FāVS News News and Commentary about Religion and Ethics in Eastern Washington and North Idaho
After renting, and outgrowing, various spaces throughout town Christ the King Anglican Church is finally settling into its new home at 2103 E. Mission Ave.
The church began in 2005 when three local families left their Episcopal churches because of theological disagreements. Since then the congregation’s grown to include about 70 people, said the Rev. Jerry Cimijotti, who began leading the church in 2006.
It’s the only church in Spokane belonging to the Anglican Church in North America, which is a conservative emerging Province in the global Anglican Communion.
Cimijotti said the congregation is made of a mix of people of all ages. Sunday services, which are at 10:15 a.m., include traditional worship and a liturgy that’s easy for visitors to follow along with.
In the fall Christ the King will start hosting Third Thursdays, which will feature modern liturgical music, Cimijotti said.
He said Christ the King is a good fit for people seeking a church that’s rooted both in faith and in history.
“We’re a traditional church for the 21st Century,” Cimijotti said. “We’re evangelical, catholic and traditional, yet we’re contemporary.”
The congregation is in the process of purchasing their current building, which was formerly a Presbyterian church. They moved into the worship space in January.
Cimijotti said the church is focused on building bridges with its neighbors and hopes to find ways to get more Gonzaga students engaged in their ministry.
“We’re trying to get more involved with the life of this community,” he said. “We’re excited about being here. We want to get established in this community and get to know one another.”
He hopes to start a community garden in the near future and said the church is already active in helping other ministries, including Union Gospel Mission, Anglican Action and Mission Community Outreach Center.
Where We Worship is a Spokane Faith & Values feature that profiles different houses of worship in the Spokane area. To have your organization featured email tracysimmons@spokanefavs.com.
Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of SpokaneFāVS.com, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Assistant Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.
