SHADYSIDE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Welcome to Shadyside Presbyterian Church’s web home! We’re delighted you’ve found our web site; we’d love to welcome you in person. We hope you will take the time to learn more about our faith community by browsing through the site. Below, we’ve collected answers to a few of the most common questions first-time visitors may have.

Of course, we invite you to contact the church office if you have a question or concern which you don’t feel is addressed on the site. Please don’t hesitate to call 412.682.4300 or send an email message to webmaster@shadysidepres.org.

Where is the church located?
The church is situated on the corner of Westminster Place and Amberson Avenue, just one block off Fifth Avenue in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Get a map and directions here.

What to expect
Some might see our impressive stone building as intimidating and surmise that it houses an affluent congregation that might be cold and unfriendly, but we’re eager for you to encounter Christ through some of the warmest and most welcoming folks you’ll ever get to know. If you are curious about our worship practices or style, please visit the worship archive on the site – where you can listen to full-length audio files of recent Sundays’ worship services and sermons.

What to wear
When you arrive at Shadyside Presbyterian Church, you’ll find folks in coats and ties as well as shorts and sandals. Please feel comfortable joining us as we worship the God who always sees us as we are.

Parking
Plenty of on-street parking is available surrounding the church. On Sunday mornings, parking is even permissible on both sides of Fifth Avenue in the area surrounding the intersection with Amberson Avenue. A limited number of handicapped parking spaces are reserved along Westminster Place.

Where to go
If you are arriving for Sunday morning worship at 11:00 a.m., enter through the large wooden double doors which open facing the sidewalk of Amberson Avenue. We always have greeters posted at these doors to welcome those gathering for worship. (There is also a cloak room entrance which faces Westminster Place. The cloak room adjoins the narthex – so you’ll end up in the same place.)

During the week, you’ll find it most convenient to enter by way of the office entrance. Due to the renovation construction presently underway, please access the building from the doors which open onto the semi-circular driveway connecting to Amberson Avenue.

The church is accessible to individuals with disabilities.

What about the kids?
Throughout Shadyside Presbyterian Church, we are eager for children to learn that the church is a special place for them, where they belong, are loved, have friends, and find important service to do.

• On Sunday mornings, Shadyside Presbyterian Church offers a Nursery for the youngest among us (infants through pre-schoolers) beginning at 9:30 a.m. The Nursery remains open through the close of worship.
• Age-appropriate Christian education for children and youth occurs from 9:45 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. on Sunday mornings.
• Children join their families for worship at 11:00 a.m.; children age four through fifth grade may choose to exit with their teachers before the sermon to participate in children’s worship activities. (Any parent who would like to accompany a child to children’s activities is always welcome to do so.)

These options are only a brief overview of our children’s program. For details on the full range of children’s offerings available at Shadyside, you may wish to visit the Children’s Ministry page of the site.

What we believe
Shadyside Presbyterian Church is a member of the Pittsburgh (PA) Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Visit the following link, which offers an excellent summary of Presbyterian history and beliefs: www.pcusa.org/101/

Becoming a member of Shadyside Presbyterian Church
Persons may enter into active church membership by profession of faith, reaffirmation of faith in Jesus Christ, or transfer of certificate from some other church. College students especially may wish to consider becoming affiliate members, an option which allows them to remain a member of their “home” churches in another city or state while making Shadyside their “home away from home.” Of course, nonmembers are always welcome to participate in the life and worship of this church.

If you are interested in joining Shadyside Presbyterian Church, please call the church office at 412.692.4300 to register for the next new member class or to speak to the Reverend Lynn M. Portz, Associate Pastor for Parish Life.