Dear Diocese of Maryland, “This world is too dangerous for anything but truth and too small for anything but love,”  words from the renowned preacher, William Sloane Coffin, which I often include when pronouncing God’s blessing.  These words have been a touchstone for me for many years, and I find myself grasping them even closer in these days. Today, Episcopal Bishops from across our church launched a  message to the nation , calling for justice, peace, and hope.  This start

The Christ Church Lenten Meditation Booklet, a 25-year-old tradition at our parish, is a powerful read for so many, created with love by members of Christ Church. It is designed to assist us all in times of quiet contemplation, preparing ourselves for rebirth and renewal at Easter. Poems, quotes, stories of reflection, images, prayers, and inspirational pieces by writers or theologians - they all come together to make up this special booklet - one that you can take home with

This past Sunday, we all worshipped online. One of the silver linings of the pandemic was the way many congregations were forced to be innovative and to respond to their new reality with ingenuity. Not that online worship was nonexistent - it wasn’t. Many congregations held services online. But many more churches lacked an online presence because these congregations, including Christ Church, didn’t have the resources to maintain one. I remember asking Chris, our Communication

Each month, Christ Church offers a service of contemplative prayer and music in the tradition of the Taizé community of France. We do so to offer different perspectives on worship, and on February 1 at 6 p.m., we will focus on LOVE. This community promotes peace and justice through prayer and meditation. Our Taizé Vespers service focuses on silence, holy words, prayer, and singing, and offers a chance to meditate and reflect on God's love and presence in one's life, to offer

Meet the Founder of Comfort Cases Next Sunday, February 8 No doubt you've seen the display in the narthex of the MOCC's ongoing R.A.K. ( Random Act of Kindness ) in support of Comfort Cases. In February, you'll be able to meet and speak with Comfort Cases founder Rob Scheer. Rob will share details about Comfort Cases with our congregation during the 10:30 service next Sunday, February 8th. In the meantime, we invite you to learn about Rob's powerful story and learn how we ca

This past Sunday was a unique one for Christ Church - the winter storm that hit 2/3 of the United States forced us to go to an all-virtual format for the first time in years. To keep people engaged, we chose Zoom as our main platform for the first time ever (we always livestream on YouTube, etc.), and parishioner Jonathan Smith delivered the sermon for our Morning Prayer worship. You can read it below, and watch Jonathan deliver it in the video at the bottom of this page. Goo

Please take a few minutes and read this important message below from The Episcopal Church's Presiding Bishop, Sean Rowe. You can also read it here - https://www.episcopalchurch.org/publicaffairs/from-presiding-bishop-sean-rowe-death-and-despair-do-not-have-the-last-word Thank you.   #justice   #loveoverall   #Respect   #respect   #respecteveryone   #loveyourneighbor   #truth   #episcopal   #episcomd   #hocomd   #minneapolis   #Minnesota   #MinnesotaStrong

Epiphany III at Christ Church We had no services on campus today thanks to the winter storm bearing down on most of the country today, but we put together a Zoom morning prayer service and added the final installment of our Pilgrimage to Alabama Adult Formation series. Collect for Today: Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of

❄️ ❄️IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT❄️❄️ Christ Church is CLOSED Everything is on Zoom It's official - to keep us all safe, we are cancelling in-person worship and formation classes today, and instead will be hosting a special SNOW-day Morning virtual gathering on Zoom. We hope that you'll stay warm, fix breakfast, brew some tea, and gather with us online. It's one Zoom link for the entire morning: 9:00 a.m. - Sunday Circle 10:00 a.m. - Morning Prayer Join us for worship, formation, o

We are monitoring the weather, as you are, and may cancel in-person worship and formation classes for this Sunday; instead, we will host Sunday Morning Prayer and Adult Forum: Sunday Circle on Zoom. You can join us for formation, for worship, or for both using one link. If we go with this alternate plan, we will have: 9:00 - Sunday Circle: Pilgrimage to Alabama 10:00 - Morning Prayer with Father Manny By 7:00 a.m. this Sunday, we'll make a decision and send our plans out via

Every Lent, your beloved Christ Church invites parishioners to write a story, share an article, a poem, or a prayer for our Lenten Meditation Booklet. The story may be about your personal faith journey; it could be an experience you may have had, or your loved one may have had or anything that invoked a sense of awe and wonder. Whenever I make my pitch, I typically say something like this ‘Everyone has a story to tell.’ I offer this pitch with all conviction because I believe

The next film screening is God's Not Dead 2  ( trailer ) on Friday, January 23, at 7 p.m., in the Church Office (Parish Hall) building's lower level. Bring movie munchies (or pastries on Saturday!) to share with others!

Food Truck Event on Jan. 31 Will Support Hurricane Relief in Jamaica The charitable arm of Althea’s Almost Famous food truck and catering company has partnered with Howard County government to host a drive for hurricane relief during a food truck event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 31. The location is outside the Howard County building at 9755 Patuxent Woods Dr., Columbia, MD 21044.   Participants are asked to bring non-perishable food items, cleaning supplies, and

For nearly 25 years, Christ Church has published an annual Lenten Meditation Booklet and distributed it to our parishioners on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. The LMB is created with love and designed to assist us all in times of quiet contemplation, preparing ourselves for rebirth and renewal at Easter. Poems, quotes, stories of reflection, images, prayers, and inspirational pieces by writers or theologians - they all come together to make up this special booklet - one that

That's right - Theology on Tap, our much-loved adult fellowship series, is back in 2026! If you are not familiar with ToT, it is when we gather for an hour or so in a casual, fun setting, and at 7:00 tonight, we'll do so at Frisco and the Reckless Shepherd for great food, drink, and conversation. Topics can range from current to historical events; nothing is off the table - we welcome all ideas and subjects - and inspire lively dialogue. Stop by 8895 McGaw Road in Columbia fo

Book Club Returns - Tuesday, January 20 The Christ Church Book Club is an informal online conversation that decides on a book and discusses it as a group, offering different perspectives and experiences. The first book of the 2026 season will be  How We Learn to Be Brave  by Mariann Edgar Budde, Episcopal Bishop of Washington since 2011. It's a brief read; we'll tackle and discuss a chapter or two each week. At this first session, we'll discuss the first two chapters (about 4

This past Sunday, in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Christ Church's 10:30 worship concluded with the song "We Shall Overcome" - one that the Library of Congress tells us has history and connection to two separate songs from over a hundred years ago - the lyrics from “I’ll Overcome Some Day” written by the Reverend Charles Tindley in 1903, and the melody from a traditional African American gospel song called “I’ll be All Right.” It's astonishing that this song

#martinlutherkingjr   #martinlutherkingday   #MLKDay   #mlkday   #MLK2026   #episcomd   #hocomd   #columbiamaryland   #ihaveadream   #CivilRights   #civilrights   #love   #justice   #equality   #equalityforall   #freedom

🙏Share your inspiration with the world! For 25 years, Christ Church has published an annual Lenten Meditation Booklet and distributed it to our parishioners right before Ash Wednesday. The LMB is created with love to assist us all in times of quiet contemplation, preparing ourselves for rebirth and renewal at Easter. Poems, quotes, stories of reflection, images, prayers, and inspirational pieces - they all come together to make up this special booklet - one you can take home

Epiphany II at Christ Church 8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist in Old Brick 9:00 a.m. Family Worship in New Brick 10:30 a.m. Choral Eucharist in New Brick Sunday School, Adult Forum, and all other formation classes resume this Sunday. Collect for Today: Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to th