Sunday is traditionally when Episcopalians gather for worship. The principal weekly worship service is the Holy Eucharist, also known as: the Lord’s Supper, Holy Communion, or Mass. In most Episcopal churches, worship is accompanied by the singing of hymns, and in some churches, much of the service is sung.

Worship Styles

Episcopalians worship in many different styles, ranging from very formal, ancient, and multi-sensory rites with lots of singing, music, fancy clothes (called vestments), and incense, to informal services with contemporary music. Yet all worship in the Episcopal Church is based in the Book of Common Prayer, which gives worship a familiar feel, no matter where you go.

Liturgy and Ritual

Worship in the Episcopal Church is said to be “liturgical,” meaning that the congregation follows service forms and prays from texts that don’t change greatly from week to week during a season of the year. This sameness from week to week gives worship a rhythm that becomes comforting and familiar to the worshipers.

For the first-time visitor, liturgy may be exhilarating… or confusing. Services may involve standing, sitting, kneeling, sung or spoken responses, and other participatory elements that may provide a challenge for the first-time visitor. However, liturgical worship can be compared with a dance: once you learn the steps, you come to appreciate the rhythm, and it becomes satisfying to dance, again and again, as the music changes.

The Holy Eucharist

In spite of the diversity of worship styles in the Episcopal Church, Holy Eucharist always has the same components and the same shape.

The Liturgy of the Word

We begin by praising God through song and prayer, and then listen to as many as four readings from the Bible. Usually one from the Old Testament, a Psalm, something from the Epistles, and (always) a reading from the Gospels. The psalm is usually sung or recited by the congregation.

Next, a sermon interpreting the readings appointed for the day is preached.

The congregation then recites the Nicene Creed, written in the Fourth Century and the Church’s statement of what we believe ever since.

Next, the congregation prays together—for the Church, the World, and those in need. We pray for the sick, thank God for all the good things in our lives, and finally, we pray for the dead. The presider (e.g. priest, bishop, lay minister) concludes with a prayer that gathers the petitions into a communal offering of intercession.

In certain seasons of the Church year, the congregation formally confesses their sins before God and one another. This is a corporate statement of what we have done and what we have left undone, followed by a pronouncement of absolution. In pronouncing absolution, the presider assures the congregation that God is always ready to forgive our sins.

The congregation then greets one another with a sign of “peace.”

The Liturgy of the Table

Next, the priest stands at the table, which has been set with a cup of wine and a plate of bread or wafers, raises his or her hands, and greets the congregation again, saying “The Lord be With You.” Now begins the Eucharistic Prayer, in which the presider tells the story of our faith, from the beginning of Creation, through the choosing of Israel to be God’s people, through our continual turning away from God, and God’s calling us to return. Finally, the presider tells the story of the coming of Jesus Christ, and about the night before his death, on which he instituted the Eucharistic meal (communion) as a continual remembrance of him.

The presider blesses the bread and wine, and the congregation recites the Lord’s Prayer. Finally, the presider breaks the bread and offers it to the congregation, as the “gifts of God for the People of God.”

The congregation then shares the consecrated bread and the wine. Sometimes the people all come forward to receive the bread and wine; sometimes they pass the elements around in other ways.

All Are Welcome

All baptized Christians—no matter age or denomination—are welcome to “receive communion.” Episcopalians invite all baptized people to receive, not because we take the Eucharist lightly, but because we take our baptism so seriously.

Visitors who are not baptized Christians are welcome to come forward during the Communion to receive a blessing from the presider.

At the end of the Eucharist, the congregation prays once more in thanksgiving, and then is dismissed to continue the life of service to God and to the World.

The word "Episcopal" means, "governed by bishops". The Episcopal Church (2,500,000 members) is a member of the Anglican Communion, the third largest body of Christians in the world with 73,000,000 members. The Roman Catholic Church has 1,043,000,000 members and the Eastern Orthodox Church has 225,000,000. In the year 2000, the Episcopal Church had 7359 churches and 7741 clergy.

The Anglican Communion derived from the Church of England and the Episcopal Church shares with it traditions of faith and order as set forth in its Book of Common Prayer. The Book of Common Prayer had its beginning in 1549. The latest American revision is the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.

The earliest settlers brought the Anglican traditions to the American colonies. It spread rapidly as the country expanded westward.

The Episcopal Church is one whose traditions include attitudes that are Protestant and Catholic, ancient and reformed, liberal and conservative. It is the church of the "via media" or the "middle way". It is renowned as a church with few "musts". It points out and does not dictate a person's response to God.

Episcopalians find the fullest expression of Christianity in the Bible, the ancient Creeds, the sacraments, and the ministry. "Scripture, tradition, and reason" is the Episcopal motto. This is best understood as the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer, and reasonableness! It is very common and expected that in any Episcopal Church you will find people of many different backgrounds, opinions, politics, and persuasions worshiping together in peace. That is because "respect" is such an important part of the Episcopal Church.

Interpretation of the Christian faith varies somewhat from parish to parish, but within the framework of understanding of the Holy Trinity, salvation, the church, and worship. For instance, the Episcopal Church is a liturgical church. It has formal rites for public worship. It uses three texts in worship — the Bible, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Hymnal. The texts will vary little from parish to parish, but the method of conducting services may vary greatly. This variance may be from very plain services to those with great ceremony. Every Episcopal parish is different. Most are "middle of the road". Others are very charismatic and pentecostal in nature. Still others are very "Roman Catholic" in nature. Others try very hard to be like English cathedrals. Still others vie to be "low church" while their neighbors are "high church".

When Episcopalians choose a church (where they have the choice), they are usually deciding on whether they want a small or large one, a plain one or an elaborate one, and a warm (friendly) or a cold (aloof) one. They are also like everyone else in picking a church home. They want to know if they like the clergy, especially his or her personality, preaching and teaching style.

Episcopalians are sacramental. They believe there are two main sacraments instituted and ordained by Jesus. They are the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Episcopalians call the Lord's Supper the Holy Eucharist. The word "Eucharist" means thanksgiving. The five other "minor" sacraments were neither directly commanded by Christ, nor are they applicable to everyone. They are Confession (now called Reconciliation of a Penitent), Confirmation, Holy Matrimony, Ordination, and Ministry of Healing (called Unction).

Clergy in the Episcopal Church are the bishops, priests, and deacons. Bishops are elected spiritual overseers of groups of parishes and missions, which includes their priests and deacons. Priests are parish and mission leaders. Deacons assist priests in parish duties. These are simple definitions of clergy duties. They all do much more. The Episcopal Church also has religious orders of monks and nuns.

Structure in the Episcopal Church is very democratic, resembling the basic government of the United States. A bishop presides over a diocese, which is a group of parishes and missions. Working for him or her is a group of priests and deacons who preside over the parishes and missions. These parishes and missions elect lay delegates who attend an annual Convention of the diocese. These Conventions make decisions for the diocese. They also elect representatives to attend the National Convention of the Episcopal Church, which makes decisions for the entire Episcopal Church. These conventions are held every three years. The Episcopal Church Convention is presided over by a Presiding Bishop. Attending the National Convention are Episcopal bishops who can be there and elected representatives who are clergy and non-clergy. Being in communion with the Church of England, the Episcopal Church recognizes the Archbishop of Canterbury's primacy of honor throughout the Anglican Communion. The Episcopal Church in the United States, however, is self-governing.

So, being an Episcopalian means striving to fulfill Christ's mission of redemption. It means trying to follow God Commandments, raise children in Christ's' love, and being involved in building the Kingdom of God.