What is the Essence of Christian Education?
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Help chart the path of
the congregation as they continue on their faith journey
through life.
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Instill a love of Christ
through education from preschool through adulthood.
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Develop a sense of commitment
within the congregation to nourish our youth and offer
them a special place in our church family.
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Foster an intergenerational
spirit of community through food for the mind.
With your ongoing support, the Christian Education Committee
continues to be engaged in the following:
The Nursery School provides classes
for fifty-five children ranging in age from 2-1/2 to 5. These
children come from our church as well as from other faiths
and communities. Scholarships are provided with the help of
the Outreach Committee, Presbyterian Women and the school
itself. Christian concepts are introduced through prayers
and songs, and in the celebration of holidays. In. conjunction
with the church's Long Range Planning, a questionnaire was
sent to the parents and teachers to enlist their help in planning
for the future of the nursery school.
Ministries to Children are built around
the Sunday church school where loving environments awaken,
stimulate and nurture the faith of the youngest members of
our community. Special experiences of worship and learning
are offered around Advent, Epiphany, Lent, Easter and Pentecost
that engage our children and their families in the wonder
of loving and being loved by God. Through participation in
the ministries of stewardship our church school children experience
the joy of giving in Christ's name. Parents of all children,
from the recently baptized through teenagers, are supported
with classes to strengthen the formation of Christian homes.
(To register your child, please contact Beth Fenske.)
Koinonia (our senior high program)
offers weekly fellowship and Bible study to teens in our church.
In addition, the participating teens are given opportunities
for mission and stewardship to which they respond in a most
generous way. They work monthly at the Inter Faith Food Pantry,
sorting, counting and cataloging food, and helping with mailings.
They have worked in groups in New York City at soup kitchens
sponsored by the Youth Service Opportunities Program and in
July they traveled to Atlantic City on their work project
as part of the Atlantic City Mission Company. Their spirit
of cooperation and dedication serves as a model for us all.
Adult Education offers a multitude
of learning opportunities. In the past, the congregation
has been invited to develop the spiritual practice of a regular
Bible reading through participation in the Bible Book of the
Month. Lately,l we witnessed the beginning of a PW Book Group.
The 9:15 a.m. Sunday morning Seminar offers a continuous flow
of speakers, films, and discussions on timely and provocative
topics. The 11:00 a.m. Sunday Bible on the Green class combines
Bible study and spiritual practice for both the new and seasoned
Christian. Over the next few months we will offer a mid morning
course on "Coping as Christians, " a class for parents of
pre-schoolers on "Developing Spiritual Resources for Crises,"
an Advent Kerygma course on Sundays, and a Thursday evening
Kerygma study of the Gospel of Luke that will begin in December
and end just before Holy Week in March. Plans for courses
on Islam and on Palestinian-Israeli conflicts also are being
made. We hope you will avail yourselves of these riches.
The Church Library offers the congregation
a computerized list of all library and Christian education
resource materials (books, videos, tapes, etc.) as a result
of the Herculean efforts of a few very dedicated individuals.
This will greatly facilitate the availability of this wealth
of information for use by any church member. In addition,
the library is getting a face-lift to make the actual room
a brighter and more inviting place.
The opportunities in Christian Education appear
limitless; they can continue to be so with generous support
of time and talent from the congregation.
