Welcome to Wokingham Methodist Church

We are now part of the Blackwater Valley Methodist Circuit, formed by the merger of our previous circuit, the Berkshire Surrey Borders Circuit, with the circuit to the south of us, the Hants-Surrey Border Circuit, effective from 1 September 2025.

Our previous minister, Revd Catherine Bowstead, has retired.  We welcome her replacement Rev Wes Hampton, from 1 September 2025.

Starting on Sunday 21^st September, evening service (with Holy Communion) will resume on the third Sunday of each month at the new time of 6.15 pm (new time chosen so you can park in the Rose Street car park without having to pay both an afternoon fee and an evening fee).

We now aim to open Little Fishes every Thursday throughout the year when Café Mosaic is open - including school holidays, but not Christmas/New Year.

Future worship and recorded services are on this page.

10.30am Morning Worship - Mr Stephen Clay

 6.15pm Holy Communion - Rev Wes Hampton

from Rev Wes Hampton

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is held annually from 18 to 25 January, and I am delighted that this year, through Churches Together in Wokingham, there are opportunities for Christians across the town to come together to pray.  Details of when and where can be found above (starting at this church on Monday morning).

This year, churches in Armenia have chosen “One Body, One Spirit” as our theme, taking the words from Ephesians 4:4.  The importance of the unity which this verse speaks of is especially relevant to a people who have suffered dispersal from their homeland and ethnic cleansing.  Today there are many more Armenian people living outside of Armenia than within the country.  Consequently, Armenian people see at first hand other conflicts as well as the troubles of their own country: Armenians can be found in both Russia and Ukraine, and across the Middle East.

It is right for us to hear the challenge of such a people to exhibit the unity for which Jesus prayed.  It is easy for churches to let each other get on with whatever it is that the other is doing, without any sense that we are part of a whole.  Yet we know that this is not what a body should be like.  Our Methodist system of a connexion of churches, circuits, and districts, is intended to emphasise the unity of the body of Christ, as part of which no church is truly ‘independent’.

This year, I do hope that you will take extra time to pray for the unity of Christ’s Church.  If you do so on your own, that is great; if you can do so with others, so much the better.  If you wish to use the themes that others around the world will be using this week, you can find more information on the Churches Together in Britain and Ireland website - https://ctbi.org.uk/resources/week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2026/  And if you aren’t sure where it is, do find Armenia on a map!

Wes

A Reflection from Malcolm Ray-Smith

People watching - the heart of the matter

Over recent months I have had several visits to our dentist and doctors’ surgeries or hospital which involved periods of waiting and I enjoyed the opportunity to watch the other people there.  Many folk smile but some are obviously in discomfort or pain.  A few seem keen to chat but most of us keep our thoughts to ourselves.  Some arrive at the last moment and anxiously wait to ‘check in’ while most have allowed more time than they needed to be ‘in good time’.  Many patients arrive alone but a few carry a baby or encourage an older child to make use of the rocking horse to amuse them while they wait.  Others bring a spouse or a friend as their driver and to hear what is advised.

Conan Doyle, in the guise of Sherlock Holmes, took delight in using his observation skills to perceive information about strangers that he met.  Other authors have also gained insights into the occupation or lifestyle of characters they introduce to us in short stories or novels.  People watching can be very informative – but can also result in our “judging a book by its cover”.  Sometimes we can jump to very wrong assumptions about those we meet casually.

When Samual looked for a suitable candidate to be King to replace Saul, he went to Bethlehem where he met each of the sons of Jesse, when the Lord said “Do not consider his appearance or his height . . . man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart”.  Our character matters to God. (1 Samuel 16)

Smart clothes or super hairdressing may impress us, but it is far more important to discern who is truly trustworthy.  We need to have a genuine care for all the folk we meet.

Some previous Pastoral Letters are available here.