Pastorates
From the earliest days of the church, Christians have met together in each others homes to share fellowship and grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. In a larger church like St James these groups are the main way of becoming connected and feeling a part of the church.
Pastorates are groups of 20-30 people who meet fortnightly for food, fellowship, teaching, worship and prayer. They usually meet in the home of one of the pastorate members. And different members of the group play their part in hospitality, worship leading, teaching and so on. A typical pastorate evening looks like this:
7.30pm |
Food |
Each pastorate is then divided into 2-3 small groups, with their own leaders, which meet on the in-between weeks. These smaller groups provide the opportunity for deeper intimacy and accountability.
The life of a pastorate extends beyond the midweek meeting as members become involved in one another’s lives and look for opportunities to collectively reach out to their friends and local community.
The groups exist to grow and are very open and welcoming to new members. Because of their relative size it is easy to go and visit and try out one or two pastorates, perhaps more so than a smaller group. When a pastorate grows beyond 30 or so they will multiply and become two, or three, new pastorates.
In a diverse church like St James there is plenty of variety across the groups in terms of size, style and focus, so there is sure to be one where you would feel at home. If you would like to join a pastorate, contact Joel Payne joel.payne@st-james.org.uk 020 8883 6277.