{"id":62,"date":"2016-06-01T11:49:16","date_gmt":"2016-06-01T11:49:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wpdev\/?page_id=62"},"modified":"2025-05-20T14:30:23","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T14:30:23","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/about","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; color: #c40818;\">Dursley Tabernacle URC<\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">The Tabernacle is located in Dursley town centre at the junction of Kingshill Road and Parsonage Street. It is an historic church with a proud heritage. The church traces its origins to the preaching of George Whitfield in 1742. It founded one of the first Sunday Schools in Britain. The present building dates from 1808. We celebrated our bicentenary by refurbishing the interior of the church and we have good disabled access.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">We aim to be a place of welcome and laughter, of healing and hope, of friends and family and justice and new life.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">It\u2019s where you will hopefully find people learning to pray, coming to faith, working in the community, campaigning for global justice, finding new purpose and a new power to carry it out. \u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">It\u2019s where people bring their own small faith and discover that when they get together with others to worship God, the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">It\u2019s a place where you will find people learning to pray, coming to faith, getting to know God better and becoming more like Him, where people are experiencing new joy, new peace and a new love for others and receiving new value, new purpose and a new power to carry it out. <\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">It&#8217;s a place where you can belong and join in serving the community, campaigning for global justice and sharing life&#8217;s joys and struggles together.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">Why not come and look for yourself.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">Some services are recorded and can be watched <a id=\"OWA02d4790c-5f47-1f2f-c8ff-830407fa9e4a\" class=\"x_x_x_x_x_x_OWAAutoLink\" title=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@dursleytab\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@dursleytab\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\">here<\/a>\u00a0and the words of most sermons can also be viewed <a id=\"OWA28812eb4-1777-74ec-3035-620b889c9f9a\" class=\"x_x_x_x_x_x_OWAAutoLink\" title=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/sermons\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/sermons\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\">here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-62 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-large'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/home\/screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14-36-08'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"727\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-727x1024.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-727x1024.png 727w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-213x300.png 213w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-768x1082.png 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-1091x1536.png 1091w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-1454x2048.png 1454w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-830x1169.png 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-230x324.png 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-350x493.png 350w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08-480x676.png 480w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.36.08.png 1504w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 727px) 100vw, 727px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon portrait'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/home\/screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14-35-55'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"725\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-725x1024.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-725x1024.png 725w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-213x300.png 213w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-768x1084.png 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-1088x1536.png 1088w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-1451x2048.png 1451w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-830x1172.png 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-230x325.png 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-350x494.png 350w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55-480x677.png 480w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Screenshot-2024-10-08-at-14.35.55.png 1502w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 725px) 100vw, 725px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<div id='gallery-2' class='gallery galleryid-62 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-large'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/about\/img_3462'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"937\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-1024x937.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-1024x937.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-300x275.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-768x703.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-830x760.jpg 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-230x211.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_3462-e1464791455212-350x320.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/contact-us\/tabexterior2'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"958\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-1024x958.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-1024x958.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-300x281.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-768x719.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-830x777.jpg 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-230x215.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/tabExterior2-e1464793418403-350x328.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">Dursley Tabernacle is a United Reformed Church, one of the mainstream Christian denominations. More about the URC can be found from their website <a href=\"http:\/\/www.urc.org.uk\"><span class=\"s2\">www.urc.org.uk<\/span><\/a>. We are part of the West Midlands Synod of the URC.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">The Tabernacle is an historic church with a proud heritage. The church traces its origins to the preaching of George Whitfield in 1742. It founded one of the first Sunday Schools in Britain when William King a local factory owner set up a school on Sunday to teach his illiterate workers \u2013 a movement that led Robert Raikes to promote the idea of Sunday Schools worldwide and encourage the movement for free public education. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">Our connection to the welfare of young people continues to this day, not only through our active work with our own church children and young people but also in that our former Parsonage on the back of the church has been converted into the town\u2019s youth centre from where Dursley Town Council runs its youth service.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-226 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-1024x816.png\" alt=\"exterior with sign\" width=\"275\" height=\"218\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-1024x816.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-300x239.png 300w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-768x612.png 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-830x661.png 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-230x183.png 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign-350x279.png 350w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/exterior-with-sign.png 1053w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 275px) 100vw, 275px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_196\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-196\" style=\"width: 278px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-196\" src=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe space\" width=\"278\" height=\"185\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24.jpg 525w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24-230x153.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/24-350x233.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 278px) 100vw, 278px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-196\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;\">Cafe space<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">The church has always had a servant heart for its local community and we encourage our members to make a difference in their local community as they follow Jesus. The church supports and hosts various groups such as the FoodHub, Child Contact Centre, Open Door (Social Club for adults with learning disabilities), Connect-At (youth club for those on the autism spectrum) and a Family Caf\u00e9. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">The present building dates from 1808.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>The Church sanctuary seats 120 people on soft chairs and double that number in the pews and gallery. We have a sound system and digital displays which are used throughout worship and for meetings. Morning worship is a blend between contemporary and traditional, informal and structured styles of worship. We have a fine organ as well as a music group for accompanying hymns and songs. Our preaching is biblical and follows various themes throughout the year. Sermons are usually put on this website <span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\"><a id=\"OWA28812eb4-1777-74ec-3035-620b889c9f9a\" class=\"x_x_x_x_x_x_OWAAutoLink\" title=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/sermons\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/sermons\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\">here<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_81\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-81\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-81 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-300x200.jpeg\" alt=\"Rev Simon Helme\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-1024x682.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-830x553.jpeg 830w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-230x153.jpeg 230w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon-350x233.jpeg 350w, https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/simon.jpeg 1037w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-81\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;\">Rev Simon Helme<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 10pt; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif;\">Our minister, <strong>Simon Helme<\/strong>, has been in Dursley since 2001. He is also the minister of Quarry and Sharpness United Reformed Churches which are part of our pastorate. The leadership of the church is by a team of elders but church members at church meeting have the final authority. We currently have about 120 church members of all ages and between 20-30 children and young people.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>There are various groups and activities within the church to encourage its members in their faith and witness. Please follow the links for details.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Screenshot-2025-05-20-at-15.25.45.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-3180 size-thumbnail\" src=\"http:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Screenshot-2025-05-20-at-15.25.45-e1747751274230-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;\">The Church is part of\u00a0<strong>Churches Together in Cam and Dursley District (<\/strong>CTCDD) which brings together members of Christian Churches from different denominations to witness our faith through active service in the community and joint acts of worship.\u00a0 Our community includes the market towns of Dursley and Cam and rural villages of Coaley, Stinchcombe, Nympsfield and Uley.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cddchurchestogether.weebly.com\/\">https:\/\/cddchurchestogether.weebly.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dursley Tabernacle URC The Tabernacle is located in Dursley town centre at the junction of Kingshill Road and Parsonage Street. It is [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":20,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/page_fullwidth.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-62","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/62","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/62\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3181,"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/62\/revisions\/3181"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dursleytab.org.uk\/wplive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}