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Growing with Christ!
Lifting Up Community!
Spreading God's Love!

Imago Dei Metropolitan Community Church offers spiritual growth and Christ-centered worship to the Rainbow Community preparing people to share their God-given time, talent, and treasures with our church and world.

Join us every Sunday
10:30 AM for our Worship Service
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[ Upcoming Services ]

Join us before Worship Service every Sunday
9:30 AM for Sunday Devotions

Join us every Wednesday
7:00 PM for Mid-Week Reflections

Communion Conversations: A Study Series on the Meaning(s) of the Eucharist

Join Rev. Lance in conversations on the history and meaning(s) of the Eucharist, Holy Communion, and the Lord's Supper. Gathering around "the Table" happens in many ways across cultures and centuries with many different meanings from scripture to suburbia. This small group discussion series will be four weeks taking place in the sanctuary space of Imago Dei MCC.

There will be plenty to share and learn together around the Table of Fellowship; and on the fourth night, those who gather will be encouraged to participate in a potluck reminiscent of the kind of table fellowship Jesus participated in during his ministry.

Wednesdays

July 8th - July 29th

7:00 PM

Vespers (7 PM) & Lectio Divina (8 PM)

Every First & Third Wednesday beginning in September 2009

Are you searching for everyday sacredness?

Perhaps you are more interested in faith as a way of life rather than as a system of beliefs? Brian Mclaren writes, you can’t take an epidural shot to ease the pain of giving birth to character.

One can not go to the McJesus restaurant menu found on some corner of a highway of life looking for fast spiritual food that is both healthy and feeds the whole being of a person. For faith as a way of life, one must cultivate spiritual practices that are as ancient as the days in which Jesus walked among his disciples along the Sea of Galilee.

There are ancient ways that can teach us to practice peace, joy, self-mastery, and justice. There are old disciplines, such as contemplative prayer, meditation, and spiritual reading that will do for our souls what exercise does for our bodies and study does for our mind.

An ancient practice with a contemporary purpose…is this something that you might be interested in participating in this fall?

Imago Dei MCC will begin an evening worship service known as vespers (Evening Prayers) followed by lectio divina in early September.

What is vespers?

Vespers simply means “evening prayers.” This is an evening prayer service which involves music, spiritual readings, contemplative prayer and meditation. Saint Benedict of the Sixth Century is credited with originating vespers that is followed in Catholic, Orthodox, and some Protestant denominations.

Vespers—Evening Prayer at Imago Dei MCC will involve much of what we are accustomed to on any given Sunday with music, liturgy, scripture, and prayers. There will be no sermon. The service will last approximately fifty (50) minutes; and will be followed by lectio divina.

What is lectio divina?

Lectio divina simply means divine reading, spiritual reading, or "holy reading," and represents a ancient Christian practice of prayer and scriptural reading intended to engender communion with the Triune God, while also increasing one’s knowledge of God's Word.

It is a way of praying with Scripture that calls one to study, ponder, listen and, in the case of Imago Dei MCC, discuss together before closing out our evening in prayer.

Brother Michael Casey writes, the Bible is an instrument of salvation only because it challenges our habitual beliefs, attitudes, and behavior. As soon as it begins only to confirm and reinforce our own views it is reduced to the status of a hand puppet.

There are many ways to read parts of Bible…

[1] Medicine Chest – find a text to fit your “ailment”

[2] Cutting the Bible – open to a random page and read

[3] Grazing – skip through to your favorite parts

[4] Liturgical – read only what is read in church

All of these ways of opening the Bible may be valid, but are they invaluable to your faith development becoming formed into a way of life?

…there is also one way to read a whole book of the Bible

Lectio divina involves allowing ourselves to be led to God by an experienced guide. Our attitude toward the author of the text we shall study will act as our mentor in which we may develop openness, trust, and confidence; and a friendship will develop between us and our author. Making friends with the author of our text demands that we really try to hear what is being said as distinct from what we would expect to be said.

Imago Dei MCC will study the Gospel of John and we will go as fast or as slow as the Spirit leads us meeting the first and third Wednesday of every month beginning at 8 PM (following Vespers) lasting for fifty (50) minutes.

Imago Dei MCC is a suburban Philadelphia member of the denomination of Metropolitan Community Churches, an international fellowship of Christian congregations. There are currently 250 member congregations in 23 countries, and the Fellowship has a specific outreach to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender families and communities. Located in central Delaware County, Pennsylvania, worshipers attend from eastern Chester County, lower Montgomery County, South Jersey, Wilmington and Northern Delaware.

Reverend Karla's Korner: words from our pastor

Testifying and Story-telling

“We live up to the stories we live under! Are you living up to the story God intended for you or are you living up to somebody else’s story for you?”

I make that statement and ask that question often because I believe it...

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Integrating the Theory of Process with Native American Mythology

In the beginning of time, Creator sat the children around in a circle on Mother Earth and told each race about its individual responsibilities and its roles in the great sacred hoop of life. The sacred teachings were divided into...

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We Need Your Feedback!

Tell us how you feel about Imago Dei by filling out the Imago Dei MCDC Congregational survey!

We want to hear from both current and previous attendees, and from first-time visitors and long term members. The survey has 25 questions and should take less than 10 minutes to complete. Your responses are confidential and the survey is being hosted at an independent web site. You can access the survey by clicking here.