Episco-what?
This text is taken directly from the Visitor's Center at the Episcopal Church website-for more like this, go to: www.episcopalchurch.org
The
Episcopal Church, having its roots in the Church of England, is also an
Anglican Church. Like all Anglican churches, the Episcopal Church is
distinguished by the following characteristics:
Protestant, Yet Catholic
Anglicanism
stands squarely in the Reformed tradition, yet 
considers itself just as
directly descended from the Early Church as the Roman Catholic or
Eastern Orthodox churches. Episcopalians celebrate the "Mass" in ways
similar to the Roman Catholic tradition, yet do not recognize a single
authority, such as the Pope of Rome.
Worship in one's first language
Episcopalians
believe that Christians should be able to worship God and read the
Bible in their first language, which 
for most Episcopalians, is
English, rather than Latin or Greek, the two earlier, "official"
languages of Christianity. Yet the Book of Common Prayer has been
translated into many languages, so that those Episcopalians who do not
speak English can still worship God in their native tongue.
The Book of Common Prayer
Unique to Anglicanism, though, is the Book of Common 
Prayer,
the collection of worship services that all worshipers in an Anglican
church follow. It's called "common prayer" because we all pray it
together, around the world. The first Book of Common Prayer was
compiled in English by Thomas Cranmer in the 16th Century, and since
then has undergone many revisions for different times and places. But
its original purpose has remained the same: To provide in one place the
core of the instructions and rites for Anglican Christians to worship
together.
The
present prayer book in the Episcopal Church was published in 1979. Many
other worship resources and prayers exist to enrich our worship, but
the Book of Common Prayer is the authority that governs our worship.
The prayer book explains Christianity, describes the main beliefs of
the Church, outlines the requirements for the sacraments, and in
general serves as the main guidelines of the Episcopal life.
and Reason
The
Anglican approach to reading and interpreting the Bible was first
articulated by Richard Hooker, also in the 16th Century. While
Christians universally acknowledge the Bible (or the Holy Scriptures)
as the Word of God and completely sufficient to our reconciliation to
God, what the Bible says must always speak to us in our own time and
place.
The
Church, as a worshiping body of faithful people, has for two thousand
years amassed experience of God and of loving Jesus, and what they have
said to us through the centuries about the Bible is critical to our
understanding it in our own context. The traditions of the Church in
interpreting Scripture connect all generations of believers together
and give us a starting point for our own understanding.
Episcopalians believe that every Christian must build an understanding and relationship with God's Word in the Bible, and to do that, God has given us intelligence and our own experience, which we refer to as "Reason." Based on the text of the Bible itself, and what Christians have taught us about it through the ages, we then must sort out our own understanding of it as it relates to our own lives.