St. Denys, Rotherfield
Sussex is a beautiful county with some interesting churches that are well worth a visit. St. Denys is one of them. It is hard to imagine the village of Rotherfield being a hub of industry but there was much iron making here until the Industrial Revolution introduced new processes. This in part accounts for the magnificence of the church. In the churchyard is an ancient yew, well propped, which might well predate the church behind it!
The church is open and there is a simple ‘welcome’ notice outside, although a mention of this on the church notice board would be a good idea.
One thing I did like was clear instructions as to how to put some lights on – a simple idea but which greatly enhances both the welcome and the visitor experience. I show a picture here-
There is a good selection of leaflets available and some post cards as well as the ‘Word 4 today’ which give simple Bible studies. There is a welcome leaflet which is well produced with a bit of history and a plan to guide visitors. Also a selection of leaflets from ‘Reform’ which are the first I have seen in any church I have visited. The visitors book only had only entry for February so far – but it is a quiet month.
There is a children’s area as well as some ‘quiet bags’ – simple cloth bags with toys etc in. The church is beautifully maintained and spotlessly clean. Candles can be lit at a votive stand.
There is a website at http://www.stdenysrotherfield.org.uk this gives details of how tours of the church can be arranged but doesn’t state that the church is open for visitors.
All in all, I rate St. Denys as very good for the purposes of this study.
St. Edmund’s, Maids Moreton
A wonderful church which I found open. The outer door is left open. There are no signs at all outside! Inside I found a guide and there are some books and toys for children. This is a very well cared for church. The church website is at http://www.northbucksparish.org.uk. This has no visitor information but does give the story of the 2 maids from the which the name of the village is said to derive. Also the burial registers from 1893 – 2012. There is a plaque on the nave wall.
There is quite a story to tell here – there is a guide book available. The church is very well looked after and obviously loved. A knitted crib set was displayed at the front.
There is a sign for prayer requests but there didn’t seem to be anywhere to leave them!
I rate this church as OK for this study – a lot more could be done here and it is a lovely place to visit.
St. Peter & St. Paul, Buckingham
Buckingham is a thriving small town and there seems to be new building in many places there. The church stands high up above the town on the site of a castle and it is open every day. The church website is at http://www.buckinghamparishchurch.org.uk – this shows plenty going on but there is no visitor information although there is a page on the church’s history.
The signs outside give details of the services and clergy. There is a good welcome in the porch and a sign which says that the church is open.
Inside there is a guide and some ‘bats’ to carry around as well as a guide about the windows. Also a welcome leaflet and a welcome leaflet. The church was undergoing some building work at the time of my visit which restricted access a bit. There is a toilet here as well and the church was nice and warm as there had been a children’s club, ‘The Ark’ on in the morning. There is a votive stand to use and a prayer request board and some prayer resources to get people started.
The church is keen to reach out to the local community in many ways and there is even a free lunch on offer on Tuesdays.
The visitors book shows 8 visitors in the last 2 months. I rate St. Peter & St. Paul’s as good for this study.
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Leckhampstead
This church is in a lovely setting beside the river Leck. It is locked but a sign in the porch says where a key can be obtained at a nearby cottage. The lady there was very happy to give me the key and explained how to get in and the lights as well.
The church website can be found at http://www.northbucksparish.org.uk this does say that the church is open on mid summer Sundays but doesn’t mention how to get the key.
There are no signs outside at all but a prayer on an old poster in the porch – this wasn’t easy to photograph but I tried my best.
Inside I found a guide book but at £5 it is expensive for what it is. There wasn’t anything else. The visitors book showed only 3 entries for the whole of 2014! There are some cloth bags for different age groups around.
This is an interesting church to visit with quite a bit to see. There are carving and paintings on the pillars and a lovely reredos which dates from 1899 and is in memory of The Revd Heneege Drummond who was Rector here from 1835 – 1881.
From the point of view of this study I rate this church as poor for the visitor but it is well worth a visit. There are stories to tell here and these need telling. I am surprised that the church isn’t open every day because of where it is. Somewhere to leave prayer requests would be good and so on. Go and have a look and see what you think.
All Saints. Nash
All Saints sits in the middle of the village. John Betjeman writes about this church; ‘Street, 1851’ that’s it!
The church isn’t open although there is a comprehensive list of phone numbers in the porch so it should be possible to get hold of a key. Also a display entitled ‘Snapshot of All Saints Church Life’ with pictures of various events.
There doesn’t appear to be a website but there is a short entry on achurchnearyou. I have to rate All Saints as poor for the purposes of this study. A bit of wasted opportunity given the position of the church.
St. Mary & St. Giles, Stony Stratford
January isn’t often an auspicious time of year to visit churches but the opportunity arose to have a trip out so here are a few.
St. Mary and St. Giles sits in the middle of this town on the outskirts of Milton Keynes. It is a pleasant place with a sense of history. The church is open every day and an A board outside announces this fact to passers by. A lot of thought has gone into visitors here. There is a good welcome notice in the entrance porch.
Inside there was a friendly steward who spoke very warmly of the church and pointed out things of interest. There were some good leaflets – a welcome one, a chantry roll to request prayer for those who have died, a baptism leaflet and a monthly intercession one in which the parish’s roads and people are prayed for. Too few places do this – I have come across only a handful in all the churches I have visited. There was also a locally produced booklet ‘this prevailing presence’ which is a booklet of prayers for use before and after the celebration of the Mass. That also tells you what sort of parish this is. The church is a member of Forward in Faith.
Two votive stands are available to use and there is a prayer request board as well. One thing that sets St. Mary & St. Giles apart is the interpretation boards around the church. They are on features such as the pulpit and Blessed Sacrament Chapel. They are very good and it is good to see this as we cannot assume that visitors know what church furniture etc. is for.
The weekly news sheet caught my eye as well. It is very well produced and even features a whole page on ‘The First Apologia of St. Justin Martyr’ – this congregation is very well taught!
There is a trail display board outside the church as well. The church website is at parishstonystratfordcalverton.com and this clearly says that the church is open every day. I enjoyed my visit to this church and I rate it as very good – go and have a look!
St. Alban’s. Holborn
This is a famous church – an Anglo Catholic shrine hidden behind the Prudential headquarters. It is not easy to get a good picture of the exterior but there is one here – the best I could do.
The entrance to the church is through a gateway. The notice board proudly tells all comers that the church is open every day. Opposite the entrance is a wonderful sculpture – ‘Jesus raised from the Dead’ by Hans Feibusch and was installed in 1985. There is a small enclosed garden which is itself a quiet haven from the rush of the world around.
Inside the church proper, there is a dimly lit chapel on the right hand side – the Mackonochie Chapel which contains the effigy of Fr Alexander Mackonochie who was the first vicar here who promoted the Catholic strand of the Anglican Church. This was unfortunately locked. On the other side a door opens into the church itself. The interior is stunning as the East end is dominated by a 60 foot high mural, ‘Trinity in Glory’ by Hans Feibusch again. It is wonderful and repays careful study.
There is an atmosphere of peace and prayerful silence here. The church seems far removed from the bustle of the great city that surrounds it. Several visitors came in whilst I was there and all of them sat quietly on this magnificent place.
There is no visitors book but there is a free colour leaflet ‘A Walk Around S. Alban the Martyr Holborn’ which is well done. Also there is a welcome ‘Information Brochure’. There are several votive stands to use here but no where to leave prayer requests. The church also features several confessionals. There is a small children’s area to use with toys and books.
The church website is at http://www.stalbansholborn.org but this gives no visitor information. St. Alban’s is a church well worth visiting. Apparently the music here is the best of any church in London.
I rate it is OK + for this study. Somewhere to leave prayer requests and a bit more thought into ministering to visitors would make this ‘very good’. St. Alban’s is a church well worth seeking out.
Holy Cross & St. Mary, Quainton
Quainton is a delightful village famous for the Bucks Railway Centre. This church is a part of the same team ministry as Dunton and is closed as well! In this case there is no indication either on the notice board or elsewhere when the church might be open. The website at http://schorneteam.co.uk/quainton/index.php doesn’t give any visitor information (and not much else either). Given that this church has houses around it it surely must be possible for there to at least a key holder nearby? I have to rate this as very poor and is a wasted opportunity. There really seems no point in a locked church.
St. Martin’s, Dunton, Bucks
This is a delightful small church. It is locked but there is a list of key holders to contact in the porch, Time was pressing so I didn’t try these out. This is definitely a church to go back to sometime as it looks well worth a visit. The website is at http://schorneteam.co.uk/dunton/ – this doesn’t give any visitor info.
I haven’t rated this at this time.
St. Michael & All Angels, Stewkley
This church features in 1000 best churches and with good reason. It has an unaltered Norman interior and is open every day. The signboard outside doesn’t say that the church is open. There isn’t a website but a presence on achurchnearyou which has no visitor information on it.
Inside I found a guide – cheap at 50p, and some place mats of the church, postcards and a free Old Testament history book. Something I have not seen anywhere else. 11 people had signed the visitors book for October. There is a good World War 1 display with some booklets on those who died, produced by the local history society. There are some clearly marked time switches to enable visitors to put on the lights.
There is a prayer tree but there didn’t seem to be any ‘leaves’ to add to it – perhaps this was a legacy of a Family Service? There was an open Bible.
I rate this lovely church as OK+ for this study
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