Worship is about the offering of our lives in service to God. We can do this outside of church, but we also do it in the context of the church and her services. Absolutely everyone has something they can contribute to the church’s worship, and there are a variety of important lay (unordained) ministries which all support the work of the community as it comes together. These include:
- Serving at the altar;
- Singing in the choir;
- Reading from the Scriptures;
- Leading the intercessions;
- Administering Communion; and
- Ringing the bells.
If you or your child is interested in contributing to any of these ministries, please speak to the Vicar.
Music
Music plays a big part in our worshipping life together, and adds beauty to the liturgy. Many of our services at St Peter’s and St John’s are sung, and on Sundays and at other festivals and holy days throughout the year at St Peter’s, the singing is supported by our parish choir, directed by Prof Leonard Sanderman, our Interim Organist and Director of Music. The choir leads the congregation in singing the mass, and on high days, also sings the psalm and other pieces to suit the church’s season.
In both churches, the singing is supported by our organs. The organ at St Peter’s is an impressive instrument. Built in 1921 by Harrison & Harrison of Durham as a three manual with twenty one speaking stops, it is widely regarded as one of the best organs in the area. For many years the organ remained dormant, but since 2017 we are pleased to have restored its use in the liturgy. The instrument is now working well, but will be in need of phased restoration work in the coming years to ensure this wonderful instrument continues to lead and inspire our worship.
The organ at St John’s was built by the Leeds firm Abbott & Smith as a small two-manual instrument, and was originally cramped in a very tight organ chamber. This resulted in poor maintenance, particulaly to the swell organ. However, at the bequest of long-serving organist Arnold Bowers, this organ was rebuilt in recent years by Wood of Huddersfield, who reduced it to a one manual instrument with a few tonal changes to give the organ a stronger chorus, and enable it better to support the worship at Horbury Bridge.
Apart from the many services in the parish in which music features heavily, our churches host other concerts throughout the year, including regular performances by brass bands, choirs, and organists, the latter of which offer recitals on the Harrison & Harrison organ at St Peter’s. St Peter’s in particular boasts excellent acoustics, which makes it an ldeal venue for musicians wanting to use the space. If you are interested in hiring out one of our churches for concerts or rehearsals, please contact us. We are delighted to offer a competitive rate, and a nominal rate to cover basic costs for charities who wish to use our buildings.
Bells
The tower of St Peter’s Church is a distinct architectural feature of the landscape of the area, but within it lies another treasure: the bells. These began as a ring of six, cast by Thos. Mears at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London, installed in the tower at St Peter’s, and paid for by the architect, John Carr.
Just over one hundred years later, in 1897, the tower was found to be unsafe. It was dismantled and the bells were removed. New treble and tenor bells were cast and the fourth bell re-cast to provide a chromatic scale, all paid for by Mr Benjamin Wilson of Inwood Villa. On 21st April 1900 the new bells were dedicated and the first peal rung.
Another hundred years later and these bells were still in place: but Horbury’s bells had become difficult to ring and were in need of an overhaul. This led the church to make an application for permission to re-cast the bells into a smaller ring of eight, which would make maintenance work easier, and provide a good set of bells to ring, especially for younger learners. Permission for this work was granted and, led by the bell ringers themselves, work began to raise the necessary funds. In a short space of time, about £100,000 was then raised, which meant that Horbury could now benefit from new and improved bells. These were cast by Taylors of Loughborough, and were received into church and blessed on Easter Day 2019, before being hung in the tower to ring out over Horbury.
Being a bell ringer opens up a community of over 40,000 friends across the world and a lifetime of fun experiences no matter what your ability. Anyone who would like to come and see what we do and maybe have a go at ringing a bell will always be welcome. For more information, contact Mavis Walsh on 01924 271710. More information about our own bells can be found here. More information about bells and bell ringing can be found on the Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers website.