Youth Ministry Koinonia

What is Koinonia?

Koinonia is a Greek word found throughout the New Testament. Koinonia is the word used when the disciples break bread together and share communion. The connotation of the word Koinonia is a sense of community, of sharing all things in common, and of welcoming everyone to Christ’s table.

We have chosen the theme of Koinonia for our youth ministry at Westminster Presbyterian Church (WPC) because it is our hope that we are constantly working towards embodying Koinonia within our youth ministry, our congregation, and our larger community.

What opportunities for involvement in the youth ministry are there at WPC?

Sunday School:
We meet each Sunday morning throughout the school year from 9:45 - 10:45 am. We’ll start off in the Gym at 9:45 am with donuts and coffee, then gather as a group for announcements, and head into our classrooms around 10:00 am.

6th Grade:
6th graders are welcome to join the Koinonia Youth Ministry in the Gym at 9:45 am beginning in January. In the fall, the 6th graders go directly to their classroom. The curriculum during this year is an overview of the New Testament.

7th Grade:
7th graders begin their two-year Confirmation process with an overview of the Bible. Central to this year is beginning to understand the concept of grace, or God’s unconditional love.

At the end of this year, all 7th graders participate in a retreat, during which they have the opportunity to explore the notion of God’s grace, recap important Biblical stories, and fellowship with one another.

8th Grade: 
8th graders learn about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the church, and sacraments during the second half of their confirmation process. As a part of these five units, scripture is examined and the beliefs of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) are discussed and explained.

At the end of this year, all 8th graders participate in a confirmation retreat, during which they write a class creed and create a banner that symbolizes their beliefs.

9th – 12th Grades:
High School Sunday School is issue-based, and focuses on topics of relevance for high school students. As part of Sunday School, the Bible is often juxtaposed with items from popular culture, including television shows and movie clips.

Youth Group:
Each Sunday evening, beginning September 11, we’ll meet from 6:05 - 7:00 pm for dinner, Bible study, games, and fellowship.

Junior High (7th and 8th grades in the fall; 6th grade joins beginning in January) meet in FH-186 (“The Cave”).

Senior High (9th – 12th grades) meet in FH-190 (“The Couch Room”).

Tuesday Morning Bible Studies:
All high school youth are welcome to join us at the Belle Meade Bread and Company (on Highway 100) on Tuesday mornings at 6:45 am. We meet each week for breakfast, Bible study, and fellowship.

Basketball:
Our Basketball Interest Meeting is scheduled for Sunday, October 23 at 12:00 pm in the Fellowship Hall. Please plan to join us if you are interested in playing! Each team practices once during the week and plays games on Saturdays. The games are played against other churches in the West End Sertoma League. The WPC teams are listed below:

• Girls’ Team
• Junior High Boys’ Team
• 9th Grade Boys’ Team
• 10th Grade Boys’ Team
• 11th Grade Boys’ Team
• 12th Grade Boys’ Team

MissionTrips 2012

Junior High:
This trip is open to everyone who has completed 6th, 7th, or 8th grades. The Junior High Mission Trip to Asheville, NC will be Sunday, June 17 - Friday, June 22.  Please email Claire to let her know if you're planning to participate in the Mission Trip or if you have any questions. Click here for more information.

Senior High:
This trip is open to everyone who has completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grades. The Senior High Mission Trip will be Sunday, June 3 - Friday, June 8.  Click here for more information.

Preston Taylor Ministries: 
Preston Taylor Ministries (PTM) was founded in 1998 to confront many of the problems present in the Preston Taylor public housing area, like drug use, gang involvement, teenage pregnancy, illiteracy, poor school performance and crime. In order to provide hope for children and families living in this environment, PTM sponsors several avenues for building life-changing relationships. At PTM it's about relationships.

The Koinonia Youth Ministry partners with PTM to build relationships between youth who are active at WPC and youth who are active at PTM. Once a month, WPC youth either go to PTM to read, play games, and have fun with the children and youth there or we host a holiday party at WPC.