Letter from the Dean

Grace to you and peace,

It is a great joy to welcome you to the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Detroit, the cathedral church of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan.

The congregation of St. Paul traces its roots in Detroit back to 1824, and 2008 marked the 100th anniversary of the ground breaking for the beautiful Gothic cathedral we call home. In 2011 we celebrated the 100th anniversary of the dedication of the Cathedral (May 17th, 2011 was the actual day).

Today we are a congregation of blessed and beautiful diversity. On any given Sunday and throughout the week you will find here people whose life-journeys have origins connecting them with South Asia and the Greater Middle East (India and Pakistan), Africa (Nigeria, Guinea, Uganda, Kenya, and more), Europe and the British Isles, the Caribbean, the Americas, and Pacific Rim nations. This rich symphony of people is made one through faith in Christ Jesus.

We are a congregation of The Episcopal Church, a part of the world-wide Anglican Communion. The Anglican Communion is a collection of regional churches across the globe all in communion with the Church of England, through recognition by the Archbishop of Canterbury.  It is the third largest communion of Christian believers in the world. We trace our roots to the apostles, Jesus’ twelve closest companions, who began to spread the Good News of God in Christ from Pentecost onward. Our faith is nurtured in worship and grounded in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.  Our worship is shaped and guided by the Book of Common Prayer.

At the Cathedral Church of St. Paul we take seriously Jesus’ call to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind…and to love your neighbor as yourself.” Our worship ranges from majestic to simple with strong preaching and glorious music of many styles. Our outreach into the community has built two major housing projects, and we continue to be actively engaged in managing Williams Pavilion a residence for low income seniors. Our rehabilitation of the Garfield Building, for apartment living and retail, helped to launch the turn-around of Detroit’s Midtown. The Breakfast on Sunday mornings at 9:15 am is for anyone. Worship and spiritual growth opportunities are available online as well. We are active in Midtown Detroit, Inc., participating in Midtown cultural events. We offer a music concert series, host the Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings, and the Woodward Corridor Musicians. We are the home of The Cathedral Choir School of Metropolitan Detroit. At the Cathedral we worship, pray, learn, work and have fun. We invite you to come and join us.

The Cathedral Close (our campus) hosts Spanish for Toddlers, a Spanish immersion Montessori preschool, and the Waller Health Center on Cathedral Green (which provides high quality medical and dental health care for those who need it). We are honored to have one of Detroit’s longest running Alcoholics Anonymous groups (Mondays at 5:00 pm) meet here, and we partner with Advantage Health Centers for the Detroit observance of Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, on or close to December 21 each year.

If you have questions, please email us or give us a call.