Our Mission
As followers of Jesus, we believe all people—without exception—are God’s beloved and are called together by the Holy Spirit. Inspired through time-honored worship, the people of St. John’s Episcopal Church strive to boldly love every person and all creation. This is summarized by our motto: Following Jesus. Inspired through Worship. Boldly loving ALL.

 

Our Vision
The teachings of Jesus call us at St. John’s Episcopal Church to cultivate a community where each one of us can know who we are as beloved children of God. As we open ourselves to God’s love, we realize the grace-filled truth that every person we meet is likewise beloved. We envision a church where all people—no matter who they are, whom they love, whom they vote for, or what language they speak—can find grace and mercy in their relationships with God and one another.

 

We find our time-honored approach to worship inspiring, and yet we also believe God calls us to find ways to make it more welcoming to those who are searching for a connection to God. We want to be a congregation where children will find their spiritual home—and their passion for God—here among us. And we want to equip Christians of all ages to learn what it means to follow Jesus in our current world. As we strive to boldly love every person and all creation, we believe God is inviting us together across our differences to change this world—both globally and right here at home.

 

If you are seeking a faith community where you can make a difference, we invite you to visit us at any of our worship services!

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St. John’s Parish Plan for the Future

Approved by the 154th Annual Parish Meeting, January 26, 2020

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Following Jesus – Ministries of Formation & Evangelism

 

Faith Formation

• Continue focus on faith formation classes on Sundays at 11:30am for learning and growth.

• Cultivate more faith formation opportunities outside of the Sunday 11:30am time.

• Explore raising up a Spiritual Director from the congregation or larger community, not employed by the parish, but with space provided by the church instead.

• Revisit the need and feasibility of creating a small Christian preschool on our campus.
   

Evangelism & Incorporation

• Enter a period of study and learning to understand evangelism in the Episcopal Church.

• Raise up a lay leader to help spearhead this important ministry.

• Execute a study of those new to the parish, finding out what brought them in, what helped them find their place among us, and what they need.

• Integrate a new-member guide ministry into our shepherding ministry, where every new household is partnered with another household for their first year.

• Help every member learn how best to invite people to church and welcome those who are exploring, so that the ministry of evangelism & incorporation is shared by all.

• Find more people to serve on our Digital Evangelism Team and continue to grow that ministry through best practices for social media engagement.
  
   

Inspired through Worship – Ministries of Worship & Music

 

Worship

 

• Continue to offer small contemplative worship opportunities during the church year and explore whether there are other prayer forms (e.g., labyrinth) which might nourish people.

• Begin conversations on a reconfiguration of our chancel area to make it more conducive to our worship and fully accessible to all members. Also explore the Master Plan’s approach to how you enter our space, so that there is room to gather and space to quietly prepare.
   

Music

• Enlarge the variety of the music we sing, drawing from the breadth authorized by the Church.

• Work to increase resources available to our music ministry so that its gifts can be experienced from time to time at the 8:30am English and 12:45pm Spanish services.

• Find a regular schedule wherein musical presentations may be offered to the community.
  
   

Boldly Loving ALL – Ministries of Justice & Pastoral Care

 

Justice Ministries

• Though political action is not at the heart of our identity, non-partisan forums on ideas and issues that touch upon the Christian faith are important and should continue.

• Cultivate our ability as a diverse congregation to find common ground and the skills to talk to each other with respect and compassion. Our Baptismal Covenant calls us to this task.

• Offer healthy models and training on conflict resolution and peacemaking.

• Find new ways to engage and welcome the LGBTQ community, being a visible advocate, a healing agent, and proclaiming our understanding of God’s welcome here at our parish.

• Increase the ecological sustainability of our ministry programs, building, and campus.

• Work towards full ADA accessibility in all parts of our building and campus.
   

El Corazón Latinx Ministry Initiative

• Continue to grow our worshipping Spanish-language community.

• Find more opportunities for shared meals among Anglo & Latinx members.

• Continue to broaden our ministry’s goals of engaging questions of immigration justice.
   

Pastoral Care

• Heighten communication and awareness about our current pastoral care offerings, particularly taking advantage of the power of our Realm member management software.

• Be more intentional about how we care for one another when going through difficult times, broadening our perspective beyond current offerings.