Worship

Come Join Us

What Time We Meet

Our Sojourners Study hour begins at 9:00 a.m. Worship is at 10:00 a.m. Set-up begins at 8:30 a.m. When set-up is finished, the coffee is ready and we enjoy visiting as we gather.

Where We Meet

We gather each Sunday morning at the South Adams Senior Center, 825 Hendricks Street, in Berne, Indiana. Located on the east side of Lehman Park, we enjoy the sun rising across the fields on one side and the woods on the other. It is an accessible space with lots of parking and a drive which makes getting in and out of the building easier during inclement weather. The facilities are handicapped accessible. Once indoors, we work together to transform the Center into a fellowship & worship space. It works great!

What To Expect

We’re a warm and friendly group. You can expect to be welcomed by nearly everyone.  We use computer and projector from time to time in our study hour; only rarely in the worship hour.

We think of ourselves as worshiping in a gentle, reverent manner, yet flexible when circumstances surprise us. Laughter is welcome!  We share in leading the various aspects of study and worship.

Dress is as suits each one of us; you may see people wearing khaki shorts and others a sports coat & tie.  As study and worship resources, we most often use Menno-Media publications, including The Hymnal: A Worship Book and Sing the Journey.  Almost every week, we share the Bread & Cup.  We are strengthened by this shared meal and invite guests to join us in this sign of Jesus’ love and tenderness as we seek to remember and practice his command to love God and neighbor.

We don’t have many programs or committees.  We view our daily lives as places of service and witness. Through fellowship, study and worship we seek renewal and encouragement to “be the Gospel” in our homes, communities and places of employment.

Our church structure is simple.  Our Visioning Committee meets monthly to tend to details – great and small.  Decisions other than “housekeeping” details are made together in our quarterly Fellowship Forums. Every vantage point is valued and with the help of a “talking piece” we work to ensure that each person has opportunity to speak. We take turns serving on a two-year term on the Visioning Committee.

Study & Worship

As our fellowship name suggests, we see ourselves as people on the journey of faith.  We select study resources which help us to discover life-giving ways to grasp the rich texts of the Bible.  We enjoy lively discussions as we ponder and consider our readings of the Bible.   We are grateful that frequently, we are joined by guests from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Bluffton University or Goshen College.   We value the visits of resource persons from Mennonite Church USA and the Central District Conference.

Our worship is a time of singing, praying and listening.  In our gathered worship, we are strengthened in our allegiance to the way of Jesus.  Almost every week, we share together at the Lord’s Table.  We remember Jesus’ humility and sacrificial love as we serve one another.   All who seek to know more about Jesus are welcome at the Table.

A recent Confession of Faith, “Shenandoah Confession” drafted February 2014 by the Intercollegiate Peace Fellowship meeting at Eastern Mennonite University describes the foundations of our study and worship.  We desire to grow more deeply in these understandings:

  1. Confession of faith in Christ as the foundation of peace.
  2. Love as the root of all things.
  3. The call of the spirit of God to all for radical pacifist action.
  4. Acceptance of the truth of the full humanity of all God’s children.
  5. Inclusion as the guiding principle of action within the spirit.
  6. Accountability of historical wrongs, especially colonialisms.
  7. An abiding desire to participate in resilient and just economies.
  8. The full and unflinching engagement of creative faculties of believers in service of peace.
  9. Embrace of lives of radical simplicity following the truth of God’s peace on Earth.
  10. Commitment to deep listening and dialogue as the prophetic intention of Christian pacifism.
  11. Recognition of failures and continued re-commitment to our principles within community.

Sojourners Study

Each Sunday, we gather for Bible study or other faith-engaging resource. Several of us serve as facilitators of the conversation.  We enjoy the lively discussions that always arise.

Children

Our Fellowship looks forward to young families becoming part of our community.  Faith formation of children is important to us.  We have begun a “Little Sojourners” gathering, and we will be sharing the newly released “Shine” curriculum with our young children.