African Methodist Episcopal

The African Methodist Episcopal Church is a denomination that grew out of the Free African Society (FAS) which was a group in the late 1700's that protested slavery in the United States. The AME church, "rejected the negative theological interpretations which rendered persons of African descent second class citizens. Theirs was a theological declaration that God is God all the time and for every body." 

The name of the AME church was derived from the following:

• African - because the church was organized by people of African descent and heritage. 

• Methodist - The church’s roots and gospel were derived from the family of Methodist churches. 

• Episcopal - Refers to the church's government structure - the church is governed by bishops. 

The church welcomes all, not just persons of African descent.

I visited Grant Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church at their 11am Sunday service.

WHERE YOU GO TO GET YOUR PRAISE ON!

The service started out fairly regularly with some singing and praying. There was a call to Worship, scripture reading, and they recited the Apostle's Creed, during the call for prayer - people called out the names of those in need of prayer. 

As a first time guest; they recognized me, had me stand, and gave me a prayer. They told me that I would only be a stranger once at Grant Chapel :) 

There was a male elder of the church who sang a solo, it was truly delightful. 

Reverend Dr. John Hill is the minister and facilitated the service but the sermon was given by a guest Reverend, the Presiding Elder of the 5th District of their church, Reverend Dr. Charles Wharry. Reverend Wharry sermon was about How Not to Sell Out. He talked about the numerous people in the Bible that sold out but there were also many that did not like Joshua. He talked about how Temptation is an attempt to get you to sell out your Birthright. He advised First you must Put God as your Priority and Secondly You must live a life with Godly Principles. Lastly make sure you Ally yourself with the right people who will not deter you from path of God. 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. ~ Matthew 6:33

The offering was given by members of the church going up to front of the sanctuary and putting it in baskets. Then there was an altar communion, which is the first Sunday of every month. Both men and women were part of the pastoral team. 

There were several aspects of the service that I really liked - the members of the pastoral team prayed before they started service, the congregation held hands and formed a Unity circle and prayed together, the congregation prayed for the Reverend before he gave his sermon. 

                    They were a very friendly group. 

THANK YOU Grant Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church for welcoming me into the Family for the day. 
Post Script I would like to express my deepest sorrow and condolences regarding the tragedy at Mother Emanuel A.M.E. church in June of 2015. May God be with you all and with your beloved families. 

St. George Greek Orthodox Church

† † † † † † † † † † Home of the Annual Grecian Festival - St. George Greek Orthodox Church is one of the few Eastern Orthodox Catholic churches in New Mexico.

Between the fourth and tenth centuries, the Greek Orthodox Church separated from the Roman Church to follow the Byzantine Rite. The church teaches that it is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church established by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission with two great sources of authority:

HOLY SCRIPTURE AND HOLY TRADITION
They follow holy Sacraments, which they believe are "the visible means by which they believe are imparted the invisible Grace of the Holy Spirit:"

                                   Obligatory:

1.      Baptism
2.      Chrismation (anointment with holy oil)
3.      Confession
4.      Holy Communion
Optional:
1.      Matrimony
2.      Holy Orders (Ordination)
                                   3.      Unction (anointment of the sick) (GOARCH)

The Greek Orthodox Church traditions and ceremonies are far more expansive than I can detail here. Their ceremonies are rich in culture and history and their goal is to, "achieve union with Jesus Christ and unity with each other through the Sacrament of Holy Communion." 

Prior to attending the service, I acquainted myself with the ceremonious services by visiting the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America's site. It explained the different services and even provided the words and prayers that would be used.

Sunday services include:
Orthros at 8:15 am
Divine Liturgy at 9:30 am

I attended the Divine Liturgy service. They perform the same liturgy service that has been used since the beginning of the Orthodox Church. When I first arrived, a small group was still leading the Orthros Chant. The transition from Orthros was without interruption. They had a Divine Liturgy book that provided the words to the service. The service was largely conducted in English but some parts were in Greek and the Lord's prayer was additionally done in Slavonic. I cannot say that I did not get lost a few times, so I was happy to have the guide.  

Father Conan Gill & Deacon George Collaros conducted the service. 

The service is very formal but the feeling of the church is comfortably casual. It is a welcomed diverse congregation, I heard several different languages being spoken by the members. The sanctuary is amazingly, beautiful filled with ornate fixtures and vibrant portraits. 

Most of the service was chanted except the sermon. In his sermon, Father Conan made parallels of the massacre at Sandy Hook to the massacre of children in Matthew 2:18 and predicted in Jeremiah 31:15. He spoke of the archetype of the mourning mother Rachel. He assured his congregants that doubting faith or the faith of God during the quake of such tragedies was not bad. In fact, this is "what lead us to wonder and awe." We may not know what work God is doing during these tragedies, but we can be assured that:

"Even in the darkest moment, when it seems that God is not around - 
                        He is doing his greatest work"   ~ Fr. Conan 

After the sermon, more people entered the church, many of them with children. Holy Communion was then given and was only for those who have been baptized and chrismated in the Orthodox church. After the completion of the service, there was fellowship in the building adjacent to the church. 

It was very interesting to see an Orthodox service being conducted, I felt almost transformed in time. 

THANK YOU St. George for letting me experience an Orthodox worship service.