The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany sits at the corner of Ponce de Leon Avenue and East Lake Road in Atlanta, about a mile west of Decatur. The five-pointed star in the parish's logo nods, almost by accident, to the congregation's first home in Little Five Points, the city's first planned suburb, and to the broader claim of the parish is the same one Bishop C. K. Nelson made in the 1890s when he suggested the name: the Magi came from the East, and this congregation began life as the easternmost suburb of Atlanta.
Today Epiphany is a parish of more than a thousand members spread across nearly five hundred households, a place where liturgy, formation, music, and an expansive vision of welcome come together under one roof. The mission statement makes the parish's sense of purpose plain: Epiphany is an inclusive community called to seek and follow Jesus Christ, an inclusive community that strives to seek and serve Christ in all people, and a congregation that believes God loves you, no exceptions.
From Little Five Points to Ponce de Leon
The congregation had its beginnings around 1894 in informal gatherings of like-minded Atlantans in Inman Park. By 1898, lay services and Sunday school classes had grown enough to warrant mission status, and Bishop Nelson suggested the name Epiphany. The chapel's cornerstone of Stone Mountain granite was laid in March of 1898, and the first service was held that May.
In December 1908, the church was admitted to the newly formed Diocese of Atlanta as a parish and called its first rector, the Reverend Russell K. Smith. As the original building was outgrown, the congregation sold the Little Five Points property in 1922 and moved to nearby Seminole Avenue, where membership grew to 667 communicants over the next seventeen years.
The post-World War II demographic transition changed Inman Park, and by 1953 communicants had dwindled to 165. That same year, the Reverend Dr. Norman Gore became Epiphany's sixth rector, and the parish purchased its current property on Ponce de Leon Avenue from nearby Emory University. The first services in the new chapel were held in October 1957. An expansion in 1961 lengthened the nave, and a 1963 wing added a parish hall and offices.
Membership grew through the latter twentieth century under rectors Stanley McGraw (1971 to 1979) and Benjamin Turnage (1980 to 1984), a period in which women began serving in leadership positions. Betty Walton became the first woman elected to the Vestry in 1971 and the first female senior warden in 1973. In 1985, the Reverend E. Claiborne Jones accepted the call as the first woman to be rector of an Episcopal church in Georgia. Under her leadership, the nave and narthex were renovated in 1988 and 1989, a memorial garden was dedicated on the east side of the building, and a 2003 to 2004 construction project expanded the parish hall, added classrooms, and opened the way for the parish life that defines Epiphany today. The first services in the new building were held on Palm Sunday 2004, with membership at 718.
Under the Reverend Benno Pattison (2006 to 2019) programs and staff grew, including dedicated staff for children and youth. In August 2019 the parish welcomed the Reverend Amy Dills-Wright as Priest-in-Charge during a season of transition that included the pandemic. The vestry called her as rector in 2022, and the Right Reverend Rob Wright, Bishop of Atlanta, installed her as Epiphany's eleventh rector on March 30, 2023. As of July 2023, membership stood at 1,067 people, representing 494 households.
Worship with Word and Sacrament
The heart of Epiphany's parish life is worship and the sharing of the Eucharist. The Sunday service begins at 10:00 a.m. in the nave and includes Holy Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, with readings, a sermon, and music provided by Epiphany's choirs. The liturgy is The Holy Eucharist Rite Two Expansive Language, adapted from the Book of Common Prayer, and includes prayers both ancient and modern. Texts are drawn from the new Revised Common Lectionary.
The Healing Station, located in the side chapel, is open during the distribution of communion at the Sunday service. A trained lay minister or priest will pray with anyone who wishes and, on request, offer the laying on of hands and anointing for healing.
Two weekday prayer offerings complement Sunday worship. Morning Prayer is held online at 9:00 a.m. on weekdays, with a virtual coffee hour beginning around 8:50 a.m. Tuesday mornings add a second prayer gathering at 7:00 a.m. in the side chapel, with Holy Eucharist celebrated on the first Tuesday of each month.
Sermon recordings are posted Tuesday afternoons and archived for a year. The Sunday service is also livestreamed on Epiphany's YouTube channel and via Zoom, so that parishioners at home, in the hospital, or traveling can join the liturgy. Recordings remain on the channel following the original broadcast.
Expansive Language at the Altar
Beginning in Advent of 2023, Epiphany adopted the Holy Eucharist Rite II: Expansive Language, authorized by General Convention in 2018. In 2023 the rector formed a team to consider how the parish might respond to the liturgical revisions recommended by General Convention, and after months of study, reflection, and prayer, the team recommended adoption.
The parish's own reflection on the change explains why it matters: the Latin maxim lex orandi, lex credendi reminds worshipers that the way they pray shapes the way they believe. Since the publication of the new Prayer Book in 1979, liturgical revision has moved the Episcopal Church toward more inclusive language about humanity and more expansive language about God, including male, female, and non-gendered images. The point is to avoid making an idol of any single language for God and to acknowledge that words are limited in their ability to describe the fullness of who God is.
Music That Lifts the Liturgy
Music is integral to Epiphany's worship. Organist and Choirmaster Julie P. Ryder has shaped the parish's music program since 2012, coordinating five choirs and a handbell ensemble, selecting hymns, service music, and voluntaries for every liturgy, and rehearsing the Epiphany Choir for weekly liturgies, Holy Week, and major feast days.
The Epiphany Choir, an all-volunteer ensemble, rehearses on Wednesday evenings from 6:45 to 8:30 p.m. from September through May and again 45 minutes before each Sunday service. Membership is open to adults and youth, and some prior choral experience and music-reading ability are helpful though not required.
During June through August, the Summer Choir takes up the anthem on Sunday mornings only, with no weekday rehearsal and no vesting, an option that opens the doors for visitors and casual singers. The Hildegard Ensemble, an adult treble choir rooted in the chants of Hildegard von Bingen, sings for many feast-day liturgies and one Evensong per year by audition. The Epiphany Ringers, Epiphany's handbell choir, rehearses Wednesday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and rings during worship about once every six weeks from October through May.
Children have their own place in the music program. Beginning Choristers for children in pre-K through kindergarten meet Tuesdays from 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. Intermediate Choristers for first and second grade follow at 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. Junior Choir, the children's treble choir for third grade through about seventh or eighth grade, rehearses Tuesdays from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. Children in third grade may elect to sing in Intermediate Choristers or Junior Choir. For families whose children cannot make Tuesdays, an Alternate Day Choir meets Wednesdays from 4:45 to 5:15 p.m.
Instrumentalists of any kind are invited to share their gifts; the parish encourages anyone who plays an instrument to contact the Organist and Choirmaster to be added to the growing roster.
The Bach/Biber Project, launched by violinist Judith Cox and Julie Ryder in October 2022, is a three-year series of six presentations exploring the spiritual music of Johann Sebastian Bach and Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, including Bach's solo violin works and Biber's Rosary Sonatas. The series weaves performances together with readings, poetry, and meditation. Donations to support the project can be made online or by check.
Formation for Every Age
Epiphany's formation offerings aim to stir adults to ask more questions, seek more connection, and wonder how a life in Christ inspires love of God and neighbor. Sunday Morning Formation for Adults meets from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. during fall and spring. Classes are discussion-based, often led by special guests, and touch on everything from contemplative living to current events.
The Contemplative Spirituality Book Group meets Thursdays at 11:00 a.m. to discuss books on contemplative living. Contemplative Practice gathers on the second Sunday of each month for reflection, meditation instruction, and, on occasion, walking the labyrinth.
The parish library, located in the parish hall, operates on a self-service basis. Parishioners can check books out and return them at any time; the library is open on Sunday mornings and on weekdays during office hours. Recent additions include shelves dedicated to banned books and to books used in formation and racial justice book studies.
The Resource Rack just inside the red doors of the church holds small booklets for daily devotion. Included is Forward Day by Day, the Episcopal daily devotional, available in print, by email, as a podcast, on a smartphone app, and on the daily prayer website.
Children at the Center of Parish Life
Children and families are an active and vital part of Epiphany. The Children's Ministry introduces children to the way of Jesus through prayer, scripture, worship, and community, with the goal that children know they are loved by God and can respond to that love through faith and service. Edie Brush serves as Interim Director of Children's Ministry.
Nursery care is available Sunday mornings for children three and younger starting at 9:15 a.m. Children are always welcome in worship and are encouraged to join their families at all services. Children's bulletins and crayons are available in the narthex, and activity bags can be found in the nook in the gallery.
Children's Chapel takes place during the 10:00 a.m. service and is a joyful, child-focused gathering for children up through third grade, with liturgy, music, a story, and prayers. Children process out of the service at the end of the Gospel reading and rejoin their families for the Peace and Holy Eucharist.
Sunday School for children takes place at 11:15 a.m. during the school year, just before the adult and youth formation hour. Younger children use the Godly Play curriculum, a developmentally appropriate approach to the church's faith stories. Children in third through fifth grades gather for Wondering and Belonging, a curriculum that takes a deeper dive into both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament.
Youth on Sunday Nights
Epiphany's Youth Ministry serves young people in sixth through twelfth grade and centers on three commitments: radical belonging, spiritual growth, and service to others. Tristen Webb serves as Interim Director of Youth Ministry.
Youth formation takes place on Sundays during the school year at 11:30 a.m. The program uses the StoryMakers curriculum for sixth through twelfth graders. Youth gather for conversations about identity, emotions, and belonging, and for exploring how God's love shapes who they are and how they live.
On Sunday nights from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. during the program year, youth and adult volunteers gather for Youth Group, playing games, getting to know one another, and exploring scripture, faith, and personal stories. The group shares meals together regularly, and on occasion gathers with friends from other parishes. Topics in recent years have included friendship, mental health, social media, vocation, racial justice, and LGBTQ+ inclusion.
Epiphany's youth are part of the wider Episcopal Youth Community of the Diocese of Atlanta, eycdioatl, which gathers young people from more than a hundred worshiping communities in Middle and North Georgia. A WhatsApp group keeps youth and parents in touch with weekly activities.
Pastoral Care Through Community of Hope
The Pastoral Care Committee works with and supports the pastoral ministry of the clergy in reaching out to parishioners facing illness, loss, or life transitions, as well as those in moments of celebration. The committee is chaired by David Draper and is reached at pastoralcare@epiphany.org.
The Community of Hope is a group of lay volunteer pastoral caregivers united in prayer, shaped by Benedictine spirituality, and equipped for serving in pastoral care ministries. Members may serve in the parish, in nursing homes, hospitals, prisons, or homeless ministries. They are licensed and trained as Eucharistic Visitors and deliver communion to those who cannot be in church.
Members of Community of Hope are also available in the side chapel during the Eucharist on Sundays to offer prayers for healing. The Caregiver Support Group meets monthly over Zoom, facilitated by a Georgia-licensed psychologist who is a parishioner. The Grief Pastoral Care Group meets on the first Thursday at noon via Zoom for a healing and faith-based conversation around grief and loss, led by parishioner Nancy Thompson, a trained psychotherapist.
For pastoral emergencies, the parish can be reached at 404-373-8338, with messages routed to the rector or associate rector.
Reaching Out Beyond the Parish
Epiphany's community engagement ministries aim to live out the Baptismal Covenant's call to strive for justice and peace among all people and respect the dignity of every human being. The Rev. Carmie McDonald, Associate Rector, oversees this work.
The Art Ministry has celebrated creativity for more than twenty years, hosting monthly exhibits in the parish gallery and giving local artists, including parishioners, a venue to share their work. Featured mediums have ranged from painting and photography to ceramics, jewelry, turned wood, millinery, and crafts. Twenty-five percent of every sale supports the mission and ministry of the parish; since its founding, the Art Ministry has contributed more than $30,000 to local ministries and improvements to the campus.
The parish partners with several organizations across greater Atlanta and beyond. The Church of the Common Ground, a worshiping community of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, supports the spiritual, social, emotional, and physical needs of Atlanta's unhoused men and women through weekly outdoor worship, Morning Prayer, Bible studies, and a foot clinic; Epiphany provides financial support and runs a December shoe drive for the clinic.
Decatur Cooperative Ministry helps families facing homelessness settle into safe, stable homes and build healthy lives through Project Take Charge, which provides emergency assistance with rent, utilities, and food plus financial management classes; Hagar's House, which provides emergency shelter for women and children; and Family House, which provides long-term transitional housing.
The Decatur-area Emergency Assistance Ministry, or DEAM, provides critical short-term help with utilities, life-sustaining prescriptions, and a community food pantry. Epiphany supports DEAM through monthly financial contributions, semiannual food drives, and volunteers who serve at DEAM's office and food pantry at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Decatur.
Emmaus House, founded by the Diocese of Atlanta, sits on the corner of Hank Aaron Drive and Haygood Avenue in the Peoplestown neighborhood just south of Turner Field. It offers direct service and education programs for youth, adults, seniors, and families, plus the Muriel Lokey Center for government benefits, rent and utility assistance, health care, a food pantry, Georgia Identification vouchers, and a prison ministry. Epiphany has a long history of volunteering at Emmaus House, including the Saturday arts program, Freedom School, the Lokey Center, Thanksgiving at Home, and Christmas at Emmaus House. The Episcopal Church Women at Epiphany also prepare sandwiches every month for the Lokey Center.
Gateway Center helps people experiencing homelessness access resources and stability and move into permanent housing. On the second Friday of each month, Epiphany volunteers gather in the church kitchen to prepare a home-cooked meal, then travel to the shelter to serve it.
Holy Comforter Episcopal Church is an active mission parish in southeast Atlanta where many members live with mental illness and where all abilities and backgrounds are welcomed. Epiphany partners with Holy Comforter by preparing and serving a meal each quarter.
Episcopal Relief and Development partners with faith and community organizations around the world to advance lasting change in communities affected by injustice, poverty, disaster, and climate change; Epiphany contributes regularly to this work.
For many years Epiphany partnered with refugee resettlement agencies to welcome families displaced by war, violence, and persecution. With changes in federal refugee resettlement policies in 2025, that direct work is now carried out through an annual financial contribution to Inspiritus, which walks alongside refugees and immigrants as they rebuild their lives.
The Catherine D. Harvey Legacy Fund, administered by the Episcopal Church Women at Epiphany, assists individuals and families in meeting basic needs and expanding opportunities to reach their full potential for self-sufficiency. The application cycle opens each year on September 10, with a deadline of October 10.
Caring for Creation: Path to Solar
Epiphany's Earth Guild began the parish's Path to Solar campaign after consulting with Georgia Interfaith Power and Light. Over the years the parish has moved away from single-use plastics, installed motion-activated light sensors and LED bulbs, planted pollinator-friendly gardens with native plants, planted nearly a hundred trees on campus, composted food waste, and reduced the number of bulletins printed each week.
After a vetting process facilitated by Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, the parish chose Atlanta-based Alternative Energy Southeast to install sixteen solar panels on the flat roof above the Parish Hall, hidden from the street and parking lot in alignment with historic district guidelines. The panels, manufactured at the Qcells plant in Dalton, Georgia, are projected to reduce energy consumption by thirteen percent, translating to estimated annual energy savings of at least $2,020. A commissioning liturgy is planned to celebrate the completion of the project and bless the new equipment.
The Gallery, the Nativities, and Art Ministry
The Epiphany Gallery hosts monthly exhibits. Gallery hours are Sunday mornings following the 10:00 a.m. service and Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to noon and 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. The co-chairs of the gallery are Liefy Smith and Page Love Smith.
The Nativities Collection, begun with a 1995 bequest from Dr. William Lemonds in loving memory of James Lattimer Anderson Belcher, has grown to just over three hundred creches, including gifts from parishioners and friends over the years. Countries and cultures reflected in the figures include Mexico, North Georgia, Orthodox Russia, Poland, Polynesia, Renaissance Germany, Renaissance Italy, Southern Appalachia, Taiwan, the West Indies, and even a Hollywood film set. Materials range from Alaskan mud and balsa to olive wood, pewter, straw, terracotta, tin, and volcanic ash.
Each year during Advent, a selection of nativities is arranged to illustrate the birth story in Luke and the birth story in Matthew, with 23 creches in the narthex and 35 in the gallery. A virtual tour of ninety-three of the creches is available for those who cannot visit in person.
Fellowship Around Tables and Trivia Nights
Epiphany's calendar of parish life is filled with opportunities for fellowship, often woven around the seasons of the church year. Coffee hour runs during the school year, with expanded coffee hour in the summer. The Epiphany Pageant in January celebrates the coming of the Magi with a potluck. The Agápe Supper opens the Maundy Thursday liturgy with a shared meal and the gospel story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet. Easter morning brings a festive breakfast and an Easter egg hunt. The Parish Picnic in May closes the program year, and a Welcome Back Potluck in August launches the new program year. The Parish Weekend Retreat each fall at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center in the north Georgia mountains is a relaxed and convivial time to deepen relationships.
Oktoberfest is an annual fall celebration in the courtyard, with grilled sausages (or a veggie option), German beer and wine, and a potluck of German-style sides and desserts. The Fireside Sit & Sip group meets monthly on the first Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. around the courtyard fire pit, a gathering for women primarily in their 40s, 50s, and 60s.
Epiphany Young Adults is a community for people in their 20s and 30s who gather for dinner, a shared activity, and Compline. The Epiphany Trivia Team, theologically named Theologically Sound, plays on Tuesdays during the school year at Wild Haven and Wednesdays in summer at Universal Joint. The Munch Bunch gathers for a Wednesday lunch at 1:00 p.m. at the Thinking Man Tavern on Howard Avenue in Decatur.
The Episcopal Church Women meet on the second Tuesday of the month during the school year for a program at 10:30 a.m., followed by lunch out. The Men's Breakfast Group gathers after the Tuesday 7:00 a.m. service, and the Men's Fellowship Dinners group shares meals together several times a year. The Epiphany Book Group meets on the second Monday at 7:00 p.m., and the Social Justice Action Group curates local advocacy and justice opportunities through Realm Groups.
How the Parish Is Supported
Epiphany operates primarily on the faithful giving of its members. The easiest way to give is through Realm, the parish's secure online community, where one-time donations and recurring gifts can be made and contribution statements are always available. The Realm Connect app provides mobile giving. Text giving is available by texting GIVE2COE and any amount to 73256. Members can also give through bank bill pay, by cash or personal check at Sunday services, with giving envelopes in the gallery tract rack, or by mail.
Planned giving through wills, trusts, retirement accounts, life insurance designations, or other assets supports Epiphany's mission and ministries in the future. The Magi Foundation, created in 2002, recognizes members who have made provisions for the parish in their estate plans.
The Enduring Light Operating Endowment, established in 2025, supports Epiphany's operating budget, with five percent of the average value of the endowment over the past three years flowing to the budget each year. The Church of the Epiphany Grant Endowment, established in 2000, makes grants upon application to support capital improvements, scholarships for parishioners, outreach initiatives, and projects of the wider Episcopal Church.
The Memorial Garden on the east side of the building offers a place for members to have ashes interred. The Harvey Fund, administered by the Episcopal Church Women, assists individuals and families through grants for basic needs and self-sufficiency.
Leadership and Governance
The Vestry is the legal representative of the parish, with responsibilities that include defining and articulating the mission of the congregation, supporting the church's mission, selecting the rector, ensuring effective organization and planning, and managing resources and finances. The Senior Warden is Jordan Moody, with Sally Walker serving as Senior Warden, Immediate Past. Randy Shearin serves as Treasurer and Sherry Wallace as Clerk.
Other vestry members include Cody Chaffins, Cristin Davis, Kathy Corcoran, Beth Floyd, Kelli Gantt, Paul Hinson, Jacob Geiger, Tracey Laird, Kay Lee, and Nick Theyerl. The Vestry has identified five parish priorities, which include creating meaningful relationships through small groups, shared meals, and nurtured friendships; developing ministries that work toward healing; pursuing environmental, racial, gender, LGBTQ+, and economic justice; reaching new people and incorporating them into the life of the church; and making necessary changes to attract families with children and youth.
Epiphany is a parish in the Diocese of Atlanta, which serves the Episcopal Church in Middle and North Georgia.
Visiting Epiphany
There is no dress code at Epiphany; visitors are welcome to wear whatever makes them feel comfortable. Gluten-free bread is available for communion, and the parish offers communion in one kind only, meaning bread but not the communal cup; anyone who prefers a blessing may cross their arms over their chest.
Children of all ages are welcome and encouraged to attend services. Nursery care is available for children three and younger starting at 9:15 a.m. Children's bulletins, crayons, and activity bags are available. There are no steps leading to the worship space or Jones Hall, and wheelchairs and walkers are available. The church is at the corner of Ponce de Leon and East Lake Road, with the driveway entrance off East Lake Road.
Office hours are Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The parish phone is 404-373-8338, and the general email is info@epiphany.org.