About Us
St Mary's is one of the most beautiful mediaeval country churches in Norfolk and we are delighted to welcome you. It is, unlike many English churches, light and airy and, for a small village, surprisingly large. It has chairs instead of pews which makes it very flexible and easy to use for other church events and concerts as well services. High above you is the hammer beam roof for which this church is famous with its ranks of colourful angels. The story has it that this was raised to celebrate Henry V's victory at Agincourt in 1415.
Open every day of the year
When you come to the church – we are easy to find – please just come in. The church is open during daylight hours every day of the year. Walk round or just sit quietly. The church is designed for silence and for prayer, something rather rare in our noisy world.
When you pray you are surrounded by the angels and saints of which ours are but a few. Prayer does not have to use words; the building itself is a sort of prayer book.
If you want to see us as we are, come on a Sunday at 10am. See Services for a detailed calendar and any occasional variation in the time and location of our Sunday service.
You will find us gathered for our main weekly service of worship, The Parish Eucharist. The Eucharist, which simply means thanksgiving, is also sometimes called Mass, Holy Communion or The Lord's Supper.
It doesn’t matter if it is unfamiliar to you. Its form is very ancient but its purpose straightforward.
We come, to say sorry – to confess our wrongdoings during the week past
We come to hear the sacred words of the bible and think how they might apply in our our own lives
We come to pray for the needs of the world
And we come to share in a sacred meal, in remembrance of Jesus’s last supper with his friends and the fact that he laid down his life for us
Christians of all traditions are welcome to share in this ‘communion’ with him.
The Church of Our Lady Saint Mary is an inclusive church within the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the Church of England. It is part of the Benefice of North Creake, South Creake with Waterden, Sculthorpe, and Syderstone with Barmer, within the Diocese of Norwich.
We fully support and accept the ordination of both men and women as deacons, priests and bishops in the Church of England and in the wider Anglican Communion. We welcome everyone to the family of our church regardless of their race, age, physical ability, gender, or sexuality.
We have our own website www.southcreake.org which is comprehensive and up-to-date.
Our vicar is Fr Clive Wylie SCP.
St Mary's dates mainly from the 15C although the Chancel is of 13C construction. The nave roof (which was raised to commemorate the victory at Agincourt) is single hammer beam with painted angels supporting arched braces. The wine goblet pulpit dates from 15C as does the perpendicular Seven Sacrament Font. Medieval pew ends have recently been made into fine pews in the Chancel.