Celebrating The Queen's Diamond Jubilee
Saturday 02 June – Tuesday 05 June 2012
HM The Queen has become the second monarch in British history to celebrate 60 years on the throne. Communities will mark the Diamond Jubilee in many different ways. How might the church in your area take part – or even take a lead – in the celebrations?
Here are some resources to help you:-
1. The Big Jubilee Lunch – Sunday 03 June
The Queen has invited the nation to sit down for lunch on Sunday 03 June! The
aim is to encourage as many of the 61 million people in the UK as possible to
have lunch with their neighbours. Could your church host a lunch for your local
community after your morning services – in your church hall, or even in the
church itself? There are lots of ideas of how to get started at www.thebiglunch.com
If you’re thinking of organising a street party/lunch, you will need to apply
to Norfolk County Council for a temporary traffic order. This costs £36 and you
can find more information on their website here.
Grace for Diamond Jubilee Lunches
O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, we give you thanks for the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth; for her steadfast faith and for her royal service to this nation and all the peoples of the Commonwealth.
Bless the food before us and the people beside us; may the sharing of this meal strengthen our communities, and nurture the bonds between us of friendship, hope and trust.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ who reigns as servant of all.
Amen
2. The Big Jubilee Thank You
The Big Thank You project is a church-based initiative giving people an opportunity to add personal well wishes to The Queen. Each Diocese will have its own letter, signed by the Diocesan Bishop, and the public can be invited into church to add their own greeting.
This would be a perfect opportunity to throw your church open for the weekend, allowing members of the community to wander in to sign the letter and enjoy some refreshments. How about some displays on the life of your church too? A poster to advertise the letter can be found on the CofE website here.
Our Diocesan letter, signed by Bishop Graham can be downloaded here:
The wording has been approved by the Palace. Your completed
letters should be posted to the Bishop’s PA, Coralie Nichols at Bishop’s House,
Norwich NR3 1SB by Wednesday 20 June so
that they can be forwarded to Church
House, Westminster where they.
3. The Official Emblem
The official emblem can be used in all your publicity. It can be downloaded on the Royal.gov.uk website.
4. Prayers and Liturgical Resources
Prayers and liturgical resources can be found here:- http://www.churchofengland.org/media/1394833/diamond%20jubilee%20liturgical%20resources.pdf
Because Sunday 03 June is Trinity Sunday, and therefore a Principal Feast, the collect and readings at the Principal Service must be those for Trinity Sunday.
These resources are for use at any special service you might wish to organise - perhaps a Songs of Praise type service after your Big Jubilee Lunch?
5. Diamond Jubilee Beacons
– Monday 04 June
A series of beacons will be lit across the United Kingdom on Monday 04 June. Churches
are being asked to consider helping their local community to set up a beacon,
and all the details can be found here:- http://www.diamondjubileebeacons.co.uk/Diamond_Jubilee_Beacons/HOME.html
Our Diocesan Chancellor has advised that any church wishing to put a beacon on its church tower must make contact with their insurance company, and must follow their directions to the letter. They should also send written details of their plans to their archdeacon.
It might be thought preferable to have the beacon sited in a
community space such as a village green or beach. (Perhaps an outdoor service
could follow the lighting of the beacon? Or a service could precede the event,
followed by a procession to the lighting of the beacon?)
6. Publicising your event
As well as local publicity, please send details to the Diocesan Director of Communications, Jan McFarlane at communications@norwich.anglican.org so that she can keep the local media informed of what is happening across the Diocese.
You can also add your events to the Diocesan website here:- http://www.norwich.anglican.org/calendar/add
And from the beginning of May, you can add your events to a national website called A Jubilee Near You - http://www.ajubileenearyou.com/
7. Apply for a grant – but be quick!
Norfolk County Council has set up a fund to support sports and cultural events taking place in local communities across the county to celebrate 2012. It will enable you to make the most of national events, including the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the London 2012 Torch Relay, the Paralympic Torch Festival, the 2012 Norfolk stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race and the final weekend of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. The maximum award is £500 – but be quick because the closing date is Friday 24 February!
Further information can be found here:- http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/view/ncc099710
8. Does your church have royal connections?
The Church of England is looking for tales of visits, burials, baptisms, commemorations, weddings, funerals, battlefields, blessings and more in connection with the royal family. They are especially interested in accounts involving Queen Elizabeth II, but your stories can come from any period in history. These individual histories will be woven together to create a ‘Royal Trail’ around England’s churches and cathedrals, celebrating the unique links between churches and the Crown. The Royal Trail will be publicised and promoted via www.ChurchCare.co.uk.
The deadline for submissions is 1 May 2012. Please send any information or queries to ben.greener@churchofengland.org or visit www.ChurchCare.co.uk for more information.
Published on: 16/03/2012
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