Worship and Ministries

Elders provide spiritual leadership and exemplify a strong faith and live a life consistent with biblical teachings. Elders have concern for the spiritual life of the Congregation and make recommendations to the Consistory and Pastor(s) concerning special services, programs and ways of enhancing the spiritual life of the Congregation.

Benevolence in the Bible refers to having goodwill, kindness, and charitableness towards others (Romans 12:10). It encompasses compassion, generosity, and a sincere desire to do good to all people. We realize we are expected to share and care for one another. This means we care for local, national and international concerns and needs.

St. John has many wonderful spaces to gather for fun, fellowship, and worship. The Deacons are responsible for keeping these spaces ready to provide a gathering space to serve the community around us.

At St. John the Youth Sunday School has implemented a safe, accepting and magical space where children of all ages can come together to share their thoughts and feelings on a variety of topics surrounding Jesus. This space allows them to share these thoughts and feelings in a variety of creative ways. The children do this by utilizing a multitude of open ended materials. This approach enables the children to openly communicate in any of the five stages of language they wish. At St. John we want the children to feel comfortable expressing themselves any way they choose! This year we have explored several topics regarding the country of Israel which Jesus was born. Next year we will be exploring different aspects of the town Jesus grew up in. On our path of exploration we value each and everyone’s point of view. We have enjoyed the journey so far and can’t wait to explore more!

St. John Church provides free monthly dinners. The community meal is something the church members have done every month beginning in 2007. This meal is open to everyone who wants to come for a free hot meal and friendship. It starts at 5:00pm the Third Thursday of each month. We are thankful to be a church where members think about the needs of people in the community.

These days we are always looking for new & fun ways to get exercise. We were introduced to Cardio Drumming by one of our members. She worked diligently to find us a qualified instructor who leads us each week. We meet on Wednesday evenings at 6:00 pm in our MAC building next to the church. The cost is $5 per session. All are welcome to join in. The only equipment needed is a large exercise ball, a tub to put it on top of, a set of drumsticks and a will to MOVE. We “drum” to lots of different types of songs. Our instructor makes it lots of fun by using songs we request in addition to songs that are pertinent to the season (i.e. Love songs in February, Patriotic songs in May and July, Halloween songs in October, & Christmas songs in December). Come to a session and see how much fun we have!

St. John has an adult choir and a chime choir, which add to the overall worship experience. The adult choir sings most Sundays from September through May. The adult choir rehearses from 3:30-4:30 on Thursday afternoons. The chimes will play around six time a year and will join with the adult choir on occasions when a piece of music requires it. The chimes rehearse from 9:00-9:30 on Sunday mornings, usually 3-4 weeks before playing.

Holy Spirits meets about every six weeks or so to gather and share in conversation and community. We say we like to turn the ordinary meal into a sacred space through table fellowship. This group explores topics of faith, ethics, morality and life through conversation and sharing over dinner and drinks. We meet in different restaurants and breweries around Indianapolis. This group is open to any and all who would like to come explore faith and life with us and is over 21 years old. For those who are on a journey of recovery from alcohol, please know that these gatherings are held at locations which sell and serve alcohol and that members of the group often order an alcoholic drink.

PathFinders meets Sunday mornings at 9am in-person at St. John. Pathfinders is a class that meets to talk about and reflect on readings and devotions from the UCC and to grow in faith and fellowship.