We here understand that coming to a place of worship for the first time can be a very strange experience. At Ashburnham Chapel we are a most friendly congregation, we come in all shapes and sizes and we most certainly come from all sorts of different backgrounds, but the one thing we all definitely have in common is that we were all once new to the Church.
"Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it". Hebrews 13:2
Join us at our Chapel services on ZOOM!
FAQ's about the Chapel
What sort of Chapel are you?
We are Non-Denominational and, as you can see from the image on the right, not exactly Windsor Castle Chapel, but just like the people who gather there, we gather here to worship God.
Why is The Chapel Non-Denominational?
Non-Denominational means that we are not affiliated to any Church organisation because we aim to be fully acceptable to all denominations. Non-Denominational also means that we are in charge of our own finances. Our collection goes either to our building and maintenance costs, to donations to organisations such as Water Aid and Christian Aid and to local outreach. We do not have to pay money to a central authority in order to fund their administration costs, their overheads and their expenses.
We are a fully Christian Chapel, we have not started a branch of belief! We hold to the Nicene Creed, (click for the link) and have, as you can see on our 'Leaders and Preachers' page, many ordained service leaders from different Christian denominations as well as non-ordained service leaders. This means that we listen to different insights from people of different backgrounds and experiences. As you will see on the 'Service Rota' page, members of the congregation that wish to also read the selected Bible passages and write, or sometimes don't write and lead the prayers
Whereas in many Churches the minister in charge has the ultimate control and over-riding authority, we know that Christ is head of the Chapel, as in Ephesians 1:22-23. “And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all".
As such we follow the example of the early Church being "elder-led," which is a way of saying that the our congregation have a major input into all aspects, with the members of the elder board, who are members of the congregation, having decision-making power. They do so in the full knowledge that the need is to allow each Chapel member to function according to their gifts and specific concerns, and most importantly, we assist each other in our spiritual journey.
If you would like to join us you need to know that there are some things about you that we most certainly don't bother about in the slightest.
We don't bother about
How old or how young you are
Where you are from
About your bank balance
Who you vote for
If you give to the collection or not
Or your past,
because none of us are perfect and at the Chapel God meets our congregation, normal people, with all our imperfections, fears, problems, and hopes and dreams for the future.
However, here we have some do's
Do
Feel free to take part as little or as much as you want. If you want to arrive quietly, sit at the back and leave quietly straight after, that's OK. We do serve tea or coffee at the end and Michael's cakes win awards!
Do join in with our singing, which is legendary locally!
Let us know if you would like us to pray for you. We don't need to know the reason why.
If you are able, please talk to us.
Web Site designed, built and maintained by Rev'd Peter Doodes
We support through our offerings
Local charities such as the Beachy Head Chaplaincy Team, local hospices', local community work, Street Pastors, as well as Christian Aid, Water Aid The Barnabas Fund the RABI etc
If you would like to know more about the organisations above clicking on the name will take you to their websites.
Prayer Letter Box
We realised that for some people getting to a service may, for many reasons, be difficult as could actually asking for others to pray for them. We have then installed a Prayer letter Box facing the road on the edge of the Chapel's ground. You can see images of this on the 'News' page.
May we ask that...
whoever you are and where ever you are that you pray for us?
Many have experienced the energising power of prayer and we are no different. We really do need and value your prayers.