Forest Hills Presbyterian Church

Throughout the year you’ll find different types of services that have been prayerfully designed to appropriately lead us in worship. Typically, we celebrate the sacrament of Communion on the first Sunday of every month. We believe that it is Jesus’ table, not our table, and so we invite everybody who would come to taste and see that he is good to join him at that welcome table. Most of our services alternate between prayer and liturgy spoken by both a leader and the community, and the communal singing of hymns. You’ll also find a special song sung by our choir, a sermon, and usually a pastoral prayer or a special spiritual practice. The services tend to be about an hour long.

However, sometimes we do something a little different - throughout the year we will hold services in the evenings, and even Brunch and Dinner Church services, where we worship and eat around tables together in the Fellowship Hall.

As a church whose worship tends to be more on the traditional side, although again, sometimes there is drama and dulcimers, we are a church that follows the rhythms of the historic Christian year, called the Liturgical Year which begins in Advent. As our denominations Book of Common Worship puts it:

“Through two thousand years of Christian worship, the Church has developed ways of keeping time - many of them adapted from the feasts and fasts of Israel that Jesus kept. This pattern of the Christian year keeps us centered in Christ as we seek to proclaim the story of our faith, grow as Jesus’ disciples, and serve Christ’s mission (160).”

Our patterns of worship follow the year, and we tend to highlight the following seasons and festivals, being reminded that the Christian faith is not simply an individual spiritual path, but an inclusion into the body of Christ throughout time and place.

Some highlights of the year:

• The season of Advent (usually begins at the end of November or the beginning of December) - we prepare for the coming and coming again of Jesus, incorporating art and music into the services in different ways

• The Longest Night (December 21) - we remember the holidays aren’t always filled with joy for us

• Christmas Eve (December 24) - the culmination of our waiting for Jesus - ending in candlelight

• The season of Christmas - the 12 days where we celebrate the birth of Jesus and the coming of our Lord

• Epiphany of the Lord - (1st Sunday in January) - the celebration of God’s saving purpose for all the world

• Baptism of the Lord (2nd Sunday in January) - we remember Jesus’ baptism and give thanks for our own

• Transfiguration of the Lord (the Sunday before Lent) - we celebrate divine revelation

• Ash Wednesday - the beginning of Lent, we recognize this season of growth through a reminder of our own mortality and a public act of confession - the imposition of ashes on our foreheads

• The season of Lent (spring) - the 40 days leading up to Easter, a time of reflection, self-examination, and spiritual growth. We embody a variety of practices during the season as we prepare ourselves

• Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter) - we enter into Holy Week celebrating the tension between Jesus’ triumphal entry and his coming death on the cross

• Holy Week (the week before Easter) - a time when many of us take on spiritual practices to prepare ourselves, engaging in the drama of Jesus’ last meal with his disciples, his arrest, and his death

• Maundy Thursday (the Thursday before Easter) - we commemorate the night Jesus was arrested though the practice of Dinner Church - a liturgy centered around the table

• Good Friday (the Friday before Easter) - we somberly remember Jesus’ death

• Easter Sunday - we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord with joyful music and the flowering of the cross

• The season of Easter - Easter isn’t just one day - the celebration continues for the next seven weeks!

• Bright Sunday (the Sunday after Easter) - we have a lot of fun celebrating God’s great trick

• Pentecost (the 50th day after Easter) - we celebrate the gift of the Spirit and the birthday of the Church

• Trinity Sunday (the Sunday after Pentecost) - we celebrate the mystery of our Triune God

• Pride Sunday (June) - we celebrate the great gift of human difference, especially in terms of gender and orientation

• Rally Day (the Sunday after Labor Day) - we start up our Christian Formation year and bless the new school year

• World Communion Sunday (1st Sunday in October) - we join with Christians across the globe to celebrate our common Sacrament of Communion and our unity as the Body of Christ

• Reformation Sunday (last Sunday in October) - we join with our Reformed siblings in celebrating our tradition

• All Saints and Souls (first Sunday in November) - we commemorate all whose baptisms have been completed in death

• Reign of Christ (the Sunday before Advent) - we end the liturgical year celebrating Christ’s reign

We love music here at Forest Hills! We are blessed to have two ensembles who help lead worship throughout the liturgical year:

The Choir, who meet every Sunday morning at 10 and Wednesday evenings at 7. They regularly lead us in worship through their gifts of song.

The Handbell Choir, who meet as needed on Wednesday evenings at 6 and are heard during various services throughout the year.

We are regularly accompanied by piano and pipe organ. There are many talented musicians in the community, so occasionally we’ll be joined by guitar, cello, and other instruments as well.