Abby Schogel - Blog #2

Church name: Church of the Beloved
Church address: 375 E Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
Date attended: November 6th
Church category: Different racially/ethnically

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?
There were many aspects of Beloved that felt very familiar to me. As a non-denominational church, the worship style was similar to that of my parent’s church--the upbeat worship songs, young worship band and culturally relevant message by a young, enthusiastic pastor felt comfortable. It was, however very different from the church I have attended while at Wheaton; the size of the congregation was much larger that the church I regularly attend, the congregation is much more homogenous and the modern worship is different as Agape Chicago (my current church) has acoustic hymn worship. One aspect was similar to my regular context was the offering of communion.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?
It was a nice change to have a more upbeat and emotional worship time. I enjoy the modern songs and enthusiastic atmosphere of the worship. Something about this that I did find interesting was the one song that was sang in English and Spanish. I was surprised because from the congregants I saw, very few were Hispanic or Latin@. It was interesting with the contrast of CCDA where the worship attempting to represent those attending through the multiple languages while the majority of the congregants at Beloved were not Hispanic.

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?
The message style of Choi was probably the most challenging part. I often found myself a little lost in the message as there was no clear linear thought. Some points felt a bit repetitive and other thoughts felt incomplete. The sermon was in response to the Cubs rally and parade on Friday, making multiple comparisons about how that is a glimpse of Heaven, asking why Christians were not willing to sacrifice the same for the church as they were for the Cubs (time, money, sleep, work) and all the while there was very little talk about what that sacrifice would look like practically. There was a mention of tithe and being out of our comfort zone to evangelize, but I was a bit frustrated with the lack of discussion of how the church should be sacrificing to better the Chicago community.

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the worship service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?
Choi’s emphasis on living with an eternal perspective was eye-opening for me as it is not a common discussion I have been a part of, especially this semester. I have found that there is a disconnect between solely discussing individual salvation and sanctification in the church and focusing only on the care of other’s physical conditions. I think that having an eternal perspective has the potential to bridge the gap between these two conversations.