We are a Church of England parish with a strong tradition of music in worship, where all are very welcome. As an ancient Church in the centre of Durham, St Oswald's is a reservoir of peace for all who enter it.

The Sunday Eucharist is at 11:00am, and we have a play and books corner by the font for any younger worshipper who feels a parent or carer would enjoy it there. Evensong is at 6:00pm on Sundays, either in the chancel, or roughly every other week during term time when the usual hymns expand to a full choral setting, in the body of the church. Midweek Holy Communion is at 10:00am on Wednesdays, and the church is usually open from 9:30am till round about 5:00pm (or dusk, if earlier) on weekdays.

Tuesday, 9th June 2026 - Ordinary Time: St Columba (St Columcille), Abbot of Iona, Missionary, 597 [Lesser Festival]; St Ephrem (St Ephraim) of Syria, Deacon, Hymn Writer, Teacher of the Faith, 373 [Commemoration]

Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.’ But he said to him, ‘Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?’ And he said to them, ‘Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.'

Luke 12:13-15, New Revised Standard Version - Anglicized Edition

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God, who didst fill the heart of Columba with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and with deep love for those in his care: grant to thy pilgrim people grace to follow him, strong in faith, sustained by hope, and made one in the love that binds us to thee; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Amen.

Common Worship

A Poem of St Columcille:

Columcille fecit.

Delightful would it be to me to be in Ulster
On the pinacle of a rock,
That I might often see
The face of the ocean;
That I might see its heaving waves
Over the wide ocean,
When they chant music to their Father
Upon the world's course;
That I might see its level sparkling strand,
It would be no cause of sorrow;
That I might hear the song of the wonderful bar
Source of happiness;
That I might hear the thunder of the crowding
Upon the rocks;
That I might hear the roar by the side of the church
Of the surrounding sea;
That I might see its noble flocks
Over the watery ocean;
That I might see the sea-monsters,
The greatest of all wonders;
That I might see its ebb and flood
In their career;
That my mystical name might be, I say,
Cul ri Erin;
That contrition might come upon my heart
Upon looking at her;
That I might bewail my evils all,
Though it were difficult to compute them;
That I might bless the Lord
Who conserves all
Heaven with its countless bright orders,
Land, strand and flood;

From an Irish Manuscript in the Burgundian Library of Brussels, Translated by Michael O'Curry

Wisdom from St Ephraim:

Let nature be thy book, and all creation thy tables; and learn from them the laws, and meditate things unwritten. The sun in his course teaches thee that thou rest from labour. The night in her silence cries to thee that a limit is set to thy works. The earth and the fruit of the tree cry that there is a season for all things.

From Hymns and Homilies of St Ephraim the Syrian by John Gwynn, DD, DCL, Edited by Paul A Boer, Sr

A Collect for the Right Reverend Rick Simpson who was Installed as Bishop of Durham on Sunday, 7th June 2026 at Durham Cathedral:

Almighty God, the light of the faithful and shepherd of souls, who didst call thy servant Rick to be a bishop in the Church, to feed thy sheep by the word of Christ and to guide them by his godly example: give us grace to abide by the faith of the Church and to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Amen.

Common Worship 

A Prayer for all who are Affected by the Outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda:

Heavenly Father,

You are our healer. You restore the sick and comfort people in their suffering.

We bring before you the Ebola virus outbreak in DR Congo and Uganda. Please be with the local authorities and the World Health Organisation as they seek to respond rapidly and effectively. Give them wisdom as they make decisions, provide them with the resources needed for treatment, and help them contain the spread. Protect health workers from the virus and keep them healthy.

For those who are sick, we ask that you would heal them. Give them access to treatment and skilled medical staff. Comfort them in their pain. For those who are suffering the loss of a loved one, be with them in their grief. Make your love known and provide for their daily needs.

We also pray for the church in the regions of DR Congo and Uganda affected by this outbreak. Please give your people opportunities to share Christ’s love as they help the sick and comfort those who are living in fear of being infected.

Lastly, we ask for peace and stability in the region. End political conflict and put people in power that will govern wisely.

Lord God, we ask all this knowing that you can do immeasurably more than we could ask or imagine.

In Jesus’ name we pray, 

Amen.

The National Council of Churches in Australia (Adapted from Anglican Aid)

A Prayer in Celebration of Diversity:

Almighty God, through your Holy Spirit you created unity in the midst of diversity;
We acknowledge that human diversity is an expression of your manifold love for your creation;
We confess that in our brokenness as human beings we turn diversity into a source of alienation, injustice, oppression, and wounding.
Empower us to recognize and celebrate differences as your great gift to the human family.
Enable us to be the architects of understanding, of respect and love;
Through the Lord, the ground of all unity, we pray.

Amen.

Author Unknown 

Durham Diocesan Prayer Cycle Deanery Intention for the Month:

June 2026 - Jarrow Deanery

A Prayer of St Oswald of Northumbria:

Let us kneel together, and pray the true, the ever living and almighty God to protect us in his mercy from the arrogant savagery of our enemies, for he knows that we fight in a just cause for the preservation of our nation.

Amen. 

(Prayed by King Oswald with his Army on the Battlefield on the Eve of the Battle of Heavenfield, AD634)

Saints of the North