SAINT JAMES' IS CURRENTLY
SEARCHING FOR A RECTOR.
This is offered as a part-time position, and is ideal for a retired but still
active priest, or for one who wants the time to write, teach, or study. It is located
in a small, peaceful and loving university community in western Alabama. For
more information contact Hiram Patrenos, 205-652-4210, patrenoj@bellsouth.net.
SAINT JAMES' EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Livingston, Alabama
![[Picture of St. James']](images/StJames.jpg)
SAINT JAMES' CHURCH is a lovely early 19th century church
in Livingston, the County Seat of rural Sumter Co
unty, Alabama. Livingston is the home of the
University of West Alabama, and its social and cultural opportunities belie its
simple agrarian origins in the famous Black Belt farming region (the
"Black Belt" is a belt of black alluvial soil stretching from Georgia
to Mississippi -- the name has no racial implications). The town was formed in
1832, when the Choctaw Nation signed the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, ceding
ownership of a large tract of land to the settlers. Saint James' was founded in
1836, and its present building completed in 1842. Its Parish Hall was built in
the mid-1950s, and was enlarged and refurbished in 1972. It burned (but was not
destroyed) in 2004. It has been completely restored and improved, and is now a
beautiful and active center of parish activity. The Rectory was renovated in
2004. A more detailed history of the parish can be seen here.
Saint James' is a parish of
about 75 communicants, primarily from Livingston and York. It has recently been
renovated and has installed a beautiful rebuilt Moeller organ to replace the
mixed pipe and electronic organ that served it for many years. A previously
used handsome 19th century free-standing organ graces the nave, and is still
used on special occasions. It was built by Alexander Mills of New York City
around 1870.
Saint James' is an Altar-centered
congregation, believing that our spiritual strength comes to us from God
through the sacramental life of the church. The Holy Eucharist is celebrated
every Sunday at 11:00 a.m., alternating between Rites I and II.
Livingston is a very
ecumenically oriented town. For many years it has been the custom that on the
fifth Sunday of the month, when there is one, the Episcopal, Methodist, and
Presbyterian churches unite for an Interfaith service, rotating its location
between these churches. The un-designated offering from this service is donated
to a fund to contribute to the relief of distressed travelers in the area.
St. James' has had a long-standing
relationship with several small parishes in the region that do not have weekly
services. The strongest bond is with St. Alban's, Gainesville. Gainesville is a
town of about 300 people. It was founded in the early 1830s by a
Connecticut businessman, Moses Lewis, who recognized the potential of its
location. (To this day State Street, the street on which Lewis and his
Connecticut business associates lived, is known as "Yankee Street.")
Gainesville grew rapidly, and before the Civil War it had become the third
largest city in Alabama when Birmingham was little more than a village. Located
on the banks of the Tombigbee River, it was the hub of river transportation
from Tennessee to the Gulf of Mexico, and was a bustling center of the cotton
trade. The advent of railroads, the demise of cotton farming, and the loss of
most of her young men in the war marked the death of this great commercial
center. Some of the grand old houses still stand on the banks of the river, but
most are in need of repair.
St. Alban's was founded in
1879, when the town, although in decline, still had dreams of rising to its
former glory. Today there are four churches in Gainesville -- St. Alban's, and
the Methodist, the Presbyterian, and the Baptist Churches. Services are rotated,
with a different church holding services for the whole community each Sunday.
(On each third Sunday the service is at St. Alban's). Many people in the
community describe themselves as "Metho-bapti-presby-palians." The
rector of St. James' is the ex officio priest-in-charge of St. Alban's. The other churches
are served by retired clergy or clergy rotated from other churches in the
region.
--Richard R. Losch+
Some Views of Saint James'
The Antique Free-standing Organ
The St. James' Rectory
For more information about
Livingston, visit the Livingston Home
Page,
or return to Fr. Rick's Home Page.