We are a small Episcopal Church on the banks of the Rappahannock in Port Royal, Virginia. We acknowledge that we gather on the traditional land of the first people of Port Royal, the Nandtaughtacund, and we respect and honor with gratitude the land itself, the legacy of the ancestors, and the life of the Rappahannock Tribe. Our mission statement is to do God’s Will in all that we do.

Videos

Videos, Easter 2, April 16, 2023

Complete service

1. Prelude – “O sons and daughters” – Choir

2. Gospel

3. Sermon

4. Prayers of the People

5. Offertory – “With the Voice of Singing”

6. Closing Hymn – “Jesus is Lord of all the earth”

Best of Holy Week – Words

Palm Sunday

1. Choir “Let the same mind be you”

The choir performs this beautiful, unpublished piece almost every Palm Sunday. Bill Roberts wrote this for the Phillipians class at Virginia Theological Seminary a decade ago.

2. Palm Sunday Passion Reading

Jan Saylor recruited and did a fine job to direct the members of the congregation to read this extended passage

3. Palm Sunday Sermon – Rev. Catherine Hicks

From the ending – “How often we come before God in this life with the events of our lives, with all of our sins and weaknesses interwoven into a thick tapestry of our own creation, a barrier that we believe blocks our way to God forever.

“But if we remember this story of all that happened the day Jesus died, we can recall that as Jesus breathed his last, God ripped the curtain of the temple in two, and destroyed every barrier that has ever blocked our way to God. ”

Maundy Thursday

4. “When you prayed beneath the trees” – Denise Gregory, Mary Peterman

Vocal duet that is appropriate for Maundy Thursday with Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane combining the ‘tree’ theme found in many Scriptures about the cross.

Good Friday

5. “Were you there when they crucified my Lord” – Helmut linne von Berg, Larry Saylor

First male duet at St. Peter’s, acappella!

6. “O Sacred Head, Sore Wounded”- Denise Gregory, Mary Peterman

Both the arrangement and the performance of this well known melody make this memorable. Mary’s flute is ethereal.

Easter Sunday

6. Offertory-“God’s Right Hand and Holy Arm”

An ambitious piece for Easter. Kudos to Denise Gregory for her direction of this piece. The glockenspiel was purchased for this performance.

7. Sermon- Rev. Thomas Hughes

Easter is the culmination of the three key events in Christ’s life – Incarnation, Crucifixion, and Resurrection, important for this church and Christians. Resurrection which is celebrated on Easter Sunday is a state of life in which we are living now in our bodies.

Good Friday videos, April 7, 2023

The service has 6 parts 1.  an entrance in silence,  2. readings which include the John 18:1-19:42 Passion reading, 3  the Solemn Collects, 4 The Entrance of the Cross, the Veneration of the Cross, 5 Musical Meditations and 6 Conclusion. 

The first reading is from Isaiah, the ever present Psalm 22, and Hebrews. John’s Passion Gospel reading, John 18:1-19:42.

Entire service

Selections from the service:

1. Opening Acclamation

2 “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?” – Larry Saylor, Helmut Linne von Berg

3. Passion Reading

4. Sermon – The Rev. Catherine Hicks

5. “O sacred head, sore wounded”- Denise Gregory, piano. Mary Peterman, flute

Read more

Videos from Lent 1, Feb. 26, 2022

1 Prelude- “Soul Adorn Yourself with Gladness”

2 Hymnal discussion

3 Hymn “Lord who throughout these forty days”

4 Gospel and Sermon – Rev. Tom Hughes

5 Announcements

6 Offertory “Chorale -Christ the Flower”

Videos, Christmas Dec. 25, 2022

1 Gospel of John reading

2. Sermon – Rev. Catherine Hicks

3. Offertory – Denise Gregory, Mary Peterman

4. Concluding prayer – Hymn “I Heard the Bells”

Videos, Advent 3, Dec. 11

01 Prelude “Mary Did You Know” – Larry Saylor, guitar

02 Lighting of the 3rd Advent Candle

03 Gospel

04 Sermon – Rev. Tom Hughes

05 Offertory – Audio only

05 Communion – “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” – Larry Saylor, guitar

06 Blessing

07 Prayer for Safe Travel