This is the Gate of Heaven
2026 Annual Campaign
Dear Friends,
I will never forget the first time I set foot in Grace Church. It was the fall of 1986, and I had just moved to New York City to begin seminary studies. I was eager to experience the variety of Episcopal churches in Manhattan, all seemingly within blocks of each other.
If I recall, it was a faculty member who recommended that I really ought to go see Grace Church. So one day I walked to 10th and Broadway, and I found the doors open. I stepped inside, and immediately sensed a palpable holiness that took my breath away. It was a powerful experience of God’s presence that I will remember always.
The Old Testament patriarch Jacob knew a similar moment. One night he fell asleep in an ordinary place, using a stone for a pillow. He dreamed that a ladder connected heaven and earth, and that angels were ascending and descending upon it. When Jacob awoke he declared, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven (Genesis 28:17).” One of our favorite stained-glass windows, located in the northwest corner of the nave, depicts the scene in brilliant color and detail.
For us, Grace Church is none other than the house of God. This is the gate of heaven. This brochure tells the story of how we encounter the presence of God in this awesome place, where the veil between heaven and earth is thin. We reach up, we reach out, and we reach in together as a community. Please read on, and then give prayerful thought to a generous financial gift to support the ministries of Grace Church in the year 2026.
The Rev. J. Donald Waring
Rector
Make Your 2026 Pledge
Fulfill Your 2026 Pledge
The gate of heaven opens when we reach up.
By reaching up to God we realize that God has already reached down to us.
- Worship services large and small throughout the week invite hundreds into the presence of God.
- A variety of Choirs involving many parishioners sing the praises of God with devotion and skill.
- The unparalleled art and architecture of stained-glass, stone, and wood inspire our souls.
- The Bicentennial Organ thrills listeners on Sundays and throughout the week.
- Sermons and Children’s Chapels open the Scriptures to us.
- Flowers and greens help us to rejoice in the beauty of God’s creation.
The gate of heaven opens when we reach in.
By reaching into this parish family we discover that Christ is true to his promise: “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20)
- Clergy counsel and pastoral visits are available for those who seek comfort or guidance.
- Monthly healing prayers and anointing at the Wednesday 6 pm Eucharist are meeting a pastoral need.
- Grace Cares is a ministry of lay leaders who call on the sick and housebound.
- Bible studies and book discussions engage us with the thinking of classic and contemporary Christian authors.
- The Sunday Forum helps us explore the areas where Christianity overlaps with culture, politics, and art.
- The GCW (Grace Church Women) and the Young Adult Fellowship are two groups that create community and opportunities for service.
- Canterbury Downtown for college students offers weekly worship, food, and fellowship.
- Coffee Hour offers a time for parishioners to connect after worship.
The gate of heaven opens when we reach out.
By reaching out to those beyond our walls, the gate of heaven opens through all sorts and conditions of people, many of whom are in great need.
- Our magnificent building, open to the public seven days a week, is significant outreach, in and of itself. Hundreds of people enter, rest, and pray during open door hours.
- We support the Diocese of New York so that struggling churches in under-resourced communities can stay open and vital.
- We help to fund the GO Project, our historic outreach partnership with Grace Church School that tutors at-risk public school students.
- Teams of volunteers work at The Red Door Place to prepare meals for the hungry.
- Every month we collect hundreds of canned goods and non-perishable items to stock local food pantries and soup kitchens.
- The livestream broadcast of the 11 am Sunday service reaches dozens of homes every week.
- Newcomer classes and events offer a point of connection for seekers and explorers.
- Our new Communications Manager is coordinating all of our messaging.
- The Weekly Epistle reaches out to hundreds of households.
- Our social media presence is active and engaged with a wide range of people.
- A new website, launched in early 2026, has refreshed and enlivened our online presence.
The gate of heaven opens when we give of ourselves.
Grace Church relies on three major sources of revenue:
Annual giving from parishioners
Rental income from real estate holdings
A responsible draw on our invested funds
Also, we conduct occasional capital campaigns to fund extraordinary repairs to the building, as we did in 2024. The congregation responded heroically to the Making All Things New appeal, and the scaffolding we have seen in 2025 is the result.
As we look ahead to 2026, we realize that this year, as every year, annual giving is vitally important. We simply could not do what we do, and maintain these open gates to heaven without the generous giving of all our households.
How to Give
Count Your Blessings
Pledging is a way to say “thank you” to God for all the blessings of this life: friends, family, forgiveness, employment, a lesson learned, the beauty of creation, and the awareness of God’s presence through troubled times. Part of the pledge form asks you to list a few of the blessings you have known in 2025. Thus, your 2026 pledge is a tangible expression of gratitude. It is the blessings we name that we hear in the Prayers of the People each Sunday.
Be Prayerful and Generous
The Bible commends the tithe (10% of one’s income) as a standard of giving. If the tithe seems too high a mark to reach this year, choose a percentage that feels faithful, grateful, and generous. If you gave 2% last year, strive to give 3% or 4% in 2026. Multiply the percentage you choose by your annual income, and make the resulting number your pledge. Strive to do your best for God, who is the giver of all good gifts. Make a pledge that stretches you spiritually and financially – one that you cannot fulfill by writing one check today.
Fulfill Your Pledge
Once you have completed the pledge form, you can begin to make payments in 2026, and take the entire year to fulfill your pledge. Parishioners can choose offering envelopes to make weekly payments, or set up automatic payments by giving online.
Tax-Deductible Giving
Gifts to Grace Church (EIN: 13-5562327) are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
Questions?
Please contact Travis Brock Kennedy.
Budget Digest
