Who We Are At Incarnation
Our church:
to be a friendly, caring house of God where people strive toward a stronger faith and a deeper relationship with God.
Our ministries:
To be inspired by worship, and to assist young and old alike, to discover their gifts through prayer and fellowship; to share and proclaim the Christian gospel to the glory of God and his kingdom, within our congregation and beyond.
Our members:
To renew their relationship with Him; to become active in His church; to spread the good news of love and reconciliation in all that we do and all that we say.
Our clergy:
To serve as a priest and friend to all; to broaden, challenge, and empower the lay ministers of the congregation to exercise their own ministry; to be receptive to diversity and personally accessible to all members; and to be a source of guidance which can inspire congregational development.
What
does the term Episcopal/Episcopalian mean? What
does the term Anglican mean? Where
and when did the Episcopal Church begin?
What
is the history of the Church of the Incarnation?
What
similarities/differences are there between the Episcopal
Church and the Roman Catholic Church?
What is a typical service like?
(otherwise know as Mass and Communion).
Do you
have to be a member of the Episcopal Church to attend
and participate in the service?
In 1789, the members of the Anglican Church in the brand
new United States of America found themselves unpopular
because they were called "The Church of England in the
Colonies." So it was decided that the church would be
renamed the "Episcopal Church" from the Greek word Episcopos meaning bishop to reflect nature of the church
and to break its ties with England.
The word "Anglican" comes from the word "Anglo." Our
Anglican Church was begun in the first century A.D. then
organized in Britain after 597 and has been the Catholic
Church of England ever since. The Anglican Church is one
of two world-wide Christian bodies, numbering over
70,000,000 members.
In 1534, King Henry VIII of England spilt with the
Church of Rome to form the Church of England. After the
Revolutionary War the "Church of England in the
Colonies" broke ties with England and created the
Episcopal Church. Over half of the signers of the
Declaration of Independence were members of the
Episcopal Church.
The Church of the Incarnation was created through the
vision of Bishop James Montgomery, who on November 4,
1981, appointed the Reverend Alvin Johnson to come to
this expanding suburban area to establish a new mission
spreading God's Word. The Reverend Johnson began his
quest by knocking on doors and introducing himself and
the new church to the community. With the help and love
of two sister churches (Trinity Church in Wheaton and
St. Mark's in Glen Ellyn) our fledgling mission began to
take shape and grow. The first Eucharist’s were held in
the homes of new members. The church grew rapidly and
within six months had moved to a local school gymnasium
to accommodate the expanding congregation. We continued
to meet in Central School until July 31, 1988 when we
moved into our current facility on Army Trail Road.
There are a lot of similarities, but also a few big
differences. The Episcopal Church is a catholic church,
a so is the Roman Catholic Church - meaning that both
groups can traces its origins to the earliest century of
our faith. The pope, in Rome, is the head of the Roman
Catholic Church, while the Archbishop of Canterbury is
the head of the Anglican Church. One major difference
is that the Archbishop of Canterbury only has spiritual
authority of the Episcopal Church in the United States.
All other church decisions are based on our democratic
system of church government very similar to the way we
govern our nation.
Theologically, we and the Roman Catholic Church have so
much in common, but The Episcopal Church believes that
clergy can be married and women can be ordained clergy.
We believe that Jesus calls our Church to be a friendly,
lively home where people strive to understand and
strengthen their faith. Everyone is welcome to come! In
the Episcopal Church we also welcome all baptized
Christians to participate in the Holy Communion.
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HISTORY
The Episcopal Church was formally organized in 1783 when representatives of the Church of England in the United States of America met in Maryland and organized the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. A year later Samuel Seabury traveled to Scotland be ordained the first Episcopal bishop by three Church of Scotland bishops. In 1785 the church's first General Convention, consisting of a House of Deputies, met in Philadelphia. The General Convention became a bicameral body in 1789 when the House of Bishops was formed. The first American Book of Common Prayer, modeled on the Church of England prayer book, was adopted by General Convention in 1790. The church's corporate organization, The Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, was founded in 1820. Bishop William White of Pennsylvania was the church's first presiding bishop. Until 1919 the presiding bishop's office was held by the church's most senior bishop. The first bishop to be elected presiding bishop was John Gardner Murray, bishop of Maryland, who served from 1926 to 1931. In 1946 the General Convention designated the presiding bishop as the chief pastor and primate of the church, and removed the requirement that the presiding bishop also function as a diocesan bishop. In 1994 the presiding bishop's term of office was reduced from twelve years to nine years. The presiding bishop and staff work out of the Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10017. THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION The Episcopal Church is one of 38 self-governing churches or provinces in the world-wide Anglican Communion. Located in 160 countries on five continents, the churches are linked by their proclamation of the catholic and apostolic faith; their grounding in scripture, tradition and reason; their common liturgical tradition derived from The Book of Common Prayer; their recognition of the Eucharist as the central act of worship; and through their historic ties to the Archbishop of Canterbury, primate of the Church of England and spiritual leader of the 70-million member communion. The present Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. Rowan Williams, was nominated archbishop by Queen Elizabeth II in July 2002 and enthroned in February 2003. DIOCESES The basic unit of organization in the Episcopal Church is the diocese, a geographic group of at least six parishes under the leadership of a bishop. The Episcopal Church comprises 100 domestic dioceses and 13 overseas dioceses, most of which are in Central and South America. Massachusetts is the largest with over 91,000 members, while the smallest, in the United States, is Eau Claire (Wis.) numbering just over 2,500. The total number of congregations stands at 7,305, while the church's total membership numbers 2.3 million. CLERGY The Episcopal Church recognizes three orders of ordained ministers: bishops, priests, and deacons. There are 162 active bishops in the church, serving as diocesan, coadjutor, assistant and suffragan bishops, and over 150 retired bishops. There are around 14,000 priests and 1,700 deacons. GENERAL CONVENTION The General Convention is believed to be the largest bicameral legislative body in the world, numbering over 900 deputies and 300 bishops. It meets every three years to approve the church's program and budget; address resolutions and legislation affecting the church's faith and order, and its position on issues before the church and wider society; and, if necessary, elect a presiding bishop. The House of Deputies meets only during General Convention, while the House of Bishops meets twice a year, though it cannot enact legislation during these interim meetings. The House of Deputies consists of four lay and four clerical deputies from each diocese of the church. All bishops, active and retired, make up the House of Bishops. Other Anglican bishops can be admitted to non-voting membership in the House of Bishops. Legislation and resolutions can be introduced in either house, but both houses must concur for the measures to take effect. The General Convention next meets in Denver in July 2000. PRESIDING BISHOP The presiding bishop serves as the chief pastor and primate of the church, president of the House of Bishops, president of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, and president and chair of the Executive Council. The House of Bishops elects the presiding bishop, whose election must then be confirmed by the House of Deputies. Presiding bishop's duties include:
The presiding bishop is assisted by a staff of over 200 at the Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Ave., New York City. The church also operates field offices in Washington, DC, (Governmental Relations Office, Jubilee Ministries), Oklahoma City (Multicultural Ministries), Richmond, Va. (Office of Pastoral Development), Chapel Hill, N.C. (General Board of Examining Chaplains), and Paris (American Convocation of Churches in Europe). |
The Word of God
We welcome ALL to join us
in the Communion of Faith and
the Fellowship of Communion
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus
Christ, the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the
Father, God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were
made. For us and for our
salvation he came down from
heaven: by the power of the
Holy Spirit he became
incarnate from the Virgin
Mary, and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified
under Pontius Pilate; he
suffered death and was
buried. On the third day he
rose again in accordance
with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right
hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to
judge the living and the
dead, and his kingdom will
have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the
Lord, the giver of life, who
proceeds from the Father and
the Son. With the Father and
the Son he is worshiped and
glorified.
He has spoken through the
Prophets.
We believe in
one holy catholic and
apostolic Church. We
acknowledge one baptism for
the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.
Amen.