June 2023
“All I have needed”: Stories of God’s provision from the chapel
The chapel has always been at the heart of community life and worship at Ridley Hall, but it is also a space where God speaks individually to his people, with words of challenge, encouragement and comfort.
We recently asked those who have been part of the community here to share their stories with us. One response came from Ann Pangbourne, whose husband trained here in the 1980s. Ann tells of how she heard God’s comforting voice during a difficult time for her and her family. “A week into our first term,” says Ann, “our house purchase had fallen through; we had sold our own home and had been kindly invited to live, with our five children, in the principal’s lodge with the principal, his wife, family, dog and puppies.”
At the end of a challenging term, with Christmas approaching and no house purchase in sight, Ann recalls a moment when God spoke to her.
“We were in the chapel. A banner from the previous leavers’ year proclaimed God’s faithfulness to those He had called, and we sang: ‘Great is thy faithfulness’. When we came to the line that declares: All I have needed thy hand hath provided, peace enveloped me: it was true — and it remained true for 37 years of parish ministry.”
There are many such stories of God speaking to his people in this special place. If you have a memory of the chapel you’d like to share with us, we’d love to hear from you. Drop us a line and tell us your story:
Email us on development@ridley.cam.ac.uk
The 2023 Chapel Appeal
After 130 years at the heart of our community, our beautiful chapel is in need of some long-awaited repairs and restoration. The brickwork needs to be repointed, the roof repaired, the walls repainted.
In line with other work we have undertaken at our site, we also want to improve the accessibility features of the chapel so that all of our community, and the wider community of the Cambridge Theological Federation, can benefit from using this space and joining with others in it. We also need to undertake major repairs to the chapel organ.
We have now launched an appeal for the chapel, to help raise the £75,000 we need to fund this work.
If you’d like to make a donation specifically for the benefit of the chapel you can do so by sending us a cheque payable to “Ridley Hall”, and including a note to indicate that the funds are for this purpose, or you can donate at www.ridley.cam.ac.uk/donate and leave a message to indicate that your gift is for the chapel.
