Welcome to St Matthias. Situated at the top of Richmond Hill, St Matthias is a friendly community of faith, worshipping in a beautiful, historically significant Victorian church building. Our spire can be seen for miles around, a symbol of God’s loving presence in the midst of our busy community. We enjoy sharing our faith by supporting community life and opening our doors to offer the peace and quiet of our sacred spaces with everyone, including the guests who come to stay in the night shelter here in the winter months.
We have a liberal and inclusive theological outlook and we value a questioning approach to matters of faith and practice. We appreciate creative and thoughtful preaching and love to use art and poetry as well as music to enhance our worship. Faith development courses are offered throughout the year, and we offer Parish retreats and pilgrimages, themed days and opportunities to explore and reflect on issues and challenges which affect our lives and the world in which we live. We are working to reduce our carbon footprint, and with the introduction of Wild Church our preaching and teaching increasingly reflects our desire to care for the planet and heal the wounds we have inflicted on nature and the environment.
The open and flexible interior of our church building creates an ideal space for us to worship in a variety of ways, both traditionally and informally within our Anglican identity. You will find more information about the weekly pattern of worship here. In addition to the glorious open space of our nave we have a smaller side chapel which is offered for private prayer, and often used for quiet more intimate services.
We offer Junior Church for children ages 3 years and upwards with lots of craft activities, music and singing. And if your child would prefer to stay in church with you then that’s fine too. We have a selection of books, quiet toys, paper and crayons for them to enjoy.
Our local residential care home is also part of the worshipping community at St Matthias. We share weekly worship with residents, staff and families both in the home and in church. Holy Communion is taken to those who are housebound or sick, and you can arrange this by contacting the Vicar who will be more than happy to help.
We endeavour to make St Matthias a place where the diversity of our humanity is celebrated and where people from all walks of life can feel at home, safe, and at ease. We very much look forward to welcoming you soon!