What to expect at an Episcopal service

It can be a little intimidating walking into a church for the first time. Or maybe it’s just been a long time and a lot has changed.

BEFORE AND AFTER THE SERVICE

Before the service it is our custom upon entering church to kneel in one’s pew for a prayer of personal preparation for worship. If the service has already started, we join in without kneeling. It is also our custom to bow to the altar on entering and leaving the church as an act of reverence.

COMING AND GOING

Our Greeters and Ushers will welcome you and may escort you to a pew. If you desire, they will answer your questions about the service. Following the service our priest greets the people as they leave.

THE PLACE OF WORSHIP

As you enter, you will notice an atmosphere of worship and reverence. Your eye is carried immediately to the altar, or holy table, and to the cross. So, our thoughts are taken at once to Christ and to God whose house the church is.
On or near the altar there are candles to remind us that Christ is the “Light of the World” (John 8:12). On most Sundays there are flowers to beautify God’s house and to help us recall the resurrection of Jesus.

THE ACT OF WORSHIP

Episcopal services are congregational. Your Order of Service includes prayers, hymns, and other information you will need during the service.

You may wonder when to stand or kneel. Practices vary—even among Episcopalians.
The general rule is to stand while we sing—hymns and other Praise Songs (many of these are from the Holy Bible.) We also stand as we say our affirmation of faith, the Creed; and for the reading of the Gospel and during the Holy Eucharist, when noted.
We sit during readings from the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament Letters, the sermon, and the choir anthems. We stand or kneel/sit for prayer to show our gratitude to God for accepting us as children or as an act of humility before God. The readings change each Sunday. Some of the prayers also change, to provide variety and to suit the season.

Please do not be embarrassed to ask your neighbor in the pew for help. You will find the services beautiful in their ordered dignity, God-centered, and yet mindful of the nature and needs of newcomers.

In many Episcopal churches you will find a Book of Common Prayer (BCP) and Hymnal(s).

WHAT CLERGY WEAR

To add to the beauty and festivity of the services, and to signify their special ministries, the clergy and other ministers wear vestments.

One familiar vestment is the alb, a white tunic with sleeves that covers the body from neck to ankles. Over it ordained ministers wear a stole, a narrow band of colored fabric. Deacons wear the stole over one shoulder, priests and bishops over both shoulders.

At the Eucharist a bishop or priest frequently wears a chasuble (a circular garment that envelopes the body) over the alb and stole.
The color of stoles, chasubles, and altar coverings change with the seasons and holy days of the Church Year. The most frequently used colors are white, red, blue, and green.

WHAT DO EPISCOPALIANS BELIEVE?

The beliefs of Episcopalians can be considered quite diverse. The official standard of worship and belief for Episcopalians is defined in the Book of Common Prayer.

The Creeds: The two ecumenical creeds, both Nicene and Apostles’, are used by the Episcopal Church in its worship day by day and week by week. They are the ancient and universal statements of Christian faith.

The Episcopal Church also has a Catechism which summarizes the faith in question and answer format.

The Book of Common Prayer(BCP) is the primary prayer book used throughout the Anglican communion. Rich with language and heritage, the BCP is something which unifies Anglicans around the world.

YOU WILL NOT BE EMBARRASSED

When you visit us, you will be our respected and welcomed guest. You will not be singled out in an embarrassing way. You may be asked to let us know that you are a visitor, but the option to respond is yours.

Should you wish to know more about the Episcopal Church or how one becomes a member, the priest will gladly answer your questions and suggest the way to membership.

Come Join Us!