We're well into this term's study of worship and liturgy and recently looked at why people don't come to church regularly. Our list of reasons included other activities on a Sunday morning, a preference for one particular form of worship, a faith that's not shared by a spouse, plus infirmity and lack of transport. We also spent some time thinking about people who say that though they believe and are Christians they don't go to church. I can have some sympathy for the point of view that there is much about church life that is both irrelevant and hypocritical. I can also relate to the thought that good things and good deeds do not only happen in church. Indeed most good things and good deeds happen outside the church. Jesus carried out very little of His preaching and teaching inside temples, and none of the recorded miracles took place in a church.

So what is the purpose of church? Is it a fair comment to say that people do not have to go to church to be a Christian? If organised Christianity went all out to follow the teachings of Jesus, the churches would be even emptier than they are now. We would all be so busy rushing around the parish helping others that we would have very little time for organised church services. That in no way lessens the importance of church. I have grown to believe that most people who say that they do not go to church misunderstand the purpose of worship. I say that having spent my early adult years worshipping God in my own way and rarely venturing inside a church. Psalm 84 now better reflects my views and is a wonderful description of church - not only as a place in which to stand aside from the world, praise God and share fellowship but also to be part of God's people.

I am now convinced that we are not meant to be solitary Christians, travelling alone on a path as we try to follow the teachings of Jesus. In Hebrews 10:25-39 the writer stresses the importance of meeting together. We go to church to worship God and to encourage each another. It is this bond of friendship between believers that guides our paths and strengthens our resolve as Christians.

A church is not just a building. A church is a group of believers who worship and meets together. The building in which they meet could be a cathedral, a tiny church or even a private home; after all Acts 2:42-47 tells us that is where Christians usually met together in the early days - and some still do. It is the authentic companionship of believers that is the strength of the church - not the thickness of its walls. So whenever you pass a building that has a sign outside giving the name of the church, remember that the title refers to those who meet there, not the building. Although a church is usually referred to as 'God's house', believers are not a building but a group of people. (see Ephesians 2:14-22) Those people are meeting for worship, fellowship and encouragement - something we all need in these days of doubt, concern and despair.