For my cultural immersion project, I attended a service at Jacob's Chapel Baptist Church. My friend Jiwuan picked me up early on a Sunday morning, and on the way there I started getting concerned about staying awake through an entire sermon. Once we took our seats and the sermon began, however, my attitude quickly changed. From our seats, we had a great view of the band, which included a drum kit, bass, guitar, an organ and two saxophones. From the first shimmering chord played on the organ, I was hooked. The service opened with some songs that the audience joined in singing. With hands clapping and cheers of "amen," the atmosphere quickly became very lively.
From the opening songs, the service flowed naturally and seamlessly from one activity to the next. Different speakers made announcements, both a choir and a group of children preformed songs, baskets were passed around for donations while the band provided a gospel soundtrack. At one point, the speaker and the audience performed a sort of call and response while reading a passage from the bible. The pastor would read one verse and the audience would read the next until we had completed an entire chapter. This quality of audience participation wasn't limited to scripture reading. Throughout the entire service, the audience was much more than a passive observer of what was going on. Particularly emotional moments were punctuated with "Amen," "that's right," and my favorite, "keep talking about what you're talking about!"
As the service progressed, you could feel the excitement in the room continue to grow. This continued through the sermon, titled "Walking the Tightrope of Faith." The preacher was a charismatic, young, dynamic speaker, animating his words with waving hands and stabbing the air with his fingers. As the sermon neared its end the preacher's cadence increased, and bluesy organ chords swirled underneath his fiery conclusion. The service reached its emotional peak as the audience erupted into a cheer and the band burst into full song. The entire experience completely exceeded my expectations, and I'm so thankful I got the opportunity to attend.
(Note: it seemed inappropriate to be taking pictures during the service, so these were taken from the church's website.)
Seems like you had a great experience Brian! I like the call and response scripture reading. I have been to quite a few churches,and I don't think I have ever seen that before. What a great way to keep the patrons engaged!
ReplyDelete"Keep talkin' bout what you're talk'in' bout!"