November services at St Melangell’s Shrine ChurchSunday 1st November, 3pm: Service cancelled due to church closure in lockdown.Sunday 8th November, 3pm: Service cancelled due to church closure in lockdown.Sunday 15th November, 3pm: Service of reflection in churchSunday 22nd November, 3pm: virtual service onlineSunday 29th November, 3pm: Service of reflection in church – first Sunday of Advent.All services will take place according to the advice issued by the Welsh Government or the Church in Wales. As this may change, up to date information is available from dioceseofstasaph.org.uk, stmelangell.org, admin@stmelangell.org or 01691 860408.The new broadband and equipment which has recently been installed at the centre mean that it’s now possible to develop online services and activities and these will be appearing in due course when technical difficulties have been overcome. The weekly reflections will continue to be posted.In his poem No! the American poet Thomas Hood wrote‘No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,No comfortable feel in any member –No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds,November!This seems appropriate as the pandemic continues to spread amongst us, with many folk understandably becoming increasingly negative about its consequences and restrictions. Actually, November can be a positive and active month of remembering, with All Saints’ Day on 1st, All Souls’ on 2nd, Bonfire Night on 5th and Remembrance Day on 11th. The days may be drawing in, but the autumnal colours all around are stunning and the countryside looks particularly beautiful at the moment. Things may be very different this year, but we can still be thankful for the good things that are also happening amongst the negativity and find ways of marking important days and events or developing new ways of doing so. Instead of an automatic response of “No!” during the pandemic, why not look for a different, safe way of finding a possible ”Yes!” instead?!ChristineGuardian, St Melangell’s Shrine Church
Saint Melangell Shrine Church & Centre
Pennant Melangell, Wales