March News, Mothering Sunday, Holy Week, Giving, Eco Church
- Mar 1
- 9 min read
Updated: Mar 3
March Sunday Services
Sunday 1st March
The Second Sunday of Lent
8am Eucharist
9am Bubble Church
10am Sung Eucharist with Junior Church and Crèche
Sunday 8th March
The Third Sunday of Lent
8am Eucharist
10am Sung Eucharist with Junior Church and Crèche
Sunday 15th March
The Fourth Sunday of Lent, Mothering Sunday
8am Eucharist
9am Bubble Church
10am Sung Eucharist with Junior Church and Crèche
Sunday 22nd March
The Fifth Sunday of Lent
8am Eucharist
10am Sung Eucharist with Junior Church and Crèche
6pm Service of Music and Readings for Passiontide
Sunday 29th March
Palm Sunday
8am Eucharist
10am The Liturgy of Palm Sunday with Junior Church and Crèche
March Worship Highlights
Mothering Sunday
Mothering Sunday celebrates our own mothers, the mother church, 'mother nature' and Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.
Service of Readings and Music for Passiontide
This reflective and moving service will journey with Jesus in the week before he died, with bible readings, poetry, choral music and hymns.
The Annunciation of Our Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Feast of the Annunciation (9 months before Christmas Day), celebrates the moment when the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would bear the Son of God. In her faithful “yes”, heaven and earth meet, and the story of our salvation turns towards Christmas and Easter alike.
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final Sunday of Lent. We commemorate the triumphant arrival of Christ into Jerusalem on a donkey, just days before the crucifixion.
Holy Week & Easter
Holy Week is the week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, the holiest week of the Christian year as we celebrate the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This year Holy Week begins on 29th March, Palm Sunday and ends 5th April, Easter Sunday.
There's lots going on, but the more you put in the more rewarding it is.
Find out all about what services are on below.
Photos of last year's Holy Week
Lent Course
Our Lent course: "The Bible Course" is running on on three occasions a week. Don't worry if you've missed the start; you can always join in.
Palm Sunday Dramatic Reading
The Passion according to St Matthew will be read in dramatic form on Palm Sunday during the 10am service. Different people read the words of different characters and help to bring the story alive. If you are willing to take a part, please let us know ASAP.
World Day of Prayer
World Day of Prayer is a global ecumenical movement led by Christian women who welcome you to join in prayer and action for peace and justice. This year's local service is being held at St Mary Magdalene's Church (opposite the Boulevard shops in Longbenton).
World Day of Prayer Service
Friday 6th March 2026
10:30am
St Mary Magdalene's
Giving to St Bart's
Lent is a time to reflect on how we live our faith, including how we give. At St Bart’s, generosity takes many forms: time, prayer, skills, and financial support all help sustain our worship and mission. As a growing church, everything we do (and everything we hope to do in the future) is made possible through the generosity of those who support our life together.
Our Giving Campaign page explains how the church is funded, what your giving makes possible, and the vision we share for St Bart’s in the years ahead, along with practical ways to give and answers to common questions.
Bubble Church is a Sunday church service especially for babies, toddlers, and young families. It's a puppet-packed, Jesus-centred, coffee-and-food-fuelled, 30 minute kids and families adventure.
Even if you regularly attend, please do sign up. It really helps us to prepare.
Remember our fun and informal Junior Church and Crèche run alongside our 10am Service, so children are very welcome to stay for that too, or come along on a week when Bubble Church isn't running.
Junior Church Passion Play
On Good Friday there will be a short service for families. The service will include a Passion Play, a play about the arrest, trial and crucifixion of Jesus. Much in the same way that a ativity play tells the story, the Passion PLay will bring the story to life for our young people. If your child would like to be in the play, please speak to Linda Barnfather.
Admission to Communion
If your child is aged 7-13 and regularly attends worship at St Bart's they might want to be admitted to Holy Communion (allows to have the Sacrament before they are confirmed). We will have two short sessions of preparation for children to receive communion. If you would like to know more, please speak to Fr Ben, or contact the parish office.
Confession
Confession, or as it is referred to officially in the Church of England 'The Reconciliation of a Penitent' is a one-to-one, private time of penitence and prayer. Confession in this way is a good opportunity to get things off your chest in a safe space, and to be reminded of God’s saving power. Anything shared is entirely confidential. Please speak to Fr Ben if you would appreciate this ministry before Easter.
Confirmation
Confirmation is the chance to make your baptism promises for yourself and to be strengthened in the service of God. The bishop leads the service of confirmation and says
"Confirm O Lord your servant with the Holy Spirit".
Anyone who is baptised and able to speak for themselves can be confirmed although it is usually for teenagers and adults. Those who are baptised as adults should be confirmed at the earliest opportunity.
Please speak to Fr Ben if you would like to be confirmed.
Monday Club
The Monday Club is a friendly and welcoming group open to everyone, with a special focus on providing fellowship and community. Each week we enjoy refreshments, conversation, and the chance to catch up with friends old and new.
March Meetings (1:30pm on Mondays)
2nd Social afternoon
9th Freda Thompson on "Old Newcastle"
16th Yvonne Young on "Women of Note"
23rd Pat Lowry on "Grand Peformances"
Easter Craft Day
Our Children's Craft Days are really great fun and are very popular! The team are putting together a Holy Week/Easter-themed session Saturday 28th March from 10am in the Basement. There will be loads of activities to do and snacks too. Suitable for kids of all ages.
Please RSVP to help us to prepare.
Big Brew: Transform Trade's 40th Birthday
Transform Trade (formerly Traidcraft Exchange) began in 1986. They partner with producer collectives and social enterprises around the world to tackle global challenges and support them to build a brighter future for their families and communities. We have been supporting them, where we could, for 26 years now through our Fairtrade Stall. Big Brew at 40 is their celebration of 40 years of this work and runs from Monday 23rd February to Sunday 8th March.
The March Fairtrade stall happens to be on Sunday, 8th March. So why not join us in the hall after the 10am service for Fairtrade refreshments, try our Big Brew Quiz and competition and help us to raise a donation towards this work. There will be prizes.
Big Plastic Count 2026
For one week in March thousands of people will be counting every piece of plastic packaging they throw away. If you would like to take part, from 9th to 15th March count every piece of plastic packaging you throw away - in the bin, the recycling, and out and about, submit your results online and help to uncover the true scale of the UK's plastic problem and call on the government to to do more about it.
More information is available at https://thebigplasticcount.com
Global Recycling Day and Eco Group Event
Global Recycling Day takes place each year on 18th March. It is all about getting people to waste as little as possible, reuse whenever possible and encourage world leaders to work together to recycle more.
In support of this, your Eco Group will be holding a second recycling event in the Church Hall on Sunday, 22nd March after the 10am Service.
If you have any small electricals, printer cartridges, batteries, light bulbs or medicine foils, bring them along on the day and we will recycle them for you. If you still have any postage stamps, please bring those too.
PLUS: The Eco Group would like to put up some bird boxes in the Church grounds. If you wanted to make a small donation when you bring in your items, that would really help us to raise the funds to buy some bird box kits.
St Aidan’s Way pilgrimage launches
The Diocese has launched its own pilgrimage as part of its Year of Sharing. From Holy Island to Newcastle Cathedral, pilgrims will walk in the footsteps of St Aidan, with opportunities to reflect on his role as a peacemaker.
St Aidan’s Way will be divided into eight stages.
7 March | Holy Island to Belford (21km)
11 April | Belford to Seahouses (16km)
2 May | Seahouses to Craster (16km)
6 June | Craster to Warkworth (21km)
11 July | Warkworth to Cresswell (17km)
11 August | Cresswell to Ashington (24km)
12 September | Blyth to Tynemouth (15km)
31 October | Tynemouth to Newcastle (19km)
REMINDERS
Did you know that you can contact the Parish Office via WhatsApp?
Add us:
01912662015
Are you new to church?
Thinking of coming along for the first time? Just go for it!
We know it can feel intimidating not knowing what to do or where to go, but here you’ll find a warm welcome on the door and someone ready to help with everything you need. Our main Sunday services are at 8am (quiet) and 10am (with music), with midweek Holy Communion on Tuesdays at 6:30pm and Wednesdays at 10am, and daily prayer at 9am and 5:30pm. Plus the church is often open for you to sit and pray during the day.
Children are always welcome: we have Junior Church and a crèche at the 10am service, plus Bubble Church for toddlers and young children. We’re fully accessible, and everything in our services is explained; there’s no need to worry about when to sit, stand, or join in, and a friendly neighbour will always be glad to help.
Regularly hearing God's word, praying, praising, and receiving communion will change your life for the better. And we'd love to welcome you.
Morning and Evening Prayer
The Daily Offices (Morning and Evening Prayer) are the Church’s ancient pattern of prayer that punctuates the day with praise, intercession, and reflection on Scripture. From the earliest centuries, Christians gathered at set hours to pray on behalf of all creation and for the salvation of the world, with morning and evening soon becoming the principal times of prayer.
This tradition continues at St Bart's.
9am Morning Prayer
5:30pm Evening Prayer
These services weave together psalms, Bible readings, and prayers in a rhythm that unites individuals, congregations, and religious communities across time and place.
Whether prayed alone or together with others, the Offices give shape to the day, ensuring that, echoing George Herbert’s words: “seven whole days, not one in seven” are given to the praise of God and the forming of God’s people through word and prayer.
Come along and try it.
NB There are usually no services on Fridays.
Everyday Faith App
Everyday Faith is the daily devotional app from the Church of England designed to inspire, equip and encourage you in your faith every day of the week. The app will provide you with carefully curated daily reflections, including selected Bible readings, a simple prayer to prepare you for the day ahead, and thoughts based on that week’s theme.
Search for "Everyday Faith" on your phone's app store, or click Download for iOS or Download for Android.
Easy Fundraising
Easy Fundraising is a website which gives the church (or any charitable cause) free money. Businesses like Tesco, Argos, and Marks and Spencer pay Easy Fundraising a small commission when they direct you to their website to spend money. They forward that money onto us.
For example, if you buy your groceries online from Morrisons, go to Easy Fundraising first, and click on Morrisons. Then when you checkout, Morrisons gives us £1.30 as a thank you. You will need to make an account and select St Bartholomew's as your cause.
It may sound complicated, but once it's set up it's free money for the church!
Reminder: Home Communions
There are some permanently housebound members of our congregation who are taken Holy Communion to their home. This is bread (and wine) which has been consecrated by a priest at church, and then taken by a member of the Home Communion team to be distributed at home or hospital.
But this is not just available to those who cannot come to church at all. If you have been unwell or for any reason unable to attend for a couple of weeks, get in touch! We will visit you and bring you the sacrament.
Also, if you are unwell, or would like to be added to our prayer list, please tell us. Do not assume we know!