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.

***A very warm welcome to all new and returning Durham University students!

Please do join us this Sunday, 11th October 2026 at 11:00am for Sung Parish Eucharist (Common Worship) followed by tea, coffee and biscuits, and/or at 6:00pm for our first service of Choral Evensong (from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer) of the new academic year. This Sunday's Choral Evensong will be a Come & Sing service, to which all are invited.

We look forward to welcoming you in church.***

God of peace, as young people and young adults begin higher education, university, or enter the world of work, may they know your presence with them in this time of change. Grant them courage, wisdom, and confidence and inspire those they encounter to have welcoming hearts.

Amen.

Diocese of Bath & Wells

Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

Romans 15:7, New Revised Standard Version - Anglicized Edition

Sunday, 11th October 2026 - Ordinary Time: The Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity; Prisons Sunday

The Collect of the Day:

O God, forasmuch as without thee we are not able to please thee; mercifully grant, that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; 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 

Verses from the Epistle Appointed for Today's Principal Service:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:4-7, New Revised Standard Version - Anglicized Edition 

A Prayer for Prisons Sunday:

Creator God, you teem in every prison space and in every story; prisoner, victim, family and staff. Your light breaks through the cracks in our broken vessels and the diversity of multi-faith prison chaplaincy. You know the loss that separation brings, yet offer hope that healing is accessible to hurting people and people who cause hurt. Guide your Church toward being a model for institutions that act justly and do not impose harm. See us, Mother of Nature, and forgive our failing to love with the sort of balance Jesus practised. Let us happily carry our share of injustice so that our ministries may relate to the people we are called to serve. 

Amen.

The Reverend Leon Dundas - Minister of Silverton Methodist Church (Exeter), and Managing Chaplain and Care/TRIM Team at HMP Exeter

The Post Communion:

Holy and blessed God, who dost vouchsafe to feed us with the body and blood of thy Son and hast filled us with thy Holy Spirit: grant that we may honour thee not only with our lips but in lives dedicated to the service of Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Amen. 

Common Worship

A Prayer for Black History Month (October 2026):

Loving God, 

You have created all things and by your will they have their being.

We rage at a system that teaches and treats black people as if they are not made in the image of God and created equal.

We seek redress for the years of torment and trauma of being othered.

We repent of a system that still demands black people justify their place in every space.

We pray for your liberating kingdom and kin-dom to come on earth as it is in heaven.

The light of the Lord has come, the glory of the Lord is rising.

Lord, shine and arise within us, as we rise, we rise.

Amen.

The Right Reverend Dr Rosemarie Mallett - Bishop of Croydon (Diocese of Southwark) in Rage & Hope: 75 Prayers for a Better World (Christian Aid), ed. Chine McDonald and Wendy Lloyd, SPCK Publishing, 2021

Durham Diocesan Prayer Cycle Deanery Intention for the Month:

October 2026: Darlington Deanery

A Prayer of St Oswald of Northumbria:

Let us all kneel, and together beseech the true and living God Almighty in his mercy to defend us from the proud and cruel enemy; for he knows that we have undertaken a just war for the safety of our nation.

Amen. 

(Prayed by King Oswald of Northumbria and his army on the battlefield on the eve of the Battle of Heavenfield)