General Interest.
An amazing building with amazing supporters!
"Enter Holy Sepulchre Church as a complete stranger to the building as so many thousands of visitors do; the reaction generally is "Wow"! It is such an exclamation of our language today that such a comment is used to express surprise, joy and extreme pleasure at finding something so spectacular, different and of such a distant era. Gradually, our visitors come to terms with the multi change of vistas throughout the building, something of a mystery that so many different centuries of workmanship can sit together and yet somehow blend in a manner seldom seen in other places of worship. On a bright summer day, the sunlight streaming through the windows brings a sort of eariness to the upper level often landing on one of the many military memorials; almost asking our visitors to enquire of the flush of militaria surrounding the walls and the Warriors Chapel.
With so much unrest in our world today with fighting and disturbance in so many countries, maybe, just maybe it is time to reflect upon all those past battles that took place so long ago and yet proudly shout from our walls upon plaques of brass and within cabinets of the triumphs and losses that now sit in history. But militaria is not all about wars, battles, troop losses and political hysteria. At St Seps we have so much to be grateful for in our military connections. Running alongside all that regiments and squadrons and fleets do as their day to day committment, there is a strong community element threading through all the ranks from top to bottom as part of each individual's attestation to the sovereign.
The writer can only look back personally as far as 1963 to find the extra-ordinary support of The Northamptonshire Regiment and it's Association...the Royal Pioneer Corps and it's Association... The Burma Star Association...The Royal Logistic Corps and the many others who with the giving of time, energy, finance, ceremonial and royal connections have contributed enormously to the life and work of our church and indeed continue to do so. The financing of the Warriors Chapel in 1921 and the more recent financial input of the Northamptonshires during restoration of the chapel...the Pioneer Door provided by the RPC Association and the ceremonial contributions of the RPC not forgetting the considerable input of the RPC secretariat throughout many years of the restoration...it is all there and we should be encouraged to let our visitors know of our good fortune.
 And we continue to have reason to be evermore grateful as yet another glorious donation reaches us from the now wound up Northamptonshire Regiment Association. On the 10th April, Colonel Peter Worthy announced to our congregation and presented, a cheque in the sum of £10,000 for the sole purpose of a major contribution towards the refurbishment of the Victorian Paintings in the Warriors Chapel. Our profuse thanks to the regimental committee for this considerable gift towards the required sum of approximately £30,000.
John Kightley MBE
Photo L to R:
Col Peter Worthy, Former President Northamptonshire Regimental Association.
Sarah Peyton, Former Secretary to the association.
John Kightley, PCC member, Holy Sepulchre. |