Lena Maxey - Church Visit #2

Church name: Lawndale Community Church

Church address: Lawndale, Chicago (you know)

Date attended: 4/12

Church category: Different socio/economic level

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

The overall format of the service was similar to what I am familiar with, it started off with singing, then the pastor gave announcements, then the pastor preached, and we ended with singing again. I guess it had a few less elements than my regular context. I think it was a similar mixture of ethnicities as my church but with a different group of people; my church is mostly Korean and Korean Americans with some Chinese, Southeast Asians, a couple of other ethnicities and a good number of white people. Lawndale was mostly African Americans, with a few people of different ethnicities, and then a good number of white people; it was more diverse than I had expected it to be. 

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

I appreciated that it was somewhat diverse, there was definitely a majority but there were people of a few different ethnicities present in the congregation. I found it very interesting that the pastor added a blatant point about how women can preach into his sermon even though it was not a talk about gender roles or anything on that topic.

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?
There actually really was not much of anything that was disorienting about this worship service. It was not drastically different from my current worship service, the only challenging part was that it was with people I did not know. Being in a new place  and new church is always a bit uncomfortable because the greeting time is awkward with strangers. This means that it was really not very challenging since there was not much else other than the usual meeting strangers. 

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?
One thing that was emphasized that is definitely not in my usual contexts was the role that women have as preachers. The pastor was talking about Jesus' resurrection and then about Mary Magdalene's meeting Jesus and then going out and sharing out what he said. The pastor said that the first one to preach about Jesus' resurrection was a woman and that women can be preachers. I am not sure if the church has a stance on this or if it is more from the individual, but it was very interesting that he emphasized this so much and mentioned it even though it was not central to the sermon. This is an aspect of theology I rarely hear about and if I do it is the opposite point being made.  

Mariana Maxey- church visit 3

 Mariana Maxey- church visit 3

Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church

421 North Second Street, Bartlett, IL

May 2

different denomination, farther than 10 mi

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

The worship service was led by one white male. He wore black robes and spoke and sang very formally. Hymns were interspersed with readings and prayer. The nicene creed was said, and felt more meaningful because I had memorized it. Hearing so many people saying it all together was special. The sermon he preached was quite short, and followed by more readings, prayer, and words spoken in one voice. I was happy that children could be heard through the sanctuary rather than being removed from the congregation. This seemed like a warm way to encourage parents with babies. 

 

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

I loved how the songs were interspersed between the readings, prayer and sermon. this helped to make the service feel like a cohesive ongoing worship time. Having readings which were meant to be read all together gave me a sense of being involved and enveloped in the service. I also loved that the priest turned his back to the congregation and prayed facing towards the Bible on a stand. This made the action feel like it was on behalf of the congregation rather than a performance for the sake of the congregation. 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

I didn’t like how the service was led almost entirely by one white man, because this doesn’t feel like how the body of christ should express our worship. I also felt skeptical of the man because he had a narrow mindset and even referred Africa as a country. He also commended the ESL program for having the student watch the english speaking sermons as a way to learn English. This felt alienating towards other cultures. I also felt defensive against him because he referred to Rahab as a harlot, a much more loaded word than prostitute.

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

I loved the way that the congregation has traditional responses to what the priest says and prayers. I want ritual to be part of the way that I worship God, and having the solemn hymns and the organ playing reminds me of the Psalms about singing songs as praise to God. I would like to have responses in my mind that are as natural as muscle memory. This idea of worship with our breath would be highlighted by developing call and response habits in a communal setting. 

Lena Maxey Church visit #3

Church name: St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church of Chicago

Church address: 15 West 455 79th Street, Burr Ridge, IL 60527

Date attended: 5/2 

Church category: Different ethnicity

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

This worship service was quite different from what I am used to and mostly because it was not only a different ethnic group, it also is of a higher liturgical tradition. Most of the men and boys up front wore white robes with a gold and red cloth wrapped around their shoulder. The entire service was chanting and reading of scripture, carrying crosses and icons and marching around the sanctuary, a sermon, and then more chanting and there was also communion. Repetition was a large part of the service.  

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

I really like the incorporation of all ages in the service although it was only with males, there was not a single woman or girl on stage or a part of the service. There were old men, young men, boys, and tiny children all dressed in robes and participating in the march and carrying icons, some teenagers read scripture passages, and there was even one cute little boy in a little robe who was wandering around the stage and then carried by a man on stage and was squirming because he was so bored. 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

Honestly, the length was difficult for me. It was 3.5 hours long and I am not able to stay focused that long or continue appreciating the beauty of it when I am sleepy and don't fully understand what is being said. I am very impressed with all of their stamina, especially the little boys who were on stage for a lot of the service. At that point everything that was meaningful stops having meaning for me because I am just bored and wanting it to be over. It is clear that I have not been trained to have long services. 

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

After talking about it with a friend and processing, I came to understand the importance of all six senses in their worship service and how the worship was embodied. There was the sense of hearing in the chanting and listening to the sermon as well as the ringing bells on the swinging incense. There was sight with the icons on the walls, the robes, the crosses and bibles being carried around. The sense of smell in the incense that was swung throughout the whole sanctuary. The sense of taste and touch through communion and kissing the Bible. All my senses are not usually incorporated but it really helps me understand embodied worship and that it is important that I am embodied. Maybe even the length of the service teaches me as I have to learn to fight my bodies urges to sleep or distract myself from the worship at hand. 

Mariana Maxey- church visit 2

All Souls Anglican Church

25W741 Jewell Road, Wheaton, Illinois 60187

March 8 

Liturgical

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

The set up of the church had the pews angled in, and in the front was a circle of railing to kneel at. The songs were serious and the congregation joined in loudly. I could see many images and paintings around the walls, including a mural of Jesus on the back wall above the doors. It was painted by Professor Sheesley from the Wheaton art department. The atmosphere alone exhibited more awe and reverence than the church I used to attend which was held on a cement basketball court. I loved that congregation members had contributed to the aesthetics of the church building as opposed to the separate roles of attendees and leaders in previous churches I’ve attended.

 

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

This was one of the most liturgical churches I had ever attended, and it reminded me of the churches I attended when I lived in England. Having readings which were meant to be read all together gave me a sense of being involved and enveloped in the service. As a chronic daydreamer, I cherished the opportunity to follow along in the program with my voice. Not only did this keep me grounded in the room, but also helped to diminish the stark separation between the congregation and the leaders of the service. While the majority of the speakers and prayers were men, there were a few women who got to read from the Bible. I felt included by this fact. 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

For me the most challenging aspect was the communion time. Row by row, each pew walked to the front and kneeled around the railing, accepting the bread and sipping the wine out of a golden chalice. Up to this point I had relished in the beauty and ceremony of the flowing robes, candles and prewritten responses. As I watched the first two rows accepting communion, I realized that I didn’t want to kneel before the “fancy men”. Though this ancient tradition has nothing to do with worshipping people, I have a bit of a sore spot in regards to the abuse of power by men in the church. For that immature reason, I didn’t go up to receive communion. This is a classic example of “making a point” that negatively impacts me alone. 

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

I saw the scriptures in a whole new way. The Bible was  brought into and out of  the sanctuary by a processional, was ornately decorated and put on prominent display on the table in the front. Through the solemn reading of the scripture, and the ancient prayers, I was made aware of how I was connected to centuries of tradition and enduring truths read from the Bible. In my regular context, very little regard is given for the book of the Bible, and we are often told not to venerate the book, because its only a book. Witnessing this reverence to the Bible helped me to hear the words as the real words from God, inspired and given to us. I felt more sensitive to that the things I listened to, partly because I saw the act of reading the Scriptures as sacred, rather than menial. The ritual connected to the reading of the Scripture is an aspect that I miss when I go to another church.

Mariana Maxey - Church visit #1

Mariana Maxey - Church visit #1

Wheaton Community Church

520 East Roosevelt Road Wheaton, IL

October 18, 2014

Different racial and socioeconomic make up.

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

I attended Wheaton Sudanese Evangelical Church geared towards Arabic speaking Africans.  The congregation of 30-40 people meets in a windowless room deep within the larger building of Wheaton Evangelical Free Church, located on 520 E. Roosevelt Road. The sunday service mixed Arabic music with English sermon and consisted of exuberant praise songs, finishing with an emphatic sermon based on Isaiah 59. During the praise song portion of the service, a college-aged man played the keyboard and led us in worship songs. These songs utilized the rhythmic drumming blended with Arabic lyrics. I loved the ability to engage with the song leader. This was different from my experience with Western led churches that have a strong line of demarcation between the song leaders and the congregation. At times, the people in front can be seen as performers, where as in the Sudanese congregation all people were participants. 

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

In the congregation, one young man played a stretched skin drum, and a woman played an instrument made of two layers of flattened food tins, filled with small objects which made a metallic noise. This instrument which measured about 18 inches had peeling paint with arabic writing on it. Others used simple instruments or clapped and swayed and stomped. I loved the level of activity and movement which the songs invoked. After the service, the youth gathered around and sang more songs into the microphones. The Churchgoers of the church welcomed me warmly after the service, and invited me to join them to eat Kisrra, a flat pancake like bread, over which we poured a sauce made from chopped and boiled okra.

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

The atmosphere of the room was not particularly beautiful. though I’ve never been part of a church in a lovely setting or ornately decorated church, I’ve often longed for an aesthetically pleasing environment. In the case of the sudanese church, the room alloted to this congregation was a classroom or meeting room with fluorescent light and very little decoration. I often like to stare out of a window or breathe fresh air while I worship, and this was not a place conducive to the senses. 

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

I learned a few of the customs of Sudan from Julia, her sister Hawa (meaning Eve in Arabic), and their mother. Most of the congregation were refugees who came to America before the division of the countries into South Sudan and North Sudan. Julia’s mother told me that “the first official language of Sudan is Arabic and the second official language is Arabic.” 

In the praise songs, the words were directed towards Allah, and used many Arabic religious words that I recognized from speaking Indonesian. Sudanese traders are reported to have been the first converts to Islam in Subsaharan Africa. The history of region can help to explain the use of Arabic as the official language in Sudan. The use of the word Allah for God is important as we can learn that Arabic speaking Christians worship God without the obstacles that we have developed from the fear of Islam.

 

Larryon Truman Church visit #3

Blog Title-  Larryon Truman - Church visit #3

Church name: Church of the Resurrection

Church Address: 935 W Union Ave, Wheaton, IL 60187

Date attended: April 3, 2015

Church Category: More Liturgical

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

I went to the Good Friday service at Church of the Resurrection. The first think I noticed was how dark the sanctuary was. It had hanging lights that were lit in a way that mimicked candle light. I sat in the back right where it was almost impossible to read the liturgy. It was similar in the way that the speaker was able to interact with the congregation. I had expected the preaching to be read off a paper like the rest of the service was, but I found him to be very engaging and lively. It was different in the way that it had a liturgical aspect to it. In my regular context I have no idea how long service will go, but here, you are able to follow along and know where you are in the service.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

The most interesting part to me was probably the “walk of the cross” where elders of the church carried the cross around the sanctuary to represent the walk that Christ went through to calvary. 

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

It was just really dark. I had a hard time focusing and staying awake. Other than a few babies crying every once in a while the whole place is silent. I also had a hard time reading since it was so dark.

What aspects of scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

It was really cool to see people read the scriptures together and to have a sort of call and response aspect to it. It was very communal and everyone was on the same page, literally. When the page was turned the entire room turned together and was in unity.

Larryon Truman Church visit #2

Blog Title- Larryon Truman Church visit #2

Church name: Evangelical Free Church of Bloomington

Church Address: Bloomington, IL

Date attended: March 29, 2015

Church Category: Different Ethnic

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

It was similar in the fact that they played contemporary(ish) Christian worship and had a missionary speaker as the guest. They turned the lights all the way down to encourage individual worship which is different that my regular context. It started and ended on time which is also a little different than my church. It was comprised of all white congregants with the exception of an Asia-Pacific couple that sat next to me. The preaching was engaging and was missional in theme, which is to be expected. The missionary opened an orphanage in Haiti and has several close ties with that church. It was not that much different than my church honestly.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

It was awesome getting to hear a missionary speak about his life and his calling. He genuinely loves the people of Haiti and you could see it on his face. Furthermore, he had a very smart busieness plan on how to make his orphanage and ministry grow. It was really cool to hear that part of his story.

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

The band actually had an interesting dynamic to it. It was comprised of several different age groups from a high schooler playing piano to an elderly gentleman playing the 12 string guitar. The volume was very low and easily controlled in the back. It seemed very performance driven almost and all around kind of uncomfortable.

What aspects of scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

In all honesty, this church was not that much different than my regular context with the expectation that it was all white, whereas I go to an international church.