just" to remember them in our prayers, so please let us know. The churchwardens are always available but the church also has representatives on the committees of the Senior Citizens' Club and the Village Hall Committee, and on the School's Governing Body.
- We are always grateful for your prayers, so if you can, please remember the parish church and its PCC in your prayers.
Finally, not only are we financially responsible for the upkeep of one of the oldest churches in Lincolnshire, but also we need to raise funds to pay for the clergy and to support our outreach programmes such as the teenagers Drop-in, the summer holiday activities for children of all ages, and charitable works. Please support our fund raising events (and that support can be "time" rather than cash) and, if you would like to make a donation through the website then please follow the link below.
TO MAKE A DONATION: www.charitygiving.co.uk/standrewcranwell