December & January Events @ St Michael’s
Sun 3rd Dec, Advent Sunday. 10.45am Sung Mass & 6pm Choral Evensong & Benediction.
Wed 6th Dec, St Nicolas of Myra, 9.30am BCP Matins, 10am Low Mass.
Thu 7th Dec, 6pm CBS Plainsong Mass. St Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, Teacher of the Faith (397)
Fri 8th Dec, 6.30pm at St David’s Church. Community Christmas Concert. £5.
Sat 9th Dec, 4.30pm. Exeter Chorale Concert. Veni Sponsa Christi (£10/£6 students)
Sun 10th Dec, Advent II. 10.45am Mass, 6pm, Advent Procession – Thanks to all who came.
Sun 17th Dec, Gaudete, Advent III. 10.45am Mass (Rose Vestments).
Sun 24th Dec, Advent IV! 10.45am Mass.

Sun 24th Dec, Christmas Eve. 11pm Gallery Carols, 11.30pm Midnight Mass of the Nativity.
Mon 25th Dec, Christmas Day. N.B. 10.30am Sung Mass of the Nativity.
Tue 26th Dec, St Stephen Please check website/twitter for details of any Services this week.
Sun 31st Dec, Christmas I, Holy Family. 10.45am No Clergy, so Sung Matins!

Sun 7th Jan, Epiphany. 10.45am Mass & 6pm Choral Evensong & Benediction.
Sun 14th Jan, Epiphany II. 10.45am Mass.
Tue 16th Jan, 7.30pm at St David’s Church. Institution & Induction of Preb Nigel Guthrie as Vicar of the Parish.
Thu 18th Jan, 12noon Parish Lunch at Exeter College @34 Restaurant – sign up in churches.
Sun 21st Jan, Epiphany III. Sung Mass.
Sat 27th Jan, Men’s Breakfast or Brunch – see in churches for details.
Sun 28th Jan, Epiphany IV/Septuagesima. Sung Mass.
Wed 31st Jan, 7.30pm. Apologies – NO St Michael’s Lecture this month.
Fri 2nd Feb, Candlemas. 7.30pm Sung Mass.

Regular Events:-
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 6pm Plainsong Vespers & Meditation.
Tuesdays, 7-8.30pm Choir Practice.
Wednesdays, 9.30am BCP Morning Prayer, 10am Low Mass.

See Twitter https://twitter.com/StMikes_Exeter for details and updates.

Concerts. Please support the Community Christmas Concert at St David’s Church on Friday 8 December at 6.30pm with a wealth of local talent performing – including Oliver Nicholson & Richard Barnes giving a spirited rendition of “Watchman, what of the night?” accompanied by Natasha Goldsworth at the pianoforte. Tickets £5.

On Saturday 9 December at 4.30pm there’s a Tea-time Concert at St Michael’s Church as Exeter Chorale present glorious Renaissance Masses & Motets by Palestrina, Lassus & Guerrero, with tea & cakes, all for £10.

Choir Music. Thanks to Tim Hampshire and organist Nigel Atkinson for leading the Fauré Requiem for our All Soul’s Day Mass, and to Graham Keitch for his setting of ‘For the Fallen’.

Sunday 10 December at 6pm we have the beautiful Advent Procession guiding us from darkness to light through music, prayer and readings, with seasonal refreshments afterwards.

Our Music List & Organist Rota for Advent to Epiphany are online, and we thank all who are pulling together to carry on providing St Michael’s with music fitting for the church’s liturgy.

I hope we will sing “O magnum mysterium” as the words ‘ut animalia viderent Dominum natum jacentem in praesepio’, ‘that animals should see the new-born Lord lying in a manger’ bring the Incarnation of Jesus truly down to Earth, and also remind me of Thomas Hardy’s poem “The Oxen”.

Christmas Eve, and twelve of the clock.
“Now they are all on their knees,”
An elder said as we sat in a flock
By the embers in hearthside ease.

We pictured the meek mild creatures where
They dwelt in their strawy pen,
Nor did it occur to one of us there
To doubt they were kneeling then.

Lent Reading Group. Advance notice. Following last year’s successful meetings exploring the ‘Confessions’ of St Augustine, Oliver Nicholson will lead a series of Wednesday evening gatherings for Lent 2018 looking at the founder of Desert Monasticism, St Antony of Egypt (c.251-356), whose Life was influential in the Conversion of Augustine. The likely dates are Wed 21 Feb to Wed 21 Mar, but you don’t have to commit to all 5 Wednesdays.

Wishing you all a Holy Advent & a Merry Christmas.

Richard Barnes

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