A Feast of Hope!

In our worship on 30th July, we enjoyed a feast of fish and bread - tuna sandwiches! - to celebrate the story of the Feeding of the 5000 (found in Mark, chapter 6, verses 30-44). In the same way as Elisha had had compassion for famine stricken people (2 Kings 4: 42-44), sharing a simple offering with them, so Jesus saw the needs of a hungry crowd, who suffered like neglected 'sheep' under care-less 'shepherds', so calling us to have compassion as well. We saw, too, that he used his head, as well as his heart, asking what gifts the disciples had between them. Although they did not think much of their handful of loaves and fish, Jesus saw them as invaluable - so how can our few gifts be used to great purpose? For he then organised the disciples to organise the crowd - and all were fed and filled. So, too, we are called to use what we have, to help to create a fairer world where everyone has enough. So we shared peace with one another, encouraging the gifts we have within us, and enjoyed a simple feast, with the young people taking the lead to hand out the sandwiches. And there were left-overs, temporarily! The challenge, though, is to ensure it was not only "food for thought", but a vision to pursue ...

Thought for a few days

Martin Luther King said this: "The hope of a secure life and a liveable world lies with disciplined non-conformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and community." It's quite a thought, in a world which often feels very insecure and, for many people, almost 'un-liveable', because of fear, violence, hunger or despair. And it's all the more challenging because he invites us to be "disciplined non-conformists" - that is, people who are committed to living life differently. Not to be curiosities just for the sake of being different. Not so that we feel good about ourselves. But so that we live a kind of life which makes people ask, "I wonder why they do that, because it seems to make a difference." So in churches, we need to practise the art of non-conformity, to encourage each other to live differently - perhaps most of all, by showing that we are concerned for people who are different from us, not only for those who we easily agree with. G

Mosaic Project

We are currently creating four large mosaics to go on the outside wall of our building. The first one is "Hope" which celebrates new life. The others are "Faith", "Peace" and "Joy", and they each tell some of the story of the church's life in the community.
With the help of a professional artist, members of the church created the designs, and the project hopes to involve people of all ages.

Our History

Here is a picture of the original church built in 1880. It was a massive building seating over 1000 people and was constructed in the Victorian style know as "Brick Gothic". Sadly, in 1980, the congregation felt unable to maintain the building and it was demolished.

The original church was situated next to the Sunday School building, erected in 1871 and is where we now meet.

Our Minister

We are currently without a minister and services are being led by local preachers from around the area.


Rev. Graham Adams left Lees Street in July 2013 to take up a theological training post at Northern College, Manchester as tutor in World Christianity and World Faiths.