Church Visit #2
Hinsdale Filipino-American Seventh Day Adventist Church
9 E 59th Street
Hinsdale, IL 60521
Saturday, March 17, 2015
Different Racial Demographic
10+ miles from Wheaton
Despite the fact that the worship
service was held on a Saturday morning and was comprised of a different
ethnicity, as a whole it was very similar to the kind of service I am used to.
The worship songs, the format of the service, and the elements were generally
the same. However, this church was much smaller than I am used to, and I
already go to a pretty small sized church here at Wheaton. I walked in right on
time and everyone had already filled all the pews, making it hard to find a
seat. It was distinctive because it seemed like each part of service worked to
include the congregation and about twenty percent of the church had made it on
stage by the time the service had ended. There seemed to be a deep community
about the church as a whole, much deeper than found at my church.
What I enjoyed most about the
service was their energy and community throughout the service. From the moment
I came in, it was apparent that everyone was excited to be there, praising God.
It got me excited to worship God with them. I think the closeness of their
community and their fire are undeniably related. Because of the small size,
packed state of the church, and the inclusion of everyone, the community has
formulated. For example, the youth sang in the choir during worship, the adult
choir sang a portion of the sermon, and then the children had their own story
telling time during the service. Everyone is made a priority. Whenever anyone
was on stage, their names were on the screen, which also helped them breed
community. As a whole, the way that everyone interacted reminded me of a big
family reunion, and I loved it.
It was very difficult being one of
the only people there who was not Filipino, and I did not help my case by
coming underdressed. I didn’t feel welcomed when I came in. I wasn’t greeted at
the door, and I had trouble finding a place to sit. It became quickly apparent
that I did not belong. They did not have a time during service for meet and
greet, unlike mine, which made me feel even more estranged. I saw this great
community coming together, but I didn’t feel like I could be apart of it. It
wasn’t until later in the service when the lady next to me brought her grandson
in that I began to feel welcome. Finally, I was quietly able to bond with her
over how adorable he and his twin sister were. Walking into such a small church
and physically standing out like I did was just difficult for me. I wanted to
blend, but I had nowhere to hide.
The community, once again, is what
helped me to see Christ in a new way this morning. I could just tell how much
they cared for each other, in the same way that Christ has called us to love
others. I am glad that I chose to go this week because an Elder whose family
had been affiliated with the church for almost 25 years was there to speak.
Although he no longer attends the church, it was clear that the congregation loves
and cares for him deeply in the way they greeted him and attentively listened
during the sermon. It reminds me of how the churches of the New Testament must
of felt about Paul and greeted him when he would finally get the chance to
visit. I had never experienced this before.
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