A Brief History of St. Aidan's
The parish was founded in 1966 as a mission of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church to the north side of Ann Arbor. From its inception, St. Aidan's has been an experiment in ecumenism, sharing in building and program with Northside Presbyterian Church.
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In 1980, St. Aidan's was granted independent parish status within the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan. The church's first rector was The Rev. Richard O. Singleton and its second rector was The Rev. William Melnyk. The third and current rector is The Rev. Susan E. McGarry.
Through its history, in addition to its ecumenical activity, St. Aidan's has emphasized support for a variety of liturgical expressions within the rich Episcopal tradition, personal spiritual growth, application of the gospel in our lives and community, and social action by our members.
The twenty-year partnership with Northside Presbyterian Church is formalized in the entity of Northside Associated Ministries (NAM). This joint corporation owns the land and building and provides shared activity in Christian education for both children and adults, youth programming and social action.
Who was St. Aidan?
St. Aidan's was named for its patron saint, Aidan of Lindisfarne, the "Apostle of Northumbria." Aidan was an Irish monk from St.Columba's monastery on the island of Iona and was a missionary, later Bishop, to the north of England from 635 CE until his death at Bambourgh in 651. Based on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne off the northeast coast of England, Aidan carried the gospel throughout the midlands of pagan England. Although the island had been settled during the Stone Age, Aidan is credited as being its first recorded inhabitant when he established a Celtic-style monastery on its heights, later to be one of the first sacked by the Vikings. He was known for his gentle manner, his gifts as an evangelist, and his ministry to the poor.
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What does "Episcopal" mean?
Stated simply, "episcopal" means "bishop" in Greek and refers to the organizational structure of Bishops, Priests, Deacons, and Lay Persons. Being an Episcopal Church, St. Aidan's is a member parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan (ECDM) which is led by The Right Reverend Wendell N. Gibbs, Jr., Bishop. ECDM in turn is a diocese within the The Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) which is led by The Presiding Bishop, The Most Rev. Frank T. Griswold. The diocese is governed by convention of the clergy and three lay representatives from each parish meeting annually. The national church is governed by General Convention of the bishops and deputations from each of the dioceses meeting every three years.
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What does "Anglican" mean?
In a denominational context, the term "Anglican" means the Church of England and frequently refers to the worldwide Anglican Communion, an affiliation of autonomous national churches who identify with the precepts of the Church of England as established by the Elizabethan Settlement of 1559. The Church of England was defined as being both catholic in its form of worship and respect for tradition and protestant in its theology and reverence of the Bible. Albeit; scripture, tradition, and reason are given equal authority within Anglicanism.
The Episcopal Church USA became the first province following the American Revolution; subsequently, thirty-six additional provinces have made affiliation. The Anglican Church of Canada is one such province. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, (pictured on left) Primate of England, serves as the presiding official at all gatherings of the communion, primarily the Lambeth Conference which meets every ten years at Lambeth Palace, London.
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St. Aidan's Today
Today we are a growing congregation. Our worship is centered in the Holy Eucharist (Communion) and is at the same time reverent and informal.. Healing and prayer services, as well as joint worship with our sister congregation add to our worship life.
Our relationship with Northside Presbyterian remains strong.
Together as Northside Associated Ministries, we
+ maintain our building.
+ explore God's word through both child and adult Christian education.
+ reach out to the community and world.
+ care for our children who are not just welcome but active partners in our common life.