Parish History
St. George’s stands in the mainstream of classic Anglicanism that affirms the primary authority of Holy Scripture as interpreted by the church through the ages and the work of the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to its truth as systematically expressed in the Book of Common Prayer and the Articles of Religion. Anglicanism is the oldest expression of English-speaking Christianity in North America. Its origin dates to the founding of the Church of England and the extension of its missionary outreach to the Virginia Colony of the British Empire in 1607. Anglican influence on American ideals and institutions include: the biblical spirituality and literary artistry of its Prayer Book, its theological conception of Natural Law and civil government, and the moral formation of early America’s great leaders. Nearly two-thirds of the signers of the Declaration of Independence and over one-half of the signers of the Constitution were Anglicans.
Organized in March of 2009, St. George’s Anglican Church emerged from Grace Church & St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. Their desire was to establish a parish that is evangelical in faith, catholic in order, and spiritually vibrant in gifts for service.
In March of 2009, the parish moved into a former private school that was tucked away in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood on the west side of Colorado Springs. When our lease ended 2 years later we began to look for a permanent home in downtown Colorado Springs. In the summer of 2011 we purchased the building that housed the original Grace Episcopal Church. The original part of the building was constructed in 1874, but the congregation left the building in 1925 to combine with St. Stephen’s Parish. Since then the building has served as a restaurant and a night club. It has been our great delight to restore this old building back to its original glory.
The three primary points of emphasis for the parish are traditional Anglican worship and liturgy, Christian education for all ages, and outreach to our community and world.
Who is St. George?
Tradition holds that he was born circa 270–280 in Cappadocia (central Asia Minor, modern Turkey) to a Christian family of some standing. He entered Roman military service and rose to the rank of tribune (or a comparable officer’s grade), possibly serving in the imperial guard. When Emperor Diocletian’s persecution of Christians began in earnest around 303, George publicly refused to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods or to renounce the faith. He is said to have torn down or denounced the imperial edict. Arrested, he endured prolonged torture—accounts vary widely and grow more elaborate in later hagiography—yet remained steadfast. He was finally beheaded, most commonly placed at Lydda or Nicomedia, on or about 23 April 303 (or 304). His body was returned to Lydda, where a church was soon built over his relics and where his cult took root early.
Veneration spread rapidly in both East and West. He is ranked among the Great Martyrs in the Eastern churches and as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers in the West. The famous dragon-slaying legend—George rescuing a princess and converting a city after killing a dragon—appears much later (first visual evidence in Cappadocia in the eleventh century; popularized in the West by Jacobus de Voragine’s Golden Legend in the thirteenth). It is best understood as an allegorical depiction of the triumph of Christ and the Church over evil, paganism, or the devil rather than a literal historical episode.
His cult reached England by the eighth century at latest (mentioned by Bede and others; churches dedicated before the Norman Conquest). The Crusades greatly intensified devotion: English and Norman knights encountered his Eastern cult, and visions of him were reported aiding Christian forces (notably at Antioch in 1098). King Richard I is associated with particular reverence for him during the Third Crusade.
Edward III, in 1348, founded the Order of the Garter under the patronage of Saint George and effectively established him as England’s national patron saint. The red cross of Saint George on a white field became the national flag of England and remains a principal element of the Union Flag. His feast (23 April) was elevated in status, and the battle-cry “God for Harry, England, and Saint George!” entered the national imagination through Shakespeare and later tradition.
Saint George is among the most widely adopted patrons in Christendom. He is the traditional protector of soldiers, cavalry, archers, scouts (Boy Scouts), farmers, and those afflicted with certain skin diseases. The principal nations, regions, and cities that claim him as patron saint are England, Portugal, Georgia, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Ethiopia, Moscow, Genoa, Venice, and Barcelona.