The Church of the Savior

The communities of the Church of the Savior in Washington D. C. have been extremely welcoming to us. They know how to receive a stranger. The hub of much of what happens in this network of churches is the Potter's House which is two blocks away from us in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. So the first place we headed after orienting ourselves was to this coffee house/bookstore/meeting place, worship space.

They serve wonderful homemade food at the Potter's House, along with friendly hospitality. Paul and I originally went there for our first sampling of the faire - tea and muffins. The bookstore is very enticing. It is a good thing I have no room to bring back books. It is much like our own Circuit Rider Books. They also take a mobile unit out to different events that need books, like our retreat last weekend. I was assured by the bookstore manager who considers this work his ministry, that they routinely ship books everywhere in the country, so not to worry if I can't carry them home.

Two doors down from the Potter's House is the Festival Center. Every noontime they have a mid-day prayer service in a little chapel there. That is where I went next. I feel right at home in all the prayer and worship services I've experienced so far. At the mid-day prayer service I met Gordon Cosby, the founder of this faith community, and a legend in his own time. He has been the spiritual leader for the churches since 1947. He is now 92 and has recently retired from preaching and much of his leadership responsibilities. Never-the-less, he is a daily presence in this community. He greeted me warmly and already knew of our presence among them. 

I have been back to the mid-day prayer service since then, in fact have worshipped at least once a day this week. Since the nine churches worship at varying times, there is usually a service to attend each day...in the neighborhood. The problem is having to choose. This evening I went over to the Potter's House to worship with the church called The Friends of Jesus. The service took place around tables. We sang several familiar hymns, were led in prayer, heard the word preached, and served one another communion. This was followed by a meal and further reflection of scripture. I sat between the man who is the director of the ministry called Jubilee Housing, and the woman who is the director of the Festival Center. Also in this group was the director of the Jubilee Jobs ministry. It seems that everyone I talk to heads up some important mission. The preacher was a member of the congregation and several more of the members led different parts.

Yesterday there was a discussion following mid-day prayer at the Potter's House about the "Transformational Church." It was led by Simeon, one of our housemates, who is a student at Duke Divinity School. As with most conversations we get involved in here, it was very thought provoking. The Potter's House really fills up at noon, and there were people we'd met before having conversations and lunch.

Another church that I've been interacting with is the Seeker's Church. I've been in touch with them through their website and e-mail for nearly a year now. They are a little different from the rest of the churches in that they have their own building and are located in a different part of the city. We had to take a bus and subway to get to them. We attended their School of Christian Living on Tuesday evening. They offer two classes each week for six week terms. They start with dinner and then go to class. I went to the class on Poverty. Again, the level of commitment and expertise among the members is amazing. The classes are taught by church members.

On Wednesday evening I went back to the Seeker Church to sit in on their Celebration Circle (one of their mission groups, or commissions as our church would call them.) They meet once a week to plan the liturgy for their worship services. They do not have a professional minister, but consider every member a minister. They take turns preaching and doing all the other tasks of ministry. Instead of sponsoring a specific ministry as most of the other churches do, they encourage each other in their individual ministries in the world. Their mission groups not only are about planning for the church, but at least half of the time is spent supporting and praying for one another. They invited me back for next week! We plan to worship with them on Sunday this week too.

We have been doing some sight seeing as well, and learning to navigate the public transit system by trial and error. Today we went down to the capital mall to the Museum of the American Indian. We had a specific goal in mind - to find the name of Bdecan Presbyterian Church and the Spirit Lake Nation Tribe - (where we sojourned in North Dakota)  They have a plaque on their wall in honor of their contribution to the national museum. It was not easy to find them. Every floor of this beautiful museum has walls full of names of supporters. However, after quite a bit of clarification and urging, Paul got one of the information people to find them on the computer. We went up to the fourth floor, searched for the numbered panel, counted down to the line they'd given us, and actually found Bdecan! We were so excited, and took a photo to send to them.

I've been trying to figure out how to walk to the national zoo, which is close by where we stay. I've gone out walking a couple of days, but though I've seen many marvelous and curious things, didn't come near the zoo. However, I think I got some good advice last night. I would have headed there this morning, but a huge rain storm settled in for the night and most of the day. However, tomorrow morning, I will hopefully get there. And it is free!

Unfortunately for Paul, he has been limited on walking excursions due to a badly sprained ankle, falling in a side walk hole in Baltimore and again on our first night in D. C.  So he is on crutches for a week, and actually walking more then he should be. He has something in common with Hilary Clinton now. They visited the same ER in the last few days. (She broke her elbow.)

I will include photos of the Church of the Savior in a future blog, as I haven't taken any yet. However with this chapter I'll include a few of the city. To summarize this week, everyday we are learning something new, meeting faithful and interesting people, and praying often!