OMG!!! I had the privilege of attending the Haywood Street Congregation church this morning and I have never felt more a part of God’s community as I did in this church! It is amazing!
When we first arrived, there were several homeless individuals gathered around the perimeter of the property with their belongings and some sleeping in sleeping bags at the entrance of the church. They serve breakfast in the morning from 8:30 – 10:30am at the Welcome Table:
The Downtown Welcome Table rests on the assumption that food is a primary means of grace, a way to love and connect. It is a homemade meal served on abundant plates by an attentive wait staff. Folks are invited to linger over the meal as in a nice restaurant or dinner at home.
Cloth napkins, flowers on the table, and china plates send the message “you deserve the very best” and are meant to counter the notion often held by those living on the streets that handouts, hand-me-downs and leftovers are all I deserve.
Never intending to be a soup kitchen or feeding line, we want our meal to be a crossroads of diverse community, a gathering of disparate folks, a fork and spoon invitation to prince and pauper alike.
People who might not otherwise come to know each other develop a friendship over a shared meal.
Folks of all different societal backgrounds began to fill the church pews. I’ve heard the phrase “come as you are” in relation to church. This was definitely a church that embraced that phrase. I’m so used to seeing people dressed up in a church setting. Here, there were folks in jeans and t-shirts – as we were, some in clothes that had not been washed in a very long time dragging blankets and their belongings with them in bags, and some were asleep in the pews. There was NO judgement. No one looked down on anyone because of their appearance or how they were dressed. Instead, there was an overwhelming sense of pure, unconditional love in the building!
We arrived a little early and were blessed to hear a wonderful man playing an electric piano. I was not sure if he was homeless or not, and that didn’t matter. He played beautifully and it was apparent the music really moved him! There was a woman who came into the sanctuary with a blanket dragging behind her and with a bag of belongings in tote. She started singing and had a beautiful voice! She wandered around as well, looking at all the items in the front of the church. Two ladies lovingly came up to her and told her the water that she was trying to pour into a bowl would be used later. They did not scold her, or ask her to go back to her seat and be quiet. They did draw boundaries with what she was trying to do and those boundaries were lovingly respected.
The service started with announcements. In a regular church environment, someone gets up and announces future meetings and/or events happening at the church. There was a little of that; however, this was opened up to all the individuals who were there to see if there were any other announcements that anyone wanted to make.
We sung the song “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and it was beautiful! The church is a small church, but the voices within the church were just amazing! There was a lady at the front strumming a very small guitar as we all sang.
Afterwards, they asked if anyone had any blessings or testimonials to share. One heavy set and homeless man who was sitting in front of us got up, went to the piano and sang a song. His voice was just beautiful as he played and sung a song about how one day we will see God in all his glory. It was such a beautiful moment with the music and his voice filling the whole room!
Another man who was sitting behind us wanted to sing as well. He got up and it took a little while for him to get to the front. He looked like he was homeless as well. I was not sure what was going to happen as he was initially struggling with his balance, but he got up to the front and hesitated for a moment. He then started singing “O Holy Night” – and the voice that came out of his mouth was just amazing! The more he sang, the more I could see eyes that were once almost closed, open. He began to smile as he sung. I was in awe at his voice and how wonderful the environment felt as he sung!
A third man came forward and engaged everyone in the room to participate in the song he was singing. He had us all say “John the writer” (or something like that. I can’t remember the exact words) after certain lines. He began to tell a story with a great deal of enthusiasm that led into a song about John the Baptist. It reminded me of an interactive spoken word song. It was an amazing experience!
A woman came up and read a poem her son wrote about one of the men that was portrayed in the fresco who passed away this past June. As she read the poem, she began to cry. He was very special to many who were in attendance.
A woman came up and lit a candle for the first day of Advent. She explained the meaning behind the color purple (depicting richness and wealth), and how it was hard for her growing up to hear about the second coming of Christ as it was always portrayed as darkness and death.
She had someone read Matthew 24: 36-44:
“But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left.
Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left.
Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.
Therefore you must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”
She asked what that meant to the people who were in attendance. Several people answered. It was very interactive! One lady said to her, it meant to live every day of our lives as if it was the day Christ would be coming back. A man chimed in to say that to him, it meant to begin preparing for the day that Christ would be coming back. They gave several examples and as the conversation went back and forth, several others in attendance nodded their heads in agreement. I just loved how everyone was talking. Everyone in the room felt like family! It was a very comfortable environment where people felt honored and that what they had to say was appreciated. There was a young girl, probably 8 or 9 and she raised her hand and said that to her, it meant that Christ loved her. It was really neat to see people engaged and conversing back and forth!
They had communion afterwards and this was unlike any other communion I’ve ever been a part of. A man, who I presume was the pastor, came up to the front and explained the breaking of the bread and the importance of drinking the grape juice that represented the blood of Jesus. There was one large metal cup full of grape juice and one large basket of homemade bread that was broken by hand into smaller chunks. Both were held by someone at the front of the church. The man took a piece of the bread from the basket and dipped it in the juice representing the blood of Jesus and ate it. He talked about how this was done around the table. He then invited folks to come up as they felt led, to get a piece of the bread, dip it in the juice and eat it. One by one, folks came out of the pews into the middle aisle and walked up to take a piece of bread, dip it in the juice and eat it.
At the end, he prayed and everyone in attendance prayed the Lord’s prayer out loud:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
We sang the song “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” and then departed. We were able to speak to a few of the folks who were there afterwards. I went up to those who sang and told them what a beautiful voice they had and how grateful I was to hear them sing.
I left the church with a very full heart! This is one of the best church services I have ever been to. If church had been like this when I was younger, I would have never strayed from the Christian religion. The whole experience was just amazing!
