A MYSTERY VISITOR’S THOUGHTS ON VISITING COTSWOLD CHURCHES
How lucky we are that all over the country there are dedicated men and women who care
for their parish churches and open them day by day for visitors to enjoy. Please pass on our
thanks to them for their hard work and commitment.
A few initial thoughts and questions:
A. On first sight
First impressions count. It was not always be clear how to get in to the building or that we
would be welcome. ‘Church Open’ sign hung on the gate/door would be inviting.
If there is a notice on the gate that says ‘Flowers in Church’, there should be flowers in
Church!
Some church yards looked rather uncared for but I think this was generally to encourage
wildlife and greater biodiversity. It might be good to say that is what one is doing.
B. Main Porch
First impressions count. As a ‘tunnel’ through which everyone passes it is understandable
that ‘business’ information is displayed here but I feel the emphasis should be on
providing a silent welcome. Otherwise you are bombarded by ecclesiastical business rather
than welcomed into a house of God.
An excellent example is Burford which displayed information giving an impression of an
active 21st century congregation confident in its future.
There were however some poor examples with no word of welcome displayed anywhere.
Other models of poor practice include having:
 Jumbles of curling paper rotas, insurance certificates and depressing financial
information
 Stringent instructions about what was and was not allowed on gravestones
 Bird droppings – surely it would be possible to catch this at high level?
 Steps down were common - Good quality metal ramps were rare.
C. Information Display within the Church
Remember that first impressions really do count. If a church building is to be open during
the week, some resetting of the interior from Sunday might be required. Also it’s wise to
assume nothing about the reason for someone visiting between services.
What will visitors see first when entering the building? How might that express God’s love
for them?
 Most so called ‘Welcome’ leaflets are in fact architectural guides and would be
better to be labelled more appropriately.
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 Sadly the invitation to leave a donation was generally more evident than the
invitation to join in worship, leave a prayer request or enjoy a moment of quiet
reflection.
 How can you ‘sequence’ your information so that evidence of God’s loving
invitation comes first and our response is sought later?
 It shouldn’t be as difficult as it sometimes is to push a gift aid envelope into the
slot on the wall!
 More is less. Could you make a better and clearer impact by rationalising the
information which greets visitors?
 What impression of the people of God in this place do you want visitors to leave
with? How will they gain this impression?
D. Walking Around
Wilting flowers; curling, damp leaflets, booklets and post cards; out of date magazines, last
month’s DOOR and other information that is no longer relevant etc. all give the impression
of a church in decline.
Some churches were very dark inside. Putting the lights on may be an unavoidable cost if
the church is open to visitors, or, if this is too much to ask, a very obvious note with clear
instructions about how to put the lights on and off.
Areas set aside for private prayer really should be set aside, without items being stored in
them. Leaflets or books to aid prayer are a good idea but simplicity is best with something
to focus the eye on.
Chancels often give the impression of being little used. Why not identify these as areas for
silent contemplation or for some other purpose?
Children’s corners could have something for visiting children to do. How can what is
provided express God’s love for all? A good example can be found at Cirencester.
Prayer stations and prayer trees: these are popular and appreciated by many..
Too many pews or even too many chairs can make it difficult to see everything in the
Church. Extraneous furniture which is of little aesthetic value contributes to a sense of
clutter which detracts from the beauty of the building.
Micro phones and a central screen in place by Saturday morning; musical instruments with
blankets thrown over; side chapels full of equipment etc. give the impression of a
congregation shoe horned in to a building it wishes it could be released from. What does
this say about your ministry to visitors and your relationship with the building?
Redevelopment Plan displays: Placing these in front of features that visitors may want to
see could be counterproductive. Similarly placing them in ‘in your face’ locations with
spelling mistakes (‘reordering’ was a particularly unfortunate typo) and handwritten
corrections do not instil confidence however laudable the scheme.
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E. Evidence of an Active Congregation
I really liked the Diocesan Information about ‘Living Faith’, on display with varying degrees
of success in different places. Best example: Charlbury, where their own welcome leaflet
picked up the same themes.
Food bank collecting points: Plastic boxes with food were evident in a number of places
but were not always labelled. It would be good to make it clear that campaigning for social
justice is a gospel priority that is taken seriously not just collecting ‘for the poor’.
Last week’s notice sheet: quite liked to look at these to see what was going on. It was also
good to see community news sheets available too.
Quirky Ideas: Prayer Teddies at Woodstock – I thought these were a brilliant idea.
Ecumenical links: Stonesfield seemed to be the only church that shared how they worked
in partnership with other denominations in the village. I hope ‘absence of evidence isn’t
evidence of absence’ elsewhere.
Despite previous comments about clutter it was good to see a stage set up and props at
Wootton who were obviously hosting the School Play. Information about this would have
been interesting.
DVD: one can be wary of pressing ‘play’ if the atmosphere is pretty busy already and one
does not want to disturb others – a set of head phones would have been good as was the
overall idea.
Well- presented photo albums give an impression of a sociable congregation and of the
devastation caused by flooding.
Funeral biers: Some information about them as historic artefacts would have been good as
well as photos of them in use – but does tend to give the impression of a congregation in
terminal decline.
Evidence that good coffee is served after the service is positive if it is neatly put away.
Spiders crawling over urns and packets of biscuits are not encouraging!
A working, unlocked, newly installed WC was a really pleasant surprise at Kirtlington and
much appreciated. What do families with young children or the elderly do elsewhere?
Visitors might be ‘shopping around’ for a Church to settle in. What would attract them to
join yours?
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