JACKSON, Miss  St. Andrew's Episcopal Cathedral, a 100-year-old downtown cornerstone, announced a campaign that would keep it anchored in its central location while responding to the needs of a changing city.
According to The Clarion-Ledger, the church's "Cathedral in the City" plan would expand the church's outreach despite a population decline and neighborhood transformations.
"For 100 years, St. Andrew's Cathedral has lived on the corner of West and Capitol streets," Jeff Good, chairman of the church's stewardship committee, told about 500 parishioners Oct. 5. "The city has changed. The world has changed, but St. Andrew's has not changed."
Several churches have left the downtown area in the past decade, the newspaper reported. Reviving the city is something the church must be involved in if it is to survive, Good said.
"Maybe we've been sitting around too long waiting for others to revitalize Jackson," he said. "Maybe it just takes us to bring about a change."
The plan challenges parishioners to dig deeper into their pockets to help the church develop community programs and maintain its facility.
"The church has always given back to the community, they are just talking about it a little more now," said Dorothy Triplett, a St. Andrew's parishioner who embraced the campaign. "St. Andrew's has always been open and inclusive."
The church is involved in 31 outreach ministries. With support of its membership, it would expand to include a downtown daycare and a home for musical events such as concerts and theater productions, said the Rev. Dean Joe Robinson, pastor at St. Andrews.
"It all depends on how members respond to the challenge that has been set before us," Robinson said. "We're already participating in a number of community ministries, but we want to expand our outreach. We need to have more people in our church involved."
Of the 1,000 families that worship at St. Andrew's, Good said, only 450 make monthly donations. Last year their pledges totaled $1.4 million.
