A Parish Rooted in the Hills Above Corona del Mar
St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church sits on a quiet 3.6-acre campus at 3233 Pacific View Drive in Corona del Mar, the seaside village within Newport Beach, California. Since 1961 the parish has gathered on this stretch of Pacific View Drive for worship rooted in the liturgy of The Book of Common Prayer, for music on one of the finest organs in Orange County, and for outreach that reaches food banks, animal shelters, and a soup kitchen across Orange County. Members drive past other Episcopal churches to reach St. Mike's, as parishioners call it, from San Clemente, Fountain Valley, Costa Mesa, and Rancho Mission Viejo. The parish is part of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles.
From Mission Chapel to Sixty-Five Years on Pacific View Drive
The story of St. Michael and All Angels begins in the early 1960s, when Corona del Mar was still ringed by vegetable farms, cattle, and a small airport. The Rev'd Edward Powell Allen was appointed vicar in 1960, and the first worship service was held at the Community Congregational Church in Corona del Mar in September 1961. Services moved to the chapel of St. James' Parish Day School at Fifth Avenue and Marguerite in 1963.
Fr. Allen departed in 1966 to begin a chaplaincy at the newly opened University of California, Irvine. That same year the Vestry called the Rev'd John Rogers Davis from his ministry at the Good Shepherd Mission on the Navajo Reservation near Fort Defiance, Arizona. The Irvine Company sold the parish its present 3.6-acre site, groundbreaking was held on May 10, 1967, and the first service in the completed sanctuary took place on Easter Eve, April 1968. St. Michael and All Angels was incorporated as a parish that year, and the parish was formally dedicated in 1972 by the Rt. Rev'd Robert Rusack, suffragan bishop of Los Angeles.
Growth came quickly. By 1973, 172 families were on the rolls and a Sunday school of 115 registered students met regularly. An Abbot and Sieker pipe organ was installed in 1974, the year the parish launched its refugee resettlement program that sponsored Vietnamese families through Deanery Ten. A parish center with classrooms and fellowship space was completed in 1976. After Fr. Davis retired in 1986, the Rev'd Peter Haynes arrived from his campus ministry at UC Berkeley in time for Christmas 1987 and led the parish for three decades. The Rev'd Canon Dr. Shane Scott-Hamblen was called as the parish's fourth rector in December 2022, with his first Sunday on January 15, 2023.
What the Parish Believes
St. Michael's describes itself as traditional, modern, and inclusive. The parish revere the ancient wisdom of scripture and the Christian tradition, drawing its services from The Book of Common Prayer, and values good liturgy and music, strong preaching, and Christian education for all ages. The parish is traditional but not traditionalist: leaders say the Bible is taken seriously but not literally, and the teaching of Jesus Christ is connected to everyday life. Worship is joyful and reverent but not stuffy. The parish respects the dignity of every human being, welcomes everyone regardless of age, ethnicity, or orientation, and centers its mission on the love of God.
Sunday and Tuesday Worship
The principal Sunday service is Holy Eucharist Rite II at 9:30 a.m., celebrated in person and livestreamed on YouTube and Zoom. Coffee hour follows on the Zoom call. A bulletin for the day is posted each week, and the church encourages worshipers to download and bring their own.
On Tuesday mornings the parish gathers again, beginning the week grounded in prayer, fellowship, and scripture. Holy Eucharist Rite II is celebrated at 8:30 a.m., followed by Coffee and Conversation at 9:15 a.m., and Lectionary Study with Father Shane at 10:00 a.m. The Tuesday study reads and discusses the lessons, Psalm, and Gospel readings for the coming Sunday. The Tuesday coffee hour has met for more than fifty years and draws between eight and twenty people each week.
Special liturgies mark the church year. Holy Week brings Palm Sunday, the Triduum of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday, Easter Day, Pentecost, All Saints, All Souls, Christ the King, Lessons and Carols, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. The parish observes the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels in late September with a festival Eucharist and a full choral setting of the Mass. A Blessing of the Animals is held on the Sunday closest to the Feast of St. Francis.
The Music Program
Music is one of the strengths of St. Michael's, and the parish says this is one area where it is decidedly traditional. The church houses one of the finest organs in Orange County, a grand piano, a harpsichord, and hand bells. The annual Corona del Mar Baroque Festival began at St. Michael's and at Sherman Gardens, and the parish remains the site of the Monday evening recital series.
The choir of parishioners and semi-professional section leaders sings most Sundays from September through June. The Choirmaster is Lukas Hasler, an Austrian organist pursuing doctoral studies at the University of Southern California under Cherry Rhodes, named by ClassicFM as a Rising Star in 2026. Sean Stanton serves as Assistant Choirmaster and Bass Section Leader. Stanton directs vocal studies at Chapman University and has performed with the LA Opera Chorus, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the Chicago Symphony Chorus, and numerous opera companies across the country.
The Friends of Music is an in-house organization of parishioners and supporters that underwrites guest performances and special programs. Past Friends of Music events have ranged from Russian a capella ensembles to gospel and jazz concerts. A typical year at St. Michael's includes a Mozart Requiem for choir and orchestra, a Haydn Nelson Mass for the parish feast, a Lauridsen Lux Aeterna for All Souls', seasonal organ concerts, and Advent Choral Evensong.
The Sanctuary, Labyrinth, and Campus
Worship is centered in the sanctuary, where parishioners form a circle around the altar for communion. A skylight above the altar allows natural light to suffuse the space, and eight large stained glass windows surrounding the altar depict holy figures important to the parish, including Jesus, St. Michael, the Virgin Mary, and St. Francis. The organ dominates the east wall.
The Parish Center was remodeled between January 2000 and March 2001 and contains multiple classrooms, a basketball court known as All Angels Court, a full-service kitchen, the Parish Office, and a conference room. Michael's Room sits at the heart of the Parish Center and functions as a coffee lounge, classroom, or dining room. The Davis Library, named after founding rector John Davis, holds a lending collection of books for parishioners and hosts the Adult Christian Education classes each Sunday.
Outside, the Memorial Garden holds the ashes of loved ones interred by parishioners. Just beyond it is the parish labyrinth, made of inlaid concrete stones in seven circuits. Open to the public around the clock, the labyrinth is listed with the Labyrinth Locator of The Labyrinth Society and is walked regularly by neighbors and visitors. A quiet word is asked of walkers during worship hours.
The campus also hosts two schools: the Gordon School, a boutique preschool for ages two through five, and Seashore Academy, which provides custom education plans and flexible scheduling for transitional kindergarten through eighth grade. Brownies, Girl Scouts, and youth basketball and volleyball leagues use the meeting rooms and gym. The Vestry is exploring options for housing development on an underutilized portion of the grounds.
Christian Education for Every Age
Adult formation begins on Sunday mornings at 11:00 a.m. with Sunday Conversations in the Davis Library. The class takes a deeper dive into Bible study, church history, religious architecture, and other spiritual topics.
For children, Godly Play serves ages four through eleven on Sunday mornings. The program uses specially created learning materials and a Montessori-style classroom to invite children into sacred story, parable, liturgical action, and silence. Adults are welcome to join.
Youth in grades five through eight gather for the Youth Group, which meets each Sunday morning at 9:30 a.m. in the Conference Room. The schedule follows a four-week rhythm: Mission on the first Sunday, Fun on the second, Worship on the third, and Rest on the fourth. Recent mission work has focused on helping people experiencing homelessness in Orange County, while Fun Sundays have included outings to Boomers, Knott's Berry Farm, Tanaka Farms, and a Huntington Harbor boat ride at Christmastime. On Worship Sundays the youth serve as acolytes, readers, and ushers and help in the Godly Play room.
Two long-standing small groups round out the formation program. Tuesday Night at Mike's meets on Zoom at 6:00 p.m. Men's Fellowship gathers on Thursdays at 8:30 a.m. in Michael's Room for Bible study and the work of Christian theologians; recent reading has included Jim Holt's Why Does the World Exist? The Prayer Shawl Ministry, launched in 2021, meets on Friday mornings at 10:00 a.m. on the patio to knit and crochet shawls offered in prayer to those in need of comfort.
Faith in Action: Outreach and Mission
The parish takes its baptismal pledge to seek and serve Christ in all persons seriously. The Little Red Wagon sits on the patio each Sunday collecting donations for local organizations that care for people and pets in need. Recent partners include Share Our Selves in Costa Mesa, Priceless Pets Rescue, and Someone Cares Soup Kitchen. The Wagon's focus changes monthly, ranging from food drives to hygiene supplies.
The annual Adopt-a-Family campaign with MOMS OC delivers gifts, gift cards, and bus passes to mothers and families during the Christmas season. A holiday update from the parish described how one year's generosity supported two families of six, providing clothing, gifts, and a stroller for a mother who had just given birth.
St. Michael's has supported Canterbury Irvine, the Episcopal campus ministry at UC Irvine, since 1966 through events, financial assistance, and shared prayer. The Community Table campus chaplains include the Rev. Cathie Capp of the United Methodist Church, Irvine, and Joyce Swaving of Saint George's Episcopal Church, Laguna Hills.
Beyond the local community, the parish participates in two wider-church giving programs. The United Thank Offering invites each household to drop coins into a blue box for daily blessings, with one hundred percent of thank offerings awarded as grants for innovative ministries around the world. The Mission Share Fund supports the work of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, which unites some 65,000 Episcopalians in 136 congregations and mission centers across six Southern California counties. The parish and several of its members also belong to the Anglican Communion Compass Rose Society, founded in 1997 to support the work of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Anglican Consultative Council.
Sacraments and Pastoral Services
St. Michael's welcomes all baptismal candidates, their families, and godparents into the community of faith. The parish asks families to complete a baptism application form and contact the church office to begin.
Weddings may be celebrated in the sanctuary or the chapel, and Michael's Room and the grounds are available for receptions. Member couples are asked to make a donation for the use of the church and chapel, with set honoraria for the clergy, music director, vocalist, sextons, and bulletins. Non-member weddings start at $3,500 and include use of the church or chapel, clergy and music director honoraria, and sexton services. A detailed fee schedule and a list of recommended florists and caterers are available.
Funerals and memorials may be planned in advance or arranged at need, with a separate fee schedule for members and non-members. Ashes may be interred in the Memorial Garden or commemorated with a memorial garden tile.
Leadership, Stewardship, and Giving
The Vestry shares governance of the parish with the Rector, helping to define and articulate the mission of the congregation, supporting it by word and deed, selecting the rector, and managing resources and finances. The Senior Warden is Jill Draffin; the Junior Warden is Ali Haghjoo. Pat Albers leads Music and Liturgy, Steve Gribben serves as Clerk, and Doug Neff is Treasurer. Other members steward Mission and Outreach, Growth and Membership, Branding, Communications, Hospitality, and the building project.
St. Michael's frames stewardship as a spiritual discipline. The parish encourages proportional giving and teaches that the average pledge in the Episcopal Church hovers around three percent of income. Contributions support the operating budget and may be made online through Breeze, the parish's church management system, or via Zelle and PayPal. Members aged seventy-and-a-half and older may direct qualified charitable distributions from their IRAs. Online giving and the parish directory are also accessible through the Breeze mobile app.
St. Michael and All Angels invites newcomers to contact Father Shane for an in-office conversation to learn more about who the parish is and what it does. Office hours run Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The parish is, in its own description, a family of sisters and brothers in Christ, learning together that God's love is real, radical, and healing.