FROM THE METHODIST MINISTER

May I first of all wish you a very happy Christmas. December is, in the Christian calendar, the season of Advent when we remember that God "comes" to us. He is constantly speaking to us through the beauty of nature and through all the experiences of life. Unfortunately we often fail to hear Him.

More specifically, we believe that in Jesus, God has come to men in a remarkably intimate and personal way. In fact He came and shared a human life in order that men may share in His eternal life. So we worship a God Who has come, and Who continues to come. At the heart of this message is the Christmas story. The baby Jesus was "Immanuel" which means God with us. In the words of the Christmas Carol:

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus our Immanuel!

As we all know, at the present time the village is without a Vicar. Everyone hopes that this will only be for a short while. However during this period I hope to spend just a bit more time in Hartlip. I hope to be around most Wednesday afternoons and to attend most United Christian Fellowship meetings, although, unfortunately, I could not manage the November ones. Of course there are a great many Parish duties which only an Anglican clergyman can perform but if I can ever be of assistance please let me know.

Yours sincerely,

DAVID LAPWORTH.

PARISH NOTES

Hartlip Parish Council

During the last year the Elms surrounding the recreation ground have been dying off. Unfortunately this is due to a disease called "Dutch Elm Disease", which spreads very rapidly and kills all Elms in the vicinity.

The Council has taken advice from various tree specialists who have all been of the opinion that the one correct and safe solution is to cut all these elms down. This, as I am sure many others will agree, will be a very great shame and loss to the recreation ground.

We have been compelled to decide that all these elms must come down and for a short time the playing fields will look very bare. On the other hand this gives us the opportunity to clean up the edges which have become very overgrown and we do intend to replant with some really nice trees. It does of course also mean that there will be more space where little saplings had encroached on the field.

Yours sincerely,

WILLIAM J. WAKELEY, Chairman.