Our Sanctuary

Our sanctuary is arranged as it is, with sections of pews 90 degrees to each other, with a particular reality in mind ; our worship is communal in nature, not focused solely on the activity of the pastor as in a lecture hall but focused on the activity of all God's people gathered for worship.  Also, we believe that worship is not an individual activity but a corporate activity.  We declare that no one can be a Christian all alone. The layout of our worship center focuses on worship as the activity not just of individual persons but of a people.  The cross is the center of our worship, and the windows remind of the glory of God's creation and the call of God to make faith real in the broader world and our everyday lives. 

Banners and Other Art Work

We believe that worship is at its best when it involves the whole person.  We use art work to involve our visual capacities in the act of worship.  Banners, murals, and other art work can be found throughout the church.  Most of our banners were made by women and/or youth of the church.  Wander the classrooms and see the rich tradition of artwork expressing our faith in the Kingdom of Heaven and our joy in the glory of the creation.

A Liturgical Church

We use a certain amount of ritual and symbolism in our worship to help us experience and appreciate God's presence.  For scripture reading each week we generally use the Revised Common Lectionary, a list of scriptures for each Sunday that follows the Church Calendar in a three-year cycle and is used by brothers and sisters in Christ in worship around the world.  The Church Calendar divides the year up into major seasons, including Advent (preparing for God's coming at Christmas), Epiphany (celebrating the recognition that Jesus came for the whole world) Lent (preparing for and moving through the experience of self-denial and sacrifice, leading up to Jesus' crucifixion and subsequent resurrection from the dead), and Pentecost (celebrating God's life in our midst in the presence of the Holy Spirit).  We generally use a liturgy for worship, an established order for worship with certain Congregational responses because we believe worship is not a spectator/performance experience but participatory.  We use drama and visual arts to help us see through to the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Sacraments

With the Protestant churches of the Reformation, we celebrate the sacraments of Baptism (celebrated as opportunity arises) and the Lord's Supper (celebrated according to the Church Year events, more or less semi-monthly).  These sacraments are rituals designed to highlight the experience of God's presence in our lives through ordinary occasions like washing and eating.  But we firmly believe that all of life is sacred and that God’s presence and activity permeate our universe and our lives.

Children In Worship

In order to help children learn to worship and experience the Bible stories “from the inside out,” we offer Children in Worship for children in the ages of 3 through 10.  This program uses the Biblical stories of the Lectionary, the Church Calendar and liturgical experience very much like our adult worship experience but includes the use of story figures and responses that seek to make the Bible and the worship experience meaningful to youth.  Developed by a seminary classmate of Mr. Rogers, this program is very interactive and uses a Montessori-like approach to learning, which attempts to use wondering and other interactive techniques to get children to "live in the stories."