BAPTISM
Baptism is the sacrament of becoming Christian and making a committment to the way of Jesus Christ. It is done by immersion in water,in the name of God,the Father,Son and Holy Spirit,followed by anointing with blessed oil upon the head which marks one as Christ’s own forever. Baptism is spiritual birth into a new way of life and fellowship in Jesus Christ.
Baptism also is a commitment to follow Jesus,namely through the Covenant of Baptism found in the Book of Common Prayer,in which we promise,among other commitments, to follow Christ,to presevere in resisting evil,seek to serve Christ in all persons,loving our neighbors as ourselves and strive for justice and peace among all people,respecting the dignity of every human being.
One can be baptized at any age. Please talk to Fr. Jamie if you are interested in Baptism.
HOLY EUCHARIST
Holy Eucharist (also known as Mass or Holy Communion) is the center of our collective spiritual lives and ministries here at St. Stephen’s. In it we hear and reflect upon God’s Word in Holy Scripture,gather around a common table (the altar) to share the Body and Blood of Christ in the form of bread and wine,and then are sent back into daily life to love and serve the Lord and one another. It is the sacrament of continuing participation in the way Jesus and in the life of the church.
As Nora Gallagher writes in her book,Sacred Meal:“We are meant to eat of this bread,to sit down at this feast. When we as a people live for that bread and cast our lot with it,we create nothing less than the kingdom for which Jesus gave his life. It is all around us,all the time,this beautiful world,just about to happen.”
We celebrate the Holy Eucharist regularly twice each week,on Sundays at 11:00 am (done according Rite II of The Book of Common Prayer) and on Wednesdays at 6:00 pm (in which we use Enriching Our Worship,a resource using more inclusive language i.e. gender-neutral language regarding God).
Please join us for the Holy Eucharist at St. Stephen’s!
