02 Advent Sunday This is the first Sunday of a new Christian year. ‘Advent’ means ‘coming’ and in this season the Church both looks forward to its celebration of the birth of Jesus at Christmas and looks for his coming again in glory. Advent is a time of preparation and expectation.
09 Second Sunday of Advent
14 John of the Cross, Poet, Teacher of the Faith, Mystic, 1591 John was Spanish and lived at a turbulent time, both in terms of politics and religion. He tried to reform his religious order, the Carmelites. These days his works are still read. They show a ban seeking union with God and looking for God even in the darkness when God seemed to be absent. His was the expression ‘Dark Night of the Soul.’
16 Third Sunday of Advent
23 Fourth Sunday of Advent
24 Christmas Eve
25 Christmas Day
26 St. Stephen’s Day Stephen was the first Christian martyr and we read about him in the Acts of the Apostles, chapters 6 and 7. He was one of seven chosen to be ‘deacons’ which means ‘servants.’ They were appointed to help the poor. Stephen began to preach about Jesus and was stoned to death. One day we celebrate birth at Christmas, and the next the death of the first martyr.
30 First Sunday of Christmas

01 Naming and Circumcision of Jesus The first day of each new year is a feast celebrating Jesus. In accordance with religious law he was circumcised eight days after his birth and named ‘Jesus’ which means ‘God saves.’ We begin the new year with the name of Jesus on our lips.
06 Epiphany of the Lord ‘Epiphany’ means ‘revelation’ or ‘showing.’ The wise men came to find a new-born king, Through them Jesus was revealed to the world.
13 Baptism of Christ This festival in the Christian year celebrated Jesus being baptised in the river Jordan by John the Baptist. A voice was heard from heaven declaring Jesus to be God’s Son. This is another moment of ‘epiphany’ when Jesus is shown to be the very revelation of God to the world.
18-25 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Jesus prayed at his last supper that all his disciple should be one. During this week, Christians make his prayer their own.
20 Epiphany 2

02 Farewell Eucharist for Bishop Michael Colclough as Bishop of Kensington at 3pm at St. Mary Abbott’s, Kensington
03 Presentation of Christ in the Temple – Candlemas This festival brings to an end the cycle of celebration that began at Christmas and continued through the month of January with the Epiphany season. Today the presentation of Christ in the Temple (Luke 2.22-40) is remembered when Jesus was brought to the Temple by Mary and Joseph. He was there acclaimed as a light to the nations and the glory of Israel. This day is also known as ‘Candlemas’ as traditionally the congregation lit candles on this day so they, too, acclaimed Christ, the light of the world.
06 Ash Wednesday Holy Communion at 7am and Parish Communion at 8pm
This day is the beginning of Lent, the Church’s solemn time of preparation for Easter. Ashes are an ancient sign of penitence, and it is the custom on this day for people to receive on their foreheads the sign of the cross in ash. This is a reminder of their mortality, and their need of God, before whom they come in penitence.
10 First Sunday of Lent
17 Second Sunday of Lent
24 Third Sunday of Lent
27 George Herbert, priest, poet, 1633 George Herbert was, as a young man, destined for ‘higher things’, but he chose instead to be ordained and become a parish priest. He served in Bemerton near Salisbury. He was remembered at the time as a caring pastor. He is best known now for his poetry. Some of his poems are now well known hymns including ‘Let all the world in every corner sing,’ ‘Teach me my God and King,’ and ‘King of glory, King of peace.’

01 David, bishop, patron of Wales, c.601 David was a monk and bishop who helped to spread the good news of Christ among pagan tribes in Wales. He founded a monastery in what is now St. David’s and the cathedral stands on the site of the monastery today. David was made a saint in 1120 and March 1st was made his day. Little is known of him, but legend speaks of a man who lived a simple, frugal and inspiring life.
02 Fourth Sunday of Lent/Mothering Sunday In earlier centuries it was considered important for people to return to their home or 'mother' church once a year. So each year in the middle of Lent, everyone would visit their 'mother' church - the main church or Cathedral of the area. This Sunday was known as ‘Refreshment Sunday,’ a break from the rigours of Lenten discipline. The return to the 'mother' church became an occasion for family reunions when children who were working away returned home. Historians think that it was the return to the 'Mother' church which led to the tradition of children, particularly those working as domestic servants, or as apprentices, being given the day off to visit their mother and family. Though the emphasis on ‘mother’ church has gone today the family emphasis on this day has remained.
09 Fifth Sunday of Lent
16 Palm Sunday
17 Monday in Holy Week
18 Tuesday in Holy Week
19 Wednesday in Holy Week
20 Maundy Thursday
21 Good Friday
22 Holy Saturday
23 Easter Day
30 Second Sunday of Easter
31 Annunciation of the Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary Normally celebrated on March 25th, but moved as it fell this year in Easter Week, the feast of the Annunciation commemorates the visit of the angel Gabriel to Mary as recorded in Luke 1.26-38. Mary was told that she would conceive and bear a son. She modeled faith and trust in God when she said ‘Let it be to me according to your word.’

06 Third Sunday of Easter
13 Fourth Sunday of Easter
20 Fifth Sunday of Easter
23 George, martyr, patron saint of England, c.304
Legend says that George was a Roman soldier from what is now Turkey. Though venerated in the Eastern Church from early times, it was really only with the adoption of St. George by Edward III as the patron saint of his newly founded Order of the Garter in the late 1340s that he started to be seen as England’s patron saint. Other countries claim him, too, including Serbia and Portugal.
25 Mark the Evangelist
There is no certainty about the identity of ‘Mark’, the writer of the second gospel. Tradition has it that Mark was a companion of St. Peter. It is has become academic orthodoxy to see Mark’s gospel as the first to be written due to its terse, brief style and its lack of material found in Matthew and Luke. His remains are alleged to be buried in St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice.
27 Sixth Sunday of Easter
28-30 Rogation Days
These days, from the Latin rogare, ‘to ask’, fall on the three days before Ascension Day. It was an occasion to seek God’s blessing on the crops.

01 Ascension Day
Luke's Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles both record how, forty days after the resurrection, Jesus was taken into heaven. By doing so he is seen as having returned to the Father and taken his throne over all dominions and powers. Today the Church trusts in his reign over all creation and submits to his kingly rule
04 Seventh Sunday of Easter
08 Julian of Norwich c.1417
Julian was an 'anchoress' in Norwich. She was walled into a cell attached to St. Julian's Norwich in order to devote herself to prayer and contemplation. Little accurate is known about her, but she left behind her 'Revelations of Divine Love.' The book records her profound spiritual experiences at a time of illness with a striking use of language. For example, Jesus is referred to as mother.
11 Pentecost (Whit Sunday)
18 Trinity Sunday
24 John and Charles Wesley, evangelists, hymn writers, 1791 and 1788
Though neither set out with the intention of establishing a separate denomination, the Wesley brothers were the effective founders of the Methodist Church. Concerned that the Church of England in their day was moribund, through preaching and teaching they sought to revive Christianity in England. Today John's preaching is still recalled, but it is Charles's hymns that find a place in the worship of all Christian traditions.
25 First Sunday after Trinity
30 Josephine Butler, social reformer, 1906
Josephine was both a strong feminist and committed Christian. She campaigned against the exploitation of women through prostitution, and the introduction of intrusive legislation that sought to offer state regulation of prostitution.

01 Second Sunday after Trinity
09 Columba, abbot, missionary, 597
Columba was born in Ireland around 521, and was an exemplar of rigorous Celtic Christianity. Founding several monasteries in Ireland, he came to settle on the Scottish island of Iona. Founding a community there, it functioned as a basis for Columba's missionary work, and from there Christianity spread through Scotland. The current Iona community takes its inspiration from the Christianity of the Celtic Church.
08 Third Sunday after Trinity
11 Barnabas the Apostle
Barnabas means 'son of encouragement' and was the name given to this companion of St. Paul. He was Jewish, but born in Cyprus. He introduced Paul to the leaders of the Church in Jerusalem and was sent to Antioch to proclaim that the Christian faith was open to gentiles, too. In these ways he was a definite 'son of encouragement' to others.
15 Fourth Sunday after Trinity
22 Fifth Sunday after Trinity
29 SS Peter and Paul
Peter and Paul have been associated with one another on this day since early times, it being seen as the date of their martyrdom in AD 64. This being the case or not, the ministries of the two men have been seen as complementary. Peter witnessed to the identity of Christ, and Paul developed the significance of this identity for Christ's followers. Peter was the 'rock' on which the Church was built, his name, Peter, meaning rock. Paul was the apostle to the gentiles, taking the Christian faith beyond the confines of Palestine.

07 Sixth Sunday after Trinity
11 Benedict of Nursia, Abbot of Monte Cassino, Father of Western Monasticism, c.550
Born around 480 in Nursia, central Italy, Benedict was sent as a young man to study in Rome. Appalled by the corruption he saw around him, he withdrew, initially to lead the life of a hermit. Soon, though, Benedict drew a group of companions around him and moved to Monte Cassino. Though not seeking to found a religious order, Benedict's 'Rule' provided a model for religious orders, not least the Benedictine Order still in existence today. It is marked by moderation and humanity.
14 Seventh Sunday after Trinity
26 Anne and Joachim, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Though clearly Mary the mother of Jesus must have had parents, it is only a second century work that tells us they were named Anne and Joachim. Some commemorations in the calendar are less than useful, and perhaps this is one of them.
21 Eighth Sunday after Trinity
25 James the Apostle (our Patron Saint)
29 Mary, Martha and Lazarus, Companions of our Lord
By contrast with Anne and Joachim, the siblings Mary, Martha and Lazarus are both found and named in the Gospels. They offered hospitality to Jesus, and show us a pattern of loving and obedient response to him. Mary waited on Jesus spiritually, Martha physically, and Lazarus experienced his saving power when he was raised from death.
28 Ninth Sunday after Trinity
30 William Wilberforce, Social Reformer, 1833
Often mentioned in 2007 when the anniversary of the abolition of slavery was marked, Wilberforce was born in Hull in 1759. A supporter of the Evangelical wing of the Church of England, he became an MP at the age of 21 and supported missionary activity including being a founder member of the Bible Society. His Christian principles informed his stiff opposition to slavery.

03 Eleventh Sunday after Trinity
06 Transfiguration of the Lord
Matthew, Mark and Luke all record in their gospels that Jesus went to a mountain with his disciples Peter, James and John. There his appearance was transfigured in their sight and they heard him proclaimed as God’s beloved Son. It was a moment when Jesus’s identity was revealed.
10 Twelfth Sunday after Trinity
17 Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity
24 St. Bartholomew the Apostle
30 John Bunyan, spiritual writer, 1688
Living at a time when Christians who were not Anglican were persecuted, John Bunyan wrote a fine and enduring spiritual work ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ during his own period of confinement. It tells of the man Christian on his journey through life to God.
31 Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity

01     Remigius, Bishop of Rheims, Apostle of the Franks, 533
01     Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury, Social Reformer, 1885
04     Francis of Assisi, Friar, Deacon, Founder of the Friars Minor, 1226
06     William Tyndale, Translator of the Scriptures, Reformation Martyr, 1536
09     Denys, Bishop of Paris, and his Companions, Martyrs, c.250
09     Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, Philosopher, Scientist, 1253
10     Paulinus, Bishop of York, Missionary, 644
10     Thomas Traherne, Poet, Spiritual Writer, 1674
11     Ethelburga, Abbess of Barking, 675
11     James the Deacon, companion of Paulinus, 7th century
12     Wilfrid of Ripon, Bishop, Missionary, 709
12     Elizabeth Fry, Prison Reformer, 1845
12     Edith Cavell, Nurse, 1915

04 All Saints’ Day All Saints’ Day celebrates men and women in whose lives we have seen the grace of God powerfully at work. It is an opportunity to give thanks for that grace, and for the wonderful ends to which it shapes a human life; it is a time to be encouraged by the example of the saints; and it is a chance to recall that sanctity may grow in the ordinary circumstances, as well as the extraordinary crises, of human living.
02 All Souls’ Day All Souls’ Day turns our attention to those whom we have known more directly: those who gave us life, or nurtured us in faith, and whom we remember with thanksgiving. It is the other side of the coin from All Saints’ and recognizes our sense of loss. Christ has shown that love is stronger than death; this is a truth not simply about individual persons, but about a new humanity incorporated in Christ.
04 All Saints’ Sunday
18.00 All Souls’ Service
11 Remembrance Sunday/3 before Advent 09.45 Parish Communion 10.55 Act of Remembrance in the churchyard
18 2 before Advent
20 Edmund, King of the East Angles and Martyr, 870 Edmund became king of the East Angles around 854, and lost his life in battle with the Danes. Depictions of him often show him with an arrow, as it is believed he lost his life by being shot with arrows, and a wolf, as it is said a wolf guarded his body until his supporters took it away. Edmund’s body was eventually buried in what is now Bury St. Edmund’s. The town became a great centre of pilgrimage, and Edmund was the patron saint of England until the 14th century when George became more prominent.
25 Christ the King
30 Andrew the Apostle