Our Book of Common Prayer, which is our manual of worship and prayer, includes a line that is found in every ancient liturgy of the church:

Celebrant:  Lift up your hearts.

People:        We lift them to the Lord.

When we worship, we go on a journey. We ascend! We are lifted up into the throne room of God to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness, and to join the ongoing heavenly celebration that never ceases: “Therefore we praise you, joining our voices with Angels and Archangels and with all the company of heaven . . .” (BCP, p. 367). From our lips, comes the exclamation of praise that the angels sing:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,

Heaven and earth are full of your glory. (BCP, p. 367)

Our worship service, called the Holy Eucharist, or Holy Communion, has as its central action, the feast which gives the service its name. Part 1 of our service, The Word of God, includes prayers, readings from Scripture, a sermon, and a confession of faith. We hear from several parts of Holy Scripture: the Old Testament, a psalm, a New Testament letter, and finally, a reading from one of the four Gospels. When the Gospel is read, the Gospel book is processed down from the Altar with cross and torches into the middle of the congregation, because Jesus Christ is the Word of God who came down from heaven and lived among us.

After the reading of the Gospel, the minister speaks to us about a key idea from one of the Scripture readings. Then we stand and confess the faith by reciting the Christian creed. Our faith is a response to the good news, our “Yes!” to God’s “Yes!” to us in Jesus Christ.

After an intermission with greetings and announcements, we proceed to Part 2 of the service, the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. The ministers at the Altar consecrate the gifts of bread and wine.

We are invited to rise from our seats, and walk forward to receive the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood at the Altar and Table of Christ. At the conclusion of the service, we are given a blessing, and we are sent back out into the world to love God with every fiber of our being, and to love one another.

We worship from the Book of Common Prayer, and we sing from The Hymnal. We have a full choir (except during the summer months) and a magnificent organ. The preaching is dynamic, and emphasizes practical application for our lives. The congregation loves to sing! So our worship is beautiful, rich, formal, and vibrant. We are a friendly church, and you will receive a warm welcome.

Come with us, lift up your hearts, join us on the journey to God’s house!