Welcomer's Brochure

Membership

At St. Paul's, we emphasize that Membership is Relationship. Each of the program areas of our congregation life seeks to define and implement a particular facet of the whole person. Worship is our primary relationship, a Relationship to God. Congregational Life seeks to enhance our relationship to one another. Outreach expresses our relationship to God's creation. Corporate Property mediates our relationship as Stewards. In the pages ahead, you will discover a lot more about what it means to be a part of the St. Paul's Community.
If you have a question about why or what we do, ask. We will help you find someone who can respond to your question, perhaps learning with you in the process!

A Member is one who presents a letter of transfer, a baptismal certificate, or who publicly states his/her entry into preparation for Holy Baptism and is enrolled in the life of this congregation. Enrollment allows full participation in the governance of the Church.

An Adult Baptized Member is one having attained 16 years of age and who is baptized and enrolled on the parish ledger.

A Communicant Member in Good Standing is an adult baptized member who receives communion in the congregation at least 3 times a year and who "works, prays and gives for the spread of the Kingdom of God," through this congregation. Communicants participate in the governance of the local congregation and contribute financially to its support.

A Confirmed Member will have reaffirmed her/his Baptismal Vows before a Bishop of the Church with the laying on of hands in Confirmation. Confirmed Communicant status is normally required for participation in the governance of the Diocesan, Provincial and World Wide Communion.

Children are welcome in our corporate worship. At St. Paul's, we provide nursery care and children's education as a support to parents as they seek to raise their children in the Christian Faith. Whether or not parents opt to avail themselves of education and supervisory opportunities, we pride ourselves as a "child friendly" community of worship.

Outreach: Our Relationship to the World

We recognize that the Gospel defines our relationship to the world around us as one of servanthood. As a result, we press one another to define our personal relationships of support and solidarity with those in need. As symbol of our corporate concern, we participate as a congregation in a variety of community ministries of service. Some of the ministries in the world we actively organize to support are:

Marquette Coalition for Emergency Services - food and fuel funding (Contact Bob Raferty 228-5167)
Norlite Nursing Home Ministry - Monthly Lutheran/Episcopal Worship
United Thank Offering - Worldwide Ministry supported by the Episcopal Church Women (Gathered in November & May)
Almoners Fund for the Sick and Needy - Fund for direct, UP wide Ministry (Contact Parish Office 226-2912)
Marquette County Walk for Hunger - Annual fund-raiser shared between local and international hunger ministries. (First Weekend in October)
Marquette County Habitat for Humanity - In partnership with qualifying families, building homes.
Alternative Gifts Fair - International aid projects directly supported. (First weekend in December Fri/Sat)
Third World Crafts Fair - Advent gift to the world; profits go to artisans.
Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief - Worldwide disaster response.
The North Central Upper Peninsula Episcopal Convocation - A Partnership of Ministry in Central the Upper Peninsula.
Superior Village Youth Center Volunteers - Be a mentor for our city's youth.

As a congregation, we are constantly on the lookout for ways to support one another in our personal ministries of service as well as ministries with which our Parish Community can find common ground.

Worship: Our Relationship to God

St. Paul's is a people who gather to worship. We do many other things but worshipping God together is the heart of who we are and why we exist. Most often our worship consists of singing, reading scripture, affirming our faith (in communal creeds and corporate prayer), hearing the Word of God proclaimed (in the sermon), and sharing the Holy Eucharist (The communion of Christ's Body and Blood). We welcome all baptized people to join with us in the bread and wine at Eucharist.

Our custom is to worship together on Sundays, * feast days, and Wednesdays. Our theology and worship are founded in scripture, tradition and reason. We use the Book of Common Prayer as one of the tools to structure our worship services and to focus our personal worship. It gives us a common foundation on which to build our understanding of who we are and who is the God who calls us.

We follow a tradition of seasonal planning of the church year that includes changes in the look of the worship space, different colors of hangings and vestments, different music, and changes in the worship service readings, reflecting the emphasis of a particular season. These are traditions that are not essential but are, rather, helpful to us in our worship of God.

*childcare is available for infants to three year olds during morning worship.

The following groups implement and organize worship:

Altar Guild: care for the chancel space and prepare the table for Eucharist.
Choir: lead the worship community in hymns and provide special music.
Lay Eucharistic Ministers (L.E.M.s): take communion to those members of the community who are ill.
Lay Readers and Chalice Bearers: trained and licensed to lead worship.
Lectors: read scripture during worship.
Rector: responsible for leading liturgy (planning/approval of liturgy and music)
Seasonal Planners: plan worship and events during each liturgical season
(Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost)
Ushers: welcome worshippers, carry bread and wine to the table on behalf of the congregation, take up a collection, count and report it.

Congregational Life: Our Relationship to One Another

The St. Paul's congregation sponsors a variety of groups and activities that meet regularly. Each affords an opportunity to enjoy companionship, make new friends and contribute time/expertise to an activity that may be of interest to you and of service to others.

Here are some points of entry into the life of St. Paul's. . .

Adult Forums -- Topical presentations and discussions; Sundays before church.
Art Exhibits -- Visual talents of the congregation and the community. . .
Catechists -- Mentors for baptismal candidates, parents and sponsors.
Children's Ministries -- Learning with the tradition.
Coffee Hour -- Following Sunday-service in the Great Room, downstairs.
Group "I" -- Women's service group.
Heralds -- Respond to calling requests
Historian -- Steward of Parish Archives
Journey to Adulthood (J2A) -- Young People's Spiritual Formation.
Messenger -- Monthly Newsletter
Prayer Chain -- Sharing the congregation's concerns.
St. Paul's Goes to Camp - Annual August Weekend at Little Lake
Soup/Sandwich Suppers -- Open to all. . . Last Wednesday of the Month
Welcomers -- Brown bag biweekly; addresses hospitality issues.
Women's Lunch -- Third Friday of the month in local restaurants.

Corporate Property: Our Relationship as Stewards

The Church Building:

St. Paul's Church in the City of Marquette was incorporated on March 30, 1858. The church building was erected in 1874. It is a designated National Landmark Building. St. Paul's is considered one of the finest examples of sandstone church construction in the United States. A ten-year renovation/expansion project has been largely completed without current debt.

Governance:

Members of the congregation elect a twelve-person vestry to act as agents and legal representatives of the congregation in all matters concerning out corporate property. The vestry elects a rector, who serves as spiritual leader. The rector together with the vestry are the administrative leaders of the congregation. The by-laws provide for the following three standing committees:

Stewardship -- We strive to live as stewards who recognize that all we have, we have received from God, that we contribute a portion of our Time, Talent and Treasure to fulfill this belief. St. Paul's is largely supported by contributions of its present members. About 25% of income is derived from past members in the form of endowments. We conduct a financial pledge campaign each fall; however, new members are invited to make their pledges at any time. We envision a similar process to pledge of one's time and talents.
Property -- The Property Committee maintains the church building, using proceeds from a Maintenance Endowment to defray incidental expenses. Major expenses, such as the Renovation and Expansion Project, have been financed by separate fund drives conducted by the Building Fund Committee and built under the supervision of the Building Committee.
Trust -- The Trust Committee reviews all trusts on at least a quarterly basis and recommends any action to be taken to the vestry. Currently the Trusts are about fifty percent invested in equities for growth, and fifty percent in income producing securities.
The Bylaws permit the establishment of other committees. An additional standing committee is the Finance Committee, which prepares the annual budget for approval at the Annual Meeting and monitors the operational cash flow during the year.

St. Paul's | 201 East Ridge | Marquette, MI 49855 | (906) 226-2912