DEDICATION OF THE BELLS

 

The form of service is Evensong from the Book of Common Prayer, originally written by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer in 1549 based on  mediaeval prayer for the evening and night.

The Congregation is invited to listen to this Choral Evensong sung by former Choral Scholars from Trinity College, Cambridge and to join in where the words appear in bold type.

 


When the Bishop of Norwich arrives in the South Porch, the congregation is asked to stand as the Rector welcomes him.

The Choir sings the  Introit  from the Chancel steps when the Bishop enters the Church.


 


HYMN

 

1

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;

bow down before him, his glory proclaim;

with gold of obedience, and incense of              lowliness,

kneel and and adore him: the Lord is his               name.         

 

3

Fear not to enter his courts in the slenderness

of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon as

     thine:

truth in its beauty, and love in its  tenderness,

these are the offerings to lay on his shrine.

2

Low at his feet lay thy burden of carefulness:

high on his heart he will bear it for thee,

comfort thy sorrows,and answer thy                     prayerfulness,

guiding thy steps as may best for thee be.

4

These, though we bring them in trembling and

     fearfulness,

he will accept for the name that is dear;

mornings of  joy give for evenings of                       tearfulness,

trust for our trembling and hope for our fear.

( Tune: Was Lebet.   Words: J.S.B. Monsell 1811 - 75 )

 

 


The Congregation remains standing whilst the Choir sings the Responses.

O Lord open thou our lips:

And our mouths shall show forth thy praise.

 

O God make speed to save us:

O Lord make haste to help us.

 

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit:

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

 

Praise ye the Lord:

The Lord’s name be praised.

 


The Congregation sits and remains seated until after the Nunc Dimittus has been sung.


Choir sings:

PSALM 150

 O praise God in his holiness: praise him in the firmament of his power.

 Praise him in his noble acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.

 Praise him in the sound of the trumpet: praise him upon the lute and harp.

 Praise him in the cymbals and dances: praise him upon the strings and pipe.

 Praise him upon the well-tuned cymbals: praise him upon the loud cymbals.

 Let everything that hath breath: praise the Lord.

 Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

 

FIRST LESSON

Isaiah: Chapter 62, verses 6 & 7 and 12 - 14.

Read by Lord Craig of Radley,  Patron of the East Raynham  Bell Tower Trust

 

Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and the night they will never be silent.  You who put the Lord in Remembrance, take no rest, and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth.  Go through the gates, prepare the way for the people; build up the highway, clear it of stones, lift up an ensign over the peoples.  Behold the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth: say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him and his recompense before him” And they shall be called ‘The holy people, the redeemed of the Lord’.

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

 

The Choir sings:MAGNIFICAT

 

My soul doth magnify the Lord: and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my saviour.

For he hath regarded: the lowliness of his handmaiden.

For behold from henceforth: all generations shall call me blessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me: and holy is his Name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him: throughout all generations.

He hat shewed strength with his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat: and hath exalted the humble and meek.

He hath filled the hungry with good things: and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel: as he promised to our forefathers,

Abraham and his seed, for ever.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

 

SECOND LESSON

Revelation: Chapter 14, verses 1 to 3 and 6 to 7

Read by Viscount Raynham, Churchwarden

 

Then I looked, and lo, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.  And I heard a voice from heaven like the sound of many waters and like the sound of  loud thunder; the voice I heard was like the sound of harpers playing on their harps, and they sing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders.

Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to proclaim those who dwell on the earth, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of his judgement has come; and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the fountain of water.”

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God

 

The Choir sings:

NUNC DIMITTIS

 

Lord, now lettest thou, thy servant depart in peace: according to thy word.

For mine eyes have seen: thy salvation,

Which thou hast prepared: before the face of all people;

To be a light to lighten the Gentiles: and to be the glory of thy people Israel.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and t the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and every shall be: world without end. 

Amen.


The Congregation stands.


 

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

 

 Rector:                                                       I believe in God,

 


the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:

And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, dead, and buried,

He descended into hell; The third day he rose again from the dead, He ascended into heaven,

And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty;

From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy ghost; The holy Catholick Church; The Communion of Saints;

The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body, And the life everlasting.

Amen.

 

The Lord be with you.

And with thy spirit.

 


The Congregation to kneel or sit during the Lord’s Prayer and the sung Responses.


 

Rector:

Let us pray.

Lord have mercy upon us, Christ have mercy upon us, Lord have mercy upon us.

 

Our Father, who art in heaven,

 Hallowed be thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil.  Amen.

 

The Choir sings the Responses:

O Lord shew thy mercy upon us.

And grant us the salvation.

 

O Lord save the Queen.

And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee.

 

Endue thy Ministers with righteousness.

And make thy chosen people joyful.

 

O Lord save thy people.

And bless thine inheritance.

 

Give peace in our time, O Lord.

Because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God.

 

O God, make clean our hearts within us.

And take not thy Holy Spirit from us.

 

COLLECTS

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church is governed and sanctified: hear our prayer which we offer for all thy faithful people, that in their vocation and ministry they may serve thee in holiness and truth, to the glory of thy name; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Amen.

O God, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed; Give unto thy servants that peace which the world cannot give; that both our hearts may be set to obey thy commandments, and also that by thee we being defended from the fear of our enemies may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Amen.

Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. 

Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

May the souls of the faithful, departed to the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Amen.

 


The congregation remains seated during the singing of the Anthem, and for the Bishop’s sermon.


 

ANTHEM

Rejoice in the Lord Alway (The Bell Anthem)

words from  Philippians 4: 4 - 7. Music by Henry Purcell.

 

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

Let your moderation be known unto all men.  The Lord is at hand.

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication

with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace of God,  which passeth all understanding,

 shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

 

SERMON

 The Rt. Revd. Graham James,  Bishop of Norwich.


 

The Congregation stands.


During the next Hymn a collection is taken for Phase II of the Bell Project - the Balcony and Balustrade.


 

HYMN

1

For all the saints who from their labours rest,

who thee by faith before the world confessed,

thy name, O Jesu, be for ever blest.

                                                Alleluia.

                                         2

Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might;

thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;

thou, in the darkness, still their one true Light.

                                               Alleluia.

                                3

O may thy soldiers, faithful, true, and bold,

fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,

and win, with them. The victor’s crown of gold.

                                                   Alleluia.

                              6

The golden evening brightens in the west;

soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest:

sweet is the calm of Paradise the blest.

                                                Alleluia.

                               4

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.

                                                   Alleluia.

                              7

But lo, there breaks a yet more glorious day;

the saints triumphant rise in bright array:

the King of Glory passes on his way.

                                                Alleluia.

                               5

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,

steals on the ear the distant triumph-song,

and hearts are brave again and arms are strong.

                                                    Alleluia.                

 

                             8

From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,

through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,

singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

                                                Alleluia

(Tune: Sine Nomine. Words: W.Walsham How 1823 - 97.)

 


The Congregation kneels or sits for prayers led by the Bishop.


 

Bishop:

In union with the whole Church we join in prayer to ourFather through his Son.

 

Lord,  in your Son Jesus Christ you have shown us the abundant generosity of your love.  We thank you for all those who by giving of their time and money have made possible the renewal and augmentation of the bells in this church.

Lord in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

 

Father,  you have endowed us all with gifts to use for your praise and glory. Bless all ringers who use their skills to hallow your name and to call your people to worship.

Lord in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

 

Lord,  you have called us to be your holy people.  Bless the Church throughout the world that, though we come from different lands, we may love you with the same love and live in the unity which the Holy Spirit brings.

Lord in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

 

Lord,  for your faithful people life is changed but not ended by death.  Grant peace to those who have died that they may share in the fulness of your Son’s risen life.

Lord in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

 


The Congregation stands.


 

During the next hymn the Bishop and others move to the West end of the church for the Dedication of the Bells.

 

 

HYMN

                      1

Ye choirs of new Jerusalem,

   your sweetest notes employ,

the paschal vistory to hymn

   in strains of holy joy.

                     3

Triumphant in his glory now

   to him all power is given;

to him in one communion bow

   all saints in earth and heaven

                      2

For Judah’s Lion bursts his chains,

   crushing the serpent’s head;

and cries aloud through death’s domains

   to wake the imprisoned dead.

                     4

While we his soldiers praise our King,

   his mercy we implore,

within his palace bright to bring

   and keep us evermore.

 5

All glory to the Father be,

all glory to the Son,

all glory, Holy Ghost, to thee,

while endless ages run.

Alleluia.  Amen.

(Tune:St.Fulbert. Words: St.Fulbert of Chartres, died 1028.)


The Congregation now turns to face the West end of the church.


 

Bishop: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

All:Who has made heaven and earth.

Bishop:Blessed be the name of the Lord.

All:Henceforth world without end.

 

Bishop:      Almighty God, be pleased to accept at your hands the offering of these bells and all the work that has been done in this tower.  Bless and sanctify and hallow these bells and grant that their message may lift up the hearts of those who hear them to the praise of your holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God world without end. 

All:Amen.

Bishop:    Almighty God, we dedicate the Tenor bell to you in thanksgiving for the Golden Jubilee of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. May your blessing always rest upon her.

All:Amen.

 

THE NATIONAL ANTHEM

 

God save our gracious Queen,

Long live our noble Queen,

God save the Queen.

Send her victorious,

Happy and glorious,

Long to reign over us,

God save the queen.

 

One of the bell ropes is handed to the Bishop by Mr. Alan Hughes of Whitechapel Bell Foundry

Bishop:      Heavenly Father, pour your grace into the hearts of those who ring these bells, may  they be mindful that they are rung to your honour and glory.

All:Amen.


 

The Bishop then hands the bell rope to the Rector.

 

Bishop:     Receive these bells into your charge.  Take care that they are used in the service of God and his glory.

 

The Rector hands the bell rope to the Captain of the Tower. The Rector then leads the congregation in saying the Angelus.

 

The angel of the Lord brought tidings to Mary,   And she conceived by the Holy Spirit.

(Bell rings three times)

Behold the handmaid of the Lord,   Be it unto me according to thy word.

(Bell rings three times)

The Word was made flesh,   And dwelt among us.

(Bell rings three times)

Pray for us, holy Mother of God,     That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Almighty God pour thy grace into our hearts, we beseech thee, that as we have known the Incarnation of thy son by the message of an angel so by his cross and passion we may be made partakers of his glorious resurrection who lives and reigns with thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one god, world without end.    Amen.

(Bell rings nine times)

Rector:Let the bells now be rung.

The bells ring.

 

CAROL

“Ding, dong merrily on high” sung by the Choir.

 

THE BLESSING

 

Bishop:   Our help is in the name of the Lord.

All:          Who has made heaven and earth.

Bishop:    Blessed be the name of the Lord.

All:        Henceforth world without end.

Bishop:    May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

 

HYMN

                        

 1.

Let all the world in every corner sing,

            my God and King.

    The heavens are not too high,

    his praise may thither fly:

    the earth is not too low,  

    his praises there may grow.

Let all the world in every corner sing,

            my God and King.

                         2

Let all the world in every corner sing,

            my God and King.

    The Church with psalms must shout,

     no door can keep them out;

     but above all the heart

     must bear the longest part.

Let all the world in everycorner sing,

            my God and King.

(Tune: Luckington.  Words: George Herbert 1593 - 1632.)

                                                                                               

 

ORGAN VOLUNTARY

 played by Mark Jones

 

The Bishop, Clergy and Choristers process down to West end of the church and the South Porch.

 

The Congregation leaves by the South Porch.

 

 

BELL RINGING

 

A Touch on the Bells will be rung, led by Jeremy Warren, Ringing Master of the Diocese.

Afterwards, there will be open ringing for all who would like to stay and participate.

 


 

 


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Acknowledgements

 

All those involved in this project would like to thank

the Bishop of Norwich for coming here to bless these bells,

 Mark Jones for playing the Organ and directing the Choir

 and

the former Choral Scholars of Trinity College, Cambridge

for singing here today.

 

 We also offer our heartfelt thanks to

those who have given so generously to fund the historic project.

 

The East Raynham Bell Tower Trust would particularly like to acknowledge the help, both practical and financial, of the Norwich Diocesan Association of Ringers and all who have encouraged and coached

the East Raynham Tower band during the last three years.

 

Our grateful thanks  go to Mrs. David Main and her Flower Ladies who decorated the church.

 

Thank you too for coming to share in this service.  If you are a ringer please stay to ring afterwards.

 Practices are on Mondays at 7.30pm and ringers of any standard will be warmly welcomed.

 

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Tower Captain: Mr. Laurie Mead, 21 The Street, West Raynham, Norfolk NR21 7EZ              01328 838239

Secretary : Viscountess Raynham, Pattesley House, Fakenham, Norfolk NR21 7HT               01328 701818

Treasurer: Ms.Francoise Walker, The Street, West Raynham, Norfolk NR21 7 AD 01328 838318

 

 

Rector: Dr.Edward Bundock, The Rectory, West Raynham, Norfolk NR21 7HH      01328 838385

Churchwarden: Viscount Raynham, Pattesley House, Fakenham, Norfolk NR21 7HT             01328 701818