Discernment Information

It is our goal as a parish to make a spiritual connection with a full-time priest in charge and together, create an environment that will allow our dreams of congregational growth to be realized and all the personal and professional goals of our new priest to be attained. Along with this, we also look forward to our congregation growing closer together, through the work of our new priest in charge in providing personal pastoral care for every parish member and through the active care of this parish as a whole.

We hope the partnership that develops between our congregation and the new priest will be beautiful in ways both parties have yet to experience. An uplifting, spiritual, trusting, nurturing, and caring connection will create a true bond between us all.

The Diocese


Christ Memorial Episcopal Church is a member of the Diocese of Central PA. This diocese is a geographically large one, which runs from the New York border in the north to the Maryland border in the south. It stretches east to Lancaster and west to Altoona covering 24 counties. Seventy-one parishes with a total membership of 18,500 comprise this diocese of primarily small churches.

The Right Reverend Nathan D. Baxter presides over the diocese from its administrative center in Harrisburg.

Area Demographics


Danville, Pennsylvania is a unique combination of a traditional rural township offering safety, friendship, and openness among its residents, and a forward thinking, modern and growing community.

Danville not only has its farming and manufacturing roots, but is also deeply immersed in professions such as health care and education. Our leading employers are Geisinger Medical Center, which is one of the largest health care providers in the state, as well as a large pharmaceutical company, and three significant universities all within 30 miles of one another.

These professions, along with many others, have created a community of growth with a wide range of perspectives, needs, and opportunities.

Danville is a place where doors can still remain unlocked. It is a place which offers very tolerant values, and it is a place where it is safe to raise a family and/or just be who you are.

Danville is growing and will continue to grow as our major employers are expanding. This not only creates new positions there, but allows other employment opportunities to develop such as the need for real estate, restaurants, merchandise, and services.

The Danville community is becoming more diverse each year which presents a wonderful opportunity for us all to live in a close-knit, yet well-rounded environment.

Danville is large enough to be multi-faceted, yet small enough for an individual, such as a church rector, to play an important role in the community and to make a difference. Our community presents an opportunity to any person who has the desire, to become a community leader, a visible figure representing the Episcopal church, who is there to help and lead with love, kindness, and compassion.

Parish Demographics


Christ Memorial Episcopal Church has a congregation of 222 active baptized members. We currently have 52 pledging units and an average weekly attendance of 71.

The annual Parochial Report to the Diocese reflects a rather steady growth in the category of Active Baptized Membership of 10% between 2000 and 2006, a gain of 20 members.

Our church traditionally has had the advantage of stability provided by established community families. On a typical Sunday, parishioners range from small children to those in their latter years.

The energy, optimism, competence and commitment of our recently arrived interim pastor fall perfectly in place, as Christ Memorial Episcopal Church continues its upward momentum. We have already observed a demonstrable increase in attendance as well as an almost contagious growth in enthusiasm within the congregation and within the greater community.

Most of the other numerical measures have been quite steady over the last six years i.e.: average attendance, Sunday school enrollment, pledge cards received, amount of money pledged, and total attendance at all services. The questionnaires returned by the congregation to the Discernment Committee show the following:

Ages of respondents:
13-17 years - 7%, 30-39 years - 5%, 40-49 years - 17%, 50-59 years - 21%, 60 years plus - 50%


Years of Membership:
0-2 years - 2%, 2-5 years - 7%, 5-10 years - 21%, 10-20 years - 34%, 20 years plus - 36%

Our community's continual growth, both in numbers and diversity, present a great opportunity to make spiritual connections with these individuals. Many new families are coming to the area; many families have grown and developed right in our own backyard. We at Christ Church are setting the stage to increase our visibility and make meaningful connections with the people of our community.

We believe there is a substantial potential for growth as so many are looking for a sense of belonging, joy, and community within their lives. We hope to increase our attendance by at least 20% within the next five years and we firmly believe that we can attain this goal based on community need, and our commitment to visibility and outreach.

Vision for the Future


Christ Memorial Episcopal Church envisions a future of solid congregational growth along with the rekindling of our individual and parish spirituality. We look forward to a period of unprecedented growth, parish and pastoral care, community service, and outreach. Our church leadership is laying the groundwork to accomplish this.

To begin, we are seeking a full-time priest in charge. Not only is this full time service extremely important to our current parishioners, it is imperative for our goals above to be accomplished.

We seek a very special person to fill this position; one who is motivated, enthusiastic, and has the ability to think in ways that are not always traditional, but rather, forward thinking and in tune with a modern and growing community. We are looking for an individual who can lead, yet understands how to work effectively with the vestry and other parish groups as a team member. We are looking for someone with vision, who will help us redefine Christ Church as an active, visible center for love and worship within this community.

Kindness, understanding, and patience are a few of the personal virtues that go hand in hand with this most important position. A congregational survey helped us to obtain important insight into many of the qualities our parishioners deemed important. To follow are some key topics from the survey.

The congregation hopes for someone who is social and outgoing; someone who encourages all to participate, welcomes adverse opinions, a leader, motivator, and facilitator, one who can gain consensus without conflict, someone who actively visits parishioners and non-parishioners, and is completely at ease with the visitation process.

Our Church


As previously mentioned, the leadership of Christ Memorial Episcopal Church is laying the groundwork for our goal of growth for our parish. We not only have a congregation that is excited, open, and ready to accept this challenge; we also have prepared the entire church facility to move forward, effectively into the future.

The church rectory has been revitalized with interior repairs and a beautiful new paint job. The rectory is also completely updated for modern living with all necessary electrical, phone, and other services intact.

The church now has a state of the art sound system, allowing everyone to hear the spoken word. The recording capabilities offer unique services to shut-ins or for special events.

Christ Memorial Episcopal Church has a Memorial Garden on the premises which provides a place for prayer, remembrance, and the interment of ashes for members of our congregation. We also have a cemetery within the Danville borough which is well-maintained through a specific trust fund.

The renovation of the church structure has been a blessing and has generated a tremendous amount of interest. The rebuilt tower, new roof, and many underlying structural elements prepares our house of worship for years to come.

We hope prospective rectors will be highly enthused about the state of our facility and realize that we are a congregation ready to charge into the future. This congregation wants its new rector to join our excitement and lead us into this future with growth, visibility, leadership, and interaction within the community.

How We Operate


Vestry


Christ Church has the rector and nine persons on Vestry. Senior and Junior Wardens are both required to be members of the Vestry. The Senior Warden is appointed by the rector. The Junior Warden and Clerk are elected by the vestry.

Each member serves a three-year term, and is eligible for re-election one time, for six consecutive years. A person is eligible for re-election again after a one-year absence. Each year, three members are elected for three year terms. Each year, three existing members shall retire.

Our Vestry meets once monthly, on the third Monday of each month. Special meetings are called as needed.

The Treasurer and Clerk of the Works do regularly attend meetings, although they are usually not vestry members.

Committees

  1. Discernment. Ten members and Transition Companion
  2. Finance. Treasurer, vestry member, two parish members.
  3. Education. Chair and five Sunday School teachers.
  4. Capital Campaign. Chair and four members. Principle activity is church restoration project.
  5. Hospitality. Chair and many volunteers. Provide refreshments for parish, convocation and other gatherings.
  6. Block Party. Chair and numerous members.
  7. Cemetery. Two members.
  8. Stewardship. Two co-captains. Many members.
  9. Women's Group. Chair and eight members.
  10. Shepherding Committee. Vestry subcommittee. Chair and six members. Maintain regular contact with all parish members.
  11. Altar Guild. Two co-chairs and ten members.
  12. 10 a.m. Service Greeters. Two members.
  13. Coffee Hour Hosts. One chair and volunteers. Provide refreshments after the 10 a.m. Sunday Service.

Staff

  1. Rector
  2. Part time Parish Secretary
  3. Sexton
  4. Organist / Choir Director
  5. Assistant Organist

Parish Life

  1. Our Services
    1. 8 a.m. Sunday Holy Communion
    2. 10 a.m. Sunday Choral Holy Communion
    3. 5:30 p.m. Wednesday Holy Communion
    4. Pastoral Care for patients at Geisinger Medical Center
    5. Sunday School and Nursery provided for 10 a.m. Sunday Service
    6. Monthly Healing Service, First Wednesday of month at 5:30 p.m.
  2. Education
    1. Sunday School (two classes)
    2. Adult education
  3. Stewardship. Active and effective program.
  4. Music Program
    1. Adult Choir
    2. Children's Choir
    3. Frosty Valley Dulcimer Friends
    4. Concerts
    5. Recitals
  5. Coffee Hour
    1. After 10 a.m. Sunday service
    2. Various sponsors
  6. Outreach
    1. Block Party
      1. Annual
      2. Held twice so far
    2. Jubilee Kitchen
      1. Community "soup kitchen" meets every Saturday
      2. Christ Memorial hosts 2 Saturdays/year
      3. Nine servers. Many contributors.
    3. Good Samaritan Project
      1. Local mission which provides assistance to needy members of community
      2. Parishioner is board member and coordinator. Many contributors.
    4. Halloween Parade
      1. Christ Memorial gives away free hot chocolate and sells hot dogs, baked goods
      2. All proceeds benefit Sunday School
    5. Danville/Riverside Food Bank
      1. Area food bank for local communities
      2. Coordinator and many contributors.
    6. Christmas Angels
      1. Area Community project to provide needy children with Christmas presents
      2. Christ Memorial typically hosts several families
    7. Operation Christmas Child
      A "Shoebox ministry." Parishioners fill shoe boxes with small gifts for needy children.
    8. Saturday Morning Train Program
      1. Parish coordinator
      2. 10 a.m. to 12 noon
      3. Initial train layout constructed by children under coordinator's direction
      4. Have received train parts and layout materials, such as houses, from members of the community.
      5. Has been featured in the newspaper on several occasions.
      6. Open to the public Friday and Saturday during recent Iron Heritage Days.
    9. Prayer chain. Two co-chairs. Many members. List updated regularly.
    10. Caring Card program. Greeting cards for parishioners and friends in need of encouragement.

Other notable activities

  1. Active acolyte program.
  2. Monthly Children's service at 10 a.m.
  3. Pecan sales. Fundraiser.
  4. United Thank Offering.
  5. New sound system installed 2007.
  6. Continuing structural improvement to church building.
  7. Active lay participation in services. Eight acolytes, six chalice bearers, eleven lectors, four Lay Readers (Morning Prayer).

Closing Prayer


Choosing a New Priest


Almighty God we pray for the guidance of your Holy Spirit as we seek a new priest for our church. You know our special needs and the task which lies before us. In our search direct us and give us insight to recognize the leader whom you would choose for us. And we further pray, O Lord, that in this time of waiting we may all devote ourselves afresh to your service, so that nothing is lost of the faithful work of the past, rather that it may be brought to a rich harvest in the years to come. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

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