Learning for All Ages
Children
Ages Four and Under
Children four and under are welcome in the nursery, which is professionally staffed by two licensed childcare providers. Conveniently located near the nave/sanctuary, the nursery operates from 9 a.m. until the end of the Sunday service.
Preschool to 5th Grade
Godly Play for children from preschool to 5th grade begins at 9 a.m. every Sunday in the classrooms on the 3rd floor. It is an extension of our offering of children’s learning. Children join the circles and explore the stories of our inherited faith in circles of trusted friends. Our teachers spent time this past summer in training from the Godly Play Foundation and are ready to share God’s love with our kids.
Explore our opportunities for youth 9 and up on this page!
Youth 6th to 12th Grade
Join us every Sunday at 9 a.m. for Youth Formation, an engaging program for youth in 6th–12th grade, designed to foster fellowship, spiritual exploration, and service. Led by Meredith Seaton and Mother Brittany, Youth Formation takes place in the third-floor archive room and includes activities like discussions, service projects, and spiritual practices. Each month, we focus on a different theme to help youth connect with their faith in meaningful ways; in September, we are exploring the practice of prayer. The program lasts 45 minutes, allowing our youth to participate in the 10 a.m. service as acolytes, junior ushers, or children's worship leaders. Learn about these opportunities here! Youth Formation is an opportunity for young people to grow in faith, build friendships, and become active participants in our church community.
Children’s Worship 10 a.m.
Children aged 5 and over are invited to worship in our new chapel space on the 3rd floor. Children who have participated in Godly Play may choose to step across the hall to participate in an interactive Liturgy of the Word while others arriving at 10 may simply join in the children’s chapel. Children’s worship covers the first portion of the Sunday service, with reading of our sacred stories and saying of prayers taking place in a more interactive manner. This Liturgy of the Word for children will parallel the liturgy taking place with the rest of the congregation in the nave/sanctuary. Children and teachers will then join their parents and the rest of the congregation in the nave/sanctuary during the exchange of the Peace, for the Liturgy of the Table and communion with the entire faith family.
Children may instead choose to go directly to the nave/sanctuary at 10 a.m. to attend the entire service. They are invited to use “Listening Pages,” which provide work for busy hands while listening to and participating in the liturgy.
Note: While the entire nave/sanctuary is certainly available for children and families, we have secured a small section of seating for the parents of our youngest children. It is, by design, convenient to the nursery and restrooms.
Adults
Adult Forum
Adult Forum gathers around coffee and snacks every Sunday morning at 9 a.m. in the Garden Room.
Guided by a variety of speakers and teachers, going deeper in conversation, we explore ways to articulate our identity as people of an ancient faith in these modern times.
Touching the Soul Book Group
What good literature can do and does do . . . is touch the human soul. – Karen Swallow Prior, The Atlantic, 2013
The St. Paul’s Touching the Soul Book Group is open to everyone. We generally meet twice a month, Sundays, 11:45, in St. Paul’s Conference Room. You can also participate via Zoom if you let us know in advance. Please register (by emailing nancyeday@gmail.com) so we can send you updates, discussion questions, and time changes. View our schedule here!
Education for Ministry (EfM)
"Renew in these your servants the covenant you made with them at Baptism.”
This is what we ask from God during the Service of Confirmation. It includes proclaiming by word and example the Good News of God in Christ – each one of us needs help doing this.
EfM is an adult ministry helping members and friends of St. Paul’s church to build lives of faith and service through theological reflection and study. EfM is not preparation for ordination. Indeed, all baptized Christians are called to be active participants in the church's total ministry, and EfM prepares you for the ministry to which you are called. It is that vocation for which we pray at the end of the Eucharist: "And now, Father, send us out to do the work you have given us to do, to love and serve you as faithful witnesses of Christ our Lord."
The EfM program consists of seminar groups of six to twelve participants and a trained mentor who meet weekly over the course of a nine-month academic year. The EfM curriculum is developed and maintained by theologians and scholars at Sewanee - the University of the South. For more detailed information, please visit their website.
We Would Love to Include You!
The EfM year begins with a retreat held at St. Paul’s on the Sunday after Labor Day. Regular meetings are held on a weekday evening, starting the week following the retreat through mid-May. Watch for opportunities to enroll mid-summer.
Contact: Marie Thompson, Mentor, thompsonmarie@umkc.edu.
For the past two years, the EfM group has offered beautiful Good Friday Meditations. They shared them with the congregation members, who were invited to pause at 6 p.m. on Good Friday and to enter into a time of private, yet shared, reflection and prayer. Resources included the poem Good Friday 1613 – Riding Westward, by John Donne, the lyrics of the hymn, Stabat Mater, and the opportunity to immerse yourself in a symphonic recording of that work. The resources provided at the links above will give you the poem, the hymn, and a link to the recording, along with additional information about the authors and their history. We share them here, as the mediation is meaningful year-round.
Episcopal Church Women (ECW)
Originally organized nationally in 1871, the ECW at St. Paul’s is an informal chapter which gathers monthly, welcoming people to come as they are able without requiring membership of any kind, alternating our get-togethers between members’ homes and the church. We enjoy occasional speakers, seasonal fellowship, and are often recruited to help with various outreach and educational projects across the ministries of St. Paul’s. This is a unique opportunity to relax and learn from the experiences of a wondrous variety of ages, stages, incomes and backgrounds of women who gather to support one another, learn stuff, and have fun. The common denominator of our members is love of God and the wish to do God's work. Our vision for the Episcopal Church is that we come together as a peacemaking, healing part of the Church. Contact: Beth Herbers, bethherbers@gmail.com.