Sharing Christ's love in Perth
We pray for the people suffering in the aftermath of Saturday’s earthquake in the Gorkha region of Nepal, thinking especially of those who have lost loved ones as the death toll rises, but also giving thanks for rescuers and aid workers struggling to do what they can in remote locations.
To donate to the Christian Aid Nepal Earthquake Appeal, please click here.
Please note a change to our service times on the first Sunday of each month.
From 3rd May our all-age ‘Alive For Christ’ service will start at 10.30, rather than 10.45. This brings the first Sunday of the month into line with other Sundays and ensures that there is a service of communion starting at the same time in church every Sunday.
What a change there was after our Good Friday meditations…
Many people worked hard on Easter Saturday to decorate the church and prepare for our Easter celebrations. The Easter morning sunshine streamed in through the windows, giving a joyous air to the whole church.
As the 8.30 Communion service ended the smell of bacon from the Threshold next door proved irresistible. Many from this early service stayed on to share an Easter breakfast and were joined by people arriving early for the 10.30 Eucharist. We must do this more often!
The church was packed at 10,30, with both balconies in use as we joyfully celebrated Christ’s resurrection. At the end of the service the children hunted enthusiastically for Easter eggs around the church, then refreshments were served in the Threshold with tea, coffee and cake.
More photos can be seen on our Facebook page.
On Maundy Thursday we gathered in church for a Seder meal which incorporated prayers, Bible readings, a symbolic meal, washing of hands and feet and a memorial of the Last Supper. At the end of the meal we moved to the front of the church and watched as the altar was stripped and turned into a garden of repose. The lights were dimmed and we kept a candle-lit vigil till ten o’clock with a real sense of Christ’s presence.
The table in church prepared for the Seder meal
Final adjustments to the lamb stew which was served at the Seder meal
Many people helped in preparing for this commemoration which brought alive for us the events of that night.
The candle-lit altar during the vigil
On Good Friday morning the church was returned to its traditional layout in time for Rev Dr Anne Tomlinson to lead us in three hours’ meditation on Jesus’ seven words from the cross.
Fellowship Coffee Morning 2015
St Johns’ Fellowship held a coffee morning on 14th March with a raffle and a cake and candy stall. The money raised for this year’s charities will be over £700.
Graham Taylor interviews Most Rev David Chillingworth
On Mothering Sunday, 15th March, we welcomed our bishop, David Chillingworth, to preside at our Sung Eucharist. Families with young children were particularly welcome and children handed out posies of flowers to the congregation at the end of the service.
Instead of preaching a sermon, Bishop David was interviewed by our rector Graham about his faith journey.
After the service there were refreshments in the Threshold, including home-baked cakes.
Mothering Sunday congregation
During Lent there have been no sermons at the Sunday morning Eucharist service. Instead, different members of the congregation have been invited to share their faith stories.
Graham Taylor and Lillian Fleming in conversation
Graham Taylor and Lillian Fleming in conversation
This is proving to be a source of encouragement for all of us.
Putting together a programme for an organ recital was always going to be a challenge for me. I’m much more of a pianist and a romantic, and there’s a conspicuous shortage of romantic organ music.
The seed for this concert was planted back in April when I realised that Star Wars Day (May the fourth) fell on a Sunday this year, and indeed on an Alive for Christ service day. I then went looking for Star Wars sheet music to play, and in doing so found a lovely looking piano arrangement of the Imperial March (from The Empire Strikes Back) which I thought would adapt beautifully to the organ, but was much too difficult for me to learn in a week. I then remembered that when Alison was arranging the recital series in 2013 I had said something about ‘maybe next year’…
So what else to play? For me it was a very short step from the music of John Williams to the music of Jeremy Soule, the ‘John Williams of video game music’ and another series close to my heart: The Elder Scrolls. This involved more searching on the internet, and as even less of this has been published as sheet music even a little transcription by ear. I hope you agree that the resulting organ arrangement of a couple of pieces has come out quite well.
Obviously I needed to write something, and so I’ll be playing the world premiere of my new Organ Sonata. I don’t really want to say too much about it, I’m always more interested in hearing other people’s thoughts on my music than writing my own.
Franz Liszt is one of the few, perhaps the only, truly great romantic composer to write extensively for the organ, and produced some really wonderful organ music. Much of which is very long and fiendishly difficult. I’m going to play two Church Hymns, which are based on plainchant, and a chance to showcase just how quiet and delicate the organ can be.
The whole thing will be rounded off with Widor’s mighty Toccata, which I’ve played a couple of times this year and you’re all probably heartily sick of by now. I promise to put it away after this… at least for a bit!
If you’re interested in what I’m doing on the piano at the moment, I do now have a website. Given that there is already an American musician with my name on the internet I am publishing my music under my middle name: Ilmar. If you head along to ilmarmusic.com you can hear some of what I’ve been writing and playing recently.