1950 Vacation Bible
School

Into the 40s and 50s
From that time, and for decades, the church grew. By 1944, St. Mark’s was the sixth largest parish in the diocese. The church benefited from the post-war building boom, as the communities around the church grew and expanded. This expansion offered St. Mark’s opportunities for increase of membership and allowed our church to play a prominent role in life of the larger community. In the 1950’s St. Mark’s sponsored two radio programs, and was becoming known for its commitment to excellent Christian education. In 1959, St. Mark’s established a Day School for pre-schoolers.

The 60s and 70s: “The times they are a-changin'”
Characteristic of the church in the post-war period was, as from the beginning, the strength, hard work and devotion of the parishioners. By 1960, the Rector could report to the annual meeting that St. Mark’s was “growing by leaps and bounds … It is a large and influential parish in a settled and established area of Houston.” Moreover, the church was recognized as an “innovative parish” pioneering in (again) education, and in responding to the larger context of Liturgical and Theological Movements. By the mid sixties St. Mark’s found itself called to respond to the social issue of that decade, participating in ecumenical projects, and contributing hours of volunteer work to inner city child-care centers.

Although the 1960’s had seen leadership and creativity at the church, that same decade revealed a slow diminution in numbers. By the early 1970’s, the changes in the larger society, and in the flight of young families to the suburbs meant a marked decrease in membership and support. Within the Episcopal Church itself, controversies over adoption of a new Prayer Book, the ordination of women, and questions about human sexuality caused conflict in many parishes. St. Mark’s continued its tradition of progressive moderation, hosting a planning strategy meeting for The National Coalition for Women’s Ordination to the Priesthood and the Episcopacy in 1975. St. Mark’s also provided space for a drug abuse program and for the Houston Rape Crisis Coalition. A Senior Warden of that period noted that, while the church was smaller than in its expanding years, “we are drawn together in an arm of Christ that is free of division or friction than in any other time …” The process of assimilating the New Prayer Book began and in the late 1970’s the first female lay reader and the first girl acolyte were accepted.

St. Mark's today
During the 1980’s young families began to return to the communities around the church, and while St. Mark’s never returned to its previous numbers or influence, and while changes in life-style meant fewer volunteers, St. Mark’s continued to produce energetic and thoughtful leaders. St. Mark’s School grew, leaders undertook building projects (culminating in the building of the new school and the refurbishing of the church in 2003-04). At the fiftieth anniversary clergy and laity were invited to reflect on the character of St. Mark’s. In a sense that profile developed nearly 30 years ago holds true. We are diverse, some very liberal, some very conservative, but at the core open and flexible. Because of this welcoming diversity St. Mark’s has weathered past controversies and continues in the words of a former senior warden, “a loving and supporting parish.”