TO All who need a church home - to all who mourn and want comfort - to all who sin and need a savior; and to whomsoever will - this church opens wide the door and in the name of Jesus says Welcome! The clergy and members of St. George's welcome visitors and newcomers visiting us. We are here to deepen our relationship with God and with one another, and to explore how to live our lives more fully and compassionately. We invite you to continue the journey with us. The Episcopal Church strives to live by the message of Christ, in which there are no outcasts and all are welcome. Walking a middle way between Roman Catholicism and Protestant traditions, we are a sacramental and worship-oriented church that promotes thoughtful debate about what God is calling us to do and be, as followers of Christ. The mission of St. George's Episcopal Church is to provide a place for worship, to teach the word of God, to love, to be charitable to our neighbors, and to grow through evangelism.

St. George's Episcopal Church in Riviera Beach, Florida is a full service parish serving Riviera Beach, Singer Island, Palm Beach Shores, Lake Park, and the northeastern area of West Palm Beach, Florida. We are in a joint regional ministry with St. Mark's Episcopal Church of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida and are a part of the Episcopal Diocese of the Southeast Florida.

Sunday morning services are held at 10A.M. on most Sundays with a coffee hour to follow on most non-holiday Sundays. Please check the online calendar for times on Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter and other special days.

Every Wednesday at 12 Noon a Noon Day Prayer Service is held which includes special intentions and healing prayers. A reading and discussion of Scripture is included in this service. Then at about 1 P.M. a lay lead Visiting Eucharist and Bible Study is held for the homeless at Phil Foster Park.

In addition to worship services, we provide pastoral care and counseling, Eucharistic visits, funeral rites, Baptism, Confirmation, the rites of Unction and Reconcilation, prayers of petition and intention, votive candle services, Bible study, Christian formation study, and marriage in accordance with Diocesan standards and the Canons of the Episcopal Church. Some educational and renewal activities are shared through St. Mark's Episcopal Church or the Diocese.

Religious Education and Renewal Opportunities
St. Marks/St. Georges	Diocesan	National Episcopal
Disciples of Christ in Community	Cursillo	Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) readings and commentary online
Gifts of Holy Spirit TBA	Diocesan School of Christian Studies	Education for Ministry is provided at St. Mark's
For more information contact webmaster@st-georgeschurch.com

 

What to Expect at St. George's Sunday Service
Sunday is traditionally when Episcopalians gather for worship. The principal weekly worship service is the Holy Eucharist, also known as: the Lord's Supper, Holy Communion, or Mass. In most Episcopal churches, worship is accompanied by the singing of hymns, and in some churches, much of the service is sung. Those attending may wear casual clothes but appropriately covering in respect for others. Please fill out and wear a name tag so the congregation can get to know each other.

Worship Styles
Episcopalians worship in many different styles, ranging from very formal, ancient, and multi-sensory rites with lots of singing, music, fancy clothes (called vestments), and incense, to informal services with contemporary music. Yet all worship in the Episcopal Church is based in the Book of Common Prayer, which gives worship a familiar feel, no matter where you go. A bulletin will be passed out containing the essential worship and readings for the day. Some of the longer readings by the presider can be followed by reference in the bulletin to the Book of Common Prayer which are located in the book racks behind each pew.

Liturgy and Ritual
Worship in the Episcopal Church is said to be liturgical, meaning that the congregation follows service forms and prays from texts that don't change greatly from week to week during a season of the year. This sameness from week to week gives worship a rhythm that becomes comforting and familiar to the worshipers.

For the first-time visitor, liturgy may be exhilarating or confusing. Services may involve standing, sitting, kneeling, sung or spoken responses, and other participatory elements that may provide a challenge for the first-time visitor. At St. George's we do kneel at the altar rail for receiving the Holy Eucharist but the pews are not equipped with kneeling pads so most do not kneel in the pews. However, liturgical worship can be compared with a dance: once you learn the steps, you come to appreciate the rhythm, and it becomes satisfying to dance, again and again, as the music changes.

The Holy Eucharist
In spite of the diversity of worship styles in the Episcopal Church, Holy Eucharist always has the same components and the same shape.

The Liturgy of the Word
We begin by praising God through song and prayer, and then listen to as many as four readings from the Bible. Usually one from the Old Testament, a Psalm, something from the Epistles, and (always) a reading from the Gospels. The psalm is usually sung or recited by the congregation in a responsive manner.

Next, a sermon interpreting the readings appointed for the day is preached.

The congregation then recites the Nicene Creed, written in the Fourth Century and the Church's statement of what we believe ever since.

Next, the congregation prays together for the Church, the World, and those in need. We pray for the sick, thank God for all the good things in our lives, and finally, we pray for the dead. The presider (e.g. priest, bishop, lay minister) concludes with a prayer that gathers the petitions into a communal offering of intercession.

In certain seasons of the Church year, the congregation formally confesses their sins before God and one another. This is a corporate statement of what we have done and what we have left undone, followed by a pronouncement of absolution. In pronouncing absolution, the presider assures the congregation that God is always ready to forgive our sins.

The congregation then greets one another with a sign of peace. At St. George's we typically walk up and down the aisles taking the time to personally greet each member of the congregation.

The Liturgy of the Table
Next, the priest stands at the table, which has been set with a cup of wine and a plate of bread or wafers, raises his or her hands, and greets the congregation again, saying The Lord be With You. Now begins the Eucharistic Prayer, in which the presider tells the story of our faith, from the beginning of Creation, through the choosing of Israel to be God's people, through our continual turning away from God, and God's calling us to return. Finally, the presider tells the story of the coming of Jesus Christ, and about the night before his death, on which he instituted the Eucharistic meal (communion) as a continual remembrance of him

The presider blesses the bread and wine, and the congregation recites the Lord's Prayer. Finally, the presider breaks the bread and offers it to the congregation, as the gifts of God for the People of God.

The congregation then shares the consecrated bread and the wine. Sometimes the people all come forward to receive the bread and wine; sometimes they pass the elements around in other ways. In order to reduce the risk of the spread of communicable disease we ask those taking the Holy Eucharist to dip it in the wine rather then drink from the communal cup. The presider will go to where the disabled are located to render the Holy Eucharist.

All Are Welcome
All baptized Christians no matter age or denomination are welcome to receive communion. Episcopalians invite all baptized people to receive, not because we take the Eucharist lightly, but because we take our baptism so seriously.

Visitors who are not baptized Christians are welcome to come forward during the Communion to receive a blessing from the presider.

At the end of the Eucharist, the congregation prays once more in thanksgiving, and then is dismissed to continue the life of service to God and to the World.

Following the service a coffee hour is held in the Parish hall.

The energy and savvy to get things done in the world comes largely from lay leaders -- after all, there are more of us. And when we're committed to enlarging the reign of God, we can transform the world: feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, empowering the powerless, and bringing new life to the church. We can do more when we combine our experiences, our knowledge, and our heart for the work -- when we link up. We can be more effective when we share strategies. And we can build hope as we seek God together.

Q:What is lay leadership?
A:All people of God are empowered for ministry through their baptism. Laity and clergy alike share the ministry of reconciling the world to God, by acting to increase love and justice in the world. Lay Leaders and clergy alike are called to exercise our ministry 24/7/365, and the places where we live and work and play are the places we are called to partner with God – to be “on mission” as “ministers.”

Q:Who are lay leaders?
A:The 99.2 percent of the church (the laity – the non-ordained), regardless of whether they are licensed or not, paid or not – especially since licensed and/or paid lay leaders are such a tiny percentage of the church. By far, most lay leaders serve God outside the church. Inside the church, the Lay Leaders bring the gifts and skills of the world to serve the church. In the world, every baptized person can lead, by practicing a Christ-centered life.

Q:What do they do?
A:Lay Leaders, along with clergy, ARE the church. They do what people do – live, work, play. As Christians, we are all called to live our lives in such a way that we bring about a more just and more loving world. We don’t always do it, but that’s what our faith inspires, equips, and calls us to do. God willing, the church does that, too

Q:How do we recognize them?
A:As the old song says, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love” (with the understanding that justice is the public face of love). We recognize Christians by their deep joy and by their practice of self-giving.

Q:What can I do?
A:You can do what you are called to do – to take action, for God’s sake, to make the world a more loving and more just place – and you can do it wherever you are.
You can do it with anyone who’s willing to partner with you – believer or not.
You *can* do it, with the help of the Holy Spirit.
You can do it with or without the support / blessing of the church.
And lay leaders can bring the stories of their ministry back to their worshipping community, where those stories will inspire and encourage others.

Q:How can lay leaders make this happen?
A:By taking their baptism seriously, and by calling on God to partner with them.
By using all the resources their church offers – liturgy, prayer, teaching, fellowship, and more – to equip themselves for this work.
By responding to the needs they see, in the places where they are, in order to bring love and justice, in whatever form is appropriate.
By seeking the support and partnership both of fellow believers and of those whose belief is not known to them.
By telling the story, both inside and outside the church, about their work and about why they are doing the work, in a way that their listeners can be encouraged/invited to join in the work.