A church event celebrating the local farming community took place at The Bell Inn in Evercreech, as St Peter’s Church held its first-ever Tractor Sunday. More than 40 people attended the service, which included a blessing of farming equipment, and included members of the family which own a farm in the village.
The idea for the event emerged because St Peter’s, being a rural parish, wanted to celebrate and give thanks for their farming community and the work they do. Michèle Hole is Churchwarden at St Peter’s and helped organise the service in the local pub, “Tractor Sunday made sense because we are in a farming area—we still have one working farm in the village, and we’ve celebrated Rogation Sunday down on the farm with them for many years.
“Farming is a very lonely, hard thing to do. I think they find comfort in the partnership with the church. It’s not about commercial gain—it’s about recognising their work and showing that the church walks alongside them.”
During the service, a tractor from a local farming family was parked on the pub forecourt. “We had the service in the skittle alley and then went out onto the forecourt,” Michèle says “The priest blessed the tractor and the farming implements we had there, and we also gave everyone sunflower seeds, which were also blessed.”
Michèle says the decision to hold the service at The Bell pub was rooted in historical tradition. “The history of Plough Sunday is that often the plough was shared by lots of people, lots of farm workers, and it was stored at the pub because that would have been the central area.”
The event was not just about celebrating farming traditions but also recognising the challenges farmers face today. “We brought into it the support for farmers and how difficult it is for them now. People from our farming community joined us and appreciated our prayers for them and the acknowledgement we shared of all the work they do on our behalf.”
The connection between the church and the farming community is very important and St Peter’s services reflect that connection throughout the year, with services also taking place for Rogation Sunday and Lammas in Lamyatt, which is in the wider Benefice. Michèle says, “Rogation Sunday is about asking for God’s blessing on the farm’s efforts for the year. We bless things like the land, water, milk, and the farming family themselves.”
The timing also coincided with a regional tractor show at the Bath and West showground. St Peter’s had shared the information about the service with those attending one of which joined them for the service.