This is the vision of the Diocese of Niagara for this diocese and for St. George’s in the area of Life Changing Worship:

Worship and liturgy is, not surprisingly, very central to our ministry at St. George’s. We are constantly striving to worship God in Christ and to make a difference in the lives of all who participate in that worship. At each and every service we offer, we hope people’s lives will be changed, just as our Diocesan Vision intends.

At St. George’s we have worked hard to provide plenty of opportunities for people to worship in a style they are comfortable with. There are scheduled services on Sunday mornings, Wednesday evenings, Thursday mornings, and Friday mornings. We worship in styles ranging from very traditional at 8 am on Sunday Mornings to very contemporary at 11:15 am later that morning. St. George’s has services that meet the needs of seniors two Friday’s a month at the Bennett Health Centre and the needs of our community’s busy families at 5 pm on the second Wednesday of every month at Messy Church in our parish hall (complete with dinner!).

Worship at our 11:15 am service was transformed in 2007 from the traditional service found in our “Book of Alternative Services” to a liturgy that follows a similar order, but which is not found in any official service book and with music drawn from the contemporary Christian music scene. The words of service and music are followed on two big screens in church and music is lead by a music team with guitar, piano, flute, bass, and sometimes drums. Children are welcomed. They can choose to stay with their families or be part of our Church school or nursery. The contemporary style has allowed us to more freely make changes and try new things in our desire to change the lives of those who worship with us.

In 2007, began the first Messy Church service in North American. Messy Church is a ministry that started in the UK as part of the “Fresh Expressions” movement. It is a ministry and service that has helped St. George’s reach out to families with young children in our community. We have a whole page dedicated to this ministry on this site and you can read more about it and it’s UK parent there. Many of the families of Messy Church have been part of our baptismal ministry and it’s follow up ministry called “First Steps”. This ministry was put together and is ministered by The Rev’d Nancy Rowe, our associate priest.

“First Steps” Ministry

“First Steps” began in 2007 by The Rev’d Nancy Rowe, who was then still a student doing her intern placement at St. George’s. What makes “First Steps” part of our “life changing worship” here at St. George’s is the important monthly influence of Nancy’s phone call, letter, and “Splash!” pages. Her continued contact reinforces the promises we made as a congregation to support them and their child in their life in Christ. The “Splash!” pages are a great resource for age-appropriate and parent target spiritual development activities and reflections.

Although the worship done in senior’s residences and in private residences are nothing new, they are often a place where life changing worship is found. St. George’s clergy and a team of volunteers have been gathering together with many residents of the Bennett Centre for many years, but every service provides opportunities for Christ to touch the lives of all involved. Home communions are also a regular part of the worship at St. George’s and they give the sick and shut-in of our parish an important opportunity to worship God and receive God’s grace through the sacrament when they need it most.