Welcome to St. Luke’s! 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.
Please join the congregation for refreshments after worship in the Wesley Room.
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.
Today - Sunday School Class on Methodism continues. 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.
Today – Final Spring Concert, 2:00 pm. A vocal recital featuring works of Schumann, Day, and Faure. The concert is free and open to the community, so please bring your friends! For more information contact deke@saintlukesmethodist.org.
May 16th -- New Member Orientation
Those who are thinking of joining St. Luke’s are invited to an orientation session and tour of the building after church on May 16. This is a good chance to meet others who are thinking of becoming an official part of St. Luke’s, and asking any questions you have. New members will be received during worship on the following Sunday, May 23rd.
May 16th –Our Turn with Shelter Dinner. 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.
May 22nd – St. Luke’s Yard Sale benefiting VIM/Cuba
Do you want to “turn your trash into someone else’s treasure?” If so, rent a table at our up-coming community yard sale. Large tables are $15 and smaller tables are $10. Please contact the church office soon to reserve your table. We only have 20 tables and they will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Email: shalom@saintlukesmethodist.org.
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. During May we are learning about the roots of Methodism with Christine. We meet 7:30-8:30 in Anne’s office (rear office entrance).
Church Council Report
At the April 25th Council Meeting Pastor Yarbrough reported that many things were being accomplished through the administrative and ministry/program areas. Progressive Environmental has completed the on-site environmental sampling test. Representatives from the Renovation committee met with the contractor and architect who will be providing an updated cost estimate. Plans are also in the works for developing a formal umbrella structure to oversee the transitional housing (shelter) and job training (kitchen) programs. The council voted unanimously to approve the investment fund objectives policy. It was noted that there continues to be an increase in the pledged, non-pledged, and grate patrol contributions. Finally, the Music Ministry will present a series of fall lunch hour concerts.
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 program of St. Luke’s Shelter and St. Luke’s Church, providing job training in restaurant skills for homeless men and women. First class begins May 17th! 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.
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.
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 in the Wesley Room, 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.
Upcoming fundraising events for the trip include 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. Our host church is also in need of the items listed below. Please contact Sylvia Zulu if you need further information or are interested in making a donation. sylzulu@yahoo.com
+ Laptop computers
+ Over the counter medicines
+ Prescription medicines from your doctor (most important thing we can take)
+ Fabric, buttons, needles, thread, etc.
+ Towels
+ Sheets
+ Reading glasses and old prescription glasses
+ New underwear (men, women and children)
+ Toothbrushes and paste
+ Small soaps
+ Pens, pencils
+ Razors
+ Gently worn shoes
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.
Joys and Concerns…
For Alanna Penza as she returns home at the end of her semester in DC
For the African nation of Djibouti
For Derek Willis’ sister Julie, recovering from surgery
For the beauty of the garden
For Julie James’ minister, Bill, in South Dakota, diagnosed with leukemia
For the United Methodist Church as it confronts new challenges
For Patricia, adjusting to life after the death of her husband
For the Maiga family, friends of the Kassambaras, whose mother and child died in childbirth
For the contractor in Iraq who escaped imprisonment
That St. Luke’s continue to be an inclusively welcoming congregation as the United Methodist denomination struggles over the issue of ordaining gays and lesbians
For the Iraqi prisoners whose photos were made public this past week
For the Volunteers in Mission Cuba trip in August
The joy that Next Step Kitchen has received a grant for $75,000 from the General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church
For all in Iraq, and for guidance for the leaders of this country and of the world, that there may be peace
For Curt’s friend Ben, in hospice care
For the Pyles’ friend Eric with cancer
For the children and staff of Wings of Hope Orphanage, in Haiti.
For Carrie and Bob, whose baby is due in May
For the community of St. Luke’s Shelter.
For those living with HIV/AIDS
For our members who are unable to attend because of their health: Margaret Roberts, Jeanne Goss, Vernon Thomas, Lucille Dade, and Dorothy Bowers.
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.”