DUE TO THE EXTREME HEAT FORECAST, THE ORGAN RECITAL IS CANCELED:

Join organist Bálint Karosi for Let Freedom Ring, a celebratory Independence Day recital on Friday, July 3 at 3 PM at the First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia.

Performed on the church’s distinguished American-made Reuter organ, the program commemorates the 250th anniversary of the United States through a rich and colorful survey of American organ music. Works by Horatio Parker, Dudley Buck, Charles Ives, and Florence Price will explore the many voices of the American musical tradition, from hymn-inspired grandeur and transcendental lyricism to bold modernism.

The recital will also feature live improvisations by Bálint Karosi on audience-submitted themes, continuing the historic American tradition of spontaneous organ performance.

Let Freedom Ring celebrates the organ as one of America’s great civic and sacred instruments in the historic city where the nation first declared its independence!

Join us for a guided tour of First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, on Monday, June 29 from 11 am to 2 pm. Each 20-25 minute tour will offer an intimate glimpse into one of America's most historic congregations. 

Established in 1698—nearly 80 years before the nation's founding—First Church has served as the birthplace of organized Presbyterianism in America, counting three signers of the Declaration of Independence and two Constitutional Convention delegates among its early members. The current building at 21st & Walnut, erected in 1872 by Second Church (with whom First Church reunited in 1949), is a cruciform sanctuary filled with remarkable artistry: Tiffany Studios windows, a majestic Reuter organ with over 5,000 pipes, the "Prophet Windows" depicting Old Testament figures, and a Steinway grand piano once played by Ignace Paderewski. In addition to the Reuter organ in the gallery, First Presbyterian is home to three European antique organs. In the sanctuary stands a Dutch cabinet organ built by Ibe Peters Iben in Emden, Germany, in 1783, incorporating metal pipework and carved figures dating from the seventeenth century. Old Buttonwood Hall houses an antique Italian organ from around 1750 by an anonymous builder from Verona, Italy. The third instrument, dating from 1741, is located in the Music Director’s office on the second floor.

Visitors will also encounter the Washington Chandelier from President George Washington’s house and a 1791 letter from Vice President John Adams. Tours begin in the sanctuary and will explore both the architectural splendor and the congregation’s enduring legacy of faith, from the Great Awakening to the present day. Tours will be led by congregant and author, Michael B. Smith.

The Missions Committee is hosting a Missions Fair on June 28 in Old Buttonwood Hall. We have invited many of our partners join fellowship hour after both the 9 and 11 AM services to talk about ways that you can support their organizations. This will include Habitat for Humanity, The Common Place, the Welcoming Center, Christian Association at University of Pennsylvania, PhillyHouse, William Way, Interfaith Philadelphia, The Attic Youth Center, Stand with Iraqi Christians (SWIC), Camp Sojourner, and Tango Therapy Project. As before, there will be a raffle with three winners who will be able to choose which of our partners will be given a $100 contribution. Please join us!

Join us as a group of T&Ts volunteer with Books Through Bars on Saturday, June 27 from 11 AM to 1 PM.   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!

Join First Church T&Ts for our regular brunch outing on Sunday, June 14. We’ll gather in Old Buttonwood following the 11 am service and walk together to dine at Goldie at 1911 Sansom Street. If you’d like to join us, please RSVP to Laura so we can include you on a reservation!

Volunteers are needed on Sunday, June 14th in Old Buttonwood Hall for a Casserole Extravaganza starting at 10 AM (between 9 AM and 11 AM worship services). This popular volunteer activity provides an opportunity to bond with fellow casserole-assemblers while serving our neighbors in West Philadelphia. We put together 30 to 40 casseroles for the University City Hospitality Coalition (UCHC), which provides free meals for those experiencing food insecurity. Join us for a time of fellowship and service! Contact Laura Colee to volunteer.

Join us for a special guided tour of religious and devotional art at the Princeton Art Museum on the Princeton University campus. The guided tour will last approximately an hour, leaving time to explore other areas of the museum on your own. Please register to attend (and please re-register if you registered for the originally scheduled tour), as the number of participants will be capped at 20.

Journey through the history of Christian art and uncover how artists across centuries respond to and transformed their faith, with art historian and Princeton seminarian Louisa Raitt. This course will provide a brief survey and illuminate the stories behind a smattering of sacred paintings, sculptures, and icons from the early church to the modern era. The experience culminates in a guided visit to the Princeton University Art Museum on June 13, where participants will engage directly with extraordinary works from the museum’s collection both as works of historical and cultural significance and sites of devotional encounter with the divine. (MacColl Room)

First Church is heading to an afternoon Phillies Game on Saturday, June 6 at 4:05 PM (against the Chicago White Sox). First Church will cover $24 of each ticket, so individuals will be responsible for $20 of the remaining price per seat. To reserve one of the 30 tickets we have purchased, please RSVP to Laura Colee (laura.colee@fpcphila.org).

Please join us in Old Buttonwood Hall for a “Welcome to Summer” fellowship brunch between our 9 AM Celebration! Service and our 11 AM traditional service.  This combined fellowship is part of the Deacons’ efforts to maximize fellowship and connection between congregants from each service.

**Note that the Celebration service will be held in the sanctuary at 9 AM so the Deacons can prepare for the brunch in Old Buttonwood Hall.

Our T&Ts and fpcQ crew will be gathering for a Rooftop Happy Hour at Larry Slagle and Mete Egemen’s house in Center City. Join us for drinks, conversation, and community! Please RSVP to Larry !

Interfaith Philadelphia will be hosting their monthly Young Adult Brunch series this month at First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia! Join folks in their 20s-30s from all faith backgrounds monthly for meaningful dialogue across lines of difference, building community and explore timely social & cultural topics…all over brunch! Register here or on the Interfaith Philadelphia website.

Join Dr. Baron Mullis for an informal discussion of faith on May 17 at 10 AM in the MacColl Room. Participants will watch noted New Testament scholar Amy-Jill Levine’s TED Talk on Life After Death: Jesus, Judaism, and Justice, in which she examines Jesus's claim to be “the way, the truth, and the life” from an interfaith perspective. A discussion will follow. This program will be in lieu of a Parent Coffee during May; all are welcome to join!

Eternal Light: A Celebration of American Choral Tradition

The First Presbyterian Church Choir presents a concert that traces 250 years of American choral tradition through music of profound beauty, faith, and innovation.

This program honors the rich lineage of American sacred music, beginning with William Billings of Boston, widely regarded as the country’s first choral composer. His pioneering voice laid the foundation for a tradition that continues to evolve even today. The concert also features spirituals as shaped by composers such as William Dawson, Florence Price, and Alice Parker, whose works preserves and elevates this deeply expressive and essential part of the American musical heritage.

Contemporary voices bring new dimensions to this tradition. Excerpts from David Lang’s Poor Hymnal (2023) offer a striking and contemplative reimagining of communal song, adding a modern layer of spiritual reflection. Music by Caroline Shaw, including And the Swallow (2016), represents the creativity and originality of today’s composers, building on the past while speaking with a distinct and personal voice.

The program also includes excerpts from Music Director Bálint Karosi’s new composition, The Seven Last Words, with Paul Fleckenstein on the organ. This work contributes a fresh perspective to the ongoing story of sacred music in America.

The concert concludes with selections from Morten Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna, a luminous and deeply moving work that brings the program to a close with a sense of peace, hope, and radiant beauty.

A reception will follow in Old Buttonwood Hall. All are warmly invited to attend this celebration of tradition, innovation, and the enduring light of choral music.

Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $20 to support Concerts at First.

After worship on May 10, our T&T Book Club will be discussing the final chapter entitled “Love” of Jesus and the Disinherited by Black minister, theologian, and Civil Rights leader Howard Thurman.

If you’d like to join us and are in need of a copy of the book, please let us know at youngadults@fpcphila.org!

Join us after worship on Sunday, May 3rd as our T&Ts grab boba tea across the street at the Tea House Café. Please let Laura (youngadults@fpcphila.org) know if you’d like to join so we can look out for you!

In this class, Cindy Jarvis will lead us in tracing the history and basic beliefs of this movement, critiquing it from the perspective of our own Reformed theological tradition. The class will also consider the text of an overture (OVT-002) that will be before the PCUSA General Assembly “Repudiating Christian Nationalism and Affirming Our Faith Commitments.”

Join our team for the Sojourner Truth Walk on May 2nd! 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.

We’re suiting up again! Join your fellow T&Ts as we attempt to crack codes, dodge lasers, and disarm a giant paint bomb within an hour. We’ll meet at Beat the Bomb (1218 Chestnut Street) on Thursday, April 23 at 7 pm for this escape-room activity. If you’re interested in joining us, please RSVP!

As part of its SpringFest, the Philadelphia Film Society is screening the documentary, Jane Elliott Against the World. 

Premiering at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival to excellent reviews, the film profiles a rural schoolteacher who becomes a national voice against racism after leading a 1968 lesson in discrimination with her all-white third day class. Now nearly ninety, she refuses to hold back amid today's fights about race, history, and power after a lifetime of speaking out.

Jane Elliott Against the World
Wednesday, April 22, 6:30 p.m. (runtime 99 minutes)
Philadelphia Film Society East
125 S. 2nd Street, Philadelphia 19106

We are currently negotiating tickets and pricing. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP ASAP!

After worship throughout the month of April, our T&T Book Club will be discussing individual chapters of Jesus and the Disinherited by Black minister, theologian, and Civil Rights leader Howard Thurman.

On April 19 we’ll be discussing Chapter 4, “Hate.”

If you’d like to join us and are in need of a copy of the book, please let us know at youngadults@fpcphila.org!

We invite parents to join us for our Young Families Please Touch Museum Trip on Sunday, April 19. FPC Families will meet at the PTM around 11:15 am and spend a few hours playing together. FPC will cover the cost of entrance tickets. Please email Laura if you are interested and let her know how many tickets you will need.

First Church is holding a new members class on April 12.  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.

Parents will gather in the MacColl Room after the Celebration! service to find community, engage in meaningful discussion, and form connections with other parents here at First Church. Come to share, learn, and spend time with other parents while the children are cared for at Sunday School or in the nursery.

You are invited to our Spring 2026 FPC Kids’ Night! On Friday, April 10 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 the kids hang out with us, their grown-ups are able to have a night to themselves. (On-street parking will be available with placard!)

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.

If you’re interested in having your child/children attend the Kids Night event, please register!

All are invited to a panel discussion between author Courtney McKinney-Whitaker, Don Mullen, and David Latimer, moderated by Stephen McKinney-Whitaker at Carpenters’ Hall (320 Chestnut Street). The panel will discuss McKinney-Whitaker's new book, Charles Thomson: Irish Emigrant, American Founder and the historic connection between Ireland and the United States.

Founding Father Charles Thomson was an elder of the First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia; he was elected secretary of the First Continental Congress in 1774, a position he held until George Washington was elected as President in 1789.

The evening will feature appetizers and refreshments, a short historical scene featuring Founding Father Charles Thomson and artifacts on display from Charles Thomson's estate courtesy of Harriton House. This event is presented in partnership with the Irish American Business Chamber & Network, The Harriton Association, and the Government of Ireland.

The T&Ts are joining the Christian Association at UPenn (118 S. 37th Street) for dinner on Wednesday, April 8 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.

First Presbyterian will join with Salt & Light Church on Wednesday, April 8, at 12 noon to lead a peaceful prayer vigil in support of immigrant respect and safety in front of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Philadelphia Field Office at 114 N. 8th Street (on the corner of 8th & Cherry Streets). This is part of a 40-week series of prayer vigils initiated by the New Sanctuary Movement (NSM) of Philadelphia and sponsored by various Philadelphia faith communities. NSM builds community across faith, ethnicity, and class in their work to end injustices against immigrants regardless of immigration status and to express radical welcome for all.

This vigil will be led jointly by clergy from First Presbyterian Church and Salt & Light Church, and will include words of inspiration taken from Scripture, song, and prayer. It will last approximately 45 minutes.

Our T&T Book Club has returned in 2026! From March 1 through April 12, we’ll meet every other Sunday after 11 am worship to discuss the book Jesus and the Disinherited by Black minister, theologian, and Civil Rights leader, Howard Thurman.

On March 29, we’ll be discussing Chapter 3, “Deception.”

If you’d like to join us and are in need of a copy of the book, please let us know at youngadults@fpcphila.org!