About Us
Text Box: HISTORY Following a survey done on the Ridge area in the north central section of Citrus County in 1993, a group of thirty people began meeting at the Amsouth Bank in Beverly Hills, Florida on Sunday evenings for Evening Prayer and fellowship. These services were led by Fr. Joe Goss of the Church of the Advent in Ocala and Deacon Gene Reuman of Holy Faith in Dunnellon. On March 6, 1994, Bishop John Howe appointed Fr. Charles Hotchkiss as part-time vicar. He celebrated the first Sunday morning Eucharist on March 13, 1994. That same evening the name “Shepherd of the Hills” was unanimously selected and given to Bishop Howe for approval. In the fall of 1994, Deacon Humbert Thomas joined Shepherd of the Hills and assisted Fr. Hotchkiss during the fall and winter months. The Charter was signed by forty-seven people on December 5, 1994, and on January 28, 1995, at the Diocesan Convention, Shepherd of the Hills Mission was officially welcomed in the Diocese of Central Florida. In the summer of 1995, Shepherd of the Hills purchased a four-office building at its present location. The two unoccupied offices were converted into a sanctuary, meeting, room, and office. Text Box: As Episcopalians we are “liturgical,” meaning our worship is centered in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Our liturgical music is centered in the Book of Common Prayer and the Hymnal 1982, although we draw from other music expressions. The central liturgy of corporate worship is The Holy Eucharist. Here we gather as the People of God to hear how our story and the story of God in Christ intersect. The Liturgy of the Word and the Holy Communion invite us into the Divine Drama of reconciling love for the healing of Creation. The Catechism in the Book of Common Prayer defines the Church as the Community of the New Covenant. The Bible describes the Church as the Body of Christ of which Jesus Christ is the Head and of which all baptized persons are members. We are called the People of God, the New Israel, a holy nation, a royal priesthood, and the pillar and ground of truth. The Prayer Book describes the ministers of the Church to be lay persons, bishops, priests, and deacons. The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ. We believe the two great sacraments of the Gospel given by Christ are Holy Baptism and the Holy Eucharist. Other sacramental rites are confirmation, ordination, holy matrimony, reconciliation of a penitent, and unction. We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, along with the Apocrypha, to be the Word of God, because God inspired their human authors and because God still speaks to us through them Our statements of faith are found in the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. The Apostles’ Creed is the ancient creed of Baptism used in the Church’s daily worship to recall our Baptismal Covenant. The Nicene Creed is the creed of the universal Church and is used at the Eucharist. An additional creed, the Athanasian Creed, is an ancient document proclaiming the nature of the Incarnation and of God as Trinity. Welcome to Shepherd of the Hills Episcopal Church. We value each and every one of you as a Child of God. Please advise us if you need additional information and or conversation about our life. May the Peace of the Lord be always with you.