Reading's most popular secular 'church' Sunday Assembly Reading delivered a £200 cheque to Launchpad, a local charity striving to prevent homelessness in Reading.
Sunday Assembly Reading is part of an international movement to develop congregational community as a secular celebration of life, using live music, games, science, and the humanities.
Lynda Chater, their treasurer, explained that the "Help Often part of the Assembly's motto is very important, and we've long supported Launchpad in its important work. This time we arranged a bring-and-buy sell to make good use of those unwanted Christmas presents".
The Assembly has been flourishing for over 5 years and attracts a diverse membership. Stephen Paul, who leads the Assembly, explained some of the philosophy behind the Assembly, "Traditional churches are in decline because of their regressive social views and people are just not open to supernatural explanations anymore. But churches can do something special and that is creating community, and society can reap substantial psychological and physiological benefits from that. Sunday Assembly steals the best ideas from the church but packages the experience in an exciting inclusive way - the best party you'll find on a Sunday morning." The next Assembly is at The Reading Irish Centre on the 17th March where Dr Katie Cooper will be talking about fossils and the pioneering work of Mary Anning, as part of Reading Science Week.