Haywood Village Church isn't your traditional church, with the setting being a more contemporary style and based around an informal monthly café with Church being based around what you do not where you are. People sit around tables and young children are more than welcome. There is also a mid-week group called Rooted that meets around a meal for Bible reading, prayer and socialising.
Community Pastor Fiona Mayne said "When Covid hit, as with many Churches not only in Weston but nationally, we had to get creative and think outside the box. Church has never been about the building anyway. Early Christians met in each other’s homes, shared meals and did life together and there was a real sense of community. Here at Haywood Village the Covid situation has really brought out a sense of community too, and we have all been forced to hit a pause button and reassess what is important and take a bit more time to contemplate life"
During Covid, the church moved services online and met via Zoom to stay connected. When household bubbles weren't restricted they moved services around the village, with groups of six people being at different locations and then everyone rotated.
The church also met up in groups of two and walked around the village praying together. But community work was always at the forefront of their agenda, with them offering to shop for people, collect prescriptions and walk dogs, as well as running a satellite foodbank. The church also started youth work in September 2020 in the parks, socially distanced, and hope to resume that again once the lockdown ends.
Fiona Mayne said "We are now looking forward to Christmas and although 2020 has been a bleak year Christmas definitely isn’t cancelled and we have a sense of excitement about advent"
The church usually holds a Christingle service at Haywood Village Academy, but this year they are holding a Christingle trail around the village on Sunday 20th December from 3pm instead.
People can book a slot and collect a free Christingle pack and follow a trail around
the village looking at advent windows and following the nativity story. People can then make their own Christingle whilst watching a video link that the church has made and post pictures of their finished ones on the Haywood Village Church Facebook page.
The church is also inviting people in Haywood Village to make their own advent ‘stained glass’ windows by 1st December on any Christmas them for them to be entered into a competition and added to the trail.
Fiona Mayne adds "Many Churches in Weston and nationally are offering creative alternatives to the usual Christmas services, in fact research has shown that more people are accessing Church due to the online presence and this is something positive that has come out of the pandemic with many Churches planning on continuing with live streaming even when things return to ‘normal.’"
For information about Christmas events and services and to book onto the Christingle trail check out our websites: www.haywoodvillagechurch.org
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