"As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord,  continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving." (Colossians 2:6)  

September 8 - October 13, 2019

from 9:45 to 10:45 am
Room 103

Welcome, and other themes of hospitality are found throughout our Scriptures, both in the Hebrew Bible, and in the New Testament; from the creation stories to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.  In church we automatically say, "All are welcome here" and we invite members and friends to worship, to concerts and picnics, to classes and mission projects, and pot-luck meals.   We mean it, but we don't always remember there may be barriers to accepting our invitations.

Along with the Biblical themes of welcome and hospitality, we will be featuring panels of our members each week to talk about various concrete ways of being welcoming and hospitable in the church and in the world. We encourage your comments, discussion, and questions.  The series will include the following topics:

• What is “welcoming” in the Community, DC area, country, world?               
• How to talk to people you don’t know yet – conversation starters               
• Enhancing the point of “first contact” or early visits with  Newcomers  
• Deacons – our formal system for congregational care, visiting those in need, and welcoming new members             
• Helpful ideas to welcome people outside of church / in the  Secular world   
• Helpful ways to talk to people when there is a language/ethnic/custom barrier                   

Please join us!   You are welcome! 

First Presbyterian Church is a Sponsor of The Reformed Institute of Metropolitan Washington

In 2013, First Presbyterian Church became a sponsoring member of the Reformed Institute of Metropolitan Washington (RI). The RI is an organization that was established in 2003 "to promote understanding and awareness of the Reformed Tradition among the staff and members of Presbyterian churches located in the Washington area."  Its purpose is to help the churches in this presbytery live up to one of the basic principles of the Reformed Tradition – to ensure an educated laity. 

FPC Arlington has benefitted from many of the RI programs – the Confirmation Retreat, many of its classes, the annual convocation, and its Company of Teachers. As a sponsoring church of the Reformed Institute, First Presbyterian members are invited to participate in all of the RI adult education programs.  RI offers half-day, one day or short series adult education formats during the year for sponsoring church members. 

One member of our staff and a member of our congregation serve on the Board of Directors.  As members of the Board of Directors, we are involved in determining the programs that are offered, development activities, staffing decisions, etc.  We are expected to actively support the programs of the Institute by encouraging our members, friends, and community to participate in their offerings, and to take the things we learn and put them to use in our own congregation. For more information on the Reformed Institute, visit their website at: www.reformedinstitute.org