Monastery of St. Antony and St.

Cuthbert
The Brotherhood of the Glorious Apostles Peter and Paul

March 2020
From Fr. Philip:

Isaiah 55:9-11

For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

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 To Keep a True Lent.
By Robert Herrick.

Is this a fast, to keep

The larder lean?
And clean?
From fat of veals and sheep?

Is it to quit the dish

Of flesh, yet still
To fill
The platter high with fish?

Is it to fast an hour,
Or ragg’d to go,
Or show
A downcast look and sour?

No; ‘tis a fast to dole

Thy sheaf pf wheat,
And meat,
Unto the hungry soul.

It is to fast from strife,

From old debate
And hate;
To circumcise thy life

To show a heart grief-rent;

To starve thy sin,
Not bin;
And that’s to keep thy Lent.

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The Pantocrator in the Chapel.

Great Lent:
The days lengthen and so do the services. During Great Lent the Psalter
is said twice a week during the services, there are more Scripture
readings, there are special services (just think of the Great Canon of St.
Andrew during Gt. Compline), we have the Liturgy of the Presanctified
Gifts twice a week.
The food is simplified, and sauces and other condiments disappear
along with fish and dairy products.
It is a beautiful time of the year and, whilst it is a fast of certain things, it
is also a feast of prayer and worship.
If you are coming for any part of Great Lent, then you need to book well
ahead!

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 Other Developments:
Prayer:
We have been given a complete Octoechos which is a wonderful addition to our
worship. We had a series of booklets, bits of which were missing, so this will make a
big difference.
Website:
The website has been remade – it will go live in the next few days so go and look!
You get a notice of this soon.
Industries:

We are now making dipped candles for sale at a very good price. Soon there will be
a web site through which you can order these. Keep an eye out for a separate
announcement in the next few days.
Environment:
The ponies are still doing nicely and have been tucking into the haylage. The grass
is starting to regrow so they’re eating this too. Soon there will be an abundance of
food for them.
The geese have been flying over and round the pond and have checked it out a
couple of times. Hopefully some will decide to stay and lay eggs. Last year they were
really interesting and a constant source of gossip.

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The Chickens are doing well. The fox has had one failed attempt to kill them but so
far they are fine.

Buster is doing well. If you wish to throw a ball, he will spend all day with you.

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The guns have stopped and there are consequently very few pheasants about.
Those that have survived are now very beautiful birds will full tails and wonderful
colours.
You will know that Shropshire has had plenty of rain. Flooding has been a great
problem. For us this has mean soggy fields and snow, paths made up of sucking
mud and yellowing grass as it drowns.

Snow drops are well behind the rest of the world but they are now just flowering.

Chitting potatoes.
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Coming to stay:
• If you would like to stay please get in contact. Phone the monastery number
or email the guestmaster: [email protected] or 07847 866978.
(Good times are between 10am to 11.40am and about 6.15pm but we will try
to answer outside these times too.)
• If you’d like to stay for three days (two nights) that will be given a blessing if
there is room.
• If you wish to stay for longer (up to ten days) this has to be asked for well in
advance.
• If you are coming please note that you are responsible for any tickets to and
from the monastery! (Yes, there have been guests who have expected us to
pay for them to leave!) If you don’t have money for transport there are the
options of walking or hitching a lift with someone. (And guests have done
both.)
• Please don’t just turn up.
You can also book these places to stay in nearby:
The Bridges Inn, Ratlinghope http://thebridgespub.co.uk/
This place has some simple, clean and comfor table accommodation for individuals
but also does group bookings.
The Crown Inn, Wentnor. https://www.crowninnwentnor.co.uk/ This one has only four
rooms – one of which is pet friendly. All four rooms are beautiful.
The Stiperstones Inn: http://www.stiperstonesinn.co.uk/
All offer good service and clean, simple rooms with good food. If you make use of
any of these places (for a meal, for example, please let them know why you are
visiting and say so on Trip Advisor as this helps with the local economy.)
Please note:
It is an expectation that all visitors take part in all the services for the duration of
their stay. It is welcomed if you can help with catering, cooking and ground work,
singing, chanting, serving, sewing, mending, building, advice etc. We hope that
during your stay you will feel you are a member of our community.
Meanwhile please keep us in your prayers!
Support:
Us supporting you:
Send us requests for prayer.
1. We are happy to remember people in our prayers, in the proskimide,
artoklasias (lytias) and so on.
2. Come and stay to join us in prayer and our life for a few days.
You supporting us:
There are several ways to support the Monastery:
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 1. Please pray for us.
2. Through giving us good ideas!
3. Through direct giving. See below. You can find details on the website but also
by making donations to our charity: THE STIPERSTONES TRUST Registered
charity number: 1077603.
Making donations:
If you’d like to support what we are doing financially that would be lovely – but please
do not feel that you “must”. We DO need money and we are already finding that we
need to expand the monastery as more people are asking to stay and space is very
limited.
We also need lots of things (we have far too much of some things already) but we
need new paths, concrete, cement, wood, more cells, a larger church (the current
one gets very cramped), and a good plumber, the boiler maintained, new water
heaters (some of them here don’t work and it is cold) We also need to eat, and we
need to feed our guests!
The best way you can help us with these things is by setting up a small monthly
Standing Order. This is very easy. If you have Internet Banking it is five minutes
work. Otherwise you could complete the attached form and send it to your Bank
Manager. We will spend your money VERY carefully and be delighted to show you
what we are doing in person.
To make this easy I have included a Standing Order Form at the end of the
Newsletter.
You may also consider completing a Gift Aid form too. This increases your gift by
25% (so £1 becomes £1.25)

Address and Contacts: 07847 866978

The Monastery www.orthodoxmonastery.co.uk
Pontesbury [email protected]
Shropshire [email protected]
SY5 0SJ

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Standing Order Form.
To the Manager
Bank Address:

I/we hereby authorise and request you to debit my/our

Account Name*

Account Details
Sort Code Account Number Amount Frequency
Monthly

Beginning date End date:

/ / / /

And credit
The Stiperstones Trust, Lloyds Bank, Pride Hill, Shrewsbury. SY1 1DG
Sort Code: 30-97-62 Account: 02291524

Quoting reference: The Stiperstones Trust

Signed: Date:

Name in Block Capitals:

* Please ensure that the actual name on/of the account is included in this box so that
we can accurately match your payment to our records.

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Please print this page off and send it to your Bank Manager.
Gift Aid:
1. Title: ______________________________________________

Name: ______________________________________________

Address: ______________________________________________

______________________________________________

Postcode: ______________________________________________

Tel/ mobile: _______________________ Email: ________________________

2. If you are a UK taxpayer, please tick the box below to join the Gift Aid scheme.
Doing so will mean that we can claim up to 25p extra for every £1 you give, at no
additional cost to you!
Yes, I am a UK taxpayer. Please treat all donations I make to The
Stiperstones Trust as Gift Aid donations until further notice. I am a UK taxpayer and
understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount
of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations to charities and Community amateur sports
clubs (CASCs) in that tax year, it is my responsibility to pay any difference. The
Stiperstones Trust will claim 25p on every £1 donated. Please let us know if you
want to cancel the declaration, change your name and/ or address or no longer pay
enough tax on your income and/or capital gains.
Signed: Date:
Please print off this page and send it to: Br. Deiniol, The Stiperstones Trust,
Gift Aid, The Monastery, Pontesbury, SY5 0SJ
Gift Aid Information When the Stiperstones Trust receives a donation from a UK taxpayer, we are
entitled to claim an amount of tax (calculated at the basic rate of income tax in that year) paid on that
donation. Once you have given your permission for us to do this on your behalf (by filling in this Gift
Aid form), there is no need for you to do anything else. All that is required is that you must be a
taxpayer and that you would have paid or will pay enough Income and/or Capital Gains Tax to cover
all the Gift Aid claimed on all your donations to all charities and Community amateur sports clubs in
that tax year. Please note that it is your responsibility to pay any difference. The amount of tax we
claim will be 25% of the total value of your donations in that tax year. Furthermore, if you are a higher
taxpayer, you are also entitled to claim the difference between the basic rate which we will claim and
the amount of tax you have actually paid. For further details on how you can do this, please contact
your tax office. If your tax situation changes and your gifts will no longer be eligible for the Gift Aid
scheme, please contact us and we will amend your record accordingly.

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What else do we need?
You might have just what we are looking for!
• Orthodox Theological Books (we are hoping to extend the Library)
in English
• Service Books
• Candle making equipment
• Incense making equipment
• Charcoal making equipment
• Soap Making equipment
• Trailer for the 4x4
• Wheelbarrows (both builders and garden)
• Building materials and tools
• Fencing materials (Fence posts, pig wire, chicken wire etc.)
• Timber (treated and untreated) for building both inside and out.
• Paint (White emulsion and whitewash)
• Electric wire both outside and inside wire
• Wellington boots
• (Rotavator: thank you! This will be a really useful addition to the
gardens!)
• Post hole digger
• Single sheets, duvet covers and pillowcases.
In most cases we won’t be able to collect these things (unless you
live nearby …) but it may give you an excuse to come and visit!
We also need your expertise:
Can you:
• Catalogue books
• Build paths,
• Lay concrete,
• Put up walls (the lean-to needs to be weatherproofed).
• Put up internal walls and plaster,
• Unblock locked doors,
• Put up fences,
• Do carpentry,
• Build new buildings
• Teach us to sew and do Crochet?
If you can … let us know please!
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Have you seen:
Our website? https://www.orthodoxmonastery.co.uk/
Our Facebook page? The Orthodox Christian Monastery of St Antony
and St Cuthbert.
Our Youtube Channel?
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfWMaefJYqFEZkYiK2WmeEw/ (or
go to Youtube then search for “Archimandrite Philip”)
Estate:
We need to:
• build a new drive within the monastery grounds,
• upgrade the track leading through the farm to the monastery,
• renew the heating system,
• redo quite a lot of the internal plumbing,
• build new accommodation that is of proper building standards,
• redo most of the fences and certainly those closest to the buildings,
• upgrade the building and amenities and everything needs to be made
environmentally sustainable.
• repair the roof tiles – several of which have now come off.
Can you help with this? Advice, skill, knowledge, muscle and money are all
appreciated hugely!

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“And though every day a man lives may rightly be a day of repentance,
yet is it in these days more becoming, more appropriate, to confess our
sins, to fast, and to give alms to the poor; since in these days you may
wash clean the sins of a whole year,” St. John Chrysostom.

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