Below is a snapshot of what's coming up this month at the Cathedral. Remember - news and events are also always available via our website at www.wellscathedral.org.uk and our Facebook page.
John Clarke, Dean of Wells, is to retire on December 31 2015 after 11 years in post.
John will say farewell at two Cathedral services to which all wishing to attend are warmly invited. The first will be a Cathedral
Evensong on Thursday 19 November at 5.15pm and will focus on the wider community of the diocese of Bath and Wells and the county of Somerset.
The second will be an opportunity for the Cathedral congregation and volunteers to attend Cathedral Eucharist on Sunday 22 November at 9.45am.
Prior to these important services taking place John will be looking back on nearly 40 years of ordained ministry during a talk on Wednesday 18 November entitled ‘People and Places: The
Shaping of a Dean’. Join John at 7.30pm in our Cathedral’s Education Room for what promises to be a thought-provoking evening of reminiscence, contemplation and reflection.
Saturday 7 November from 12.00 - 12.50pm
EUCHARIST WITH HEALING
The Eucharist with Healing is a reflective service which offers an opportunity to pray for healing and to come forward for the laying on of hands.
Sunday 8 November from 3.00pm – 4.00pm
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REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY REQUIEM
During a special devotional service on Remembrance Sunday, 8 November, the Wells Cathedral Great
Choir will give the world première performance of American composer Gary Davison’s Requiem, which will be interspersed with readings of War poetry. This special act of remembrance will begin at 3pm, in place of the normal Evensong service. Admission is free, and there will be a retiring collection in aid of the
Poppy Appeal and Wells Cathedral Music.
Wednesday 11 November from 11.00am - 11.30am
REMEMBRANCE DAY
Act of Worship at the Clock for Remembrance Day.
Thursday 12 November from 1.05pm – 1.45pm
LUNCHTIME ORGAN RECITAL
Organ Recital with George Castle (Assistant Director of Music, Winchester Cathedral). Free admission with retiring collection in aid of Wells Cathedral Music.
Thursday 19 November from 1.05pm – 1.45pm
LUNCHTIME ORGAN RECITAL
Organ Recital with Wells Cathedral School musicians. Free admission with retiring collection in aid of Wells
Cathedral Music.
Saturday 21 November from 7.00pm to 8.15pm
EARLY MUSIC WELLS SAINT CECILIA CONCERT BY CANDLELIGHT
The final Early Music Wells concert of 2015 will take place on Saturday 21 November, to commemorate St
Cecilia’s Day. St Cecilia is the patron saint of musicians. Harpsichordist Colin Booth will present a programme entitled Grounds for Pleasure: keyboard music from seventeenth century England, including works by Blow, Byrd, Croft, Gibbons, and Purcell. The concert will take place in the Quire of Wells
Cathedral, with tickets priced at £12 available from the Wells Cathedral Shop in advance, and on the door.
Thursday 26 November 1.05pm - 1:35pm
BACH COMPLETE ORGAN WORKS: RECITAL 06
The sixth recital surveying the complete organ works of J.S. Bach, played by Matthew Owens (Organist and
Master of the Choristers), will take place on Thursday 26 November from 1.05 – 1.40pm.
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The programme will be Pastorale in F major, BWV 590; Trio Sonata in E flat major, BWV 525; Chorale partita “Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein”, BWV Anh. 78; Prelude and Fugue in C minor, BWV 546.
Admission is free, with a retiring collection in aid of Wells Cathedral Music.
Sunday 29 November from 5.00pm – 6.30pm
CATHEDRAL ADVENT SERVICE
Come and join us for this beautiful and thought-provoking service.
Our Cathedral Carol Service is one of the great occasions of the
Cathedral’s year as hundreds of people pack the nave and aisles to hear and sing carols, both familiar and new, which herald the coming of God.
This service and the services at midnight on Christmas Eve and on
Christmas morning remind us again that the coming of God was, extraordinarily, through the life of a vulnerable child.
Courtesy of Iain MacLeod-Jones
This year the Cathedral will be hosting two Carol Services, both of which take place from 6-7.30pm:
Tuesday 22 December - for the Cathedral community and open to the general public
Wednesday 23 December - open to the general public
Our traditional carol services, led by the choir, are always popular so please arrive in good time! More details of all events and services taking place during Advent and the Christmas period are available on our website .
Our Service Information and Music List for the month of November is available to view on our website.
Our Vicars Choral will perform their annual Commemoration Concert on Thursday 12 November at 8pm.
The very popular candlelit concert will take place in the North Transept, and will feature a selection of some of the finest Cathedral music for men’s voices, and arrangements of popular songs.
Tickets, at £15 each, are available from the Wells Cathedral Shop Box Office (01749 672773). This concert usually sells out, so we advise buying your tickets in advance as they may not be available on the night!
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An invitation is extended to join our Precentor, Canon Nicholas
Jepson-Biddle, as he embarks on a pilgrimage to Florence and Siena in 2016.
Taking place from 23-27 May 2016 the pilgrimage will provide an opportunity to explore some of the most significant and unique places of worship in these memorable cities with the benefit of guided tours where possible and transfers.
Flights and four nights hotel accommodation is provided in the cost plus meals and entrance fees where relevant. The group will also be accompanied by an Italian-speaking Tour Manager throughout the pilgrimage.
For more details of the itinerary and how to book please contact Mandy Staple in the Cathedral offices via deanchaptersec@wellscathedral.uk.net
If you fancy something a little different this Christmas you may be interested in our traditional Christmas lunches which will be served in our stunning medieval Vicars’ Hall on Tuesday 8th, Wednesday
9th, Thursday 10th and Friday 11th December 2015 and in our contemporary Cathedral café on Tuesday 15th, Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th December 2015.
At only £18.50 for three courses or £15.50 for two courses our festive lunches are always popular so to confirm your booking please contact us on 01749 676543 or via email at catering@wellscathedral.uk.net
Our food is freshly prepared and baked by our team in the Cathedral kitchen each day – including our homemade bread! – using local Somerset and Fairtrade produce wherever possible. All profits from the café go to supporting the work of the Cathedral.
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Wells Cathedral has teamed up with Scene Change
Theatre Group to bring two exciting and thoughtprovoking activities for local schools. Pupils will have the opportunity to become part of Scene Change Theatre for the day, rehearsing with the actors and then performing a play to an audience. Two themes are offered:
‘Magna Carta’ Play in a Day will commemorate the 800th anniversary of The Magna Carta on Thursday 5 November 2015 to teach young people key elements of
Medieval British history in line with national curriculum KS3 in History/Citizenship.
'Over by Christmas’ Play in a Day on Monday 16 November 2015 will commemorate the 100th
Anniversary of the outbreak of WW1. The day is aimed at school years 5 and 6 and is linked to the national curriculum in history, citizenship and PSHE.
For any enquiries relating to the services we provide for schools our Cathedral Education Officer can be contacted directly by email at education@wellscathedral.uk.net
or on 01749 674483 Ext 212.
Continuing our study group programme exploring 'The Spirituality of Jane Austen':
▪ Sunday 1 November : How might a novel speak of God?
▪ Sunday 8 November : Ethics and Virtue within Jane Austen’s novels
▪ Sunday 15 November : Jane Austen and the Spirituality of Holiness.
The Rev Prebendary Paula Hollingsworth (Sub Dean Wells Cathedral) who is writing a book on the spirituality of Jane Austen leads our sessions which consist of a delivered paper (for about 45 minutes), a short break and time for questions, comments and discussion. You are welcome to attend all or some of the sessions.
There will be a retiring collection for Burkino Faso as part of a partnership between Wells Cathedral and
Christian Aid.
Sessions will be held in the Cathedral’s Education Room, 4.30 – 6pm.
On 25 and 26 June this year Matthew Owens, Organist and Master of the Choristers and Elsie, his
Labrador, walked the 50-mile Mendip Way to raise money for the Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust in support of his choristers.
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Now that the final calculations have been made the Trustees are delighted to announce that Matthew has raised over £10,000 for the Endowment Fund.
This is a remarkable achievement; the Trust wishes to thank Matthew, and the many generous sponsors who supported him, for achieving this wonderful outcome. Well done Matthew!
An Advent Quiet Day will be held at Abbey House, Glastonbury, on Tuesday 24 November from 10am to
4pm. The Revd. David Wilcox (Priest Vicar) will lead the day. The cost, which includes lunch, will be £25 plus £2 in cash for expenses. Cheques should be made payable to "Abbey House". To sign up for the day, please complete the form on the table in the North Trancept in the Cathedral or further details may be obtained from Alison Wilcox (01749 673689).
For a round-up of news from our Music Department please visit our website.
Our Cathedral library book of the month for November is 'A New
History of Ethiopia (1682)' by Job Ludolphus.
Job Ludolphus (1624-1704) was a German orientalist. He traveled widely in
Europe, but never to Ethiopia. His knowledge of Ethiopia came from a monk called Gregory whom he met in Rome. Gregory had lived in the province of
Amhara in Ethiopia and he taught Ludolphus all about the country’s language and literature, natural resources, history, customs and religion.
More details on our website.
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Amnesty Victim of Injustice for November - Japan
Matsumoto Kenji, who has had a mental disability since birth, has just spent his 64th birthday on death row.
On 17 September 1993 he was sentenced for two murders committed during robberies between 1990 and
1991. His lawyer said he was forced to confess during interrogation. Matsumoto’s brother, with whom he had a dependant relationship, was charged with the same crime, but committed suicide. The court still decided that he had the mental capacity to be sentenced to death and that his confession was reliable. After
22 years in harsh prison conditions, including solitary confinement, Matsumoto Kenji now uses a wheelchair and suffers from a delusional disorder. He is not competent to assist his lawyer and cannot understand the purpose of the punishment imposed upon him. He could be executed at any time.
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Calendar of Events November 2015
All Saints’ Day
The Chancel Singers to sing all services
4.30 pm
5.15 pm
6.15 pm
Autumn Study Group in the Education Room
All Souls’ Day
Solemn Eucharist Duruflé Requiem
Taste and See in the Chapter Room
12.25 pm Holy Communion
9.30 am Holy Communion
5.15 pm Evensong in celebration of the Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust
5.15 pm The Choir of East & West Harptree and Hinton Blewett to sing
12 noon
Evensong
Eucharist with Healing
7.00 pm
3.00 pm
4.30 pm
Wells Cathedral Oratorio Society Concert: Bach Lutheran Mass
Remembrance Sunday
Service for Remembrance Sunday
Autumn Study Group in the Education Room
12.25 pm Holy Communion
9.30 am
11.00 am
5.15 pm
Holy Communion
Act of Remembrance at the Cathedral Clock
Evensong and Commemoration of Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury
1.05 pm
8.00 pm
Lunchtime Organ Recital: George Castle, Winchester Cathedral
Vicars Choral Commemoration Concert
5.15 pm Evening Prayer said
7.00 pm Wells Cathedral School Prestige Series Concert
3.00 pm Evensong with Marie Curie Cancer Care
5.15 pm
12.25 pm
7.00 pm
9.30 am
7.30 pm
11.30 am
1.05 pm
5.15 pm
Autumn Study Group in the Education Room
Holy Communion
Millfield School Service
Holy Communion
People and Places: The Shaping of a Dean. John Clarke looks back on nearly 40 years of ordained ministry. Talk to be held in the
Education Room.
Mothers’ Union Prayers
Lunchtime Organ Recital: Wells Cathedral School
Evensong and Thanksgiving for the Ministry of The Very Reverend
John Clarke as the Dean of Wells
5.15 pm Evening Prayer said
2.00 pm
7.00 pm
Diocesan Confirmation Service
St Cecilia Early Music Wells Concert- Colin Booth
9.45 am Cathedral Eucharist and Thanksgiving for the Ministry of The Very
Reverend John Clarke as the Dean of Wells
12.25 pm Holy Communion
9.30 am Holy Communion
1.05 pm
5.15 pm
Bach Complete Organ Works, Recital 06: Matthew Owens
Evening Prayer said
1.00 pm Service of Holy Matrimony
3.00 pm
5.00 pm
10.00 am
5.15 pm
Advent Sunday
Evening Prayer said (Vicars’ Close Chapel)
Cathedral Advent Carol Service
Andrew the Apostle
St Andrews Day Wells Cathedral School Eucharist
Solemn Eucharist
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