Ready to Join?

Experience teaches us that those who fully commit themselves to the life of our parish feel much more a part of this faith community and so find a richer level of participation and a more vibrant identity within the body of the faithful.

As active membership is defined differently in various Christian traditions, we offer the following material as support to your own inquiry and as one part of our desire to welcome you into the life and witness of our congregation. Should you have any questions or needs that arise from reading this material, please do not hesitate to call on our staff for further information or help.

By making your inquiry you are already on the way. We hope that you are already participating in our Sunday worship, and perhaps also in our fellowship and educational opportunities for both adults and children. All baptized persons, both children and adults, are encouraged not only to join us for worship, but also to receive the sacrament.

In the Episcopal Church, the rite of entry is through Holy Baptism. If you have been baptized at some point in your life, then you are already a member of Christ’s holy, and universal Church. to become an official member of this parish requires that you fill out the New Membership Form, thereby providing us information about the baptisms of all who desire membership at St. Anne's. This will allow us to formally register you as a communicant (member) of this parish. If you or another member of your household desires baptism, please visit our baptism page.

Episcopalians should help us arrange for a Letter of Transfer from your previous parish. As you fill out the attached New Membership Form, please identify your previous parish so we may contact them.

Persons of other denominations should notify their previous church of your membership at St. Anne’s.

Like all communities of faith, St. Anne’s Parish follows the Biblical norms for defining active and faithful membership within the Body of Christ.

• WORSHIP: Regular attendance at corporate worship; sharing in the worship life of the community helps to form Christians as our lives are deepened through Word, Sacrament and fellowship.

• PARISH LIFE: Regular participation in the broader life and witness of our parish. This can take many forms but includes sharing in education classes, serving on ministry teams, or helping with some form of parish outreach in the community.

• FELLOWSHIP: Sharing in the larger fellowship of this faith community; building healthy and mutually encouraging relationships as you participate within our congregational life.

• PLEDGING: Our time, personal skills/gifts, and our financial resources to the life and mission of our congregation; pledging a portion of one’s income to your congregation is an act of thanksgiving to God as well as a discipline that can help to open our hearts to our Lord’s love and grace. If you would like more information on this, contact one of the clergy. The sharing of our time and talent is equally important to the mission of our congregation, and our staff member, Rebecca Lagatare, rlagatare@stannes-annapolis.org, will gladly help you explore the many opportunities.

TO BE AN ACTIVE COMMUNICANT BY DEFINITION MEANS THAT YOU ARE MEETING THESE CRITERIA ABOVE.

• Deepening our faith and practice: baptized Christians oftentimes desire to move to deeper levels of mature faith and witness. In the Episcopal Church this is done through the rite of Confirmation. After a time of study and reflection, a candidate renews one’s baptismal vows before our bishop and commits one’s self to a mature pattern of faith and Christian service. Confirmation classes are scheduled during Lent. Contact Rebecca, rlagatare@stannes-annapolis.org, to have your name placed on the waiting list.

Again, we welcome you into this household of faith, and we encourage you officially to join St. Anne’s Parish. By joining, you will discover the deeper joy of belonging to an extraordinary congregation and to the rich heritage of the Episcopal Church. If our staff can be of any help with the process of becoming a member of this congregation, please contact us.