St Thomas and St Edmunds Church Services
Everyone is welcome to join us for any service.
Please check weekly notice sheet and Monthly Diaries dates and for any changes
Sunday Services
8.00am Holy Communion (1662)
10.15am Parish Communion (Common Worship) with Sunday School
6.00pm Choral Evensong (1662)
Weekday Services
(Check News Sheet in church)
10.30am Monday Holy Communion (1662)
9.30am Friday Holy Communion (1662)
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 8am the church is opened with a short (15-20 minutes) Service of Morning Prayer.
Wednesdays at 8am the church is opened with Holy Communion CW1.
Prayer. A group (to which all are invited) meet for 30 minutes, to pray for the world, the city and the church, and importantly to offer prayer requests from the Prayer Board. St. Michael's Room at 10am every Tuesday.
Below we have listed just some of the special services throughout the year. Please check weekly notice sheet and Monthly Diaries for dates and any changes and additions.
Mothering Sunday, Historically, Mothering Sunday referred to the custom of parishioners visiting their ‘mother’ church - either the cathedral or a nearby large church - once a year. A social custom developed from this whereby young people in service were given the day off to join their family at church, and so it became a day of family reunion.
At St Thomas’s, Parish Communion on Mothering Sunday celebrates the love and self-sacrifice of parenthood and family life, be it the family life of the church, our own family life or our relationship with God as his children. Mothers are given a bunch of daffodils, our uniformed children’s organisations will be represented and our Junior Choir will sing something specially rehearsed for the occasion.
Palm Sunday, This marks the start of the most solemn week in the Christian calendar and commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowd, many of whom would be baying for his crucifixion a few days later. We show our commitment to Jesus in an act of witness, beginning at the Guildhall Square at 10.00, where we hear the Palm Sunday gospel, and then process back to church through the city centre for our Parish Communion, where we receive our palm crosses.
Rogation Sunday, Everyone is invited to the Rogation lunch - soup, cheese etc 12.30pm in St Thomas' House. This follows on from the 10.15am service.
The Rogation Walk and act of witness around the city centre usually start at 2.00pm in the Church.
Rose Petal Sunday, An invitation to ALL, and especially to all newcomers to St Thomas’s, to come to the Family Communion service at 10.15 am. After the service we will gather outside in the Square to witness the annual tradition of rose petals being scattered from our church tower, representing God’s blessings showering down upon our city. Then we will share a celebratory cake, coffee and conversation either in the garden of St. Thomas’s House or in the People’s Vestry. In the run up to this service we ask everyone to collect and dry rose petals.
Harvest Festival This service is usually the first Sunday in October. The food collected is handed to the Trussell Trust. We share a Harvest Lunch either in church or St Thomas’s House after the service.
Decorated Christmas Tree Festival special service. This service is held as the close of the Tree Festival.
Carols for Busy People, St. Thomas's and the Chamber of Commerce invites members of our city businesses and shops to "Carols for Busy People." This short ( 30 minute ) Christmas Carol Service at 1.10 in the week running up to Christmas is followed by mulled wine and mince pies.
Carol Service: traditional service of Nine Lessons and Carols. A candlelit reflection in choral music and scripture, lasting about an hour and a half, to prepare us for the mystery of God’s incarnation, and an opportunity to draw breath before a very busy week.
Christmas Night Parish Communion: starting at 11.30 pm on Christmas Eve, as the city around us celebrates by raising a glass or three, we usher the Christ child into our lives by sharing the Eucharist. Hard to think of a more atmospheric way to start Christmas than at midnight in our magnificent ancient church, in candlelight, where Christ’s birth has been celebrated for nearly 800 years.
Christmas morning 8.00 am Holy Communion: from the Book of Common Prayer, this service is said using the glorious liturgy of 1662, owing much to Archbishop Cranmer’s wonderful prose, arguably unsurpassed in English liturgical history. In the Lady Chapel, under the mediaeval wall painting of the Nativity, lasting about half an hour.
Christmas Day Parish Communion at 10.15 am: come early to get a good seat! Very much the family-centred service; come with your own family, or just be part of our Christian family. You are invited to attend in costume to take part in the Nativity play, regardless of your age or acting skills (not compulsory, though!). Fun, but not happy-clappy. Lasts a bit over an hour.
We look forward to seeing you!
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