St Ursula's Church Berne, Switzerland A Church of the Anglican Communion, welcoming all who seek the Lord Jesus Christ
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Current Events

Being Church at All Times – Messages from Helen

To keep in touch during and following the pandemic, Helen has been sending emails to all church members - the most recent are 209, 208, 207.

Congratulations, Helen!

Tuesday 12 March marked the 30th anniversary of Helen's ordination in Bristol Cathedral in England - one of the first women to be ordained to priestly ministry in the Church of England.

David has written a short news item conveying our congratulations, love and good wishes.

(A plaque in Bristol Cathedral commemorates the historic occasion.)

House Groups

The number of house groups associated with St Ursula's has dwindled in the past few years. We want to encourage more of these small groups of people who meet to study the Bible, share concerns and pray together. Being in a house group can deepen our faith, and helps us to know and support one another better.

We recently held an Open Forum to share ideas. You can help by printing out and filling in our questionnaire and sending (or giving) it to Maria in the office or any Council member. (If you can do this in A5 format, it will save paper!)

Waiting for Easter

The horrible culmination of Holy Week, with the memorial of Jesus' Last Supper on Maundy Thursday, of his bitter and painful death on Good Friday, and the confusion his followers felt when he lay in the tomb on the Saturday of Easter Eve, will soon give way to joy, when we can acknowledge that Christ is risen indeed. May he rise in our hearts, and not in vain!

(By the way, if you missed our Bishop's annual Lent Appeal, there is still a chance to contribute! The focus of their efforts this Lent is the ecumenical work of the Anglican Centre in Rome.)

Farewell to Bishop David

Our Diocese, the Anglican Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe, has two bishops. Robert Innes, our "Diocesan Bishop" is the lead bishop. At the end of February, Bishop David our "Suffragan Bishop" retired, along with his chaplain, Revd Canon Deacon Frances Hiller after 22 years of service.

There was a special service on Wednesday 28 February. If you missed it, it is available to watch on YouTube via the diocesan website.

Spring Sale

Our first sale of the year took place on Saturday 9 March. It was an enjoyable event, and the church raised some Fr4000. Thanks to all who came!

After the Pandemic

The Covid pandemic is over, although we need to continue to take care, and to go on following the instructions of the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG/OFSP) and the cantonal authorities. We pray for all who have been, or are still, affected by the epidemic.

Up-to-the-minute information is on the federal, cantonal and Church of England websites.

Money, money, money

Many of our members pledge to give a regular sum to support the church. We receive no state support, and have to finance the ministry here ourselves. There is still time to add to the growing number of people who pledge to the church. You may fill in a form (there are several in the church hall) and give or send it to the Treasurer. Trying to move with the times, we are also introducing the possibility of pledging "on-line" - the pledge page on our website has details. We hope that paying on line will come later (paying by Twint is already possible). In any case, every rappen is appreciated!

Photographs and Privacy

Several people take photographs of church events, and these can be uploaded to the church's website. We do not normally publish photos of individuals without their agreement, but we assume agreement to photographs of groups of people. If children are present, we try to ensure the child cannot be recognized, and will ask for their parents' written consent to use the image.

If you do not wish photographs of yourself to appear, please contact either the webmaster or the office - their email addresses can be found on our contacts page.

A general privacy notice can be found here.