What we believe
Our Beliefs
You don't have to agree with everything to belong here. But if you want to know where we're coming from — this is a good place to start.
“We don't ask you to believe everything perfectly before you walk in. We ask you to come, to worship, to wonder — and to see what happens.”
— The Episcopal Way
Ancient Worship, Open Doors
Episcopal worship is rooted in the Book of Common Prayer — a tradition stretching back 500 years to the English Reformation. Our liturgy is structured and participatory: there are prayers said together, scripture read aloud, and a rhythm to each service that becomes deeply familiar. But "traditional" doesn't mean closed. The same ancient prayers that sustained generations are offered here to anyone who walks through our doors.
An Open Table
In many churches, Communion (the Eucharist) is restricted to members or to those who have been confirmed in a specific denomination. Not here. At Good Shepherd — and in the Episcopal Church broadly — all baptized Christians are welcome to receive Communion. We believe God's table is God's table, and no church owns it. If you've been baptized and feel called to receive, please come forward.
Faith and Reason Together
Episcopalians don't ask you to check your brain at the door. We take scripture seriously — reading it, studying it, wrestling with it — but we also value reason and tradition as companions to faith. Doubt is welcome here. Hard questions are welcome here. We believe that honest inquiry and deep faith aren't opposites; they're partners. You don't have to have certainty to belong.
Sacramental Life
Sacraments are outward signs of inward grace — moments where the physical and the spiritual meet. Baptism and the Eucharist are the two central sacraments of the Episcopal Church. We also celebrate marriages, confirm youth and adults in their faith, ordain priests and deacons, pray over the sick, and hear confession. These aren't rituals for their own sake — they're invitations to encounter God in the ordinary stuff of life.
Radically Welcoming
The Episcopal Church officially affirms that all people — regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, or background — are beloved children of God and full members of the Body of Christ. Good Shepherd takes that seriously. You will see people of every background in our pews. We ordain women and LGBTQ+ clergy. We've been a congregation that shows up for its neighbors for generations, and we intend to keep doing so.
Quick reference
Good Shepherd at a Glance
- Worship style
- Traditional liturgy from the Book of Common Prayer, with music, scripture, and Eucharist every Sunday
- The Bible
- Read, studied, and taken seriously — but interpreted through the lens of reason and tradition, not literalism
- Clergy
- Both women and men are ordained as deacons, priests, and bishops in the Episcopal Church
- Social justice
- Care for the poor, welcome for the stranger, and advocacy for the marginalized are core to our calling
- Our bishop
- The Rt. Rev. Diane M. Jardine-Bruce, Bishop of West Missouri, oversees Good Shepherd
- Our tradition
- Anglican — tracing its roots through the Church of England, now a worldwide Communion of 85 million members
Want to Learn More?
Come to a service, stay for coffee hour, and ask us anything. We love these conversations — and there are no wrong questions.