We remember and thank God for the extraordinary life of faith and service of our late Queen.
On 9 September the church was open for prayer and we are extending the church open hours to 10am to 2pm on Saturday 17th September.
We will continue to hold the Royal Family and King Charles in our prayers in our services over the coming weeks.
There is to be a one minute silence in memory of the late Queen at 8pm on Sunday 18 September, in advance of her funeral. It will be held in church at the conclusion of the evening service and in YPF, who meet at that time.
Honouring our great Queen Elizabeth – The ringing of bells
In times of mourning and sadness we put half muffles on the bells, these are leather pads fastened to the clappers which cause the sound of each bell to produce the normal noise followed by a quieter almost echo at the following stroke.
Following the announcement of the death of Her Majesty the Queen there is a protocol to be followed where possible.
The protocol was to ring half muffled on Friday 9 September at 12.00 noon.
On Saturday 10 September we took the half muffles off the bells to ring “open” at 11.00am in celebration of the proclamation of the accession of King Charles III. Following this celebration, the half muffles will be replaced on the bells. Any ringing we do until after the funeral will be half muffled as the country is in mourning.
Pam Thomson
Message from Bishop Mark
It is with a huge sense of loss and sadness that I hear the news of the passing of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, for me personally Queen twice over: Queen of the United Kingdom in which I have spent most of my life, and Queen of Canada, the nation in which I was born.
For the vast majority in this nation and around the commonwealth, she has served as Queen for as long as we have known: a consistent faithful point of reference through the changing scenes of our lives.
We stand together in our grief and loss, whatever our politics or situation, she was for us a rock, profoundly strengthened by her own deep faith in Christ, her rock.
Here, though, lies our comfort and our hope as well. Her lifelong trust in Christ now finds its peaceful fulfilment in him, and it is to him that we turn in our own time of need.
We pray with gratitude for her long, wise, and compassionate reign. We pray for our nation and the Commonwealth. We pray for the Royal Family in their loss and grieving. And, in particular, we pray for our King. May he, and we, be upheld and strengthened by the grace of her Lord and ours, Jesus Christ.
For our late Queen: thanksgiving
For our Diocese, the commonwealth, and all peoples: prayers
For the King and our nation: God’s richest blessing: God save the King
Bishop Mark Tanner, Bishop of Chester
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