Events at St Giles

Open Church Every Tuesday 2pm to 5pm

Come and join us for a cuppa, piece of cake and a chat.  Everyone Welcome!

WHOSE CHURCH IS IT ANYWAY?

Well, it’s ours of course. That is, the people who live in South Mimms, and our friends and visitors. It is there for us when we wish to express our love, as in Marriage, or for our children, as in Baptism, or to comfort our friends and family at Funerals. God is love, and St. Giles is where we express that love in the real world.

It provides warm company on Tuesday afternoons at Open Church Teas. It provides a meeting place and entertainment at concerts. It is also part of our national heritage, being given Grade One status, and included in Simon Jenkins’ book England’s 1,000 Best Churches, so people come from far and wide to visit. Also its churchyard is where local people are buried, of all sects and of no religion, just because they live here. People passing through the churchyard rest and are refreshed by its peace.

But the fact is that not as many make use of it as they did 30 years ago, when on Sundays over 60, adults and children, would come to its Sunday services. We all understand that lives are different now. People’s lives are nonstop and that includes a Sunday morning when, in the past, a visit to church would have been the norm. Today, the church is kept going by fewer and older people. However, going to a service isn’t the only way we can support our church although everyone is welcome to join us for any of the services at St Giles. You can also help by donating just a small amount of time to assist with a number of “jobs” that go on behind the scenes - cleaning the church, polishing the brass, tidying the graveyard or arranging the flowers particularly for major celebrations.

Of course, we are always grateful for donations to the church however small or large, and however often you can afford it, whether it be on a regular basis or once a year. Costs have risen a lot recently (as have everyone’s), in particular heating costs. And as a historic church, maintenance can be seriously expensive.

Have you thought what South Mymms would be like without the church? St Giles has been the church in our village since the 12th century but there is a real possibility that, in the future, we may no longer have access to a church on our doorstep. The question is, “Do we care” enough to keep the church, to help keep it running and prevent us from losing a centre point to our village?

Please remember that the church isn’t just for Christmas and is here for your village 365 days a year. Do we care enough to keep it?