Common Questions

What happens during worship?

How will I be greeted?
You will be welcomed warmly by our hosts who will shake your hand at the front door. Our Welcome Center is located in Yates Hall. Our hosts and ushers are there to welcome and support all visitors and they will be pleased to answer any questions and direct you to the Nave, nursery, or Children’s Chapel. Feel free to take any of the handouts or other informational materials on the welcome table.

When facing the building, you will notice three sets of doors on the front of the church. The entrance to the staff office is on the right (west side). Use the center doors for access to Yates Hall, Children’s education, Children’s Chapel and nursery. The door on the left (east side) leads to our Narthex and Nave (i.e. worship space). For Sunday morning worship, we recommend entering through the center doors. An usher will hand you a worship booklet which contains everything you will need for worship service. Once you enter the Nave feel free to sit anywhere you’d like. Our Anglican tradition is quiet meditation before worship.

Folks at St. George’s generally dress up for worship on Sunday during the 8:00, 9:00 and 11:00 services, but we welcome you to come however you feel comfortable.

Regular Sunday services are typically an hour long and each service offers Holy Communion. Our service hours are as follows:
8:00 a.m. Spoken Holy Communion with sermon
9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Choral Holy Communion with traditional hymns and sermon

By all means, bring your family! We are a multi-generational church and our expectation is that your children will participate in worship with the rest of the congregation. If you have children from infants through 3 years of age who need a quieter space, the greeters can guide you to the nursery area where we have set up a Cry Room. There are rocking chairs, toys, and a TV which streams the worship service in that space.

Handicap parking is available on the street in front of the church. Hearing Assistance Devices are available from the ushers. These can be used for both worship and adult education. If you require any other assistance, just ask a Host or Usher.
The Ushers will provide you with a Service Leaflet as you enter the Nave. The entire liturgy is printed in your booklet. Feel free to take it with you after the service or leave it in the recycle bin on your way out.
The church has a strong commitment to traditional hymns and classical music. Hymns and service music are led by organ and choir and are taken from the 1940 and 1982 Hymnals.
Sermons are scripture-based, focus on practical application to daily life, and usually run around 10-15 minutes in length. Go to our “Weekly Webcasts” page to access recent recordings.
No. While St. George’s is a patriotic church and would never be confused with a “woke” congregation, our sermons expound the word of God in its original context and apply those truths to our current cultural context. Our church is known for standing for truth, goodness, and beauty, rooted in Christ, and those principles are far deeper than any momentary political issue.
For worship our standard translation is the English Standard Version of the Bible.
The Nave seats about 150 with overflow seating for another 70 in Bishop Alpha Hall. During most Sundays we average about 250 in attendance between all of our services. During special services, (e.g. Christmas and Easter) we often have standing room only.

We celebrate Communion every Sunday. Communion is open to all baptized believers in Jesus Christ and is celebrated with wafers and wine. The acolytes will direct each row to the altar rail. One may receive the wine either by intinction (dipping the wafer in the cup) or drinking it directly from the common cup. Children and adults who do not wish to receive Communion may come for a blessing, signifying this by crossing your arms across your chest. Gluten free wafers are available by request. Simply let the priest know that you would like gluten free. After receiving communion, please return to your seat by the side aisle.

If you are not baptized or do not wish to receive communion, you are invited to come for a blessing; you may indicate you are not receiving communion by crossing your arms across your chest. Those desiring baptism are encouraged to speak to one of our priests.

What happens after the service?

How do services end?

At the end of the service there is usually a recessional hymn and the priests, choir and altar party will exit to the Narthex. The service is offically ended when the acolytes extinguish the altar candles. Afterward, please join us in Yates Hall for informal conversation and refreshments.

After the 9:00 service we encourage everyone to stay for Christian education. Adult education meets in Bishop Alpha Hall, children’s Sunday school meets in the undercroft, and teen education meets in the Youth Room downstairs in the undercroft.

The priests are available in the Narthex after the service, so feel free to come up and say hello. They would also be happy to join you for coffee during the week.

Sure! When you visit St. George’s, you can initiate as much, or as little, contact with others according to your own comfort level. We do not require visitors to identify themselves; however, we do want to encourage you to make yourself known when the time is right for you. You may do so by filling out one of our welcome cards which can be found at the visitor’s table.