About Episcopalians & the Church
We are a sacramental and worship-oriented Christian church that practices community service and promotes thoughtful reflection about what God is calling us to do and to be as followers of Christ. The Episcopal Church is often described as a middle way between Protestant and Roman Catholic traditions, with worship conducted in one's own language, using the Book of Common Prayer, and an approach to interpreting the Bible that includes Scripture, tradition, and reason.
The Episcopal Church strives to live by the message of Christ, in which there are no outcasts and all are welcome. We also have a long tradition of recognizing that diversity of opinion and different points of view exist among good people. As a church, we strive to respect each other, to listen to each other, and to live together in community. Sometimes, this means our national church makes the news—because we are willing to talk about our differences!
About the important things, we are in agreement. These are the beliefs that make us Christians:
- God created the physical world, and it is good.
- The Bible is the Word of God and contains all that is needed for salvation. (Although Christians can disagree on how to interpret or apply what the Bible says.)
- There is One God in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
- God Became Human in the person of Jesus Christ
- Jesus died on the cross for the redemption of our sins and was physically raised to life on the third day
- The sacrament of baptism brings us into a new life as Christians.
- The sacrament of the Eucharist (Holy Communion, the Lord's Supper, Mass) is a continual remembrance of Jesus' life, death and resurrection
- All Christians share in the work of reconciling the World to God through Jesus Christ
And for us in LCEM, we are called to be family. To celebrate our good times and share the bad with people who care. People we know. People we connect with, work with, and can talk to. People we can turn to. That's LCEM. That's family.
For More Information Please Visit These Off-site Websites
Home page to the Episcopal Church (that's the U.S.A. branch of the Anglican Communion) Click here
Home page of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago Click here
Anglicans Online Click here
Bible Gateway - A searchable, online Bible. Lots of Editions! Click here
Episcopal Cafe - A Ministry of the Diocese of Washington, the cafe aspires to create a visually appealing, intellectually stimulating, spiritually enriching and at least occasionally amusing site where Episcopalians and those interested in our church can read, watch, listen and reflect upon contemporary life in a context informed by faith and animated by the spirit of charity. Click here
Top Ten Reasons for Being an Episcopalian
( According to the comedian Robin Williams.)
10. No snake handling.
9. You can believe in dinosaurs.
8. Male and Female, God created them; male and female we ordain them.
7. You don't have to check your brains at the door.
6. Pew aerobics.
5. Church year is color coded.
4. Free wine on Sunday.
3. All of the pageantry, none of the guilt.
2. You don't have to know how to swim to get baptized.
1. No matter what you believe, there's bound to be at least one other Episcopalian who agrees with you.
About Receiving Communion in an Episcopalian Church
All baptized Christians are welcome.
We believe that the communion table belongs to God, not to us.
