In God I Trust

In this age of cynicism and political correctness it is oftentimes hard to find a place to fit in. My minister sister has been asking me for some time now why I have not joined another church. She expressed her concerned that my personal relationship with Jesus Christ was not enough. That is was most important that I fellowship with other Christians in order to maximize my spiritual potential. Having been a member of so many churches over the years what has been consistent in all of them has been the inner politics that has turned me off. People that talk the talk but don't necessarily walk the walk.

Many denominations are inclusive to a point but quote the Bible to exclude others. That is against my principles. Last week a friend of mine of thirty years invited me to go with her to church. She told me about this minister from her home town in Memphis that had recently been appointed to head a church on Park Avenue in NYC. For those that don't know, Park Avenue is one of the wealthy streets in the city. You can imagine what was going through my mind. Anyway, the night before church I went to the opening of a new club that my business associate produced. I didn't get to bed until 4am so when I woke up, with a headache I might add, it took everything I had to get up and go to church with her. Being a man of my word I pulled myself together and we took a cab down to the church.

What amazed me was the friendly, non pretense of everyone I met. We were greeted at the door with such warmth I knew immediately that I would enjoy the service. Now to be honest, I am use to great soul stirring music and a lot of shouting. This church didn't offer that however it did offer a sense of fellowship and community right from the start. The message of the day was "A Radial Welcome" delivered by Dr. Alvin O. Jackson. He spoke about the need for churches to offer a real welcome to people that come in to the house of worship. Regardless of their income, social status, sexual orientation or color, all should be welcome. Now that is radical.

I decided to write about this for a number of reasons. It is easy to become jaded nowadays. People don't speak to each other on the street, respond to emails, everyone is stressed over what they don't have. I took a chance and believed in a friend and my sister and got out of my comfort zone and went to a new church and loved it. For people in New York City who find that although they are believers they are still searching for a place to call home, this is an option. Click the link for details about the Park Avenue Christian Church.