10th October 2021

The Parish Churches of

St Michael & St Wulfad, Stone, with

St Saviour Aston by Stone

SERVICE SHEETS, BOOKS AND HYMNBOOKS. We do wish to be careful about this and will ask you to return them to a table at the rear of Church, rather than sidespeople putting them away immediately.

This week’s gospel is the famous account of Jesus’s encounter with the rich young man. The young man in question approaches Jesus and asks his important question “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”  It’s an interesting tale, because there is no inference at all that, when Jesus recites to him the commandments, the young man is less than sincere when he replies “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.”  In other words, he is a good man, under the terms of the Old Testament. Yet he knows that something isn’t quite right

Jesus’s reply is often taken out of context of course. When he suggests that he gives away his wealth and joins the disciples, he is not necessarily saying that all of us should become mendicant Friars. Rather he is challenging the young man to do something positive. OK, he is not mixed up in adultery, theft etc. – but he is not yet, at any rate, able to see that his heart is set on something other than the Kingdom of God. There is something that blocks his closer walk with God – in this case, his money

So the challenge is directly to us: what is it that prevents us from walking more closely with God? It might be wealth – but equally it might be fear, anxiety or even current relationships that we have. In one of my parishes I knew a lady who would like to come to church – but her husband would immediately say “Then who is going to cook my dinner?”

The great shame of all this is Jesus’s promise – that those who are faithful will receive one hundred times anything they have to relinquish. Ultimately the whole of this story is about God’s gracious invitation. “Oh taste and see that the Lord is Good” (Ps 34)

Ian Cardinal

Hymns for today

                        Aston                          Stone

            101                              285

            186                              175

                        524                              464

355/116                       426/53

534                              380

Please pray for the sick in the benefice:

Elsie Richardson, Vera Tomkinson, Pat Wynne, Gary Kelsall, John Richardson, Peter Bowler, Catherine Ritchie, Miles Brain, John & Ann Shuttleworth, Margaret Wright, Molly Wright, Norman Latham, Gillian Wright, John Hargreaves, Val Morris, June Stringer, Jim Hammersley, Alison Holmes, Pam Miles, Lewis Hubbard, Jean Gulliver, Margaret Tomlinson, Dave McGlynn, Sue Kenchington, Elsie Woodcock, Lindsey Knowles, Carl Hartley, Mike Thompson

For the recently departed, remembering their families and friends:

Katheryn Coull, Fay Maskrey, John Sanders

Remembering their families and friends at this time

This week:

Tuesday 12^th 11.45am – 1pm DROP INN CAFÉ St Michael’s Hall

Wednesday 13^th 7.00pm St Michael’s hall AGM via Zoom

Thursday 14^th 10.30am Holy Communion – St M&W

            7pm St Michael’s school Governors – via Teams

Saturday 16^th 3pm MESSY CHURCH resumes in St Michael’s Hall

HARVEST GIFTS FOR THE FOOD BANKplease can we offer Tinned Meat, UHT Milk, Small Jars of Coffee, Jam, Jars of Sauce, Potatoes, Custard, Rice Pudding, Fruit, Biscuits at our Harvest services?

LADIES GROUPFuture date December 10^th 12.30pm Festive lunch at Trentham Shopping village – cost approx. £20 – Menu to follow. Put your name down now – speak to Steph

MESSY CHURCH makes a welcome return next Saturday 16^th. All children are welcome, provided they bring a responsible adult along (who will probably enjoy it too!)