As an open and inclusive church we believe that every person is loved by God and can play a full part in life of the church and its leadership at all levels. We have a long tradition of affirming women in ordained ministry.
We are an open-minded community of faith, and our life together is centred on the main Sunday Eucharist at 10am. The church itself is light and spacious, and our worship is enhanced by a superb choir of both adults and children. Children and young people are very much part of our church family, and we have a thriving Junior Church (Sunday School) and youth group. But we are not just a church for the young. As an inclusive Christian community we welcome everyone regardless of gender, age, social background, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability and our congregation includes retired people, the middle-aged, those who are single and those in relationships, pensioners, skilled professionals and those without work. We celebrate our diversity and are keen to help newcomers feel part of our church family. We value both traditional and modern hymns, thoughtful preaching and the resources of Common Worship, the Church of England’s most recent service books.
The Church of England is divided into 42 Dioceses, which are specific geographical areas, often matching county boundaries, and each Diocese is led by a Bishop. A Diocese is divided further into deaneries, and then parishes. You can find our more about how the Church of England works by clicking HERE. St Paul’s is in the Diocese and Deanery of Chichester and our Bishop, the Bishop of Chichester is the Right Rev’d Dr Martin Warner, who is supported in West Sussex by the Bishop of Horsham, the Right Rev’d Ruth Bushyager. Like all Church of England parish churches, we are also a charity, whose trustees meet together as a Parochial Church Council, or PCC. The PCC is chaired by our Rector, supported by two elected Churchwardens and our trustees are a group of parishioners, who serve initially for a 3 year term, and are elected at our AGM, known as our Annual Parochial Church Meeting . The PCC is responsible for supporting the church’s mission, managing the parish’s financial affairs and buildings, and assisting the clergy with church business. The PCC works together with the clergy, our employed staff, and other volunteers to run our church.
St Paul’s is part of a united benefice with St Peter’s Westhampnett – this simply means we remain separate parishes, but we share a Rector and we work together as much as we can. To find out more about St. Peter’s click HERE