Weekly Bulletin for the First Sunday of Christmas (29th December 2024)
Christmas Services 2024
Nine Lessons and Carols: 22nd December 1000am at Immanuel Lutheran Church, followed by Holy Communion.
Midnight Mass: 11.30pm Christmas Eve 24th December 2024 at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Christmas Day Mass: 25th December 2024 1030am at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Weekly Bulletin for the week commencing 22nd December 2024 - Christmas Week
Holy Week and Easter Services
Holy Week Compline on Zoom - 9pm on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. A short 20 minute service at the close of the day.
Good Friday 29th March - 2pm Solemn Liturgy of the Passion Service at immanuel Lutheran Church
Holy Saturday 30th March - 7pm Easter Vigil Service at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Easter Sunday 31st March - 10am Holy Communion Service at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Weekly Bulletin for the 31st March - click here
Weekly Bulletin for the 24th March - click here
Update Video 22nd December 2023
Weekly Bulletin 24th December 2023
Our Christmas Services this year will be held in Jerusalem, and we will join with the congregation of Christ Church Jerusalem. Details of their Christmas Services are below:
Christmas Eve 24th December 2023
0930 Morning Service - Fourth Sunday of Advent
1700 until Midnight - Open House
1730 Music groups in Church and refreshments
2230-2330 Nine Lessons and Carols
2330 Midnight Mass
Christmas Day 25th December 2023
1030 Holy Communion (Fr Kevin will preside and preach at this service)
1230 Christmas Day Lunch: 85 NIS, please book via the Guest House and pre-pay. First come, first served.
27th December 2023
Holy Communion on the Feast of the Holy Innocents
31st December 2023
1800 New Years Eve Holy Communion
Update Video 21st October 2023
Update Video 16th October 2023
Latest CMS VIdeo
Update - 13th October 2023
Due to the events of the terrorist attack on the State of Israel, and after discussion with the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Jaffa, no in-person services will be taking place for the forseable future. The safety of our worshippers is of the upmost importance, and as there is no public refuge or shelter at the church building, services will be online. The service this week will be on Zoom as per last week.
Fr Kevin and Jen have been asked during this time to relocate to Jerusalem, and minister at Christchurch, Jerusalem. They will be working with people displaced from their homes, and to assist in the continuing ministry of the church in Jerusalem during this time.
New name, new website
Many of you know that we have been praying about a new name for our congregation, to more accurately reflect our links with Christchurch, Jerusalem, and the Israel Trust of the Anglican Church. We are delighted to move forward as "Christchurch Jaffa", and look forward to updating you on our continuning ministry and some exciting new projects in due course. Please bear with us while the new website is finished - we know there are lots of things we need to work on to complete it, so bear with us while we make these changes. A new website platform means we are learning as we go!
To see our latest CMS Update Letter click here
***Holy Week and Easter Services***
Palm Sunday 2nd April
10am Holy Communion with blessing of the Palm crosses at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Monday 3rd April
7pm Stations of the Cross (on Zoom)
Maundy Thursday 6th April
5pm Holy Communion with the washing of the feet, at the Lutheran Congregational House, 9 Bar Hoffman.
Good Friday 7th April
Solemn Liturgy of the Passion - 2pm at The Armeninan Convent Church of St Nicholas, Jaffa Port
Holy Saturday 8th April
Traditional Easter Vigil Service with Holy Communion. 7pm at Immanuel Lutheran Church
Easter Sunday 9th April
10am Holy Communion Service at Immanuel Lutheran Church
***Warm Clothing and support for the Homeless***
The Congregation of St Peter were pleased to be able to send 4 boxes of warm clothing, collected over the Christmas period, to support the work of one of the local homeless charities in Tel Aviv. We are also grateful for a very generous donation from Bishop Hannington Church in the UK, to buy necessary equipment for the Soup Kitchen near the Old Central Bus Station.
*** Christmas, New Year, and a Baptism!***
***Christmas Services 2022***
Sunday 18th December
10am Nine Lessons and Carols
A traditional Service of Nine Lessons and Christmas Carols which celebrates God’s saving action in Human History.
Christmas Eve 24th December
3pm-5pm Christmas Carols and Cake
Outside Immanuel Lutheran Church, with a visit from Santa Claus.
St Peters Anglican Church and Immanuel Lutheran Church are holding 'Carols and Cake' on Saturday 24th Dec from 3-5 pm where we will be singing Christmas Carols and serving festive treats outside Immanuel Lutheran Church.
1130pm Midnight Mass
A service of Midnight Mass will be held at Immanuel Lutheran Church, on Christmas Eve 24th December at 1130pm. Please come if you can and join in with us as we celebrate the birth of Christ, using the ancient liturgies of the Church.
Christmas Day Sunday 25th December
10am Festival Holy Communion
We continue to celebrate the Birth of Jesus, on this special day when we recall the ‘Nativity of the Lord’.
***Bat Yam Street Cemetery finally clear***
We are delighted that after lots of hard work over the Spring and Summer that the Bat Yam Street Cemetery has finnaly been cleared of the overgrown plants and jungle that had grown up over the years. Thanks to all who gave their time to help with this project, and to the small team of local professionals who did a great job tackling the parts we could not do.
The ground has been treated to slow any re-growth, though we will have too of course maintain it now it is back to a manageable level, but we are delighted with the transformation. Members of the local community have also expressed how pleased they are that the cemetery is now back to being in good order after so many years.
***The Visitation of Archbishop Hosam***
We were delighted to welcome our Archbishop, The Most Rev Dr Hosam Naoum, to our worship on Sunday 11th September 2022. Archbishop Hosam led our worship and preached on the Gospel reading of the week, the Parable of the Good Shepherd. After the service we enjoyed a time of fellowship over coffee and light refreshements held at Beit Immanuel Guest house.
The service also contained a short Act of Remembrance for the Late Sovereign HRH Queen Elizabeth the II, and was attended by the British Ambassador to Israel.
***Archbishop Hosam will be joining us for our service on Sunday 11th September at 10am***
We are delighted to announce that at our Sunday service on 11th September at 10am, we will be joined by our Archbishop, The Most Rev Dr Hosam Naoum, Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem, who will concelebrate and preach at the service.
Please join us for a time of fellowship after the service that will be held where we normally have coffee, at the Beit Immanuel Centre, opposite the Lutheran Church.
Archbishop Hosam will be joined by his Chaplain, The Rev Canon Dr Donald Binder, and we look forward to welcoming them to our service and small church family here in Jaffa.
***Parish Meeting on Sunday 2nd October, and more Cemetery clearing***
A year will have elapsed since we began in Jaffa in October last year. It is a good time therefore to review things and talk and pray about the future, including the future of the building in Yefet Street. To facilitate this, there will be a short ‘parish meeting” after the Sunday Service on the 2nd October after Coffee. If you are a regular attender, please come along so we can prayerfully discern the best way forward together.
The Cemetery at Bat Yam still needs a lot of work. The current High Temperatures mean we cannot continue working at our usual time, and will need to begin at around 6am in the Morning on the next clear up session. Fr Kevin has spoken with the neighbours who are happy for us to begin this early, so please meet after Church on Sunday (31st July) so we can plan the next date together.
Our weekly Bible Study will now resume on the first Tuesday Evening in September.
***Bible Study and another clean up day, with an additional one soon on the 28th July***
Thanks again to the team of volunteers, as we tackled more of the Cemetry at Bat Yam on the 6th July, and also managed to clear a particularly difficult corner at the far end. The before and after pictures are here to see what a difference it has made.
Once again we were delighted that passer-bys offered encouragement, and we also picked up a few volunteers for other clear up days. It is good to see how much the local community value our efforts, and to know we have their support. The next clear up day is Thursday 28th July from 0830 till 1200.
In diffferent news, please note that our weekly Bible Study has now stopped for the Summer Break, and will resume in August.
***Thanks to our volunteers for another great clear up day***
On the 21st June, our wonderful volunteers continued the work to clear and tidy Bat Yam Street Cemetery, and we are now just over half way through! Braving the heat, we carefully continued clearing around the headstones, uncovering several that had been completely hidden by undergrowth. A lot more work is needed, so if you can help our next clear up day will be on the 6th July, from 0830 until 1300. Please contact Fr Kevin if you can come and help - the more people we have, the more we can get done! It is an important witness to our local community, so please volunteer and help us.
***Next Clear up Day at Bat Yam Street Cemetery***
We are continuing our efforts to tidy up Bat Yam Street Cemetery, with the next day for this being Tuesday the 21st June from 0830 till 1330. If you can help, please contact Fr Kevin as the more volunteers we have the more we can achieve. Currently we have cleared around a third of the Cemetery, so there is still much to do.
The clearing and cleaning of this place of rest is an important witness to our neighbours and the community, so please help if you can. We already have a few locals volunteering, so why not join us?
***Clearing and Cleaning - 20th May***
A lot has been going on behind the scenes here in recent weeks. We were delighted that a team of local builders came in to remove heavy debris and other materials from the church, and to finally level the ground on the south side and south east corner. This means the pathway round to what will be the office is finally now completely clear, as well as flat and level. We are hoping to put a path in to the office, as in the weekdays this will be the prinicipal entrance point for the church building. Our thanks to the builders who have done excellent work, and we offer our prayers as they finish up this phase of the work. We now need to concentrate on the Tower of the church, which is in serious need of restoration and the next stage of the project.
Also yesterday (19th May), we made a start on clearing up one of our Anglican Cemeteries in Jaffa. The cemetery has fallen into a state of disrepair, and even with efforts t
o clear it up last year made by the Diocese there is much to do. Given the importance of caring for these special places of rest, a team of 12 Amercian Christian Volunteers came to help out, as part of their 3 month study tour of Israel. Nearly all the work had to be done by hand to avoid damaging further the headstones, and we are so grateful for their hard work and help. We made a good start, clearing perhaps a third of the entire plot, and so pray we can find the resources needed to completely clear the site and level the ground which has moved due to the proximity of the location to the cliffs overlooking the sea. Thanks also to our congregation in supporting this work!
*** Easter Update Video***
Please see below for our latest update video:
***Alleluia He is Risen!"***
The congregation enjoyed a blessed Holy Week, culminating in a packed church on Easter Sunday and a coming together of all the local Christian clergy from across the denominations, with the Mayor and other community representatives in attendance. Thank you to all those who helped support our worship, and also practically. Below are just a few pictures from some of the services and events during Holy Week.
*** Holy Week and Easter Services***
(Held at Immanuel Church unless otherwise stated)
These will mostly be held with the Lutheran Congregation and will be joint services for Anglicans and Lutherans. Some start times are still to be confirmed for services that will just be primarily for the Anglican congregation, though open to all of course.
Sunday 10th April - 10am Palm Sunday Communion
Maundy Thursday 14th April - 6pm Traditional Mass - We join with the Catholic congregation at St Anthony, Yefet Street for their mass.
Good Friday / Erev Passover 15th April - Solemn Liturgy of the Passion (11am at Immanuel)
Holy Saturday 16th April - The Easter Vigil - 7pm at Immanuel Church
Easter Sunday 17th April - 10am Festival Holy Communion
Considering recent events in Tel Aviv, and the raised security levels, please be aware some of these events may be cancelled at short notice.
We will attempt to contact all our regular members if this proves to be the case, and we will also update the website if this eventuality occurs.
***Lent Bible Study - Jesus and the Passsover*** (began 8th March).
Starting at 7pm at Beit Immanuel, our Lent course seeks to address some of the misconceptions that have developed over the years surrounding this event. All welcome - we normally gather from around 6.45pm before starting promptly at 7pm. Each session lasts one hour, and is followed by prayer for those who wish to remain and pray.
(The course has now finished, and Bible Study resumes after Easter on the 26th April 2022)
***Little Lambs - Mum and child (0-3 years) group starting on 8th Feb 2022***
More information will appear on our forthcoming “Little Lambs” page. This new group is facilitated and supported by members of both St Peters Anglican Church and Immanuel Lutheran Church, Jaffa.
***New Worship time and location***
Please note that we have now changed the day and time of our weekly service, as well as the location where we meet. From Sunday the 23rd January 2022 we will meet weekly on Sundays at 10am at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 15 Bar Hoffman Street, Jaffa.
*** Week of Christian Unity***
As part of supporting the initiatives for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, we will be joining the Immanuel Lutheran Church, Bar Hoffman Street (opposite Beit Immanuel), for worship on the 15th January. The service starts at 11am, and Fr Kevin will be presiding. This will replace our normal 5pm service on Saturday the 15th..
***Remaining Christmas Services***
Midnight Mass at Immanuel Lutheran Church (opposite Beit Immanuel), 1130pm Christmas Eve 24th December 2021
PLEASE NOTE THERE IS NO SERVICE ON SATURDAY 25TH DECEMBER OR THE FOLLOWING WEEK ON SATURDAY 1ST JANUARY.
Services on Saturday resume on the 8th January.
Bible Study resumes 4th January.
For latest bulletin click here
***Bible Study Resumes this week and Advent Course***
Our weekly Bible Study resumes this Tuesday evening (23rd November) at the usual time and location. We are looking at Exodus Chapter 6 this week, and if you would like to come, then please let us know beforehand as usual so we can cater for food.
On the 7th and 14th December, we will break from looking at Exodus to consider the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem in a two part course. Again, please let us know if you are coming. As we need to use the projector for this, we will probably look to hold this at Beit Immanuel.
***Midnight Mass 2021***
We are pleased to announce that Immanuel Lutheran Church have kindly agreed we can use their building for our service of Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, 24th December. The address of the Church is Bar Hoffman Street 15, 6811923 Tel Aviv-Yafo / רחוב בר הופמן 15, תל ×ביב – יפו
We are limited to 50 people, so please let us know in advance you are coming.
***Working Party to clear Church Grounds - 24th October 1000am-1200pm***
Our first Working party to help clear the remaining debris from the grounds was on Sunday October 17th. Although the large debris has been removed, there is a large amount of small debris to be removed and we need your help to do this, so we can then start to create the gardens and a space for prayer. Please come along and help as many hands make light work, and we are unable to finish the clear up without some volunteers to help us.
*** Bible Study Group*** - Updated 4th October 2021
Interested in deepeining your understanding of the Bible and it's relevance to Christian living today? Why not join us for our informal Bible Study Group that meets on most Tuesdays. We do need to know you are coming in advance, so please contact us beforehand. More details can be found by clicking here.
***Services have now begun - 4th October 2021***
We were delighted to meet and worship together for the first time on Saturday the 2nd October at the Beit Immanuel Centre in Auerbach Street, and enjoyed refreshements
afterwards. Services will now take place weekly on Saturdays at 5pm at the Beit Immanuel Centre, until the renovations have reached a stage that we are able to use our building at St Peters Church in Yefet Street.
On arrival at Beit Immanuel, which is opposite the Lutheran Church, please enter via the smaller of the blue gates which will be unlocked. We hope to have someone on the gate
greeting folk before the service begins, and parking is available but please notify Fr Kevin in advance so we can arrange access for you to the car park.
If you arrive late, please do still come in and join us. The worship area is screened off by curtains once the service has begun, but please just come through and take a seat.
*** Our first service is this week on Saturday 2nd October at 5pm at Beit Immanuel***
The worshipping life of the church family begins this weekend. Please check out the 'Worship' page of this website for full details. While the renovations on the St Peters Church are being carried out, we will be using the Beit Immanuel Centre at 8 Auerbach Street, Jaffa, for our worship
We have also produced a short video about the start of the renovations which can be found on our YouTube channel. Click here to watch: Update 23rd September
*** Fr Kevin and Jen have moved to Jaffa - 9th September 2021***
Having spent three months in Jerusalem adapting to life in the Holy Land and concentrating on intensive Hebrew Language training, Fr Kevin and Jen have now moved to Jaffa. Please see the update video on YouTube by clicking here.
We look forward to an official visit from His Grace Archbishop Hosam in the very near future to formally begin the ministry here.
***New Thought for the Day series - 19th July 2021***
A new series of videos that are 5 to 6 minutes long begins today. The videos will appear 2 to 3 times a week, and are short reflections based on the Gospel reading of the day. The first video can be found here:
***Update 14th June 2021***
Fr Kevin and Jen visited St Peters on the 14th June for their first look inside the church since they arrived in Israel. Please click below to view the video on YouTube:
***30th May 2021**
Fr Kevin Cable commissioned by Archbishop Hosam to begin the work to reopen St Peters Anglican Church Jaffa.
On Sunday 30th May 2021 at St Georges Anglican Cathedral, Jerusalem, during the Sunday morning service, Fr Kevin Cable was formally welcomed and commissioned by Archbishop Hosam. Fr Kevin, supported by and working together with his wife Jen, will be working in partnership with the Diocese of Jerusalem to discern the way forward in reopening St Peters.
Fr Kevin and Jen had been called to join the Diocese in this work, after prayerful consideration and discernment, by the former Archbishop of Jerusalem, the Rt Rev Suheil Dawani, pictured here with Archbishop Hosam and Fr Kevin and Jen.
In an uplifting speech, Archbishop Hosam commended Fr Kevin and Jen to the work, and the mission that lies ahead. The building is currently in need of major renovation, having been closed since 1948, and it is hoped that Fr Kevin and Jen will relocate to Jaffa in the near future. Once settled, they will begin the work on the ground needed to renew this place of worship, and we pray will be able to draw together a worshipping community from those who have already expressed an interest in joining.
Please pray for Fr Kevin and Jen, as they take on the responsibility for St Peters Anglican Church in Jaffa, and that the Holy Spirit will guide them and all those supporting them in the way forward.
**24th May 2021**
Fr Kevin Cable and his wife Jen have arrived in Jerusalem from the United Kingdom. Please click the below link to watch a short video all about their arrival and the days that lie ahead: