Welcome to Saint John's Episcopal Church in Hagerstown, Maryland

The Fourth Sunday of Easter

April 26, 2026 — Good Shepherd Sunday

“He calls his own sheep by name.” On this Fourth Sunday of Easter — Good Shepherd Sunday — the readings and the music gather around one quiet, steady image: a shepherd who knows his flock, and a flock that knows his voice. Psalm 23 runs like a current beneath everything we sing and pray. Virgil Thomson’s anthem setting of Isaac Watts’ paraphrase, “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” will carry that current right into the offertory.

It is easy in a noisy world to lose track of which voices we are actually following. Easter makes an unhurried promise: we have a shepherd who has walked through death on our behalf, and who still calls us each by name. This week we are invited to slow down enough to listen — in worship, in silence, in the ordinary moments of our days — and to trust that the voice we hear is the one that leads us home.

Upcoming Events

Easter continues at Saint John’s — worship, music, and fellowship in the weeks ahead.

This Week at Saint John’s

✚ Tuesday Holy Eucharist
Tuesday, April 28 at 5:30 p.m. at the High Altar.

✚ Wednesday Evening Prayer
Wednesday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. in the Choir Stalls. (Thursday Holy Eucharist returns May 7.)

✚ Tuesday Evening Bible Study with Deacon Sue
Tuesdays, 7:00–8:00 p.m. Join in person in St. Mary’s Chapel or online by Zoom (Meeting ID: 827 3456 7853, Passcode: 175639).

✚ Children’s Church & Nursery
Children’s Church meets on the 2nd and 4th Sundays through the end of June, with a summer break in July and August. Nursery care is offered every Sunday at the 10:15 a.m. service.

Music & Community

♫ Hagerstown Choral Arts Spring Concert: “Into Light”
Saturday, May 2 at 3:00 p.m. in the Church, followed by a reception in Trimble Hall at 4:00 p.m. Free admission with a goodwill offering. Presented by Hagerstown Choral Arts, with support from the Washington County Arts Council and the Maryland State Arts Council.

Looking Ahead

✚ Mother’s Day Coffee Hour
Sunday, May 10 in Trimble Hall.

✚ Moral & Ethical Dilemmas
Monday, May 11 in St. Mary’s Chapel.

• South Prospect St. Porchfest
Saturday, May 16 — a neighborhood celebration along our street.

✚ Heavenly Pie Coffee Hour
Sunday, May 17 in Trimble Hall.

♫ Music Series Concert: James Baker, Baritone
Saturday, June 6 — concert followed by a reception.

✚ Annual Parish Picnic
Sunday, June 14 at the Leitersburg Ruritan Picnic Pavilion, Leitersburg, MD.