About Episcopal Church of the Incarnation
The Episcopal Church of the Incarnation in Ann Arbor was founded in 1984 by a group of lay people who believed they could develop a church by committing themselves to service and advocacy with the poor and oppressed in our community and beyond.
As a Spiritual Community, The Episcopal Church of the Incarnation Is:
Radically welcoming. We open our arms to people of all ages, races, economic backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, and people from a wide range of spiritual experiences and beliefs. We have been a welcoming and affirming LGBTQ-inclusive church since our founding. We actively affirm that Jesus’ message is grounded in the sacredness of each individual and in the sacredness of our natural world.
Active and contemplative. From our inception, members of Incarnation have answered a prophetic call to create positive change in the world. At the same time, as a community Incarnation nourishes our deep need for centering and silence, and our desire for wisdom. We also recognize that each person responds to their own spiritual calling, and to the larger world, in their own, unique way.
Ministry Highlight: Where Creation Care Meets Housing Those in Need
Our Creation Care Committee hosts and engages in community action, including lobbying at the local, state, and national levels. Pastor Dean and the the Creation Care Committee reached out to the other churches in our "Deanery" (area Episcopal churches) to form a Creation Care Task Force to pull together our collective insights and resources, and they meet regularly.
Our Building and Grounds Committee doubles as our "Green Team" and works in concert with Creation Care's values. We recently installed air-source heat pumps and solar panels, reducing both our carbon footprint and our energy bills. We carry our environmental stewardship focus to our five acres of land, where we are removing invasive species and planting native trees and plants. We have also been making footpaths through our woods, so that children and adults alike can appreciate the land.
We own an adjacent house that had been used as a contemplative space, but that ministry moved online. We are exploring a new use for it that will involve housing disenfranchised people. The house needs some updating before people can move in, and our Building and Grounds is starting "green remodeling." In this project we will have a marriage of missions/ministries.