A Modern Episcopal Church on First Parish Road
St. Luke's Episcopal Church sits at 465 First Parish Road, at the entrance to Scituate on the South Shore of Massachusetts. The parish began in 1956 as a community of people long before it had a building, gathering first at Jenkins School and later at the Masonic Temple. The current worship space was completed in 1965, and members continue to meet there for Sunday worship, fellowship, music, and a wide range of community outreach. The parish is part of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, part of the Episcopal Church in the United States, and through it part of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
St. Luke's is currently in a season of transition as it searches for its next Rector, with clergy and lay leaders guiding worship, formation, and outreach through the interim period. Even as discernment takes place, the rhythms of parish life - Holy Eucharist, Church School, the monthly Community Dinner, the Harvest Fair, and ongoing support of the Scituate Food Pantry - continue as they have for decades.
A Building Shaped by Scituate's Shipbuilders
Unlike many Episcopal churches that emulate the stone Gothic of late medieval Europe, St. Luke's is rooted in its modern culture and setting. The earliest Christian communities used the metaphor of the church as a ship sailing upside down on the heavens, and the main worship space of an Episcopal church is called the nave after the hull of a ship. St. Luke's takes that metaphor literally. The building was designed by Fred Rolfe, a founding member of the parish and a shipbuilder by vocation, whose day job informed the soaring wooden ship-hull ceiling that visitors notice first when they step inside.
Where many Episcopal sanctuaries tell their story in stained glass or fresco, St. Luke's tells it through clear windows and light, celebrating God in creation. A second narrative element sits in the narthex, the church foyer, where a mural unites the shoreline of Scituate with the Gospel events reported only in the account of the parish's patron saint, St. Luke: the annunciation, the visitation of Elizabeth and Mary, and the birth of Jesus in a stable. That narthex was reconstructed and rededicated on October 18, 2014, when Bishop Alan Gates joined parishioners and clergy for a worship service followed by a celebratory dinner in Dutton Hall.
Worship on Sunday Morning
Sunday morning at St. Luke's centers on the Holy Eucharist at 10:00 AM, with all who are drawn to God's table invited to receive communion. The service follows the Book of Common Prayer and the Hymnal 1982, and worship is also livestreamed on the parish's Facebook page for those who cannot attend in person. Worship ministries - acolytes, lectors, ushers, lay Eucharistic ministers, altar guild members, and the Virtual Worship team - keep the liturgy running and welcome newcomers with bulletins and greetings at the door.
Church School meets at the same 10:00 AM hour, so families can worship, learn, and fellowship together. Children are welcome to fully participate in communion; they are introduced to the sacrament in Sunday School and in a Communion Class offered in Lent every few years for elementary-aged children, concluding on Easter with a special recognition of their learning. Those who wish to come forward for a blessing rather than the bread and wine may cross their arms over their chest, and anyone with mobility limitations can ask an usher to have communion brought to them rather than making the trip to the altar rail.
The Adult Choir, directed by Ruslan Ramazanoff, leads the hymns at the Sunday service. Rehearsals take place at 9:15 AM on Sunday mornings, and the choir welcomes new members regardless of prior experience or sight-reading ability.
Music and the Adult Choir
Music is integral to St. Luke's worship, and the Adult Choir is the parish's principal musical ensemble. Ruslan Ramazanoff, a Ukrainian pianist who trained at the Academy of Music in Lviv and the Ukrainian National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music in Kyiv, directs the program. He came to St. Luke's after working as a solo pianist with the Chernivtsi Regional Philharmonic Society in Ukraine, and brings with him both classical training and a stated love for America and its pianos. The choir rehearses on Sunday mornings at 9:15 AM, an arrangement that lets members warm up their voices and go straight into the 10:00 AM service.
Rooted in Scituate, Reaching Far Beyond
St. Luke's has a deep commitment to outreach, beginning with the immediate Scituate neighborhood and extending to international partnerships.
The parish hosts a Community Dinner on the fourth Sunday of every month at 5:00 PM, serving homemade food to anyone who would enjoy a warm meal and good company. Volunteers have prepared and shared thousands of meals over the years, and the dinners remain one of the most visible ways St. Luke's extends its hospitality beyond the walls of the church.
The Scituate Food Pantry, which was started by the Scituate Clergy and is now run by a Board of Directors, receives ongoing support from St. Luke's. Non-perishable items are collected in a basket in the narthex each week, and parishioners volunteer at the pantry to sort and distribute donations. The parish also supports Scituate Community Christmas, an organization that meets the needs of families in the Scituate area at Christmastime and throughout the year.
Beyond Scituate, St. Luke's has a longstanding relationship with the Malawi Children's Mission, an organization focused on creating conditions in which Malawi's orphans can thrive by providing an environment in which a child can develop potential and a future.
A Social Justice Group, made up of parishioners interested in leading educational and transformative events, meets monthly on the second Sunday after church, both in person and on Zoom. The group has organized protests, walks, advocacy, and educational events for the parish and wider community, and welcomes anyone interested in joining the work, even for a single event.
A Parish in Many Hands
Care for one another at St. Luke's belongs to both clergy and lay people, and the parish maintains a long list of ministries that reflect that shared responsibility.
The Knit Wits Prayer Shawl Ministry meets every Wednesday at 1:00 PM in the Gordon Room, creating shawls that are given to those in need, celebration, or comfort. Beginners and experienced knitters are equally welcome. Lay Eucharistic Visitors, working in pairs, visit people who are homebound, in a nursing home, or suffering from illness, offering conversation, prayer, and the gift of communion. A dedicated gardening group, led by Jan Michaud, meets weekly in warmer months and monthly in colder weather to maintain the church's gardens and grounds.
Coffee Hour after the 10:00 AM service provides informal fellowship time for parishioners and visitors. The Harvest Fair, held on the first Saturday in November, is both the parish's largest fundraiser and a longstanding community tradition, drawing on many hands and many talents. Worship ministries, including acolytes, the altar guild, lectors, ushers, and lay Eucharistic ministers, keep the Sunday liturgy running smoothly, with training provided for those who want to learn.
The Memorial Garden
Given in 1985 by Mr. and Mrs. James H. Beal Jr. in loving memory of their daughter, Laura, the Memorial Garden sits in a sheltered, sunny corner of the church yard. It offers a place of repose for the ashes of the dead and a place of beauty and solitude for the living. The garden is open to former, present, and future members of the parish, and cremation is fully consistent with the beliefs and practices of the Episcopal Church.
The Memorial Garden was dedicated on April 21, 1985 by the Rector, Reverend Raymond A. Low, and blessed by Bishop David Johnson on April 27, 1986. A Memorial Garden Committee works with the Vestry on internment fees and the engraving of names on the garden plaque, with those funds used for ongoing maintenance of the space.
Joining the Episcopal Journey
St. Luke's describes itself as a community that brings together the ancient traditions of the sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist with the Protestant empowerment of individuals to make their own moral and ethical choices. The congregation includes active seniors, families with children, single adults, married couples, divorced and remarried people, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and cisgendered members. About half of those gathered are cradle Episcopalians; the other half have come to St. Luke's from other Christian denominations later in life.
On the local, regional, and national levels, lay persons share equally with the ordained in the major decisions of the denomination. A member in good standing is anyone 16 or older who has been baptized, taken communion three times in the last calendar year, and contributes to the ministry of the church through money, time, skills, or talents. Those who wish to make a formal commitment sign the church registry at the Annual Meeting, typically held in late January or early February. Confirmation, or reception by a bishop for those already confirmed in another denomination, usually takes place in the spring after a period of preparation, often through an Inquirers' Class.
The parish has a Safe Church Policy to ensure that everyone who enters its doors is safe physically and emotionally. Copies are available in the church office.
Office Hours, Giving, and Keeping in Touch
The church office is open Monday, Thursday, and Friday from 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM, and on Wednesdays from 8:30 AM to 2:00 PM. Visitors and members can also reach the parish by phone at (781) 545-9482 or by email at stlukes.scituate@gmail.com.
Members and friends can support the work of St. Luke's in several ways: through Cash App sent to stlukescituate.treasurer@gmail.com, through Tithe.ly online, by electronic bill pay arranged through one's own bank, or by mailing a pledge to 465 First Parish Road, Scituate, MA 02066. Those who want to keep up with parish life can sign up for the weekly e-news and bulletins through the parish's Constant Contact list.
For those interested in reserving the church building for an event or service, the parish office can be reached at (781) 545-9482.