New to Church?

If you are new to St. Barts or to Sydenham, or are simply looking for more information about our church before attending, we hope these pages will be helpful.

From this section of our website you can access the following information:

• Frequently Asked Questions about our services
• Explaining the Eucharist, The Church Year & Christian Terms - guides to understand what can feel strange or unfamiliar and help you feel at ease with our services
• Study - with others or on your own; materials to aid your further exploration of Christianity

• Church Activities - ways to become more involved through singing, prayer or even making tea!
• What's On at St. Barts - social or fund raising events that can be an easy way to get to know people

There are lots of online resources to help with a basic (and not-so-basic) understanding of the faith.

• The Church of England central website has sections on Faith, Worship and About the Church which you may find useful.
• This Church of England page on what it means to be a Christian also has links to other sites
• Bible texts are available online. Oremus has bibles and also prayer books, hymns and other resources for prayer and worship
• The Bible Gateway has a large range of bible translations
• Wikipedia has an extensive Christianity Portal that you may find helpful for reference

NB: These are all external sites and we can take no responsibility for opinions expressed there, or any discrepancies in facts; however they have been found to be generally reliable.

Courses in Christianity and Confirmation

Every year St. Barts runs a series of classes in basic faith matters for the confirmation candidates. Classes are held every week for 13 weeks leading up to the confirmation service in November, and are based on the Emmaus training materials.

We also have a bible study and book group which runs several meetings and courses each year. Its activities are open to all adults whatever your current level of knowledge - watch out for the programme on our Study page.

The Wider Church

Finally we are introducing a new section on The Wider Church. This will explain and give links to Deanery Synod, The Diocese and General Synod as well as introducing Churches Together. Explore further using the navigation links on the left as they pop up!

Return from New to Church to St. Barts Home Page.

Call the Rev Stephen Edmonds on 020 8676 8925