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Fairview is open seven days a week. Our Early Childhood Program, adult day care, studios, other church programs and community groups keep this place hopping sometimes until late at night. Sunday is the busiest and most important day of our week.
Sunday starts about 8:30. You will find our minister, John Koppitch making last minute arrangements for our early 8:45 service. This is a less traditional, intimate service with about 20 people attending. It is increasingly popular with our early risers and folks who don’t have to get kids fed, dressed and out the door. Although there is child care available for parents who are up to the challenge. It gets a a little noisy around 9:30. That’s when most children and their parents start arriving for Church School. Classes start at 9:45. There is something going on in almost every room. We have classes and study groups for kids as young as 4 and adults as old as they get. Child care is available. If you are timid, join the spiritual dropouts in the kitchen. The coffee and conversation are free. A few minutes to eleven, our organist Dana Milan fires up the restored Schantz pipe organ. The sanctuary swells with wonderful music as we prepare physically and spiritually for worship. On a typical Sunday you’ll find about 160 people in the pews. We are a pretty diverse group. A fourth of us are under 40. Half of us are under 60. The other half is over 60 years young. Some of us walk to Fairview. Most members live within 10 miles of church. Rev. John Koppitch and his family joined us in 1995. John has a lot of different preaching styles. One Sunday he’s the traditional man in black behind the pulpit. The next he’s walking and talking. The next he’s role playing. Although John changes styles, his message is clear, provoking and relevant to our daily lives. There is child care and church school for our young members. On the odd chance John’s sermon doesn’t knock your socks off, our choir will. Music director John Schmid leads a chorus of 30 voices. At Fairview, music is a ministry unto itself. When the service is over, don’t run out the door. There is coffee and stuff to eat downstairs in Fellowship Hall. It is a good place to meet people, discuss the fine points of Presbyterian theology, or talk about something really important like the Colts, the Pacers and the weather. Fairview Then & Now In 1924 the members of Grace and Fourth Presbyterian Churches took a bold step. They voted to merge their congregations into one church in a new area of the city. The "temporary" chapel, built in 1924 was enlarged to become the first sanctuary. Continued growth made necessary a larger building which was dedicated in 1952. A Christian Education wing was added ten years later. Worship is an important way we express our faith in God. As we worship, we respond to God’s grace in prayer and praise, discover the new life which God offers everyone, and learn to give ourselves to God in joyful service to others. While we encourage our children to be present with us in worship, a nursery is available for children under kindergarten age. The Sacraments of Baptism and observance of the Lord’s Supper are regular and significant parts of Fairview’s worship. In addition to Sunday Services, we gather for special worship on Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Christmas Eve. As Christians and disciples of Jesus Christ, we never stop learning. Sunday church school classes for children and adults are a special part of our congregational life. During the week there are many opportunities for growth in bible studies, music, Confirmation, Inquirer classes, special studies and retreats. |
