Praying and Worshipping

The Church seeks to respond to God’s love by taking up his invitation to worship him, be his friend, and eat with him. It exists not for its own sake, but for the world - Stanley Hauerwas

The Christian life is a response to God’s invitation made in creation, covenant and incarnation to share his life. In prayer and worship we come to the heart of God’s call to worship him, to be his friends, to eat with him.

Multi faith contexts raise a number of questions for Christian congregations. How can our worship witness, compellingly and sensitively, to that invitation. To what extent can people of different faiths join together in their offering of prayer and praise to their Creator. And what are the limits on the kinds of acts of worship appropriate for Anglican churches and other properties a parish may own.

Resources

Legal and practical guidelines are available online from the Church of England online here, and in addition two helpful publications are Multi-Faith Worship, produced by Church of England’s Inter-Faith Consultative Group, and Andrew Wingate’s Celebrating Difference, Staying Faithful. You may also wish to talk issues through with your Diocesan Advisers. Click here for their contact details.

Our blog contains news of current events and activities in this area.

Stories of Local Engagement

St Christopher’s Walworth (pdf)
Reflecting a variety of cultures in worship builds confidence to make links through cultures and between faiths

St James Alperton (pdf) Multi Cultural and Ethno Linguistic Congregations

London Inter Faith Centre (pdf) Creating a place for worship with inter faith relations in mind