Welcome to the website of St James, Bramley. We hope you will find it helpful and informative, and would be delighted to welcome you to come and worship God with us on a Sunday soon.
To find the church with a SatNav, use the postcode RG26 5DF
If you or someone you know is worried or anxious about something…
…you don’t have to cope on your own. At the church, we’d be glad to help in some way.
If you or someone you know is being abused or bullied or threatened, please do give us a call. Phone numbers and emails are on our safeguarding page: https://stjamesbramley.com/safeguarding/
We will do all we can to help.
This Week’s Services
These are our services next Sunday, 1st March, at our church in Bramley.
We’ll be continuing our sermon series in the Old Testament this week at our 9.00 and 10.30 services , looking at the life of King David in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel: we’re calling it “The Gospel According to David”.
08:00 Holy Communion – St James
09:00 Sunday@nine – Cross House
10:30 Matins (BCP) – St James
Please do come and join us!
There will also be a Holy Communion service at St James on Ash Wednesday 26th February at 10:30. If you are available, please come and join us.
Word for the Week
James’s letter began by challenging believers to accept – even with joy! – the sufferings that afflicted their lives, not out of some kind of masochism but because it would teach them perseverance, helping to bring them to Christian maturity. Now, as we approach the end of the letter, he returns to the topic – perhaps knowing that this is a difficult idea for anyone, even committed Christians, to accept.
Please read James 5:7-12 and reflect on your answers to the questions below.
| Monday | Are we waiting impatiently for Jesus’ return, as James’s first readers evidently were (vv. 7, 8)? Jesus has promised He willcome back (Matt. 24:26-44). | |
| Tuesday | The patience James calls for in vv. 7, 8, and 10 is best understood as steadfastness,not falling away when things are tough. What does that mean for you? | |
| Wednesday | In v. 7, James tells us we should be like the farmer, waiting patiently for the crops and for the “autumn and spring rains”. What does this tell us about the attitude we should have about things over which we have no control? | |
| Thursday | James puts his finger (v. 9) on the way that people can react when life is hard – by grumbling and complaining. It risks God’s judgement! See Numbers 14:1-12. | |
| Friday | Please read Job 1:13-22 and Job chapter 42. How should we apply this teaching to our own experiences of pain and suffering? | |
| Saturday | When Peter was accused of being one of Jesus’ disciples (Matt. 26:69-75), he denied it with oaths. How should we apply James’s teaching about swearing (v. 12)? |
A variety of worship styles – which one is for you?
On most Sundays, we have three morning services, each one reflecting a different style of worship – but all three committed to worshipping the same Lord and reflecting on His word, the Bible. Our aim is that the variety of styles will allow everyone to find an approach to worship that matches their own preference, so that they can glorify God in the way that suits them best.
8.00 Holy Communion: A quiet, reflective service without music. We always have a short (8-10 minutes) address on the Bible, following the same theme as the other two services.
9.00 Sunday@nine: An informal, lively and relaxed service which takes place over in Cross House, our church hall, with upbeat music led by a small band. Coffee/tea and breakfast pastries are served from 8.45 and throughout the service. Children and babies are welcome at all the services, but at this service we have activities for younger children (3-8 years) in the Shell Club and for older children (8 and up) in JAM (“Jesus and Me”). There are soft toys and cushions for tinies at the back of the hall. The sermon is always based on a Bible passage and is the same as that preached at 10.30.
10.30 Worship: A more structured Church of England morning service, using words from Common Worship or the Book of Common Prayer, and with more traditional hymns accompanied by our lovely organ. The sermon, as mentioned, is the same as that preached at 9.00, and focuses on a passage from the Bible. Children and babies are very welcome, but there is no particular provision for them at this service.
Other Services in our Benefice
Our parish of Bramley and Little London is part of a group of parishes known as a Benefice. We work together, sharing resources and helping one another out when needed, while also retaining our individual styles and preferences as we worship the living God.
These are the services in other churches in our Benefice next Sunday, 1st March:
- 10.00am – St Leonard’s Church, Sherfield on Loddon: Holy Communion
- 6:30pm – St Mary’s Church, Hartley Wespall: Evensong
