Getting Started
by Josh English & Jan Anderson
Driving down the road you may come across a sign that reads "The Epsicopal Church Welcomes You." Here are some of the basic things you should know about our church.
- We are a liturgical church
- This means we worship in a certain way, following directions from the BCP. We also follow a pattern of seasons that affect how we worship.
- We are a baptismal church
- The sacrament of baptism links us to all members of the Christian community.
- We are not Roman Catholics. We are not Protestants
- The Episcopal Church believes in a catholic (little 'c') church, but it is not part of the protestant movement. We do not follow the edicts of the Pope [more properly called the Bishop of Rome], but we share much in common with Roman Catholics and other Catholic denominations.
- We are a member of the Anglican Communion
- While Congress was signing the Declaration of Independence, Anglican priests who joined the movement for America's independence split from the Church of England. And many of the signers worshipped at Christ Church, Philadelphia, just blocks from Independence Hall. Christ Church is still there, so one can still worship in the same pew that Mr. & Mrs. Ben Franklin used, but George and Martha Washington's pew, which is also closer to the front, has much more leg room.
- You've probably heard of several Episcopalians
- Several presidents and leading public officials, entertainers, and writers are Episcopalians (or Anglican).
- John Donne, British poet and priest in the Church of England
- Charles Wesley, priest in the Church of England & writer of hymns
- John Wesley, priest in the Church of England
- Ben Franklin, inventor and co-author of the Declaration of Independence
- George Washington, 1st President of the U. S. and Declaration signer
- Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the U. S. and co-author of the Declaration of Independence
- James Madison, 5th President of the U. S. and Declaration signer
- Queen Victoria, longest ruling British monarch
- Theodore Roosevelt, 28th President of the U. S. and 1st American Nobel Laureate [1906 - Peace]
- Franklin Roosevelt, 33rd President of the U. S., longest serving President, & distant cousin of Theodore
- Eleanor Roosevelt, niece of Theodore, wife of Franklin, newspaper columnist & 1st U. S. Ambassador to the United Nations
- Clive Staples "C. S." Lewis, British author and professor
- Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson, Texas wildflower advocate & wife of the 36th President of the U. S.
- Gerald R. Ford, 38th President of the U. S.
- Brooke Astor, New York philanthropist
- John Updike, prolific American author
- Queen Elizabeth II, second longest ruling British monarch (so far)
- Desmond Tutu, retired Archbishop of South Africa & anti-Apartheid activist
- George Herbert Walker Bush, 41st President of the U. S.
- Garrison Kellier (allegedly he's both Episcopalian and Lutheran)
