Church Services
Forthcoming Services
Everyone is welcome to join our services
Our weekly Pewsheet contains the readings of the week along with any notices and is added to the website a few days before the service.
Please click on the service to open the pew sheet.
We understand that many visitors to the area who wish to attend a church service while on holiday may not be able to leave theirs dogs in their accommodation. Dogs may be brought to any of our services, so long as they are kept on a short lead.
| April | St Michael’s & All Angels | St Martin’s of Tour | St Andrews | Sherman Tank Memorial, Torcross |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday 3rd | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | |||
| Sunday 7th | 11am Holy Communion (CW) | |||
| Wednesday 10th | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | |||
| Sunday 14th | 11am Holy Communion (CW) | 6pm Evensong | ||
| Wednesday 14th | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | |||
| Sunday 21st | 9.30am Holy Communion | 6pm Evening Service | ||
| Wednesday 24th | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | |||
| Sunday 28th | 8am Holy Communion (BCP) | |||
| 11am Morning Praise | 11am Village Service | 2pm Exercise Tiger 80th Anniversary Memorial Service |
| May | St Michael’s & All Angels | St Martin’s of Tour | St Andrews |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday 1st | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | ||
| Sunday 5th | 11am Holy Communion (CW) | ||
| Wednesday 8th | No service | ||
| Sunday 12th | 11am Holy Communion (CW) | 6pm Evensong | |
| Wednesday 15th | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | ||
| Sunday 19th | 11am Holy Communion (CW) | 6pm Evening Service | |
| Wednesday 22nd | 10am Holy Communion (CW) | ||
| Sunday 26th | 8am Holy Communion (BCP) | ||
| 11am Morning Praise (Lay) | 11am Village Service (Lay) | ||
| Wednesday 29th | 10am Holy Communion (CW) |
HOLY COMMUNION
The Holy Communion is the Church of England’s central act of public worship. As Christians together we make up the mystical Body of Christ; in celebrating the Holy Communion we unite ourselves with Jesus Christ our Head. Jesus said: ‘I am the living bread that came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live for-ever.’ (John 6: 51).
The Holy Communion is described as the source and summit of the Christian life. This is because in celebrating the Holy Communion, we enter into communion with Christ himself, whose body and blood, soul and divinity are given to us under the form of bread and wine. Jesus instituted the Holy Communion at the Last Supper.
On the night of his betrayal and arrest, Jesus took bread and wine and spoke of them as being now his body and blood: signs of a new and everlasting Covenant between God and people which he was to establish by his death on the cross the following day. Faithful to Jesus’ command to ‘do this in memory of me’, we continue to take bread and wine and, through the priest, speak Christ’s words of consecration over them.
OUR REGULAR SERVICES
Holy Communion Common Worship (CW)
Holy Communion Common Worship is usually celebrated at 11am on the first and second Sunday of the month at St Michael and All Angels, Stokenham (followed by refreshments in the church) and on the third Sunday of the month at St Martin of Tour, Sherford. This service uses the Common Worship Lectionary (a lectionary is a list of Bible readings assigned to each day of the Christian year). The Common Worship Lectionary is the Bible reading plan for the Church of England, dictating which readings are read during services. Common Worship draws together modern liturgy and the tradition of worship stemming from The Book of Common Prayer. Hymns are sung during the service and the congregation are invited to receive Holy Communion.
A Holy Communion (CW) service is also held at 10am at St Michael and All Angels most Wednesdays. The congregation is welcomed to the Old Exchange opposite the church for refreshments after the service.
Common Worship | The Church of England
Book of Common Prayer (BCP)
On the fourth Sunday of the month at 8am at St Michael and All Angels, Stokenham Holy Communion is celebrated using the Book of Common Prayer. The Book of Common Prayer is the official service book of the Church of England, compiled by Thomas Cranmer and others, first issued in 1549, and largely unchanged since the revision of 1662. The Book of Common Prayer is loved for the beauty of its language. There are no hymns sung at this service. The congregation are invited to receive Holy Communion
The Book of Common Prayer | The Church of England
Evensong
Evensong is a service of evening prayers, psalms, and canticle (a hymn, psalm or other Christian song of praise). An Evensong service is held on the second Sunday of the month at 6pm at St Martin of Tours, Sherford.
Taize Service
Taizé is a form a Christian prayer originating from the ecumenical Christian community of Taizé in France. Taizé is a meditative evening prayer service including simple chants that are easy to learn as they use just a few words and are repeated again and again. The service is usually held on the third Sunday of the month in the late afternoon or early evening at the tiny church of St Andrew’s, right by the beach at Beesands.
Lay-led Services
Every month a Village Service is held at St Martin of Tour in Sherford and a Morning Praise Service at St Michael and All Angels, Stokenham. The service is led by members of the congregation, who in collaboration with the priest in charge choose the hymns and readings. Sometimes there are talks and presentations during the service. Holy Communion is not celebrated at these lay-led services.
Baptisms & Confirmations
In the waters of baptism we begin a new life. We are born into a new relationship with the God who loves us and into the family which will be with us to eternity.
Weddings
A wedding is one of life’s great moments, a time of solemn commitment as well as good wishes, feasting and joy.