A Word of Welcome from the Very Reverend William B. Lane, Dean:

Welcome to the Cathedral’s website. I hope that after you have explored it, you will join us on a Sunday morning or at one of our special services. The sign outside the Cathedral’s entryway reads: THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH WELCOMES YOU. We really mean that, so we look forward to having the opportunity to welcome you.

The Cathedral Church of Saint John, as well as the Episcopal Church, approaches matters of faith through Holy Scripture, Religious Tradition, and Reason. While Holy Scripture is key, each of these interacts with and informs the others. To put it quite simply, at the Cathedral you are encouraged to use your head as well as your heart, thinking as well as feeling -- both are God-given gifts.

I believe that you will experience three prominent features of our church life if you spend time with us. They are: worship, diversity, and opportunity for service. Our worship is grounded in the richness of the Episcopal/Anglican tradition that holds up both Word and Sacrament as integral to corporate worship. We pay special attention to music and preaching as means for informing and uplifting the lives of those who gather on Sundays and other occasions.

The Cathedral’s population is a diverse one. We take seriously that we’re created in the image of God, and that the value of each of us is worthy of affirmation, that each of us is a blessing to be rejoiced in. The Cathedral’s membership reflects the diversity of the world around it. Its witness is that diversity works, that it is good, and that it is a gift to be cherished. When you come to Saint John’s, you will not be scrutinized as to your race, age, sexual orientation, or gender. You will be welcomed and encouraged to enter into the life of the Cathedral as fully as you desire.

As to the opportunity for service, Saint John’s has a tradition of involvement with the community of the Brandywine Village. It is home for the Cathedral Choir School of Delaware which draws half of its 50-plus student body from the Village, a federally designated at-risk area of the City of Wilmington. The neighborhood assistance programs of the Cathedral provide counseling, food, nutritional education, and assistance with travel for medical and work appointments. Each summer, children from the Village and beyond are offered the opportunity for a grand Summer Camp experience. In 2007, sixty children ages seven through eleven and a dozen high school students benefited from our four-week camp program. In 2008, the program will expand to five weeks and eighty children. Your support and participation in any of these will be welcomed, as will be your ideas and interests for other ministries.

So, come join us as we journey into the 21st century. The Cathedral has been here at the intersection of Concord Avenue and Market Street for over one hundred and fifty years. It is our experience that God continues to refresh and renew our life and work.

If you have any questions,

--The Very Rev. William B. Lane

DEAN'S DIRECTORY:

• A recent sermon by the Dean
• The Dean's Letter of Welcome
• Meet the Dean

Cathedral Call Letters

• 2008: January | March
• 2007: September | October | November | December