Putney Methodist Church

Who we are

We are a friendly Christian community, based in west London. We meet together regularly for organised acts of worship, for prayer, for meditation, for service to others, and for fun! We come from every corner of the globe. Together, we try to worship God in all that we do, and to share the good news of Jesus Christ.

We welcome anyone who is interested in that good news, regardless of their age, ethnicity, gender, sexuality or background. We do not mind where you are on your journey of faith: we believe that we all have so much to learn from one another.

We are members of the Methodist Church of Great Britain. Methodism is part of the Protestant tradition of Christianity and emerged in the 18th Century in England, under the leadership of John and Charles Wesley. Like other denominations, it has a particular heritage and lays especial emphasis on certain parts of Christian faith and practice. These include:

• placing the Bible and preaching at the centre of our worship
• laying great stress on studying the scriptures together and sharing our questions about them openly
• recognising the importance of our experience of the Holy Spirit to help us answer some of the really big questions we face
• loving to sing hymns together!
• emphasising that no-one is beyond the reach of God's love - a deep and meaningful relationship with God is for everyone, not just a chosen few

We also stress that any faith which does not change us and the world for the better, is no real faith at all. As the Bible teaches us: "those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen" (1 John 4:20). This has led Methodists to be involved with all manner of social action projects over the centuries, including children's homes, hospitals, soup kitchens, homeless shelters and many more. Methodists have also been inspired by their faith to participate in the global struggle for justice, from the abolition of slavery in England to the fight against Apartheid in South Africa, and beyond.