Church of the Incarnation (Dallas, Texas)

Architecture

The current facility, with the exception of the Great Hall and school building, was constructed in a neo-Gothic style. The worship spaces contain traditional Anglican furnishings and stained glass.

Main church

The main church is arranged in a cruciform layout. The nave and both transepts are used for congregational seating, and the rear gallery is used as overflow seating when needed. The north transept faces the crossing, while the south transept faces forward (east) toward a second altar, allowing it to function as an attached chapel. The south transept also contains a large stained glass window depicting Jesus as the "Good Shepherd". The Good Shepherd window backs up to the organ chamber, which prevents natural light from illuminating it, so it is lit artificially from behind.

The chancel is divided into three distinct sections. The first is where the pulpit, lectern, and seating for the clergy are found. The pulpit is on the left (north) side of the chancel, and the lectern on the right (south) side. The presider sits on the right side, but to the left of the pulpit, facing the center. The subdeacon and one assisting priest sit behind him on the other side of the pulpit. The acting deacon sits on the opposite (north) side with the preacher behind. All of the clergy sit facing across the chancel.

The next section of the chancel contains the choir stalls. The stalls face the center and have three rows on either side of the chancel which increase in height moving out from the center. They can comfortably seat around 40 people and are outfitted with seated-height music racks.

The third section of the chancel is the proper sanctuary. Its focal point is the carved wood altar with its gold leafing and relief carvings. On the north side of the sanctuary sits the cathedra, along with two benches. In the north wall is the aumbry, which is used for the reservation of the Sacrament. On the opposite wall are three more seats. Dividing the sanctuary from the chancel are wooden altar rails with red embroidered kneelers. Communion is distributed continuously, but kneeling is still expected for those who are able.

Above the chancel on the north side is the organ loft. The large console of the Noack organ faces away from the chancel, requiring the use of either a television monitor or a series of mirrors for the organist to see the conductor below. Directly opposite the loft on the south wall is the organ itself. The Gothic facade speaks directly across the space, and the chamber extends straight back to the same depth as the south transept (obscuring the stained glass). The chamber takes up the entire square space on the southeast corner of the main church.

The nave has a single central aisle with pews on either side. The outside ambulatory aisles are separated from the nave by a row of Gothic pointed arches, so they do not bisect the pews. The last several pews are located beneath the gallery. Also under the gallery is the baptistry, which cuts a square area out of the pew space on the north side of the nave. There is a narthex separating the nave from the west door. Staircases on either side of the narthex lead to the gallery.

Outside and on the south side of the nave is a single cloister which connects the narthex with the hallway leading through the center of the church campus. The participants in the service (clergy, choir, etc.) gather for prayer prior to the celebration of the Eucharist in this space, weather permitting.

Memorial chapel

The memorial chapel was the original worship space on the current church site. Although the traditional services have long since outgrown it, two of the contemporary services are held in it, in addition to wedding, funerals, and the like. The layout is traditional, but not cruciform as it has no transepts. The furnishings are similar to those in the main church, simply on a slightly smaller scale. Also, the altar is not attached to the east wall, so the presider performs the Eucharistic rite standing behind it and facing the congregation. The chancel area is separated from the nave by a large Gothic arch, behind which is a set of curtains which can block off that space when the chapel is being used for functions other than worship, though they are rarely used as such.

The organ is situated on the back wall, with the largest pipes of the pedal division flanking the west door. The swell shades can be seen behind the acoustic fabric panels hung in front of them. The console is on the north side of the gallery, which runs the length of the nave along both sides. The console, as in the main church, faces the wall. A small space for a choir of about 12-16 voices is available around the console.

The baptistry in the chapel is located adjacent to the entrance from the main hallway on the north side of the nave. On the opposite side of the nave and set off by a wood slat wall is a small chapel containing one of the two columbaria of the church (the other being outside), after which the chapel takes its name since it is not named for a particular person.

The chapel also has a narthex which provides access to the upper gallery, as well as to some of the audio-visual equipment that is utilized by the contemporary services held in the chapel. Stained glass can be found surrounding the chapel, the finest of which is in the small columbarium chapel.

Liturgy

The Church of the Incarnation, being a parish of the Episcopal Church, uses the 1979 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) as its standard for worship. Each Sunday the Eucharist is celebrated seven times, in addition to six times during the week. Both of the rites provided in the Book of Common Prayer are used. The traditional services use Rite I while the contemporary services use Rite II. One exception to the use of the 1979 BCP is for Choral Evensong. Earlier versions of the BCP included rites for this service, but the closest thing to be found in the most recent edition is a rite for evening prayer. Therefore, the rite used had to be taken from a different edition. The rite used is found in the 1662 BCP, which remains the primary edition in the Church of England.

Anglo-Catholicism

The Church of the Incarnation is one of the few parishes in the Diocese of Dallas to be considered Anglo-Catholic. This applies primarily to the traditional liturgies only, but impacts the theology and practices of the parish outside of the liturgy also. A few of the identifying practices seen in the parish include the celebration of Choral Evensong (including the use of incense), the hearing of private confessions, the invocation of the Virgin Mary and other saints for the purpose of intercession, a limited Marian devotion, a great deal of pomp in processional practices, and the "high-church" liturgy used in the traditional services.

This high-church style is reflected most obviously in the vestments and other liturgical clothing used by participants in the Mass. The choir and lay servers wear black cassocks and full-length surplices (unlike many parishes which favor the shorter and more modern cotta), the vergers (of which there are nearly always two for Eucharists on Sundays) wear cassocks and blue/gray vergers' gowns, and the assisting clergy vest as the choir with the addition of a stole (or tippet for the priest who is preaching to be exchanged at the start of the Eucharistic liturgy for a stole). The participating clergy wear eucharistic vestments. The three participating clerics wear amices and maniples, the presider wears a chasuble, the deacons a dalmatic, and the subdeacon (an uncommon office outside of Anglo-Catholicism) a tunicle. The rector, by nature of his office as bishop (though he is no longer responsible for a diocese), vests differently from the other clergy. When presiding at the Eucharist, he wears a mitre in addition to the chasuble. At other times, he sometimes wears a scarlet chimere over his rochet. All of the eucharistic vestments were recently replaced by Watts & Co. of London. For Evensong, the presiding priest vests in a cope.

Music

The Church of the Incarnation is well known throughout North Texas as a center for musical excellence. The program is divided into two segments, one traditional and the other contemporary. Together they provide the music for six of the seven worship services held each Sunday throughout the academic year.

Traditional

The traditional component of the church's music program is under the direction of organist/choirmaster Scott Dettra. Dettra assumed the position in August 2012 after serving as organist of Washington National Cathedral. Prior to Dettra's arrival, the position was held by Richard Sparks (interim). He is assisted in this role by the assistant organist, Graham Schultz, and the organ scholar, Henry Webb.

For choral evensong, which is held each Sunday from September through May, the choir takes after the English cathedral and collegiate tradition in following the rite set forth in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. The choirs use one setting of the Preces and Responses throughout the month, many settings of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis are used in rotation, and the remaining music is determined by the propers for the day. The choir has developed their own book of Anglican chant psalms, as pointed by Scott Dettra. In December 2012 the ensemble was heard in a nationwide broadcast of their annual Service of Lessons & Carols; the broadcast was carried by Public Radio International.

Tours and concerts

The choir has made several pilgrimages to the United Kingdom, a practice which began in 1998 with a residency at Chichester Cathedral. During these tours, the choir establishes week long residencies at various churches and cathedrals throughout the country. The first week is spent in a different venue each year. The most recent UK trip, in July 2011, was to St. George's Chapel, Windsor and Canterbury Cathedral. The second week has then usually consisted of a residency at Westminster Abbey. In July 2014 the choir sang services at the National Cathedral in Washington and at Saint Thomas Church and the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City.

Organ

The main worship space of the church which is used for the traditional liturgies has a substantial pipe organ redesigned, enlarged and rebuilt from the original Aeolian-Skinner by the Noack Organ Company in 1994. The organ has four manuals (keyboards) and 65 stops spread over 80 ranks.

Other organs

The chapel contains a two manual Wicks organ.

The church's previous location at McKinney and Harwood contained a two manual, 19 stop organ built in 1910 by the Pilcher Organ Co. of Louisville, Kentucky

Contemporary music

The church's contemporary music program is headed by Justin Brooks and consists of a praise band-style group of instrumentalists. The contemporary "Uptown" services are held simultaneously with their traditional counterparts at 9:00 am, 11:15 am, and 5:30 pm on Sundays and are held in the new Ascension Chapel, part of a substantial building project completed in 2015.

Outreach

The parish is known for its commitment to outreach and community service. A mentorship program with neighboring North Dallas High School has been very successful, and similar programs have begun at other area schools as a response. Also popular among parishioners are the mission trips to Belize and Honduras. In total, the parish has dozens of different outreach ministries, and there are two permanent staff positions exclusive to the department.