The following is taken from a notice posted on the door of a small-town church in England. It certainly describes our attitude. The version here has been slightly modified for our parish:
We deeply welcome those who are single, married, divorced, widowed, gay, confused, filthy rich, comfortable, or dirt poor. We extend a special welcome to those who are crying new-borns, skinny as a rake or could afford to lose a few pounds. You’re welcome if you are an Old Islander, a New Islander, Not an Islander, or just passing by.
We welcome you if you can sing like Pavarotti or can’t carry a note in a bucket. You’re welcome here if you’re ‘just browsing', just woke up or just got out of prison. We don’t care if you’re more Christian than the Archbishop of Canterbury, or haven’t been in church since your parents had you christened or, indeed, have never been at all.
We extend a special welcome to those who are over 60 but not grown up yet, and to teenagers who are growing up too fast. We welcome keep-fit mums, hockey dads, starving artists, tree-huggers, latte-sippers, vegetarians, and junk-food eaters. We welcome those who are in recovery or still addicted. We welcome you if you’re having problems or you’re down in the dumps or if you don’t like ‘organised religion’. We’ve been there too!
We offer a welcome to those who think the earth is flat, work too hard, don’t work, can’t spell, or are here because Aunt Nelly is on the island and wanted to go to church.
We welcome those who are inked, pierced or both. We offer a special welcome to those who could use a prayer right now, had religion shoved down your throat as a kid, or got in the wrong line at Swartz Bay and wound up here by mistake. We welcome tourists, seekers and doubters … and you!
The Anglican church is a "big tent" organisation, including and supporting a large variety of Christian worship styles. We are often described as being part-way between a Protestant church and the Roman Catholic church. You can find out more at the following page from the Anglican Church of Canada website: Our Beliefs.