Our Story

From the beginning, St. Michael’s Episcopal Church has been known as a community of seekers, diverse in approach and united in faith.

In the early ‘50s, Westlake Hills was a sparsely populated southwestern suburb of Austin and had only one church. A group of residents, drawn from a variety of religious backgrounds, including Episcopalian, decided to plant another. The members initially worshipped in the chapel at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School. In 1955, the 106th Diocesan Council recognized St. Michael’s as an Episcopal mission.

The community attracted members from the University of Texas, business and professional firms, and a diversity of residents from adjacent neighborhoods. St. Michael’s grew as the population of West Austin expanded into the rolling hills. In 1962, the congregation moved into its first church facilities on Bee Cave Road and continued to flourish.

In the summer of 2003, a desire to better serve the spiritual needs of parishioners and position the church for future growth inspired St. Michael’s to plant new roots on property owned by the Diocese of Texas, adjacent to its birthplace, St. Stephen’s. Our campus highlights the beauty of the Hill Country; a nature trail and Stations of the Cross are available for all to use.

St. Michael’s is blessed by our Episcopal heritage, dedicated leaders, beautiful surroundings, and an educated and talented membership who question, worship, pray, and believe. We find strength and faith in weekly worship, inspiration-filled and thought-provoking sermons, daily prayer, and shared life stories. With those resources, we continue to discover Christ’s love for each of us and share that love with the larger community.