How do we grow our faith at Immanuel?
Like everything alive, faith needs to be nurtured in order to grow deeper and stronger. While ultimately it is God’s gift to us, we can nurture our faith by learning how God speaks to us through the stories and figures of the Bible, the testimony of Christian theologians and saints, and the many forms of creativity inspired by the Bible and the Christian faith.
A key element of our learning as members or friends of Immanuel is to raise the question on a regular basis what it means to be a “Just Peace, Open and Affirming Congregation” in the United Church of Christ. Together, we do not seek set answers or rigid definitions; rather, we seek to share understandings of our identity and wrestle with our call as a faith community, always in the context of our lives and the lives of our neighbors.
Throughout the year, Immanuel offers many opportunities for Christian education and spiritual growth, including
Church School classes for children of nursery age through grade 8,
Youth Group for young people in grades 6-12,
Regular Second Hour adult programs on Sunday mornings after worship, and
Adult Faith Formation opportunities in the form of book studies, discussion groups and more.
Adult Faith Formation topics have included overviews of the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, racial justice discussions based on Stowe prize-winning books including Viral Justice by Ruha Benjamin, and environmental learning through discussion of works such as Laudato Si, On Care for Our Common Home Encyclical Letter by Pope Francis, and movies including Breaking Boundaries about the scientific journey of world-renowned scientist Professor Johan Rockstrom.
During our Second Hour programs, guest speakers or members of the congregation address a variety of issues, often connected to social action and mission initiatives or particular events in our church.
All of these offerings are a vital part of our church community, and every member, new or long-time, young or old, is warmly encouraged to participate. We hope you will experience how our connections with each other grow, how much we can learn from each other, and what discoveries we can make about the Bible and the practice of our faith by exploring together our understanding of God. To grow by sharing our journeys is one of the most important reasons for being an active member at Immanuel. Christian education deepens our experience of worship and strengthens our engagement in the community God continually calls us to be.
