Other worship services

There’s more than Sunday

You could be one of the countless numbers of people who have to go to sports training on a Sunday. You might be the busy local council or factory worker whose only time to go shopping is when the churches are opening up on Sundays. Or you might be someone who has to work on a Sunday.

How, the question needs to be asked, do you go to church – assuming of course that you want to. The answer is easy: go and look for somewhere near to where you live where there is a worship service outside the normal and historic Sunday morning slot.

This might take place in someone’s home and be very quiet and informal where perhaps half a dozen people quietly gather to worship. The service might be very formal and track through a very definite little booklet. There might be singing in it. There’s bound to be prayers, bible reading and in some cases holy communion. It’ll be simple and very friendly. Such occasions always are.

But it could be more boisterous. This often is the case when parents and grandparents of children take youngsters to services – perhaps in churches, or maybe a local hall, or even schools. In the past these have been called ‘pram  services’, but that terms is a bit unfair if the children are older. A more modern term is ‘Messy Church’. The worship is activity and teaching based, and is framed around the age and stage of those who take part in it, young and old together.

Some services are based around the needs of adults with, for example, learning difficulties or mobility problems. The Episcopal Church is currently doing a lot of developmental work in worship for children with, for example, Down’s Syndrome. On another front church services are being increasingly planned in cafés, street corners and wherever people naturally meet – care homes is one such example.

Basically we know that whatever you are looking for it can and will be met. You simply need to start asking everybody questions and saying what you need. Very soon you’ll soon find you’re getting all the right answers to your questions.