St Thomas is a parish set in one of the most densely Jewish communities in Europe. Faith is visible on the streets, woven into daily life, and this created a unique opportunity for Christian witness. The vicar, with a deep interest in contemplative spirituality, sensed there was an appetite across traditions—and even among those with no faith—for spaces of silence, beauty, and depth.

From this discernment came two initiatives. The first was a contemplative mass—gentle, simple, and open—where music and stillness offered an easy way in for those who were curious but unsure. The second took a bolder step: evenings of sung liturgy and adoration, with the church rearranged into a circle around a low altar. For nearly an hour, the community shared in song, silence, and prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. What might once have felt unfamiliar became quietly magnetic for people searching for transcendence—something beyond themselves. Afterwards, they shared kombucha rather than port.

The parish also reimagined its underused spaces. Partnering with a local Christian coffee shop, the front of the church was transformed into a café—an open door where people could linger and belong before being gently drawn deeper into the sacramental life of the church.

Practical support kept it grounded. Weekly staff meetings helped keep momentum, with Petra tackling administration, Karah developing children’s ministry, and Joe bringing vision for regenerating the undercroft into community space. Around the cramped vestry table—sometimes debating which piece of furniture could be moved—the team began to glimpse a future in which the parish was not sinking but sailing again. Above them, a photograph of a Victorian predecessor, once hauled through ecclesiastical courts for his vestments, seemed to smile knowingly down. He too had learned that renewal often means both holding on and letting go.

So began Omega Clapton, a new worshipping community blending sung liturgy, contemplation, and adoration. It is still tender, but it represents something real: Catholic renewal that is both ancient and experimental, contemplative and missional, rooted and adventurous.