The Episcopal Church embraces the "beauty of Holiness" in our worship. We believe that God reveals Godself to us through Holy Scripture and through the sights and sounds of worship and life. Our worship service is designed to embrace this beauty through our active participation. It is a beautiful form of worship based on the ancient practices of our Christian faith. We are not mere spectators. This is not a concert or a form of entertainment. We are gathering to worship our God Almighty. We are challenged to take part in actively praising God both in our worship together, and in the charge to go out into the world to love and serve our Lord and Savior. We seek to worship in a fun, engaging manner that is both casual and yet reverent. As with anything new, the worship can seem foreign at first. However, the St. James' family will guide you. We believe that you will find our worship service a beautiful, inspiring and powerful way to praise God! If you would like to know a little more about what to expect please follow this link (click here) to a relevant section page of this website.

Please follow this link for more information on what to expect during worship (click here). We use the Book of Common Prayer during our worship. Don't be intimidated, we are a friendly bunch and we will help you. By using this form of worship, you join with Christians all over the country and throughout the world who use a similar form of worship. All voices raised together and joining those who went before us to worship God-isn't that wonderful? The best way to find out how we worship, what we do or what we believe is to join us. We hope to see you soon!

You will find all manners of dress during Sunday worship. Whatever you wear, we think you will find the congregation welcoming. We don't really care what you wear (provided you wear clothes!) as long as you come and worship God. Our purpose is to worship and glorify God. We want you to join us. We have those who "dress up" and those who wear jeans. We are pretty laid back about dress codes.

The sacrament of Christ's body and blood, and the principal act of Christian worship. The term is from the Greek, "thanksgiving." Jesus instituted the eucharist "on the night when he was betrayed." At the Last Supper he shared the bread and cup of wine at a sacred meal with his disciples. He identified the bread with his body and the wine with his blood of the new covenant. Jesus commanded his disciples to "do this" in remembrance of him (see 1 Cor 11:23-26; Mk 14:22-25; Mt 26:26-29; Lk 22:14-20). Christ's sacrifice is made present by the eucharist, and in it we are united to his one self-offering (BCP, p. 859). The Last Supper provides the basis for the fourfold eucharistic action of taking, blessing, breaking, and sharing. Christ's body and blood are really present in the sacrament of the eucharist and received by faith. Christ's presence is also known in the gathered eucharistic community.

In the BCP, the whole service is entitled the Holy Eucharist. The first part of the service is designated the Word of God. It usually includes the entrance rite, the lessons and gradual psalm, the gospel, the sermon, the Nicene Creed, the prayers of the people, the confession of sin and absolution, and the peace. The second portion of the service is designated the Holy Communion. It includes the offertory, the consecration of the bread and wine in the Great Thanksgiving, the communion of the people, and the concluding prayers of thanksgiving and dismissal. A blessing may be given prior to the dismissal.

The eucharist is also called the Lord's Supper, Holy Communion, the Divine Liturgy, the Mass, and the Great Offertory (BCP, p. 859). The Hymnal 1982 includes a section with a variety of hymns for the Holy Eucharist (300-347), including "Come, risen Lord, and deign to be our guest" (305-306), "My God, thy table now is spread" (321), "Now, my tongue, the mystery telling" (329-331), and "I am the bread of life" (335).