The Sacrament of Confession
Have you ever wanted to know for sure that you were forgiven for a stupid or unkind thing that you’ve done, which still nags at your conscience?
Have you ever wanted to discuss the recurring problems of the spiritual life with a priest?
Have you ever wanted to have a companion or guide to help you deal with the ups and downs of being a
Christian and battling against sin?
The sacrament of Confession is given to us as a remedy for all these concerns.
When we make a confession to a priest, we tell him the things we have done wrong. We are given advice and counsel, and the priest then pronounces absolution. Absolution is when a priest declares we are forgiven our sins in the name of Jesus himself. Absolution lets us know for sure that those things on our conscience are put away for ever, and that God forgives us.
In the New Testament this practice took place in apostolic times, and many find it today a freeing gift and wonderful source of strength.
Fr John is always available each week at 10.30am on Saturdays in St Barnabas Church to hear confessions. Please be in touch with him if you would like to find another time more convenient, or want to make an appointment for spiritual direction.
Fr John is always happy to talk beforehand about how to make a good confession with anyone who has never used this sacrament before.
Baptism of children
Sometimes known as Christening
May God pour upon you the riches of his grace, that within the company of Christ’s pilgrim people, you may come
to the inheritance of the saints in glory.
The celebration of baptism is always a joyful occasion. Children & adults have been baptized (‘Christened”) at St. Barnabas for over 137 years and the clergy welcome enquiries. Children and babies are baptized on the understanding that they are brought up in the Christian faith, and experience regularly the worship of the Christian community.
When they are old enough to profess the Christian faith for themselves, they are confirmed by the bishop.
If you would like your child to be baptized, please be in touch with Fr. John concerning possible dates. The best way is to come along to the Sunday Parish Mass at 11am and introduce yourselves to him.
You will need to complete an application form, which you can obtain from him.
Our usual practice is to baptize babies during our 11am Sung Mass on a Sunday morning.
Banns of Marriage
It is a legal requirement that your banns of marriage are published before you get married. This means the Church publishes your intent to marry so that anyone who knows of a genuine legal reason why the union can not happen may lodge an objection.
A valid objection must be something recognised in law as prohibiting your ability to marry. It does not mean that someone who wishes to cause trouble, or who is simply not happy with the idea of your wedding can prevent you getting married.
Banns are usually called on three successive Sundays at our 11am Sung Mass within a three month period before the wedding. It is almost unknown for any objection ever to be made.
A certificate proving that no objection was made must then be given to the priest officiating at the wedding. A standard fee of £45 is charged for the publication of banns and the issuing of a certificate.
Banns must be called in the Church of England parishes in which both bride and groom are resident. If you both live in the same parish, then banns only need to be published in one parish. Banns should only be published at St Barnabas if you live within the boundaries of our parish, which are shown here.
How to apply to have your banns read:
1. Telephone Fr. john on 01273 881761 to make an appointment to arrange the Banns.
2. At the appointment you will need to fill in the Banns form and bring with you the fee of £45 in either cash or cheque made payable to “St. Barnabas Church PCC,”
3. We will then let you know precisely which Sundays your banns will be published on.
4. To pick up the certificate, come to St Barnabas on a Sunday morning to the 11.00 am service on the third Sunday the banns are called, and we will issue the certificate for you. It is then your responsibility to take the certificate to the priest officiating at your wedding.
Weddings
If St Barnabas, Hove is your local parish church or if you have another legally-recognised connection with it, we’d love to hear from you to discuss your plans for marriage. To find out more about connections that enable you to marry in a particular church, see the Church of England’s weddings web site for more details. Couples choose a church wedding for all sorts of reasons. Find out more about how you can too.
Special Day, Special Place
Getting married is one of the biggest decisions you’ll take in life. There are some things about marrying in church that make that big moment extra special:
– A church wedding will add a spiritual dimension to your marriage. God’s blessing is the main attraction for many couples, whatever their beliefs.
– You can make amazing vows, or promises, in a church. These vows, made in public, will help you to stay together and grow together.
– The Vicar has a very particular role to play in your wedding. They can blend ancient tradition and modern experience to reflect your story. Because of the relationship with the Vicar, your wedding can be made personal, memorable, meaningful and beautiful.
– Church buildings offer outstanding beauty. Old or new, intimate or grand, our 16,000 churches are some of the nation’s most stunning wedding venues, with two-thirds being listed buildings.
– Church buildings offer centuries of history. You can feel you’re becoming part of history itself by marrying in the same place as your relatives.
– You can be involved in making choices about your ceremony. You can even use an online ceremony planner to get you started. For some people, a church simply seems like the proper place to get married. Churches can be described as ‘peaceful’, ‘serene’, or having an atmosphere that makes marrying there a particularly special experience.
You do not need to have been christened and you do not need to be attending regularly to choose a church wedding. A complication might arise if one of you has been married before, or, if one of you is a foreign national, but there may still be a way forward. The Church of England’s weddings web site tells you more about this.
Services Provided by St Barnabas, Hove
• Induction hearing loop
• Assistance dogs welcome
• Large print hymnbooks or service books
• Wheelchair accessible
• Crèche
• Live music
• Child focused teaching
• Toilets
• Modern Catholic
If St Barnabas, Hove is your local parish church or if you have another legally-recognised connection with it, we’d love to hear from you to discuss your plans for marriage. To find out more about connections that enable you to marry in a particular church, see the Church of England’s weddings web site for more details. Couples choose a church wedding for all sorts of reasons. Find out more about how you can too.
Special Day, Special Place
Getting married is one of the biggest decisions you’ll take in life. There are some things about marrying in church that make that big moment extra special:
– A church wedding will add a spiritual dimension to your marriage. God’s blessing is the main attraction for many couples, whatever their beliefs.
– You can make amazing vows, or promises, in a church. These vows, made in public, will help you to stay together and grow together.
– The Vicar has a very particular role to play in your wedding. They can blend ancient tradition and modern experience to reflect your story. Because of the relationship with the Vicar, your wedding can be made personal, memorable, meaningful and beautiful.
– Church buildings offer outstanding beauty. Old or new, intimate or grand, our 16,000 churches are some of the nation’s most stunning wedding venues, with two-thirds being listed buildings.
– Church buildings offer centuries of history. You can feel you’re becoming part of history itself by marrying in the same place as your relatives.
– You can be involved in making choices about your ceremony. You can even use an online ceremony planner to get you started. For some people, a church simply seems like the proper place to get married. Churches can be described as ‘peaceful’, ‘serene’, or having an atmosphere that makes marrying there a particularly special experience.
You do not need to have been christened and you do not need to be attending regularly to choose a church wedding. A complication might arise if one of you has been married before, or, if one of you is a foreign national, but there may still be a way forward. The Church of England’s weddings web site tells you more about this.
Services Provided by St Barnabas, Hove
• Induction hearing loop
• Assistance dogs welcome
• Large print hymnbooks or service books
• Wheelchair accessible
• Crèche
• Live music
• Child focused teaching
• Toilets
• Modern Catholic
Funerals
Arranging a funeral is always a difficult time.
We strongly recommend that you instruct a Funeral Director to deal with all the practicalities and advise them if you want a particular Minister of a particular Church for the Funeral Service. Once you have done this, the Minister will make contact with you and he will try to help you in every way that he can.
Grief is not easy to understand but it really can help to talk with your Minister about how you are feeling. There is no embarrassment in shedding tears and feeling totally ‘lost’ – this is perfectly natural and entirely understandable. Here at St. Barnabas, we will do all that we can to support you during the very difficult days which follow a death.
Do please contact us if we can be of any help.
Parish Priest
Fr John Eldridge SSC – 01273 881761
The Churchwardens
Christopher Bould – 07730 381934
Kay Stringer – 07756 602784