Welcome to St. Luke’s, where worship is grounded in the spirit of Methodism’s founder, John Wesley, who embraced both traditional worship forms and sensitivity to the many surprising ways God is speaking to us. We look forward to worship as a sacred time of giving thanks for the continual creative power of God, resting in the abiding care of the Spirit, and discerning the voice of Christ. We hope to leave worship renewed and rejoicing. We invite visitors and guests to come and explore this community at worship, at work caring for God’s world, and in fellowship together as we seek to create a community of faith in the city.
There is a visitor card in the pew rack; if you’d like a call this week, please fill out the card and give it to the pastor or place it in the collection plate.
Welcome, children! Our nursery is located upstairs. Just follow the signs. Mrs. Fatu Colley is in charge of the nursery. The nursery is available from 10:45 until 12:15. Parents can take their infants, toddlers, and younger preschoolers to the nursery at any time during the service.
Children ages 4 and up usually go to Sunday School after the children’s story, and meet their parents or adult relatives after Sunday School in the Wesley Room for refreshments. Cherise Williams and Heather Thomas are our Sunday School teachers.
Holy Communion in the United Methodist tradition is open to all who desire to receive the bread and cup. Children are welcome to participate in Holy Communion. For more information, please take the brochure, United Methodists and Communion, on the information table in the Wesley Room.
After church today all are invited to stay for refreshments and an Easter egg hunt in the church garden.
Second Spring Concert April 18th Heather Lauffer, pianist, will perform Mozart and Liszt at the second of our Spring Concert Series, at 2:00 pm on April 18th. The concert will last about half an hour, and refreshments will be served afterwards in the narthex. The Spring Concert Series is free and a part of St. Luke’s community outreach, so be sure to bring a friend. You can also download the Spring Concert Series flyer at www.saintlukesmethodist.org to share with others.
Shelter Dinner Opportunity April 18th. A group of church members and friends provides dinner for the Shelter residents on the third Sunday of every month. If you’d like to be a part of this enjoyable and rewarding experience, contact Nikki Parker or Cory Scott at nicoleparker555@hotmail.com and scott@urbanretail.com.
Children’s Choir – meets after coffee hour each week for 20 minutes or so. For more information talk to Deke Polifka, Music Director.
About St. Luke’s Choir. The St. Luke’s choir rehearses every Sunday morning at 9:30 am. The St. Luke’s choir seeks to strengthen our worship by encouraging congregational singing, by honoring the varieties of the congregation’s faith heritages and traditions, and by embracing new ways of discovering God’s presence in our lives, through worship that is vibrant and alive. You don’t have to be able to read music to be a part of St. Luke’s choir. We keep it simple. For more information, contact deke@saintlukesmethodist.org or 202-333-4949.
The Tuesday evening study group is sharing various readings that have meaning for our individual journeys. The readings are available on Sunday before Tuesday (in the Wesley Room) or by fax. If you don’t pick up the reading today, contact the church office to get it by fax. We meet 7:30-8:30 in Anne’s office (rear office entrance).
St. Luke’s Shelter is a ministry of St. Luke’s church. The Shelter, which is located in the church, provides a small group of homeless men with a secure residence for up to six months. The Community Council for the Homeless at Friendship Place refers residents to the Shelter. The Shelter operates every night of the year. The dinner meal is provided 365 nights of the year by neighbors, members of nearby churches and synagogues, and several Wisconsin Avenue restaurants and grocers.
St. Luke’s Shelter Next Step Kitchen is a new program of St. Luke’s Shelter and St. Luke’s Church. Next Step Kitchen will provide job training in restaurant skills for 6-8 homeless men and women in a 12 week course, with the course to be offered 4 times yearly. The program will be located downstairs in the St. Luke’s kitchen. For more information, go to www.saintlukesmethodist.org, or Susan Keenan, Executive Director, susan@nextstepkitchen.org.
Grate Patrol. Once a month we make and deliver 150 bag suppers to homeless women and men living on the streets in downtown DC. St. Luke’s is one of some thirty congregations and groups taking a turn each month through the Salvation Army Grate Patrol program. To help make the meals, just show up at coffee hour. To help deliver the meals, sign up in the Wesley Room. For more information, contact Julie James, juliejamesemail@yahoo.com.
Exploring DC’s Restaurants Group April 23rd. This is a chance to get to know other St. Luke’s folks and try out DC restaurants at the same time. We’ll be meeting on Friday, April 23rd, at 7:00 pm. For more information, contact Carmen Rottenberg, cmrottenberg@hotmail.com or 202-361-5136.
Yoga classes. A practice of breath and posture that helps integrate body and soul. Beth Sworobuk leads yoga Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the sanctuary balcony, 9:30-11:00 am. Classes are half-price for church members and friends. Contact bethsworobuk@aol.com for more information.
Prescription Drug Benefit Seminar April 25th
We will offer an educational seminar on the new Medicare prescription drug plan after church on April 25th. If you are enrolled in Medicare or if you have a relative or friend who is enrolled, or if you just want to understand the options better, this will be a great opportunity to learn more about the different prescription drug plans that will be offered to beneficiaries and when they can expect to take advantage of this new program. The seminar is open to the community, so please bring your friends. It will be held in the chapel beginning at about 12:15, and last about an hour. Thanks to Kelly Vogel for leading this seminar.
May Sunday School Class on Methodism. An opportunity to get acquainted with our roots as United Methodists! Christine Day will lead an adult Sunday School class during the four Sundays in May on the roots and history of The United Methodist Church. We will explore the Church’s place in history, how Methodism was shaped by America and how it shaped America. We will also read some of John Wesley’s sermons to develop an understanding of our faith and theology. Christine is a graduate of Drew Theological Seminary, currently serving as a chaplain at Georgetown University Hospital, and in the ordination process in the New York Conference of The United Methodist Church.
Class will be held from 9:45-10:45 on the Sundays in May. For more information contact Christine at cnd5@georgetown.edu
Renovation Update. The renovation committee is working with Kendall Dorman, our architect, and John Bellingham of Monarc Construction, as we move toward the construction design phase. The renovation committee is looking at the best way to use the lower level space so that both the Next Step Kitchen and the Shelter are well accommodated; and how best to accomplish handicap accessibility and safe and accessible entrance into the main level and sanctuary.
The renovation will seek to address the challenge of how the building can best meet the current and future needs of the congregation and its ministry. Well-designed and safe space for children’s Sunday School and nursery, more effective office space for our larger staff, meeting/classrooms for increasing ministry, a more accessible and inviting space for coffee hour after church, an additional (handicap accessible) toilet on the main level, and better accessibility to the garden are among the highlights of the plan. Additionally, the building’s mechanical systems will be updated and the roof either repaired or replaced, depending on need.
Everybody’s comments, thoughts and suggestions are needed to make this process as good as it can be! There are two ways to share your thoughts: the designs are posted on the wall in the Wesley Room, and there is a place for everyone to write ideas or questions, etc. next to the designs. Or you can also share your thoughts with a member of the renovation committee. Members of the renovation committee are: Sandi Stroud, June Kress, Karen Cox, Dennis Soiberman, Bob Kolasky, and Penny Andrews, as well as three ex officio members: Susan Keenan, Shalom Mulkey, and Deke Polifka.
Native American Ministries Sunday April 25th
The third of the United Methodist Special Offering Sundays is Native American Ministries Sunday, which funds urban ministries, scholarships, and work with Native Americans within our own Annual Conference. For more information see www.UMCGiving.org.
Our worship on April 25th day will also reflect a particular focus on the expression of faith through story, prayer and music drawn from Native American traditions. Many thanks to Molly McCracken, who is Community Services Outreach Assistant at The Museum of the American Indian.
First Ever! St. Luke’s Music Camp July 12-16. Camp this year will be a wonderful experience involving singing, drama, arts and crafts, storytelling, snacks and games for children completing kindergarten through sixth grade. Camp will be held from 9:00 to noon Monday through Friday, with the children presenting their musical on Friday afternoon at 1:00 pm. For family and friends. This year’s musical is “By The Sea: Stories from the Life of Jesus.” Brochures and registration forms are available during refreshment time today, or contact Deke Polifka, Director of Music Ministry at deke@saintlukesmethodist.org.
Volunteers in Mission Cuba Trip Update. Our trip to Cuba will be August 14th-29th. We will be working at the oldest Methodist church in Cuba, in Mantanza, on the northern coast, and living at the Methodist seminary there. Our trip leader will be Greg Forrester, VIM Coordinator for the Northeast Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church, who has led several VIM trips to Cuba in the past. There are still spaces for 3-4 people (our limit is 12).
Upcoming fundraising events for the trip include a car wash on May 8th, a community garage/yard sale on May 22nd, and a benefit concert and silent auction on June 19th. Monies raised will go with the group as a gift to the host church in Cuba. We also have a list of items we want to carry in and leave with the church. For further information, contact Sylvia Zulu at sylzulu@yahoo.com
Wednesday evening prayer. A time for sharing, reflection and prayer. In the Chapel, 7:30-7:45 pm.
St. Luke’s web site is always current! Check it out at www.saintlukesmethodist.org. Thanks to Derek Willis for making this happen.
New Church Directories are available in the Wesley Room. Please take one with you.
Put yourself on the map. We now have a map on the wall in the Wesley Room so that we can see where everyone is from and also the places we all keep in our hearts. Please add your places during coffee hour today.
Sermon copies for the hard of hearing can be picked up every Sunday in the narthex. Each week’s sermon is also available on the web.
Our Mission Statement
St. Luke’s United Methodist Church seeks to serve the community’s spiritual and physical needs. We are a small congregation dedicated to creating an atmosphere of inclusiveness in which all feel welcome to worship. At. St. Luke’s, we try to follow the example of Christ’s ministry and teaching by sharing our building, our time and our prayers in many community partnerships. We embrace new ways of giving thanks and work to teach the joy of God’s grace to all whom we can reach.
We follow in the Wesleyan tradition in our belief that “scriptural holiness entails more than personal piety; love of God is always linked with love of neighbor, a passion for justice and renewal in the life of the world.”