Harpley, My Life is my Message." Mahatma Gandhi
Rector: Revd Josh Whitall
FEBRUARY 2026
Dear Friends,
A very Happy New Year to you all as we enter both a new year on the calendar, and a new season in the life of the GGM Benefice. Bethany and I have been completely overwhelmed with the welcome we have received over the past few weeks, from fruitcakes to shepherds’ pies, house plants to Congham’s finest wine – you have all certainly looked after us, and we are so grateful! I arrived in the benefice in late December from the Harling and Guiltcross Benefice in the south of the county. I am married to Bethany, and we have two (at the time of writing, but hopefully three by printing) children. We are an agricultural family, enjoying rural life and keeping a number of native breed sheep, which hopefully you will see grazing a churchyard near you in the future. I am deeply passionate about the link between our wonderful historic churches and the communities they were designed to serve.
Across our parishes, church towers still rise above fields and hedgerows, shaping the skyline of each village just as it has done for generations. Our churches stand not simply as old buildings, but as a quiet, faithful witness to the prayers, hopes and hard work of rural life — seen from tractor cabs, footpaths, and kitchen windows alike. In the Bible, Jesus tells his followers, “A city built on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14), and our churches speak in much the same way: visible, rooted, and reminding us that God’s presence belongs at the heart of this place. Long before any of us arrived, and long after we are gone, the church will continue to shape both the landscape and the life of the parish, pointing heavenward while remaining firmly grounded in the soil of our shared story.
I hope that 2026 is the year you might like to visit your local church, perhaps join us for a service or a coffee morning, perhaps pop in during the week to find a space of welcome and quiet, perhaps speak to me or a warden about the community there and how you might be a part of it. All are welcome, as you are, and I hope and pray you might find home.
God bless you all,
The Revd Joshua Whitnall, Rector
rectorggmbenefice@gmail.com 01485 750075 on FaceBook : The GGM Benefice