St. Aidan, Little Chalfont

Introduction

Local architect A H Archard designed Saint Aidan's Church in Little Chalfont, and the building opened in 1964.

Architecture and furnishings

Saint Aidan's Church in Little Chalfont includes a side chapel also used as a weekend creche, along with a spacious sanctuary and a spacious narthex. Saint Aidan's Church in Little Chalfont has a 2006 Johannus digital organ with two manuals, a pedal keyboard, 38 speaking stops and an American Guild of Organists console, each note a recording of a real pipe.

A memorial book beneath the statue of Our Lady in Saint Aidan's Church in Little Chalfont records the names and locations of ashes interred in the parish burial place. A small area of land near the parish hall entrance at Saint Aidan's Church in Little Chalfont is set aside as a burial place for ashes after cremation.

Music and liturgy

The music groups aim to lead congregational singing in a way that lets people of every musical ability join in. The music groups draw on further instrumentalists and on audio and vision technology. The music group supplies MP3 learning tracks and downloads of sheet music and words, and it generally skips practice apart from short sessions after Mass ahead of major feasts. Someone learning the organ with a professional teacher may practise on the church organ when they contribute to the music at Mass in a way suited to their stage of development.

Parishioners from the Philippines sometimes help to lead some of the singing. Children's liturgy sessions have been stopped for the time being because of low numbers.

Parish life

Some twenty nationalities are represented in the parish, and Poles are the largest group. A Mass on Sunday is celebrated in Polish.

Mass can be watched by live stream on the parish YouTube channel. Mass is usually streamed at one weekend Mass. The parish council keeps minutes of its meetings.

Sacraments and pastoral care

The parish, with the other parishes of the SE Bucks Pastoral Area, offers the SmartLoving/Engaged Marriage Preparation Course, which married couples from the pastoral area deliver. Parents have been required to attend a preparation course of 3 sessions of approximately 1 hour before a baptism in the parish.