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deborah_cFor a little while now, I've been church-hunting around the central-ish churches in Cambridge. Actually, so far I haven't got to many; up to the end of the university term, I went to my college chapel, and since then weekend events seem to have conspired to stop me from getting to church at all in Cambridge. Anyway, no matter: this morning I decided to sample the delights of St. Mark's, in Newnham.
I have to admit to feeling very much at home there. It's a little more traditional than the style to which I've recently been accustomed, but one I feel entirely at home with. There's a nice mixture of ages, families, couples and so on. And, rather to my delight, they appear to have a much more traditional musical style than my previous church, where I have to admit to having had to grit my teeth for some while. Much more importantly, though, I felt welcomed. At one previous church that I've tried out, I'd managed to go through the entire morning without a single person speaking to me; while I tend to be quite shy, it doesn't seem to augur well. This morning, though, people seemed to be falling over themselves to welcome me, but without being overpowering, which I really appreciated. Definitely a possibility as somewhere to go longer term, although I think that once we return from holiday I should probably also see how I feel at a few other churches that friends have suggested, notably LSM and Emmanuel URC. (If anyone else would like to suggest city centre churches that might suit me, preferably with a vaguely inclusive spirit, do feel free to comment!)
I left feeling very relaxed; it left me able to appreciate the world around me much more than I have of late, I think. As I crossed Lammas Land, there ws the wonderful smell of grass after fresh rain -- there had been a shower a little while before, but the late morning was bright and cheery. The sound of children playing echoed across the green from the swimming pool, the birds were singing in the trees. Walking across to the Mill, there were ducks dabbling in the mill pond; Cambridge itself seemed just to be waking up, until I reached the bustle of the market.
I must start paying more attention to the world. So much of the time I'm far too wrapped up in myself and my problems (and, occasionally, in friends' problems); sometimes, it's just nice to observe, to appreciate all that's going on around us.
Later, we all went to a short service at our local Baptist church. The village has a children's holiday club running next week, run jointly by the churches, and to which our three have been looking forward for some time; Liz is helping out, too. The service was a commissioning service, combined with a start to the children's work itself, and with a barbeque afterwards. The weather held off in helpful fashion, all appeared to go well, and we had a nice time socialising with friends while the children communally ran riot outside :) A nice relaxed evening...
I have to admit to feeling very much at home there. It's a little more traditional than the style to which I've recently been accustomed, but one I feel entirely at home with. There's a nice mixture of ages, families, couples and so on. And, rather to my delight, they appear to have a much more traditional musical style than my previous church, where I have to admit to having had to grit my teeth for some while. Much more importantly, though, I felt welcomed. At one previous church that I've tried out, I'd managed to go through the entire morning without a single person speaking to me; while I tend to be quite shy, it doesn't seem to augur well. This morning, though, people seemed to be falling over themselves to welcome me, but without being overpowering, which I really appreciated. Definitely a possibility as somewhere to go longer term, although I think that once we return from holiday I should probably also see how I feel at a few other churches that friends have suggested, notably LSM and Emmanuel URC. (If anyone else would like to suggest city centre churches that might suit me, preferably with a vaguely inclusive spirit, do feel free to comment!)
I left feeling very relaxed; it left me able to appreciate the world around me much more than I have of late, I think. As I crossed Lammas Land, there ws the wonderful smell of grass after fresh rain -- there had been a shower a little while before, but the late morning was bright and cheery. The sound of children playing echoed across the green from the swimming pool, the birds were singing in the trees. Walking across to the Mill, there were ducks dabbling in the mill pond; Cambridge itself seemed just to be waking up, until I reached the bustle of the market.
I must start paying more attention to the world. So much of the time I'm far too wrapped up in myself and my problems (and, occasionally, in friends' problems); sometimes, it's just nice to observe, to appreciate all that's going on around us.
Later, we all went to a short service at our local Baptist church. The village has a children's holiday club running next week, run jointly by the churches, and to which our three have been looking forward for some time; Liz is helping out, too. The service was a commissioning service, combined with a start to the children's work itself, and with a barbeque afterwards. The weather held off in helpful fashion, all appeared to go well, and we had a nice time socialising with friends while the children communally ran riot outside :) A nice relaxed evening...
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Date: 2004-07-26 11:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-07-26 02:26 pm (UTC)