Just. Faithful. Catholic.

The peace of Christ, be with you! For all of us who are the St. Ignatius Catholic Community, the term catholic is an invitation that means here comes everybody! We are a growing community built solidly on the gospel and the dynamic spirit of Vatican II.

Come visit us. At Saint Ignatius you can expect to:
  • Celebrate our sacramental life in fresh and refreshing ways.
  • Affirm individual conscience and all states of life: single, celibate, commitment, and marriage.
  • Celebrate God's living presence among us.
  • Be in a spiritual place of healing and acceptance.
  • Experience a return to the original values Christ taught when he said to "build my church." 
  • Educate our community by contributing your own wisdom and talent. 
  • Share our gifts and resources.
  • Strengthen a progressive world view shaped by the gospel.
The mission of the ECC challenges its member faith communities to be a People of God baptized in Christ and professing our faith in a living Catholic tradition. We share a common theological and liturgical tradition with the Roman Catholic Church. Our deacons, priests and bishops participate in the same historic apostolic succession as do the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Churches, and other apostolic Churches. We share the same historical developments as Western Christianity.
We trace our modern roots to the emergence of the Old Catholic Movement which began in 1870 as a response to the first Vatican council's pronouncement of papal infallibility and the primacy of papal jurisdiction. Our faith communities recognize the importance of the Pope in his role as a sign of unity and as an important source of leadership with the Church. We view the dogma of papal infallibility as a reinforcement of authoritarianism within the Church, and a misuse of power which runs against the spirit, example, and teachings of Jesus.
We recognize that every baptized person is an equal member of the Catholic Church. No bishop, priest, or deacon owns the Church, the sacramental ministry, or the grace of Christ. In our communities, lay people play a prominent and important role in governance. All must respect, as well as actively seek to discern, how the Holy Spirit is motivating the faithful to act. In Catholic tradition, this is called ascertaining the sensus fidelium, or the sense of the faithful.
To specifically emphasize the role of the laity, we practice a polity of participatory discernment and selection of bishops and pastors of congregations by the people who call them to serve in those capacities. This practice has historic precedence in Catholic tradition. Its is confirmed in a letter from Pope Leo I in 450 on the election of bishops. He writes, "He is to govern all and should be chosen by all" (Pope Leo I, Letter 10, no. 6).
We are women and men, lay and ordained, joined together as a “communion of communities” in response to the messianic call of the Spirit to preach the Gospel of liberation and justice; to offer a refuge in Christ for those who suffer prejudice; to stand open to dialogue with others so called and, to conform our lives to the life and teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Come for a visit, stay for the journey!