Welcome and thank you for visiting the Heathfield Benefice website. We are ‘The Church of England in Your Community’, covering the town of Heathfield and the neighbouring villages of Old Heathfield and Broad Oak. We have three buildings and two parishes, but we are one Church family. As such, we seek to respond to God’s love by walking alongside one another in all aspects of life’s journey: In life | In love | In loss.
We hope you find our website useful, whether you’re new to the area, interested in exploring your faith, or have an important life event such as a child to be baptised, a wedding to be planned, or a funeral for a loved one.
Reverend Christian Mitchell (known as Rev'd Mitch), Vicar
Our Churches are open again for public worship from this Sunday
For a schedule of all our services, please click here.
As before, advance booking will be essential.
A service of Holy Communion for the Third Sunday of Lent,
7th March at 10 am
from All Saints' Church, Old Heathfield.
The words for the hymns are available here.
To reserve a place for this service, click here.
Visit the Services page to find out the different ways you can attend, watch or listen to Services.
There are a number of regular opportunities available to join with small groups for a time of prayer and reflection.
Mid-week morning reflections
A short time of prayer and reflection is held live at 9am on the Heathfield Benefice Facebook page led by Rev'd Mitch and Rev'd Torhild, days of the week can vary so please check Facebook for confirmation. Everyone is welcome to watch live, and the videos of each reflection are uploaded to the website shortly after to be viewed at any time.
Click here to visit the Video of Services page
Lent Reflections
Throughout the season of Lent, we will be meeting online every weekday at 5.00pm for a very short time of reflection.
After the success of the Advent Reflections, we will be following the same format and using the book, "At home in Lent - An exploration of Lent through 46 objects", by Canon Gordon Giles.
To join the reflection, simply follow this link: ZOOM Link for Lent Reflections
Saturday Parish Prayers
Each Saturday at 9am a group of regular parishioners meet on zoom for a time of prayer. Prayers are led by different members of the group and offer a quiet and reflective time to join together to pray on both local and wider subjects.
Anyone is welcome to join, if you would like to find out more please contact us.
Starting on 1st February 2021, online, open to anyone and FREE to attend.
Christianity Explored
Christianity Explored is a 7-week course aimed at those who are interested in finding out more about the Christian Faith. Questions such as 'Who is Jesus? 'and 'Does God really exist?' are just two examples of questions and topics approached and discussed in this small group setting.
If you have ever wondered and just want to find out more, why not get in touch and sign up now?
It is especially important at this time more than ever that we keep in touch with each other and our neighbours.
Grapevine weekly e-newsletter
Do you receive the Benefice Grapevine weekly e-newsletter?
If you have an email address, signing up to receive the Grapevine e-newsletter is a fantastic way to keep up to date with news and activities happening in Heathfield Benefice. It includes key news stories from the Diocese as well as some interesting local articles and updates on Church Services.
To receive a copy of the Grapevine e-newsletter, simply contact us with your name and email address and we will add you to the distribution list. (You can unsubscribe at any time).
Looking after your mental health and those around you
You will probably have heard quite a lot in the media in recent months about the impact of the pandemic and lockdown on our mental health. Many of us will know of people who may be struggling with this, but aren't sure how we can help to support them. The team at Together in Sussex has produced a short, animated video with help and advice for those wanting to be able to offer support to friends or family members who may be struggling. You can view the video below.
The outbreak of Coronavirus might be causing fear and anxiety in both adults and children especially if you are self-isolating. It is normal to feel sad, stressed, confused, scared or angry during a crisis. Finding ways to cope with this stress will make you, your family and your community stronger.
Click here for a document with helpful tips to keep your mind, body and spirit healthy.
Covid-19: current measures in place for your safety
We have put in place measures for those visiting our buildings to reduce the risk of infection to a minimum, and we respectfully request that all visitors adhere to the guidelines, including:
- Wearing of a face mask over your mouth and nose at all times
- Using the hand sanitiser as you arrive and leave
- Following the signage on seating and social distancing
- Adhere to any request or instruction given by a leader or responsible person in charge
Heathfield Benefice on social media
We have an active and up to date Heathfield Benefice Facebook page so if you would like to keep up to date and watch our live weekly reflections please find, like and follow us!
We also have a YouTube channel with all our live-streamed and recorded services, if you subscribe you can get notifications any time a new video or premier is uploaded.
Making a donation
Heathfield Benefice has an exciting vision for growth, both in bringing more people to know God’s love for them, and responding to that love through service within our local community. We simply could not fulfil that vision without the generosity of so many people who provide their time, talents and financial support to the life and ministry of the Benefice.
Regular giving helps us to plan our mission and ministry. If you would like to support our church by giving regularly or making a one-off donation you can find the different ways to do this here.