First Church is holding a new members class on May 18.  Our membership class is an opportunity for you to learn more about our history and our values, how our past has shaped us and how we believe God is leading our church in the present.  You can attend for information only, and those who wish to join will be received into membership that day.  If you’re interested in attending, please contact Rev. Laura Colee.

During the months of May and June, Adult CE will focus on the theme of "rest" in preparation for and in connection with Baron's upcoming sabbatical.

Join Elaine Hanby to learn about various types of rest and how different community members practice these types of rest. It's not just sleep, and this session will facilitate the chance to learn from one another about what is rest and how we rest. The session will leave you with practices to consider implementing into your own life – or just a moment of quiet.

Join us for our first Boomers’ Cinema outing to view the newly-released film Lilly, a powerful biopic starring Academy Award nominee Patricia Clarkson, the film is based on the true story of working class Lilly Ledbetter, who battled the system after she learned as she neared retirement that she’d been paid half the salary of other workers.

Showtime is Thursday, May 15 @ 1:00-2:30 PM with post-film conversation to follow.  Reduced bargain matinee price $9.  Please RSVP by Monday, May 12 to pre-order tickets.

Our T&T Book Club will meet after worship on Sunday, May 4 in the Penns Village office (next to the MacColl Room). We’ll be finishing our discussion of Rachel Held Evan’s book Inspired that day. If you’d like to join us, please RSVP!

During the months of May and June, Adult CE will focus on the theme of "rest" in preparation for and in connection with Baron's upcoming sabbatical.

Our first programs, on May 4, at 9:45 AM and 12:30 PM, will be led by Nate Stucky of Princeton Seminary's Farminary, which works to "challenge society’s 24/7 culture of productivity by following a different rhythm, one that is governed by the seasons and Sabbath." Join us for a discussion of faith in an exhausted world, the hope of a Sabbath rest, and the deep implications of God’s love for a weary world. The programs at 9:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. will be different and complementary - all are invited to come to either or both! 

Join our team for the Sojourner Truth Walk on May 3rd! You can register to be a part of the team or support our team through contributions that go directly to Camp Sojourner, our mission partner who provides leadership programs for girls living in Philadelphia. Email the Missions Committee for more information.

Celebrate the 55th anniversary of Earth Day by learning more on the history of the first Earth Day and early conservationists on both sides of the Delaware River – and how that same spirit rings true in a moment of profound ecological peril and political attacks on our environment. Join Doug O’Malley, Director of Environment New Jersey and FPC member, who will talk about how this same activism led to the passage of our landmark environmental laws – and can be re-channeled into building a broader consensus for environmental preservation, protection of our drinking water and a strengthened resilient clean energy grid. And how we can learn to be sustainable ambassadors of environmental stewardship, as children, parents and grandparents, and talk about the changes we are making with our friends and neighbors. (MacColl Room)

Join us as a group of T&Ts volunteer with Books Through Bars on Saturday, April 26 at 11:30 AM.   We will be filling requests for reading materials for incarcerated individuals in PA and throughout the tri-state area.  If you’d like to join us, please RSPV to Laura Colee!

Our fpcQ (LGBTQ+) and Twenties & Thirties fellowship groups are gathering for a Rooftop Happy Hour at Larry Slagle’s house in Center City. Join us for drinks, conversation, and community! Please RSVP to Larry.

Join us for a fun Easter egg scavenger hunt after the Celebration Service!

• Celebration! Service (9:00 AM)
  Communion will be served and there will be a scavenger hunt following the service.

• Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt following Celebration! (10 AM)

• Traditional Service (11:00 AM)
  The Reverend Dr. Baron Mullis will be preaching, and communion will be served. Music will include Chamber Orchestra and Choir of First Presbyterian; Five Mystical Songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams featuring baritone soloist Musa Ngqungwana.

The Reverend Cindy Jarvis will lead this three-part Bible study as a time to talk together about how we are feeling about and responding to all that is happening to our democracy. We are not the first to find ourselves in this sort of crisis. The biblical narrative invites us seek wisdom from the stories of God’s people who have gone before us.

Three sessions will be held on Sundays @ 12:30 PM in the MacColl Room:

• March 30 - Session I: “The Shadow of Tyranny in Scripture”

• April 6 - Session II: “The Foreshadowing of Mary’s Magnificat”

• April 13- Session III: “The Prophetic Voice”

Read the complete syllabus here. The readings from Timothy Snyder’s book On Tyranny are offered as an additional resource but not necessary for participation in the conversation. Please email or call (215-567-0532) the church office to reserve a copy of the book.

T&Ts will be venturing out to Swarthmore Presbyterian Church for an immersive experience known as a Sound Bath. During this experience, we will have the opportunity to quiet our minds, open our hearts, and embark on a journey of contemplative reflection together. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP to Laura and let us know if you’d like to carpool.

The Reverend Cindy Jarvis will lead this three-part Bible study as a time to talk together about how we are feeling about and responding to all that is happening to our democracy. We are not the first to find ourselves in this sort of crisis. The biblical narrative invites us seek wisdom from the stories of God’s people who have gone before us.

Three sessions will be held on Sundays @ 12:30 PM in the MacColl Room:

• March 30 - Session I: “The Shadow of Tyranny in Scripture”

• April 6 - Session II: “The Foreshadowing of Mary’s Magnificat”

• April 13- Session III: “The Prophetic Voice”

Read the complete syllabus here. The readings from Timothy Snyder’s book On Tyranny are offered as an additional resource but not necessary for participation in the conversation. Please email or call (215-567-0532) the church office to reserve a copy of the book.

FPC folks are joining the Christian Association at UPenn (118 S. 37th Street) for dinner on Wednesday, April 2 at 6:30 PM. We’ll be having Thai food take-out and spending time in conversation with UPenn students and with the wonderful Rev. Megan LeCluyse. Everyone is welcome!! Please RSVP to Laura so we know how much food to order.

Our T&T Book Club will meet after 11 AM worship on Sunday, March 30 in the Penn’s Village Room. We’ll be discussing the pages 115-165 of Rachel Held Evan’s book Inspired together. If you’d like to join us and are in need of copy of the book, please RSVP!

The Reverend Cindy Jarvis will lead this three-part Bible study as a time to talk together about how we are feeling about and responding to all that is happening to our democracy. We are not the first to find ourselves in this sort of crisis. The biblical narrative invites us seek wisdom from the stories of God’s people who have gone before us.

Three sessions will be held on Sundays @ 12:30 PM in the MacColl Room:

• March 30 - Session I: “The Shadow of Tyranny in Scripture”

• April 6 - Session II: “The Foreshadowing of Mary’s Magnificat”

• April 13- Session III: “The Prophetic Voice”

Read the complete syllabus here. The readings from Timothy Snyder’s book On Tyranny are offered as an additional resource but not necessary for participation in the conversation. Please email or call (215-567-0532) the church office to reserve a copy of the book.

Join our regular brunch outing on Sunday, March 23 after the 11 AM worship service. We’ll be going to Hart of Catering & Cafe on 21st & Sansom. If you’d like to join us, please RSVP to Laura Colee.

On Sunday March 16 @ 12:30 PM, Bálint Karosi will play a 30-minute program on the 1750 Historic Italian Organ "Veronica" in Old Buttonwood Hall, with organ works by Girolamo Frescobaldi, Correa de Arauxo and Jan Pietersoon Sweelinck.

Monthly discussions on Reformed theology, based on chapters of Daniel Migliore’s Faith Seeking Understanding, are open to all, including those new to the Reformed tradition and those seeking to deepen their theological understanding. Books are provided for all registrants. The group meets on the third Sunday of most months at 10 AM in the MacColl Room.

The March discussion is “Finishing the Trinity”
Suggested: Chapter 11 - The Holy Spirit and the Christian Life"

To receive a copy of the book, please register online or email the church office.

You are invited to our Spring 2025 FPC Kids Night! On Friday, March 14 from 5-8 pm, kids are welcome to join us at First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia for pizza, snacks, crafts, games, and a movie. While your kids hang out with us, parents and guardians are able to have a night to themselves.  Here’s the info for the event:

• The event is for children 2 years old and up

• There will be a maximum of 20 children at the event

• We will have 3-4 certified adults leading the event, including Pastor Laura

• This event is free for FPC members and regular attendees

WWW will meet on Thursday, March 13th at 2:30 in the MacColl Room for coffee, tea, and the Lake District presentation that was postponed from last month. We'll share munchies and conversation, and then enjoy some beautiful scenery while hearing about some of the people who made the Lake District famous. Please let Diane Rogers know you are coming at womenwitwisdom@fpcphila.org.

The T&Ts are going to a Flyers game! Join us on Tuesday, March 11 at 7 PM as the Philadelphia Flyers take on the Ottawa Senators at the Wells Fargo Center. Tickets will be $20 per person and we only have a few remaining tickets available, so if you’d like to join us for the game, let us know ASAP!

Ash Wednesday marks the start of Lent.  First Church will hold services with imposition of ashes at 12 noon and 7:00 PM.  The evening service will be live streamed.

On street parking is available with placard.

In the Presbyterian Church (USA), women were first ordained as elders in 1930, and they were first ordained as ministers in 1956; today, women serve at every level of the church.  In recognition of Women’s History Month, join a discussion of women in the ministry and leadership of the Presbyterian Church (USA) with Rev. Cindy Jarvis and Rev. Laura Colee on March 2 @ 9:45 AM in the MacColl Room.

Join us for a fun Mardi Gras Celebration service on Sunday, March 2 at 9 AM. Let the good times roll!

Our T&T Book Club will meet after 11 AM worship on Sunday, February 23 in the MacColl Room. We’ll be discussing the pages 59-115 of Rachel Held Evan’s book Inspired together. If you’d like to join us and are in need of copy of the book, please RSVP!

Are you interested in learning more about how theology is relevant to public life in divisive times? We will dive into the work of notable theologian James H. Cone to understand how we can work in and around racial and social divides in our present era. We will meet on February 23 at 9:45 AM in the MacColl Room.