Worship

Welcome to St John’s! We would love for you to join us.

Worship is at the center of our common life at St. John’s. Liturgies (worship services) are currently held in person and online via YouTube.

Whether you are a lifelong Episcopalian, a Christian exploring the Episcopal tradition, an inquirer or a spiritual wanderer, or something else altogether, you are always welcome to worship with us. We believe that our community expression of praise and thanksgiving is made richer by the presence of others.

Our 10 am service is a family friendly worship, with children often participating in the service. It includes glorious music led by our choir, as well as a sermon and the Eucharist (Holy Communion), with Morning Prayer once a month. The children are in Sunday School until the peace, when they join the congregation so all may receive Holy Communion together.

As an Episcopal faith community, worship services at St. John’s conform to the Book of Common Prayer, which gives each service a familiar and comfortable routine. Our services are more structured than some churches, and less structured than others .If you are unfamiliar with our order of worship, complete bulletins and friendly pew neighbors will guide you through. Our space and pace is relaxed.

Good sermons are important to us, and our clergy strives for preaching of the highest quality. Our liturgies typically last between 45 and 60 minutes, with festive services (such as Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, and baptisms) lasting a bit longer.

The Celebration of the Holy Eucharist (Communion) is the principal act of Christian worship and has been such since the earliest days of the Church. Christians worship on Sundays as an affirmation of our belief in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and so it is most appropriate to worship with the Risen Christ as our ritual focus. When we gather regularly around the mystery of the Risen Christ made present in the gifts of bread and wine, we continue the work of healing and reconciliation in our community. Fed by the body and blood of Christ, we become, and renew our commitment to being, the Body of Christ in the world.

The Daily Office generally, and Morning Prayer specifically, have been a feature of the Anglican tradition (from which the Episcopal Church derives) since the first Prayer Book was published in 1549. The purpose of the Daily Office was to provide a framework for the spiritual transformation of the whole people of God.

Because Morning Prayer can be led by a lay person (a baptized person who is not ordained), we make use of this form for Christian worship once a month. We are fortunate to be blessed with some great lay preachers who help us break open God’s Word for our lives today. By placing the focus on prayers and the reading of scripture, the gift of Morning Prayer reminds us that we are fed by Word and Sacrament, not simply Sacrament alone.

COVID 19 Guidelines

We continue to be mindful of those still vulnerable to COVID-19, those struggling from long-COVID, and those suffering from isolation made more difficult through the pandemic. Masks are optional depending on your comfort level, while we also ask that all honor the comfort levels of those seated in close proximity to one another. If you are not feeling well, we invite you to join us online.

WHEREVER YOU ARE ON YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY, ALL ARE WELCOME TO PARTICIPATE IN RECEIVING THE SACRAMENTS OF HOLY COMMUNION – INCLUDING CHILDREN.

Sunday School is available (kindergarten through middle school) beginning at 10 am. The children join us for worship in time to share in the Eucharist. Youth Group for tweens and teens 6th grade and up is offered once a month on Sunday afternoons.
Children are always welcome in worship, with all of their giggles and wiggles.
We have a children’s play area in the back of the church with books, small toys, and coloring pages.

We encourage families with young children to join – you will feel right at home with the growing group of children at St John’s!

After our service we usually enjoy coffee hour together upstairs in our Parish Hall. This is a wonderful time to share with friends new and old, relax with a warm cup of coffee or tea, and be part of a community of caring people.