At the northwest corner of Lafayette Boulevard and Washington Street in downtown South Bend stands the Cathedral of Saint James, the city's oldest Episcopal congregation and the cathedral church of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana since 1957. Founded in 1868, the parish worships in a church of Gothic Revival architecture and is known for a worship life built on spoken Holy Eucharist, intercessory prayer, and formation for every age, for downtown outreach that houses St. Margaret's House in the building behind the church, and for the strawberry shortcakes sold each June from its north parking lot.
Gothic Revival on the Downtown Corner
Saint James describes itself as an urban parish established in a church of Gothic Revival architecture in downtown South Bend. Its members are called upon to be both parish and cathedral, and their responsibilities to the city include providing a place of worship that is accessible and functional, hosting diocesan events that encourage people to make a pilgrimage to the cathedral, offering resources for community functions and especially service organizations, providing opportunities and facilities for Christian education, and remaining an urban oasis that is welcoming and open to all.
Those aims are gathered into a single commitment: "By the power of the Holy Spirit and a passion for the Gospel, we are called to be both parish and cathedral. With a commitment to one another, we will love and serve each other by having a willingness to do whatever it takes to bear witness to Christ."
The congregation was founded in 1868 as the oldest Episcopal congregation in South Bend, and it has served as the cathedral for the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana since 1957. The diocese itself reaches across the northern third of Indiana with 30 congregations. As an urban parish, Saint James draws members from all of South Bend, Mishawaka, and Granger, and a few come from Niles, Michigan, just across the state line. That spread makes the congregation a mix of ages, worship styles, ethnicities, sexual orientations, education, and occupation, which the Cathedral counts as evidence of its affirming, open, and welcoming atmosphere.
The parish takes its name from James, the brother of John and son of Zebedee and Salome, a fisherman by trade who left everything to follow Jesus and was called with his brother a Son of Thunder. According to the tradition recorded here, James preached in Samaria, Judea, and Spain, and was the first Apostle to be martyred, in Jerusalem at age 44. A scallop shell is his symbol.
Sunday Worship, Intercessory Prayer, and a Friday Eucharist
The Sunday pattern opens with a spoken Holy Eucharist (Rite I) at 8 a.m. Intercessory Prayer is offered at 9 a.m. on the second and fourth Sundays of each month, or immediately following the preceding service. The principal service is the 10:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist (Rite II), and Intercessory Prayer follows at 11:45 a.m. on the second and fourth Sundays, or right after that service. On Friday, a spoken Holy Eucharist (Rite II) is celebrated at 12:05 p.m., with no Friday service on the day after Thanksgiving.
The 10:30 service is live-streamed through the Cathedral's Facebook and YouTube channels, and the Cathedral also streams special events and services. Streams are archived on the Cathedral's YouTube channel, which means a Sunday service can be followed from anywhere and a familiar service can be revisited later.
Between the Services: Adult Forum, Hospitality, and Youth Group
Adult Forum meets from 9:15 to 10:15 a.m. in the Conference Room between services, and the format varies between a presentation and group discussion. The group also gathers on Facebook under its own name. Hospitality in convenes at 11:45 in Cathedral Hall, immediately following the service, and the Youth Group for grades 7 through 12 meets at noon in the Youth Group Room for reflection, games, and fellowship.
Formation Across the Generations
The Rev. Mark W. Hummell, Assistant to the Dean for Formation and Priest-in-Residence, coordinates Christian formation for children, youth, and adults, and assists the Dean with liturgical leadership, pastoral care, and administration. The youth gathering is led by Tamisyn Grantz with Amanda Helfrich and Andy Helfrich.
Diocesan programs carry formation beyond the building. The Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana's summer camp for grades three through nine is held each June at Camp Alexander Mack in Milford, Indiana, on the shores of Lake Waubee, with a curriculum that intertwines biblical teaching and modern-day experience. Senior High Mission Week takes place each summer at locations around the diocese, and the diocesan winter youth retreat is held each January at the Wawasee Episcopal Center in Syracuse, Indiana, on the shores of Lake Wawasee.
Adults have a steady rhythm of study. The monthly Ecumenical Bible Study gathers in person at the Cathedral and is made up primarily of members of Saint James, St. Augustine's Catholic Church, and Kern Road Mennonite Church. Education for Ministry, a four-year distance-learning certificate program in theological education through Sewanee founded in 1975, meets weekly on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. in the Conference Room and centers on small-group study and practice. The Daughters of the King, a worldwide ministry for lay and ordained women and girls in the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion who seek a closer walk with the Lord, meets at 9:30 a.m. on the second Saturday of each month.
The Cathedral Choir rehearses in the Sanctuary at 7 p.m. on Wednesdays and at 9:15 a.m. on Sundays under Dr. Steven Wietstock. No audition is necessary, only "a desire to make a joyful noise to the Lord." The Way of Creation study materials are offered in both an adult version and a version for children.
The Clergy Team and the Diocesan Bishop
The Very Rev. Brian G. Grantz serves as Dean and Rector, and his greeting to visitors is plain and warm: "The Cathedral of Saint James is a house of prayer for all people and we welcome all." Fr. Mark Hummell joined the Cathedral in July 2024. A native of Southern Indiana, he holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame, a Master of Social Work from Arizona State University, and a Master of Divinity from Yale University, and he spent ten years at Grace Church School in New York City as chaplain and a teacher of religion, philosophy, ethics, and psychology. He is also a licensed clinical social worker in Indiana.
The Rev. Anne Wietstock and The Rev. Canon Clay Berkley serve as the Cathedral's two deacons. Deacon Clay grew up in the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana, was baptized at Saint John the Evangelist in Elkhart and confirmed at Saint David's in Elkhart, and was ordained a permanent deacon in 2014. He has served at Saint James since the beginning of 2024 and also serves on the diocesan Commission on Ministry and on the board of the Diocesan Foundation. Dr. Steven Wietstock is Music Director and leads the choir.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks is the eighth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana, ordained on June 25, 2016. His personal ministry statement describes his aim: "I strive to be a servant, storyteller, presider, preacher, pastor, teacher, singer, risk-taker, and reconciler for the sake of proclaiming Jesus, the Risen Christ and engaging God's Mission." His early life in inner-city St. Louis, his years as a chorister at a cathedral, and his service in Anglican communities in New Zealand and Minnesota shaped that commitment to the wider church and to interfaith conversation in Northern Indiana.
St. Margaret's House and the Work of Care & Share
The Cathedral proudly houses St. Margaret's House in the building behind the church, and many members of Saint James have been deeply involved in that ministry from the outset. St. Margaret's House gives women a place to take a shower, do laundry, and receive personal hygiene supplies such as deodorant, treating each person with dignity and respect. The Cathedral regularly collects hygiene items for the ministry, and a donation box near the front door makes it easy for people to contribute.
Care & Share contributions are collected weekly and given to local nonprofit partners, with St. Margaret's House as the main recipient. Causes and organizations named as beneficiaries have included Episcopal Relief, St. Margaret's House, hurricane relief for Puerto Rico, and Habitat for Humanity. The Dean's Discretionary Fund allows clergy to assist members of the parish and neighbors in need through items such as Martin's gift cards. The Cathedral also supports Habitat for Humanity's Matthew 25 build, raising money through Care & Share and an annual chili cook-off, and members take part in building the homes as well as funding them.
Shortcakes on the Blacktop
Shortcakes on the Blacktop is the event the Cathedral of Saint James is known for in the community. Each June, the congregation sells strawberry shortcake and ice cream from the cathedral's north parking lot, and all of the proceeds go to organizations serving South Bend. Past recipients have included St. Margaret's House, Dismas House, the Imagination Library, the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, A Rosie Place, and the Madison School Shoe Project.
Giving, Endowment, and the Gather & Grow Campaign
Giving is available online for the Offering and Pledge account, Care & Share, the Dean's Discretionary Fund, the Gather and Grow campaign, Shortcakes on the Blacktop, and altar flowers. Details for each are available on the Cathedral's giving page. Care and Share gifts can also be made using envelopes found in the pew or through the Givelify app. Through a generous anonymous gift in 2016, the Cathedral established an endowment fund held through the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County.
The Gather & Grow capital plan focuses on improving the physical fabric of the cathedral's buildings so that all ministries can operate well, including those that involve the larger community. The plan continues on the foundation of earlier work known as Heritage & Hope and concentrates on accessibility and functionality. Its first priority is a new elevator that would allow stairs-free access to every level of the campus for the first time.
Beyond online gifts, annual pledges invite members to share in the work of the church's mission, and the Cathedral also welcomes conversations about planned giving, contributions of stocks, and donor-advised funds. For donors aged 70 and one-half or older, a qualified charitable distribution from an IRA is excluded from taxable income while still providing required minimum distributions.
Sacramental Life
Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ and the Church. It is normally offered five times annually, and those seeking baptism for themselves or for a child speak with the Dean to set a date and arrange instruction. The Eucharist is communion with God and the Church through sharing Christ's presence in the blessed bread and wine, and it is offered to all baptized Christians on Sunday mornings and at Friday services. Confirmation is a mature, public affirmation of faith with the laying on of hands by the Bishop, and those who wish to be confirmed, received into the Episcopal Church, or renew their baptismal vows speak with the Dean.
Holy Matrimony is the joining together of two persons in a lifelong, faithful, committed marriage rooted in the relationship between Christ and the Church, and those wishing to marry speak with the Dean before setting a date. Reconciliation, confessing one's sins before God and a priest and receiving counsel and absolution, is offered by appointment with the Dean. Unction, prayers for healing with the laying on of hands and anointing with holy oil, is available at any time from a Deacon or the Dean. For the burial of the dead, the death of a member is reported to the Dean and funeral arrangements are made in consultation with the Dean.
Governance and the Cathedral Chapter
The Cathedral Chapter is the governing body of the Cathedral. It determines policy, sets goals, and provides stewardship of the cathedral's complex operations, functioning much like a board of trustees. An executive committee includes a senior warden, a junior warden, a treasurer, and a clerk. The Greater Cathedral Chapter is a consulting group made up of two lay and two clergy persons from the Diocese of Northern Indiana, and each faith community elects three lay delegates to the annual diocesan convention, with two delegates at the Cathedral elected at the annual meeting and the third elected by the Chapter.
Visiting the Cathedral
The Cathedral stands at 117 North Lafayette Boulevard, South Bend, Indiana 46601, at the northwest corner of Lafayette and Washington. The church telephone is (574) 232-4837 and the office email is office@stjamessouthbend.org. The building opens Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday until 3 p.m., and Sunday from 8 a.m. to noon.
Saint James asks to be both parish and cathedral: a house of prayer for all people in downtown South Bend, a Gothic Revival church with room for the whole city to gather.