(215) 855-5489 | Worship every Sunday @ 8 a.m. & 10:15 a.m.
(215) 855-5489 | Worship every Sunday @ 8 a.m. & 10:15 a.m.
The LOFT is our adult faith formation space.
Sundays at 9:00 AM
Coffee and tea are provided!
Activity Room (Downstairs)
What does it mean to be a person of faith in this time? Where do we go with our questions, our doubts, our hunches, our wisdom, and our longings? How can we try on new ideas and new practices to grow our Christian faith and deepen our capacity to live in a moment such as this? What traditions can we lean on to become more grounded and resilient and faithful? Are there places where we can receive support while supporting others?
Living Our Faith Together (aka The LOFT) is a new space to live into the questions and deepen our spiritual practices. It builds on the St. John’s tradition of Adult Sunday School and Adult Bible Study, and offers opportunities for adult faith formation and occasional intergenerational engagement.
This month we are looking at some of the traditional Lenten texts as we accompany Jesus from the wilderness to Holy Week. Bring a Bible if you like, or we will have some available. Perhaps we will see you there.
March 8
Matthew 4:1-11 (Wilderness)
March 15
Matthew 17:1-9 (Transfiguration)
March 22
John 4:5-42 (Woman at the Well)
March 29
Mark 11:1-11 (Palm Sunday – Entry into Jerusalem)
In January and February, the LOFT will focus on some of the history of St. John’s UCC (roots) and the ways in which the vision of our forebears is being lived out in our time (branches). Come and share your own stories, learn about those who have gone before us, and imagine together how God might still be speaking at St. John’s.
January 4
What Is the United Church of Christ: Why Does It Matter to Us?
January 11
Celebrating Pastor Tom: His Ministry, His Gifts, and His Service (aka “Ask Pastor Tom Anything!”). This is Pastor Tom’s last Sunday with us.
January 18
How the Light Gets In: Exploring Our 100 Year Old Sunday School Windows
January 25
NO LOFT
February 1
This Great Cloud of Witnesses: St. John’s Founders
February 8
Generations at St. John’s: The Ahrens Family
As we celebrate Advent, the LOFT has Intergenerational events.
NOVEMBER 23
Fear-Holding Ornaments – Intergenerational for all ages
The angel Gabriel’s greeting to Mary— “Be not afraid!— is easier said than done. Thankfully, God meets us in our fear, exactly where we are, and bears the burden with us. In this session we’ll think about those things that seem too big, too scary, or too impossible in our lives. Each of us will create an ornament to remind us that God is with us when we are afraid.
NOVEMBER 30
Luminarias – Intergenerational for all ages
Luminarias (“paper bag lanterns”) originated in 16th century Spain as small bonfires (“luminarias”) used to light the way for people traveling to midnight mass. The tradition was later adopted in Mexico and later New Mexico. Symbolically the lights were believed to guide the spirit of the Christ Child to peoples’ homes. Who bears the Christ-light for you, not only during the season of Advent, but all year long? Because we often see God most clearly in the divine light others carry, we will decorate our luminarias with the names and faces of people who bear the Christ-light for us.(Feel free to bring printed or photographed pictures of people – church members past and present, historical figures, faith leaders, family members, friends – to glue to your luminarias. Or decorate as the Spirit moves you! Pictures will be available as well as all supplies.)
DECEMBER 7
Placing Ourselves in the Manger Scene – Intergenerational for all ages
We will use clay to imagine placing ourselves at the scene of Jesus’ birth. What posture would we take? What gifts would we bring? What does it mean to witness to the birth of Jesus, Emmanuel (God-with-us)? Come and play with clay and enter the story. DECEMBER 14- Christmas Show and Tell At this time of year, our thoughts often turn to past Christmas seasons. Memories of happy times spent with friends and loved ones can brighten our spirits and enhance the joy of celebrating Jesus’ birth. Bring your photos and special mementoes to share as we “Show and Tell” our Christmas memories.
DECEMBER 21
Re-Membering Christmas – Singing Our Way Through
It’s so easy to get caught up in the consumerism and competition of Christmas – who can buy the best gifts, who makes the biggest spread. In addition, Christmas can be a time of relational strain – isolation or family division. In our short time, we will share favorite Christmas carols and look at the history of some of the beloved favorites.
NO LOFT on December 28.
Matthew 11: 28-30
Welcome to a journey of hope, hardship and the heart’s resilient capacity to get through it all with love. This class offers an in-depth look at the many complex issues that being a caregiver brings. The class will develop provides tips, strategies and offer a biblical rationale for creating a sustainable path for those caring for family members or others needing help with daily living.
We will review the needs of those (especially) older adults who require care because of a serious health condition or disability. Because one third of Americans will have a disability at some point over the span of their life, the class also applies to other situations in which caregiving is needed.
The class will meet at 9:00-9:45 each Sunday in the Fireside Room beginning on October 12 and ending on November 2. At the end of the course, we will share available caregiving resources and the accumulated information developed throughout the course regarding self-support.
Class 1: Caregiving responsibilities and needs, faith perspectives, and unanticipated opportunities to delve deeper into a practice of prayer to assist each caregiver manage their own needs. Special circumstance, caregiving for a family member with a mental health challenge.
Class 2: A review of the need for self-care and ways to develop support for the caregiver. Common areas of stress for the caregiver and costs associated with assuming the role of caregiver. What works? – Sharing ways with each other how to take care of yourself.
Class 3: A review of the need for self-care. Special circumstances: Caregiving for persons with dementia; caring for a spouse.
Class 4: A review of the need for self-care. Special circumstances: Caregiving for a parent; caregiving for a grown child with a disability.
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