Sundays at 8:00 and 10:15 a.m.

  550 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa, CA 95401  ·   (707) 579-2604  ·  

Church of the Incarnation
  • Welcome
  • About Us
    • Visit Incarnation
    • What We Believe
    • Clergy and Staff
    • Vestry
    • Our History and Building
    • Imagine Incarnation
    • St. Andrew's Mission, Monte Rio
    • Calendar
  • Worship
    • Worship Services
    • Livestreamed Services
    • Sacraments and Celebrations
    • Music
    • Sermons
  • Grow
    • Children
    • Youth
    • Adults
    • Numina
  • Serve
    • Ways to Serve
    • Pastoral Care Coordinator Search
    • Sunday Open Table Breakfast
    • Incarnation 100
    • Heavenly Treasures Gift & Thrift Shop
    • More Outreach Ministries
  • Connect
    • News & Notes
    • Becoming a Member
    • Member Login
    • Calendar
    • Contact Us
  • Give
    • Donate Online
    • 2023 Pledge Drive

Our History and Building

In 1868, a fledgling Episcopal mission was first organized in Santa Rosa. Occasional services had been held here as early as 1860 or 1861.

Our building was begun in 1872 and completed in 1873. It's said that the church was built from the wood of two redwood trees. It is the oldest church structure in continuous use in Santa Rosa. The Church was declared debt free in 1876 and consecrated in November 1877. The cost for church, furniture and equipment was $3,000.00!

In 1885, a larger church was needed, so the building was quartered and drawn apart to essentially its current size.

Incarnation was officially incorporated as a parish of the Episcopal Church in 1895.

In the earthquake of 1906, the sidewalls bulged out about eight inches off the foundation, but otherwise the church was undamaged. It and the nearby rectory served as a hospital and morgue for the devastated city of Santa Rosa.

From 1943 until 1953, ten Sisters of the Transfiguration, an Episcopal order of nuns, were devoted workers in the parish. They served as Sunday School teachers, ran an excellent nursery day school and even filled in as organists at times.

Much of the carving in the church, including the altar, choir stalls, reredos and litany desk, was the work of two women of the parish, Augusta C. Collett and Anna Finlaw.

The Stations of the Cross on the side walls of the church were carved by Elwin Millerick, a Santa Rosa carver. During the Desert Storm War in 1990, when the church was kept open for prayer, the soldier in the first station disappeared. Mr. Millerick carved a replacement within a week. Each station was donated by an individual or family as a memorial gift.

You can learn more about the church building, as well as the rest of our campus, by watching our online campus tour videos.

We are currently in a process to develop a vision for the future of our buildings and grounds. Read more about our Imagine Incarnation process.

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550 Mendocino Ave · Santa Rosa, CA 95401
(707) 579-2604
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Service Times

Our Sunday services are at 8:00 and 10:15 a.m.

Join us in person or online!

Location

Church of the Incarnation
550 Mendocino Ave
Santa Rosa, CA 95401

Contact Us
(707) 579-2604

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Welcome Getting Here Children The Service What's Next?

People decide to visit a church for lots of different reasons, often because they're at some sort of transition point in their lives. Maybe you're a longtime Episcopalian; maybe you have experience in another faith tradition; or maybe you've never been to a faith community at all.

Whoever you are, and wherever you are on your spiritual journey, you enrich us with your presence, and there's a place for you here.

Learn more about visiting Incarnation.

Incarnation is located at 550 Mendocino Avenue in downtown Santa Rosa, just south of the corner with Cherry Street.

Our church parking lot is located around the corner at 636 Cherry Street. The lot often fills up for our Sunday morning services. Additional free church parking is available in the small gravel lot at the corner of Mendocino and Cherry, or in the city garage at 521 7th Street (free on Sundays), which is a two-minute walk from the church. Finally, street parking is also free on Sundays.

We're also located close to several bus lines, and we have a bike rack in the central courtyard.

Children aren't just the church's future—they're an essential part of our faith community right now. At Incarnation we strive to serve our kids' growing faith, and we know they have much to teach adults, too. Children are always welcome in worship: any age, any time.

Learn more about our children's ministries.

Episcopal worship follows an ancient pattern that dates to the earliest days of the Christian church. The first half of the Eucharist is the Liturgy of the Word the second half is the Liturgy of the Table, also called Holy Communion. If you've spent time in Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, or Eastern Orthodox churches, much of our liturgy will seem familiar. If you're unfamiliar with liturgical Christian worship, don't worry. You're welcome to participate as fully as is right for you, or to just relax into the liturgy and let the rest of the congregation carry you in worship.

Click here for online worship, or to learn more about Episcopal worship.

To stay connected with everything that's going on, please subscribe to our e-newsletter, News and Notes.

Often someone who's been visiting for a while will ask us how to become a member of Incarnation. Learn more about becoming a member.

To support our work sharing God's love here in Sonoma County, you can make a donation online.

Giving is one of the most powerful spiritual practices in existence. It's a statement of gratitude and trust in God.

At Incarnation we encourage all our members and friends to prayerfully choose a percentage of their income to give toward causes that serve God's mission. We ask that part of that intentional giving be a pledge of financial support to the parish, both so our leadership can plan ahead in making a budget, and as a tangible commitment to what God is doing here at Incarnation. For more on the practice of proportional giving, see this FAQ.

You can make a donation to Incarnation online, toward your pledge or as a special offering, by clicking below.

Give Online