Are You New To Church?

Asking the question, "Are you new to Church?" may seem odd at first, but it is, in fact, a very important question.

This is because there are now generations of parents and their children in the United Kingdom who have never been inside a church building, let alone attended a service of Christian worship. There are also generations of parents and their children in the United Kingdom who have never been inside a synagogue, mosque, temple or any other place of worship either. Looking at pictures in school or for adults, in magazines, newspapers, or other periodicals may be the only experience they have of an environment set apart for any form of religious worship.

What is Church?

So, what would you experience if you came to Bethania for a Sunday morning service? But before we explain this, what is a church? Briefly, he word 'church' has two meanings in modern English.

The Christian church is, first and foremost, a group or gathering of people who meet together to worship God. This is its primary and original meaning. The Christian church is people who feel called to meet together. But in modern times, a church is also referred to as ...
A building that has been purpose-built and is dedicated to where the Christian church (the people) meets. This is its secondary meaning. A church building is where the real church meets.

?There are different types (or denominations) of churches within Christianity, but the core beliefs are the same.

Christians believe that:

Jesus Christ is the Son of God,
His crucifixion and rising from the dead 2,000 years ago created a way for all of humanity to have a restored relationship with God and the prospect of eternal life with him. (The relationship was broken when Adam and Eve disobeyed God's instructions at the beginning of time)
Christians believe in one God who is represented in three co-equal persons, i.e.:
God the Father,
God the Son and
?God the Holy Spirit.

The vast majority of Christians subscribe to a statement of beliefs called the Apostles Creed.

Are you thinking of attending a Church service for the first time?

People in a church are usually there to worship Jesus, Jesus the Christ (or Messiah), who lived on earth for about 33 years from about 5 BC to about AD 28. They believe Jesus was and is God in human form and are known as Christians, which means 'followers of Christ'.

A church is like a family. Just as families exist in all shapes and sizes, there is a wide variety of churches. But, encountering a new group of people who all know each other and all know what is going on may feel intimidating to you. Therefore, a personal introduction is often the best way to attend church for the first time. If you can, go with a friend or someone who already 'knows the ropes'. They can help you understand what is happening and why and help you to feel at home. If you don't know anyone from the church, don't let that put you off! Most churches have welcomers who greet newcomers and make them feel at home. If they don't seem to realise it straight away, you might like to identify yourself as new. If you want to arrange your visit with the church beforehand, that will be OK too.

You don't have to be a Christian to attend any church service. Anyone can attend, and what's more, you don't have to take part either if you don't want to. If you only want to sit (or stand) and watch what happens, that is OK.

It's a good idea to look at our website or Facebook beforehand to get an idea of who we are, what happens during services, who is involved and what the dress code might be. In most churches, the dress code is informal, but some Christians like to wear their 'Sunday best' clothes for church services; some women wear hats to worship, but most don't nowadays; some churches ask men and women not to wear shorts or leave their shoulders uncovered. But most churches would want a visitor to feel comfortable. You do not have to say or do anything you don't want to.

On The Day

When you arrive, you can sit wherever you want to within the seating area. There are no designated areas for men, women or children. Seats are not reserved for certain people unless you are attending a wedding, funeral, or other special service. In these cases, seats are labelled as reserved.

Most parts of a church service can be expected to happen in almost every church:

Notices and/or announcements
Praying (talking to God) and listening to God
Reading or listening to parts of the Bible being read
Singing songs and hymns of praise and thanks to God
Listen to a sermon or talk by the minister or a church leader.
The church might also celebrate the Eucharist or Holy Communion. This is a ceremony that happens after the main service. Everyone is offered a small piece of bread and a sip of wine to commemorate Jesus Christ's sacrificial death. The bread represents His body, and the wine represents His blood. It is generally reserved for those who have decided to follow Jesus. In Bethania, we eat the bread individually as we receive it. The wine (red grapefruit juice) is drunk together. You do not have to participate in this if you don't want to. So, feel free to let the bread and wine pass you by if appropriate. Nobody will turn a hair if you do.

Together, these elements of a church service form what we call 'worship' or 'praise and worship'.

Services might be different at significant points in the Christian calendar, such as Christmas and Easter, when the congregation especially remembers Jesus' birth, death and resurrection. Some churches have separate meetings during the service for children and young people that are more tailored for that audience. So, if you are taking your family—or you are a young person—you might want to go to that separate session.

In the majority of churches, people sit in wooden pews or on individual chairs. In others, the people stand and move about. In Bethania, we sit. The music can vary even within the same church: at one service, the congregation might sing traditional hymns from a hymn book or printed sheet accompanied by an organ, but at other services, the music style could be very contemporary with keyboards, guitars, drums and wind instruments with the words displayed on a screen. Some services follow a regular pattern of hymns, prayers, Bible readings and a sermon; others are very relaxed and flexible. People usually stand to sing and sit or kneel to pray. The sermon or talk could be a short homily or a lengthy teaching session exploring a theme from the Bible. There might also be tea and coffee available before or after the service.

Most churches hold services on Sundays but also have meetings at other times during the week. Those meetings might be open to everybody or aimed at a particular part of the congregation. Details will be on the church noticeboard, a Facebook page, or a website.

People go to church for many different reasons. Some prefer it to be a time of quiet reflection, others want to engage with the service, and others need prayer or spiritual support. Others go because they want to marry in their local church and are visiting to see what it is like.

With so many options available, you can find a Christian church that offers a service that meets your needs.

Getting Connected With Bethania

If you would like to visit the church beforehand, you are more than welcome to do so! If you want to contact us to arrange a day and time or to make an enquiry, please use the form below.

Name:

Telephone:

Email Address:
Comments / Questions or anything you would like to say or add?

Once your message is sent, we will contact you by email to say hello and help arrange anything necessary for your visit.

We hope that whoever you are, you will feel welcome and at home at Bethania Leeswood.

Best Wishes