3.  How do you practice incorporating others in ministry?

St. Peter’s is universally described as a warm, welcoming and diverse congregation. We are a Eucharist-centered parish with multiple opportunities for worship throughout the week.  Our door is open every day of the week.  There is significant lay involvement in our worship and in ministering to each other through intercessory prayer, centering prayer meetings, and our lay Eucharistic ministry.

Church services, of course, are the most prominent point of contact, with a team of trained ushers, several dozen members singing in the choir, three or more youth serving as acolytes and torchbearers, along with other members assisting with the service. We also recognize new visitors every Sunday with a red informational packet—an effort that also allows parishioners to specifically identify and welcome them.

Our Sunday morning breakfast, known as Holy Chow, is staffed almost entirely by volunteers as is the Coffee Hour after church services. Church members facilitate most of the Sunday school hour classes for children, youth and adults.

St. Peter’s has long had a strong tradition of lay leadership and ownership of programs and services that occur within but also beyond our brick and stained-glass walls. These ministries are organized through committees and commissions.  For example, our pastoral care commission works with our clergy to minister to families and individuals facing moments of crisis.

Ministry goes beyond the congregation. Numerous outreach programs place members where they do God’s work in the community. The Room In The Inn program alone, which provides overnight housing and meals to the homeless, annually has nearly 80 volunteers at St. Peter’s.

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