Jesmond Parish Church

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Jesmond Parish Church

Denomination	Church of England
Tradition	Evangelical
Administration
Parish	Jesmond, Clayton Memorial
Deanery	Newcastle Central
Archdeaconry	Northumberland
Diocese	Newcastle
Province	York
Clergy
Vicar	Rev David Holloway
Minister	Rev Jonathan Pryke
Minister	Rev Jonathan Redfearn
Assistant	Rev Dr Alan Munden
Other
Director of Music	Mr Chris Edwards
Website	www.church.org.uk

Jesmond Parish Church (JPC), was designed by the architect John Dobson and consecrated in 1861. It is situated in the Jesmond suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne, England.

The church had a slightly unusual beginning. 1856 saw the untimely death of Rev Richard Clayton, Master of St Thomas' Church, Haymarket, and a local evangelical light. In his place the church authorities wished to appoint a successor who didn't share Clayton's concern to teach the bible. A large number of the congregation of St Thomas' were deeply unhappy. A committee was formed with the intention of planting a new church nearby, which "will form a central point for the maintenance and promulgation of sound scriptural and evangelical truth in a large and populous town." At the time, much of the land around the site (which is still JPC's home today) was open fields.

[edit] The church today

Today JPC is a conservative Evangelical Anglican church of approximately 1,000 people. Currently the leadership team of the church includes David Holloway (the vicar since 1973), Jonathan Pryke, Jonathan Redfearn and Ian Garrett. The church is noted for its preaching, which is expository (explaining the Bible) and evangelistic (appealing for a response). Sermons are published on the website and offered as mp3 downloads. Also available are the quaintly named Coloured Supplements, a monthly piece giving incisive Christian comment on social and political issues, normally written by the vicar.

Liturgically the church is conservative, adopting the north side position at services of Holy Communion. ASB Rite A (Prayer Book Pattern) is used. Services of Morning and Evening Prayer are based on the Series 3 forms, and there are monthly 'Family' and 'Informal' Services. Hymns and songs are sourced from a range of books, including 'Songs of Fellowship' and 'Hymns for Today's Church', and some are written by members of the church.

The church has a close relationship with the Christian Institute whose national headquarters are also in Newcastle. David Holloway is a prominent member of the CI and has written many of its annual Christmas messages. Both organisations take a similarly hostile line towards homosexuality, most recently in relation to the legislation on civil partnerships, which has led to the church's services being picketed on a number of occasions by gay rights activists. In October 1999 the church was vandalised with graffiti opposing the church's stance on homosexuality[1].

JPC is a member of Reform, a network of evangelical churches within the Church of England, that includes some of the largest Anglican churches in UK. Other churches with similar theology include: