As a diverse congregation, St Mary’s aspires to being a community which is open, inclusive and welcoming.
Open
The congregation here is a gathered community, each person attracted by different things. Some are attracted by the excellence in music, some by the practical spirituality that is taught, and some by the open community of folk who meet week by week for varied services. The hope is that St Mary’s is becoming an ever more open group of people. A distinctive feature of the life of the congregation is an openness to new ideas and an enjoyment of being challenged spiritually in fresh ways.
Inclusive
We are young, we are old. We are straight, we are gay. Some are single, some are married, some are partnered, some are single again. We are men and we are women. Some live alone, some live with others. We have different abilities. We have different understandings of the truth. We have all kinds of different reasons for choosing to make this our spiritual home.
Welcoming
This church is a vibrant and diverse group of people who have found a welcome in this place. All the rich resources of the Christian tradition are shared here by modern people who enjoy being together.
St Mary’s Cathedral has become a welcoming place for many, whether it is being caught up in the richness of worshipping with hundreds of others or meeting God in a quiet corner of a peaceful church.