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Sacramento, CA – August 1, 2024

St. Paul's Episcopal Church celebrates 175 years as a parish this year. Two special public events are planned to mark the occasion:

  • On Sunday, August 18, at 10 a.m., St. Paul's will hold a Festive Eucharist with the Rt. Rev. Megan Traquair, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California, presiding; and the Rev. Rik Rasmussen, rector of St. Paul's, assisting.
        Prior to the service, at 9 a.m. the congregation, together with Bishop Traquair and Rev. Rasmussen, will gather at 3rd and J Streets, near the site where the first Episcopal Church service was held in the city in 1849. They will process to St. Paul's, stopping at the corner of 8th and I Streets, site of the first two Episcopal church buildings in the city. A Land Acknowledgement and prayer will be offered at each location to recognize the beginnings of Episcopal presence in Sacramento.

  • On Saturday, September 14, St. Paul's invites the public to its "Wide Open Doors" celebration. Church members will host a full day of history, music, tours and food beginning at 8 a.m. with coffee and conversation on the sidewalk outside.
         A service of Morning Prayer using the historic 1789 Book of Common Prayer will begin at 9 a.m. inside the church. A wide variety of musical performances will fill St. Paul's historic space throughout the day. At 11 a.m., docents will lead tours of the building, including its historic stained glass windows and organ. At 3 p.m., the Rev. Rik Rasmussen, St. Paul's rector, will present “St. Paul's Church Yesterday & Tomorrow.” Chando's Open Grill will serve tacos in the church parking lot from noon to 3 p.m. A service of Evening Prayer at 6:45 p.m. will close the event.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church began as Grace Church when the Rev. F.L. Mines of San Francisco came to Sacramento in August 1849 to establish a new Episcopal parish. The new congregation's first service was held in a blacksmith shop on 3rd Street between J and K Streets. The congregation subsequently erected two churches at 8th and I Streets – the first built in 1856 and replaced in 1871 – before the current stone church was constructed and dedicated in 1909. The congregation was reorganized as St. Paul's in 1877.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church is located at 1430 J Street, on the southwest corner of J and 15th Streets. Contact the Rev. Rik Rasmussen at 916-446-2620, or st1849paul@sbcglobal.net for more information about the anniversary celebrations. Learn more about St. Paul's at www.stpaulssacramento.org. Follow St. Paul's on Facebook.