5th century mosaic floor, Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.
Bible readings: Romans 9:1-5 and Matthew 14.13–21
Gospel Reading [NRSVA]
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.’ Jesus said to them, ‘They need not go away; you give them something to eat.’ They replied, ‘We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.’ And he said, ‘Bring them here to me.’ Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.
CLUSTER INFORMATION & EVENTS
Celtic Morning Prayer – Each weekday morning on zoom 8:00am – 8:30am. Please email Keno for zoom details.
Fellowship Lunch at St Mary’s – Every Monday midday.
Emmaus – the group is taking a summer break and will restart on 1st September. Kevin
Psalm Prayer Group – Every Thursday at 11:15am we read, pray and meditate on a Psalm. Come and join us at St Mary’s. Josie
Meditation Group – Every Friday a Meditation group meets at St Mary’s church at 10:30am. This is a welcoming and supportive space for everyone in the community. Vicky
Breakfast and Breathe is having a summer break and will resume again on Monday 7th September.
Little Lights is having a summer break.
Christian Meditation and Contemplative Prayer – Last Monday of the month at St Mary’s at 6pm. We look forward to being together in silent worship. Vicky
Julian Prayer Group – The Julian Group meets at 6pm at St. Pol de Leon church on the first Sunday of the month, and online via zoom other Sundays. If you would like to attend, please email Mel at mlevesconte@hotmail.co.uk for zoom details.
Prayer Requests – If you are concerned about someone and would like their name included in the Prayer Request Group’s weekly prayer list, please do email Mel by 7pm on Tuesday evenings.
If you would like to join the group and could spend a little time each week praying the list in your personal prayer time, please do contact Mel at mlevesconte@hotmail.co.uk who will add you to the circulation list. Information is not shared and members’ names are not circulated within or outside the group.
Proposed Pastoral Scheme affecting Penlee Cluster – Consultation
The Truro Diocesan Mission and Pastoral Committee has prepared a draft Pastoral Scheme for our four churches in the Cluster, which will unify them as one benefice. The scheme includes a number of important proposals for reorganisation and we are all invited to make representations either for or against by 14th September. Print-outs of the proposal are available in our churches and you can also find details on our cluster website here: https://www.penleecluster.org.uk/explore-our-cluster/
Paul Tuesday Talk
Punishment or Panacea?
A talk by Dr Tim McInerny
Tuesday August 4th in Paul Church
Dr Tim McInerny, Forensic Psychiatrist, will talk on the conflict between punishment, which the public wants, and which seeks to deter future offences and impose just consequences, and rehabilitation, which focuses on altering behaviour and addressing the root causes of crime to successfully reintegrate offenders. Dr McInerny will illustrate his talk by cases he has been involved with.
Doors open 7pm, talk starts at 7.30pm. £5 entry includes nibbles.
The funeral of Wendy Gauntlett
will take place on Tuesday 11th August at 11am at St Mary’s Church, followed by refreshments at the Queens Hotel. Many of you will already have heard that Wendy died suddenly, but peacefully on Wednesday 15th July. Please pray for her family – her daughter Tracey and son- in law John, her grandson Scot, her brother Jim and sister-in-law Heather, and for all of her friends here at church, and in the community as we continue to grieve.
Holiday Club
Our Holiday Club started on Monday 27th July. We have planned 9 days on Mondays and Thursdays throughout August and a final day on Wednesday 2nd September. We are grateful to Madron Daniel C of E School for allowing us to use this space as our base and to St Mary’s Church for the final day.
We have many exciting days planned: Trengwainton garden and imagine outdoors, Helston Museum and Penrose walk, Pitch and Putt and Football Golf at Hayle, Porthcurno Museum and beach, Vertical Blue archery and activities, a film project with Alex, John Brolly from the Minack leading a drama workshop, Land’s End and Sennen walk, Marazion and beach fun and a final celebration party at St Mary’s on Wednesday 2nd September with Ready Steady Cook activity.
Thank you to everyone for donating so generously to Holiday Club. We raised over £500! Your contributions have made a real difference to children’s summer holidays. It’s not too late to donate if it slipped your mind.
Might you be able to sponsor a child at £5 a day? Or could you contribute towards food costs or buy some food for us?
We will need cheese, ham, fruit, baby tomatoes, cucumber, yoghurts, fruit and a few sweet treats too. Please bring these to St. Mary’s Church.
Or maybe you could give a contribution towards ice cream, money for days out?
Please contact Jenny or Keno about any donations. Thank you in advance for helping us continue the 13th year of Penlee Cluster Holiday Club.
Rainbow Project Team
Thanks
Thanks to Penny and Alex for helping me with Messy Church pop up activities at St Mary’s School summer fete. Although it was a very hot afternoon and children were feeling weary, they enjoyed thinking about ‘Hands around the world’ and teamwork (think World Cup!) and making trail mix, traditional in the USA, where every ingredient has a meaning, similar to the components of a Christingle. Watch out for a ‘hands round the world’ display in St Mary’s Church over the summer! Jenny
Concert at St Mary’s church
Sunday 2nd August at 7:30pm, Mousehole Male Voice Choir 92nd Summer Festival Concert, with the Internationally renowned AOIFE MISKELLY (Soprano). Tickets £10.
Volunteer with NightChurch Pz
Could you spare a few hours to make a difference in our community? NightChurch Pz is looking for volunteers who can commit to 3 hours on a weekly, fortnightly, or monthly basis.
Inspired by our Christian faith, we are passionate about seeing everyone in our community experience life to the full. We believe that every person deserves access to a safe space, supportive relationships, and opportunities to thrive and reach their full potential.
By bringing together local churches, we aim to journey alongside people facing difficult circumstances, offering hope, encouragement, and practical support for the future.
Might you be able to support in areas including:
- Welcome and hospitality
- Listening and conversation
- Prayer support
- Creative activities
Whether you have experience in these areas or simply a heart for people, we would love to hear from you.
Please do get in contact: Victoria, NightChurch Coordinator nightchurchpenzance@gmail.com
Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes in Tabgha shows a basket with only four loaves of bread instead of the biblical five, flanked by two fish.. This early Byzantine floor mosaic from the 5th century lies directly in front of the altar.
Beneath the altar is a calcareous rock, which tradition says Jesus placed the bread and fish upon and blessed.
Although the Gospels speak of five loaves of bread, the mosaic deliberately depicts only four. The fifth bread is missing because the celebrating community in front of the altar symbolically represents this fifth bread, which is broken and distributed.
