Once almost completely destroyed by fire, St. Alban's Episcopal Church of Indianapolis not only survived, but we recently celebrated our fiftieth anniversary. When St. Alban's reopened in 1984 a columbarium (for the ashes of people who were cremated), the first in the Diocese, was added. Along the west side of the sanctuary, a ten-by-thirty-foot tapestry was installed, having been commissioned by the congregation and designed and executed by Jo Locke. The theme pertains to how God reaches and inspires the faithful with water. Through the years, this water imagery has been carried throughout the building, mainly in stained glass above the choir stall, in the columbarium doors, and in our main entry doors dedicated in the Spring of 2005. In the Fall of 1992, a tornado cut through our neighborhood. Although a church across the street was destroyed, St. Alban's was spared and had a chance to offer others a helping hand. The church was used as a base station for the Red Cross. In recent years, the church added an elevator and handicapped accessible restrooms and a new roof. Most recently, the interior has been repainted, couches were added throughout the entrance foyer, and etched windows of the four Gospelers were installed above the entrance doors. Perhaps a different way to answer this question of what we offer is to ask what you bring to us. Whatever gifts and graces you bring and offer to God are welcome here. What we expect is your faithfulness in worship, prayer and support; the offering of your gifts and ministries; your openness to the work of God and the Holy Spirit in your life and in our community of faith. Rectors have included the Reverends David Stambaugh, John Barrow, Robert A. McGill, David Musgrave, Stephen Bondurant, M. Sue Reid and Walter Sherman.
St. Alban's is named for Britain's first martyr, a pagan soldier who converted to Christianity and was condemned after helping a priest escape persecution. We formed in 1956 and our building contains a stone from a namesake church in England.
The first worshippers met in a bank basement after St. Alban's was founded as a mission of Trinity Church of Indianapolis. On June 12, 1957, ground was broken for the first St. Alban's building on five acres at the northeast corner of 46th Street and Emerson Avenue. The original building currently houses our parish hall, church offices, library, and education facilities, but once served as our place of worship. St. Alban's achieved parish status in the 1960s and built its present worship space in 1971, pictured here.
For as long as anyone in the parish can remember, the building has been flanked by a nineteenth-century graveyard from a Lutheran church (which once stood on this site) and baseball diamonds used by a community league. During the Fall of 1983, fire ravaged St. Alban's. The original building had to be completely renovated, while the sanctuary mainly suffered smoke and water damage. Both buildings did not become fully functional until the Spring of 1984, and during our time of need, members of neighboring St. Andrew Roman Catholic Church graciously invited us to use their facility.
The best way to describe the community of faith that is St. Alban’s Church is to say that we are diverse, in all aspects of that word. We are the most diverse congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis. Twenty percent of our congregation is African, African American and Caribbean; twenty-five percent self identifies as gay and lesbian; two percent are Latino; twelve percent of the couples that attend are interracial. While most are middle-aged, we have regular worshipers in their 20s, and several 90-something members. Our music and hymns are traditional and Gospel and jazz. Families and singles with children are welcome and invited. We celebrate the anniversaries of our married couples and of our partnered couples.
Our worship and worship styles vary considerably over the course of the year. During the High Holy Days of the Christian year (Christmas, the Easter Season, Pentecost, All Saints’ Sunday in early November, at baptisms) our services include a lot of pageantry and music and chanting; our worship will seem to most to be very Catholic. During the easy time of Summer, our worship relaxes and there is much less pageantry. During the Lenten season (just before Easter, in the early Spring), our sermons are dramatic presentations done readers theatre style, with drama at other times of the year as well. Sermons are usually interactive with the congregation. If you come to the earlier service on Sunday, there is no music. At every service, we celebrate Holy Communion—God’s special gift and offering to us to assure us of God’s abiding love and forgiveness for us all. All who seek God and are drawn to Jesus Christ are invited to partake of the elements of wine and bread.
As much as we are welcoming and inviting, we are accepting and friendly. We are a community of faith that values the religious backgrounds of all our members. We invite hard questions and we seek together to find the answers to the difficulties we encounter on our journeys. Our members support one another in crisis and opportunity; we rejoice and play together, and we mourn and work side by side. Our common concerns are shared in a community that takes seriously prayer and mutuality. For many, that is a relief; for others that is even strange and mystifying; for some, it might even be a bit scary!
