Vision
We are a church of everyday people aiming to live like Christ, through our actions and relationships, as we grow in our love of God together. We strive to be a community where everyone is included and can take part, both in church life and as we connect with local people and projects through our community base.
Who we are
Southampton Vineyard Church began in October 1992 with five people meeting together to worship and minister to one another. From the outset the Vineyard was a major influence with the values and priorities of the movement being very important to the group. In May 1993 the small gathering of people were adopted by St. Albans Vineyard and on April 23rd, 1995, were released as “Central Southampton Vineyard” – a church in their own right.
Matt Hyam led the church from when it began until 2021 and was significant in shaping the church into what it is today. We are grateful for his leadership and his strong Biblical insight and transformation of the church over nearly 3 decades.
Con and Jo Williams are the current Pastors of Southampton Vineyard Church and are seeking to build on the principles and practices which have been laid down in the decades before. Over recent years the church has been considering its connections and place in the local community and in the Vineyard movement due to our evolving progressive and inclusive theology. The church is currently in the process of transitioning from belonging to Vineyard UK and Ireland and to become part of the Oasis Church Network.
There are four characteristics of Oasis Churches that we believe reflect our heart and vision for this church and our place in the community of Bitterne Park, the wider city of Southampton and the world. Read on to find out more:
Full Inclusion
As a church, we’re committed to being a place where everyone is included and can contribute. That means our goal is always full inclusion, especially in relation to the LGBT+ community. Sadly, the church can be a place where those of us who define as LGBT+ are excluded, rejected, and discriminated against, and we’re determined to be different. The love of God compels us to welcome and celebrate anyone, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation. We’re proud to have LGBT+ people involved at every level of what we do, including leadership.
Being an inclusive church isn’t just about sexuality or gender identity, and we’re passionate about growing in all areas of inclusion. We hope to make changes to our building to allow it to be more useable to a wider group of people, including improving the lighting and sound environment to make it a better sensory setting. We try to provide a diversity of experience through our Sunday meetings, knowing that one set service style doesn’t suit everyone. We are keen to improve the accessibility of our environments and gatherings for Neurodiverse children and adults.
An open, progressive theology
We are inspired and motivated by the life, teaching, and example of Jesus and to understand this to the best of our ability. We value contemporary thought and recent biblical understanding, but we do not claim to have all the answers. We value the love of God, the inclusion of all, the ongoing transformation of self, a non-literal and contextual application of the bible, social justice, learning from other sources of wisdom and caring for the earth. Whilst we value difference and welcome people with all kinds of theological beliefs, as a leadership (and as an eventual part of Oasis), we are moving in a progressive direction and we hope you see that lived out in all we do, from Sunday services and how we treat one another, to our community projects and partnerships.
A commitment to social justice
We believe everyone should be able to reach their full potential, and we do whatever we can to enable that. That’s why we engage with and host a range of community activities in the city and through our community base, The Old Chemist. We also support Bethesda Children’s Foundation, a children’s charity in India and run a small project, Bags of Hope, supporting women and children who have had to leave home for a refuge or safehouse because of domestic abuse.
We have a hope that individuals and communities can be transformed, and experience hope and renewal and we want to be part of that in our local area.
An informal church service style and an open table
We believe church should be a place where you can come as you are. So, you don’t need to dress up or know anything before you come – we’ll explain what we’re doing during the service and how you can participate. We always have tea and coffee, often cake and sometimes other food to share too! To find out more about what we do on Sundays, visit our Sunday services page on our website.
Values
How we do things is as important as what we do and that’s where our values come in. They inform and influence how we go about every part of what we do. Here we share more about the Oasis vision goals and values, which echo and reflect what has motivated us and the way this church has been structured for many years.
Intimacy – with God
We believe that we are created for relationship with God. We are called to reflect this through every part of our lives – in our habits and our actions – as we follow and serve Jesus day-by-day; as well as through our regular worship together.
Involvement – in society
We believe that we are invited to partner with God in bringing hope and transformation to all. Our task is to work for this in our own community, and for society as a whole; to help create just and compassionate social, economic, and political structures for the planet and all its people.
Inclusion – of all
We believe that we are made in the image of God, who loves every human being without exception. Our goal is to build an inclusive community that reflects this in our welcome and celebration of all people, whatever our background, social standing, gender, ability, sexuality, or ethnicity.
Interdependence – with each other
We believe that we are created to be community together, just as God is community – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We practice this interdependence through our commitment to giving and sharing our resources with each other, including our money, time, and skills.
Influence – through service
We believe that we are called to reflect God’s character and nature, as it is revealed through Jesus’ life, teaching, and servant leadership. Our task is therefore to imitate Christ; to serve with integrity and joy, rather than to seek power and position for ourselves.