Jesus gave us, his disciples, the commission to go out into the world and preach his gospel.  From generation to generation the faith has been passed since the first disciples over 2000 years ago.  The powerful Christian story of God's gift of love, forgiveness, and salvation both comforts us and challenges us.  At Union Church we seek to provide such opportunities that allow the faith to be shared and nurtured.  Faith development is a life-long experience, so we seek to offer events for all ages.

Sunday School
Our weekly Sunday School is offered for children from Pre-K through Grade 8.  Our program year begins in September and continues until June.  We have a special program for summer Sundays.  While students usually attend worship for the first part of the service and then leave for their classrooms to learn from “The Whole People of God” curriculum, we also have periodic times when we involve all ages in intergenerational worship.  On those Sundays, there are usually a number of choices available in worship so that people can worship and learn together in ways that honor the different gifts God gives to each of us.  Our goal is to have children become familiar with our Christian faith and then practice living that faith in community.  Some of the practices this year have taken the form of participation in worship, caroling to shut-ins, collecting food for the local food pantry, assisting our missions team in collecting gifts for soldiers serving in Afghanistan, and doing commemorative plantings of shrubs and greenery. 

Confirmation
When students enter Grade 9 they are invited to engage in the confirmation process.  In a series of classes and field trips held over the course of the school year, they explore faith and their understanding of it.  Confirmation is a time for a young adult, to affirm the baptismal promises made by their parents and claim responsibility for the faith as their own.  It is also a time for students who have never been baptized to learn about the Christian faith and to decide if they would like to become baptized Christians at this time.

Each student is paired with a mentor, who is an adult member of the congregation.  The mentor joins with them in the classes and helps shepherd them in this part of their journey.  

Adult Education
Opportunities include Bible studies that meet on Wednesday nights at 7PM.  Other studies and opportunities are available throughout the year, ranging from movie nights to book studies to special evening worship services to activities that develop because of people’s interests.  A prayer group meets weekly and a prayer shawl ministry meets on Monday mornings once a month.  For more information, check in the monthly newsletter or on the Calendar of Events.