Beating the Bounds of the Parish

Please note: This activity requires a moderate level of mobility, we will be walking for a few hours, please take this into consideration before booking.

Please join us at 2pm on Sunday 17th November outside St James’ Church to Beat the Bounds of St James Parish. Though most of us live outside the Parish, our church is in the centre of the great city of Sydney, amidst the parliament, law courts, libraries, galleries, workplaces and shops. The streets we walk are shared with workers, shoppers, tourists and those who sleep rough.  So we will stop at various places along the way to pray for our city and its people, remembering that God’s redemptive purposes encompass not just our church but the whole of creation.  And that God is just as present and active in our city during the week as on Sunday.  

The beating of Parish bounds has a long history in the Church of England, being important for determining rights of burial and taxation, but it also involved prayer for divine blessing upon the harvest.  The harvest within our Parish is no longer corn, but we can still pray for the fruitfulness of all work that goes on in our city.  There were concerns at various times about participants reveling too much in ale houses along the route and perhaps we will leave that until after our walk is completed.  Bring your stick or bush to help with the beating.