Worship With Us

Worship Services at Central Westside United Church

• All services are based on the worship practices of the United Church of Canada.
• We celebrate God's presence and follow Christ's teachings. Our challenge is to extend loving, supportive services to our church family, our surrounding community, and the world.
• Regular weekly services, to which all are welcome, are held year-round on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. in the sanctuary and livestreamed on YouTube
• At the beginning of each service we light candles to remind us of God's light in the world.
• At the back of the sanctuary is a special candle anyone may light as they enter, in memory or in celebration of a person or an event. Clipboards are placed at each entrance for anyone to write prayer concerns.
• Common elements of our worship are song, scripture, silence and prayer, with focus being on praise of God and prayer for the whole world.
• Hymns are usually selected from Voices United, a hymn book published by United Church Publishing House.
• Those able are asked to stand. There are spaces available for persons in wheelchairs. Some pews are padded.
• Children are invited to the front of the church following the second hymn where they share a story, and then are accompanied to the Sunday School where they study the day's lesson, followed by games, crafts or drama sessions.
• Scripture readings generally follow the Revised Common Lectionary, common to many Christian churches.
• Our minister usually bases the sermon on Scripture that relates to current events.
• An offering is taken up by the passing of plates within the congregation.
• A commissioning and benediction is given to the congregation before they depart.
• We celebrate the Holy Communion, where all are welcome to participate as each is led by his/her faith, as is practised by the United Church of Canada. Each participant is served a symbolic piece of bread and a cup of grape juice to remember the Last Supper when Jesus named these symbols his body and his blood.
• Baptisms (application form) and New Member (application form) confirmations occur regularly throughout the year.