Drawn by the dozens of candles on the steps and surrounding the open doors of our brightly lit church, one Friday evening last autumn, the young tourist, accompanied by a parishioner quietly entered Ss Alban & Stephen’s church. He was followed by a group of young women dressed for an evening out, then a family, and a dozen more visitors. Walking quietly towards the front of the church, they lit candles, paused to write prayers, some accepting a scripture reading, before leaving to continue their evening. A few stayed to share coffee with parishioners afterwards Last autumn my parish of Ss Alban & Stephen, Beaconsfield Road, took part in a Mission led by the Sion Community. It was an inspiring time in which during the first week, more than 1500 parishioners were visited and invited to take part in evening mission services the following week.

The Friday night service was called Sharing the Light. The plan was to open the church doors, inviting passers-by into an open and candle lit church to light their own candle. Some parishioners were to be on the steps as welcomers.

I was not the only person feeling a little apprehensive, and sceptical. St Albans commuters on a Friday night, young people intent on enjoying the start of the weekend did not seem likely to have time for a church visit.

The resulting number of visitors was astonishing.

Friday evening March 18 we will be repeating this invitation for anyone to come and ‘Share the Light’.

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Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here