I had my suspicions that this church was largely populated with African Canadians. And i was correct. There was about 400 of them. Mostly Nigerians. I was 1 of 5 white people in the entire room. I didn't stick out at all. LOL.
Needless to say the crowd was very warm and welcoming, i received smiles consistently and only the odd look of confusion. When i entered the church for the first time is was definitely kind of startling. I knew the service started at 10 but i knew there was some kind of bible study before that. What i walked into was a half filled room full of people debating a topic from the bible. Today's topic was spanking your kids. Needless to say this was just a bit awkward and uncomfortable. Especially when one senior lady stood up and started passionately expressing her position that children should be spanked. However there were actually quite a few small children in the crowd and i could tell there was a few small ones that stared fussing and crying with hearing this woman speak. AWKWARD.
The lady that was at the front of the room leading/moderating the discussion looked over the crowd and said. "Any Contradictions"? " Any Comments?". It was very clear in this enviroment that you are allowed to have your own opinion and discussion is encouraged.
One quote i heard off of that which i really enjoyed said "Do not blow off your children's questions".
The discussion ended and the service started. Of the people in the room it was noticeable to tell that some of these people were new immigrants and others have been in Canada for some time or were born here. There were a far amount of people in the room with traditional African clothing and head wraps. I noticed that the style of dresses with modest fronts and low backs is common here.
The Sunday school group was substantial. Maybe 3 dozen kids? I can't be sure honestly. This church is also one where you are expected to bring your own bible.
The building was quite large, and was sporting a roughly 15 person band. All well coordinated in matching black and yellow outfits. Including a fellow on saxophone. I think this might be the first sax if have seen in a church band. There was also a group off to the side in white outfits. I came to learn that there were actually part of a visiting group from Calgary. The fellow that led the group really got into the performance which had him kicking his feet into the air and swinging around the towel he was using to wipe the sweat from his head.
The start of the service was led by a more senior lady in a tie-dye dress studded with sequins and top it all off all with a fine British hat.
The way she spoke was definitely familiar with that feel of no-room-for-doubt kind of faith. She said such things as " Because master Jesus is here!" and "In the miiiggggghhhhttty name of Jesus! ". Just a very passionate and high energy group. I heard "Some one shout Hallelujah !" More then once that day, and trust me, when they say that, EVERYONE shouts!
"Can i get a witness!?" I had always heard the term but never felt the full meaning of it up until now. They were asking the question if there are people in the room that feel the Lord is present in their lives and and has blessed them. They were just simply asking us to raise our hands if we felt that was true.
"Testify" Is another big one. This involved about 2 dozen people coming up to the front of the church and telling how the lord has blessed themselves and others in their lives. A lot of the people that went up mentioned god healing sick family members, and helping people get accepted into university or the immigration process. But by far the biggest one was peoples shear gratitude and joy over getting a job. Trust me, i know the feeling.
Another good quote "It is a privilege that we make it thru the day".
Like a lot of services, sometime near the start they do a list of announcements. One of the major announcement said that "The men, The heads of the house." *i will save my rant on this for a latter time. "Will be taking a stand." Which is a short term intensive program for men (women are also welcome) with a goal of teaching these people how to better stand up for god.
They also announced plans to go out this Christmas and had out goodie bags with chocolate and mini Bibles at all the major buss stops in the city.
At most churches, people go from sitting to standing. Here you go directly between sitting to doing the Rumba. There is no in-between. When you are going up to the front of the church to drop your offering in one of the two laundry baskets at the front of the church, you Rumba. When you are taking your 6 month old baby up to the front of the church to be dedicated, you Rumba. When you are sneaking past the crowd to get to the washroom at the back of the church, you rumba (maybe a bit faster then normal) . You get the idea.
I don't mean to turn anyone off, but i think it is only fair to let you know that this place gets LOUD and HOT. Largely due to the fact that the place is packed and everyone is dancing and singing to a extensive live band.
They also took a moment to acknowledge that this month is pastor appreciation month. And they brought their pastors up to the front, and took a moment to speak of their exceptional work and give them some kind of large packed gift.
Scripture of the day; Isaiah 38: 18-19
18 For the grave cannot praise you; death cannot sing your praise; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for your faithfulness.
19 The living, the living—they praise you, as I am doing today; parents tell their children about your faithfulness.
With this I find confusion and contradiction. I went to a Ukrainian Orthodox Bible Camp growing up and when we were taught was that after death you are still on a journey to reach gods kingdom and that it is possible to fall from grace even at that point, And that even in the after life gods kingdom you must constantly be praising god, or risk falling from grace. Even in death . So we had one night a week where we lit candles and did a special prayer focused on those that have passed on.
There was also talk about another part of scripture, one that speaks of emptiness. it was mentioned that the reward of good deeds feels empty with out God. This is something that i personally feel to be true, Thru reflection and past life experience. I know people say you can have good without god, but to me that feels like eating a tofu burger. Your full, and you have all the nutrients you need, but your just missing that full feeling of satisfaction.
That's my thoughts anyhow.
The last part of the service that i saw ( because it was just going too long and i had to leave) was a group of babies being " dedicated to god". That involved the whole family dancing to the front of the church and having another person that is not the parents hold the child, stand before the church, and give their blessing.
I know i was baptized as a baby, but i am sure that whatever prayer was said for me was nothing like this. These people have great expectations of these kids. The prayers often include praying to god that these children will be great leaders and peace makers. They will move nations, and have voices that all will hear. The biggest surprise comes at the end when the person holding the baby returns it to its parents and the final blessing they give is " your child will not die before you, you will not need to bury your child". WOW.
Speaking of kids, i saw the "children's church" group walk by. I think the name is very appropriate considering there was likely 45 children and that is fairly comparable to a lot of actual churches i see.
i would have liked to stay to the end but my buss pass was expiring and i just needed air, i was just tired. Before i left they insisted that i take a croissant and a can of pop they had waiting at the door.
Over all a fantastic time. If you are looking for a high energy church this is the place to be. I can understand that this might be a little to wild for some people to attend every Sunday, but it is worth checking out. And who know? It just might be the place you call home!
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