The Worship

Westminster-St. Paul’s welcomes you to worship, Sunday mornings at 10.30am.

As a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Canada, Westminster-St. Paul’s is a church in the Reformed Tradition, which seeks to nurture people toward the development of a life-transforming relationship with Jesus Christ.

Worship is understood as an encounter with God.  It includes a weekly sermon, whereby God’s Word in the Bible is interpreted for today, and the regular celebration of holy communion and baptism, whereby God’s Promises are applied to the People of Faith. 

The minister, the Rev. Karla Wübbenhorst, is the one regularly involved in the preaching and sacramental ministry at Westminster-St. Paul’s.  Worship includes songs of praise, in styles both ancient and modern, and a focusing on needs in our community and in the wider world, which needs are taken into the prayers of the People and into the Church’s programs of outreach.  

Currently the preaching is exploring the Gospel of Mark, the shortest of the four biblical books which chronicle the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

The communion service on Nov. 27^th  marks the Church’s entry into the season of Advent – a four-week period of expectation prior to the celebration of Christ’s coming at Christmas.

In 2006, both Christmas and New Year fall on a Sunday.  The church will gather on these days for its regular Sunday morning worship, but additionally will observe Christmas Eve with a special service at 7pm, which service will include a substantial contribution by the choir. 

It is hoped that the Sunday School will also take responsibility for a  substantial part of the worship on Sunday Dec. 18^th, by preparing a pageant. 

The Music 

The church uses the hymn-book of the Presbyterian Church in Canada (1998 edition), but has recently acquired a copyright license which will enable a wider selection of music to be used, and perhaps eventually for a book of the congregation’s own “favourites” to be compiled.   

The choir, under the direction of Carolyn Milke, consists of some 20 voices.  Singers are welcome in every section, as are singers who wish to augment the choir during the Advent and Christmas season. 

Choir rehearsals are Thursdays at 7.30 in the sanctuary.  Those wishing to join just for the Advent and Christmas season can join the rehearsal at 8.15 during the months of November and December.

Fellowship 

Those who worship with us often remark that Westminster-St. Paul’s is a friendly community with lots of opportunities for fellowship – especially fellowship involving food!  There is tea and coffee (or a cold drink in summer) following the service each week and on the first Sunday of the month a full-scale luncheon is provided through the food-donations of congregation. 

During November’s fellowship luncheon the congregation enjoyed a slide presentation from two members of the congregation, Nick and June Kaethler, who have recently returned from a couple of years of teaching English in China with China Education Exchange, a ministry of the Mennonite Central Committee.  It is hoped that during our fellowship luncheons from time to time we can hear from members or guests about the kinds of ministry they are involved in.  At December’s fellowship luncheon we will be joined by a representative of the Canadian Bible Society to tell us about the work of that organization.  

There are three groups in the congregation providing fellowship for women: the McGillivary Circle, which has an historic connection with the Women’s Missionary Society of the Presbyterian Church in Canada; this year they are studying the problem of HIV-AIDS in Africa, the Victoria Circle, who act in a sort of women’s auxiliary capacity, raising funds for special projects in the church through the fall bazaar and the sale of beef and turkey pies, and the Westminster Belles, whose purpose is more purely fellowship-related. 

Special Days is a ministry of Westminster-St. Paul’s aimed at our immediate community, which occupies the border-land between fellowship and outreach.  It runs on the third Wednesday of every month and provides a meal, a short Christian message, and a time of fellowship for many – mostly seniors – in our neighbourhood.

Prayer: 

Prayer is one of the things that Christian communities do:  “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (the Bible: Acts 2.42).  At Westminster-St. Paul’s there exists a prayer chain.  If anyone has a particular prayer request they can write this on the little cards found in each pew and put the card on the offering plate.  The card will be passed to the head of the prayer chain co-ordinators who will convey the request, by telephone, to the first “link” in the chain, who will, in turn, pass it on. 

Prayer requests are confidential and will remain active for a month.  Having dedicated “prayer-warriors” in a congregation does not mean that the rest of the congregation ceases to pray, but some in our midst excel at this ministry.  Often they are the house-bound and the elderly who are restricted as to the other forms of ministry they can exercise.