Church Photos

Foreword

By John Doxey

[ Born in South Yorkshire and now resides in Sydney Australia ]

 I was fortunate enough in recent times to renew an old acquaintanceship with Keith Barraclough a great and valued friend whom I had lost contact with for over 30 years.

During our exchange of emails I learned that Keith was the present { 2004 }, Parochial Church Council  secretary  and treasurer, also the Deanery Synod Rep. for St. Peter's.

Keith very kindly posted me a copy of a booklet concerning the history of the Church he had produced from information gathered by Peter Ryder who worked for the now defunct South Yorkshire County Council, Archaeological Department.

I was quite surprised to learn that St. Peter's listed as the oldest building in South Yorkshire did not have its own website. I say surprised because the Church has a great historical significance in the area, not only from a religious aspect but also from a general historic view of the lives and times of the people of Conisbrough through the Centuries. I also felt sure that a website containing an history of the Church would be of great benefit to Scholars, Historians, Archaeologist, and anyone with a desire to learn more about the Church and its people.

 Having produced a few websites about three villages seven miles distance from Conisbrough, I then volunteered to produce this website and maintain it.

I volunteered for several reasons, a firm belief that the Church should have a website, the Christians and Churchmen who had maintained Christianity and its Church in Conisbrough through the Centuries deserve to be noted.

If the website created interest and helped persuade people to visit the Church, it maybe would encourage people to join the congregation at the services, and hopefully more help may be gained  towards the cost of maintenance.

I would be helping my old friend, and hopefully lots of new friends.

Indeed I feel privileged with the honour of constructing this website and hope that it will give the Church of St. Peter's and its people the credit they have surely earned.

Keith approached the present Vicar The Rev'd Alan Griffiths  and the Parochial Parish Council with the concept of a website which was warmly received by one and all. It is to the good Rev'd and the Parish council we owe our gratitude for allowing St Peter's Church and its history to be portrayed on the internet.

In recent years the many Christian denominations in England have been reconciled into an acceptance of each other as worshipers of Christ though their beliefs may vary in some aspects. This is known as :-

 Churches Together in England

Baptist Union of Great Britain

Cherubim and Seraphim Council of Churches

Church of England

Church of Scotland

Congregational Federation

Council of African and Afro-Caribbean Churches

Council of Oriental Orthodox Christian Churches

Free Churches’ Council

Greek Orthodox Church

Independent Methodist Churches

Joint Council for Anglo-Caribbean Churches

Methodist Church 

Moravian Church

New Testament Assembly

Religious Society of Friends

Roman Catholic Church

Russian Orthodox Church

Salvation Army

United Reformed Church

Wesleyan Holiness Church

Ichthus Christian Fellowship

International Ministerial Council of Great Britain

This coming together I believe was a great forward movement in making everyone aware that as Christians our paths may take various routes but they all lead to one common destination, God.

While Theologians may continue to theorize and argue about the various aspects of Christianity, this site is not about arguing a point it is simply about the history of a great Christian Church and its Christians. So whatever your belief or creed I hope you enjoy your visit to this the website of St. Peter's,  and that you will take the time to sign the guestbook.

At the back of the booklet produced by the Church is the following prayer and I think it is a very apt welcoming prayer to this site.

John Doxey 24/4/2004

Follow Me

This is the place where people come,

when they are in despair,

To find out if there is a God,

and if so, does he care ?

Many people have entered,

in anguish, grief, or pain,

but once the Lord has met them,

they never doubt again.

He's healed the sick, made lame men walk,

when in faith they came,

and asked the Lord to do these things,

in his son Jesus' name.