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St. Mary's Episcopal Church

Sparta, New Jersey ● Episcopal ● 08:00am, 09:30am, 10:30am
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About Us

St. Mary's Episcopal Church: off the beaten track, literally & figuratively

If you are searching, inquiring, or even doubting....we have a place for you here. If in the past organized religion has failed to capture your mind and soul, broken your heart or your spirit, or made you feel excluded, or simply felt irrelevant, we have a place for you here. If you want to know more, understand more, examine and strengthen your faith and put it to use in the world around you, we have a place for you here. If all you want is to worship and make a joyful noise unto the Lord, we have a place for you here.
We are very much an inclusive worship community that nutures our relationship with God and reflects the love of Jesus by what we say and do.

Vibe
Casual, Traditional Liturgy, Down to Earth, Friendly, Gay affirming, Inclusive, Multigenerational, Lots of kids
Programs
Community Service, Social Justice, Faith and Work, Youth Group, Choir, Missions, Nursery, Adult Education, Food Pantry, Preschool, School, Children's Ministry
Music
Traditional Hymns, Contemporary
Denomination
Episcopal
Networks
Size
Medium
Language
English
Founded
1919

Contact Information

Phone
973.729.3136
Website
http://www.stmaryssparta.org
Social

Our Services

Service Times

Sunday
08:00am
Eucharist Rite II
10:30am
Eucharist Rite II
09:30am
Children's Service every 2nd & 4th Sunday in the month
Wednesday
07:30pm
Eucharist

What to Expect

What are services like?
Traditional Rite II from the Book of Common Prayer. Big choir presence, organ music. Communion for all who wish to participate. Service is about an hour long followed by refreshments.

What is the community like?
The church community is multi-generational. Every 2nd and 4th Sunday's in the month at 9.30am there is a Children's service to cater for our large number of kids. Our Youth Group - kids in their teens - are involved in local and social causes as well as missions work. We have a number of younger families mixed in with empty nesters and a number of singles including widowed and divorced members. Our seniors are extremely active within the church. We are very focused on Outreach and are excellent at Fellowship. We are inclusive and are gay affirming. We have nursery services during the 10.30 service and plenty of educational opportunities exist for spiritual development.

What if I'm not a Christian?
Know first and foremost that you are welcome. We acknowledge that this is a big step and we will give you your space to get to know the services and understand some of the language. You will have questions but when the time is right, you will ask them - no pressure to integrate, we will earn your trust with integrity and sincerity and we are here to hear your story when you are good and ready.

Leadership

Carol Gadsden

Hailing originally from Syracuse, NY, the Rev. Carol Gadsden comes to St. Mary's via Philadelphia where she spent five years in interim work. Now located in Sparta, she enjoys a geographical closeness to her two adult daughters (one is in Manhattan, the other in Boston). A cradle Episcopalian (she was born and raised in the Episcopal Church), Carol brings nearly thirty years of ministerial experience in a variety of settings and roles, including priest-in-charge, interim, vicar, chaplain, and youth minister, in the dioceses of New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, California and Pennsylvania. Her ministry is characterized by the deep and abiding belief that her role is to equip the lower case "s" saints by providing opportunities for education, formation, nurture and support in expectation and hope that parishioners become comfortable and secure in facing the challenges, joys and uncertainties of this world. She says of St. Mary's, "We are a congregation that enjoys each other. We pray together, and we play together. We take our faith seriously, but ourselves less so.
Services
Directions
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Website
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Location & Directions

What Members Say

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    martin shared their experience Dec 2012

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    St. Mary's is such a vibrant place to worship. Its catholic and protestant in one church and its all in harmony. If you are a catholic, you will feel at home here in a smaller congregation. If you are protestant, it's like being in the Church of England! The service is traditional and occassionally we have a gospel like contemporary service that gets you feet tapping! Its a great mix of all ages, all backgrounds, but fundamentally good people who are friendly but can give you your space. We love it. Carol our rector has been here just over a year and is charismatic and inspiring. She's also good fun and a workaholic!

    martin shared their experience Dec 2012

    Report
    St. Mary's is such a vibrant place to worship. Its catholic and protestant in one church and its all in harmony. If you are a catholic, you will feel at home here in a smaller congregation. If you are protestant, it's like being in the Church of England! The service is traditional and occassionally we have a gospel like contemporary service that gets you feet tapping! Its a great mix of all ages, all backgrounds, but fundamentally good people who are friendly but can give you your space. We love it. Carol our rector has been here just over a year and is charismatic and inspiring. She's also good fun and a workaholic!
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