If you visit St. Joe’s on a Sunday, what might you expect to find? At different times of the year, you might find any of these at our Sunday services:
Preschoolers coloring children’s bulletins or shaping Play-Doh into chalices and bread
Hymns sung loudly (or, in the evening, “Americana soaked in Appalachian rain”)
A range of attire, from “Sunday best” to sweats and sneakers
Arrangements of local wildflowers or autumnal gourds
A college student leading us in prayer
Popsicles on the lawn, or coffee and donuts in the chilly months
Eucharist brought from the service to the North Carolina Correctional Institute for Women
Long-term members sharing a pew with first-time visitors
The familiar words of the Book of Common Prayer
A retired professor reading the Old Testament lesson
Parking available in the lot behind the church, or on the street
Children’s programming
Our church grounds are open from sunrise to sunset to anyone who would like a place to rest and renew. Feel free to take your coffee break or bring a picnic lunch to enjoy at our picnic tables or come take a stroll through the back garden and see what is in bloom!
St. Basil Romanian Orthodox Church meets upstairs in the parish hall every Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m.
We are always interested in meeting our neighbors around St. Joseph’s, both new and long-time, and in learning what the needs are in our neighborhood. We look forward to meeting you!
St. Joe’s by the Numbers
Prepared for Annual Meeting of St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church, Durham, NC January 2025
Services of weekday prayer said at St. Joe’s in 2024: 316
Congregants between 21 and 39 in the “St. Joe’s Youth” group chat: 59
Attendance on the First Sunday of Advent, 2020: 27
Attendance on the First Sunday of Advent, 2021: 52
Attendance on the First Sunday of Advent, 2022: 64
Attendance on the First Sunday of Advent, 2023: 92
Attendance on the First Sunday of Advent, 2024: 120
Number of part-time paid staff: 8
Number of full-time staff: 0
Average open rate for church newsletters in the United States: 25.5%
Open rate for St. Joe’s newsletter, The Dispatch: 65.8%
The Dispatch subscribers, December 2023: 226
The Dispatch subscribers, December 2024: 363
Percentage of pledging units that are new in 2025: 46.5%
People baptized at St. Joe’s in 2024: 4
Average Sunday Attendance, 2013: 33
Average Sunday Attendance, 2023: 66
Average Sunday Attendance, 2024: 99.3
Altar linens washed and ironed in 2024: ~372
Communion loaves baked and consecrated in 2024: 191
Number of holes in the credence table linen: 3
Posts on the St. Joe’s Instagram in 2024: 113
Participants in our Prison Worship Team at NCCIW: 16
Receptions of Communion at NCCIW, including 500 in solitary confinement: 1300
Hymns sung at St. Joe’s in 2024: ~403
Increase in Sunday Church attendance 2022-2023, as a percentage: 32.7%
Increase in Sunday Church attendance 2023-2024, as a percentage: 52.3%
Candles lit at each Sunday Evening Eucharist: 24
Average attendance at Sunday Evening Eucharist: 29.7
Evening Service Attendance as a proportion of total Sunday Attendance: 29.9%
Pieces of art appearing in 2024 bulletins: ~210
Number of words in an average bulletin: ~3,250
