Saint Matthias Episcopal ChurchVisitor's Center
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AskThePriest.org
Father Matthew's Youtube Channel
Jesus was an Episcopalian (That's a tounge-in-cheek title, not a truth claim!)
The 1979 Book of Common Prayer
Q: What can I expect as a visitor? What is your worship like at St. Matthias?
A: Let's take this at three levels:
1. The person who has very little church experience.
2. The person who is from a different Christian tradition.
3. The experienced and obsessive Episcopal Church Geek.
1. I've never been in a church. I don't know a lot about Jesus or the Bible. What can I expect?
Let's start with some promises on our part:
A. You will not be singled out. At no point will you be asked to stand up alone or sign anything. You are our guest, and you will be treated as such.
B. We will not attempt to brainwash you. Episcopalians believe that doubt and intellectual inquiry are a fundamental part of a healthy Christian faith. There are no topics in faith, including the Bible, that are off-limits or hidden from vigorous scrutiny. Our tradition is one that has long valued scientific discovery and we see no inherent conflict between the life of faith and science. Our current Presiding Bishop, Katherine Jefferts-Schori, was a research oceanographer before she entered ministry.
C. You will not be pressured to give money. While we do take up a collection every week to help support the ministry of the church, it is certainly not an emphasis. If you don't have any money, just pass the plate without any embarrassment. Most of our members give on a monthly basis and many through on-line bill pay, so not everyone puts something in the collection plate every week. Don't sweat it.
D. You will not be laughed at if you don't do the right thing at the right time. Our people come from various traditions, and some stand at some points while some kneel. Some cross themselves at various points, and others don't. So most of the time, there is not one correct thing to do. Just follow along as best you can and find what works for you.
E. There are no stupid questions. If I were to come into your house and need to find the bathroom, would I be expected to know exactly where it was without asking? Of course not. It's the same at St. Matthias. Not only will you need help finding the bathroom (which seems cunningly hidden sometimes) but you may need help with the bulletin or have other questions. Please ask without embarrassment.
let's move on. What will happen during the service?
Our services are based in the shared tradition of the western church. While our services are in modern English (except for the 8am which preserves the beautiful Elizabethan language of our prayer book tradition) they reflect two thousand years of church tradition. When you participate in our services, you are encountering God in a manner shared by billions of people across the world and through time. Allow yourself to experience the timeless connection to God reflected in our worship.
We will sing. Episcopalians love to sing, no matter how good we are at it. Join in with gusto. We will read Scripture. Through the use of a lectionary, the vast majority of the Bible is read aloud in small snippets over a three year cycle. Each service includes a reading from the Hebrew Scriptures,a Psalm, a reading from the Christian Testament, and from the Gospels. This is followed by a sermon of about eight to twelve minutes. If you get bored, feel free to flip through the Book of Common Prayer or even surf the web. We say the Nicene Creed. The creed is a poetic statement of the faith of the church, not an individual intellectual affirmation. It is a starting point for speculation about God rather than an end product. We pray for the church, the world, and our society. By holding up our concerns before God, we remind ourselves of the needs of those around us and ourselves, and we commit ourselves to working for a just society. We confess our sins. We do this with a shared text as a congregation (You will not be asked to voice your individual sins, nor will anyone else), acknowledging that we often fall short of what God would like from us. The priest pronounces God's absolution, reminding us that we are never beyond God's love. We pass the peace. We greet one another, reflecting our gladness in Gods love and forgiveness. We celebrate the Eucharist. The priest prays over the bread and wine on the congregations behalf, asking Jesus to be present in it. We take the bread and wine as a re-participation in Jesus' last night before his crucifixion. The priest pronounces a blessing. Then we go out into the world where the real work of Christian life occurs. Being a Christian is not primarily about church on Sunday. It is about living our lives in such a way that we daily reflect the love of God we have been shown. We strive to do that in our daily lives.
No matter where you are on your journey of faith, you will be welcome at St. Matthias. You will not be judged, you will not be shaken down, you will not be embarrassed.
2. I've been a part of another Christian tradition. What can I expect?
First of all, welcome! Episcopalians consider themselves only one part of the universal church, and should you choose to sojourn with us, your experience as a Christian from another tradition will be considered a strength. We accept the sacraments of other churches as valid, including baptism and confirmation.
We are a western liturgical church, descended from the Church of England but completely self governing. The association of daughter churches of the Church of England is called the Anglican Communion and is the third largest family of churches in the world. We are often thought of as a "Bridge Church" between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism in light of to the unique way the Protestant Reformation happened in England. Due to the ecumenical liturgical consensus reached during the last century, most western liturgical worship is very similar. Lutherans and Roman Catholics will find our services at least somewhat familiar.
Our central act of worship is the Holy Eucharist, also called Holy Communion or The Mass. All baptized Christians are welcome to partake of the bread and wine. Episcopalians believe that the true presence of Christ enters the bread and wine during the Eucharistic prayer, but we do not subscribe to any particular philosophical definition of how this happens, such as transubstantiation or consubstantiation.
The Episcopal Church preserves the historic three-fold orders of ordained ministry (Bishop, Priest, and Deacon) as handed done to us from the Church of England and the Scottish Episcopal Church. People of either gender may be ordained to all three orders and may be married. The emphasis on lay participation in all levels of our church governance is a hallmark of our polity.
Episcopal understanding of authority is based in the Anglican sources of Scripture, Tradition, and Reason. We hold Scripture to be the Word of God as mediated through human authors, but that requires interaction with the church of the past and our own God-given mental faculties to interpret.
We are a creedal, rather than a confessional church, meaning that we take the Apostles and Nicene creeds as the basis of our faith rather than a confessional statement or a catechism. The 1979 Book of Common Prayer contains our liturgies and can be considered a repository of our theology, but it allows a great deal of latitude. Episcopalians have a lot of theological diversity. You will find Episcopalians whose theology is similar to Roman Catholics, or to Eastern Orthodox, or to Evangelicals, or to Pentecostals. You will also find a diversity of political opinion in the Episcopal Church. We are united in our common worship of God in the holy and undivided Trinity.
In the matter of persons with same-gender affections, the Episcopal Church is engaged in a passionate and lengthy debate about the propriety of blessing relationships and ordaining individuals in those relationships. Policy currently varies from place to place. However, what is absolutely clear is that people with same-gendered affections are beloved children of God who may be full members of the church and deserve access to the sacraments.
3. I'm an experienced and obsessive Episcopal Church Geek. Gimme the nerdy details!
A: St. Matthias is a parish with Anglo-Catholic roots. our worship currently reflects the breadth of Worship of he Episcopal Church, using as much of the Book of Common Prayer as possible and all of the church's musical supplements.
Our "Primary" worship service is a Rite II Eucharistic Service service at either 10:15am in the winter or 9:30am in the summer. In addition, we offer a combination Evening Prayer/Holy Eucharist Rite II service at 5pm on Saturdays and a Rite I service at 8am on Sundays. During Ordinary time, we use Eucharistic Prayers I and A due to their link to historic Anglican books of common prayer. during Advent our Rite II services switch to Prayer B due to it's theme of expectant waiting, and move from using the Gloria to a Trisagion. During Lent we use Prayer C due to it's penetential tones and switch to a Kyrie. During Christmas, Easter and high holy days we use Prayer D due to it's ancient source and ecumenical status. At our 8am Sunday Service, we use prayer II during Easter and Christmas.
There is music at the 5pm and Primary Sunday service. Our Director of Music and Parish Musician collaborate to use a wide variety of sources from the Hymnal 1982, the various Episcopal supplements, and from other sources such as the Roman Catholic "Gather," the Moravian Book of Worship, and others. Organ, piano and guitar are all used to accompany our praise. Since we use an all-inclusive bulletin, this is simple to accomplish. The Primary Sunday service is a sung Eucharist all year round, with the Gospel being chanted during Christmas and Easter. Psalms are chanted using methods such as Plainsong, Anglican Chant, Simplified Anglican Chant and other settings throughout the church year.
The choir assists in leading worship during the school year, and offers anthems from various sources both ancient and modern. The handbell choir is an integral part of celebrations of high holy days.
Incense is used on high holy days. The rector always gives the congregation due warning on that.
