Meet St. Michael's, Raleigh

St. Michael’s, Raleigh, is a large, thriving parish located in the heart of Raleigh, founded in the rich tradition of liturgy, music and service to God’s world. We marked our 70th birthday in 2020.

All are welcome here. Our mission is “Go Forth with God,” which we do especially through worship, children’s and youth ministries, adult education, mission and outreach. Ours is one of the area’s finest choral music programs, involving more than 150 singers of all ages. Our children’s Christian education program—the core of which are our two children’s chapels serving ages two through third grade—provides all of our children with a core foundation in becoming followers of Christ.

Our congregation is a blend of founding families and newcomers, life-long Episcopalians and those new to The Episcopal Church. We are the spiritual home of young-adult and mid-life singles, families with toddlers, teens and college students, as well as many active seniors in the prime of life. We have a vibrant newcomer program, introducing all who are new to our many parish ministries and to the fundamentals of Episcopal worship and formation.

Our contemporary nave is defined by 28 exquisite stained glass windows depicting the church year, and a beautiful angel window rises above the narthex. A Nichols & Simpson organ is the centerpiece of our music program.

With the advent of COVID-19, St. Michael's closed her doors, but her heart remained open. Clergy, staff and volunteers quickly pivoted to online worship, providing beautifully rendered recorded services for a full 65 weeks. Our organist and choirmaster created a stellar virtual choir, with choristers recording their voices in their own homes and our choirmaster mixing them into beautiful hymns, anthems and psalms. Clergy continued preaching and celebrating via Facebook Live and teaching through virtual Christian formation classes. Our children's ministry team recorded chapel services, and Godly Play and Beulah Land stories for our pre-school and elementary school children, complete with songs and weekly crafts. All of our recorded services and stories are available at holymichael.org.

We opened our beautiful grounds to our neighbors and friends, inviting all to walk our labyrinth, place a prayer on the prayer tree or enjoy our quiet spaces.

Despite the pandemic, our outreach and mission efforts continued, and we raised close to $80,000 virtually for organizations in our area helping provide food, clothing and support services to those in need. In addition, our missions grants committee awarded $43,000 to area organizations in 2020. Unique to our campus is The Canterbury Shop, which carries gifts, cards, home and garden items, and Bibles and prayer books, with all proceeds supporting mission and outreach. During the pandemic, the shop remained open for online purchases through holymichael.org, with shoppers picking up purchases each week. Because of our online efforts, we were able to donate $13,400 to our missions grants efforts.

As we move into in-person worship for the first time in almost 15 months, we are committed to welcoming all again, engaging our entire parish in worship, music, mission and outreach, and Christian formation for all ages.