Our Diocese of Gloucester
The Diocesan Vision Statement,
Values and Priorities
2007 - 2011
"We are a family of Christian communities gathered around the Bishop, who belong together to the Church of England, and to the worldwide Anglican Communion, who are strengthening and encouraging one another in making Christ known."
"We are called in the power and grace of the Holy Spirit: to proclaim and live the Gospel of Jesus Christ, transforming lives and communities, advancing the Kingdom of God".
Bishop Michael
of Gloucester
Our Links with the Church of Sweden
As a Diocese we are delighted to have ongoing links with the Diocese of Västerås which is part of the Church of Sweden.
The Church of England and the Church of Sweden are both Churches which, out of the turbulent times of the Reformation, maintained catholic order and sacramental practice.
In the three churches of this Benefice we are actively exploring twinning with parishes in the Benefice of Kungsåra near the city of Västerås.
Our Mission Links
Hardwicke Church has for the past three years supported the missionary work of Paul and Sarah Tester in the shanty town areas of Lima, Peru.
Initially through SAMS, the "South American Mission Society" and then through CMS, the "Church Mission Society", we received updates on the work that Paul and Sarah are doing.
This autumn we have begun to sponsor the work of "Operation Smile" which provides free surgery to repair cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities for children around the globe, it is our aim to change children's lives forever.
Our Motto Verse for 2011
"The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble;
and he knows those who trust in him".
Nahum 1:7
Our three Churches working together
"Our three Churches are part of the life of Gloucester Diocese and the Deanery of Stroud.
We are called in the power and grace of the Holy Spirit to proclaim and live the gospel of Jesus Christ, transforming lives and communities, advancing the Kingdom of God".
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At St Nicholas Church, Hardwicke, St John the Baptist Church, Elmore and St Laurence Church, Longney, the worship pattern ensures that Elmore and Longney offer a Eucharist on alternate Sundays usually at 9.30am, while the other alternate Sunday there is a service of Evensong (see the Services page for details). At Hardwicke we offer the Eucharist at 11.00am each Sunday.
On the 5th Sunday of the month, we celebrate our shared life as a group of parishes by holding just one United Service at 9.30am or 11.00am where members of all three of our parishes share worship together in one of our Churches.
Our team of clergy and lay ministers, together with many others lead the Christian life of our communities. Each of our communities is very different, Hardwicke has a beautiful, ancient village Church but most people live on housing estates to the north of the old village. Longney is a rural farming community with a Church School. Elmore is also a rural farming community based around the Elmore Court estate.
St Nicholas, Hardwicke Mission Statement
At St Nicholas, Hardwicke, for the period 2011 - 2013 we have committed ourselves to work towards the following aims....
Worship and Prayer
To develop our existing prayer and Education for Discipleship study groups and encourage more participation in worship and activities during the week.
To develop more family involvement in Intercessions, Readings etc. at the "Storyteller" Eucharist.
To continue the evolution of the devotional worship style of our 4th Sunday in the month Eucharist "Simply Worship".
Youth and Children's Work
To support the growth of our Sunday School work on the 1st, 3rd and 4th Sundays of the month through distribution of publicity and personal invitation and also investigate setting up a "Post Sunday School" group this year.
To investigate “Communion before Confirmation” in our Parish for 7-8 year olds, as well as continuing to run our twice yearly Children's Workshops
To encourage and support the Junior Choir under its new leadership and continue to foster links between Junior Choir and Church.
Mission and Ministry
To plan in-parish Mission Visiting for the next two years and to maintain our twinning links with the Benefice of Kungsåra in the Church of Sweden.
To introduce our own version of “Messy Church” on the “3rd Sunday at 3pm” and draw others into this fellowship and worship opportunity, providing “quality time with your children” for congregation members and their friends.
To encourage the social life of our Church by further "Benefice Holidays" and "Invite a Friend" social events.
Administration & Communication
To honour our commitment to pay Parish Share and Tithe our Church income by actively promoting the Parish Giving Scheme and exploring additional methods of fund raising.
To review the "Keeping in Touch Team" KITT process and the Care and Prayer Support it should provide.
To improve our church porch notice board and internal display areas so that relevant information is readily accessible to our congregation and visitors.
(Latest revision October 2011)
