It’s not the usual text for a sermon – but on the day that marks the Holy Spirit coming to earth, a Suffolk-based clergyman boldly based his sermon . . . on a Star Trek!

Canon Jim Pendorf, who is due to soon become vicar of Capel St Mary and Great Wenham, yesterday preached at the two churches taking the Star Trek Voyager series as his theme.

And he went even further by writing words to set to the Voyager theme music written by Jerry Goldsmith.

Star Trek Voyager was the fourth incarnation of the Star Trek franchise, after the original series, the Next Generation, and Deep Space Nine.

It featured a spaceship marooned on the far side of the Galaxy that struggles to find a way home to earth after being flung through a wormhole.

Canon Pendorf’s services co-incide with the release of the latest Star Trek film, Into Darkness, which features a young USS Enterprise crew.

He said: “I’ve always enjoyed the Star Trek series. It always had a moral behind it – I don’t think (creator) Gene Roddenbury was a Christian, but he believed there was more to life than just what is on earth.”

His inspiration for the services came from the title of the new film: “While that is called Into Darkness, I talked about coming Out of Darkness – and that, of course, is what Voyager was all about.

“It was coming out of the darkness on the other side of the galaxy to get home again.”

Canon Pendorf hasn’t seen the new Star Trek film . . . yet. “I hear it is good,” he said – before asking whether it was worth seeing in 3D!