When you come to St. Mary’s, people will be warm and welcoming, but you will probably not be pressured to join our church. At some point, if you have been coming regularly, but have not already expressed a desire to join, our priest may talk to you about how you want to be involved at St. Mary’s and whether you are ready to make a commitment by joining our community officially.
There is more than one way to join our church. First, you may ask to be enrolled as a Baptized Member. This means that you have been baptized, either at St. Mary’s or in another church, and that you want to signal your intent to make St. Mary’s your church home.
Second, if you were raised in another denomination, you may wish to be Confirmed or Received into the Episcopal Church. This means you were already baptized in another denomination and wish to make the Episcopal Church your church home. If you were already confirmed in another Christian denomination as a youth or adult, you will be Received into the Episcopal Church by the Bishop at one of his visitations to us. If you have not yet been confirmed, especially if you were baptized as a child or an infant, you would be confirmed by the Bishop at his visitation. This would make you a member of the Episcopal Church and of St. Mary’s.
When you have made your intention to join known to the Rector (the priest), she will likely want to have a face-to-face meeting with you, gather some information about you and enroll you in our church. You will also be asked to fill out a pledge card to signal your financial commitment to our parish.
In the Episcopal Church, active members are considered those who have faithfully attended corporate worship at least three times during the year, except for cause prevented; and who are active in promoting the ministry of the parish, and who are known to the Treasurer.
If you have any questions about joining or about membership at St. Mary’s or in the Episcopal Church, please contact our Rector for more information.