Saint George's Anglican Church, Paris

Worship: Frequently Asked Questions

What sort of church is St George's?

St. George's, Paris is a part of the Church of England in the family of Anglican churches. All its services are authorised for use by the Church of England.

Our worship is liturgical which means it's based around the public prayer of the Church. Morning and Evening Prayer, in the Book of Common Prayer or the modern Daily Prayer, are foundational for a living relationship with Christ. The Eucharist is 'source and summit' of Christian worship and is celebrated daily: sometimes simply and on Sunday at 10h30 with hymns, incense, ceremonial and a sermon. We have an excellent choir and music forms an important part of our Sunday Eucharist.

We have times too of quiet prayer during the week offering the opportunity to be still before the presence of God.

The Church of England seeks to serve the whole community not just members of the worshipping congregation. It understands itself as both Catholic and Reformed, shrinks from a 'dogmatic' self-definition and seeks to live out the Gospel. There are a broad range of approaches within the Church of England to living and sharing the Christian faith. Labels are often unhelpful for people and churches because they are not like the lists of ingredients on a packet in the supermarket!

St. George's is a liturgical church because it celebrates our salvation using the seasons of the Church begining in Advent with Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, the Ascension and Pentecost along with the great feasts of the Church like Corpus Christi and All Saints. This gives an opportunity to work through the different ways God calls us to the fullness of life in Christ.

We are a sacramental church because we base our discipleship around the sacraments that the Church has always celebrated. In Western Europe there are traditionally 7 sacraments (Baptism, Eucharist, Reconciliation and Healing, Confirmation, Ordination and Marriage).

St George's is also evangelical in its desire to preach the Gospel of Christ. We expect that a persons life will change when they make a decision to follow Jesus Christ in their daily life and we are excited at that opportunity.

Are the services in English or in French?

Our services are mainly in English.

On Sunday at 0830h the service is from the Book of Common Prayer (1662). The English used is like that known and used by William Shakespeare.

At the 1030h Eucharist on Sunday we use contemporary English. We usually have one reading in French. The sermon is occasionally in French as is a celebration of Baptism.

There is a weekly celebration of the Eucharist in French at 18h00 on Saturday evenings - with songs and hymns the service is a translation of Common Worship Order 1.

The Malagasy community at St George's celebrates the Eucharist at 16h30 on the first and third Sundays of the month. Their services is in Malagasy and French.

Our community is made up of people from many countries around the world, including some whose mother-tongue is French.

Question : Can I receive Holy Communion?

Answer : If you are baptised and receive Holy Communion in your own church then you are welcome to receive Holy Communion at St George's.

If you are prevented from doing so by your conscience, or the discipline of your church, you are most welcome to come to the altar for a blessing at the time of communion.

If you are a coeliac and require a gluten-free wafer for Holy Communion please speak to a priest before the start of the service.