Christians here and everywhere worship Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
He gave himself at the Last Supper to be our spiritual food, sustaining us on the Way. The bread and wine offered in the Eucharist (commonly known as the Mass) are a sacrament: the outward, visible matter by which the inward, spiritual grace is given. Christ is present in, indeed is, the bread and wine: so it is treated with reverence.
Worship at our churches emphasises Christ’s glory: rich vestments are worn; the ceremony is that of a king. The incense we use sanctifies and purifies, and is itself a symbol of our prayers rising to Our Lord ascended on his throne. Along with the music and bells it also allows every sense to be involved in worship: sight; touch and taste when we take the Blessed Sacrament; hearing; and smell.
We are part of the Anglican church in the Church of England ministering to the people of parishes and in our locality. But we also recognise that we are part of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, with two thousand years of teaching and tradition to inform our worship and liturgy today. This is what is meant by the Catholic tradition : it’s not about praying for the Pope (although he needs it just like the rest of us!) but recognising we’re just a little part of the wider Church.
Our Lord said1, ‘Go, make disciples of all nations, baptising and teaching. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’. Not everyone can visit other nations in this work, so we try to do our bit by sending aid and money to help some of those who are in other lands to do the Lord’s work there. The Christian Church of whatever denomination surrounds the globe with the love of God, from the time of the disciples to the very end of time itself.
Christ is a loving Saviour, calling us to follow his Way to life. Even visiting a church just to find out what goes on is the first step on the road to heaven.
1. Matthew 28:19