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It has been a busy week with resuming worship in Mikael Agricola Church, planning for services outside of Helsinki, discussing baptisms, confirmations and Deanery, Diocesan and General Synods.
Currently we are planning to arrange, on a request of the Archdeacon, the Deanery Synod in Helsinki this October. The synod would also mark the 25th Anniversary of the Porvoo Agreement. On this occasion the Primates (lead bishops and archbishops) of the Communion will gather in Tampere a week later. We will share the exact dates once both events have been confirmed.
There will be many events taking place this autumn. Please follow, and invite others to follow too, this newsletter for more information. I wish to thank all our Sunday School teachers for their marvelous work before they head for summer holidays.
In Christ,
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SERVICES
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All of our Services can be viewed live on Facebook, or you can click this link to
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SUNDAY 6th JUNE - 1st SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY
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10am Sung Eucharist at Mikael Agricola Church
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THURSDAY 10th JUNE - EVENING PRAYER
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Join us for a calm and reflective moment in the week, every Thursday at 6.00pm. Click here to join us on zoom: Thursday Evening Prayer
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Meeting ID: 853 6618 2957
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NEWS
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Sunday School & Youth Group:
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Last Sunday we discussed the Holy Trinity and used an apple to remind us about God: the apple peel protects the apple like God the Father protects us; the flesh reminds us of Jesus, God's Son, who came to earth in the flesh, in human form, to save us and the apple seeds remind us of God the Holy Spirit who helps us grow closer to God, just like an apple seed grows. We also baked a recipe with just three ingredients to remind us of the Holy Trinity. The results were delicious!
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As we go on Summer break we would like to thank all the parents and children who have faithfully joined us this school year. We wish you a happy Summer holiday!
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And at this time we also give thanks for our dedicated teachers: Jane, Jayawin, Tino and Sarah
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Sunday School & Youth Group resumes in August, hopefully in the Church. crypt
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Saying Farewell to the Edwards Family!
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This Summer the Edwards family are moving back to Munich. Their youngest daughter was baptised at St Nicholas and her big sister had her first communion with us back in 2019. They have been a true blessing to the Sunday School and will always be part of our Church family. Lia has also taken wonderful photos of our activities for which we are very grateful! We wish them safe travels to Germany and much happiness for the future.
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Cari read this lovely prayer for us last Sunday:
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'Thank you God for the love I have had in Finland. Help me remember that you are the source of all happiness: that which can fit in boxes and that which is too big to pack. Help me make new friends and remember the special friends I have made here. Amen.'
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Good luck Katharine!
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The eldest member of our Youth Group is heading off to University in the Netherlands this Autumn! Katharine and her sister have been very active members of our Sunday School & Youth Group, and have helped to lead fun activities for some of our sessions - always with lots of smiles and cheer. Our younger members have loved learning how to make paper angels for Christmas, delicious American pancakes for Lent, and a fun Earth Day craft! We will really miss Katharine but look forward to seeing her again when she is home for the holidays. Please join us in wishing her well for this exciting step in her journey!
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Did you know.... that Card Sales contribute almost 2,000 euros to our annual income!! Each card also carries an advert for our Church and brings people together for crafting and fellowship! Read on to find out how this fantastic enterprise got started and how we can ensure it continues...
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An Appealing Story about Cards - by David Bullivant
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Many years ago, so long ago, indeed, that the world was very different, Judith Holst, from Hamburg, was met at an Anglican Deaconry meeting, and she extolled the delights of creating Christmas Cards by recycling old cards, and she promised huge financial benefits for Church coffers, which is not to be sneezed at. This seemed to be a good wheeze, so Inkeri and I eagerly learned how we would go about this for the good of Helsinki Anglicans.
Basically all that's required is a good stock of old Christmas cards, which are guillotined down to fit the new card blanks and the resultant picture content is glued onto the new card blank making a new Christmas card. The question of copyright was investigated and a printer was found to prepare the blanks with a festive greeting in three languages printed inside. Friends were asked to send their old cards from which the picture part was cut making the raw material.
These Christmas cards prove very popular and indeed, verily, Church coffers benefited, and no sneezing was tolerated! On the run up to Christmas, cards and envelopes were put out for sale at
post-service coffee Sunday, and at the Bazaars each year church outsiders were introduced to the cards which, with envelope, sold at a very reasonable price, and proved very popular - the quality is unbeatable.
One summer, visiting friends in Vääksy, during which event the lady of the house offered us not only Christmas cards to recycle, but asked if we'd also produce cards for everyday use, such as birthdays, thank you, get well, congratulations, mother's day, Valentine's day , Easter cards.. . why not, indeed? All that was needed was raw material to recycle and blanks with no text inside, which the printer was happy to supply - every card sold, Christmas or everyday, carries publicity for our Church on the outside of the 'back page' - free advertising, too!
Very soon, a good stock of 'everyday' cards was built up, and during the year these come out for sale every Sunday at church coffee, and like the Christmas cards, are sold with an envelope at a profitable, but very reasonable price - the quality cannot be bettered.
Cost to the Church: blanks from the printer, envelopes from the wholesaler, glue.
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It is the Team's time to guillotine the raw material to fit and to put it all together. Then to see that the product is sold and the coffers are suitably refreshed.
A NEW TEAM CAPTAIN IS NEEDED TO OVERSEE THIS ENTERPRISE.
Our previous Team Captain, Katrina Roberts, has generously offered to explain to the incoming Team Captain how things have been done, but that is not to say that new ideas, improvements and developments are not welcome. The NEW TEAM CAPTAIN will bring fresh air on board, and have
the full support of Katrina and myself!
Do you know someone who would love to help - young or mature, male or female, someone even outside usual Church life. Please contact Sarah in the office who will be glad to supply contact details for Katrina Roberts and / or David Bullivant.
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Hello from Peter Joy
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At last, this spell of glorious early summer weather may well have brought on the green itch even if you’re not so prone to this condition. If it still hasn’t hit you, take a spin, walk or bike ride in your favourite green area and enjoy all the subtle shades of green displayed by the different species of trees: the bright shiny green of the birches, the slightly coppery tint of aspens and the vivid olive green of oak. And note the contrast of these with the sombre spruce sprouting with its fresh green new growth. In parks and gardens the apple blossom is, I think, unsurpassed this ”spring-summer”.
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All this makes a wonderful background to the birdsong: blackbirds, chaffinches, wood-pigeons, warblers and I don’t know what else. Enjoy it while it lasts: by midsummer the foliage will darken to a more uniform shade of green. If that doesn’t get your fingers itching, I suppose nothing will – it may even turn some souls away from even contemplating gardening. In a way it’s perfectly valid to conclude "why should I try to imitate God / nature when He / she can do it so much better than me?”. Maybe window-box and pot gardening are more likely to appeal to townspeople who don’t have enough access to unspoilt nature.
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So this series continues for those of you who, for whatever reason, are beset by the itch. By now, early June, it’s reasonably safe to assume that in the Helsinki region we are pretty well finished with night frosts until September-October. Elevated balconies are even safer than gardens at ground level, as cold air sinks to lower levels. This means that it should be safe to plant out frost-tender annual flowers such as petunias, flowering tobaccos, trailing lobelias, salvias, dahlias and pelargoniums (”geraniums”). Some species – (dwarf) sweetpeas / tuoksuherneet, snapdragons / leijonankidat and violas + pansies/orvokit don’t mind a slight night frost. Remember, though, that basil and cucumbers can already suffer at temperatures below 10C.
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Go for healthy-looking sturdy plants rather than overgrown, spindly or lanky plants in far-too-small pots.
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If the forecasts do predict the return of night frosts, you can generally ward off the threat by covering your plantings overnight with 2 or 3 thicknesses of newspaper. Spread it over the plants early evening and remove the covering around 8 am the following morning. Two layers of horticultural fleece/harso overnight will also keep the plants 2 or 3 degrees warmer than the surroundings.
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For fragrance grow dwarf sweet peas, night-flowering white tobaccos derived from Nicotiana alata (the more showy bright red varieties mostly lack scent), some ”old-fashioned” types of petunia (if you can locate them) and heliotrope. Before you buy heliotrope plants, go round sniffing the plants as individuals vary greatly in their fragrance. If you have plenty of room for a large pot, invest in a shrubby datura (Brugmansia) or the stately tobacco Nicotiana sylvestris for night scent.
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Most plants need plenty of light if they are to flower well.
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It’s difficult to overly stress that most plants need good light levels for good and prolonged flowering performance. Sun-lovers will need a site which is open for at least half the day, preferably in the morning. Except for violets and pansies, all the plants I listed above are sun-lovers. If your growing area only gets a few hours of reasonably unobstructed daylight, try the violas – or, if you want vivid colour, busy lizzies/ahkeraliisat. The small-flowered fibrous rooted begonias and fuchsias may also manage under partially shaded conditions eg., when some sunlight filters through a sparse tree cover. The large-flowered tuberous begonias appreciate good light. Balcony boxes should, of course, be raised to rail-level for your plants to receive as much light is available.
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How much and how often should I water?
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Did you remember to make sure excess water can drain away easily? Good. Now, how can you decide how often to water your plants, and how much should you give them at a time? Generally speaking, plants in sunny positions will need some water every day if the weather is at all aunny and reasonably warm. Under overcast conditions you can reduce this to ever other day. If the soil surface appears at all dry or feels dryish to your fingers then you should water. If the plants are growing in pots you are fit enough to lift, you will soon learn how much water the pot is holding by its weight.
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If you need to leave your garden for 2 or 3 days, you will probably manage by moving your pots to a shady spot for the interim. Boxes are clearly more difficult. A doule layer of fleece will slow the rate of water loss, but in hot weather you will need to call a friend or neighbour to help out after a couple of days.
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In very hot weather you may need to water pots and boxes twice a day. If the pots start to dry out alarmingly fast with the plants needing watering twice a day in normal weather, the plants have very likely outgrown the pot. Another indication that the plants need repotting is that roots start to grow out of the holes in the base. You should get somewhat larger pots and more potting compost and repot the plant. Ensure that the collar of the plant (where roots meet stems) is at the same level as in the previous pot. Avoid repotting a small plant into a much larger pot size, as most plants don’t seem to appreciate this treatment – possibly because it’s all too easy to overwater the baby plant which cannot transpire the excess fast enough to avoid suffocating.
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If, like me, you’re too stingy to buy proprietary plant fertiliser and you’re not too squeamish, you can water plants with (fresh) pee diluted to about 7-10%, about twice a week. If you find this offputting, you can gather a generous handful of stinging nettles (that haven’t yet gone to seed) and dunk these in an 8-10 litre watering can. Let this stand for a week and water your pots etc with the resulting (admittedly none too fragrant) brew 2 or 3 times a week.
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Marja-Leena's Pie
for Special Occasions!
The pie can be made according to taste with ham, fish, bacon or onion etc but smoked salmon seems to be very popular.
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Thank you to Marja-Leena for sharing her delicious recipe with us! If you have a recipe you would be willing to share then please email it to Sarah at office@anglican.fi.
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1,5dl plain flour mixed with 1 tsp of baking powder
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1dl 'mummon muusi’. (potato mix)
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1dl milk * (*lactose free if necessary)
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- smoked salmon or ham/bacon
- 2dl grated cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1 dl cream
- 1/2 tsp salt
- basil - fresh or 2 tsp dried pour the mixture into the pie onto the meat and cheese.
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Mix all the ingredients for the base together into a soft dough and spread by hand into your pie dish.
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Drop /spread evenly the fish (ham, bacon) onto the base.
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Onto the meat spread 2dl of grated cheese.
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In a bowl mix the eggs, cream, salt and basil and pour into the dish
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Leave in the oven at 180degrees C for 35-40 mins. Serve warm or cold
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COVID guidelines
when coming to worship at St Nicholas
- Before entering the Church, please use the hand disinfectant provided or wash your hands in the bathrooms.
- All those joining in worship (clergy and laity) should wear a face mask to reduce transfer of respiratory droplets into the environment. Those who have a formal part in the liturgy (presiding, preaching, reading, interceding) may remove their face mask when they are actually speaking. Please be careful where masks are placed to avoid cross-contamination. Face masks are available at the entrance.
- The Vergers are here to ensure your safety and those of other members of the congregation by overseeing the seating arrangements and providing guidance during the service. They will ask you for a phone number when you arrive at Church, this is for purely for contact tracing.
- The seating arrangements have been planned to ensure that a two-metre distance is maintained. If you are here with your family or individuals who live with you in the same household, you are welcome to sit together.
- Should you feel the need to cough or sneeze, please use a tissue. Used tissues can be disposed of in the bin at the entrance. It is recommended that each individual or each family carry a small bottle of hand sanitizer.
- At the Peace, please maintain a safe distance from other members of the congregation. The sign itself can take the form of a wave or smile instead of shaking hands.
- Holy Communion will be administered in the form of the wafer only. The wafer will be administered by the Chaplain and you will be guided at this point in the service by the Vergers. If you wish to receive Holy Communion then please extend your hands, with face covering in place. You may lower or unloop your face mask to consume the consecrated bread and then replace the face mask before moving back to your place in the congregation.
- The Vergers will ensure that safe distancing is maintained when leaving the Church, please wait for their signal that it is safe to leave.
- Contactless giving is available at the entrance/exit. Offerings can also be placed in a basket at the exit when leaving the service.
- Please note that there is no post-service gathering for tea and fellowship in the Crypt.
- Online Sunday School finishes on 30th May and resumes in early August. At this point we are not permitted to hold Sunday School in the crypt.
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Those with symptoms of Covid-19 or other respiratory or flu-like illness, or an elevated temperature, or who are particularly vulnerable to infection should not attend public services, but join worship, as available, online.
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Annual Chaplaincy Meeting - Sunday 29th August 2021
The Council has settled on a new date for the ACM, Sunday 29th August. It is hoped that by this stage many more members will have had both vaccinations and with Summer holidays over that we will have a good number attending the meeting.
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Please remember that in order to stand for election or to vote at the meeting you need to be on the Electoral Roll. If you added your name to the electoral roll back in 2019 then you don't need to put your name down again until 2025, but if you are unsure or would like to check then please don't hesitate to get in touch with Sarah in the office.
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SAVE THE DATE!
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Outdoor Service in Mikael Agricola Courtyard
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Back to School All-Age Service
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Annual Chaplaincy Meeting after the service
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PRAY WITH US
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help us to keep your law of love
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and to walk in ways of wisdom,
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that we may find true life
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in Jesus Christ your Son.
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Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland: Bishop Agnes Sigurdardottir, Bishop Kristjan
Björnsson, Bishop Solveig Lara Gudmundsdottir
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The Spanish Reformed Episcopal Church: Bishop Carlos Lopez Lozano
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SUPPORTING US
In these difficult times your continued support is greatly appreciated and if possible we would ask you to consider donating towards our ongoing costs by clicking here to be directed to our easy Donate buttons or by means of a bank transfer using the details below:
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Suomen Anglikaaninen Kirkko (The Anglican Church in Finland)
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IBAN: F173 3131 1000 3282 07
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Father Tuomas Mäkipää (050-3099132)
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[Please use the contact emails provided]
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