One block west of the North Carolina State Capitol on Hillsborough Street in downtown Raleigh, the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd has gathered worshippers since 1875. It is known for two things in particular: it was Raleigh's first free Episcopal church, where every pew was open to anyone who wished to sit in it, and it remains a working downtown parish where the worship of the city and the needs of the city are tightly joined. Sunday Eucharists at 8:00 and 10:15 share a building that also holds a nursery, a children's choir program, a 24-hour pantry, and Shepherd's Table, the soup kitchen the parish helped start.
Two Sunday Eucharists and a Room Full of Children
Sunday worship at Good Shepherd comes in two forms, and both are Holy Eucharist. At 8:00 the parish uses the older Rite I, and at 10:15 it uses Rite II with a Collect of the Kids and Godly Play. The 10:15 service is the one streamed live on YouTube every Sunday, and past services and special programs remain available on the church's YouTube channel for people who cannot be in the building.
The music at 10:15 is mostly congregational: hymns, psalms and service music, led most weeks by the Chancel Choir. The clergy celebrate with the congregation facing them rather than turned toward the high altar, a practice begun in 2023 to reflect the Episcopal understanding that Christ is present in the whole community gathered at the table, with everyone a guest at God's table. A committee of five lay leaders and two clergy has designed a replacement altar table in the sanctuary's woodwork so that the view of the high altar is clear and the clergy can celebrate from the broader platform above the chancel steps.
Children are folded into the Sunday rhythm rather than set aside. Nursery care runs from 8:30 a.m. to noon, with caregivers always in attendance in a first-floor nursery near the sanctuary that has changing tables and toddler toilet facilities. At 9:00, Children's Sunday School gathers children from pre-K through fifth grade while adults meet for Bible study and a thematic formation class, and parents and grandparents are invited to gather for coffee and conversation in the second-floor library. During the 10:15 service, children from pre-K through fifth grade are welcomed out for Godly Play after the Collect of the Kids and return for the Offertory.
Morning Prayer and a Noonday Eucharist
On weekdays the church keeps a quieter rhythm. Morning Prayer is prayed in the sanctuary Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 9:30 a.m., and the church opens at 8:30 for anyone who wants a few minutes of silence before the workday. Those who need off-street parking can use the circle drive. On Wednesdays the parish offers a Midweek Eucharist at noon, which the Beyond Our Doors team also treats as a welcome respite in the middle of the day.
Tuesday brings Bible study with Mother Nancy at 10:30 a.m. in the Ennis Suite, with a second gathering at 5:30 p.m.
The First Free Episcopal Church in Raleigh
Good Shepherd was formed in 1874 as the first free Episcopal church in Raleigh. Before that, the only general house of worship for Episcopalians in the city was Christ Church, where pews were owned by the various families that made up its congregation. At Good Shepherd, all pews were open to whomever wished to sit in them. The parish calls this an act of radical hospitality for its time, and it treats that decision as the foundation of the inclusive community it still says it is.
The Rev. Edward R. Rich was called as rector of the new church in January 1874 and conducted the first service in February, assisted by the Rt. Rev. T. B. Lyman. By spring a site at the corner of Hillsborough and McDowell streets had been purchased and construction began on September 24, 1874. While the building rose, services were often held in the Hall of the House of Representatives at the Capitol. On Easter Day, March 28, 1875, the congregation held its first service in the church's present location, and the new parish was admitted to the Diocese at the annual convention held in Wilmington on May 21, 1874.
A Building of Stone, Marble and Sixty Years of Glass
The larger church that stands today began with the fourth rector, the Rev. Isaac McKendree Pittenger, who made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1896 and chose a block of marble quarried near Jerusalem to ship home as the cornerstone for a new building. The cornerstone was laid in October 1899, and the building was not completed until 1914. The original church then became the Parish House and served that purpose until a new Parish House was finished in 1954. The stained glass windows were made over the sixty years that followed, so the sanctuary's glass represents most of a century of work rather than a single campaign.
Inside, the altar depicting the Last Supper and the wainscoting and paving inside the altar rail are made from Italian marble. The work is said to have been done in Italy, with masons who came from there to install it. A separate Parish Life Center, dedicated on All Saints Day in 2004 by Bishop Michael Curry, now holds the nursery, classrooms, library, parish offices, Shepherd's Hall and the kitchen from which Shepherd's Table has served since the parish helped found it.
Advocacy, Altruism and Alliances
The parish describes its mission in a single sentence: with God's help, the church is a welcoming, inclusive and growing community inspired by worship to actively serve others through the love, teaching and example of Jesus Christ. Its communal life and outreach are built on three stated pillars.
- Advocacy means speaking up for the marginalized and using the parish's voice to support justice and dignity for all of God's children.
- Altruism means hands-on service, providing direct help and compassion to people in the community who are in need.
- Alliances means partnering with organizations that share the parish's values so that its impact in Raleigh and beyond is greater than any one congregation could manage alone.
Those three words explain a long list of commitments: a food pantry on the church grounds, a prison families support group, a White Flag shelter operation on the coldest nights, an advocacy voice with OneWake on affordable housing and living wages, and volunteer crews with Habitat for Humanity of Wake County.
What Episcopalians Believe Here
Good Shepherd teaches what it means to be Episcopalian in fairly direct terms. Episcopalians are Christians who love Jesus and try each day to be more like him. They read the Bible, celebrate the Eucharist and share it with anyone baptized as a Christian, regardless of denomination, and they invite those who are not baptized to pray, sing and do God's work with them. At baptism they make a covenant with God and one another to strive for justice and peace, to seek Christ in all persons, to love neighbors as themselves and to uphold the dignity of every human being without exception.
The parish also states plainly that it affirms committed lifelong monogamous relationships while not punishing people for divorce, that both men and women can serve as priests, deacons and bishops no matter their sexual orientation or gender identity, that it respects people's rights to make informed decisions about birth control, and that it loves science and encourages people to care for the earth. It values ancient and new prayers and songs alike. The summary it repeats most often is simple: God loves you, just as you are.
Good Shepherd is a parish within the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, which is part of Province IV of The Episcopal Church, and The Episcopal Church is itself an autonomous constituent member province of the Anglican Communion. The parish also points people toward the Episcopal Church's Way of Love resources and the podcast of Bishop Michael Curry.
Nursery, Sunday School and Godly Play
Family ministry is one of the strongest parts of this parish's life. Sunday School for pre-K through fifth grade gathers at 9:00 a.m. in two groups, pre-K to first grade and second through fifth grade. Parents are encouraged to gather in the library for coffee and fellowship, and a nursery staffed by paid caregivers is available from 8:30 to noon for younger siblings, with toys monitored for safety and cleanliness and facilities for changing and for toddler toilets.
Godly Play is offered for part of the 10:15 service for children pre-K through fifth grade. It uses a Montessori-inspired method built on storytelling, wonder and play, and children are led out of the service after the Collect of the Kids and back for the Offertory. Vacation Bible School is another annual fixture, offered for pre-K through fifth grade with a nursery group for the younger siblings of enrolled children and of volunteers. A typical VBS day includes storytelling, games, crafts, music and a snack.
There is also a Sunday afternoon program for parents called Growing Spiritually with Kids in Tow, gathering from 4:45 to 6:00 p.m. with dinner and sitters provided. Its premise is that children are born with innate spirituality and that parents can grow spiritually alongside them.
Hymns, Handbells and a Children's Choir
The music ministry focuses on congregational hymns, psalms and service music, while also giving people a place to develop musical gifts in ensembles. The Handbell Choir rehearses Wednesdays from 6:00 to 6:45 p.m. from September through May and plays in worship seasonally, with no prior ringing experience required. The Chancel Choir rehearses Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. during the same months, leads music at the 10:15 service most weeks along with Christmas Eve and Holy Week, welcomes all skill levels, and is supported by professional section leaders and student choral scholars.
The parish also runs a children's chorister program for singers in kindergarten through twelfth grade, built around musical education, community building and faith formation. The youngest choir, Good Shepherd Choir, gathers for grades K-2 on Tuesdays from 4:30 to 5:20 p.m. to learn good tone, note reading, rhythm and pitch and to sing in worship about once a month. Senior Choristers for grades 3-12 rehearse Sundays from noon to 1:00 p.m. and sing with the Chancel Choir through the season. Because the two choirs sing together often, the program is also a way to build relationships across generations.
Flowers for the High Altar, Bouquets for the Sick
The Flower Guild buys and arranges flowers for more than 80 percent of Sunday services, along with receptions, funerals and special events such as ordinations, producing large seasonal displays at a small fraction of the cost of a commercial florist because the materials and the time are donated by members. Materials come from farmers markets, grocery stores, wholesale florists and backyards. When the display comes down on a Sunday afternoon or Monday morning, volunteers re-cut it into smaller bouquets that are delivered to people in the community during pastoral visits, carrying the beauty of Sunday worship into homes and hospital rooms.
EYC: Episcopal Youth Community
Good Shepherd's youth ministry is called EYC, and it is active and well supported. It gathers students in sixth through twelfth grade, with parents, clergy and adult parishioners behind it. EYC meets on most Sunday evenings from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. during the school year, September through May, with occasional breaks for holidays and parish events. Meetings combine service projects that benefit both the parish and the community with spiritual development, educational enrichment, recreational outings, meals and plain fun. The group runs an annual Hot Chocolate Sale and cooks the Shrove Tuesday pancake supper.
Youth serve in worship as well. Acolytes in grades 6 through 12 assist clergy each Sunday after training, serving as crucifers, torch bearers, Gospel bearers and kite bearers, lighting candles and helping with the offering and preparation of the Eucharist. Other roles open to young people include assisting with Children's Chapel, singing in the choir, and serving as lector, intercessor or usher. The parish also offers confirmation classes that prepare youth for a mature public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of baptism, with the laying on of hands by the bishop.
Retreats and mission trips are organized through the youth ministry, with young people taking part in local and national service projects, including work with Shepherd's Table. EYC also joins Episcopal youth from other North Carolina parishes at gatherings such as the Bishop's Ball, Winter Seniors, Fall Middlers and Happening.
Beyond Our Doors: A Soup Kitchen, a Pantry and a Monthly Lunch
Good Shepherd's largest claim on downtown Raleigh is Shepherd's Table, the soup kitchen the parish helped found and which serves a free, hot lunch Monday through Friday in the kitchen downstairs. It began as an outreach of this church and is now a separate 501(c)(3) with its own organization, while parish members continue to volunteer for preparation, service and cleanup. The kitchen feeds more than 275 people a day on weekdays. Parishioners have also played key roles in starting other Raleigh fixtures, including Rex Hospital.
Right outside the Parish Life Center, beside the circular driveway, sits the Little Free Pantry, a self-serve cabinet available 24 hours a day with snacks, bottled water and other useful items. The Beyond Our Doors team keeps it stocked, particularly through hot months when bottled water matters most, and asks for donations of nutritious, nonperishable, single-serving food and travel-size toiletries. Items that need a stove or kitchen, glass jars, clothing, opened goods and expired food are not useful there.
On the first Sunday of each month, the Beyond Our Doors team hosts a community lunch immediately after the 10:15 service, and the team welcomes partnerships with like-minded organizations serving neighbors in need. Nearby, a community drinking fountain installed through a memorial gift and other donations offers a bubbler, a bottle-filling station and a pet bowl for people who pass the church with their dogs.
Other gatherings at the table are smaller but regular. Cheshire House Meals serves lunch to about 25 college students through Raleigh Episcopal Campus Ministry on the second Sunday of each month from September through May. The parish helps the Urban Ministries food pantry by collecting shelf-stable protein such as tuna, chicken and salmon, and its Advent giving has included alternative gift giving to the Rector's Discretionary Fund, Shepherd's Table, Urban Ministries of Wake County, World Pediatrics and Episcopal Relief & Development.
Partners Across Raleigh and Wake County
The parish's alliances pillar is visible in a long roster of working partnerships. Volunteers help Food Not Bombs distribute clothing, shoes, sleeping bags and tents in Moore Square on Saturdays. The parish collects hygiene items and food for unhoused students through the McKinney-Vento project at Enloe Magnet High School. Members run Meals on Wheels routes on the first and third Mondays of every month, cut and deliver firewood with Warmth for Wake, and speak up for affordable housing, living wages and educational opportunity through OneWake, a non-partisan, multi-racial group of more than forty congregations.
In the coldest weather, Good Shepherd operates as an overflow shelter when winter temperatures are dangerously low, hosting White Flag nights that welcome people who need somewhere to be overnight. A team also serves with Habitat for Humanity of Wake County, helping build houses for lower-income families and providing lunch and drink for the crews. The St. Francis Needlework Guild knits and crochets prayer shawls, hats, scarves, baby blankets and caps for people at Shepherd's Table, Rex Hospital, Wake Medical Center and the Christmas at Sea project of the Seaman's Institute. In Advent, families select children from a St. Nicholas Tree to surprise at Christmas with a wrapped toy, book or clothing through the Episcopal Farmworkers Ministry, and the parish fills backpacks for farmworker children each summer before the school year begins.
A newer ministry, the Prison Families Support Group, meets monthly on the second Saturday for friends and family of people who are incarcerated. Organized by two parishioners, Ann and Shep Smith, it is built as a nonjudgmental space for emotional support, practical resource sharing and simple company, and anyone may attend without being a member of the parish.
The parish also keeps a Community Resource Guide for Wake County, organized by shelter, food, clothing, medical care and financial aid, and a Green Team that collects batteries for safe disposal and diverts food waste through a community composting partnership.
Learning Together: Adult Formation and Fellowship
Adult formation runs at 9:00 a.m. on Sundays, with two classes typically meeting at once: one thematic series running for a few weeks, and a Bible study group led by Debbie Moyer. The Sunday formation year runs from mid-September through mid-May. Subjects have included Richard Rohr's The Tears of Things, Adam Hamilton's Making Sense of the Bible, a documentary series on the Philadelphia Eleven, and a three-part series on the Easter Triduum led by the Rev. Imogen. Through the year the parish has also offered small group Bible study, discussion groups focused on today's difficult issues, dialogue sessions gathering feedback on faith-in-action initiatives, sessions on knowing, loving and supporting neighbors, health and care education, and ask-the-clergy forums. A guided Read the Bible in a Year journey has combined daily personal reading with shared listening and group reflection.
Formation is paired with fellowship that often happens away from the church building. Kaffeeklatsch gathers for coffee and conversation every Wednesday from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. at Cafe Carolina in the Village District, with no agenda beyond talking. Books and Bagels, the parish book club, meets at 8:30 a.m. every Thursday at Chanticleer Coffee & Bakery in Cary, and the parish offers to help anyone who would like to start a satellite book group closer to home. The Men's Fellowship Lunch meets at noon on the second Thursday of each month at High Park Grill, and Out & About, a supper group that has affirmed and supported LGBTQ members and friends for more than twenty-five years, gathers for a potluck at a host's home on the third Sunday of each month.
The yearly calendar adds its own flavor: Rally Day, a parish festival that kicks off the program year and has raised money for the Little Free Pantry; a Shrove Tuesday pancake supper with bacon; an oyster roast; a chili cook-off; a parish picnic; Vacation Bible School; a family weekend at the Trinity Center; and mission trips. Other fellowship traditions have included a shrimp and oyster roast and a Mike Beard memorial pig pickin'.
Parking, Access and a First Visit
Good Shepherd sits at 121 Hillsborough Street, and parking is unusually easy for a downtown church. Handicapped spaces sit directly behind the church in the small lot off Morgan Street, reached by a ramp that also provides access to the Parish Life Center, with a few additional accessible spaces in front off Hillsborough Street. On-street parking is plentiful on the surrounding streets, and meter fees are waived on Sundays and after 6:00 p.m. on weekdays. The lot at 200 West Morgan Street, across McDowell Street from the church, is free for church attendees on Sunday mornings from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; those parking there are asked to scan a special code within 20 minutes, and the codes are posted in the narthex, at the West Transept entrance on McDowell Street and in the Parish Life Center. A municipal lot at 201 West Morgan Street is another option close by.
Visitors who want to stay in touch can complete a visitor information form, and questions about joining the church, transferring membership from another parish, marriage and baptism are handled by the Parish Administrator, David Baggett, and the parish office. The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Friday by appointment. A weekly parish newsletter, Parish News, is published each Thursday afternoon. For those unable to worship in person, the 10:15 Sunday service is livestreamed, and the visitor information gathered here also covers what to expect on a first Sunday.
Clergy, Music and a Lay Vestry
Good Shepherd is led by the Rev. Imogen Rhodenhiser as rector, with the Rev. Polly Robb as associate rector for family ministry and spiritual life, the Rev. Justin Gabbard as associate rector for youth ministry, and the Rev. Devin McGinnis as deacon. Kirsten Homdrom serves as director of music and organist. Adult formation is coordinated by Lynn Hoke, and Morning Prayer by Guynn Prince.
The parish's business is handled by a 12-member Vestry elected by the congregation at the annual meeting to serve three-year terms, with four members rotating off each year so the body always mixes fresh voices with institutional memory. The Vestry acts as the parish's legal agent, overseeing finances and budgets, caring for buildings and grounds, and helping discern where God is calling the congregation. It meets on the fourth Monday of each month, and parishioners are welcome to sit in. Dan Harris serves as senior warden and James Deal as junior warden.
Stewardship of the Parish Life Center
The Parish Life Center was dedicated on All Saints Day in 2004 by Bishop Michael Curry, and seven fundraising campaigns over the two decades that followed raised more than $4.4 million for the building and the ministries it houses. A campaign to retire the remaining mortgage debt on the center exceeded its $150,000 goal, with $242,709 in pledges. Annual giving runs each fall, and the money pledged in that season determines the budget for the coming year, supporting clergy and staff, worship, music, family ministry, formation, pastoral care and outreach. The building itself brings in some revenue by hosting other congregations and organizations, a partnership the parish counts on alongside its annual giving. Online pledges and gifts are accepted through Realm.
Good Shepherd on Hillsborough Street
From open pews in 1874 to a 24-hour pantry and a soup kitchen serving hundreds of lunches a day, Good Shepherd's story has always run on one conviction: that a church in the middle of a city is measured by what it shares. The stone sanctuary on Hillsborough Street still holds two Eucharists each Sunday, a choir of adults and children, a nursery full of small families, and a congregation that keeps finding new ways to set a table for a neighbor. That work continues in Raleigh, one block west of the Capitol, where the pews remain free and the welcome is meant to be literal.