Metropolitan Weekly Newsletter - Week of April 19, 2026
- Evan Taylor
- 1 day ago
- 8 min read
Metropolitan,
We encourage your presence this week in Morning Meditations with Metropolitan starting at 6:50 am for music and meditation Monday through Friday; and the Men's Prayer Call at 7:30 am on Monday; Comfort, Care, Lament and Share is Thursday at 7pm on Zoom; Noon Day and Pastor's Study is on break.
Engage in ministry with us - April is Financial Literacy Month; Take Action and Organize with Metropolitan; Girls Who Code Spring Session (Mar. 28 - May 16); Register and Bring Your Resume for Coffee, Careers and Capital (April 19); Register to Join Well and Whole Sunday's Virtual Event with Dr. Ford (April 19); Morning Meditations with Metropolitan (April 20 - April 24); Sign up to volunteer with the SAMs Food Bank (Apr. 25) Apply for Ifill, McZier and McClain Scholarships (May 1); Sons and Daughters of Allen Familt Bingo (May 2); 29th Annual Cradle Roll (May 17); Register for the Child Safety Training at Metropolitan (May 30).
Need to join via phone? You can dial in for an audio-only livestream at 1-929-205-6099, 975804722.
Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and you'll be notified every time we are live. You can subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/metropolitaname.
The United Voices of Metropolitan under the leadership of Eld. Armand Peterson, recorded a new hymn composed by Nolan Williams. Their recording and more information about the contemporary hymn was published in CBN here: https://cbn.com/news/us/more-100-churches-across-19-denominations-united-one-song
Transportation will be available on the first and third Sundays of each month. Services may be expanded to other Sundays based on the demand. If you are interested in transportation to and from the church, please contact Ellen and Tyrone Fizer at 301-579-2482. We look forward to serving you and helping you get to church with ease!
The Freedom Table will be made available most Sundays in Lee-Glover conference room (except Sundays when there are post-worship events/activities) for families that need to step out of the Sanctuary for a freedom space for active students while still being able to watch service. Middle and high school students are needed to help set up and clean up in exchange for student service hours.
Please e-mail Youthministry@metropolitanamec.org for the Schedule and Volunteer information.
Comfort, Care, Lament and Share is Thursdays at 7pm., If you are in need of prayer, emotional support, or just looking for someone to hold space with, Sis. Satira, Sis. Flavia, or Rev. Brandon Cox will make ourselves available via email/Zoom as needed.
Housing Notice: Please note that there are individuals in our community currently seeking rooms to rent or housing. If you have leads or are able to assist, please contact the church office.
Update: There is some housing available in DC's SE quadrant. Contact the Church office for more information.
Please join us this week, Monday-Friday for “Meditations with Metropolitan.” Join us at 6:50am for music with the meditation starting at 7 am.
This week's meditation leaders are as follows:
Monday, April 20 - Dr. Julianne Malveaux
Tuesday, April 21 - Sister Faith Garnett
Wednesday, April 22 - Sister Edythe Challenger
Thursday, April 23 - Sister Diane Woodford
Friday, April 24 - Sister Jacqueline Coleman
As always, To sign up to offer a meditation or share your prayer requests, email the Morning Meditations team at prayer.metro1518@gmail.com.
The Men's Prayer Call is a sacred space where brothers can share and explore their relationship with God in Christ Jesus. All brothers are encouraged to join. The call will be every Monday Morning from 7:30 am – 7:45 am on Zoom.
Meeting ID: 767 5679 7276
Passcode: y28Ma2
Train up your child in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it. Church School meets each Sunday morning at 8:30 am, and concludes at 10am in Douglass Hall. There are classes available for EVERYONE! We will be excited to see you in attendance!
The 29th Annual Ernestine B. Goldsy Cradle Roll Program which will be on Sunday May 17, 2026 at 8:30 am in Douglass Hall.
The Metropolitan AME Veterans Council is a ministry that supports military service members, veterans, and their families by providing information and prayerful support. All service members, veterans, and family members are invited to attend. Join us on the second Wednesday of each month at 6pm. For more information, please contact Dr. Bryon L. Garner at bryongarner@gmail.com.
Join us for April's Well & Whole Sunday, a time of fellowship, learning, and community connection.
On Sunday, April 19 at 6:00 PM, we will gather virtually as the Lorraine Gillian Health Commission and Richard Allen Young Adult Council host a timely conversation on Addressing Colorectal Cancer: Prevention and Treatment.
We are honored to welcome Dr. Debra Holly Ford, Attending Physician and Faculty at Howard University Hospital and the first Black female certified colorectal surgeon in the United States. Dr. Ford will share insights on colon cancer, prevention measures, its prevalence in Black communities, and the concerning rise among individuals under 50.
This session is an opportunity to learn, ask questions, and take informed steps toward protecting your health and the health of our community.
Register to join us as we come together in fellowship and care: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/zpsV6JDWSb6pnYWHYh8Rlw
The Sarah Allen Missionary Society Food Bank of the Metropolitan AME Church announces that in-person food bank operations will be held on Saturday, April 25th from 9 am to 3 pm. The SAMS Food Bank is also accepting new food bank recipients.
Please see the link below to sign up for volunteer opportunities with the SAMS Food Bank. For more information, please contact Sister Virginia Boateng at vab-59@hotmail.com.
The Youth and Family Ministry is in need of amazing people like you to serve for upcoming events and other additional projects. Please scan the QR Code and to share your interest and availability.
The Lamp Oil of Black Women and African Methodism anthology of reflections from Metropolitan’s women and girls is now available for pre-order!
The book’s inspiration draws back to a 1997 anthology, “Black Women Stirring the Waters” published by an Oakland-based women’s discussion group of the same name which Sister June Costa was a member during her 20’s. She brought the idea to Metropolitan’s Sisters of the Covenant Committee in 2003 during planning for the church women’s season and that committee of 13 women published the “When I Touched” anthology in 2006.
We celebrate their legacy! Nine of them are living today and blessed this 2026 anthology from the beginning, with five of them contributing. Order your copy today!
The Spring Session of Girls Who Code will begin on Saturday, March 28. Sessions for the Spring will continue until May 16. Middle and High School ladies are eligible. All sessions will be held Saturdays via Zoom. For more information contact Cristol Primas via email at cprimas@msn.com.
Are you currently working with ministries for youth at Metropolitan or desire to get involved with church school and/or ministries serving our youth?
This is training is for you.
This training is mandatory for all current church school and youth ministry volunteers. This training will cover Metropolitan’s Child Abuse Prevention Policy, required background clearance procedures, and Safe Shores “Stewards of Children” certification to ensure all volunteers help create a safe and protected environment for our children and youth.
Have questions? Contact Rev. Thomas A. Brackeen, Jr., for more information at Thomas.Brackeen@metropolitanamec.org
Join Metropolitan's new Faith Action Committee and our 2026 DC Primary Election Voting Activations. Use the linktree to access sign-up forms and learn more.
Our first initiative in partnership with WIN -Washington Interfaith Network is a 100% Voting Congregation Campaign. Through this effort, we are committing to:
Help register people to vote and ensure that every member of our congregation is registered;
Adopt a DC polling site (we need 14 volunteers to sign up, get trained, and work the polls the day of the election);
Host (4) listening sessions so that the voices and concerns of our community are heard; and
Commit our congregation's participation in the mayoral candidate forum on May 17 that WIN will host for the faith community. Organized people make organized demands.
The DC primary is less than 90 days away on June 16, with Virginia and Maryland not far behind on June 23 and August 4 respectively.
The Music and Creative Arts Ministry is expanding its mark to galvanize the visual and performing artists within the Metropolitan community to form an inspiring creative collaborative to further its mission. The time is now for artists to come together as a liberative force and joyful source for transformative truth-telling, restorative justice, and revolutionary love. For more information, contact Minister Armand Peterson or Sister Dora Muhammad. Tell them about your artistry by completing this form.
Have something to share with the congregation? Please send ALL announcement information to announcements@metropolitanamec.org. Blurbs should be no longer than 75 words. Announcements can be submitted by Tuesday for the following week OR by the 4th Sunday for the next month.
Stay connected to what’s unfolding in Metropolitan’s young adult community.
If you’re interested in leadership opportunities, faith formation, service projects, fellowship gatherings, and upcoming events, sign up to receive the RAYACNewsletter for monthly updates.
Be the first to know what’s happening—and how you can be part of it. Sign up here.
Do you have Instagram or Tik Tok? Be sure to follow our Youth and Family Ministry at @yafmamec to stay in the know!
We are at a pivotal place globally, politically, and spiritually. Our world is beautiful yet broken; holy, yet not fully healed. We have weathered similar storms with grace and strength, and we shall do so again. This is our moment to proclaim the unlimited power and majesty of our God.
All encumbrances must be eliminated so we can be an even stronger voice and catalyst for justice, livable wages, affordable housing, and food security.
We must liquidate the mortgage we assumed several years ago to restore the beauty and physical health of our beloved Metropolitan. Once free, we will have additional energy and resources to further our work to make manifest God’s reign here on earth.
In this moment, Metropolitan has a mind to work.
Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1838. From its founding, Metropolitan AME Church, has and continues to do what other churches will not. We are known locally, nationally, and internationally, to be deeply spiritual and deeply engaged in the world. From anti-slavery leadership in the mid-19th century, in the harboring of runaway slaves, to organizing power, people and money toward the flourishing of all people in the District of Columbia today. Metropolitan has been not just a significant center of worship, but also an institution in the forefront of the civic, cultural, and intellectual life among African Americans and others. Today, Metropolitan is focused on theologically sound teaching and preaching in worship; combatting food insecurity through our Food Bank; addressing ecological devastation by addressing heat islands in metropolitan cities with Smart Surfaces Coalition; equipping parents and families with culturally responsive and biblically grounded teaching through the Sankofa project; and building Black Equity and Wealth through Homeownership, prioritizing community safety and holding political leaders accountable with Washington Interfaith Network.
-Pastor William H. Lamar IV
We're grateful for your generosity.
There are several ways to give:
via check mailed to Metropolitan AME Church, 1518 M Street NW, Washington, DC. 20005;
via Credit card: on our website and via Realm;
via Text: To text to give, text “metro1518” to 73256;
“Truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
Let us continue to lift each other in prayer - please pray for those experiencing grief or in need of health, strength, and healing. Lord, hear the prayers of your people.
Have a prayer you would like to share in community, you can leave your prayers on our prayer wall here.
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