St John the Evangelist, Great Sutton
About
St John’s is the parish church for the people of Great Sutton, Ellesmere Port and has been a constant presence for generations of this place; being a witness and proclaiming the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ since 1879.
St John’s offers an open, welcoming space for all people. A place where people of faith, no faith, or those who are looking for answers can come and hear the gospel of Christ through the words of Holy Scripture; concise, intelligent preaching which seeks to relate God’s wisdom to our everyday life; and dignified yet approachable liturgy and services. You can find out more about what we believe here.
The main acts of worship at St John’s are centred around the Eucharist, or Holy Communion. In obedience to Jesus’ command to ‘Do this in remembrance of me’, we break bread and share wine, trusting that through this action Christ is present with us.
The services encourage us to offer our best to God and point to the beauty of God. The priest will wear special vestments and there will be the singing of hymns as we praise God together. Silence is also an important part of our worship, as we seek to listen to God and reflect on the love and forgiveness of God revealed to us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The church is also a place where life is marked, from rejoicing at the beginning of life through baptism (Christening), celebrating love at marriage, and mourning and giving thanks for a life at its end at a funeral service. St John’s wishes to minister to people at these key moments of their lives and invites people to contact us for these services.
There are other special services throughout the year, including Holy Week (the week before Easter as we follow Jesus to his crucifixion), Nine Lessons and Carols, and a very popular Crib Service in which our youngsters dress up as characters from the Christmas story. In November our focus is on remembering. At All Souls’ we have services to remember those who have died in the past twelve months. Then on Remembrance Sunday the community and uniformed organizations gather to remember those who died in conflict.
There are other weekly and monthly events and groups to provide fellowship and further opportunities to explore Christianity and your place within it. Everybody is welcome.
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Safeguarding
At St John’s we work hard to maintain a safe environment for all.
We are committed to implementing the House of Bishops’ safeguarding policies and good practice guidance.
If you have any concerns or enquiries regarding safeguarding, please contact our safeguarding officer.
Parish Safeguarding Officer
Diane Smith
safeguardingstjohnsgreatsutton@hotmail.com
The Diocesan Safeguarding Team can be contacted at safeguarding@chester.anglican.org or on 01928 643442
Out of Hours Support
The Diocese of Chester partners with thirtyone:eight and you can access their Safeguarding Helpline if the Diocesan Safeguarding Team is unavailable.
Thirtyone:eight can be contacted on 0303 003 1111.
This also includes any safeguarding queries outside of office hours on weekdays and weekends. An Information Sharing Agreement between the two organisations will allow the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser to receive a copy of the advice thirtyone:eight may offer the caller.
In the case of an emergency
If you have immediate concerns about the safety of someone, please contact the police and your local authority Children or Adults Service.
Helplines
Child-line: 0800 1111 (lines free and open 24 hours).
Parent Line: 0808 800 2222
National Domestic Violence Helpline: 0808 2000 247 (lines free and open 24 hours).
Samaritans Helpline: 116 123 (open 24 hours).
Action on Elder Abuse Helpline: 080 8808 8141 (freephone Monday to Friday 9-5pm)