Life's Rites and Celebrations
A Christian life is marked by celebrations of faith and community. Along with Holy Communion, the Episcopal Church recognizes the following rites as important spiritual markers on our path.
Baptism
We welcome your expression of interest in Holy Baptism at St. Andrew's, whether for yourself, for your child, or for your infant. Preparation for baptism includes meeting with our clergy to discuss Holy Baptism, its meaning, and the role of sponsors or godparents.
Please call us at (760) 753-3017 to explore your questions and hopes for Holy Baptism.
To fill out a baptism application, click here.
Confirmation, Reception and Reaffirmation
Confirmation at St. Andrew's is a way that people of any age can "make a public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of their Baptism, and to receive the laying on of hands by the bishop" (BCP, p. 412).
Youth confirmation typically takes place in the middle school years. If you would like more information about the next youth confirmation class, please contact Mother Brenda Sol at rector@standrewsepiscopal.org
Reception is for adults who have been confirmed in another denomination who would like to transfer to the Episcopal Church.
For those who have had a significant renewal in their faith, reaffirmation is a way to acknowledge this publicly. Reaffirmation is a repeatable rite.
Weddings
In marriage, a couple commit themselves to a lifelong union “in heart, body, and mind … intended by God for their mutual joy; for the help and comfort given one another in prosperity and adversity; and, when it is God’s will, for the procreation of children and their nurture in the knowledge and love of the Lord.” Marriage is a sacrament administered to one another by the couple; it is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. The sacramental nature of marriage involves infinitely more than the wedding ceremony in which a marriage is solemnized. “Therefore marriage is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, deliberately, and in accordance with the purposes for which it was instituted by God.” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 423)
Although most weddings at St. Andrew's are those of parish members and their families, we also provide wedding services for couples living in the area who plan to join our church, who are members of an Episcopal congregation elsewhere, or who are actively involved in another Christian community. The Episcopal Church requires that at least one of the parties has been baptized.
Please call our office at (760) 753-3017 to set up an appointment and to learn more about weddings at St. Andrew's. We look forward to answering your questions and assisting you in planning a wedding day that expresses beautifully and clearly the love and aspirations you share as you begin a lifelong marriage.
To get this process started, download this wedding information.
Memorial Services and Funerals
When a loved one dies, St. Andrew's clergy is available to support and comfort family and friends and to help plan a service of celebration of life in witness to the promise within Christ’s Easter victory over death. By family preference, the committal may either follow the memorial service directly or be held at a later date, whether at a cemetery or in the columbarium on the St. Andrew's campus. A planning guide can be found here, along with possible hymn selections and options for Scripture readings. Complete information about our columbarium— a memorial garden with niches for cremated remains — is available here.
For those of us who can still take the opportunity to plan our own memorial service or funeral, our planning can be a wonderful final gift to those we love when they must later carry out these arrangements. We offer a burial instructions worksheet that can be used to record those plans; click here to download one now.
Baptism
We welcome your expression of interest in Holy Baptism at St. Andrew's, whether for yourself, for your child, or for your infant. Preparation for baptism includes meeting with our clergy to discuss Holy Baptism, its meaning, and the role of sponsors or godparents.
Please call us at (760) 753-3017 to explore your questions and hopes for Holy Baptism.
To fill out a baptism application, click here.
Confirmation, Reception and Reaffirmation
Confirmation at St. Andrew's is a way that people of any age can "make a public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of their Baptism, and to receive the laying on of hands by the bishop" (BCP, p. 412).
Youth confirmation typically takes place in the middle school years. If you would like more information about the next youth confirmation class, please contact Mother Brenda Sol at rector@standrewsepiscopal.org
Reception is for adults who have been confirmed in another denomination who would like to transfer to the Episcopal Church.
For those who have had a significant renewal in their faith, reaffirmation is a way to acknowledge this publicly. Reaffirmation is a repeatable rite.
Weddings
In marriage, a couple commit themselves to a lifelong union “in heart, body, and mind … intended by God for their mutual joy; for the help and comfort given one another in prosperity and adversity; and, when it is God’s will, for the procreation of children and their nurture in the knowledge and love of the Lord.” Marriage is a sacrament administered to one another by the couple; it is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. The sacramental nature of marriage involves infinitely more than the wedding ceremony in which a marriage is solemnized. “Therefore marriage is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, deliberately, and in accordance with the purposes for which it was instituted by God.” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 423)
Although most weddings at St. Andrew's are those of parish members and their families, we also provide wedding services for couples living in the area who plan to join our church, who are members of an Episcopal congregation elsewhere, or who are actively involved in another Christian community. The Episcopal Church requires that at least one of the parties has been baptized.
Please call our office at (760) 753-3017 to set up an appointment and to learn more about weddings at St. Andrew's. We look forward to answering your questions and assisting you in planning a wedding day that expresses beautifully and clearly the love and aspirations you share as you begin a lifelong marriage.
To get this process started, download this wedding information.
Memorial Services and Funerals
When a loved one dies, St. Andrew's clergy is available to support and comfort family and friends and to help plan a service of celebration of life in witness to the promise within Christ’s Easter victory over death. By family preference, the committal may either follow the memorial service directly or be held at a later date, whether at a cemetery or in the columbarium on the St. Andrew's campus. A planning guide can be found here, along with possible hymn selections and options for Scripture readings. Complete information about our columbarium— a memorial garden with niches for cremated remains — is available here.
For those of us who can still take the opportunity to plan our own memorial service or funeral, our planning can be a wonderful final gift to those we love when they must later carry out these arrangements. We offer a burial instructions worksheet that can be used to record those plans; click here to download one now.
