You Just Might be Tempted to.....

Sometimes the church can seem very distant. Sometimes if you haven't been over the door of a church in years - or ever - the whole prospect can be quite daunting. Which is not good. So if you feel that you are out there - looking on from a distance - this page is all about helping you find out some stuff that will help you walk through the door with confidence.

Caption Competition Photo - Comments Below

(The photo is St Gall's as seen from low earth orbit! With a very big lens.)

"When the angels looked they realised this was where the noisy prayers came from."

"It was days like this that Gabriel found his vertigo really giving him jip"

"The new SMART PRAYER weapon system meant you could actually see prayers being answered in real time right up to the moment of impact..."

Now for important stuff.....

Going to Church - It's a bit Scary..

Question 1: It's Sunday morning and I decide I really want to go to church....what do I do?"

Answer: You need to get to St. Gall's for 10 a.m. for the morning service. 95% of the congregation arrive at 9.58 a.m.. Come then if you want to hide in the crowd. Seats at the back are very popular. You may have to be there by 9.56 a.m. for one of those. Through the front door you will meet Churchwardens with their helpers handing out books - red hymn book for songs, green prayer books for  - yes, that right - prayers. Also a service paper which is your guide to all that will go on. You will not get lost in the proceedings as the service paper will keep you right.

If you have little people with you they will be offered a whole range of stuff on the way in. Percussion instruments are available for every child who wants one. This way they get to join in with the singing even if they don't know the hymns and songs. From a parents point of view don't worry about your little loved one fidgeting and chatting during the service - if the kid in the next pew has a tambourine a bit of chat and even a cry isn't going to be heard. There's colouring in as well. And books. Really cool books.

Question 2: So I have arrived. I am sitting in my seat. What happens next?

Answer: The people who come to St. Gall's are friendly and enjoy a chat. You will see a lot of that going on. Be prepared for people to be kind, thoughtful, and generally welcoming. We think that the family of faith is all about showing your care and love to those around you. Jesus called it being a "Good neighbour" - we try to do the things that he taught.

Then the singing starts.... Choir march in.... This is not the X Factor and the minister at the front is no Simon Cowell... So join in and give it some welly. If you know the tune, that's good. If you are just picking it up then you are a bit like the rest of us. We come to church to say thank you to God for the things that make us happy and so we worship him in song.

Question 3: Right, I've finished the hymn....

Now you need to keep an eye on the service paper which will tell you all that is going on. There are two possibilities:

1. Holy Communion (1st Sunday in the month) is when we take bread and wine and remember the last time Jesus sat down with his friends, broke bread and said "This is my body, broken for you." Then he took a cup of wine and said, "This is my blood, shed for you." At St. Gall's everyone is welcome to come forward and take the bread and wine - the first time Jesus took the bread and broke it his friends the disciples hadn't a clue what he was on about - they only worked the whole thing out later. Maybe Communion will be like that for you. You are welcome to join in. If you want to just come along and watch what happens for a bit that's no problem either.

Or it could be ..........

2. Morning Prayer (2nd, 3rd, 4th Sunday in the month) is when we focus on hearing the Bible and learning more about God and what he expects of us and what we can expect of him. We are all pilgrims on a journey - all of us - day by day taking our experience of life, for good or ill, and reflecting on what our faith has to say about the situations in which we find ourselves. This process of reflection and the developing of our own unique spirituality and perspective is the work of the individual as they take their place in the family of faith.

Also, for little people we have Wee Church for pre-schoolers and Sunday Club for anyone up to teens. Just ask the person giving out musical instruments for the children on the way in about these.

Question 4: Are you sure these people sitting around me are okay? They keep looking at me and smiling. Frankly, in this day and age, it's a bit disconcerting.

They do that. Don't worry, please adjust your perspective. This is a family of faith. They are only working up the courage to invite you for a coffee after the service in "the big hall". (It's out the door - left side, at front - and down a corridor.) We only serve Fair Trade tea and coffee - only the best! It's a chance to meet some maybe new friends. Mostly we all live in the area around the church so chances are- if you are local -  you'll meet someone who lives near you or whose kids go to the same school as yours.

Question 5: Well, that was interesting. Quite positive really. Might be something worthwhile in all of it. What if I want to "join" - how do I do that?

Glad it went well for you. As you came in the door there are lots of leaflets right in front of you. Take a church magazine - it's free and comes out every month - it will tell you everything that you might want to know about the life of the church. You will also see a leaflet to fill out to let us know you are interested. Fill it out and give it to someone giving out hymn books. The Rector, Michael, will ring you up and then pop round and see you. He knows most things so think up some tricky question to ask him just for fun. He's rubbish at sports questions so that would be somewhere to start.

Question 6: Right. Fine. See you next Sunday then. Cheers.

No problem. Every blessing.