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Worship & Music
St Paul’s Cathedral has been here for over 1,400 years. It has been built and rebuilt five times, and always its main purpose has been as a place of worship and prayer.
Visit Us
St Paul's, with its world-famous dome, is an iconic feature of the London skyline. Step inside and you can enjoy the Cathedral's awe-inspiring interior, and uncover fascinating stories about its history.
Learning & Faith
Education is a core part of the Cathedral's work, delivered through a variety of events by St Paul's Forum, St Paul's Institute and the Schools & Families department.
History & Collections
For more than 1,400 years, a Cathedral dedicated to St Paul has stood at the highest point in the City. The present Cathedral is the masterpiece of Britain's most famous architect Sir Christopher Wren.
Support Us
Behind the scenes, the cost of caring for St Paul's and continuing to deliver our central ministry and work is enormous and the generosity of our supporters is critical.
Venue Bookings
Widely considered to be one of the world’s most beautiful buildings and a powerful symbol of the splendour of London, St Paul’s Cathedral is a breathtaking events venue.
Worship
| 7:30am | Morning Prayer |
| 8:00am | Eucharist |
| 10:00am | Doors open for sightseeing |
| 12:30pm | Eucharist |
| 4:00pm | Last entry for sightseeing |
| 5:00pm | Choral Evensong |
Read Sermons
You can also watch sermons online.
For details of preachers please see our service schedule.
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the persecution of Christians around the world and the upcoming UK election, saying: "If the only way we can take up our cross right now is to use our faith, our intelligence and our vote to campaign for the Kingdom of God, it is a start."
15 February 2015
Sermon preached on the Sunday before Lent (15 February 2015) by the Reverend Prebendary Duncan Ross
The Reverend Prebendary Duncan Ross talks about the challenges we face at Lent and says: "Lent is not just about us and our failings, but about daring to open ourselves to the living God."
The Reverend Dr Gregory Platten discusses the importance of silence and says: "Silence is powerful because it is of God, it is divine."
08 February 2015The Very Reverend David Ison looks at worship and power - not God’s power over us, but the power God gives to us.
01 February 2015The Reverend Marjorie Brown talks about Candlemas and how it reminds us of birth and death, and how they are connected, and of God’s faithfulness at both the beginning and the end of our lives.
11 January 2015The Reverend Will Adam looks at the terror attacks that gripped France in early January 2015, then looking at the Baptism if Christ, which he says "brings about a transformation".
04 January 2015The Reverend Canon Mark Oakley discusses the idea of strangers - from Paddington Bear to Jesus - and concludes that the stranger is not the enemy.
28 December 2014On the Feast of the Holy Innocents, The Very Reverend David Ison looks at innocence, concluding 'this day of commemoration of the innocent challenges those of us with power to repent of the ways in which we ourselves abuse the innocent to make ourselves feel better'.
25 December 2014
Sermon preached on Christmas Day (25 December 2014) by the Very Reverend David Ison, Dean
The Very Reverend David Ison preaches on Christmas Day.
14 December 2014In the second of a special series of sermons entitled Advent: a world turned upside-down, The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel discusses Investing in one another in a world of self-promotion
07 December 2014The Very Reverend David Ison looks at fairness, concluding "God doesn’t do ‘fair’: but God is just, and kind."
In the first of a special series of sermons entitled Advent: a world turned upside-down, The Reverend Canon Mark Oakley looks at Patience in a world of impatience.
16 November 2014The Reverend Guy Treweek looks at risk and fear and concludes 'Our faith journey is impossible on our own'.
Heather Richardson speaks at the Barts Service of Remembrance.
26 October 2014The Reverend Sarah Eynstone looks at the idea of self-worth in society through the story of Jesus' account of the wedding feast to the Pharisee.
12 October 2014The Reverend Aidan Platten discusses the rise of social media and the friendships formed there, but says 'the most sustaining relationships are those that are incarnational'.
The Very Reverend David Ison asks 'do you like hearing stories?' and tells us that 'everyone is welcome to God’s table'.
28 September 201421 September 2014
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel, reveals his favourite Bible story - about the evil tax collector Zacchaeus - and discusses how Matthew the Apostle had also been a 'wicked' tax collector.
14 September 2014
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at sites of Christian worship, notably the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, but concludes that all churches are 'made holy more by prayer than by any artefacts or antecedents'.
Sermon Preached on Holy Cross Day (14 September 2014) by The Reverend Canon
Mark Oakley, Chancellor
In the second of a series looking focusing on William Shakespeare's 450th birthday, Canon Mark Oakley, discusses 'Shakespeare, Tragedy and the Christian: Not in our Stars, but in Ourselves'.
07 September 201431 August 2014
17 August 2014
10 August 2014
03 August 2014
27 July 2014
The Very Reverend David Ison asks 'what do you think about the devil?'
13 July 2014The Reverend Canon Tricia Hillas discusses 'Scarcity and Sufficiency'
15 June 2014The Reverend Prebendary Douglas Dettmer askes:
08 June 2014
Sermon preached on the
Day Of Pentecost (8 June 2014) by the very Reverend
David Ison, Dean
29 May 2014
Sermon preached on
Ascension Day (29 May 2014) by The Reverend Canon
Tricia Hillas, Pastor
The Reverend Canon Tricia Hillas discusses 'Ascension: Absence, Presence and more than a Brief Encounter'.
25 May 2014The Right Reverend Christopher Herbert (Bishop of St Albans, 1996-2009) discusses the Beauty of God.
18 May 2014The Right Reverend Tom Butler (Bishop of Southwark. 1998-2010) describes an alternative to the current Anglican Covenant and concludes 'it might not be the new Jerusalem...but...it might be a decent suburb of it'.
14 May 2014
Sermon
preached on the Feast of Matthias
(14 May 2014) by the Reverend Canon
Tricia Hillas,
Pastor
The Reverend Canon Tricia Hillas discusses 'h
11 May 2014
Sermon
preached on the Fourth Sunday
of Easter (11 May 2014) by the
Very Reverend David Ison,
Dean
04 May 2014
The Right Reverend John Gladwin (Bishop of Chelmsford, 2004-2009) looks at the position of the Church in society and says "the Church has a rich and unrivalled resource in its faith and history for making a vital and critical contribution."
27 April 2014The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the difficulty we face in proving God's existence and concludes 'I have received too much evidence that Jesus is the Messiah to have the luxury now to deny it'.
20 April 2014
Sermon
preached
on
Easter
Sunday
(20
April
2014)
by The
Reverend
Canon
Michael
Hampel,
Precentor
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at gratitude and says that we should all 'resolve to be more grateful to God and more affirming of each other.'
17 April 2014
Sermon
preached
on
Maundy
Thursday
(17
April
2014)
by
the
Reverend
Canon
Michael
Hampel,
Precentor
On Maundy Thursday, The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at leadership and says it is 'not about crowns and coronets but about towels and basins'
06 April 2014
Sermon
preached
on
the
Fifth
Sunday
of
Lent
(6
April
2014)
by
the
Very
reverend
David
Ison,
Dean
How well do you get on with your family, friends and neighbours?
04 April 2014How do you choose your Master, Prime Warden or Upper Bailiff? Or your Lord Mayor? And how much does it matter who gets chosen? Is it simply about seniority and willingness, and ability to wear gorgeous robes and big hats with dignity? Or is our capacity to lead, our ability to enable others, at the heart of the office which we hold?
16 March 2014
Sermon
preached
on
the
Second
Sunday
of
Lent
(16
March
2014)
by
the
Reverend
Canon
Philippa
Boardman
'Counting the Cost'
09 March 2014The Country and Western singer Mac Davis may not be a household name but his song 'O Lord it's hard to be humble
05 March 201404 March 2014
02 March 2014
'Don't do something – just sit there'
23 February 2014The Very Reverend David Ison looks at the different ways we approach our lives and concludes that that 'God looks to the good of the whole and sees us as a creation to be loved rather than a problem to be solved'.
16 February 201409 February 2014
02 February 2014
26 January 2014
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at prophecy and testimony and concludes that they are the 'vehicles whereby divine and human encounter one another'.
19 January 2014The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at truth and revelation and concludes 'God has been in the business of revelation from the beginning of the world'.
05 January 201429 December 2013
22 December 2013
The Very Reverend David Ison looks at Heaven and says 'Heaven starts now by building our relationship with God in Jesus Christ through prayer, worship and service.'
15 December 2013The Very Reverend David Ison discusses hell and says 'God is not Mr Nice or Mr Nasty - God is Mr Love.'
08 December 2013Christina Rees speaks about the awkwardness of Advent and asks 'as we contemplate the Second Coming, for what am I still waiting and watching?
The Very Reverend David Ison looks at judgement and says 'it’s learning to judge ourselves truly that’s the basic life skill'.
01 December 2013The Very Reverend David Ison discusses death and says that it is love and relationships that give our life meaning in the face of death.
24 November 2013Samuel 8: 4-20 John 18: 33-37
27 November 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at inclusivity, referring to the vote on women bishops and Jesus' representation in Holman Hunt's 'The Light of the World'.
19 November 2012
12 November 2012
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the human quest for life by focusing on the often ignored statue to the Kinder Transport at Liverpool Street Station.
08 November 2012'Shemas and shibboleths'. The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel, Precentor, looks at the 'extraordinary' behaviour of religious people and Jesus' response to the hierarchy of the Commandments.
23 October 2012The Very Reverend Dr David Ison looks at the meaning of the Sabbath, Pharisees and how complex issues can’t be resolved by simply quoting individual texts.
16 October 2012The Right Reverend Michael Colclough looks at Jesus' meeting with a stranger asking how he could inherit eternal life, and how Jesus wanted to love the man into the Kingdon of Heaven, but in the end the important thing was what the man wanted.
30 September 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the idea we all go to heaven or hell, and asks, 'is it that simple?'.
19 September 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at risk taking under the dome of St Paul's Cathedral and how there is no desire to bury our heads in the sand.
17 September 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the natural human instinct to take sides, but that 'sitting on the fence' allows people of faith to focus entirely on God.
28 August 201226 August 2012
Professor Peter McCullough looks at both the simplicity and complexity of sharing, as well as what we mean by 'communication'.
05 August 2012The Dean of St Paul's looks at passion and sex in the Bible, particularly in the Song of Songs.
The Dean of St Paul's looks at the Olympic crowds and says that in his day, Jesus was the crowd-puller - the 'attraction that people wanted to see'.
01 August 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at Miracle and Parable - and asks, are they two sides of the same coin?
30 July 2012The Dean of St Paul's looks at the power of crowds, focusing on the summer riots of 2011 and the uplifting nature of the Olympic Torch.
23 July 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the life of Mary Magdalene – the First Apostle
17 July 2012
Sermon
preached
on
the
sixth
Sunday
after
Trinity
(15
July
2012)
by
The
Reverend
Andrew
Hammond
'Daring to be Christian'. The Revd Andrew Hammond preaches his last sermon as Succentor of St Paul's before moving to his new ministry as Vicar of St Mary, Willesden.
16 July 2012‘God be with you till we meet again.’
08 July 2012
Sermon
preached
on
the
fifth
Sunday
after
Trinity
(8
July
2012)
by
The
Reverend
Canon
Michael
Hampel
04 July 2012
Congratulations to the Friends of St Paul's in this its 60th anniversary year: a truly Elizabethan organisation.
02 July 2012The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at mixing religion and politics, and asks whether there is 'too much democracy'.
18 June 2012This may possibly be the shortest text for a sermon that you will hear for some time. It is the word ‘see’ - the first word of our first lesson.
25 May 2012What is this event about? It's important for this cathedral and for its ongoing story: another chapter unfolds. But this is a very minor footnote in the unfolding of the kingdom of God: the important thing isn't what we do this evening, but what will we do as a result of it, together.
08 May 2012
Sermon
preached
on
the
fifth
Sunday
of
Easter
(6
May
2012)
by
The
Reverend
Canon
Michael
Hampel
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at
04 May 2012
Sermon
preached
on
2
May
2012
by
The
Right
Reverend
and
Right
Honourable
Dr
Richard
Chartres
30 April 2012
Sermon
preached
on
the
fourth
Sunday
of
Easter
(29
April
2012)
by
The
Reverend
Canon
Michael
Hampel
The Reverend Canon Michael Hampel looks at the 'conversation' we have with God using the three best known sets of text in the Church of England - the King James