Blog

This Week in Worship: May 19–25, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Journey Worship | Sunday, at 8:45 am
An interactive, energetic service for those seeking a fresh encounter with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme this month is Transformed. Pastor Randy will preach from John 14:1–7.

Sanctuary Worship | Sunday, at 11 am
Our largest service, with music from the Chancel Choir and an organ prelude prior to the service. This week, our Senior High youth will lead us during Sanctuary worship. This special service is an annual tradition at ELPC, as we celebrate the gifts of our youth, while praising God for the work of the Holy Spirit upon and through them. Our graduating seniors will share their faith stories, and receive a blessing as they prepare for the next steps in their respective life journeys.

Students completing third grade will be presented with a Bible as a gift from ELPC, so that they might be nurtured in God’s word.

Taizé Prayer Service | Wednesday, at 7 pm
Led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan, our hour-long Taizé service includes sung prayers; simple, beautiful music; a time of silence; spoken and silent prayers; and an opportunity for individual prayer and anointing. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

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This Week in Worship: May 12–18, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Journey Worship | Sunday, at 8:45 am
An interactive, energetic service for those seeking a fresh encounter with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme this month is Transformed. Pastor Patrice will preach from Acts 6:8–15, 7:54–60.

Sanctuary Worship | Sunday, at 11 am
Our largest service, with music from the Chancel Choir and an organ prelude prior to the service. Pastor Randy will preach from 1 Peter 3:13–22 and his sermon will be titled “The Defense Never Rests.”

Taizé Prayer Service | Wednesday, at 7 pm
Led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan, our hour-long Taizé service includes sung prayers; simple, beautiful music; a time of silence; spoken and silent prayers; and an opportunity for individual prayer and anointing. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

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This Week in Worship: May 5–11, 2017

As a reminder, there will be no church services this Sunday, May 7, due to the route of the Pittsburgh Marathon. If you are not attending our All-Church Retreat, from May 5–7, you are encouraged to support a local congregation for worship that day.

Worship Services

Taizé Prayer Service | Wednesday, at 7 pm
Led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan, our hour-long Taizé service includes sung prayers; simple, beautiful music; a time of silence; spoken and silent prayers; and an opportunity for individual prayer and anointing. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

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Pastoral Message, May 2017

On Staten Island, there’s an Italian restaurant called “Enoteca Maria.” Actually, it is only half an Italian restaurant, because the other half of the menu changes daily. The fixed half is Italian, but the rest features different cuisines from around the world. And best of all, these specialty menu offerings are not prepared by professional chefs; they’re cooked by grandmothers. This “international house of grandmothers” is wildly popular. People have to make reservations weeks in advance.  Read More

This Week in Worship: April 28–May 4, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Journey Worship | Sunday, at 8:45 am
An interactive, energetic service for those seeking a fresh encounter with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme this month is Disruption. Sharron Boddy, our intern from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, will preach Exodus 17:1–7.

Sanctuary Worship | Sunday, at 11 am
Our largest service, with music from the Chancel Choir and an organ prelude prior to the service. Pastor Patrice will preach from Luke 24:13–35 and her sermon will be titled “An Ironic Turn of Events.”

Taizé Prayer Service | Wednesday, at 7 pm
Led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan, our hour-long Taizé service includes sung prayers; simple, beautiful music; a time of silence; spoken and silent prayers; and an opportunity for individual prayer and anointing. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

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Construction’s Underway: What To Know

The long-awaited renovation work at ELPC has finally begun! This will be a significant project affecting three floors of the building and several of the exterior entrances. Construction is scheduled to be completed in a 10-month time period, barring any unforeseen delays.

As we begin this journey together, all are invited to a groundbreaking event following worship on Sun., May 14.

The sequence of work will begin with the Whitfield Entrance and Ground Floor improvements first, with work on the Second Floor offices and work spaces happening this summer. Renovations on the First Floor will likely begin this fall.

Throughout this time of construction, your patience, prayers and flexibility will be greatly appreciated. Programs and events will largely continue as planned, although rooms hosting the events or pathways to the events may at times be different than normal.

If you have specific questions, contact Pam Kimmel, business administrator, at 412.441.3800 x118.

This Week in Worship: April 21–27, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Journey Worship | Sunday, at 8:45 am
An interactive, energetic service for those seeking a fresh encounter with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme this month is Disruption. Pastor Pastor Heather will preach from John 20:19–31.

Sanctuary Worship | Sunday, at 11 am
Our largest service, with music from the Chancel Choir and an organ prelude prior to the service. Pastor Randy will preach from Luke 24:36–49 and his sermon will be titled “A Surprising Presence.”

Taizé Prayer Service | Wednesday, at 7 pm
Led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan, our hour-long Taizé service includes sung prayers; simple, beautiful music; a time of silence; spoken and silent prayers; and an opportunity for individual prayer and anointing. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

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This Week in Worship: April 14–20, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Good Friday | 12 pm, 7 pm
Pastor Heather will lead our 12 pm service, in the Chapel. The service will include hearing again the Seven Last Words spoken by Jesus Christ on the cross.

Pastor Randy will lead our 7 pm service in the Sanctuary. It will feature Lenten hymns, and readings of both the seven “I Am” statements made by Christ, as well as a compilation of seven “I Am Not” statements made by Christ’s adversaries as recorded in John 18 and 19.

Easter Vigil | Wednesday, 7 pm
This historic service begins on the Penn Ave. steps and then moves by procession into the Narthex and Sanctuary, culminating in the celebration of the first Holy Communion of the Easter season. The Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan will lead this processing Vigil.

Easter Sunday | 8:45 am, 11 am
Our Easter Sunday Journey worship service will be held in the Social Hall, with Pastor Patrice preaching. Communion will be celebrated. There also will be a special Fellowship Time with refreshments from 9:45–10:45 am, prior to the 11 am service, in the Small Dining Room on the ground floor.

Our Easter Sunday Sanctuary worship service will be preceded by special music beginning at 10:45 am. Pastor Randy will preach from Luke 24:1–12, and his sermon will be titled “Easter Dress Rehearsals.” Communion will be celebrated.

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Pastoral Message, April 2017

After Ash Wednesday services, I always walk away with a darkly smudged thumb on my right hand. That is because I have pressed that finger into the ashes several dozen times—and then wiped the ashes on people’s foreheads while reminding them that they are of dust and to dust they shall return. There is something wonderfully vulnerable and personal about applying ashes on Ash Wednesday—literally touching the foreheads of friends and strangers alike and doing so out of a shared commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Seeing my smudged thumb later reminds me of that faith connection. It is a mark of honor, stubbornly ground into the literal whorls and lines of my thumbprint.

After Palm Sunday, there are invariably palm branches lying around the church. Before that special day, palm branches are mailed to the church in packaging awaiting someone to patiently separate them and prepare them for distribution. You can picture the children waving them; you can imagine the adults carefully folding the leaves into crosses. Palm branches serve as lingering reminders of that day when people cried out to Jesus as their Savior, seeking his help. Every year a few branches make it into my office. Others are kept by our housekeeping staff to be burnt for next year’s Ash Wednesday ashes. They all remind me of how we are part of the Palm Sunday story—part of the crowd calling out to Jesus, seeking to find our place in the larger story of faith with Christ at its center.

By contrast, there isn’t anything tangible that I take away from the Easter services. Yes, there are lilies and spring flowers that decorate the sanctuary, but they are somewhat tangential to the larger message of resurrection. There are Easter eggs and jelly beans and chocolate bunnies, but they are obvious secular appropriations of the religious holiday and more of a distraction than a spiritual discipline. There is the Easter service itself—with communion that is shared, with uplifting hymns and music and fellowship. As wonderful as that all is, it doesn’t linger as long as one might hope. We move past Easter Sunday to regular ol’ Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and soon enough find ourselves simply living out our mid-April, uneventful routines.

But there are two things that do linger from Easter and remind us of Christ’s resurrection long after Easter services are done. The first is sunshine itself, especially when seen near the horizon just after sunrise. The primary image for Easter is that of sunlight breaking over a cemetery landscape—breaking into the darkness and despair of grieving women disciples—and illuminating a wonderful, unimagined, bright new reality. The one who was dead is now alive! That reminder should not be limited to Easter mornings. It is one that should come to mind every time we marvel at a bright, sunny day or pause to reflect on the colors and beauty of an early morning sunrise.

The second persistent reminder is Sunday morning. We gather to worship on Sundays, as opposed to other days or evenings of the week, solely because of Easter. Because Christ was raised on that day, we gather each Sunday to remember that good news and look for him in the faces around us, the sacraments we share, and the worship we offer. Each Sunday is Easter Sunday. By holding onto that perspective, every week becomes one inaugurated and invigorated by the Easter good news. So hold onto these Easter reminders for the weeks ahead: Christ is risen. He is risen indeed!

Randy Bush

This Week in Worship: April 7–13, 2017

Here’s what’s happening in worship this week. Click the “more” link for our Church School programming.

Worship Services

Palm Sunday Journey Worship | 8:45 am
An interactive, energetic service for those seeking a fresh encounter with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme this month is Disruption. Pastor Randy will preach.

Palm Sunday Sanctuary Worship | 11 am
Our largest service, with music from the Chancel Choir and an organ prelude prior to the service. Pastor Randy will preach from Matthew 21:1–11, and his sermon will be titled “Joining the Crowd.”

Taizé Stations of the Cross | Wednesday, 7 pm
Join us for a meaningful experience during Holy Week, led by the Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan. Experience Jesus’ footsteps along the Stations of the Cross. The service will move from the Chapel into the Courtyard, Sanctuary, and Trinity Chapel with scripture readings; Taizé music; and sung, gestured, and enacted prayers. Stay afterward for Contemplative Prayer. If you’re unable to participate in person, join our live stream on your computer or mobile device.

Maundy Thursday  | 7 pm
Pastor Heather will preach at this Communion service, recalling Jesus’ Last Supper with his disciples.

Good Friday | 12 pm, 7 pm
Pastor Heather will lead our 12 pm service, in the Chapel. The service will include hearing again the Seven Last Words spoken by Jesus Christ on the cross.

Pastor Randy will lead our 7 pm service in the Sanctuary. It will feature Lenten hymns, and readings of both the seven “I Am” statements made by Christ, as well as a compilation of seven “I Am Not” statements made by Christ’s adversaries as recorded in John 18 and 19.

Easter Vigil | Wednesday, 7 pm
This historic service begins on the Penn Ave. steps and then moves by procession into the Narthex and Sanctuary, culminating in the celebration of the first Holy Communion of the Easter season. The Rev. Mary Lynn Callahan will lead this processing Vigil.

Easter Sunday | 8:45 am, 11 am
Our Easter Sunday Journey worship service will be held in the Social Hall, with Pastor Patrice preaching. There also will be a special Fellowship Time with refreshments from 9:45–10:45 am, prior to the 11 am service, in the Small Dining Room on the ground floor.

Our Easter Sunday Sanctuary worship service will be preceded by special music beginning at 10:45 am, with the Pastor Randy Bush preaching.

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