Searching: I’ve been looking for a church that projects relevance to my stage of Christian development. In this quest I have visited and worshiped with many streams of religious persuasion. Assuming this may be an issue for many in the Anchorage area, I offer in this blog brief accounts of my visits. The criteria I use in evaluating my visits are:
• Did the church project friendliness and warmth?
• Did I truly feel welcomed?
• Did I relate to the main teaching and was it delivered effectively?
• Did music merely entertain or did it deepen the worship experience?
Map to churches I have visited.
My email: churchvisits@gmail.com
Chris Thompson, an amateur biblical scholar and student of religions, is a member of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and Society for Biblical Literature (SBL). He enjoys AAR/SBL where he studies, first hand, with worldwide religious scholars. A management consultant, skilled in all aspects of 360-degree feedback programs and human resource management systems, he practices these skills as Workforce Consulting. He lives in Anchorage.
ON THE WEB
Google map with visited churches
As I visit churches, I'll post their locations on this map.
Shocking Beliefs of the Unchurched - 11/30/2008 12:01 pm
Great Land Christian Church - What a Great Experience! - 11/20/2008 10:00 pm
Crosspoint: Room for Improvement - 11/16/2008 4:17 pm
A Church Visit Reader Shares Their "Looking for A Church" Story - 11/10/2008 10:02 pm
St. John Orthodox - A Spiritual Treat - 10/31/2008 3:54 pm
Guest Blog - Chris Walker's "10 Tips for Greeters" - 10/23/2008 12:57 pm
Christian Courage, It's Still Alive! - 10/12/2008 2:58 pm
More Changes Coming to ChangePoint - 10/3/2008 7:06 am
Guest Blog -Top 10 Church Website Design Mistakes of 2007 - 9/28/2008 6:01 pm
Muldoon Assembly: Friendly, Programmed - 9/19/2008 11:12 pm
Why I've Run From Churches - Guest Blog - 9/16/2008 6:58 pm
Christian Church of Anchorage...An Invitation, Refusal, and Later Visit - 9/3/2008 1:38 pm
Podcasts/Godcasts...The Darker Side Pt. 2 - 8/30/2008 12:33 pm
Christ Community Church…A Somewhat Closed Experience - 8/21/2008 9:55 am
Can a Podcast be a Godcast? Part 1 - 8/16/2008 7:47 pm
Youth Lead Sunday Evening Service…A Pleasant First! - 8/12/2008 4:09 pm
Anchorage City Church…Charismatically Quiet - 8/4/2008 11:02 pm
But what about theology? - 7/30/2008 1:42 pm
Holy Family Cathedral: Warm, Friendly and Catholic - 7/26/2008 9:50 pm
Foreign missionaries to the U.S. or even Alaska, can it be true? - 7/22/2008 2:46 pm
First church I've visited not using musical instruments, but they can sing! - 7/16/2008 10:39 am
Protestantism Declining, Catholicism Steady, and No Religious Affiliation Rising According to Pew Forum Report - 7/10/2008 4:33 pm
Posted: July 16, 2008 - 10:39 am
S Anchorage Church of Christ SignChurch of Christ South Anchorage was selected for a visit as a result of an article I discovered while researching church music. Churches of Christ, the article noted, did not believe in the use of musical instruments in church services, only using acapella singing. So, July 6 found me entering the church just prior to 11:00 a.m. They were singing the first hymn.
Just before I entered the sanctuary, two gentlemen passed me in the hall briskly going the other way and wished me good morning. Other than that, I was not greeted by anyone nor given a bulletin, which I discovered were available. It was a bit warm but ceiling fans were keeping the air moving. Compared with other churches you will note a clear lack of ornamentation here.
A first! No instruments!
This is definitely an "old time" church, clearly out of yesterday. It's amazing how much more space you have in a church when you eliminate the pianos, organs, and space for the band with its instruments. The hymns were familiar, sung accapella and well led by a gentleman chorister, who directed the audience as if it were a choir. And you know, it was amazing. I'll bet everyone sang, and you could actually hear them singing, not drowned out by a band or other instrument. If you've not heard real church singing lately, this is the place to go. Clearly a first time experience for this church visitor.
I really admire the way they handled a private church concern during the service. It's too bad other churches do not risk offending members and visitors by being momentarily frank. Enough said, it was good to hear.
Another First
One of the younger youth came forward and read the scripture. He read well and you know, it was another first for my church visits. Churches tend to ignore the youth in service duties. Rarely are they seen in taking offerings, handing out items, reading scripture, or giving a testimony. I wonder if the lack of meaningful involvement by youth is one of the reasons that many youth are moving away from church.
Willard Holliday, the pastor, gave what I considered an understandable, practical sermon entitled "Hurting the Church, Hurting Jesus". He is an extemporaneous speaker, freely quoting scripture. He noted the meaning of "church" from the Greek is "Those who are called out". He used New Testament examples of people who were called out and what they did with that calling. Holliday concluded his sermon with a call away from doing wrong after you have received the Lord's call. According to my understanding, this is a New Testament church where the focus is primarily on the New Testament.
Breaking Bread
It should be noted that the Church of Christ serves communion every Sunday, and it was served to all. Pastor Holliday left the platform and the elders took his place to serve the communion, which was very meaningfully served.
The service concluded at 12 p.m. just a tad over an hour after it started. This congregation is very participative, with many members participating in various service functions. The pastor alone greeted me on the way out but other than the initial greeting of sorts noted earlier, I was not contacted or approached by any other member. Notwithstanding, I enjoyed my visit to this church. I believe this would make a great church to visit for anyone looking for a church home.
Church Building - Church of Christ South Anchorage
3 August 6, 2008 - 7:18am | gakona
I don't live in Anchorage but, on occasion, have had the privelage of meeting with the good folks of this church in South Anchorage on some of my many trips to town.
I found a very warm greeting but arrived about 10 minutes prior to their bible study, which meets about an hour before the regular services. I am not a member of this congregation but find their teachings very much in line with those we study in our home in rural Alaska as we worship in our home.
My purpose in attending any church is to learn as much as I can about the teachings of Christ, fellowship with people in the congregations, and pay homage to Christ's incredible sacrafice through observance of his death with a weekly communion. It keeps me focused in this, otherwise, blury life.
I will return to the South Anchorage church of Christ again.
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2 July 23, 2008 - 8:12pm | stainedglass
Church of Christ Member Responds
(excerpt of email to me)
"As I'm sure you learned, our congregation follows only Christ's teachings and the guidance shown in the bible for how Christians should worship. Willard Holliday's lesson this past Sunday, titled Why I Love The church of Christ, would be a good one to review for contrasts between Christ's church, it's members and other religious bodies. It's available on an audio CD if you wish. We believe we are part of the church established by Christ, not an organization of man's creation.
Our congregation is rather small, compared to others, and we may not have fancy facilities or a large list of various activities, but I believe you would find us a friendly bunch who strive to do the Lord's will based on the guide he gave us in the bible. I hope that upper most in your criteria for selecting a church home, beside being warm and friendly, would be whether the congregation is truly seeking to follow the pattern for living and worship as described in the New Testament."
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1 July 23, 2008 - 12:20am | AR1985
South Anchorage church of Christ is a warm, welcoming, congregation of the Lord's people. The worship is scriptural and done in spirit and in truth. You will see nothing that cannot be backed up by New Testament scripture. My wife and I have been a guest in the home of Brother Holliday and one of the elders. They are wonderful Christian men. If you are looking for a church home I strongly recommend that you contact South Anchorage and see for yourself how the church of the New Testament should be.
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