St Michael’s, Stoke Gifford is a lively, growing Anglican church on the northern edge of Bristol. We are a welcoming crowd of everyday people, living to make a difference by being a Christian heart at the centre of our communities. Everyone is welcome at St Michael’s.
We live to make a difference by Learning and Growing in our faith. We do this together. All of the ministries below are a reflection of the desire to learn and grow together. It’s the definition of Discipleship, and it’s central to our work through our small groups and courses, and in our commitment to prayer, care and sharing the resources we’ve been given.
We are called to share our faith in Jesus. The Church exists to spread the good news of Jesus’ love & life. We are committed to achieving this locally. We also make a difference well beyond our parish boundaries. We support and work with teams that fight poverty and spread the good news of Jesus locally, nationally and around the world.
Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. Our attitude should be the same. Serving our communities is the heartbeat of life at St Michael’s. Our coffee shop, our meeting rooms and our professional pre-school and nursery are used by hundreds of local families, businesses, groups and individuals all year round. And the generosity of all those who volunteer is constantly bringing reality to our vision of living to make a difference by being a Christian heart at the centre of our communities.
We’re taking a Christmas Float to the New Housing Areas of Cheswick, Brooklands Park and Scholars Chase!
Tuesday 5 December Starting at Cheswick Square at 6pm – Father Christmas will be there and we will all sing a couple of festive Christmas Carols before the float sets off! Wednesday 6 December – starting near Crest Nicholson show home Clover Way, at 6pm. Friday 8 December – starting at Stoke Gifford Retirement Village Car Park at 6pm.
We’d love to see your photos of the float – so why not share them on social media and tag us in, or send them to welcome@stmichaelsbristol.org.
Our Christmas theme this year is The Great Invitation. It’s an invitation to last a lifetime: to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. Over the next few weeks, we will be exploring this in short video reflections. We’ll be led weekly in turn by Vicky Wicks, Tom Benyon, Julie Hobbs, and Simon Jones.
Week 1
For our first reflection, Vicky Wicks reflects on how Mary must have felt at her own invitation….
This year’s Christmas Fair is on Saturday 25 November, starting at 11am. Father Christmas has the date in his diary, and the Coffee Shop will be open for yummy refreshments. Our magnificent cake stall will be returning too! We have lots of stalls with handmade gifts to browse and buy, children’s crafts and fun and games for everyone!
See you there!
We seek to promote quality local craftspeople, and aim to limit the number of duplicate stalls to ensure a good breadth of items for sale and to be fair to stallholders. Tables are £15. If you would like a table, or have any questions, please contact us for a booking form.
We’ve been running Alpha at St Michael’s for many years, and hundreds of people have enjoyed the space to ask the big questions of life in a relaxed and open environment.
Alpha is a place where no subject is off-limits, and no question is too silly, difficult, or controversial (really!). It’s a place to find out what Christians believe, to see whether any of it adds up in practice, to decide what you think and – if you’re up for it – to give some of it a go.
We’d love you to join our next Alpha. There is one starting on Wednesday 17 January in the evening (7pm). To sign-up click here or email Alpha@stmichaelsbristol.org
How Alpha works:
We meet once a week, on a Wednesday, for 8 weeks. There is a Saturday together in the middle for a slightly longer time of food and discussion.
Alpha always starts with food.
There’s usually some live music.
Then there’s a 30-minute presentation on different aspects of faith and Christianity, covering topics like, Who is Jesus? How and why should I pray? How does God guide us?
We then get to respond to what we’ve heard, share our own thoughts and experiences, and chew over any questions raised. These discussions are often the best part of the session, and we get to hear from others as well as contribute our own perspective – if we’re up for that.
The evening finishes at 9.30pm
Please get in touch
To find out more about Alpha, or to sign up for the next course, please contact us!
Why not come along, eat breakfast with others in a relaxed and friendly setting, and listen to an interesting and inspiring talk?
We will be gathering in the auditorium to eat together, followed by a talk.
Each month we have a different speaker on a range of topics.
Our guest speaker this month is from the charity Caring at Christmas – to tell us all about the fantastic work they do supporting the homeless in Bristol.
Please sign-up in advance if you can, so that we can order and make enough food. If you can no longer make it, please let us know Suggested donation £5 per adult (£1 per child). You can donate by card when you sign-up, or on the day via cash or card
Why not join us and our families this year at New Wine?
5 days of camping, worship, teaching with around 15,000 people – from 25 to 30 July.
To sign up go the New Wine website and when you book make sure you select St Michael’s so you camp with us. Plus if you volunteer as part of the NW team tickets are as low £30 for the week!
Come for all five days, or maybe just for a day – bring family and friends.
Our ten-thirty will begin outside with everyone gathering around the war memorial on The Green at 10.25am. If you are worshipping at the nine o’clock, why not stay for coffee and then attend the act of Remembrance?
We will be joined by the Royal British Legion, and local Uniformed Groups. A short act of Remembrance will take place, with the laying of wreaths and 2 minutes silence.
After this everyone else will gather in the auditorium in St Michael’s Centre, from there, our young people will go to their groups in the usual places. Our live-streamed online service will begin at approximately 10.45am.
