El Señor sea con ustedes...*
It was not so much 'all Greek to me' as 'all Spanish to me' when St Aldhem's Branksome welcomed the local Venezuelan community to a special Eucharist, celebrated in their native tongue.
Revd Philip (Pip) Martin, Vicar of St Aldhelm's, Branksome, speaks Spanish and was delighted to preside and preach at the service, which included English translation for the non-Spanish speakers so everyone would be welcome at the service.
Pip told us:
"El Señor sea con ustedes... [*The Lord be with you...]"
"Bournemouth and Poole are home to many different nationalities and I was delighted to offer the hospitality of our church to the Venezuelan community, especially at this time when they naturally feel great anxiety on behalf of all their families and friends in that crisis-hit country.
"They were so grateful for this opportunity to pray and worship and support each other and we in turn felt blessed to share in such a heartfelt and moving service. At several points people broke spontaneously into Christian songs from their homeland. It truly seemed that, in Christ, we were very closely connected with those suffering elsewhere."
The service was attended by around 60 adults and children from across the communities in the area and now community and Church plan to repeat the Eucharist together, each month.
Document Actions