About Christ Church
Welcome to Christ Episcopal Church in Lead, South Dakota! Whether you're on vacation in the Black Hills and looking for a place to worship, or you live in the area and are interested in a becoming part of a Christian community, we hope that you will give us a visit.
Rooted in Tradition
Christ Church's red, neo-Gothic brick building is easily located on Lead's historic Main Street. At the center of our communal life is worship every Sunday morning at 9:30 (mountain time). Our services focus on proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ through reading scripture and preaching and on experiencing Christ's presence in the Eucharist, also known as Holy Communion, the Lord's Supper, or Mass. Our worship style is best described as formal and traditional. We worship according to Rite I of the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer, meaning that we retain traditional language such as the use of "thees," thys," and "thous." Music is essential to our worship: the congregation, accompanied by organ, sings three to four hymns each week, and much of the service is sung or chanted.
While our worship may be traditional and formal, it is far from stuffy! Rather, we believe that our style of worship helps to create an intentional and prayerful atmosphere where we step outside of the normal hustle and bustle of the world and experience God's mystery. This is often described in the Episcopal tradition as worshiping God "in the beauty of holiness," a phrase you will find written above the door upon entering our worship space.
Moreover, we believe that this way of worshiping God should be accessible to anyone, regardless of age. We believe that children are full members of the Christian community and belong in worship. As a result, one of the unique features of our worship space is a "pray-ground," a place set aside right up front for children to play, explore, and worship while also giving parents the ability to more fully participate in the service.
A House of Prayer for All People
We try to take seriously the Christian belief that the Church is above all the people gathered to worship the living God as disciples of Jesus Christ. Our community finds its unity in our faith in Jesus Christ, and it is this faith that allows us to be a spiritual home for a diverse group of people. Diversity lies at the very heart of historic identity: Christ Church, Like Lead itself, was formed by a multi-ethnic immigrant community. Today at Christ Church you will find lifelong Episcopalians as well as those finding our tradition for the first time; liberals, conservatives, and moderates; young families and retirees; and people of all different educational backgrounds. Whatever your race, gender, sexual identity, political beliefs, or religious background, we invite you to join our diverse and ongoing journey of becoming more and more like Jesus Christ.