Calming the Storm

On Sunday 20th May we did a "calming of the storm" themed service. The theme took us into both the Bible story of Jesus in a boat telling the wind & waves to be still and also the fact that life can have its own storms and God is with us as we face these.

From about 1pm we screened the film "Chariots of Fire" while enjoying coffee and cake - our new "iChurch lite" idea whereby people in the town can just wander into the open Church and enjoy our hospitality.

At 3.00 our iChurch proper got started, with singing, dancing and then a superb puppet show of the biblical calming the storm story by our Banbury-based "Go & Tell" puppet ministry team. It was one of the real highpoints of the iChurch project so far in my opinion.

We then made origami boats, complete with bible-verse sails and finished off with more singing and a boat-in-the-storm cake created by Lynda Spokes

This was probably our best attended iChurch so far, and once again everyone's "CD Passport" discs were updated with a new music track.

Our fourth music track, called "Giver" speaks of an all-powerful God creating and controlling nature. It's by the artist "Wahba" and can be listened to here!

Wahba's own website is http://www.wahba.net/

iChurch Silent Communion

On Sunday 15th April we did something quite new in iChurch - a "Silent Communion". After some music numbers (our first with a proper band!) we all assembled in a circle on the church's stage and a communion celebration with no words, just symbols & actions , took place.

One adult member of the congregation later commented that it was the most moving church service she'd ever been to!

Our third music track, an Easter-themed song again by Megan Pettengill, can be listened to here!

Megan's own website is http://www.meganpettengill.com

Fresh Expressions; Emerging Church. 24th March

 

Saturday the 24^th March was the last of three sessions where a small group from St Mary’s  (URC) had been exploring models of Fresh Expression.  Our challenge was to consider what in our church culture are the essentials, desirables and the optional things when we gather together and  the freedom to allow these elements of church to be explored “out side the box” whilst remaining connected to wider church. We were left with the thought  from Rowen Williams concerning Church, “Church is what happens when people gather regularly together around Christ”. It was the happening not the gathering that defined Church;  what happens is not defined. Indeed it cannot be if we are to allow the Holy Spirit to be really at work when we gather.  A conclusion from our first session was that as we journey together at St Mary’s the challenge that may lay before us is to be prepared to sacrifice some of our preconceptions as to what ‘church is’ so as to allow ‘church to happen.’   This is so that the Holy Spirit really engages with us and those whom we may encounter though mission and through this St Mary’s may become more and more a real, living expression of the gospel.