Please join us for worship on Sundays at 8:00 a.m. or 10:30 a.m.
The services of this congregation, like all Episcopal congregations, and other liturgical churches, follows a simple pattern laid out in the Book of Common Prayer. This Prayer Book, now more than 450 years old, has been revised many times, but it connects us with the prayers of our past and the prayers of most of the world’s Christians.The main service on Sundays and other days is called “The Holy Eucharist” or “The Holy Communion,” or “The Mass” or “the Lord’s Supper.”
The service is broken into two parts: The Liturgy of the Word and the Great Thanksgiving. The break point between these two parts is the passing of the “Peace.” The term Eucharist is a Greek word meaning “thanksgiving.”
The Eucharist is our thankful response to God for His saving love in Jesus Christ. It is derived from the Last Supper Jesus shared with his apostles on the night before he was handed over to suffering and death on the cross. The outline of the service is as follows:
The Liturgy of the Word:
- Hymns and canticles of praise using The Hymnal 1982 and its supplement, Wonder, Love, and Praise; Book of Common Prayer; and a varied genre ofChristian music including contemporary Christian, gospel, and jazz pieces for an occasional Jazz Eucharist.
- The reading of passages of Scripture from the Old Testament (Hebrew Scriptures), Psalms, Epistle or “Letter” from the New Testament, and the Gospel.
- A sermon or “homily” based on one or more of the Scripture readings.
- The recitation of the Nicene Creed.
- Reading of the Prayers of the People for the church and for the world and The Lord’s Prayer
- The General Confession and Absolution.
- The Peace
The Great Thanksgiving:
1. Offering of bread and wine(and other gifts)
2. Eucharistic Prayer
3. Breaking of the bread
4. Distribution of the bread and wine (Holy Communion)
5. Post-Communion prayer
6. Benediction and Dismissal
7. Return to the world to serve Christ.
While the outline of the service seems very involved, the service flows quite smoothly and is easy to follow. Typically, the 8:00 a.m. service lasts for about an hour, while the 10:30 a.m. service lasts for about an hour and fifteen minutes. The later service is longer because of the use of more hymns. Along these lines, the 10:30 a.m. Sunday service includes hymns, the singing of anthems or other special music. Most of the children attend this service. However, many of the children six years old and younger attend Children’s Chapel during the Liturgy of the Word, and come into the service during the Peace. Our nursery is also open from 7:45 a.m. until 12:15 p.m. on Sundays. All Baptized Christians, regardless of denomination or tradition, may receive the Eucharist during the service. You are welcome to worship with us regardless of your background. We understand that going to a new church filled with strangers can be intimidating. We have designed our worship so that anyone can participate, even if it is their very first visit to an Episcopal church.St. Paul’s is located at 28788 North Main Street in Daphne, Alabama. This is between the two North Main Street entrances into the Lake Forest subdivision.