ST PETERS CHURCH

The present church building dates from the end of the thirteenth century. Monuments both inside and outside the church commemorate the Clevland family, who once lived at Tapeley Manor and the Christie family, to whom the house and estate passed by marriage. There are also monuments to the Berry Torrs, who lived in the littler village of Eastleigh. Some restoration work has been done, and more is envisaged in the near future when funds become available.

The present congregation is small and ‘elderly, though there is a much bigger body of people who come on special occasions and are willing to help in practical ways. The church and the pub are the two main focal points for this community.

St. Peters, Westleigh is part of the United Benefice comprising St. Peters, Westleigh, St. Johns, Instow and St. Peters Fremington.  

At such times, it is good to remember that the Church is not primarily a building or an ordained minister, but rather the people of God. People have worshipped here for hundreds of years and they do so still. Please pray that others in this generation will come to put their trust in Jesus Christ as Saviour, and bear witness for him in this rural community.

Nov 2025

Sunday 2nd 930am

 Holy Communion

Sunday 9th 9.30am

Remembrance

Sunday 16th 9.30am

Holy Communion

  I always feel a bit sorry for the month of November, if one can feel sorry for a period of time.  

   With the clocks having just gone back and evenings feeling longer than ever, it's a physically dark month. I'm sure it's made worse by ineffectual eco-friendly lightbulbs that take so long to warm up one needs to turn them on in the morning to have any chance of finding one's way around the house in the evening, thus defeating their raison d'être.

   We order in the logs, realise we've not had the boiler serviced or the chimney swept, and admit we're never going to finish tidying the garden, justifying this as a winter 're-wilding project'. In November, when it's colder, darker and wetter, going outside seems to require that little bit of extra effort.

   When it comes to darkness, November starts on a spiritual back foot as well. It begins the day after Halloween, a day that has been hijacked by a rather sinister commercialism that celebrates an eviler side of life we've become largely (and sadly) desensitised to.  

   I sometimes get the feeling our commercial, materialistic society tries, consciously or unconsciously, to drive us through November as quickly as possible. No sooner have the Halloween costumes, decorations and plastic tat been cleared off the shelves, the focus becomes Christmas Day, and the associated relentless commercialism. It's as though we're being rushed through this month like it's an inconvenient period of time between the beautiful end of summer and harvest months and the celebration of Christmas.

   Yet we can, and perhaps should, consider November in a different light. The Christian calendar starts with a two-day celebration remembering the saints and giving thanks for the faithful who are no longer with us. Then there is Bonfire Night on the 5th, where we enjoy the strange observance of detonating vast amounts of explosives to celebrate someone who failed to detonate vast amounts of explosives. Given the state of successive governments, some may of course wish Guido Fawkes had succeeded, but that's another story. I do wonder, if he'd succeeded, would there have been as many complaints about the noise scaring the dogs/cats/tortoises/goldfish Facebook blesses us with…?

   Then on the 11th, we have one of the most important days in the month as we remember those who gave everything in the cause of our freedom. On this day we often recite a wonderful line from John's Gospel, a line that carries a weight not everyone fully appreciates or has experienced: “Greater love have no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” And it's this verse that, for me, makes November a special month. It's not a dark, commercial, or sinister month, but a month that recognises the achievements of the faithful, and points towards something incredible.

  Yes, November is a month where we look back, often with tears and sadness. Yet it is also a month where can give thanks for the freedom we enjoy in this life, whilst looking forward with joy and expectation, to the freedom we can enjoy in the next, a freedom that Jesus bought at an ultimate price.

   John 15: 12-13: 'This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.'

CHURCH NEWS

                                  SEPT  23

We send our best wishes to Roger following his operation last month.

October was a very busy month at St. Peters.  There was a family breakfast on Sunday October 12th. The children made dough with Sarah Moore (lots of fun and mess), which they took home to bake into bread. Messy church in the true sense of the word! Rev. James Moore preached and he also baked bread overnight from dough made in the church, definitely bread from heaven (or as Roger would say bread from Devon)!!

A breakfast and family service will be held every second Sunday of the month. We would love to see you there. Our next family service is on Sunday December 14th at 09.00am – breakfast first, followed by the service.

Sadly, the pet service wasn't well supported on Sunday 12th October, just Geoffrey and Julie Grigg with their dogs, Poppy and Tess who were blessed.

The harvest festival service, led by Archdeacon Verena was held on Sunday 19th October followed by a 'bring and share' harvest lunch in the village hall.  More details next month.

Our Remembrance Service will be held on Sunday 9th November at 9.30am, followed by the laying of a wreath and a tribute to the fallen at the War Memorial.  

Some parishioners will have relatives who died during the 1st and 2nd World Wars whose names are not on the War Memorial as well as relatives who died in more recent conflicts such as, Northern Ireland, The Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan, who I am sure you would want to be remembered at this reflective service.  If you give Rev. Chris their names and regiments, they be will read out at the War Memorial.

It would be good to see a large turnout from the village. A detailed report will be in next month's Parish News.  

When Rev. James preached recently, he gave us food for thought - “When was the last time you wrote a letter to a loved one, relative, or friend?” In this fast pace of life, a lot of people may say “oh, it's much quicker and easier to write an email, text or a whatsapp message”.

How much more we are blessed to receive a letter that we can keep, read and re-read. The person who sent the letter to us has taken the time and thought to write it. With it we receive memories that we can treasure. Some of us may have a legacy of letters from those who served in WW1 or WW2; a poignant reminder of them.

If you were to write to Jesus, what would it say, or what would you write in your last letter?

DATE FOR YOUR DIARY:

Yes, we are thinking about Christmas already and farmers have only recently brought in the harvest! The ever-popular Carols by Candlelight service will be held on Sunday 21st December at 3.30 pm. It will be followed by mulled wine and mince pies, an added incentive if you need one!