St John’s and St Paul’s in The Heaton’s kicked off their ‘Songs of Praise’ summer event this Sunday (4th August) with a very special family service at St Paul’s. Both parishes came together to produce a joint service full to the brim with some of the congregations favourite hymns.
Revd Liz Rowles explains where the idea came from, "Congregation numbers are often lower in the summer with fewer volunteers. St Paul’s and St John’s have only been sharing a vicar for just over two years and we are always looking for new opportunities to work together and strengthen relationships. Summer felt like a great opportunity to do that. Singing is always a good way to build community, so we decided to change the communion liturgy as the Eucharist is central to our worship, and add more hymns chosen by the congregation. It was a lovely service and seemed to go down well with everyone."
Church regular and dad of two Michael was delighted with the new format, "Its been such a lovely service, the kids loved the extra singing and joining in the clapping. It was really nice to hear what other people’s favourite hymns were and why they picked them, it was quite emotional in parts."
To add to the celebrations we had our monthly ‘Tea on the Lawn’ session after service with some delicious home made cakes, tea and coffee with entertainment coming from the ‘Blaylock Daytime Singers’ As well as a bug hunt for the little ones.
We were also joined by Heatons Men in Sheds and their amazing woodwork efforts for sale. They are a voluntary group that aims to tackle social isolation in older members of the community.
The rain threatened to put in an appearance but this failed to dampen the spirits of all who attended. Said one of the Blaylock singers, "It has been such an amazing space to perform in. The ambience, the gentleness of the garden, the sound of families laughing…it has been a real pleasure to sing here today."
The ‘Songs of Praise’ series continues next week at St John’s with an Agape service in a café style, again with some of the congregations favourite hymns. For more information please contact Anne Pinkerton stjohnsandstpaulsa@gmail.com.
