How to Become a Member at Good Sam.
Everyone is welcome to take part in any area of the Good Sam community. It is not necessary to become an official member in order to participate. Once you request a name tag, you will be on our general mailing list, which means you get our newsletter the Tidings, and other notices via mail.
However, if you want to become official, here’s what to do:
It all depends on where you are in your journey with Christ.
If you are:
- Unbaptized, then please talk to the rector, any member of vestry, or any of the welcome team about finding out how to receive baptism. Usually, we check to see that you understand the faith you’re signing up for, and if not, offer a few classes. If you are not an adult, then we talk to your parents. Once you are baptized by the Water and the Spirit, you are a full member of Good Sam (and the Christian community at large!).
We do like to know more about you and you'll get a form to fill out so we get an idea of where you are in your faith journey.
There are further steps you can take on your journey as a follower of Christ.
- You're baptized, but not confirmed. Christian faith traditions vary. Some people get baptized as babies or children, for others it's an adult decision. As the tradition in the Episcopal Church is to baptize the very young (although we baptize all ages!), there is a second step to take as an adult to accept the promises made at baptism as your own. Please talk to the rector, any member of vestry, or any of the welcome team about finding out how to become confirmed in the Episcopal Church. Is this sounding familiar? Chris, our rector, teaches a series on the Episcopal Church. We do confirmations once a year, when the bishop of our diocese visits us.
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Confirmed, but not Episcopalian, then there is the opportunity to be “received” into the church. You might want to take the confirmation class to be sure you know what the Episcopal church is about first. We do "receptions" at the same time as confirmations, when the bishop visits.
- If you are a confirmed Episcopalian, then to help us keep our numbers straight (its a reporting thing), please contact the church office and let us know from which church we can request the “letter of transfer”. Please remember to include your children (if any) as the other church may not know they are yours.
Our Registrar knows everything there is to know about membership in the church, and is the primary point of contact, if you have any questions.
If you’re not ready to officially join us, but plan to keep attending Good Sam, there is some information we would like to collect from you, so that we can help you with your spiritual journey. At some point, you will be contacted by phone and letter about meeting and chatting with somebody at church, and about filling out the “Parishioner Data Form”, which we hope you will fill out and return!