A CONGREGATION that invites friends to church for breakfast and children’s games – followed by a snappy family service - has seen attendance rocket by 45 per cent.

Children paint their nails at the Funday Sunday nail bar

A Funday Sunday challenge sees volunteers eating cold spinach and standing in baked beans

Madara Sniedzina, with her children Alex, 4, and Elizabeth, 2, who will be baptised at Funday Sunday

This is Funday Sunday, which happens at St Jude’s Church in Southsea every two months. Worshippers invite families to a fun morning that includes great coffee, bacon sandwiches, and the chance to catch up with the Sunday papers. Children can have their faces painted or their nails varnished, play Wii games and table football.

Families then they enjoy comedy sketches, messy challenges and lively songs during a quickfire, 45-minute presentation about an aspect of Christianity. And they can respond by texting the leaders, and those responses appear on the big screens during the morning.

The usual 200-strong congregation can swell to 350 for Funday Sunday, which is designed to appeal to those who wouldn’t normally come to church. The average increase on Funday Sundays, which has now been running for two years, is 45 per cent. And it’s contributed to an overall increase of 10 per cent at all morning services at St Jude’s during those two years.

Recent Funday Sundays have involved bringing a real sheep into church to illustrate the Parable of the Lost Sheep, dressing as Pompey football fans to show the commitment needed to follow Jesus, and the whole congregation re-enacting the Biblical story of Jesus calming the storm. And the next Funday Sunday will involve some children being baptised as part of a presentation that will try to explain what baptism means. It happens from 10.30am on Sunday 3 March.
 
Every two months, the congregations at St Jude’s are given invitation cards to use, as they ask friends, family and neighbours to join them at what is described as ‘church for those who don’t do church’. Team members lead assemblies at the nearby St Jude’s C of E Primary School and have invited the school choir to sing during services.
 
On the same day as Funday Sunday, St Jude’s Church also holds another evangelistic service entitled ‘Come and See’. This is a chance for worshippers to invite friends to a more traditional service of Choral Evensong or Evening Prayer, followed by tea and cakes. The congregation of around 70 is more than double the number who come to the church’s regular traditional service. And, once again, the service leaders assume those who come know nothing about Christianity.
 
The vicar of St Jude’s, the Rev Mike Duff, said: “This was part of the vision we had to open up what we do at St Jude’s to those who wouldn’t normally come. There is a small team who lead Funday Sunday, none of whom are clergy. We’ve had a professional chef cooking bacon sandwiches and another team of volunteers who run the Wii games, nail-painting, table football and so on over breakfast.
 
“There is a different team who help the clergy to lead Come and See services. Many people who would like to come to church would prefer something more traditional, so we try to make it a more reflective service, but just as welcoming.
 
“I’ve been impressed by our congregation’s willingness to invite their friends and neighbours to join them on our Invitation Sundays. Each time I see dozens of new faces, and we also hear how much people have enjoyed their time with us. Some have chosen to join our regular services, our Alpha courses or our midweek groups.
 
“It all comes out of a desire to share the good news about Jesus, and a willingness to use our Sunday mornings and afternoons for styles of worship that will appeal to those who don’t normally come to church.”
 
Funday Sundays in March, April and June will take a slightly different tack. On those mornings, the team hope to explain more about baptism, Communion and wedding services. On March 3, children will be baptised during Funday Sunday, as the team explain the significance of baptism to guests through drama, activities and songs.

Madara Sniedzina, who originally comes from Latvia, will see her children Alex, 4, and Elizabeth, 2, baptised that day. She said: “I like Funday Sunday because it explains things and makes it easier. I think it will be a more relaxed service for our family and friends.”
 
On April 28, the Funday Sunday team will look at Communion and the symbolism of bread and wine. And on June 30, they’ll re-enact a wedding service to help worshippers understand the vows a couple take before God.
 
Funday Sunday leader Helen Bolton, a mum-of-three, said: “Whenever we have a baptism service, we often have lots of visitors join us on a Sunday morning. We thought it would be good to hold a baptism during Funday Sunday, which is specifically designed to be welcoming. Hopefully, we can help people to understand some of the symbolism that is used, and do so in a fun way.
 
“We also thought that Communion services can be difficult for people to understand if they aren’t used to the language involved. Why is it bread and wine? What do we mean by it being the Body and Blood of Christ? I hope we can make those words come alive for people on the day.”
 
Funday Sunday will happen this year from 10.30am on March 3, April 28, June 30, September 29 and November 24. Come and See services start at 4pm on each of those days. For more information, see www.stjudes-southsea.org.uk