Welcome to the Episcopal Church

The Episcopal Church in the United States evolved from the Church of England at the time of the Revolution. The Episcopal Church is one branch of the world-wide Anglican Communion numbering 60 million members in over 100 countries. It is often described as the "bridge church" because it includes both Roman Catholic and Protestant traditions. It preserves the ancient Catholic faith and sacraments and the historic ministry with Bishops as its chief pastors. ("Episcopal" comes from the Greek word for "bishop.") It is at the same time Protestant, focusing on the basic authority of Holy Scripture and the proclamation of the Word of God.

  • We promise to follow Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
  • We believe the Holy Scriptures to be the Word of God and to contain all things necessary for salvation.
  • We believe God inspired human authors and continues to speak to us through the Bible.

As Episcopalians we affirm that salvation is the end of our separation from God and the beginning of a new relationship with God and with one another. The Apostles' and Nicene Creeds are basic statements of our beliefs in God.

In worship we unite ourselves with others to acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God's Word, to offer prayer and praise, and to celebrate the sacraments. The Celebration of the Holy Eucharist is the central act of worship in accordance with Jesus' command to His disciples. Three books are used: at every service lessons are read from the Holy Bible; the service follows the Book of Common Prayer, which is composed of both ancient and modern liturgies and prayers; the Hymnal includes both traditional and contemporary Church music.

Traditional Episcopal services preserve the rich worship and heritage of the Church. All present participate actively in this joyous response to God's love. Our worship is the strength of the devotional experience at St. Martin; however, we realize there are many preferences for style of celebration of our faith. The Book of Common Prayer and hymnals allows us to experience different forms of liturgy and music.

Our two Sunday worship services are good examples of this. The 8:00 a.m. service is traditionally Rite One without musical accompaniment. Between the early and late services, we offer an Adult Book Study. The late service may be Rite One or Rite Two depending on the liturgical season, and includes music, an anthem performed by the parish choir, led by the Organist and Choir master. Music ranges from the classical to contemporary. A nursery is provided for young children. A children's chapel program is provided during a portion of the service which includes the sermon. Following the 10:00 a.m. service we offer Sunday School for all ages. Many adults committed to the religious instruction of our children spend countless hours preparing and teaching the children, using a variety of curriculums.