Transformation Thurrock : Council celebrates Christmas with Carols

Council celebrates Christmas with Carols

Thurrock Council’s annual Christmas Carol Service was held today (Thursday 16 December) at St Peter’s & St Paul’s Parish Church at the top of Grays High Street.

88 people from all areas of work in the Council attended, most taking the short walk from the Council offices in New Road - from one of the newest buildings in Grays to probably the oldest.

The service was led by Rev Darren Barlow, who is also the Chaplain to the Mayoress, Cllr Anne Cheale. There were five carols, interspersed with readings telling the Nativity story, prayers and a short message given by Rev David Redfield.

When announcing the fourth carol, O Come, All Ye Faithful, Darren instructed the congregation not to sing the final verse - but suggested that if they really want to sing it, they’ll have to come back on Christmas Eve for the Midnight Service, or on Christmas Day itself, when that verse is traditionally included.

Mary Taylor, organiser of the event and a member of the Council’s Christian Union, read the prayers, and concluded with an excerpt from the poem ‘God Knows’ by Minnie Louise Haskins. This was made famous by King George VI - the one portrayed in the new film The King’s Speech - when he quoted it in his Christmas message just a few months after the outbreak of war in 1939.

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
?“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown”.
And he replied,
“Go out into the darkness,
And put your hand into the hand of God.
That shall be better than a light,
And safer than a known way”.

Afterwards, Mary confessed that reading the poem was difficult. “I almost lost it!” she said. It did come over as very emotive and evocative.

Curate David’s message was pitched just right for the occasion. Using some visual aids showing the sanitised image of the Baby Jesus, he talked about “the miracle of God becoming a human baby”. There was no “silent night” as this Baby came into the world, the inn being packed with travellers in town for the census.

David talked about the messiness of the unplanned pregnancy of a teenaged unmarried mother, contrasting modern maternity wards with the uncouth roughness of the stable - “It doesn’t get any more messy and broken as that!” And yet, this was the unique birth “which changed history”.

Concluding, David challenged the congregation to let the Christ-Light that broke into the world at that first Christmas, shine into the “dusty, dark and cobwebby corners of out lives”.

Mary, who lives in Stanford-le-Hope and attends St Margaret’s, was more than pleased with the turn out, and though many had to go back after their lunch break to work, a few stayed behind for light refreshments.

Pictures from top: the service in progress; David Redfield and Danny Sedano (GTM's Community & Youth Worker) at the door as folk leave; and others enjoying tea and cakes in the Oak Room.

Tim Harrold, 16/12/2010