WELCOME TO THE DISCOVERY BAY CHURCH WEBSITE

All-age Family Service Picture

We meet in the hall of the HKSKH Wei Lun Primary School every Sunday at 10:00am, for Holy Communion and Discoverers, our exciting intergrated childrens programme.

We are a friendly inclusive English speaking congregation in the Anglican Tradition.

We are one of three daughter churches which include Pokfulam and Stanley which make up the parish of St John's Cathedral Hong Kong.

Our Bishop is The Most Reverend Paul Kwong, Archbishop of Hong Kong Island and Primate of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.

Our Dean is The Very Reverend Andrew Chan.

Our Priest in Charge is The Reverend Sharon Constable.

We come from a variety of backgrounds and denominations and we WELCOME people of all church backgrounds or none.

For all our worship we use Common Worship to express our faith and help to create our identity. Common Worship draws together the rich inheritance of the past and the best of contemporary forms of worship.

Our worship reflects the multiplicity of contexts in which worship is offered today. Our services encourage an imaginative engagement in worship, opening the way for people in the varied circumstances of their lives to experience the love of God in Jesus Christ in the life and power of the Holy Spirit. In the worship of God the full meaning and beauty of our humanity is consummated and our lives are opened to the promise God makes for all creation to transform and renew it in love and goodness Central to our worship is the proclamation of the one, perfect self offering of the Son to the Father. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is at the heart of Common Worship.

Worship is more than what is said; it is also what is done and how it is done. It is when the framework of worship is clear and familiar and the texts are known by heart that the poetry of praise and the passion of prayer can transcend the printed word. Then worship can take wing and become the living sacrifice of ourselves to the God whose majesty is beyond compare and whose truth is from everlasting.

We are an inclusive congregation open to all genders we are multicultural congregation and this is reflected in our worship as we bring traditions and culture into our worship and fellowship.

We offer good teaching, preaching and music throughout our worship to help us encounter the Divine.

We offer an excellent teaching programme outside of Sunday worship which takes us on journey through evangelism nurture growth within and outside the parish community.

ACTIVITIES (WHAT WE OFFER)

We offer an experience to meet the Divine and Encounter the Living Christ through worship, prayer, fellowship and outreach. We are Eucharistic centered and everything we do is encompassed by our worship for we are Easter People.

We offer exciting and vibrant worship encompassing that with All Age Worship with our children, it is based on the Revised Common Lectionary of the Bible, integrating a holistic approach to scripture, worship and education through the church's liturgical year.

We offer good fellowship through study groups coming together to share our joys and sorrows. And any excuse where we can celebrate life's experiences! We have a variety and exciting social event calendar.

DISCOVERERS

Discoverers is our Children's programme which is integrated with worship. Our children gather with the congregation for the beginning of the service then move to their classes, they come back into worship during communion to participate in the service.

Our vision is to provide God's people with good sound teaching and resources that empower all ages to be transformed in Christ as they:
Explore meaning and mystery in the Bible
Celebrate in worship, sacraments education and service
Engage in ministries of love, justice, and witness
Live in inclusive communities of faith shaped and led by the spirit

All-Age Family worship happens on the 1st Sunday of every month and at various festivals.
All-Age Worship needs to be just that, and not children's worship at which adults happen to be present.

Different age groups need some teaching suited to their particular stage of development, but all benefit from studying the same passages of scripture on the same day. The whole parish is then able to grow together and share insights and discoveries.

Separate children's ministry for part of the service is there to develop the children's faith now, and also to prepare them for taking a full part in the churches Sunday worship when they are older. Their age – appropriate worship and activities should aim to ease them gradually into full participation with the adults in church, rather than creating a completely separate culture which makes the transition difficult.

We sell our children and young people short if we only teach them facts about our faith; what they need is to be introduced to a real relationship with God, in which the foundations are laid for life long habits of prayer and Bible study and an openness to God's Spirit.

We journey into faith, so all our worship and teaching must respect the diversity of stages reached, and the emotional and cultural luggage brought long. Any resource material should therefore be flexible, easily adapted, and accessible at a number of different levels.

The cerebal and the academic approaches cherished by many in positions of leadership are not the only, nor necessarily the most effective ways to explore and express our faith! Unless we also make use of the senses and the emotions, we shall be shutting doors through which our God could reach the people he loves

We join with the Roman Catholic Church and DBICC in dialogue and action throughout the year. For example, we combine with The Chinese Anglican Congregation, The Roman Cahtolic Church and The International Community Church for Carols in the Discovery Bay Plaza during the lead up to Christmas and we have a combined service of witness the Saturday before Palm Sunday.

CLARES is a cosmopolitan women's group that meets in The Harold Smyth Room of the Cathedral every Wednesday at 10:30am.

THE MINISTRY CENTRE
The administration centre for the congregation, it is a place of prayer a centre for discussion and study and a friendly environment to meet, and make and practice community. It's a place where we gather to socialize and enjoy each others company. It is a place where the day to day working life of the congregation operates from and starts from 611 DB Plaza.

THE PRIEST IN CHARGE
The Reverend Sharon Constable works from The Ministry Centre from an office at St John's Cathedral when necessary. She is available to meet with people either in Discovery Bay or Central, this can be done at one of the many local coffee shops or restaurants in Discovery Bay or Central. We do not have set office hours, so should you wish to see Mother Sharon on your way to work or at lunch time or in the evening at a venue either in Discovery Bay, Central or somewhere else please feel free to make an appointment.

A TEAM MINISTRY
The Cathedral operates a TEAM MINISTRY, that is the Parish made up of the Cathedral and three daughter churches Stanley, Pokfulam and Discovery Bay. The clergy work as a team and during the week have responsibilities at the Cathderal. We all take our turn doing the daily services at the Cathedral, and we all take our turn at officiating or preaching at Evensong or Taize on Sunday nights. For daily service times see the home page. All the clergy have portfolios for the different ministries of the cathedral.

PHONES FAX AND E-MAIL
Phone Office: 2987 4210
Mobile: 6405 7411
Fax: 2987 5310
E-mail: constable@stjohnscathedral.org.hk