The Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina

06/14/2026

Third Sunday after Pentecost: Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love, that through your grace we may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer)

06/13/2026

Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley shares a word with the diocese as we continue through Pride month and talks about how our Baptismal Covenant shapes and guides our lives in this month and always. "As Episcopalians, we are guided by the promises of the Baptismal Covenant. We promise to seek and serve Christ in all persons and to respect the dignity of every human being," says Bishop Ruth. "Those promises call us not simply to tolerate one another, but to celebrate one another as beloved children of God."

"In a time when our society is often marked by division, fear, and suspicion, the Church is called to be something different: a community where people encounter the reconciling love of God and discover that there is room for all of us at Christ’s table." We invite you to listen to her message of love and acceptance. "There is room for all of us at Christ's table."

06/10/2026

06/10/2026

We pray blessings on the ministry of the Reverend B. Shawan Gillians, one of the newest deacons in The Episcopal Church! Thanks be to God!

06/09/2026

Join us online for the ordination of Shawan Gillians to the diaconate at the link below! Or watch later at the same link.

The Ordination of a DeaconBernadette Shawan GilliansGrace Church ...

06/09/2026

Today, we remember Bishop William Alexander Guerry, the 8th Bishop of our diocese, who died on this day in 1928, five days after being shot in his office in Charleston by a priest who had attacked the bishop’s position on advancing racial equality in South Carolina, and especially his proposal to install a black suffragan bishop in the diocese. The priest who shot the him believed Bishop Guerry would bring an end to white supremacy in the south. So, overtaken by hatred, and perhaps other mental issues, he fired the shot that killed the bishop and then turned the gun on himself, taking his own life.

Before Bishop Guerry died, he said of his assailant, “Forgive him, Father, he knew not what he did.” We remember him today as a bishop, reformer, and martyr. This year, we will celebrate Bishop Guerry Day in our diocese on June 21. For more information on this remarkable bishop, visit our website at this link: episcopalchurchsc.org/bishop-guerry/

COLLECT FOR THE FEAST OF BISHOP GUERRY: God of truth and sacrifice, we give thanks for your servant William Alexander Guerry, who, like the church's first martyr, gave witness to your liberating gospel and echoed Christ's healing words of forgiveness. May we also seek your truth as we offer ourselves in obedience to the same. All this we pray through him who is forever the bishop and reformer of our souls, Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

06/07/2026

Second Sunday after Pentecost: O God, from whom all good proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer; pictured: Good Shepherd, Sumter)

Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley will visit Church of the Good Shepherd - Sumter, South Carolina today for a service of worship at 9:30 am. The church is located at 401 Di**le Street in Sumter and all are welcome!

06/05/2026

Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley was joined by the Rev. Canon Ramelle McCall (who serves on diocesan staff) and the two co-chairs of our diocesan Racial Justice & Reconciliation Commission--Gail DeCosta and Vermelle Simmons--on this life-changing pilgrimage to the Anglican Diocese of Cape Coast in Ghana in April. We invite you to read this article shared by The Diocese of Atlanta that summarizes the journey (and quotes Bishop Ruth and Canon McCall). As noted in the article: "The 11,000+ mile historic sixth trip—the first officially housed within the Absalom Jones Episcopal Center for Racial Healing (AJECRH)—was a holy journey into truth-telling and relationship." Read the full article at this link: https://episcopalatlanta.org/news/respect-realign-restore/

“Among us were descendants of the enslaved and descendants of enslavers,” noted the Right Rev. Ruth Woodliff-Stanley, Bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina. “Yet we discovered that honest conversation rooted in mutual dignity can become holy ground. What struck me most was not a false collapsing of our different experiences, but the courage to remain present to one another within them.”

Woodliff-Stanley noted that the visible ministry of their hosts has directly inspired her own diocesan plans moving forward. “Their work inspired me and compelled me to continue deepening our partnership in South Carolina,” she said. “This trip reminded me that reconciliation is not an abstract idea. It is something we practice together with open hearts, listening spirits, and the willingness to be transformed by encounter.”

Home from their April journey to the Anglican Diocese of Cape Coast in Ghana, 23 travelers from the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta and the Diocese of South Carolina report a profoundly deepened commitment to global partnership and racial reconciliation.

06/03/2026

Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley had a wonderful visit to St. Catherine's Episcopal Church in Florence on Sunday, May 31. She preached, celebrated the Eucharist, and confirmed six members and received one member. The Rev. Eunice Dunlap is leading the way at St. Catherine's as vicar, growing a warm and welcoming community of faith with people who worship in person and online!

06/02/2026

Grateful to the Episcopal News Service for sharing the good news of our diocesan-wide capital campaign, launched with the full support of and collaboration with the presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church! We are excited to pilot this new initiative of paying it forward. Read more in the article below.

[Episcopal News Service] The Diocese of South Carolina is using seed money from The Episcopal Church to launch its first capital campaign since resolving a property lawsuit with a breakaway group i…