Our Church

The Christian Community

The Christian Community Movement for Religious Renewal is an independent community centered around the seven sacraments in a renewed form, without attachment to any existing church or ecumenical movement.

We welcome all regardless of age, race, national origin, gender and sexual orientation. Anyone seeking a community of Christians that combines sacramental integrity and freedom of belief will find an open door.

There are approximately 200 independent Christian Community Congregations worldwide, with 14 in North America.

Atlanta Affiliate

Atlanta is an affiliate of The Christian Community in the Greater Washington-Baltimore Area located in College Park, Maryland, which means it does not yet have its own resident priest. Until that becomes possible, the priest in Maryland acts as a mentor to the Atlanta community and pays periodic visits in order to help it grow.

History of the Atlanta Congregation

The impulse to establish a growing point of The Christian Community in Atlanta came in July 2009 and was turned into a reality by Gwyneth Bragdon, Lisa Majoros, and Sara Corey (then Michelson).

The first Consecration of the Human Being (communion service) was celebrated in March 2010 by the Rev. Jonah Evans, and much has happened since then. In addition to several services per year celebrated by a number of different priests, the affiliate has seen nine baptisms, eight confirmations, and a marriage. These sacraments took place in a variety of locations while the congregation grew.

The Christian Community in Atlanta found a more permanent home in December 2022 in a dedicated space at its current location in northeast Atlanta. Now the energy of our members—who hail not only from Atlanta, but also from Alabama and Tennessee—can be spent on building community, rather than building a chapel space each time one is needed! We have also increased our yearly priest visits, inviting priests to come celebrate the Act of Consecration with us 10-12 times per year. We are very excited about the future growth of our community and welcome visits to our chapel. Come join us!

Our Board

  • Emma Heirman

    President

    I grew up in Silver Spring, MD when this congregation was an affiliate community of Devon, Pennsylvania. In my twenties, my search for my work and my place in the world led me to the altar. I found that those who also gathered there were students of the school of which I longed to be part: the school of life that turns to Christ Jesus as its brother and guide. After studying at the Seminary of The Christian Community in North America and in Stuttgart, Germany, I was ordained in February, 2016. I served my first congregation in Denver, Colorado from 2016-2020. I now serve the congregation of the Greater Washington-Baltimore Area and its affiliate communities in Nashville, TN and Atlanta, GA.

  • Sara Corey

    Secretary

    I attended my first Christian Community adult service in 1990, at Camphill Copake, NY, while visiting my sister who lived there with her growing family. I felt very connected to the meditative, quiet mood and reverence for the Divine. Fast forward to the beginnings of our Atlanta affiliate, I have been actively involved since its inception in 2010, helping to grow the musical aspects as well as a robust children's community. It is a joy to play music here with my son, Aidan, as well as sing with others. I am an avid outdoor enthusiast, through teaching at a forest preschool, long walks, hiking and biking.

  • Gail Ritscher

    Treasurer

    I retired from my government job as a translator in the Baltimore area in 2014, attended the Seminary of The Christian Community from 2016-18, then worked in a deacon-type role for The Christian Community in Spring Valley in 2019 before moving to Toronto in September of that year to help the seminary in its first year there. Then came COVID and some time back in New York before the wind of destiny blew me to Atlanta in November 2022 to support The Christian Community Affiliate here, a task for which my past work in Spring Valley and Toronto prepared me very well. My primary focus is to facilitate priest visits to Atlanta on a more or less monthly basis. Between visits, I am involved in translation work for the seminary, take lots of pilates classes, create new garden spaces, and explore Atlanta and the surrounding areas. I already feel quite at home here.

  • Katherine Jenkins

    Member at Large

    I was born and raised in Atlanta and have lived in northeast Georgia for most of my life. In 1996, I began to attend an anthroposophical study group. I discovered The Christian Community through my relationship with that group and a “chance” encounter with a priest. On 16 December 2013, I became a member. Now I am an elder and historian in the Atlanta affiliate. When Gail Ritscher came to help us stabilize and rejuvenate the affiliate after COVID, I accepted the position on the Board of Directors as Secretary for one year. Now I am a member at large. I continue to hope for a congregation in Atlanta with a full-time priest, and I apply my efforts toward fulfilling that mission.

  • Jessica Brown

    Member at Large