Prayer at St Mary's

Prayer is one of the most important ways we have to grow and nurture our faith. St Mary's is open 24/7 and you are welcome to come in any time to sit and pray quietly in this beautiful, peaceful place. We have prayer cards if you need help with what to say, and you can light a candle in memory of a loved one at the front of the church. See below for all the ways that prayer is taking place at St Mary's and how you can make a prayer request.

Advent Prayer Vigil

Periodically throughout the year we hold prayer vigils which are either day-long or lasting 24 hours.

Our next one is on Advent Sunday, 1st December, from 9.30am to 5.30pm, starting after our usual meditation and breakfast, and ending just before the Advent Service of Light. You can sign up for a half-hour or hour-long hour slot here, or email us at stmaryswelshnewton@gmail.com and we can let you know what slots are available and sign you up.

It's a beautiful opportunity to spend time in quiet contemplation. We provide refreshments and materials to help you focus (if you find that helpful). All are welcome to join in - you don't need any special expertise or experience - just a willingness to spend time quietly in the church. Some people have reported wonderful, powerful experiences during the vigils, and everyone says the time passes much more quickly than they would have expected.

We plan to hold more prayer vigils in 2025. The best way to find out about these is to sign up for our monthly email newsletter at the bottom of this page.

Christian meditation

On the first and third Sundays of each month we meet in the church at 8.30 am to sit quietly in the presence of God. We sit in silence for about 20 minutes before having breakfast with tea, coffee and croissants. All are very welcome to join in. You don't need any experience of prayer or meditation. We'll provide the breakfast!

Prayer service

On the fourth Sunday of every month we are holding an informal Prayer Service at 6pm, where we learn about prayer and spend time praying for our church, our community and each other. All welcome. If there's something you'd like us to include in our prayers, you can pop a prayer request in the box at the back of the church or can send a prayer request to stmaryswelshnewton@gmail.com

Prayer requests

We believe strongly that God answers prayers. He calls us to bring our worries, anxieties and burdens to Him. If there's anything you'd like us to pray about, there's a prayer request box at the back of the church, where you can put your requests (you don't need to give names if you want to remain anonymous). Alternatively you can email your prayer request to stmaryswelshnewton@gmail.com. We will treat your prayer requests with sensitivity and in confidence. Mark your request "Confidential" if you wish it to remain anonymous.

Benefice Prayer Group

The Wye Brooks Benefice have a weekly prayer meeting which meets at 7.30 pm on Tuesday evenings. At present the meeting is on zoom. For more information check the weekly benefice.

BENEFICE WEEKLY UPDATE >>