St Michaels Episcopal Church

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Welcome!

Welcome to St. Michael's Episcopal Church, a parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee! We invite you to join us in worship, fellowship, and ministry as we proclaim the Gospel and show God's love to all people.

Advent (Nov 28 - Dec 24)

For many in the secular community around us, the Christmas season is in full swing as it progresses to the inevitable December 25 finale. The Church, however, is on a different schedule: we're in the midst of Advent.
Advent (from Latin adventus, itself a translation of the Greek parousia, "second coming of Christ") begins on the Sunday nearest the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle (November 30). This means that the season can vary from 22 to 28 days, although practically all commercial Advent calendars make provision for just 24 days because they begin on December 1! Advent is a time when we prepare ourselves not only for the approaching commemoration of Christ's incarnation (which begins on December 25), but also for his second and final coming. Advent has been observed in the western Church since at least the sixth century, originally with a much more penitential focus. The liturgical color of purple used during Advent thus reflects this historical emphasis on penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty as we look for the return of Christ our king.