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437 James Street
Syracuse, NY 13203 Vicar : The Rev. Dr. Gerard Beritela Home Phone : 315-437-8750 Email: gfberitela@aol.com |
An inclusive and welcoming community in the Anglo-Catholic tradition worshipping God through the beauty of music and traditional liturgy.
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Welcoming & Inclusive
Anglo-Catholic theology has always placed a special emphasis on the Incarnation of Christ--i.e. that he became fully human. Therefore, human beings are endowed with goodness, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and all should be welcomed in God's house. Since the origins of the Anglo-Catholic revival at Oxford University in the 1830's, the movement has always combined a commitment to social justice with the beauty of traditional liturgy that is meant to draw people closer to God.
Since its founding in 1848, Saviour has been an inclusive and welcoming community. In those days, most churches charged "rent" for their pews. Saviour was founded as the first "freely seated and freely supported" parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York, on the belief that all should be welcome equally before God, regardless of their economic standing.
In the 1870's the church's rector, Dr. Clarke was publically criticized in the press by another clergyman for marrying "Jews, Negroes, Irish and Germans" as well as Native Americans. Dr. Clarke took pride in and defended making his services available to all in need of a clergyman, including those rejected by other mainline churches.
In the early part of the 20th century, the Syrian and Armenian communities came to Saviour and in recent years the parish has become a church home to many members of the Burmese refugee community.
And, like many Anglo-Catholic parishes since the early part of the 19th century, Saviour has valued the active participation of the gay community--whether drawn by the aesthetic sensibility of Anglo-Catholic liturgy, a church that welcomes them, or the deep spirituality experienced in a liturgy that encompasses all the senses.
Anglo-Catholic theology has always placed a special emphasis on the Incarnation of Christ--i.e. that he became fully human. Therefore, human beings are endowed with goodness, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and all should be welcomed in God's house. Since the origins of the Anglo-Catholic revival at Oxford University in the 1830's, the movement has always combined a commitment to social justice with the beauty of traditional liturgy that is meant to draw people closer to God.
Since its founding in 1848, Saviour has been an inclusive and welcoming community. In those days, most churches charged "rent" for their pews. Saviour was founded as the first "freely seated and freely supported" parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York, on the belief that all should be welcome equally before God, regardless of their economic standing.
In the 1870's the church's rector, Dr. Clarke was publically criticized in the press by another clergyman for marrying "Jews, Negroes, Irish and Germans" as well as Native Americans. Dr. Clarke took pride in and defended making his services available to all in need of a clergyman, including those rejected by other mainline churches.
In the early part of the 20th century, the Syrian and Armenian communities came to Saviour and in recent years the parish has become a church home to many members of the Burmese refugee community.
And, like many Anglo-Catholic parishes since the early part of the 19th century, Saviour has valued the active participation of the gay community--whether drawn by the aesthetic sensibility of Anglo-Catholic liturgy, a church that welcomes them, or the deep spirituality experienced in a liturgy that encompasses all the senses.
