Ketton and Tinwell Benefice

Ketton & Tinwell Parish Churches

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Welcome to St. Mary's Ketton & All Saints Tinwell
We are an inclusive & friendly Church Family
in the beautiful county of Rutland
Please drop by and see us

Whoever you are, whatever you think or feel, believe or don’t believe, you are welcome

Both our Churches are open everyday for you to explore or for personal prayer

Our Vicar

Revd Dean Akrill

Email:vicar@kettonandtinwell.uk

For a weekly email with all the latest news please contact Dean. 

Telephone: 01780 723181

Dean is here for the whole community in Ketton and in Tinwell, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Dean’s day off is Monday 

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Our Church Wardens

Ketton Sara Mann  saramann50@gmail.com

Tinwell Bryan Yule bryan.yule766@gmail.com

Our Pastoral Lay Minister

Julia Freeman juliafreeman@tiscali.co.uk

Recent Blog Posts

05/06/2026This Sunday is the Ketton Green Festival, a reminder that the earth is fragile and needs protecting and a challenge for us to live more sustainable lives.  On a spiritual level, perhaps this Festival, and others like it, affirm that we are interconnected with the natural world, as well as with God and each other. In the past this was taken for granted, both All Saints and St. Mary’s have carvings of a Green Man, that haunting image of a human face with foliage sprouting out of the mouth. But as society began to distance itself from the natural world, many forms of religion followed. As industrialisation brought with it the exploitation of natural resources, many expressions of faith forgot that the earth too is made in God’s image. However, not all religious organisations followed this path, for many monastic communities, our relationship with the earth is still fundamental. Hugely influential for me over the years has been St. Francis of Assisi, the 13th century Italian Monk for whom the call of the Gospel led him to live in simplicity, in harmony with nature. In fact, he considered humanity to be in kinship with the whole of creation. Francis’ most famous piece of writing, “The Canticle of the Sun” speaks of “Mother Earth”, “Brother Sun” and “Sister Moon” all in praise together. However, how can we be expected to live in harmony with the earth if we cannot live in harmony with each other? The divisions which exist amongst us today not only result in violence towards each other, but also violence towards Mother Earth because she suffers the wounds of our conflicts. I believe that Jesus came to bring healing to all our relationships. As well as expressing closeness to the “Lilies of the fields”, Jesus demanded that the poor be fed, the stranger welcomed, and that people who are deemed “untouchable” be blessed and affirmed. In our world today there are many people who are considered “untouchable” or “unnatural” to others, and recently we have seen an increase of violence on people because of their ethnicity, social status, age, ability, disability, gender or sexuality. This month is Pride Month, when many LGTBQ+ people and their allies will take a party to the streets; a reaction to and a protest against the abuse inflicted upon them by others, whether it be physical, psychological, institutional or spiritual abuse. I think that people of faith are called to take notice of the natural environment and the abuse inflicted upon it, as well as listening to the voices of all people who have been abused. Whatever the voices of division in our world may say, we are all interconnected. Perhaps today, we, like St. Francis, can hear the call of the Gospel to reaffirm our kinship with Mother Earth and all her people. To heal, bless and affirm as Jesus did. Revd Dean Akrill   X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
29/05/2026What does it mean to be human? Or, perhaps I should ask, what does it mean to be a person? I ask this, because it is a fundamental question which is perhaps more important now than ever. From a philosophical perspective, personhood is often defined by self-awareness, but of course, this definition has its limitations, not all people are fortunate enough to be self-aware. Perhaps then, we could say that a person possesses recognized rights, protections, and moral worth. That’s better but still a bit clinical for my liking. With Artificial Intelligence becoming ever more sophisticated, and perhaps even, self-aware, there are reports coming through of people having human-like relationships with AI, and if that is so, how do we define “moral worth”? This is further complicated by issues of human rights and employment rights. Young people are struggling to find jobs, so is it ethical or moral to hand jobs over to AI? I would suggest not, but as AI becomes more sophisticated, the more difficult the problem becomes.  This poses another question, just because we might be able to create consciousness, is it actually a good idea to do it? I’m not an expert on AI.  But I do think that human beings hold a “divine spark” within them, something unquantifiable, perhaps this is better known as a “soul”. There is something mysterious about the lives of humans, even humans we know quite well. if we look at old photographs of our parents or grandparents, taken before we were born, they can seem like strangers to us because they had a whole different life which we weren’t part of, they seem familiar but also quite remote. In the same way, God is both intimate and mysterious at the same time.  This is something we are reminded of on Trinity Sunday. Christians believe that God is known in three ways, as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Perhaps another way of saying this is that there are different ways of relating to the same God.  So, we can relate to God as Parent or Creator, intimate but yet remote and mysterious – God beyond us. We can experience God through human hands, as God with us – revealed to us most perfectly through the life and love of Jesus Christ, but also in the life and love of those around us.  And we can experience God as Spirit – both within us and around us. God requires these three different aspects to be whole, which can be understood as being, as consciousness. God as well as being the Divine exists in relationship with the Divine. And humanity, as well as living in relationship with each other, live in relationship with God, or as it is sometimes understood, God is “the ground of our being”.  In this sense we are part of the Divine, as is the natural world. God is relationship and consciousness, and so, if we introduce another relationship and another consciousness, one made by our own hands, what does this do to us? What does this do to God? This, of course, depends on what we do with AI and how we allow it to develop, but I think there is a danger that in taking on the role of God we create something which could be described as a soul, or even another God, and what then? Answers on an old-fashioned postcard please… Revd Dean Akrill X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
27/05/2026Lord Christ, give me some of your Spirit, To comfort the places in my heart where I hurt, Then give me some more of your spirit So that I can comfort other people. Terry Waite You may remember the name, Terry Waite, the human rights activist and author, who was captured in Beirut on January 20, 1987, while working as an envoy for the Archbishop of Canterbury to negotiate the release of other captives. He was freed on November 18, 1991, having spent the first four years of his captivity in strict solitary confinement.  If anyone could be said to be an expert on the human effects of isolation, it would be Terry. And yet, even through this experience Terry found spiritual grounding, he experienced the Holy Spirit as a quiet, steadying presence. Last Sunday was Pentecost, when we recalled Jesus’ disciples experience of God’s spirit, in Acts 2: “They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them”.  The “tongues of fire” could be said to be a deeply personal experience for Jesus’ friends, and yet the spirit also enabled them to reach out to others, “in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them”.  From this we can conclude that an experience of the spirit is far more than a “spiritual comfort blanket”.  Although there are times when we might need that, the spirit also brings us together; the spirit is connection and is the breath of love which breathes through all of creation. The other thing that the spirit of God represents is freedom. Something which I imagine was a great spiritual support to Terry Wait during his imprisonment.  Pentecost Is the occasion when Jesus’ disciples found a new sense of freedom and purpose in their faith and in their mission. The spirit also speaks to us of God’s freedom: we’re reminded that God cannot be completely defined.  Despite our best efforts to contain God within our belief system, or even within the Biblical texts, God is free, and we, as God’s children, can experience the same freedom when we open ourselves up to the untamed spirit of love; a love which is deeply intimate, like those “tongues of fire”, but also wild and free, a mystery in the sense that the spirit continually opens us up to new questions and new understandings, and yet can be discerned when love is at the centre of our being. So, why the picture of the bird? Well, that is a Wild Goose, which is an ancient Celtic symbol of the Holy Spirit, A Goose is not serene like a Dove; a Goose flies in, flaps around, and creates a mess, it turns things upside down. Geese also protect each other, if one becomes too weak to fly, at least two others will land with it and remain by its side until it is able to fly again. They live in community, and yet also respect individuality, and differing needs. For the individual Goose there is no pressure to fit in with what the others are doing, because they know that they belong. How often do we worry about fitting in, or doing the right thing? But the Holy Spirit confirms that whatever our differences, we belong, just like all those people in the crowd who heard what the disciple’s were saying, each in their own tongue. Like the Wild Goose, like God, we are intended to be free. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
16/05/2026Do you dream? It seems to me that many dreams are a combination of our memories and some random weird stuff that we can’t quite explain. I have a memory of my grandfather sitting in his armchair, and for many years after his death I had a recurring dream of him whizzing off into space in his armchair! I guess this dream was a mixture of a real memory together with a strange acknowledgement that he is now no longer with us on earth.  On Sunday we’ll be thinking about the ascension, a rather strange event in the Christian calendar, which isn’t as widely recognized as it once was. Perhaps the reason for this is that it comes across as more of a strange dream rather than a legitimate memory. The day marks Jesus’ ascension into heaven; Jesus disappears. “He was taken up before their very eyes,” Luke tells us, “and a cloud hid him from their sight” (Acts 1:9). Two angels then tell the disciples that Jesus was “taken into heaven” (Acts 1:11) The ascension marks the end of Jesus as a man of history and takes “Christ” into the mystical realm. Almost as a dream. From this point on, we cannot fully define Christ; this “mystical” Christ is still “God in humanity” but is present in us all as “the body of Christ”.  Christ is everywhere present, and so in Christ “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ” (Galations 3:28) Another name for this spiritual state is “The Universal Christ”, God incarnate within all of creation. If you think all of that is a bit much to get your head around, next week we have Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the week after that is Trinity Sunday, which really is the stuff that dreams are made of…. I recently discovered a reflection on the Universal Christ by the Franciscan Priest, Richard Rohr, excerpts of which are below.  You could say that this is a reflection on a reflection…                                                             The Divine Mirror A mirror receives and reflects back what it sees It does not judge, adjust or write commentary We are the ones who do that A mirror simply reveals And invites responsibility A mirror, the sun and God are all the same They are all there, fully shining forth, Their very nature is light, love and infinite giving You can’t offend them or make them stop shining You can only choose to stop receiving and enjoying As soon as you look, you will see they are there! And fully radiating And always have been One day, the mirror will reflect in both directions And we will see over there what was allowed in here This is full access seeing – and being seen: Most have named it “heaven” And it begins now Let this Divine Mirror fully receive you All of you Excerpts from “The Divine Mirror”, from the book “The Universal Christ” by Richard Rohr X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
03/05/2026Listening to or reading the news can be a dispiriting experience, we live in a world which is particularly divisive and fractured at the moment. But, as I write this on a lovely sunny day in our beautiful and largely peaceful county of Rutland, we can be thankful for all that we have and all that we share. Mind you, it can also be all too easy to take what we have for granted and perhaps get a little complacent. It is worth remembering that in our own country there are movements which are intent on spreading suspicion, division and hate. On Sunday we’ll be looking at that familiar Bible verse from John 14, “In my Father’s house there are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?” It’s a familiar verse, very often used at funeral services, but it’s worth remembering that whilst this passage points to the hope of heaven beyond this world, we are called to help create heaven in the here and now, to provide many rooms for many people, all of them different.  The Church at its best is a sanctuary, a safe place, where many can find a home, whoever they are. At our APCM meetings this year I focused on this idea that Church should be a safe and inclusive space. Unfortunately, there are people out there who fear being “judged” by the Church, and yet Jesus welcomed, blessed and affirmed all who came to him.  This for me is at the very heart of the Gospel and is effectively what the church is for. We are called to prepare “many rooms”. This is something we shall build on in the coming months and years. We also looked at worship, and the idea that worship is a state of mind which directs how we respond to each other, and how we welcome & affirm those around us. Worship is intended to help “build up” the Church Family; ensuring that all people feel involved, and that what we do is accessible and spiritually refreshing, as well as challenging us at times.  I believe that worship should evolve, and feel integrated with the rest of our lives, as well as reflecting tradition. In this way, we as a church family are cared for and affirmed. I think it important that there is variety, but also that everything we do feels integrated, and part of the whole pattern of worship throughout the year. This is a priority I think for all our worship, including family services. In Ketton we have been looking at the children’s area, as well as how children are included in worship. And in both Ketton and Tinwell, I think it important we remember that much of what Christ did wasn’t overtly “religious”, but concentrated instead on hospitality, welcome and inclusion, which will be a priority for us all, especially in terms of our outreach. With this in mind we are planning a number of events and services in the coming year, which will hopefully enable us to reach out and also integrate with our communities. Both Tinwell and Ketton have “Pet Services” coming up. In Ketton this will be on Sunday 5th July, and will be our Family service for the month at 10.30am, hopefully outside. In Tinwell, the Pet Service will be on Sunday 12th July at 3pm, again hopefully outside. Before that, in June, Tinwell have a “Gift Week”, which will culminate in a Community Cream Tea on Sunday 14th June at 2pm. Looking ahead, we have big plans for Advent and Christmas, when both our Churches will hold a Festival, which we are calling “Angels Together”. In the lead up to this we will reach out to various institutions and individuals within our communities to create Angels which reflect who they are, so, the artworks can take any form the creators wish. The Angels will be displayed in both our Churches throughout Advent and Christmas, and will incorporate a number of events, including Ketton’s Gift Day, for which there are plans for various stalls, crafts, and entertainment. Details to follow. Outside of these special events, I am looking at how we can meet various needs in our Churches and communities, including a possible “stay and play” with coffee morning, and a coffee drop in for dog walkers. Also, I’m thinking about how we might offer mid-week worship, and Home Groups for prayer and study.  These things take a while to plan and to establish, so I hope you can appreciate that I’m not rushing into them. Looking to the future I’m mindful that Tinwell is a much smaller community than Ketton; the Church is also small in number, and a lot of extra responsibility shouldered by Bryan, our amazing Church Warden. With this in mind, we will have to give careful thought as to how the Church in Tinwell is managed in the future, as well as taking the opportunity to look again at our role and identity in the village and carefully discern the way forward. Both Tinwell and Ketton are part of the same benefice, which is basically a church family, so like a family, we should support one another. Of course, those who are more vulnerable need more support and care, a fact that is central to the Gospel. My initial thought is that Ketton and Tinwell will gradually come closer together and share more together; supporting each other, whilst at the same time retaining our distinctive identities and worship styles. In becoming more of a “united benefice” I think we can only become stronger, and in time both All Saints and St. Mary’s will benefit from working more closely together.  Of course, this will evolve over time and will need much thought and prayer. Thank you I’d like to thank everyone for all that you are and all that you do, and a special thanks to all who have stood again for their various roles. It is a pleasure and a privilege to be here, I pray that God will continue to work in this place, and I thank God that we are truly blessed. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
19/04/2026Have you bothered God recently? I do it all the time, in fact I imagine that the almighty is fed up with my yakking (not really, I know that God is far more gracious than me). Prayer has been in the news recently, with President Trump holding prayer meetings asking God to bless the actions of war against Iran, to which the Pope responded by proclaiming that “God rejects the prayers of leaders and individuals who wage war”.  This got me thinking, I imagine that God hears a lot of contradictory demands from different groups of people, all insisting that God is not only listening, but is actively on their side. If I was God, I’d certainly have a headache. Mother Teresa observed that “prayer changes us, and we change things”. This of course can either be a good or a bad thing, depending on what you pray, and how convinced you are that God agrees with you. But, perhaps, prayer isn’t just about yakking to God. Perhaps prayer is also about listening, and isn’t so much about making demands on God, as it is about changing something within us. The theologian and philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard, argued that “the function of prayer is not to influence God but rather to change the nature of the one who prays”. To which I’d add that “you are what you pray”, and our idea of God so often reflects that, so we’d better be careful.   If all this is giving you a headache, perhaps its best just to have a bit of quiet time with God. Prayer can be many things, but fundamentally it is a relationship with the divine. And yes, prayer does change us. Imagine using the following passage from 1 Corinthians 13 as a daily prayer or mediation: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. How would that change us? Revd Dean Akrill X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
12/04/2026We now offer Children’s activities during all our Sunday Morning Services at St. Mary’s ketton, but we don’t keep the children out of sight or out of mind; we come together as a big family. Or, if you feel the need for a smaller, quieter space, All Saint’s ketton might be for you. We offer a warm welcome to all. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
05/04/2026Easter, a time of re-connection, of new beginnings and new life, as we meet with the risen Christ, the all-encompassing light, God’s all-inclusive love. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
03/04/2026In the picture are some words from our powerful Good Friday reflection,, “We are the body”. The service combined readings, music and art to tell a familiar story in a challenging and heartfelt way. Sometimes we can learn a lot from the darkness, it can provoke us to connect, to love.  By way of contrast, earlier in the week was our School’s Easter Service, which was profound in a different way.  One of the delights of being part of a Village Parish is the opportunity to welcome the School into Church, particularly at Christmas and Easter. It’s always a pleasure to witness the enthusiasm and joy the children put into the readings and songs which they present to us. In our dark and often violent world, it’s all too easy to become cynical, and to forget about joy; harder still sometimes to see how the events of Easter apply to us in our own lives. And yet, when the children simply sing and recite the story, I find that it becomes crystal clear. One of the songs sung at the school Easter Service this year is one I haven’t come across before, it’s called “Crucify, Crucify” “We wanted chariots, armies and splendour, he came proclaiming a different agenda. We’re disillusioned with all that he said, so spare us the life of Barabbas instead” Such a simple verse, but for me it sums up why the world is in the state it’s in, and also why Jesus was crucified in the first place. All too often humanity chooses personal gain and pride over community and love; a situation which strengthens fear, suspicion and division. We choose death over life.  God didn’t demand that Jesus be crucified, it was our love of power and division which did that. On Easter Day, we remember that Jesus’ disciples were overcome with the grief and darkness of our world. And yet, they saw that this wasn’t the end of the story. In a series of mysterious and fragmented accounts, each experienced the risen Christ in a deeply personal way. Life and love had overcome the power of division and death; they experienced their own resurrection, which meant they were now free to give themselves in love for the other. “We know that we have passed from death to life because we love one another” 1 John 3.14 Christ is now beyond all of our definitions, nether “male or female, neither slave nor free”, but is the light of Love which holds us all together. The light of Christ, which is God. God is eternal, and God is love, the source of our own personal resurrection, both here and in life beyond. And because Christ is Love, the divine presence of God dwells within us today. That is what we celebrate at Easter; divine love overcomes fear and death and gives us reason to sing a simple song of joy. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
31/03/2026A group of us have been working on the children’s area at St. Mary’s. Still a work in progress, but we’ve increased the space, and we think it looks very welcoming. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
29/03/2026This Sunday is Palm Sunday, when we remember that Jesus rode into Jerusalem, praised as a king. In fact, the only crown that Jesus ever wore was a crown of thorns. People wanted him to be a great warrior, a superhero. But Christ refused to be a warrior or a superhero; he knew that such ideas of “greatness” only bring out the worst in us and reinforce the borders of suspicion and fear which separate us and prevent us from loving each other. We live in a divided world, and it was this division which led Jesus to the Cross; he died not because God demanded that he die there, but because through the Cross, God in Christ, shares our suffering, experiences the sin of the world, and reaches out to hold us in love. Through the Cross, Christ rejects the divisions of the world and brings us together. During our United Service we focused on the Cross, remembering all who are crucified with Christ today; those who are rejected by their society or by religion, as well as victims of prejudice, war, poverty, and the greed of others. Everybody was invited to stick prayers and images, in recognition of Christ’s all-embracing love. On Easter Day the Cross will transform again… X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
26/03/2026Children at our School adding their fingerprints to the Community Cross. The Cross is back in the prayer chapel at St. Mary’s now, come and have a look. The cross reminds us that there can be unity in diversity, all can be “one”, and that our God is truly inclusive. X Exit full screen gallery ⇗ Open full size image → Next image 0 of 0 ← Previous image [...] Read more...
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