Current Building
Moving the parish church to its present location in Milford was the inspiration and work of two men, the Rev. Sydenham Thorne, first resident rector, and Mr. Joseph Oliver, vestryman and businessman of Milford.
Construction on the present church building began in 1791 on land donated by Mr. Joseph Oliver. The style was that of a typical country church; a plain rectangular building having galleries on three sides and a double row of clear glass windows. The church was renovated in 1833 including a new roof and the first painting of the galleries and pews. The pulpit was adorned with hangings and upholstery of crimson silk “in the most approved style.”
In 1836 the building was consecrated by Bishop U. U. Onderdonk as a House of Worship of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America.
Between 1865 and 1866, the building was changed to its present Gothic style with the addition of new windows, the bell tower and chancel and the removal of the galleries.
About Us
Christ Church, Milford was founded in 1704 by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. It was the second parish in the state established by that society, the first being Christ Church, Dover. At that time, the parish was known as Christ Church, Mispillion and was a part of the Kent County mission. Since there was no town of Milford in those early years, it is not surprising to learn that the mission church was built about three miles west of what would become Milford at a place now named “Church Hill Village” which was in the general area of Cullentown, a trading center on the Mispillion river which existed before the founding of Milford.
Episcopalians Are People Of Faith
The Episcopal Church is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. the Holy Scriptures are the revealed word of God, which inspired the human authors of the Scripture, and which is interpreted by the Church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
We Episcopalians are people of faith. In our lives, individually and in community,
we have evidence for important and hopeful possibilities. Because we are always
seeking ways to better describe the evidence AND the possibilities to which the
evidence points, we are believers.
We Episcopalians are part of a world-wide community of believers. We call
ourselves Christians, because so much of what we believe is based on the evidence
and the hope that we find in Jesus. We are also part of the whole of humanity,
working out our spiritual wellbeing “with fear and trembling.” In a wonderful way
all humanity seeks to live with hope in what sometimes seems a hopeless world.
When you enter an Episcopal Church you are likely to find all sorts of evidence of
our believing – prayer books, bibles, crosses, stained glass likenesses of people and
events, song books, kneeling rails, and on and on. All of these are evidence of what
we believe. But, why do we believe?
Why we believe requires that we look deeper at the evidence for wanting to
believe. Why we believe is to be found in you and in each of us.
The Answer To Why We Believe Is Within You
Why we believe is both very simple, and very basic. Of course each of us
expresses this in different ways. Here are a few answers. Perhaps some of these resonate with you and why you do, or want to, believe.
Why do we believe? Because we want to give thanks.
Gratitude, being thankful, is as simple as rising to a beautiful morning or going to
bed satisfied with the work of the day. And, we have some interior desire to
express that thankfulness and we have the strong feeling that something so good is
not an accident, but the product of creation, of something given to us by a creator,
to whom we can offer thanks. We take the evidence of the goodness of something
in creation as a sign.
Why do we believe? Because we feel called to be loving and kind, creative and
caring.
We live hoping that loving kindness is possible, but more importantly we believe
we are meant to be loving and kind. We believe because we have a sense that we
are called to live fully. If you have ever felt called or pushed to be a person of
greater loving kindness, or a person of greater creativity or caring, you have a
sense of why many of us believe. We believe because we sense that the creator has
called us to join in re-creating the good and beautiful.
Why do we believe? Because we feel that there is a story about the whole of
creation that has meaning.
We know our story, which we individually are born, live and die. There are as
many personal narratives as there are people. Yet we have hints of another
narrative, one in which we are part of an eternal activity, the unfolding of some
purpose that is known fully only to the Creator. We believe because we see hints of
that great purpose. Often we see this when we “get ourselves out of the way” and
see beyond ourselves to the whole. And, we see hints of this larger narrative when
we are thankful, or when we feel called.
Within You Is The Country Of Believing
Please know that in the Episcopal Church there are many reasons for believing,
and these are paths that lead us, as a faithful people, to express our Thanksgiving,
our search for loving kindness and our sense of eternal purpose in the particular
ways we do.
Why you believe is because you live in a world, a “country” where the evidence
for things unseen has guided you to want to tell the story of gratefulness, loving
kindness and eternal purpose. The country of believing is open and free. You
don’t need a passport to enter, and everyone is a citizen here.
We hope that in your search to express what you believe you will find The Episcopal Church to be a home away from home. For you are already in the country to which you are headed. Being here, you already live by faith. Hopefully, the Episcopal Church will be an instrument for your thankfulness, your loving kindness, and your reach for eternity. If so, we are blessed. And know, in all that pertains to belief and faith, you are already blessed
Meet Our Staff
Rector ; The Rev. Harry Hiltner
Fr. Harry began serving Christ Church as the priest-in-charge on December 1, 2024.He was installed as the Rector on November 13,2025. Harry has had a career with Hospice for the past 20 years as a Chaplain and as an hospice agency director. Prior to Hospice, he served as a Chaplain at Ancora State Psychiatric Hospital and as a prison Chaplain in New Jersey. Harry had his own business before entering Ministry doing architectural wood work for 25 years.
He received his Master’s Degree from Gettysburg Seminary and his post Graduate work in Spiritual Direction was at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. He has several clinical certifications from the University of Pennsylvania including one for a Clinical Pastoral Education unit at Ft. Dix New Jersey working with returning Veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq. He obtained a duel certification in Hospice and Palliative Care from California State University in San Marcos California. He is a Suicide Bereavement Clinician through the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Harry is a Veteran having served six years on active duty and grew up on a farm. Harry is married with two children and the world’s most perfect granddaughter.
Please contact Fr. Harry at (302) 604-3011 or harryhiltner@aol,com
Parish Administrator : Lori Stewart
Lori has been with the Parish Office since 2018, and loves being a working part of Christ Church. She has an extensive background in corporate administrative and paralegal services, an Associate’s Degree in Fine Arts, and an Associate’s Degree in Paralegal Studies.
Lori relocated to Delaware from Pennsylvania a few years ago with her husband and their two dogs for a lifestyle close to the beach, and enjoys exploring Delaware to learn its history, as well as for new places to eat and shop.
Vestry
The vestry of Christ Church Milford consists of parishioners elected at the annual parish meeting in January to serve for a two year term. This group of lay leaders meets on a monthly basis, and works with the rector and staff to set the direction and vision for the church.
Vestry 2026
The Reverend Harry Hiltner, Chairman
Stephen Walter, Senior Warden
Jimmy Reed, Junior Warden
Doreen Raub, Clerk of the Vestry
Mitch Edmondson
Lachecha Sheppard
Laua Petranto
Richard Brown
Micki Mann
Steve Mann
Libby Foxwell
Andrea Lake