Anglican Church of the Resurrection

ANGLICAN CHURCH OF THE RESURRECTION - To know Christ and the power of His resurrection -

Who We Are:

We are a congregation known for its love — of one another and of all who enter our doors. We are a caring people.

We are Evangelical, affirming the importance of a personal commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and embracing the Holy Scriptures as God’s Word and rule for living — “The Manufacturer’s Handbook.”

We are Catholic, with liturgical worship centered on the weekly celebration of the Holy Eucharist, acknowledging the church as the body of Christ and Christ as the head of the church.

We are Charismatic, recognizing the gifting and empowering of the Holy Spirit for ministry and for the praise of Almighty God.

Our congregation derives almost entirely of those who have come out of other churches. Our largest age group is in the 60-80 range, in line with the demographics of the Cape,
though we have smaller groups in age ranges from 3 to 60.

Where Are We Going:

We seek ongoing growth into our mission statement: “to know Christ and the power of His resurrection.”
- we desire to reach out to those who do not know Christ as the answer to the hunger that is within them;
- we desire deeper training and spiritual growth for our healing prayer teams, believing healing to be an integral part of preaching the Gospel;

Where Are We Now?

Our worship is important to us. It is greatly enhanced by our music director — by her gifts, her choices of music and her welcome to all those who would share in the ministry, i.e., harmonicas, violins, a drum, various small percussion instruments, a trumpet and occasionally the presence of a men’s quartet. The congregation is the choir!

We give 15% of our congregational income to outreach efforts within the USA, particularly locally in aid to Lower Cape food pantries. This includes fresh produce for a Council on Aging ministry to shut-ins, and we have a food basket in church each Sunday so parishioners may donate household and food items. We give 10% of our income to our Diocese. We give 5% of our income to the needs of those in the world beyond the USA. We have teams who serve dinner at a local shelter for the homeless. At our present rate of growth we can offer a part time salary for a full time mission!

We believe that the church is alive, a body with Christ as its head. We desire to put our energies and our assets into ministry, rather than into a building. Each Sunday we set up and take down, creating a worship space within an auditorium at the Council on Aging. Our worship space would allow for approximately 60 for regular attendance.

We are eager to learn and grow. There are two study groups a week, drawing from different populations within and outside the church. In the fall of 2011 a study may be formed for those interested in going deeper into the healing ministry.

We enjoy picnics and pot-luck meals together. We gather for fellowship each Sunday following the service, with coffee and tea and light foods. This is true at the summer beach service as well.

Our governing body consists of a Senior Warden, Junior Warden, Treasurer and Clerk, each with one year terms open to re-election. There are also two vestry members, each with overlapping two year terms not subject to immediate re-election. In addition to our governing body and our music minister, there is someone who ministers doing weekly flyers, flower and hospitality service lists, lectors’ schedules, healing teams and other administrative duties. All staff persons are unpaid positions.

Our Sunday service is projected on Power Point, so there are no hymnals or prayer books or Sunday bulletins. There is a weekly flyer which includes the lessons, as well as the names of those participating in the service (lectors, usher, server, flowers, food preparation and hospitality, healing prayer team) — for the present Sunday and the Sunday to come. Various items of up-coming events and a prayer list also are part of this bulletin.

We have a telephone prayer chain which people may call in the event of an emergency, in addition to the long-term prayer list on our Sunday news sheet. All lay leaders in the service at COA on Sunday mornings gather around the piano for prayer with the clergy immediately before the start of the service.

Many of our members are active in Anglican Fourth Day and/or Cursillo, including going on team for men’s and women’s and co-ed retreats. They are also part of ongoing small reunion groups which meet weekly and with Ultreya reunions which meet monthly.

We have had a children’s church which was the ministry of a young mother no longer living on the Cape. We have presently two young children in our congregation who would benefit from such an option, but need a person gifted with this age group to create a Christ centered curriculum which is age appropriate, as well as to provide the necessary presence.

Where We Have Been:

The Anglican Church of the Resurrection had its beginnings with a handful of lay people who were intent upon upholding Scripture as the Word of God and Jesus Christ as Savior
and Lord. Our first service was on Trinity Sunday, 2004 in a private home. Nine months
later, we moved to a store front location in Brewster and in August, 2006 called our first rector, The Rev. Michael R. Rennier. On Easter Sunday, 2007 we moved to the Council on Aging in Brewster to expand our worship space. Average Sunday attendance has grown to 30-35 at Sunday services year around, with up to 50 during the summer. In July and August a beach service at 7:30 a.m. draws 10-35 people.

Where we live:

Cape Cod is a beautiful peninsula extending out into Massachusetts Bay on the one side and into Buzzards Bay and Nantucket Sound on the other. The whole comprises Barnstable County. The current year-round population was estimated in 2008 at 226,198. For information about age, income and racial demographics as well as the economic climate, and transportation opportunities, two websites are helpful resources: www.ecapechamber.com and www.zipskinny.com

The Cape Cod community offers diverse and abundant educational opportunities for students of all ages from preschoolers to older adults. Public and private educational institutions thrive here, where the citizens have traditionally placed a high value on education. In Massachusetts, parents or guardians may enroll their children in any public school, whether or not it is in the district where they reside, as long as they make provision for transportation to the school.

There are fine hospitals in Hyannis and Falmouth, with many local and individual practices in all areas of specialization, as well as local clinics and clinics for lower income constituencies.

Shopping malls, with larger chain stores, are available in Hyannis and Mashpee. Smaller local malls abound. The most interesting and fun of all shopping opportunities is to be found in the myriad small shops with which each town is in some measure endowed.

The fishing industry has played a large role in the Cape’s past and still forms a significant part of its character. Herring runs are lively in the spring, as the fish swim upstream to spawn. Fish piers in various towns provide charter fishing opportunities as well as active fishing fleets and often the opportunity to buy fish straight off the boat.

The Cape abounds in cultural opportunities with its own symphony orchestra and numerous chamber and choral groups as well as groups of all sorts of other musical genres. The Cape is also a center for the arts, with a museum in Dennis and many galleries. Theater groups offer various forms of performing arts — dance, comedy, drama, children’s theater, and opera. For children and adults alike there is the Cape
Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster.

Contact:

Anglican Church of the Resurrection
P.O. Box 1704
Brewster, MA 02631
508-896-2550 (church cell phone answered by senior warden, John Hays)
www.acr-capecod.org

Worship at Council on Aging (10 a.m. winter, 9 a.m. in July and August)
1673 Main Street
Brewster, MA

(at 7:30 a.m. on Sundays in July and August we hold a half-hour service, followed by coffee and fellowship, at Breakwater Beach in Brewster)