Worship at St John's
We’d love to have you join us as we gather together whether you are a regular member or not been for some time, whether you can join us often or only occasionally. As a community we gather throughout the week. ‘The Gathering – Sunday at St John’s‘ holds worship in classic and contemporary styles, Daily Prayer (Mon – Thurs) a chance to start the day in prayer, and a mid-week gathering.
We understand that not everyone is able to access our services (as we gather on-site or on-line) and that you may feel isolated and alone. Our desire is to reach out to all in our community with the love of God allowing all who wish to gather for worship to do so in a good and safe way. If you find yourselves in a place where you are struggling to access all that is on offer please do contact us to talk this through. We can’t promise to be able to solve every problem but we will do our best to overcome any difficulties you may be facing which are hindering you from worship.
Worship & Prayer happening soon
The Gathering
Prayer Gathering
Daily Prayer
The Gathering - Sunday at St John's
St John’s is currently closed for communal worship.
We warmly invite you to join us online as we gather together on Sunday to worship our loving God. All our services are currently being lived streamed on our YouTube channel and you are also available to join us in real time via ZOOM. Details of how to access these are provided below.
We very much look forward to welcoming you as we gather together for worship.
We warmly invite you to join us as we gather together on Sunday to meet with each other in the presence of our loving God.
We begin to gather from 9.00am to set up and catch up with friends old and new during which refreshments are served. A group of us will also gather for prayer from 9.00-9.30am in the Olive Room to which all are welcome. We then all gather at 10.00am for worship. SJB Kids – Junior Church (our Sunday children’s group) usually runs from 10.20am – 11.00am during term-time. At the end of our time of worship we come together for extended fellowship, chat and coffee in the Link. Our hope and prayer is that as we come together to be and do church with one another through a mixed ecology of worship styles that friendships across all generations will continue and flourish.
- 9.00am - church begins to meet to set up and prepare for worship. Refreshments are serviced and we can catch up with each other.
- 10.00am - We break for Worship - Classic style in St John's Church and Contemporary style in St John's Hall
- 10.20am - SJB Kids gather (upstairs in the Link)
- 11.15am(ish) - Fellowship after worship
There are times when we all come together for worship. Our Worship Together services are held on the first Sunday of every month, and at significant times throughout the year. These will include Remembrance Day, Advent, Christmas Day, Easter Day, Pentecost, our Patronal Festival (a celebration of John the Baptist as the patron saint of the church) & Harvest.
We pray that through gathering together enjoying a time of fellowship and worship we may all become aware of God’s loving presence with us.
Classic style - 10.00am St John's Church
Our classic style worship follows Common Worship order one for Holy Communion and is usually live-streamed on our YouTube channel. This service provides a time when we can be still before God, drawing strength from God's presence with us as we share in the breaking of bread and pouring of wine. We meet in St John's Church and our sung worship is usually led by the choir accompanied by the organ.
We are asking everyone who joins us to follow current government guidelines to ensure the safety and well being of all. To help us all understand how each wishes to interact with the lifting of restrictions we have zoned St John’s Church into colour areas.
Our classic style worship is also live-streamed on our YouTube channel, so please do not worry if for any reason you find yourself unable to be with us. Details of how to access these are provided below.
We very much look forward to welcoming you.
Sunday Worship - Contemporary Style
Our contemporary style worship focuses upon enjoying God’s presence among us as we come together. We enjoy a range of traditions as we express our love for God and the worship is more relaxed and informal. Our sung worship is generally led by a small group of singers and musicians. We gather in St John's Hall.
We are asking everyone who joins us to follow current government guidelines to ensure the safety and well being of all.
Live Stream on YouTube
If you would like to follow our service this week we invite you to download our special Coronation Service Sheet. Two downloads are available depending on how you wish to view it. If you plan to use an electronic device we suggest you use the ‘Download to view on a Device‘ link. If you prefer to have a printed copy please use the ‘Download the Booklet‘ link – this has been set up to print double-sided and then put together as a booklet.
(PRINTING HINT: when printing double-sided select flip pages on short edge.)
Previous Services
ZOOM Sunday Worship
Details of how to join us as we gather together in ‘real’ time in a relaxed way as we share together in worship and fellowship can be found on ZOOM Sunday Worship, accessible from the What’s on area. Click the service for full details – we look forward to seeing you soon!
Online Church
Online Church is just that – church done in an online environment!
As you can imagine we have had fun experimenting with the likes of Zoom, Facebook Live, YouTube and several other social media channels. We are sorry to say but the out-takes have been canned! Over these last months we have learnt to do and be church in a different way and we think it’s good fun! The way that it generally works is that a weekly YouTube playlist is offered which generally contains, songs and hymns, a reading or two from the bible, a thought based on those readings and some prayers. Each part is offered as short individual videos so, for example, you can play the songs that resonate better for you and skip others. Our hope is that you are able to dip into the playlist through out the week, whenever you are able to and have a quiet 5 or so minutes to do so.
We love hearing what has worked for you and what hasn’t, what your thoughts are on what’s been said (whether you agree with it all or not!). We enjoy the discussions that this all brings.
To aid this and to help keep us connected we generally gather for ‘Coffee on Zoom’ at 11.00am on Sundays. If you ever fancy joining us, drop us a line and we will send you the details through. You are warmly invited to join us for this week’s Online Church.
All our previous playlists are available on our YouTube Channel.
However you use these videos we pray that you will be aware of God’s loving presence with you.
Subscribe to our channel
What's on
Events for 25th November
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Life Events
In the first instance we invite you to read each section below which will give you more understanding of the life event services we hold. Once you have read these we ask that you contact us to discuss how we can best help.
“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
Baptisms & Thanksgiving for a Child
The coming of a child is a very special event in the life of a family and we as a Church rejoice with you in the birth of your baby or arrival of an adopted child. We want to assure you of our concern for your child’s welfare, and in particular their Christian development.
An important part of all we do is to help people find and celebrate God in important life events (such as this!). We would love to help you mark this special time in your lives in a way that is meaningful to you. We invite all who are thinking about christening and Baptism to come and join us at one of our Sunday morning services so we may welcome you personally and begin to help you plan for this special celebration.
We invite all parents and prospective godparents of those who we will be conducting the service for to join us a time of preparation, where we spend time thinking through the promises made within the christening service. Follow the link to find out all the Church of England offers for Christenings or to make an enquiry contact us for further details or use our online Baptism Enquiry Form to submit your details directly to us.
Please note that if you live outside of the parish and do not regularly worship with us then as part of our Baptism Policy we ask that you make contact with your parish church in the first instance. If you are unsure of which is, or where your parish church is, you can easily find out by entering your postcode at A Church Near You.
Weddings & Prayers and Dedication
Congratulations!
If you are reading this section you most probably have recently got engaged and are looking for all we offer in terms of getting married at St John’s – you are in the right place! You may be enquiring to see if getting married at St John’s is possible and right for you, or you may have already decided upon a civil marriage service and are thinking about having a Service of Prayer and Dedication. Do look at the information below for more details about having a Service of Prayer and Dedication or Getting Married at St John’s which we hope is helpful in making this occasion special for you.
We know that there are a lot of questions that are asked about marriage in the Church of England from “Can I get married in Church?” through to “How do I find out more?” – a good place to start is by looking at the Church of England site Your Church Wedding which answers these and many more questions you may have, as well as providing a lot of useful information.
Getting Married at St John's
We are delighted that you are considering being married at St John’s Church and look forward to celebrating your special day with you and your guests. We know there is a lot that needs to be planned and organised to make your Wedding Day the occasion that will hold many wonderful memories for years to come. We may not be able to help organise the reception, but we are committed to making your experience in church the best it can be. We hope the information below is helpful to you as you consider having your marriage service with us. There may well be areas that we have not covered that are important to you and if this is the case please do contact us as soon as possible so we can address any questions or concerns you may have.
We believe marriage to be a unique, binding commitment to one another and that a good marriage is a journey of discovery, of finding fulfilment and continually taking pleasure in your partner. We recognise that this is something that every couple constantly needs to work at and give time to. Please be assured of our prayers as you begin this wonderful journey of new discoveries which is marriage.
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature,
shall be able to separate us from the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord
Funerals
Introduction
We are sorry that you have just experienced the loss of someone close to you. We offer you our condolences.
Whether expected or not, death may come as a shock and this can be a difficult time. It is not unusual for emotions to surface and there may be lots of questions to grapple with. The first few days after a death are often filled with many practical things that have to be done, working alongside the Funeral Directors, we are here to help you as much as we can.
Arranging the Funeral
A member of our Ministry Team will spend time with you, talking about how you would like to remember the person who has died and will help make the funeral service a personal tribute to them. They will help you to choose appropriate readings from the Bible, suitable hymns, prayers and music.
The funeral service is an important time as it enables you to remember, to give thanks and to commit the person who has died to God. It can be a time of order and beauty in what may seem a disordered life at the moment. You may find the Church of England Funeral website helpful in thinking through all that you wish to include in the funeral service.
Whoever comes to see you will cover all the main details but there may be things which you think of after they have gone. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if there is anything which you are concerned about between their visit and the funeral.
After the Funeral
The hardest time of all can be after the funeral when the reality of having to reshape life begins to dawn. This can be when feelings surface more strongly. Grieving is hard work and you may feel very tired. The support of good friends and family may well be helpful for some time.
It is customary for a member of our Bereavement Care Team to be in touch with you a few weeks after the funeral to say how you are to offer to visit, if you would find it helpful. SOLO is our group for all who have lost a loved one and we meet for tea, cake and sharing throughout the year.
Sometimes people find it comforting to come to church after a funeral and you would be most welcome at any of our services. The church is generally open during the day for private prayer and reflection.
In October you will receive an invitation to our Memorial Service which provides space to remember and give thanks for those who have died.
Advent and Christmas
All are warmly invited to join us as we gather in preparation and celebration of Christmas.
