An introduction from the Vicar
My name is Peter Holzapfel and I’ve been Vicar of St. Mary the Virgin, Kempsey and St. Denys’, Severn Stoke since November 1999. I live in Kempsey and am married to Christine who is also ordained and who serves as an assistant minister at the next door parish of St. Mark’s, Cherry Orchard, Worcester. I can be contacted using the details on the Contacts page.
We are very blessed at St. Mary’s and St. Denys’ in having a good team of assistant ministers and helpers (see the Contacts page) including Rev David Hassell and three Licensed Readers who are Sheila Cook, Peter Fitzjohn and Libby James. Both our churches are also well served by many lay people who are actively involved in the life of the church and in sharing the good news of Jesus and the love of God within our parishes. The emphasis is on working together as a team in which every person plays an important part in sharing the Gospel.
A copy of my Vicar's Report to the St. Mary's AGM 2009 can also be found on the Noticeboard.
Copies of my Sermons and the monthly Pastoral Letters have also been added to this website, should you wish to browse them. We will endeavour to keep these up to date on an on-going basis.
Church funds are always a concern - see my Pastoral Letter - April 2008 - The future of our Church (PDF) - so any donations are always gratefully received.
Please see the Donations page for more information on how to donate to the Church.
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We also now have the chance of an English Heritage Grant of £44,000 for Church restoration but need to raise £36,000 ourselves to get the Grant. Please do donate to this urgent cause. See the Noticeboard for more details.
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The aim of our Church Life and Witness
Both St. Mary’s and St. Denys’ have stood as places of Christian life, witness and worship for well over 800 years and although our communities have undergone significant changes during those years our essential task remains the same which is to praise and thank God for all of His blessings but especially for the gift of His Son, Jesus who was sent to be our Saviour. And so our churches remain worship centres which are focused on Jesus, the Son of God, and have God the Father at their heart. They are also places where we are increasingly discovering more about the work of the Holy Spirit and how He can fill our lives with the love and power of God and do amazing things among us. And so our churches are, as they were always intended to be, exciting and enjoyable places to which you are very warmly invited.
There are lots of different ways of being introduced to Jesus at our churches in addition to our weekly Sunday services and these include various fellowship groups that meet during the week (see the Events page) and an Alpha Course. It is hoped to run regular Alpha Courses and we shall keep you posted about this - so keep an eye on this website and the Alpha Course page for the dates and times of upcoming courses.
The churches also aim to increase fellowship between people and there are many opportunities for having a really good time in many ways in social events throughout the year. These events are organised within the churches and are well advertised in the Parish Magazine and St. Denys’ Newsletter as well as elsewhere. We aim through this web site to keep you well informed about the many opportunities to enjoy yourself. Also events are organised by The Friends of St. Denys and the recently formed Friends of Kempsey and these too will be displayed on this site. The Christian faith is meant to be enjoyed and this enjoyment is offered to the whole community whether you’re regular church goers or not, it makes no difference….just come along and have a good time.
We also believe that the church is there to care for others in the community and again this is the entire community and not just those who attend church. If you’ve got problem or a difficulty of any kind then we’re here to try and help. We are truly blessed in that both our churches are warm, friendly, welcoming and very caring places where you will be totally accepted and cared for. If you need any support or advice then do get in touch with Peter Fitzjohn or any one of the ministry team. We also assist the elderly through our work with Age Concern and the person to contact is our deputy church warden, John Roe (see the Contacts page) who will help in any way he can. There is also an Age Concern Coffee Morning every Thursday at 11:30am in St. Mary’s Church to which you are warmly invited.
Finally, prayer is vital to the life of any church or individual Christian and there are many opportunities to pray at St. Mary’s and St. Denys’ including a regular Healing Prayer Group and a fortnightly United Church Prayer Group.
Summary
Overall the Church is here to be a centre and a focal point for the whole community and to promote faith, worship, fellowship and caring in the name, through the love and by the power of God. I can’t emphasise enough that the church is here for everyone and that includes you. The worship life of the church has changed a great deal over the past few years and the emphasis is now on all-age family worship using modern worship songs to encourage whole families to come along. The traditional forms of worship, however, are not neglected and there are many opportunities for experiencing and enjoying Book of Common Prayer services and older forms of hymnody. There is also a weekly mid-week service of Holy Communion at St. Mary’s on Thursdays at 10:30am. Our aim is to be a church where everyone is valued and accepted and, by the grace of God and through the leading and guiding of His Spirit, this is what is being achieved. There is much to thank God for and much to pray for and look forward to and we would love to welcome you on this exciting and enjoyable spiritual adventure.
Please click on the following link for a copy of my latest Sermon in PDF format (should be 50Kb - 100Kb in size):
Sermon - 08/11/2009 - Remembrance Sunday - The war against evil (PDF)
You can also view past Sermons on the Sermons - Archive page.
The Pastoral Letter is the first article in the Kempsey Parish News (Parish Magazine) and is the Vicar's monthly address to the parish. Please click on the following link for the latest Pastoral Letter in PDF format (should be 50Kb - 100Kb in size):
Pastoral Letter - July / August 2010 - Finding time for God and finding his peace (PDF) - by Libby James.
You can also view previous Pastoral Letters on the Pastoral Letters - Archive page.
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