Which Church of Ireland service?

pathway33

What's the difference in these Church of Ireland services?

- Parish Communion
- Holy Communion
- Family Service
- A late Evening Office
- Morning Prayer
- Matins

Which one should a beginner (as in existing Roman Catholic) Church of Ireland attendee start with? I'm thinking there wouldn't be any point going to the Communion one anyway as I wouldn't be receiving.

Thanks,

philologos

Are you getting these titles from the church itself or from the Book of Common Prayer?

Every 2nd week they have the Service of the Word (probably the same thing as what your post calls the "Family Service") which doesn't involve any communion, and even when they do have communion at a morning service you do not have to take it.

That said, some cathedrals or bigger churches sometimes have an Evensong on (A Late Evening Office is pretty much the same thing). This can be nice from experience.

If you are a morning person and if it is offered, perhaps Morning Prayer / Matins could be good.

If you are unsure, ask at the church or cathedral where you are going. As always I hope you find it well

pathway33

Jakkass wrote: »

Are you getting these titles from the church itself or from the Book of Common Prayer?

Church itself

hivizman

If the church or cathedral has a choir, and you like music, then Matins or Evensong will be good to attend, because you will have a psalm, some canticles and possibly an anthem, all sung by the choir (and in some cases by the congregation as well). There is a lot of wonderful Anglican church music, and I believe that it's at its best in these services.

I can't comment on the Church of Ireland policy, but in England, where I now live, many Anglican churches have an open policy on giving communion, and anyone who is a baptised Christian is welcome to receive the bread and wine.

ISAW

pathway33 wrote: »

What's the difference in these Church of Ireland services?

- Parish Communion
- Holy Communion
- Family Service
- A late Evening Office
- Morning Prayer
- Matins

Which one should a beginner (as in existing Roman Catholic) Church of Ireland attendee start with? I'm thinking there wouldn't be any point going to the Communion one anyway as I wouldn't be receiving.

Thanks,

These "hours" are not exclusive to Church of Ireland/England and have been around since St Benedict in about 500 AD.

As regards what each one is : ( you can leave out Lauds and Prime probably )
for a vespers which is sung put in "Evensong"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liturgy_of_the_Hours#Current_practice

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Divine_Worship#Offices

pathway33

Would this be correct regarding Church of Ireland services?

- No genuflecting by the congregation
- No making the sign of the cross by the congregation
- A bow before you enter your seat
- None of the sit-stand-kneel-sit-kneel routine that Roman Catholics engage in, although there may be some kneeling.

Thanks,

philologos

pathway33 wrote: »

- No genuflecting by the congregation
- No making the sign of the cross by the congregation

Most, not all. There are a few people who would. Most Church of Ireland wouldn't do this in church, there are some Anglo-Catholic churches (very rare in Ireland) that would.

pathway33 wrote: »

- A bow before you enter your seat

I've never seen this.

pathway33 wrote: »

- None of the sit-stand-kneel-sit-kneel routine that Roman Catholics engage in, although there may be some kneeling.

People generally stand for the Gospel reading, and saying the Nicene Creed amongst a few parts in the service, and prayer can be done either sitting or kneeling as people so choose. In our church for example, there are kneelers (prayer cushions) that people can use to pray.

Soylent_Green

Most COI churchs that I am aware of will allow you to take communion. The onus is on yourself to decide if you are in a position to do so. If you are a first timer for communion in a COI, hold your hand out for the bread, the rector will place it in your hand and you then stick it in your own gob. Then wait for second helpings where the wine comes around. You get a swallow of it also. Grand if you have missed breakfast.

smurfhousing

Soylent_Green wrote: »

Most COI churchs that I am aware of will allow you to take communion. The onus is on yourself to decide if you are in a position to do so. If you are a first timer for communion in a COI, hold your hand out for the bread, the rector will place it in your hand and you then stick it in your own gob. Then wait for second helpings where the wine comes around. You get a swallow of it also. Grand if you have missed breakfast.

That's not very respectful!

Surely it is something that should be treated with great reverence by the believers of that community and all men of good will?

StealthRolex

Soylent_Green wrote: »

Most COI churchs that I am aware of will allow you to take communion. The onus is on yourself to decide if you are in a position to do so. If you are a first timer for communion in a COI, hold your hand out for the bread, the rector will place it in your hand and you then stick it in your own gob. Then wait for second helpings where the wine comes around. You get a swallow of it also. Grand if you have missed breakfast.

Regardless of the nature of the Church, because two or more are gathered in His name Jesus is there.

You are invited to share in His Last Supper and you should be contemplating that, not your stomach.

+

Dave Roe

pathway33 wrote: »

Would this be correct regarding Church of Ireland services?

- No genuflecting by the congregation
- No making the sign of the cross by the congregation
- A bow before you enter your seat
- None of the sit-stand-kneel-sit-kneel routine that Roman Catholics engage in, although there may be some kneeling.

Thanks,

No genuflecting by anyone.
No making signs of the cross.
Never saw anyone bow before entering your seat.
(The altar itself is not such a big deal in the CofI as in RC churches.)
As stated above, stand for creed and gospel (and any hymns obviously), kneel for prayers.
TBH, I think there's much the same stand-sit-kneeling as in an RC mass.


More important than the service you attend is the church itself. Not all CofI churches are the same, they can very greatly, especially outside Dublin. Some are very low church, no altar rails, no images or figures anywhere, nothing gilt, somber robes on the priest, lusty hymns etc. High church - fancy robes, more elements of the service sung, altar rails, images/flags/gilt etc.
Churches tend to retain their low, or high church character regardless of the vies of their rector, partly because the buildings are physically different, more because of continuity and tradition of the congregation. Someone who has attended a rural low church service all their lives may not suit the likes of St. Patrick's to their taste.
I'd advise trying out a few different churches till you find somewhere that suits your perspective on these things.
Dave

Soylent_Green

smurfhousing wrote: »

That's not very respectful!

Surely it is something that should be treated with great reverence by the believers of that community and all men of good will?

Surely the smiley after my post should have given an indication that what I had said was somewhat in jest. I have no intention of disrespecting my own church.

Soylent_Green

Something for the OP to bear in mind is that a number of COI churchs will print the service on an A5 booklet for services much as Family Service or All Age Service. Might make the first visit easier to follow.

Jellybaby1

I suggest the OP attends a Family Service to start off with. They are supposed to be more relaxed and child-friendly. I also suggest if you are nervous about not doing the right thing at the right time, i.e. standing, kneeling etc., sit at the back and just do what everyone else does and you'll be grand. Try different churches as a previous poster said, the Church of Ireland churches can differ greatly, so you can choose a very conservative church one week if you are feeling a little sombre, or a wilder one next week if you are feeling more perky!!! You will eventually find one you enjoy attending. Good luck with your search.

LeprachaunPope

I suggest you attend the Pope's church We don't allow dogs to eat the Eucharist.

owenc

The church of ireland is so confusing why do they have the different services?? Is it like one week they have communion and the next something else, i.e each week a different type of service or does each church do each service differently.

maggy_thatcher

owenc wrote: »

The church of ireland is so confusing why do they have the different services?? Is it like one week they have communion and the next something else, i.e each week a different type of service or does each church do each service differently.

One of the reasons for the different services (generally alternating communion/morning prayer) is that the priest often has to do multiple services in different churches one after another. Having the full communion service in all the churches would (1) take too long, and (2) put the priest at the risk of drink-driving (there's no reserve sacrament in the COI -- any leftovers must be consumed by the priest at the end.). It's usually a simple pattern though (1st/3rd one way, 2nd/4th the other, with 5th being the 'easy day' of morning prayer everywhere).

SonOfAdam

funny guy :rolleyes:

that was intended as a reply to the leprechaun

owenc

maggy_thatcher wrote: »

One of the reasons for the different services (generally alternating communion/morning prayer) is that the priest often has to do multiple services in different churches one after another. Having the full communion service in all the churches would (1) take too long, and (2) put the priest at the risk of drink-driving (there's no reserve sacrament in the COI -- any leftovers must be consumed by the priest at the end.). It's usually a simple pattern though (1st/3rd one way, 2nd/4th the other, with 5th being the 'easy day' of morning prayer everywhere).

Oh i see now do they not have enough ministers though?? With the amount of churches here i'd think they'd need to, there must be about 50 protestant churches or something within a 15 mile radius of me.

maggy_thatcher

owenc wrote: »

Oh i see now do they not have enough ministers though?? With the amount of churches here i'd think they'd need to, there must be about 50 protestant churches or something within a 15 mile radius of me.

There are lots if different kinds of Protestism, not just COI. It's not just not enough ministers, most parishes are too small to financially sustain a priest all to themselves, so they pool their resources. Obviously this doesn't apply to the big churches!

owenc

maggy_thatcher wrote: »

There are lots if different kinds of Protestism, not just COI. It's not just not enough ministers, most parishes are too small to financially sustain a priest all to themselves, so they pool their resources. Obviously this doesn't apply to the big churches!

Aw aye i know that, theres 3000 of them..:rolleyes: lots of choice though.;) Its really quite funny that they have to change their service because of that i was expecting something totally different.