Church Visit

I visited Bethlehem Baptist church in downtown Minneapolis; this was my first time inside a church. The church building was like a large hall with comfortable chairs set out in a carpeted area facing a raised platform with two levels. My tour guide was the deacon of the church (Byron). He explained that their Sunday worship services begin at 10.30 am and 6.30 pm and typically last just over an hour. As you enter, you should be welcomed by a steward and be given a copy of the weekly notice sheet. You can have a song book if you want one but most songs are projected onto the screen at the front of the church. If the steward realizes that this is your first visit to TBC, she (or he) should also give you a welcome leaflet called "What's on Offer”. You can sit anywhere (other than on the platform!). They don't have reserved seats and people do not have their "own seat". Sit down, try to relax and take in everything around you... he said we know visitors can feel worried about when to stand up or sit down so we try to explain what to do as we go through our services.
In front of you on the upper or lower platform there is usually a plain wooden table, some chairs, a lectern, some flowers, and a screen for the video projector. There will also be microphones and any special equipment to be used during the service. You probably won't see it, but under the lower platform is a concealed baptismal pool - the platform covers are removed when it is going to be used and it is filled with water. On the wall above the platform is a plain wooden cross. The church logo projected onto the screen. To the right of the platform are an organ, a grand piano, and a drum set. There may be some other musicians as well. To the left of the platform are doors through to the rest of the premises including the church hall? There was a treasury box on the wall at the rear. He joked about how they don't take up collections (offerings) during our services so don't worry if you don't have any money with you. Typically services last just over an hour - a little longer if they include a communion service which last about 15 minutes longer. If there is going to be communion service, the table will have on it some trays of small cups with non-alcoholic wine in them, plus some plates with bread on them. See our feature Communion in Pictures for more information. A few minutes before the service is due to begin, the person who will lead the service (sometimes two people) will come into the church and sit on the platform. More often than not, our Minister will lead the service or preach but someone else will often help him. At the end of the service we serve coffee and tea in our main hall or the atrium - this is free so again doing worry about where to pay. Someone will almost certainly realize you are a visitor and offer to show you the way to the main hall.
The Baptist faith believes in the precepts of Trinity, Heaven, and Hell. Surprisingly Mary does not have a special place in the Baptist religion. They don’t teach the assumption of Mary because Mary is seen as just Jesus’ mother. As for the belief in Saints, they really don’t designate saints because they believe that we all have been saved and we are all God’s messengers. Unlike Christianity, Baptists don’t have bishops or Cardinals. The Baptist religion has a much more loose structure than the Catholic faith. There are also five pillars of understanding in the Baptist religion. These five pillars are tracing the history of God, the belief in the never ending kingdom of God, the gospels of Matthew and Mark, the revelation of Paul’s gospel, and the gospels of Luke and John. They also believe that held four titles. Son of Man, Son of God, Son of Abraham, and Son of David. I asked Byron what a person in the Baptist faith must do to make their journey to heaven. He responded by saying “Confess with your mouth, believe in your heart that Jesus died for you, and show love and compassion.” Also one must be baptized and receive communion. Byron added, “We are born sinners and are saved by God.” The Sacraments that they have are Fruit of the Vine and Bread, which are grape juice and ceremonial bread. In the Baptist religion they have interfaith communion, where anyone can receive it. To the Baptists the sacrament of communion is more symbolic than what Catholics believe it to be. I found it interesting marriage and confession are not sacraments in their faith. The Baptists don’t have a set version of the bible, but usually they use the King James or the New King James version. Sometimes they do use the Catholic bible.

The format of a Baptist Sunday service consists of the choir, devotion (psalms, scripture, message, prayer, and song), responsive readings, congregational prayer, choir, sermon, and invitation to join the church, offering, and then special announcements. Each month a different part of the church is in charge of the prayer service. They receive communion by the Priest and Eucharistic ministers taking it down to the isles and distributing it. Communion is distributed to “everyone who is saved.” As stated before the body and blood of Christ is very symbolic to the Baptists. In order to become a Minister in the Baptist church you must go through meetings with the Pastor. Then you do a trial sermon at a mass and then go on from there. Their encouraged to take theology classes. It took Byron two years to become a Deacon. He also has a teaching certificate. His duties s a Deacon are distributing communion, helping the church community, and taking part in the devotion in mass. Deacons preach sermons, but are confined to assisting the Pastor in baptism and distributing communion. Deacons are reaffirmed each year. The Deacon can decide whether or not he or she wants to remain a Deacon. In conclusion, the experience of visiting a Baptist church was interesting and educational. I didn’t know what to expect at the beginning but I was welcomed with peace and love.