Welcome to St Giles' Church
We are here to love God and to make Christ known in word and deed.
We are an inclusive church,
you are welcome here.
Advent 2023
(from Advent Sunday -
Christmas Eve on 24 December)
Advent is a season of expectation and preparation, as the Church prepares to celebrate the coming (adventus) of Christ in his incarnation, and also looks ahead to his final advent as judge at the end of time. The readings and liturgies not only direct us towards Christ’s birth, they also challenge the modern reluctance to confront the theme of divine judgement;
‘Every eye shall now behold him, robed in dreadful majesty’
Charles Wesley
The Four Last Things – Death, Judgement, Heaven and Hell – have been traditional themes for Advent meditation. The characteristic note of Advent is therefore expectation, rather than penitence, although the character of the season is easily coloured by an analogy with Lent. The anticipation of Christmas under commercial pressure has also made it harder to sustain the appropriate sense of alert watchfulness, but the fundamental Advent prayer remains ‘Maranatha’ – ‘Our Lord, come’ (1 Corinthians 16.22). Church decorations are simple and spare, and purple is the traditional liturgical colour. In the northern hemisphere, the Advent season falls at the darkest time of the year, and the natural symbols of darkness and light are powerfully at work throughout Advent and Christmas…. The Moravian custom of the Christingle has enjoyed great success in Britain since the latter part of the twentieth century, with the encouragement of the Children’s Society; Christingle services may take place before or after Christmas.
From Common Worship
Join us for the
Parish Eucharist on Sundays at 10.00
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All Welcome
See below for details of Weekday Services