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Our services are conducted according to the Book of Common Prayer, with readings from the King James Version of the Bible, and music enhanced by our professional choir. In our services, our attention to God’s word, and in our communal life together we hope to be drawn deeper into the heart and mind of Jesus Christ.
Whether you are new, with us every week, or if you can only come from time to time, we look forward to welcoming you through our doors soon.
Our services follow the pattern of the Book of Common Prayer 1662.
We hope that all of our services will give worshippers a chance to encounter the divine, to find rest for their souls, and know that peace of God which passes all understanding.
Click here to see This Week’s Services and here for Regular Service Times.
Family Service
Every Sunday at 10.00am except during the month of August. The service starts lasts just half an hour.
It is relaxed and full of fun and chatter – no baby is too young and no child is too old as older children (11 +) enjoy being an extra pair of hands and helping with the play.
- We begin with the Choristers singing an anthem; there is a Bible Reading from our Children’s Bible (read by one of the children); we say the Creed, followed by short prayers and then the reading is acted out and the Vicar sums up the story.
- There is great emphasis on dressing up and even the tiniest child can toddle along and take part.
- Listen carefully and you might win a chocolate if you give a correct answer to one of the questions at the end of the play.
- We sing three hymns from our own Chelsea Old Church Children’s Hymnbook and the children can even take up the collection if they want to.
Children will be interested in the yearly Animal Service
More details at the bottom of the page
Parish Communion
Parish Communion is held at 11.00am on the first Sunday of every month and replaces Mattins.
A full communion service with sermon, hymns and a setting and anthems sung by the choir.
Holy Communion
Every Thursday & Sunday at 8:00am
This is centred around the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, which Jesus instituted the night before he died, giving bread and wine to the disciples saying ‘Take, eat; this is my Body which is given for you: Do this in remembrance of me.’ And likewise with the cup to drink it in remembrance of him. It is a said service with no hymns or choir and lasts about half an hour. There is a short sermon on Sundays.
What does this image say?
The Order for Holy Communion at Chelsea Old Church
A hymn may be sung
The Lord’s Prayer p.237
The Collect for Purity
The Ten Commandments p.237
Or Summary of the Law (response p.237)
The Kyrie may be sung
The Collect for the Sovereign p.239
The Collect for the Day
The Epistle
A hymn may be sung
The Gospel
The Creed p.240
Here there may be a Sermon
Mattins
Every Sunday at 11:00am
Mattins* is made up of hymns, psalms, canticles and readings with a sermon.
except for the first Sunday of the month when there is Parish Communion.
The Service is sung by the congregation and choir, with readings, prayers, anthems and a sermon.
It lasts just under an hour.
What does this image say?
The Order for Mattins at Chelsea Old Church
An Introit may be sung by the choir
The Opening Hymn
The Confession p.2
The Lord’s Prayer p.4
The Preces p.4
The Shorter Venite (verses 1-7) p.5
The Psalm (see Hymn Board)
The First Lesson
The Te Deum p.6
The Second Lesson
The Benedictus/Jubilate (pp.10/11)
The Creed p.11
Lesser Litany, Lord’s Prayer, and Responses p.12
The Collect of the Day
The Second and Third Collects p.13
An Anthem may be sung by the choir
The Prayers
The Hymn before the Sermon
The Sermon
The Offertory Hymn
Blessing
Evensong
Every Sunday at 6:00pm
Like Mattins but it’s a quieter more reflective service and a great way to reset before the week ahead
What does this image say?
The Order for Evensong at Chelsea Old Church
An Introit may be sung
The Opening Hymn
The Confession p.17
The Lord’s Prayer p.19
The Preces p.19
The Psalm (see Hymn Board)
The First Lesson
The Magnificat p.19
The Second Lesson
The Nunc Dimmitis (p.21)
The Creed p.22
Lesser Litany, Lord’s Prayer, and Responses p.23
The Collect of the Day
The Second and Third Collects p.24
An Anthem may be sung
The Prayers
The Hymn before the Sermon
The Sermon
The Offertory Hymn
Blessing
* Mattins comes from the Middle English: from Old French matines, plural (influenced by Church Latin matutinae ‘morning prayers’) of matin ‘morning’, from Latin matutinum, neuter of matutinus ‘early in the morning’, from Matuta, the name of the dawn goddess
Animal Services
Once a year we have an Animal Service and the children bring their pets (real or of a cuddly variety – from stick insects to hamsters, tortoises, dogs and cats).
On Palm Sunday, we even have two donkeys who parade into church with a child on their backs.
