by Rev. Antony W. Ball
If you have a very good memory, you may remember me writing this in the October 2021 newsletter:
‘INDEPENDENT CHURCH 1848’ is carved into the stonework on either side of the main door of our church building (note my small c) but our Church (capital C) was ‘born’ at the first Congregational Church Meeting which was on June 14th 1849, although regular services had already been held in the building since September 1848. We were not officially called ‘Isleworth Congregational Church’ until about 1881, although that name was occasionally in use from around 1875. Confused? So you should be! More confusing still is that we celebrate our Church Anniversary neither in June nor September but on the first Sunday in October, which is the traditional date for Churches which are unsure of the date of their foundation. Not entirely coincidentally, the United Reformed Church came into being on the 5th October 1972 and a service was held in our church on that day (I remember it well) at which we celebrated our decision to remain as an independent Congregational Church rather than join the URC.
My reasons for repeating that extract are twofold: firstly, of course, because it is still relevant and secondly because (as you will know if you attend Bible Studies, morning or evening) my brain no longer functions as well as it used to do – presumably simply by reason of age – so I have increasing empathy with others similarly afflicted.