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THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH of ST MARY the VIRGIN the University Church of St Mary the Virgin THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN The University Church of St Mary the Virgin Parish Profile September 2016 THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN St Mary’s Welcome We are a vibrant and inclusive church in the centre of Oxford with strong links to the University. At St Mary’s we seek to nurture each other’s search for religious meaning, to foster a sense of friendship and community within the church, and to reach out to those outside the church in the city, in the University, and beyond. St Mary’s ethos is inspired by the motto of St Anselm, ‘Faith seeking understanding’. We aspire to show how Jesus’ message of divine love and charity to all people can be relevant and transformative in the modern world. We believe that God calls us to be active, critical and faithful disciples, inspired and enabled by the Christian message to live in love and joy. Situated at the heart of an historic city, where people from the University, city and far beyond come together, St Mary’s connects the spiritual and civic, sacred and secular. We strive to be a place of intelligent, critical Christianity, unafraid to engage with the modern world. We want to continue to offer those who are within and without the church a place where they can deepen their spirituality and their sense of the divine presence. And we want to do so from a confident, joyful Christian We are a vibrant perspective, anchored in the historic catholic faith. and inclusive We seek a Vicar who can inspire us, and who can church in the deepen our relationships with God, each other and centre of Oxford our wider community through challenging preaching, generous leadership and wise direction. We look forward with strong links to to working with him or her to develop the distinctive spirit the University. of St Mary’s, in the service of our city and our world. 2 THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN Our services Our central service is the Parish Eucharist at 10.30am on Sundays, with “In Oxford, St Common Worship liturgy and an auditioned choir; people come from across the city, and well beyond, to participate in our distinctive mix Mary’s is unique of traditional worship and cutting-edge theological reflection. Average Sunday attendance is about 150 people: a mix of regular parishioners, in its mixture of occasional worshippers, and those who are in Oxford for short periods traditional liturgy of time including undergraduate and graduate students. Twice a term there is a University Sermon, attended by representatives of the and openness to University, and on the first Sunday of each month there is a Family Service at 9.30am. all.” What draws people to St Mary’s is the theological emphasis on God’s love and generosity to all people, the spiritual space people find here to develop their own ideas and perspectives, and the high-quality preaching. The services are about an hour long, followed by coffee, and sometimes lunch in the Old Library above the church. The sermon is widely regarded as one of the highlights of the service, and the congregation has come to expect sermons which will inspire and challenge them. Most sermons are, of course, given by Christian clergy, especially our own Vicar and Associate Priests, but the church also invites preachers and speakers from very diverse backgrounds to come and talk about their own sense of purpose and meaning, sometimes in a University Sermon; recent examples include the prizewinning novelist Howard Jacobsen, Sandy Nairne (former Director of the National Portrait Gallery) and the former Bishop of Edinburgh, Richard Holloway. THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN The high standards in the pulpit are matched by the excellence of the choir, which sings an anthem and the principal movements of the mass during the University terms. Many of the choir members also sing semi- professionally, and together they are recognised as one of the best mixed-voice ensembles in the city. We are fortunate to have a paid Director of Music and an Organist, both of whom are leading musicians in their own right, and who ensure a varied pattern of music each week in term. During vacations the congregation sings the Gloria and Agnus Dei, to our own mass setting by Geoffrey Webber. During the main Sunday Eucharist, children up to the age of 12 or so are welcome to go to Children’s Church in the Old Library upstairs. One of the children leads the short introductory liturgy, after which a parent introduces the theme of the day, which is often based on the day’s Gospel reading. Bible stories may also be told through Godly Play, and glue and glitter often make an appearance. Once a month there is a discussion group for teenagers, led by one of the parents. “A place where The Sunday congregation has been growing steadily in recent years and there is a strong sense of community. It includes people of all anyone seeking ages, from those who are retired to children who are part of young families. More unusually, the church also attracts men and women God can come in their 20s, 30s and 40s, who do not have children. For many of the congregation, the church is an important part of their social as well as and share in a their spiritual life, and it continues to be a place where friendships are questioning faith.” made and developed. On the first Sunday of each month the German Lutheran congregation holds a service in the afternoon. The first Lutheran service was held here in 1939, when the then Vicar welcomed some German Christians fleeing Nazi persecution, and the connection has continued ever since. THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN Church in the week The church organises a range of activities on weekdays, especially during the University terms. We have held discussion series on themes such as death, the self, sex and work, and these have attracted a range of people, not only from the congregation, and stimulated lively debate. The students hold a Bible study group each week in term, and two graduate students organise monthly meetings of ‘The Moot’, in which a speaker leads a conversation on a topic that matters to them. These have included issues in medical ethics, politics, history and psychology, and many have been led by members of the congregation. Outreach As Christians we want to help those in need, and we have found that “St Mary’s is the we are good at this when offered particular problems to solve. The congregation can be very generous when asked to contribute to a first church where specific cause; recently, for example, we provided the resources to furnish a flat for a family coming to Oxford from Syria. We are also I’ve experienced committed to the Interfaith Friendship Walk, set up by Charlotte Bannister-Parker in 2004 when she was Assistant Priest here. community.” We believe there’s more that we could do as a church to reach out to the local community and beyond, ideally on a more regular basis. We hope our new Vicar will help us to find new and creative ways to use our resources and the expertise and skills of our congregation in the service of others. We could be more active in working for social justice in a practical way, perhaps in the less affluent parts of Oxford. And we could do more to articulate clearly and persuasively 5 THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN the generous, outward-looking Christian faith we believe in. University links St Mary’s is the official church of the University and enjoys a strong relationship with the University and with Oriel College. The Vicar sits, ex officio, on the Committee for Select Preachers, which nominates the preachers of University Sermons, and St Mary’s also hosts memorial and thanksgiving services for the University. Almost every college has a chapel and a chaplain, but St Mary’s offers a space in which those chapel communities can come together in shared worship. On special occasions such as Ash Wednesday we are joined by two or three college choirs, and one of the highlights of our year is a combined Collegiate Evensong with a dozen or so college choirs – between them they fill almost the whole nave. There is scope to foster deeper connections with some of the college chapel communities, and to work with them to offer a vision of liberal Christianity which is attractive to students and young people. Heritage and education As the scene of some of the most dramatic events in the history of the Church of England, including the trial of Archbishop Cranmer, St Mary’s receives a large number of visitors each year. As part of a recent grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund we have been able to improve our welcome to those who come through our doors. We have developed our educational resources, both for tourists and for local people; and we currently fund an Education Officer who runs talks and workshops designed to open up some of our rich heritage – material, spiritual and literary – to the whole community. “The church brings students together for debates, discussion and friendship.” 6 THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN More than a church The work of St Mary’s is supported by our flourishing businesses, especially the tower and shop. Each year, we have around 600,000 visitors, of whom about 100,000 pay to climb the tower for the panoramic views from the top.
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