what's worship like at zion?

 Worship is a divine service that transforms us through solace, prayer, communion, challenge, and fellowship. 

It calls us to follow Jesus Christ in the work for justice, show love and kindness to everyone, and strive to live in harmony with all creation.

Our weekly worship service begins at 10:30 a.m. and generally follows the pattern below. 

Although our services are structurally formal, they are far from rigid. We embrace the full spectrum of human emotions and expressions of faith—whether it's laughter, tears, silence, or shouts of “Amen!”

Typical Order of Service:

Greetings: A warm welcome from the day’s preacher to set the tone or theme.

Call to Worship: A spoken invitation to enter into the worship experience together.

Opening Hymn: Connecting to God through song, as Augustine said, “(S)he who sings, prays twice.”

Invoking the Holy: Acknowledging God's constant presence and inviting ourselves to become aware of it.

Prayer of Confession: Naming our brokenness to cleanse our hearts and minds.

Silent Personal Confession: A moment of reflection and silent dialogue with the divine.

Words of Assurance: Offering the hope and renewal found in our faith.

Passing of the Peace: An ancient tradition of greeting each other with love and peace.

Children’s Time: A special lesson for children, welcoming them to participate fully in worship. 

Activity packs and nursery care are available for young children.

Scripture: Reading from various translations of the Bible, understanding it as a collection of holy stories inspired by encounters with God.

Sermon: A reflection on the day’s scripture, encouraging growth through questions and insights into contemporary issues.

Holy Communion (if it’s a Communion Sunday): Inspired by the Last Supper, we share an open table.

Prayers of the Church: Sharing prayer needs and lifting them together.

Prayer of Our Savior/The Lord’s Prayer: Reciting the Lord’s Prayer, with support for traditional or contemporary language.

Offering: Supporting the church's work and mission through financial gifts and musical offerings.

Prayer of Dedication: Blessing our offerings of time, talent, and treasure.

Benediction: One final good word to send us off to fellowship with coffee, tea, treats, and community in the Fellowship Hall.

At Zion UCC, communion is served during worship about one Sunday a month - usually the first Sunday, but not always, as the liturgical calendar may vary.

The Communion Table is “open to all Christians who wish to know the presence of Christ and to share in the community of God’s people.” (Book of Worship). Some visitors from churches that believe communion should only be celebrated among Christians who are in full doctrinal agreement might not choose to participate. Their decision is respected. You do not need to be a member of the 

United Church of Christ to commune here.

 The United Church of Christ Book of Worship reminds us that “the invitation and the call [to the supper] celebrate not only the memory of a meal that is past but an actual meal with the risen Christ that is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet at which Christ will preside at the end of history.”

The broken bread and poured wine represent—present anew—the crucified and risen Christ. The wheat gathered to bake one loaf and the grapes pressed to make one cup remind participants that they are one body in Christ, while the breaking and pouring announce the costliness of Christ’s sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin. Zion UCC provides non-alcoholic white grape juice and red wine, along with white bread and gluten-free elements. 

Zion UCC uses a variety of practices, but we most commonly use cubes of bread and individual cups passed in the pews. 

Baptized children and even infants can receive communion at their parents’ discretion, following age-appropriate instructions about the sacrament’s meaning.

Youth are given instruction on the meaning and purpose of communion as a part of the confirmation class program. Those youth who are younger than confirmation age, who would like to participate in this sacrament and are members of Zion UCC, are encouraged to participate in communion classes prior to communing (in order that this sacrament has meaning and reverence for them). Visiting baptized youth are welcome to partake of communion if they do so in their home church (without needing to be confirmed and without needing to participate in our communion class).

 Within the United Church of Christ there are two sacraments: 

Baptism and the Lord's Supper (or Holy Communion).

     The following description is excerpted from the UCC Book of Worship:

     A person is incorporated into the universal church, the body of Christ, through the sacrament of baptism. The water, words, and actions of the sacrament are visible signs that convey the Christian's burial and resurrection with Jesus Christ 

(Romans 6:3-4).  

The invocation of the Holy Spirit upon the water and upon the candidates for baptism is an affirmation that it is God who takes the initiative in the sacrament.  "Baptism is both God's gift and our human response to that gift."  

It is "a sign and seal of our common discipleship. 

Through baptism, Christians are brought into union with Christ, with each other, and with the church of every time and place." In the United Church of Christ people may be baptized either as children/infants or adults. Baptism with water and the Holy Spirit is the mark of their acceptance into the care of Christ's church, the sign and seal of their participation in God's forgiveness, and the beginning of their new growth into full Christian faith and life.

     When an infant or young child is baptized, adults (such as parents, guardians, elders, or sponsors) make promises to assume certain responsibilities for the Christian nurture of the baptized child. Those who are baptized at an early age are given an opportunity in their youth to make a personal profession of faith through the Rite of Confirmation. 

     In the UCC, an ordained minister officiates/administers the sacrament (or a minister licensed by the Association to do so), generally during Sunday worship, because the entire faith community is involved.