St. Peter’s Church

This Church was dedicated 150 years ago in the centre of the village.  Until that date villagers from Kington Langley were part of the part of the parish of Kington St Michael.  There is still a path through the village called The Coffin Way leading to Kington St. Michael.

This Victorian Church is Listed Grade 2 and it has recently had its roof renewed.  The churchyard houses the village War Memorial and is the village graveyard.

St. Peter’s is now part of the Benefice of Draycot – it shares a vicar with the churches of Sutton Benger, Christian Malford, Tytherton Kellaways and the redundant church of St. James, Draycot Cerne, where services are held annually.

Please click here for details of services

Draycot Benefice Ministry Team Letter

Dear Friends,

Do you remember the Farepak company? Just over two years ago now it went into liquidation because it apparently couldn’t negotiate a new financial arrangement with HBOS (do I detect an irony in there somewhere?) However, the upshot of the failure of Farepak was that thousands of people lost the money they had saved towards Christmas hampers and other goods. Most, if not all, of them received nothing of the parcels they had been hoping for. It was a tragedy for so many families. Almost all of them were on low incomes and therefore least able to make up for the loss by further spending. Words like “nightmare” and “ruined” were used. There would “be no Christmas” for them, it was said. My heart went out to them as I expect yours did. They were not just upset: they were lost and broken. They were deeply hurt and in need of healing.

The first means of healing would be the obvious one: find some way for the money or the goods they were owed to be repaid. Two years down the line, that’s just a bit late for Christmas 2006 – but even now it would be better late than never. But in addition, there might also be other ways of healing. These might come from being prepared to rethink Christmas. Rediscovering the ancient, religious observance of Christmas is one way. This often brings a rare feeling of warmth and joy; that’s often what attracts people to worship at Christmas. I hope you will be able to come and join us in Church at this special time and experience some of it. But there’s another kind of healing that comes from turning Christmas from merely an occasion of consumption into a genuine celebration. And surprisingly enough, the one doesn’t have to depend on the other.

Remember Bob Cratchit? He and his family had a wonderful Christmas celebration in Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. They actually had two in the telling of the story: one in Ebenezer Scrooge’s night-time vision and one the day after, filled with the Prize Turkey (twice the size of Tiny Tim!) that came from the newly-awakened Ebenezer’s generosity. Both were joyful celebrations and both were heartfelt. But neither depended on the kind of huge over-consumption that we’ve come to regard as “normal” at Christmas. Whether with much or with little, the Cratchit family celebrated together in family love.

The message, after all, isn’t a hard one for us to grasp or follow. Whether you have much or little, put heart and soul into the truly important things first. Genuine love, real life and good relationships are what really count. They are the way to a better Christmas for those of every faith or none. Nothing can turn this kind of Christmas into a nightmare or a ruin. Keep it loving, simple and heartfelt - the celebration will follow.

Peace, joy and blessings, Geoff

Draycot Benefice Notices

Holy Baptism.  Welcome into the family of the Church for Ferne Winifred Mullis baptized on 19th October in St Peter’s and David Allen Clayton, baptized in St Giles’ on 31st October.

R.I.P.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of Douglas Candy who was laid to rest on 27th October and Eric Simpkins whose funeral took place on 6th November. Both services were in All Saints, Christian Malford.

Church In The Week. Can’t always make it on a Sunday? Always can’t make it on a Sunday? Come along for an hour and a half on a week-night in the comfort of a friend’s home for prayer and worship, stimulating ideas and conversation, sharing and friendship and planning for action! Church-in-the-Week is more than “just another” discussion group: it’s a different way of being the Church. There will be initially two groups in the Benefice on different nights. They are both open to people from the whole of the Benefice (and elsewhere!). As things develop, we aim to open more groups including a day-time one. The frequency of meetings will be decided by each group. The next meetings will be on Monday, 1st December at 8.00pm at “Appletrees”, High Street Sutton Benger (the home of Tony and Jan Gardener) and on Thursday 11th December at 7.30pm at “Graygarth”, Plough Lane, Kington Langley (the home of Audrey Palmer).

Advent And Christmas Services.  Please note the variation in times this month as well as the dates, especially the “Early Midnight” Communion at 9.00pm, which will be held in St Peter’s this year and the Joint Benefice Service for the Sunday after Christmas in St Giles’, Kellaways

Bible Lands Society.  Christian Malford Church have decided to support the BLS this Advent by a “retiring collection” – a collection plate left by the door at the end of each service. BLS is a Christian charity that works in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Egypt with education, medical and social care, and refugee projects. Our carol sheets are one of their fundraisers. The PCC decided that this was a very suitable time to remember not only the needs of people in the land of our Lord’s birth but also that he was a refugee there as well.

Christian Malford Carols On The Rec.  We are looking for instrumentalists (especially brass and woodwind) for Wednesday 17th December at 6.30pm.  This is when we gather to sing carols in the open air at the pavilion, enjoy mince pies and mulled wine and raise money for the Children’s Society. It’s lots of fun! Contact Geoff Hewitt (720070) if you’d like to help form a band.

Service Information Updates. Up-to-date information on Christian Malford Services can usually be found on their village website – www.christianmalford.org.uk

And on Sutton Benger Services at – www.suttonbenger.org.uk

Julian Meetings are groups of people who meet regularly in order to grow in the practice of contemplative prayer in the Christian tradition.  Julian Meetings welcome people of all denominations, or none.

A group of us meet on the second Sunday each month at 8.00pm at St Giles, Tytherton Kellaways, and we warmly invite you to join us.

 Unless there is a still centre in the middle of the storm
 Unless a person in the midst of all their activities
 Preserves a secret room in their heart
 Where they stand alone before God,
 Unless we do this, we lose all sense of spiritual direction
 And we will be torn to pieces.

Christian Malford.

Up-to-date information on Christian Malford Services can usually be found on their village website – www.christianmalford.org.uk

Details of Services

St Peter’s, Kington Langley

December  7th      8:00am  Communion (Book of Common Prayer)
                           11.00am  Family Service
               14th      11.00am  Communion & Baptism
               21st                     NO MORNING SERVICE
                            6.00pm   CAROL SERVICE
               24th      3.00pm    Crib service
                           9.00pm    Early Midnight Communion
               25th     11:00am    Short Family Communion

            Holy Communion at 9:15am on Thursdays

Every Thursday afternoon the Church is open for “a cuppa and a chat” to which anyone of any age is welcome to attend.

Every first Thursday Mum’s with Babies and Toddlers are invited to meet.

The vicar  Rev. Geoff Hewitt lives at present in Christian Malford.

We are lucky to have the services of Audrey Palmer a Reader in the Church of England and a Reader in training Evelyn Bone.

The church sends two Foundation Governors and a Reader to the Village School Governing Body.

There is a church choir, who are always looking for new members and there are a variety of social events.