Easter Review from the Vicar of Chertsey

ThisEaster was an exciting and encouraging time at St Peter’s in Chertsey with many new ideas and contributions such an early morning Sunrise Celebration at 6:30am (!) in the Abbey Field followed by a bacon butties breakfast in the church hall and a contribution from the handbell ringers adding to the diversity of the main Easter Sunday service.

There were extremely appreciative comments about all aspects of worship during the eight (yes, eight!) services at St Peter's and Penton Park over the weekend. Without exception attendances at all of the services were way up on previous years with significant numbers of people exploring the Christian Faith - this is always exciting! I have also been so encouraged by such positive feedback from a whole range of people representing different age groups, both 'traditional' and 'contemporary' worshippers - and those completely new to 'church'.
One of the most challenging tasks of an 'established' church at a season such as Easter (and especially in this post-Christian/postmodern culture) is to proclaim an unchanging gospel to diverse groups of people, both Christian and non Christian, to 'feed' those which strong roots in the faith whilst providing acts of worship and programmes of teaching which are accessible to those without. To do this effectively is a constant challenge to churches which seek to take their evangelistic/pastoral responsibilities seriously to a varied range of people. I believe we have made great strides this Easter at St Peter’s, and hope that my sharing will encourage others to share as well what has been special to them so that perhaps we could all benefit from each other’s ideas and experiences.

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