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About

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You Belong

Come enjoy the beautiful sacred space in this historic Norfolk church. Light a candle in the Chapel as you pray or just sit. Clergy and pastoral care providers are available to hear your confessions, pray with you, or simply listen.

Christ & St. Luke’s is indeed a place in which you will experience Jesus’ promise: “Come, find rest for your soul.”

Our mission is to be an open and engaged community that fosters reasoned Christianity within the Anglican tradition.

We will:

  • provide caring hospitality
  • intentional pastoral care
  • strategic outreach
  • inspiring preaching
  • insightful teaching
  • awe-inspiring liturgical and musical experiences that connect mind to heart and the Gospel to the world.

“When Anglicanism is at its best its liturgy, its poetry, its music and its life can create a world of wonder in which it is very easy to fall in love with God.”

Urban T. Holmes III, What Is Anglicanism?

FAQs
Clergy & Staff
History

FAQs

We know you probably have questions. We’ll do our best to answer them here. You can contact us if you don’t see your question below. But please know that we don’t have all the answers, and we don’t expect you to either. We just want to be a community where you can belong wherever your searching takes you.

Important Health & Safety FAQs

In order to love one another well and protect each other from illness, we encourage all attendees to get vaccinated if possible and wear a mask if you are able. We have reserved seating in the back rows to allow for increased social distancing if you need that. Please contact the church office if you have additional health and safety questions.

Will I feel like I belong at Christ & St. Luke's?

We want Christ & St. Luke’s to be a place where you can belong, regardless of your background, identity, or life journey. We warmly welcome all people to be a part of our faith community, and we want to walk with you whether you are a long-time Christian, new to the faith, or exploring faith for the first time.

We believe that all people are created in God’s image, regardless of race, gender identity, sexual identity, citizenship status, or religion. We actively seek people from all walks of life to join our community and its leadership.

We hope you will truly find Christ & St. Luke’s to be a place where you belong.

What will I find at Christ & St. Luke's?
  • An Episcopal Church of the Anglican tradition (Church of England) which draws its life from the interplay of scripture, tradition and reason;
  • An extraordinarily beautiful, urban church in the style of an English cathedral which values beauty and excellence in worship and music;
  • A refuge from judgmental religion in which you will experience intelligent Christianity that seeks to engage both the mind and the heart, inviting all perspectives into respectful conversation;
  • An open and affirming congregation that welcomes all as beloved and pleasing children of God, regardless of background or lifestyle;
  • A supportive community that cherishes children and youth and integrates them into the full life of the parish;
  • A people passionate about the care of this fragile creation – ever seeking new ways to foster a sustainable lifestyle;
  • A compassionate community which reaches out to tend the hungry, the lonely and the marginalized;
  • A place of pastoral care in which the laity and the ordained work together to care for the sick, the lonely, the grieving and those in pain;
  • A healing place where you can bring your fragility and brokenness;
  • A place where you can find a spiritual home.
What is the Episcopal Church?

The Episcopal Church of the U.S.A. (ECUSA) is the American branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion – a “daughter” of the Church of England. It came into existence as an independent denomination after the American Revolution. Today it has between two and three million members in the United States, Mexico, and Central America, all of which are under jurisdiction of the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, the Most Reverend Michael Curry.

What does Episcopal mean?
“Episcopos” is the Greek word for “bishop.” Thus “Episcopal” means “governed by bishops.” The Episcopal Church maintains the three-fold order of ministry as handed down by the Apostles – deacons, priests and bishops – in direct descent, via the laying on of hands, from the original Apostles. By the way, “Episcopal” is an adjective: “I belong to the Episcopal Church.” The noun is “Episcopalian”: “I am an Episcopalian.”
What is the Anglican Communion?
The Anglican Communion is an inheritor of 2000 years of catholic and apostolic tradition dating from Christ himself, rooted in the Church of England. When the Church of England spread throughout the British Empire, sister churches sprang up. These churches, while autonomous in their governance, are bound together by tradition, Scripture, and the inheritance they have received from the Church of England. They together make up the Anglican Communion, a body headed spiritually by the Archbishop of Canterbury and having some 80 million members, making it the second largest Christian body in the Western world.
Is the Archbishop of Canterbury the Anglican Pope?
No, he’s not. The Episcopal Church/Anglican Communion does not have a pope. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader of the Church of England, and is considered “first among equals” by the rest of the Anglican Communion. He is highly respected, but he does not have the same authority over the churches of the Anglican Communion that the Pope has over the Roman Catholic Church.
How is the church governed?
In an established, self-sustaining congregation, or “parish”, day-to-day matters are handled by a panel of elected lay people called a “vestry.” The head priest, or “rector”, handles spiritual and worship-related matters, and usually serves in an advisory capacity on church committees. Depending on the size of the congregation, the rector may have one or several ordained assistants (sometimes referred to as “curates”). Often there will be other lay or ordained people in charge of specific areas, such as a music director (who coordinates worship music for the congregation) or a “sexton” (i.e., a person who handles physical maintenance of the church building and grounds). All individual congregations are part of a larger geographical area called a “diocese,” which is lead by a bishop.
What is the significance of the Episcopal Seal (The Shield) and Flag?

Episcopal Church Shield
This symbol, which you will see at virtually every Episcopal Church and web site, is the official “logo” of ECUSA, and depicts our history. It is red, white and blue, the colors of both the U.S. and England. The red Cross of St. George on a white field is symbolic of the Church of England. The blue field in the upper left corner is the Episcopal Church of the U.S.A. It features a Cross of St. Andrew, in recognition of the fact that the first American bishop was consecrated in Scotland. This cross is made up of nine crosslets, which represent the nine dioceses that met in Philadelphia in 1789 to form the Protestant Episcopal Church of the U.S.A.

What is The Book of Common Prayer?

Contrary to what some believe, The Book of Common Prayer is not an “Anglican Bible.” We love it, use it and depend on it, but it is not Scripture (though it does contain quite a lot of Scripture), and we do not view it or use it as such.

The first Book of Common Prayer was produced by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer in 1549, and it has been revised several times. The book was intended to facilitate worship in English rather than Latin, and to bring the rites of the church together into one book for use by both clergy and lay folk. Each national church in the Anglican Communion has its own adaptation of the Prayer Book.

The American version, used by most churches in ECUSA, was last revised in 1979. In the Prayer Book, you will find the orders of service for the various rites of the church, the Daily Office, prayers for use within the context of the liturgy and prayers for use in home devotions, the Lectionary (i.e., the Scriptural readings to be used in corporate worship, organized so as to carry the congregation through the entire Bible in a three-year period), the Psalter (Psalms), the Calendar of the Church Year, The Outline of the Faith (Catechism) and various historical documents.

I’m planning on visiting an Episcopal Church. May I take communion?
All baptized Christians, regardless of denomination, may take communion in the Episcopal Church. Your own denomination may have some restrictions on where you may or may not communicate, however, so it would be wise to check with a clergy person in your own church first.
I am handicapped and am unable to walk to the Altar to receive communion. Can I still receive communion?
Of course you can! Simply tell the usher or someone near you who is going to the Altar to have the Rector bring the Elements (the bread and the wine) to you. The Church is handicap accessible via the Lychgate Garden entrance.
Does the Episcopal Church baptize infants?

Yes. We believe that the grace conferred by the Sacrament of Baptism is not and should not be reserved only for “informed believers.”

Read more about Baptism in the Episcopal Church here.

At what age may a child take communion?
A child may take communion at any age. We do not believe that a certain “understanding” of the proceedings is necessary for the sacrament to be valid. The decision of when to take communion is left up to the child and his/her parents.
How do I join the Episcopal Church? Do I need to be confirmed?
If you are coming from a church in the Apostolic Succession (i.e., Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox), and have already been confirmed, you would be “received” by the bishop of your diocese, in a ceremony that normally takes place during the bishop’s visit to your church. If you are coming from a different tradition, confirmation would be appropriate. Most churches hold “inquirer’s courses” for people interested in reception or confirmation prior to the bishop’s visitation. You will want to speak to the rector or vicar of your church if you are interested. Note that confirmation or reception is NOT necessary before you can take communion, or participate in the life of the church.
I have already been baptized in another church. If I become an Episcopalian, do I need to be re-baptized?
No. “We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.” Once you have been baptized with water, in the name of the Trinity, you have been received by adoption into the family of Christ (not into a particular denomination) and that need not … in fact, should not … be repeated. This is true even if you were a tiny baby when you were baptized. If you wish to make a public, adult, affirmation of faith, you may choose to be confirmed, if appropriate (see above). You also always have the option of publicly reaffirming your baptismal vows, even after confirmation, if you so choose … but this is a highly personal matter, and not in any way required.

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