The first recorded service in Winterton was on the Sunday before Christmas in 1913. Alfred Bennett donated the land for All Saints somewhere around 1909 and most of the building was completed by 1912. Bishop Baines dedicated All Saints on 14 June 1914. There has thus been an Anglican presence in Winterton for nearly 100 years. To mart 100 years of continuous worship in the building a celebratory service is to be held on 29 September at 10h00. The Anglican Church will be hosting the combined service which takes place on the fifth Sunday of the month. The congregation of St Patrick’s Bergville will also be joining the celebration.
The Anglican Church is a world-wide communion with the greatest number of members on the African continent. In the 1980s there was a Decade of Evangelism and the Anglican Church in Africa has grown faster than in any other part of the world. For example, the link dioceses of Niassa in the northern part of Mozambique has doubled the number of congregations in the Diocese since 1998.
Some of the growth in Africa has been initiated by a course called Rooted in Jesus, which originated in Tanzania. A pastor was showing thee Jesus film on a regular basis and rejoiced in bringing people to conversion but knew that his converts needed more. In collaboration with a link Diocese in Leicester in the UK, the Rooted in Jesus course was developed to be a truly African “Discipleship” course. It is not so much a study course as an apprenticeship course. The wonderful thing about it for rural people is that only the leader needs to be literate. The other people in the groups that undergo rooted in Jesus develop into ministry teams that care for people in the most extraordinary ways. The Rooted in Jesus course is being used in many different countries in Africa. We are very fortunate to be hosting a training conference for those who are interested in implementing Rooted in Jesus at Em’seni Campsite from 20 – 23 September. We are hoping that this course will empower us to reach out to people in evangelism.
The Anglican Church is an incarnational church and, just as Jesus was incarnated into the world, many members of the church are immersed in the communities in which they live or have contact with. We are very privileged to have some members of All Saints who are deeply immersed in the communities round about Winterton.
The Anglican Church centres its worship around the service of Holy Communion trying to be faithful to the Lord’s word of “doing this in remembrance of me.” The service of Holy Communion is held each Sunday morning. The first part of the service is focused on the Word of God and the second half on the sacrament of Holy Communion.
Small groups are important for us in the life of the church. It is these small groups that people can grow in their faith and grow in caring for other people. Over the past years, we have run a weekly fellowship group in Winterton.
Being together is an important aspect of our faith in Christ and we really enjoy getting together as a congregation to share in fellowship meals.
We are trying to have at least one service in the month that is completely child-friendly. Here parents and children can participate in worship together enjoying the God who created us, redeems us and has placed us in this wonderful part of the world.
September 2013 is going to be a very full month for us, as we have our Baptism and Confirmation service on 8 September in which some 15 children are to be baptized The Rooted in Jesus training course takes place from 20-23 September and our 100 Years Celebration takes place on 29 September.
Apart from the local Anglican minister, John Green, we are blessed to receive ordained ministry from Caroline Beech, our assistant, and from Kevin Robertson who is based at Em’seni Campsite and who are both Anglican Clergy.
Services at 09h00 in Winterton