FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH MUSCATINE: Who Are We?

Size:  We are a medium-sized church. 

• 271 members. 
• Sunday morning worship attendance is 113 (annual average). 
• We have 40-50 children, youth and adults on Wednesday evenings through the school year (This is called All Church Night). 
• Various small groups meet during the week. 

Context:  We are intentionally a downtown church, and therefore we are very involved in our community. 

• We serve a free meal, open to the community, every Sunday at 12 noon.  This is called the "Emmaus Cafe".  This ministry began in April 2000 has only missed one Sunday since.  We serve anywhere from 40 to 80 guests on any given Sunday.  Our record high was set in September 2009:  143 guests served. 
• Our building is across the street from Wesley United Methodist Church, and we share two services per year (Ash Wednesday and 1st Sunday in July). 
• We are across the street from MCSA (Muscatine Center for Social Action, housed in the old YMCA building), Muscatine County Services (the old post office building), Lutheran Services and the Muscatine Community Food Pantry.
• We are involved in raising food contributions and money for the Food Pantry. 

Who comes:  Like most "mainline Protestant" churches, our church is in transition.  We know that we are no longer the "default" choice for the average churchgoer like we were in past years.  We affirm that this time of transition is an opportunity for us to be more intentional about our faith, so that we may grow more deeply as followers of Jesus. 

• Our average church member is older and these members are consistent in their support and attendance.  
• We are enriched by singles, divorced, widowed members, as well as those whose spouse is not active--or belongs to another church. 
• Our youth program enjoys great leadership and we have sent over 20 youth on mission trips over the past several years. 
• We have been attractive to busy young families for the past several years who have joined us because they like our size, our worship style, and our approach to faith.  [Because Presbyterians acknowledge God's sovereignty, we are reluctant to say we can fully speak on God's behalf.  As fallible humans, we could be wrong.  So we profess what we do know (Jesus Christ is Lord!), believe faith is a journey guided by the Holy Spirit, and celebrate that God is a good all the time.] 
• We welcome the fellowship of some who are not members but are active in the work and worship of the church. 

You might be a good match for our church if you, after prayerful consideration, feel God is calling you to be part of a church where you will be nurtured by the church and also actively share your gifts and talents. 

History:  In 1839, the First Presbyterian Church of Bloomington, now Muscatine, was organized. Construction of our current Gothic-style building began in 1855. A classroom wing was added in 1915 and a major renovation was completed in 1986. In 1976 the building was listed as an American Presbyterian and Reformed Historical Site and in 1977 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.  The sanctuary was extensively remodeled in 2004-5, featuring a more open and flexible chancel area, improved sound system, video equipment, and a larger gathering space in the entrance/narthex. 

In summary, First Presbyterian Church is a place where all are welcome to gather to worship, study, work, and fellowship together - experiencing God's active presence so that we may reach out into the community, and the world, to meet the needs of God's people. We hope you will join us!

The Session

God calls elders as spiritual leader to provide oversight and to strengthen and nurture the faith and life of the congregation.  Our current session (council) includes:

Paul Drawbaugh, MIke Eversmeyer, Chloerine Holliday, Barb Housley, Gary Meerdink, Vern Ohlendorf, Paula Stover, Micki Tripp and Rev. David Ivie (Moderator).  The Clerk of Session is Carolyn Ohlendorf. 

The Board of Deacons

God calls deacons to ministries of sympathy, witness and service after the example of Jesus Christ.  The current Board of Deacons:

Al Airola, Julie Engelkemier, Kip Fisher, Robert Lande, Meredith Leavens, Kim McClanahan, Christi Nelson, Ingrid Rowe, Marcia Werner and Judy Ward. 

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (USA): Who Are We?

"In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit, we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives, even as we watch for God’s new heaven and new earth praying, ‘Come Lord Jesus.’" —From a Brief Statement of Faith

Presbuteros, the Greek word meaning elder, is used 72 times in the New Testament. It provided the name for the Presbyterian family of churches, which includes the Reformed churches of the world. Both Presbyterian and Reformed are synonymous with churches of the Calvinist tradition.

In America, the first presbytery was organized in 1706, the first synod in 1717; the first General Assembly was held in 1789. Today’s Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) was created by the 1983 reunion of the two main branches of Presbyterians in America, separated since the Civil War: the Presbyterian Church in the U.S. and the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. The latter had been created by the union of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the United Presbyterian Church of North America in 1958.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is distinctly a confessional and a connectional church, distinguished by the representation of elders—men and women—in its government.  The PC(USA) is a member of several ecumenical organizations, including the National Council of Churches, the World Council of Churches and The World Alliance of Reformed Churches.  We have been in full communion with the Lutheran Church (ELCA), the Reformed Church in America, and the United Church of Christ (UCC) since 1997.

To learn more about "Who We Are" in the PC (USA), click here.