Children, Youth and Family Ministry
“He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 18:2-4
Jesus told us all those who wish to enter the Kingdom of Heaven must do so as little children. We have always felt that Jesus was pointing to something fundamental here, something our adult world can very often forget. And that is that children come into this world in the full embrace of God, with an innate connectedness to the Kingdom. Our job in youth ministry is not to give them “all the answers”. Our job is to honor the light of God already burning in each young person.
At St. Andrew’s, all of our work is predicated on the idea that our children and youth voices deserve to be honored. Their questions deserve to be honored. Their doubts deserve to be honored. We are here to give language to the innate spirituality of each young person that comes through our doors. We are here to help expand their relationship with God and help them give voice to that relationship.
Our children’s ministry (for those under 12) meets every Sunday at 10am for Godly Play stories. Our youth group (for 6th grade and up) meets twice monthly at 11am on the first and third Sundays of each month. We have an ongoing partnership with the youth group from St. Barnabas, meeting once each month at St. Andrew’s, and once each month at St. Barnabas.
Children’s Ministry - Godly Play
Every Sunday at 10am in our undercroft
Godly Play is a curriculum for children ages 3 up to 12 developed by Jerome Berryman. Using a Montessori-based, experiential approach to spiritual education, it brings the sacred stories of the Christian tradition to life for young children. It is a rich, story-based curriculum that speaks to children's innate understanding of the presence of God. Godly Play isn’t focused on "right answers", or drilling scripture passages as if we're preparing for the SAT's. Instead, Godly Play invites children to wonder deeply about the presence of God, and to develop their OWN sense of meaning.
Every Godly Play story ends with "I wonder" questions, in which the storyteller poses a series of questions starting with this wonderful phrase. Here are a few common “I wonder” questions:
"I wonder which part of this story you liked best?"
"I wonder which part of this story is about you?"
These wondering questions are open-ended, and invite our children to make their own connections. They invite children to form a deep and honest relationship with God. Adults don’t try to nudge them toward "correct answers" with these questions. Rather, we are co-investigators into the wonder and awe of God’s presence in the stories.
We invite you to come to a Godly Play meeting during our morning service (at 10am) to experience Godly Play's truly unique approach to children's faith formation. Experiencing it firsthand is the BEST way to understand the magic of this approach.
Follow the links below to learn more about the founder, Jerome Berryman, and the Godly Play curriculum.
Youth Ministry - St. Andrew’s / St. Barnabas combined youth group
First and third Sunday of each month 11am-12:15pm (1st Sunday St. Barnabas, 3rd Sunday St. Andrew’s)
Welcome to our Youth Ministry (for those age 12 and up). Wherever you are on your faith journey, we are glad you are here. Our youth ministry is here to support your spiritual journey, wherever it may take you. As an Episcopal youth minister, of course I believe deeply in the beauty of our faith tradition and the teachings given to us by Jesus of Nazareth, but we are not a community that believes our path is the “only true path” (we don’t believe our friends of other faiths are destined for eternal torment). Just as Jesus was in his ministry, we are more concerned with helping you, our youth, discover YOUR faith, and YOUR relationship with God, than we are with making you “believe the right things”.
We meet twice monthly in a joint youth group in partnership with St. Barnabas Episcopal Church. Youth groups take place once at St. Barnabas and once at St. Andrew’s, from 11am to about noon. Check to the right to see all of our scheduled upcoming meetings.