It’s been 142 years since parishioners from Trinity Episcopal Church split off and formed St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. On Aug. 30, history will happen in reverse.
St. Paul’s, 212 Clay St., will host its last Sunday service at 9 a.m. Aug. 30 and the two congregations will merge.
“This is a sad day for St. Paul’s and it’s a time we need to give thanks for over a century of Christian life,” said the Rev. Clarke French, rector of Trinity, 227 Sherman St. “There is a group of people who attend St. Paul’s in their 80s that were baptized in there. It’s really a generational story.”
the headline could have been:
“St. Paul’s Episcopal to close after 142 Years”
it’s semantics, plain and simple.
These churches are in New York, not Connecticut.
“History in reverse” is likely to be the numerical and demographic reality for the Episcopal Church in the years to come. Ditto for the edifices that will fall apart because they can’t be maintained. The pace, though will be different: demolition is much speedier than construction, and demolition of the institution is what is happening. Of course with the foundation removed, it’s not surprising to see everything else quickly fall. How sad.
Watertown, Central NY. Trinity ASA 140 +/- members 375 $200K, St. Paul’s ASA 50 +/- members 110 $60K.
Thanks, #2 & 4 for the geographical clarification. Watertown, NY is right on the St. Lawrence River, in the scenic Thousand Island region. And Tom, thanks for supplying some basic stats.
Unfortunately, church math is seldom the same as you’d expect. Whan a church with an ASA of 140 merges with one with an ASA of 50, the usual result is that the new combined church has an ASA of 150-160. Sad, but true.
So Elves, will you please correct the title to this thread?
David Handy+