St. James' Church is an Episcopal

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

located at the intersection of

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and 71st Street on the

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the we ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Founded in May 1810 as a summer chapel for New Yorkers with country homes north of the then city, it has grown into one of the largest Episcopal churches in New York City. In addition to worship, it has programs for children and young families, youth and young adults, as well as a music program and a devotion to mission and service in the community. In 2021, it reported 1,559 members, average attendance of 165, and $2,749,445 in plate and pledge income.

Worship & music

St. James' Church worships in a variety of styles within the

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...

tradition. Four services of Holy Eucharist are celebrated every Sunday.

Music

In 2008–2009, the parish installed the St. James' Bicentennial Organ, built by Schoenstein & Co. Organbuilders (op. 156 & 157) in San Francisco. The organ contains a total of 5,538 pipes, with 4,407 pipes in the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. ...

organ and 1,131 pipes in the gallery. The new organ was dedicated in October 2010.

Recent history

In 1996 St. James' called as rector the Rev. Brenda G. Husson, the first woman chosen to lead a parish of such size and prominence in the diocese. Rev

Under Husson's leadership, St. James' received a large private grant to establish the Partners in Mission program. The PIM grant currently supports ongoing partnerships with the

Diocese of Southern

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in Africa, three Episcopal parishes in

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...

, as well as regular work with the Osborne Association's outreach to children with incarcerated parents in New York. St. James' was invited to participate in the

Lilly Endowment Lilly Endowment Inc., headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, is one of the world's largest private philanthropic foundations and among the largest endowments in the United States. It was founded in 1937 by Josiah K. (J. K.) Lilly Sr. and his s ...

's nationwide Transition into Ministry program for the mentoring of new clergy. The position of 'Lilly Fellow' was created in 2003 to train new priests in all aspects of parish life. St. James' celebrated its bicentennial year in 2010. The parish welcomed

Katharine Jefferts Schori Katharine Jefferts Schori (born March 26, 1954) is the former Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church of the United States. Previously elected as the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada, she was the first woman elected ...

, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, for a festive service marking the culmination of the bicentennial year on November 14, 2010.

Rectors

* Samuel Farmer Jarvis (1811–1819) * William Richmond (1820–1837) * James Cook Richmond (1837–1842) * John Dowdney (1842–1847) * Edwin Harwood (1847–1850) * Peter Schermerhorn Chauncey (1851–1866) * Cornelius Bishop Smith (1867–1895) * E. Walpole Warren (1895–1903) *

Frederick Courtney Frederick Courtney (5 January 1837 – 29 December 1918) was an eminent Anglican bishop, the fifth Bishop of Nova Scotia. Life and career Born in Plymouth into an ecclesiastical family — his father was Septimus Courtney, vicar of Charle ...

(1904–1915) * Frank Warfield Crowder (1916–1932) * Horace William Baden Donegan (1933–1947) * Arthur Lee Kinsolving (1947–1969) *

John Bowen Coburn John Bowen Coburn (September 27, 1914 – August 8, 2009) was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts from 1976 to 1986. Early life and education Coburn was born on September 27, 1914, in Danbury, Connecticut, the son of the Reverend ...

(1969–1975) * Hays Hamilton Rockwell (1976–1990) * Mark S. Anschutz (1992–1995) * Brenda G. Husson (1996–present)

In popular culture

* The 5:00PM St. James' Christmas Eve service of Lessons and Carols was broadcast over the local WOR and WQXR radio stations in New York City as early as 1934, and then annually from the early 1950s through 2000. * St. James' Church was the site of funerals for

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...

Edward R. Murrow Edward Roscoe Murrow (born Egbert Roscoe Murrow; April 25, 1908 – April 27, 1965) was an American broadcast journalist and war correspondent. He first gained prominence during World War II with a series of live radio broadcasts from Europe f ...

, and

Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (; October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered ...

. * The exterior and interior of St. James' have been seen in ''

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'' (CW television series).

External links

Gallery

File:Christmas Eve2.jpg File:StJamesAltar.jpg File:Back of the church.jpg File:Balcony Organ.jpg File:Tutu children2.jpg, Desmond Tutu preaching a children's sermon, March 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint James' Episcopal Church, Manhattan 1810 establishments in New York (state) Episcopal church buildings in New York City Churches in Manhattan Gothic Revival church buildings in New York City Ralph Adams Cram church buildings Churches completed in 1885 Upper East Side 19th-century Episcopal church buildings Religious organizations established in 1810