New Family ChurchIGREJA NOVA FAMÍLIA
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About us

Our story

New Family Church was born out of a need the Holy Spirit made clear: for the new family of Christ to be made visible in a foreign land, where immigrants could feel connected by the blood of Jesus. Brothers and sisters by blood, and that blood is the blood of Jesus. Here we learn to love and support one another, so that we can care not only for ourselves but also for our English friends and people of other nationalities who join us, integrating into English culture in a way that lets Christian truth and values flourish.

Our mission

New Family Church is a church in Hampshire, UK, serving its local community through weekly Sunday services in Winchester, dedicated men's, women's, youth and children's ministries, a midweek discipleship group online, and pastoral care for members and families. The church operates bilingually in English and Portuguese, so it is also able to serve Portuguese-speaking residents in the area who would otherwise have no local church in their own language.

Our vision

NEW FAMILY CHURCH VISION: "HOME AWAY FROM HOME"

A new family for immigrants in Hampshire

Ministry is a response, not an imposition.

  1. We want people to see Christ before they see us: to feel our hands but know it is Jesus touching them, to hear our voices but know it is the Spirit speaking.

  2. We want this church to be a home away from home, especially for immigrants. Our belonging is not based on nationality or country, but on our identity as God's people, living as a practical reminder to our English brothers and sisters that we are all "strangers and exiles on the earth" (Hebrews 11:13), journeying together toward our true home in Zion as a newfound family in Christ.

  3. We want to build a bridge between the past and the future, honouring what God has done in us and through us in our home countries, while embracing the future He has for us here as we say "yes" to whatever God has for us next: being Christlike friends and family to our English neighbours, and giving thanks for His faithfulness.

  4. We want teaching that is rooted in Scripture and empowered by the Holy Spirit, never manipulative or authoritarian. And we want this same Spirit-led truth to shape our daily lives, our relationships and every act of service.

  5. We want our church to be a place of healthy, joyful, Spirit-filled service. Volunteers should be equipped, pastored and appreciated, serving as a response to what they have found in Christ, not to earn God's love or impress others. True service flows from agape love, which gives and expects nothing in return, because it has found everything in Christ.

  6. We want to affirm that family is part of each person's calling. Ministry decisions should always consider roles such as husband, wife, parent or child, honouring the family as a sacred responsibility.

  7. We want to be a church that makes sense for what God is doing in, through and for the immigrant, reaching people where they are. We know immigrants work hard and time is scarce, and making room for both home life and church life can become just one more weight, a goal that is never reached. So we want the rhythm of our church to be light: gatherings that count, and time together that is a priority and truly worth it, leaving room for the Spirit to work in, through and for each person. We want church life to serve and bless the immigrant rather than burden them, becoming a choice for spiritual health that blesses their family and, through them, their community.

  8. We want every person to discover and grow in their God-given gifts, and in the new gifts the Spirit desires to develop, for the purpose of lifting the name of Jesus above every name.

  9. We want to move together as one body under the voice of Jesus, our Good Shepherd. As leaders, we are not the voice: we follow the voice, and seek to bring heaven to earth by aligning every decision with His will.

  10. We want to cultivate dependence on God's work, not our own. Only the Spirit can convict and transform hearts. Our role is not to control, but to listen and join what God is already doing. Jesus fulfilled the law by becoming it, and now He works in us and through us what we never could on our own.

  11. We believe in biblical eldership and will appoint elders prayerfully and responsibly as the church grows in maturity.

  12. We want to be a church open to anyone and everyone, but not to anything and everything. Every need, question and desire will be met with the one answer that is Jesus Christ. We want to be loving, patient and gracious toward those who think or sin differently from us, creating a space where the faithful exposition of Scripture and the power of the Holy Spirit bring conviction, and where our love for one another convinces the unbeliever.

  13. We want to raise teenagers who know sound doctrine and their calling, preparing them to serve in ministry and to face the world wherever they are sent, clothed in Christ and filled with the Spirit.

  14. We want our children to be taught sound doctrine in ways appropriate to their development, so they grow up protected, seeing the world through the lens of Scripture, knowing that they do not belong to the world they find themselves in, but are the salt and light it needs.

  15. We want every believer to understand that we are sinners saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and that this gives us:

    • A new family: adopted children of God, with one true Father and a community of brothers and sisters.
    • A new status: fully loved and accepted, not because of what we have done but because of what Christ has done.
    • A new future: shaped by God's dreams, not ours, learning to desire what He desires and to seek His kingdom first.

  16. We want to cultivate worship that is honest, Spirit-led and bilingual, celebrating how God has revealed Himself through Brazilian and Portuguese culture, while embracing His unique expressions in British and global traditions. Always Christ-centred, never self-centred.

  17. We want to engage in social care and practical ministry, uniquely shaped by who we are and by the needs of our people, serving widows, the poor and foreigners as God raises up people with the calling and heart to lead. This includes:

    • Cultural integration, translation and legal support: walking with newcomers through the challenges of immigration, language and culture, offering trustworthy guidance, relational support and a safe place to belong.
    • Language learning: English classes for adults and Portuguese for children, building bridges between generations and cultures.
    • Emergency babysitting: short-term help through trusted, properly qualified volunteers for families in crisis, reflecting the care of a spiritual family.
    • Practical, emotional and spiritual care: biblical counsel, prayer and support for families in financial, relational or emotional difficulty, through ministries to women, men, children, youth, the elderly and interest groups (such as delivery drivers, the arts and sport).

We gather. We scatter.

We gather on Sundays and scatter during the week, through small groups and online discipleship.

Leadership

Pastor Renan Fernandes is the Lead Pastor of New Family Church and leads the church together with his wife, Angel Fernandes, who also leads Filhas da Casa, our women's ministry.

They are supported by the church's Leadership Council, together with their families:

Our organisation

New Family Church (Igreja Nova Família), registered charity in England and Wales, number 1219260.