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| Sunday Schedule:
8:15 am Contemporary Worship Service
9:20 am Education for all Ages
10:30 am Traditional Worship Service
Summer Worship:
(Memorial Day thru Labor Day)
9:30 am Worship Service
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Messages Guiding Our Worship
This summer you may have noticed the colorful banners hanging in the sanctuary. They are the "Six Great Ends of the Church" banners. They depict the mission statements that guide the United Presbyterian Church in North America. Thank you to Sarah Rand for creating the banners and to Karen Lindholm-Rynkiewicz for displaying them in the sanctuary for us to enjoy this summer. Below is some additional information about the banners. This information is also posted on the display boards in the Gathering Space.
In 1910, the United Presbyterian Church in North America (UPNA) formally adopted a set of missional statements that was intended to define its life and work. Called the “Six Great Ends of the Church,” these brief phrases attempted to draw together elements of belief and practice that could be traced through our confessional history to the very teachings of Jesus himself as they are recorded in the Gospels.
Nine decades and two denominational mergers later, these statements remain in the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and they appear in the opening pages of the Book of Order:
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The great ends of the church are the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of mankind; the shelter, nurture, and spiritual fellowship of the children of God; the maintenance of divine worship; the preservation of the truth; the promotion of social righteousness; and the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world.
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Book of Order (G-1.0200)
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BANNER 1
"The proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humankind”
The book represents the Scriptures. The dove is rising from the Scriptures indicating the source of both the original witness and our present understanding. The same Spirit that inspired the original writers enables us to receive the gospel. The cross behind the book and dove reminds us that the heart of the gospel is Jesus Christ, God with us and for us.
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BANNER 2
”The shelter, nurture, and spiritual fellowship of the children of God”
Multi-hued hands represent all the children of God. The dove’s wings are tipped downward, sheltering the people of God. The triangle of light links the dove to the people.
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BANNER 3
”The maintenance of divine worship”
The chalice, a reminder of the Trinity, represents the Lord’s Supper, and the three drops of water, Baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The dove reminds us that the same Spirit is present in the Sacraments as in the proclamation of the gospel. The Sacraments enact the gospel. The raised arms signify our response of praise and thanksgiving: our worship of the living God.
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BANNER 4
”The preservation of the truth”
The banner represents the light of truth shining in the darkness. The dove reminds us that the truth we proclaim to the world is the gospel of Jesus Christ, God with us and for us. “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).
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BANNER 5
”The promotion of social righteousness”
The banner represents Amos 5:24: “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream.”
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BANNER 6
”And the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world”
The dove is in flight over the globe, carrying an olive branch, echoing Gen. 6:11: “And lo, in her mouth a freshly plucked olive leaf; so Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.” This represents the eighth day of creation, God’s grace coming into the world, the reign of God proclaimed by Jesus Christ. The light rising behind the earth represents the dawning of God’s kingdom.
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