This is the outside of the church. They have a little bell tower that sounded the beginning of today's service.
Another view of the tower looking east towards the sun rising over the mountains.
There were some things we expected to be different from the mainstream Catholics, but there were quite a few surprises in store for us at this little church.
We knew that this was a pro Gay rights congregation which deviates oh so slightly from the catholic consensus. In fact there were many openly gay members including one of the deacons and I think the priest. I even saw a cute gay couple greet with a kiss and hug. Come to think of it, much of the congregation were huggers, including myself. Very warm and open environment.
As for the unexpected.... Here's the breakdown:
ATMOSPHERE: 8/10 candles
Like I said, warm and inviting. The outside of the church was basic and pretty and I loved the church bell. The inside was not as ornate as some of the other catholic chapels we've seen but still characteristic of catholic decor: stained glass, idols of the patron saints, and even a portrait of Guadalupe donated by one of the congregants. The place was filled with incense and organ music on an electronic synthesizer (not really my favorite styles of auditorial ambiance but that's just me).
Next door was a smaller building where the post service refreshments were held. They were having a charity bake sale there as well so various sweets and goods were laid out, tempting and taunting us with their sweet smells and glistening sugar glazes. We even had the opportunity to try a piece of delicious pumpkin cake which was just phenomenal!
COMMUNITY: 10/10 candles
I could definitely feel the love. This was a congregation that new each other well and were welcoming of new visitors. We were greeted warmly and it's Chad was even complimented on his hat by one of the priests. He even jested that by the time the service was over he would convince Chad to give him that hat, this priest apparently really liked headwear.
Many members of the congregation were openly homosexual. I found it reassuring that they could worship as they are and not as a doctrine says they should be. I watched them interact so naturally and comfortably open that I thought about the other services I had been to where there may have been people who were closeted because their faith contradicts their lifestyle. Here it was not the case.
Today they were trying to meet fund raising goal where, if met, one of the men in the congregation would shave his head, he was a middle aged man with long, thinning hair that came down to his shoulders. With enough money, he would be chopping off about a years worth of growth. The priest made a donation large enough during the post service to meet the goal and so they shaved him right then and there in the back of the room. This building was also the book store where you can buy literature, rosaries, and candles. They had set up a chair and a razor in the back of the room near the back door. I had considered seeing if they would shave my head too because i was overdo for a haircut and the fellow cue-ball-to-be had said that they would shave me too if I asked. Chad and I had to go and get pictures of the chapel and I had chores at home to do so I wasn't able to stick around. Would have been a blast though I am sure!
Yes, this was a lively bunch of people that I really came to like.
SERVICE: 6/10 candles
This is where things got the most interesting. There were parts where I was thinking ",oh yeah, sure, this is pretty catholic alright", then there were the moments where I thought "uh... where am I again?"
This Sunday was Palm Sunday so we did the palm service and were led around the Church grounds, the congregation singing a short hymn repetitively in unison all the while, and another member (with a very colorful and flamboyant neck tie) was sounding a long spiral horn called a shofar (an instrument used by Yemenite Jews, made from from an African spiral-horned antelope of sorts probably a Kudu, one of two members of the Tragelaphus genus ) in long bursts, resounding across the neighborhood which I am sure pleased the sleeping residents at ten in the morning.
After the short march we made our way back into the main chapel and began the service with a song. This is where I got confused, I could have sworn I was in a Catholic church, but what I saw next made me wonder. Most of the songs from this point on were recorded and played on projector screens with animations and lyrics VERY much like we had observed in Evangelical and baptist services. The songs were led by the priests, up front and singing the loudest with the microphones. The songs were not your usual mass hymns, they were more like christian rock or pop songs than anything.
Things became much more traditional once communion rolled around. They used wafers and non-alcoholic wine. The wafers were placed directly in the mouth and the wine was shared among the congregation with a single chalice being wiped clean with a very ornate cloth between uses. This is a practice dating back over six hundred some-odd years and still widely done in Catholic churches throughout Europe.
There were also prayers for people of and withing the congregation. Prayer requests have been a recurring practice in many of the churches we visited, I think the thought and sentiment is nice. Even here we saw some of the members joking and having fun, one asked the congregation to pray for his sanity, that gave everyone a bit of a chuckle.
MESSAGE: 3/10 candles
Didn't get much of a message here. A lot of it was song and ceremony with a reading of the passion. The only message I got from the sermon and song itself was to break yourself down, be humble, and submit yourself to god. The usual message I have gathered from my visits to the Christian denominations. Not really much else was said here, much less something that would apply to non Christians. I don't really like the guilt messages that say you need to belittle yourself, I am all for humility and being humble, but I don't agree that you need to rest everything on Jesus.
OVERALL: 7/10 candles
I loved the people and the service was interesting. I would love to go back and hang out with these guys again! If you want to experience a unique angle of the Catholic Church pay these guys a visit!
CHECK THEM OUT HERE!
Yes, this was a lively bunch of people that I really came to like.
SERVICE: 6/10 candles
This is where things got the most interesting. There were parts where I was thinking ",oh yeah, sure, this is pretty catholic alright", then there were the moments where I thought "uh... where am I again?"
This Sunday was Palm Sunday so we did the palm service and were led around the Church grounds, the congregation singing a short hymn repetitively in unison all the while, and another member (with a very colorful and flamboyant neck tie) was sounding a long spiral horn called a shofar (an instrument used by Yemenite Jews, made from from an African spiral-horned antelope of sorts probably a Kudu, one of two members of the Tragelaphus genus ) in long bursts, resounding across the neighborhood which I am sure pleased the sleeping residents at ten in the morning.
After the short march we made our way back into the main chapel and began the service with a song. This is where I got confused, I could have sworn I was in a Catholic church, but what I saw next made me wonder. Most of the songs from this point on were recorded and played on projector screens with animations and lyrics VERY much like we had observed in Evangelical and baptist services. The songs were led by the priests, up front and singing the loudest with the microphones. The songs were not your usual mass hymns, they were more like christian rock or pop songs than anything.
Things became much more traditional once communion rolled around. They used wafers and non-alcoholic wine. The wafers were placed directly in the mouth and the wine was shared among the congregation with a single chalice being wiped clean with a very ornate cloth between uses. This is a practice dating back over six hundred some-odd years and still widely done in Catholic churches throughout Europe.
There were also prayers for people of and withing the congregation. Prayer requests have been a recurring practice in many of the churches we visited, I think the thought and sentiment is nice. Even here we saw some of the members joking and having fun, one asked the congregation to pray for his sanity, that gave everyone a bit of a chuckle.
MESSAGE: 3/10 candles
Didn't get much of a message here. A lot of it was song and ceremony with a reading of the passion. The only message I got from the sermon and song itself was to break yourself down, be humble, and submit yourself to god. The usual message I have gathered from my visits to the Christian denominations. Not really much else was said here, much less something that would apply to non Christians. I don't really like the guilt messages that say you need to belittle yourself, I am all for humility and being humble, but I don't agree that you need to rest everything on Jesus.
OVERALL: 7/10 candles
I loved the people and the service was interesting. I would love to go back and hang out with these guys again! If you want to experience a unique angle of the Catholic Church pay these guys a visit!
CHECK THEM OUT HERE!
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