`It's a little church inside a big church'
Despite a huge expansion planned by Idlewild Baptist Church, members say the church will retain a feel of small-scale worship through its Bible-study classes and other small-group activities. Martha Ann Rosende of Lutz attends the huge Idlewild Baptist Church, yet she is sentimental for small churches.Her previous church had 125 members, and Mrs. Rosende remembers when her mother canvassed the Idlewild neighborhood in the 1930s to help start Idlewild Baptist."Can you...
Big Church: CHILDREN'S CHURCH ADAPTS BIBLE LESSONS TO LITTLE EARS
Dressed in a robe and headdress, Doug Jenkins told the Bible story to a room full of wide-eyed churchgoers at First Baptist Church of Nesbit.In costume and with the help of fellow actors, he brought to life a familiar New Testament story.The rows of young church members, wiggling in their seats, learned how Jesus fed the masses with five loaves of bread and two fish. But they were learning it at their level.With their parents just down the hall in the "big...
Big Church: Scores of valentines say vows in court
Converted prom dresses and platform shoes took the place of wedding gowns and satin slippers, and tuxedoes were more than a little scant yesterday as more than 50 couples traded in traditional weddings for Valentine's nuptials downtown. But the blushing brides and nervous grooms didn't seem to mind as they waited their turns to say ``I do'' in the normally-not-very-romantic lobby of the Superior Court building.In honor of...
Big church, small town,
Stage set for battle over move
It began with eight people praying in a rented hall. In less than two decades, it has become one of the largest churches in New Jersey, attracting thousands of people every Sunday to five services led by a charismatic engineer-turned-preacher.Now, Christ Church wants to build a house of worship unlike any other in New Jersey.After nearly a decade in Montclair, the predominantly African-American congregation is planning to take its fervent brand of evangelical Christianity to the quiet...
Big Church: Our Daughters Keep Marrying
DEAR ABBY: This is a second marriage for me and my wife. I have two daughters and two stepdaughters. All four have gotten married since my wife and I did. One stepdaughter had a big church wedding; the other was married by a judge, so I sent her the money I would have spent on a wedding. Now, both stepdaughters are divorced. The one who got married by a judge is engaged again and wants a big wedding since she didn't have one the first time. I don't believe I should be...