On the 24th of December, Christmas Eve, hundreds of people gathered together in Ludlow in the local church, St Lawrence's, for the annual Christmas Christingle service. This is a family friendly service during which the children are given Christingles. The Christingles represent all areas of our world including: Jesus, all of God’s creations, the 4 seasons and love. As everyone comes together and shows their gratitude toward these, the feeling of Christmas is around.

This year, the church was full to the brim with smiling faces. With a range from toddlers and babies to senior citizens, the atmosphere was charismatic. The service was entrancing and the perfect way to feel excited for Christmas Day. The St Lawrence's choir sang beautifully, and the congregation joined in enthusiastically. The service was live-streamed to those who couldn't make it so even those who weren’t present could experience the warmth and comfort of this service. 

 

St Lawrence's is more than 800 years old and preserving this beautiful church takes a huge amount of work. The 150 volunteers at St Lawrence's help the community in Ludlow to thrive. Volunteer work in the church varies from servers, intercessors, readers, bell ringers, receptionists, event stewards and serving refreshments. With the help of these volunteers not only is the church able to provide beautiful services more than once a week but they also run three schemes: The Table service, The Alpha Course and Bible Study. All three of these schemes are completely free and provide comfort for many in Ludlow with a huge help from the team at St Lawrences.