God is at Work in a Variety of Churches in London
- Tom Faletti
- Jun 2
- 7 min read
These 3 churches have different missions, ranging from transformation and renewal to sanctuary. St. Paul’s Cathedral finds a way to be true to its mission amid the bustle of tourists.
I just returned from a 10-day trip to London where I visited several churches along with the normal tourist sites. I found that God is working through his people in a variety of denominations, in ways that sometimes surprised me.
St. Paul’s Cathedral in London (Anglican)
St. Paul's Cathedral is the seat of the Church of England’s Bishop of London. This massive structure with its majestic dome, constructed beginning in 1675 under the guidance of architect Christopher Wren in Renaissance and Baroque styles (after the Great Fire of 1666 destroyed the previous building and much of London), is not just a tourist destination.
The Cathedral’s mission statement says: “St Paul’s Cathedral seeks to enable people in all their diversity to encounter the transforming presence of God in Jesus Christ.” It goes on to say: “We are above all a living Christian church, inspired by the love of God in Jesus Christ to offer welcome, prayer and learning.” I saw clear evidence of this claim.
St. Paul’s Cathedral is a bustling place, with an average of around 5,000 visitors every day. It is noisy with conversation and the explanations of tour guides. Tourists must move slowly to make their way through the crowds. Yet every hour, on the hour, St. Paul’s Cathedral stops for a minute of prayer.
A minister comes over a loudspeaker that can be heard in every corner of the building and asks everyone to stop what they are doing for a minute. I was there for two of those hourly pauses. Each time, the minister did several things that reflected the mission of the church:
She read a short Scripture passage (for example, “as often as you did it to the least these”) or reflection.
She prayed for a specific intention, such as for the homeless or the busy workers in the city of London.
She said she was available for anyone who might like to ask a question or receive prayer.
She made it clear that everyone is welcome at St. Paul’s.
I have visited many churches over the years. Some ask visitors to be respectful of the fact that the church is a place of prayer. Many halt tourist activity when worship services are in progress. But never have I seen a church so effectively integrate the seemingly conflicting goals of tourism and worship. St, Paul’s did so in a way that honored and welcomed all its visitors while providing a visible demonstration that prayer is central to the church’s identity.
In this way, St. Paul’s Cathedral lived out its mission to help people “encounter the transforming presence of God in Jesus Christ.”
Their approach reminds me of Peter’s instruction: “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence” (1 Peter 3:15b-16a).
May we find ways to be so welcoming of people who may not share our faith and may not even expect that they are in a situation where they might encounter faith.
Christ Church London (Evangelical)
A friend of ours in London invited us to join her at her church service. She belongs to Christ Church London, an evangelical church in central London. The Sunday service is held in a conference room on the lower floor of a building that was once a settlement house, owned by an organization that promotes equality, education, and the arts. This church community was incredibly welcoming: half a dozen people greeted my wife and me before the service started.
Christ Church London proclaims its vision, or mission statement, in this way: “Our vision is to follow Jesus together, for the renewal of London. We believe that every part of life and society can experience the transforming power of the kingdom of Jesus.” It goes on to say, “The challenge for most of us is that there’s a gap between our present experience and what the Bible says is possible when we follow Jesus. To help bridge this gap, we want to build the church on three core values: Presence, Formation, and Mission.”
In the worship service, a few singers led a highly engaged congregation in singing a series of contemporary Christian worship songs, accompanied by a piano, guitar, and quiet percussion. The prayers were personal, informal, and heartfelt. The sermon, provided by a female member of the congregation, was filled with personal insights and connected the Scripture passage of the day with the church’s three core values of presence, formation, and mission.
The music made it easy to enter into the spirit of worship, get out of my internal bubble, and connect with the energy of a body of people who clearly want to serve Jesus.
It reminded me of the apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians where he encourages them to “be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father” (Eph. 5:18b-20, NABRE).
St. James Catholic Church
The Catholic Church of St. James draws its heritage from the time when Catholics were prohibited from practicing their faith. The king allowed ambassadors from Spain to build chapels so they could pray the Catholic Mass, and Catholics were able to find sanctuary there (literally and figuratively). The present church building, built after the ban on Catholics was lifted, is a massive, Gothic style edifice with soaring arches.
We went to the Sunday 7:00 p.m. Mass, which was sparsely attended, but the parish has 7 Masses every weekend and the priest assured me that attendance is high at the Sunday morning Masses. The parish appears to see itself in some ways as a haven from modernity. The parish website says of the parish: “It is a spiritual oasis for many people who come in for silent prayers and personal devotion. It serves the deep needs of those who desire to get away from the hurly burly of city life. On the other hand, the various parish liturgical services reflect the richness of catholic [sic] traditions and its pastoral orientation caters for all categories of people.”
The “richness of Catholic traditions” means this: The Sunday 10:30 a.m. Mass is a solemn Mass prayed in Latin, with a formal choir and organ, and the 9:00 a.m. “Extraordinary Form” Mass is prayed in Latin using the pre-Vatican II missal, which requires special authorization. In a further throwback to the past, communion was offered to people kneeling at a communion rail that stood between the congregation and the altar.
Overlapping practices
I was surprised to find practices that I thought were particular “Catholic” in use in the Anglican Church.
We attended what we thought was going to a choral music presentation at King’s College Chapel in Cambridge, only to discover that they were holding a special commemoration with an Anglican Mass. During the Mass, they used incense, which I did not expect to find outside the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
Several of the tourist destinations in and around London are actually Anglican churches, and they provided votive candles that people could light for prayer purposes. In some cases, the votive candle stands were set up in front of icons, including an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Christ Child.
In many of its practices, the Anglican Church is closer to the Catholic Church than I expected.
If we can’t be one, at least we can avoid attacking each other and allow God to do his transforming work
It was a blessing to see that, amidst the variety of churches in London, faith is still alive and God is still at work.
On the final night before his crucifixion, Jesus prayed for the believers who would come later “that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21-22, NRSV).
We are obviously not all one, so the world does not have an opportunity to believe in Jesus because of our unity. But at least we can try to avoid having our disunity become a reason for the world to dismiss us. I did not see any Christians attacking or disrespecting each other during my 10 days in London.
The mission statements of St. Paul’s Cathedral and Christ Church London talk about the “transforming” presence of God in Christ. We make it harder for the world to see that transforming power when we are at odds with each other.
St. Paul’s Cathedral deserves special recognition for putting its faith front and center in what otherwise might be treated as a secular tourist destination, and doing so in a way that is welcoming and respectful of all.
How can we be as intentional and explicit about our mission as followers of Christ, while being as welcoming and respectful of those who may not share our faith?
May we all find ways to pursue our missions while welcoming even those who share our belief in Jesus Christ but practice their faith in ways different from ours.
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