St. Andrew's United Presbyterian Church

Today we worshiped at St. Andrew's United Presbyterian Church, 801 Beaver Street, Sewickley, PA 15143.


Jan’s thoughts:

St. Andrew’s is a small church, but only if you use numbers as your criteria. We visited back in September, surprising my sister and her family who belong there, but today’s visit coincided with Rev. Lynn Portz’s announcement that she’s leaving St. Andrew’s at the end of this month. The members of St. Andrew’s received this bit of news this past week, but unlike many other congregations upon hearing of the pastor’s departure, they didn’t stay away. According to Lynn, “Everyone still came, which is a clear indication of their commitment to each other and, more importantly, to God.” Still it was a difficult service for Lynn and for the congregation, not to mention for Stephen Wutz, the Student Assistant who’s been there since September and who will stay after Lynn leaves, and who preached today.

I enjoyed Stephen’s sermon very much. He read Luke 1:15-20 and 26-38, the readings detailing two very different responses to personal appearances by the angel Gabriel announcing impending parenthood to Zechariah and Mary, Jesus’ mother, respectively. I appreciated the thought-provoking contrast and his challenge to the congregation to respond to the impending changes in their church with the same sort of faith Mary exhibited.

The Sanctuary features a beautiful dark wood ceiling and intricate, mostly rose-colored stained glass. The pews are curved all around, which is aesthetically pleasing. Although I was able to hear and understand Lynn perfectly, it was more difficult (though certainly not impossible) to understand Stephen. Perhaps the difference is between a wireless mike and one mounted on the pulpit? I freely admit that I don’t know enough about the whys and wherefores of those sorts of things, I can only speak of what I heard.

The people were very friendly, some even recalling my name from our September visit. They put my memory to shame, I’m afraid!

The time of greeting during the service is sometimes a tricky thing for visitors. People tend to greet those they know, but a strange face usually requires eye-to-eye contact or that I initiate the greeting. Consequently I was pleasantly surprised when a couple of people at St. Andrew’s tapped my shoulder and made it a point to speak to me.

The bulletin is only one folded page and a single half-page, so aside from the Order of Worship there are general housekeeping items such as a thank you to the Deacons for weekly refreshments, due date for poinsettia orders, and the like. The Order of Worship is easy to follow, though, and the type is larger than usual, which is something I appreciate the older I get.

Some signs would be helpful, especially a large one on the outside door that leads to the church office and is therefore locked Sunday morning. That’s hardly a big deal on a nice spring day, but on a blustery day like this I was anxious to get inside and had to go back down the stairs before I could enter through the other door.

I’ve found St. Andrew’s to be a friendly place to worship. I’ll be interested to see what happens following Lynn’s departure.

Bob’s thoughts:

St. Andrew’s could benefit from some signage (which one is the front door?); rest rooms themselves were marked but visitors could use directional signs to the area.

I appreciated the old Presbyterian architecture with great stained glass and wood ceiling.

For an older building and mostly older congregation I found it interesting that the last pew had been moved to make more room for baby carriers. Not realizing this, we sat in this pew first. By the time we figured out the reason for so much extra leg room, Jan’s sister & family had arrived so we moved to sit with them. Perhaps this is another spot where a sign would be helpful.

The acoustics were so poor at our last visit that I wasn’t optimistic in going back, but the minister was clear and understandable. Perhaps they just need mikes for others who speak.

The wood pews are dried out and noisy, and the organ drowned out the singing, but with about 40 worshipers, that’s easy to do.

With those few people Communion could have been very personal, but the elements were passed silently. Does anyone in the Presbyterian Church speak while passing the elements of Communion?

Parking is limited, but plenty of on-street spots are available nearby.

Everything I experienced seemed to indicate otherwise, but I felt that God would like to lead this church to a young adult ministry.

Stephen, the seminary student, delivered a good message under tough circumstances (the Pastor taking another call).

A request was printed in the bulletin that everyone stay after worship to help decorate the Sanctuary and Fellowship room, and it looked like almost everyone did stay. There’s a strong sense of unity in this church, so it didn’t surprise me.

I thought this visit was a marked improvement from our visit September 7.