First Sunday Reflections Part 1

It is Sunday night here and we have just completed our first full Sunday of worship in England. We are serving two churches these weeks so I alternate between them. This morning I worshipped, preached and celebrated Holy Communion at Whitefield Methodist in the heart of the Whitefield District of Manchester (Whitefield is like a burrough of Manchester like Brooklyn is to New York City). They are dealing with many of the issues our urban churches struggle with in the U.S. Metropolitan influence is growing around them including a new shopping mall being built across the street. In fact, there is no access along the street that faces the front door of the sanctuary because of the construction. Like many American churches, the congregation is made up largely of faithful people who have been part of the church for a long time. There are some new people who have come within the last few years including a new young family who they are very excited about. Most seem to live within a mile or so of the church.
The people are as kind and gracious as any I have ever met. They were very friendly and love their church.
As we walked up to the church this morning, our eyes were caught by something (we only live about 1/4 mile so we walked). A long line was forming on the far side of the church from the side we were approaching. They were people of all ages, nationalities and economic class, men and women. As I got closer I realized that at 10am on that Sunday morning they were standing in line at an office next door, looking for a job. I will investigate later but it seems that the church's neighbor is some type of employment agency. I wanted to go up and down the line and invite them in to the sanctuary. It was rainy and a little cold so I wonder what it would be like to make plenty of coffee...and tea, and offer it to them while they wait and tell them about the church and the love of God. We might try it one Sunday.
When we gathered in the sanctuary I very much felt that the place was like a safe haven for the faithful and literally a sanctuary for the sojourner. There were a few folks who sat alone and seemed to slip in and out, soujourners in the city. I hope to talk with them some.
The sanctuary is beautiful and the worship service is guided by the traditional liturgy of the British Methodist Church. It resonates quite a bit with the American Methodist liturgy for worship and Holy Communion.
In the evening we worshipped at The Bridge Methodist Church which is a couple of miles away in the Radcliffe District. I will write about it maybe tomorrow. They were also extremely welcoming.
Oh, before I go, the lay minister that assisted me in Whitefield greeted everyone at the lunch meal after worship with a good "hi y'all!" It was great.