Ideas

And you knew that, contrary to the Christmas hymn “The First Noel,” the shepherds in Bethlehem’s fields did not “looked up and saw a star shining in the East beyond them far.” (Modern hymnals have revised that line to read “For all to see there was a star….”)

Jones and her church members went to work, putting together baggies filled with personal care items such as lotion, deodorant, shampoo and conditioner, lice eradication kits and facecloths.

“Our pastors have said that the people are so grateful to receive a meal when something tragic happens—or when good things happen, like the birth of a baby—because that part of their daily life has been taken care of,” says Hoffman.

With all the racial tension in the last couple years, we decided this is an opportunity for us to take a stand and be clear about who we want to be as a church.

To meet the needs of people in their reach in a time when people have so many views of church, the pandemic and the issues they face, New Day uses a variety of approaches to reach the diverse population.

Perhaps that’s why, throughout the history of Christianity, one of the greatest tools for teaching theology has been music. After all, one of the earliest Christian hymns is the great Christological passage of Philippians 2.

Pathak sought a solution to reestablish the church’s identity as a truly local neighbor, of and for its community. He asked himself, What would it look like for us to build what amounts to a network of churches so we could share some resources, yet still operate like local churches?

What I learned hosting a contemporary Christmas service that made me decide to go old school