THINGS TO KNOW
WHAT IS IT? Celebration Sunday is a combined, multi-lingual service where members from each of our congregations will be baptised and confirmed.
WHO WILL BE THERE? Everyone!
Our special guest will be Archbishop Kanishka Raffel who will be opening God’s Word with us and conducting the confirmations and some of the baptisms.
We currently have 35 people either being baptised or confirmed on the day and expect over 700 people attending to support and encourage them.
DATE & TIME: Celebration Sunday is on Sunday 27 March at 10am. There will be no other church services on that day – all congregations from all language groups, including youth and children, will be meeting together at 10am.
VENUE: Weather permitting, we will be in the Cathedral carpark, so please bring a hat (and pray for sunshine)! If it rains, we will relocate into the Cathedral with overflows watching on the big screens in the Parish and Marsden Halls. The service will also be livestreamed on the English YouTube channel.
Space for families with children will be available on the lawn – bring a picnic blanket!
MULTI-LINGUAL: All four languages will be spoken and sung throughout the service. All parts of the service will have either a written or spoken translation. Spoken translations can be accessed on your smart phone through LiveVoice on the St John’s app (More Menu / Translation).
Towards the start of the service there will be an interview and prayers spoken in Mandarin. You can access a spoken English translation of the interview through LiveVoice. Just pop your headphones on, open the St John’s app on your phone, and press play. LiveVoice can already be accessed through the St John’s app, so you can find it before the day. Your phone’s internet access must be turned on.
We will practice using LiveVoice during our Sunday services on 20 March.
Other than a song in Chinese and two in Persian, the remainder of the service will be in English.
PHOTOGRAPHY/LIVESTREAM: The service will be livestreamed and photographed, therefore there is a chance that you will be recorded. By attending the event, you agree to being filmed or photographed which may be published electronically or in print. If you do not wish to be filmed or photographed, please speak to one of the ushers before the service begins.
CHILDREN: There will be no Kids’ Church during the service – children are invited to Celebration Sunday and we would love to see them there. The lawn area will be available for families with children who will struggle to sit for an hour and a half – bring your picnic blanket. Please bring activities for your children if they need them.
VOLUNTEERING: There are lots of ways for you to get involved! Listen out during your Sunday service for opportunities.
If you are volunteering, we ask that you attend a rehearsal on Sunday 20 March, 12:30pm in the Cathedral, where you will be given instructions explaining what your team will be doing.
MORNING TEA: We will be serving light refreshments after the service. Due to COVID, we are purchasing commercially prepared items which will be individually wrapped. Bottles of water have been donated. If you would like to show your hospitality by contributing towards the cost of morning tea, please send a donation to the St John’s bank account with the reference “Celebration Morning Tea”.
WHAT SHOULD I BRING?
- Hat and sunscreen
- Smart phone with headphones
- Picnic blanket, if you wish to sit on the lawn
- Activities for your children