Prayer and Worship
Prayer
Our votive candle stand in church – we light candles as a sign of our prayer for our own intentions. Our prayer continues even after we leave the church.
We are committed to praying for our community, holding one another before God, sharing in one another’s sorrows and joys. If we can pray for you, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Our weekly prayer bulletin shares the first names only of those we are praying for (without any identifying details), and it is our pleasure and privilege to pray.
What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear! All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. Joseph Medlicott Scriven (1819-86)
What to Expect at your First Time at St Mary Magdalene
We are a family who share in the love of Jesus Christ. St Mary Magdalene Church is full of ordinary people – office workers, teachers, drivers, nurses, people who are unemployed and retired. Some of us are single, married, divorced, single parents, not parents, and widows. We welcome you whoever you are, wherever you’re from, and whoever you love.
We know it can be daunting coming to church, or coming back to church for the first time. The most important thing is to relax and not worry too much about our customs – everyone in church remembers what it’s like to be in a new place. There’s no need to put on your ‘Sunday best’ here – your jeans are absolutely fine.
Holy Communion
Our services follow the structure of Holy Communion. First we hear scripture from the Bible read, and we consider what it might be saying in our own lives. Then we share the bread and wine of Holy Communion (also known as The Eucharist). You are most welcome to receive bread and wine at St Mary Magdalene if it is your custom to do so at church and you have been baptised, or we would love to pray God’s blessing on you. If you’d prefer just to remain in your seat that’s fine too. Gluten-free bread is always available at all services – just ask when you come to receive. If you prefer to avoid alcohol, please simply return to your seat after taking the bread – no one will ask any questions.
We love a good party at St Mary Magdalene, and so we celebrate quite a lot of festivals through the church year – Christmas and Easter, and some you might not have heard of like Pentecost and Corpus Christi. These often come with a change in the colour of furnishings in church, and different things happen. If you happen to turn up on a festival day, just go with the flow – you probably have about as much idea of what’s going to happen next as the rest of the congregation!
An icon of the Virgin Mary breastfeeding the infant Jesus
Children, Babies and Breastfeeding
Children are welcome at all services, but especially at our main Sunday morning service at 10am, when there is always something especially for them. Please don’t worry about small children making noise, asking lots of questions or needing to move around. God put the wiggle in children! You are most welcome to breastfeed in church at any time – and we also have more private spaces if that feels more comfortable for you. Our accessible toilets have baby change facilities and we keep a supply of nappies, wipes etc in case you are caught short!
Money
Donations are always welcome towards the mission and ministry of the church. We have a contactless giving option for those who don’t carry cash. However, this is entirely optional – please don’t feel you can’t come if you can’t afford to give.
God’s love is an open offer to everyone. If you have any questions, or need any support in order to visit us, please just get in touch.
Join us this Sunday!