Would you like to help change the world by sharing God’s love?

Each Sunday, we hear the familiar words of what Jesus says is the Great Commandment: to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. In a world where there is much brokenness and where many are not seeking after God, we may find ourselves asking, “What can I do to help share God’s love?” This can seem particularly daunting when we realize that our immediate circle of friends is mostly Christian.

One of the great blessings God has given us at St. Philip’s is our beautiful and iconic church building that dominates the Charleston skyline and the view up Church Street. We are one of the few churches in America that has literally hundreds of people a week knocking on the door, asking to come in.

Our Open Door ministry seeks to keep our doors open during the week for visitors to come in, to experience Christian hospitality, to encounter the presence of the Lord, to spend some time in prayer and contemplation, and to learn some of our history from the displays in the narthex.

Through our Open Door ministry, we hear regularly of visitors whose hearts were deeply touched by their time in our church. Some of those who initially came as tourists later moved to Charleston and are now members of our church family! Listen to some comments from recent visitors:

“Just went in to see the church and a member of the congregation was there greeting visitors. If the whole church family is like him you’ll enjoy services. A sign also clearly states that the only ghost you will encounter here is.... THE HOLY GHOST!! So super friendly and of course the Church itself is gorgeous.”

“This beautiful place brings an overwhelming sense of peace and love.”

“A very peaceful experience.”

“One of the highlights of our trip!”

“This was our first visit to St. Philip’s Anglican Church. The sanctuary is beautiful and the spirit of the congregation even more so. Never have we felt so welcome.”

Keeping the doors of the church open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each weekday requires dozens of volunteers, and we have a great group of folks who love sharing Christian hospitality with visitors from all over the world. However, we need more people to help! If you have a few hours where you could help, please reach out to Alice Smith at asmith@stphilipschurchsc.org or Penn Hagood at pennhagood@gmail.com.

All you need is a smile and a welcoming spirit—we have banners and booklets that tell the history, as well as a beautiful coaster to hand out that has our magnificent stained-glass window on one side and an invitation on the other side to “come and see” with a QR code that takes visitors to a welcome message, a Gospel presentation, and links to our various classes and sermons. Ideally, our volunteers work in teams, so this ministry also presents a great opportunity for fellowship.

Want to change the world by helping share God’s love? God is literally bringing the world to our doorstep. Come join our Open Door team and experience the joy of helping people experience the Beauty, Truth, and Goodness of the Lord!