Posted on 09/28/2003 1:49:03 PM PDT by chance33_98
A Church in A Bar
LAST UPDATE: 9/24/2003 9:05:07 PM
KINGSVILLE, Texas - The Rev. Bob Gomez has, like many people, asked himself: What would Jesus do? His answer: He'd open a church in a bar.
Gomez, who ministers at The Father's House in Corpus Christi, is convinced that not having a permanent building is not a handicap, but a blessing.
Churches are not supposed to be in the business of building buildings, Gomez said, they are supposed to be in the business of building people. If Jesus were alive today, Gomez said, he would not be insisting that people come worship within four walls he had built. He'd be taking the church to them.
On Sept. 7, Gomez did just that, hosting his first services in Kingsville at a local bar.
"People used to ask Jesus why he dealt with the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the lowlifes of society. And he used to tell them that he was going where the people were hurting and needed help," Gomez said. "I think if Jesus were alive today he would open a church in a bar."
Owners of Christopher's Bar and Grill in Kingsville, where The Father's House will be celebrating services, said that for them the church was a godsend.
Owner Patty Burton said her mother had been praying that she and her husband would go back to church.
"I told her that when we found one close by that would have services in the evening, then we would go. Well, the church sort of came to us," Burton said. "I told my mother she must have been praying pretty hard."
She and her husband, Harlis, both agreed that it seemed like the natural thing to do - the church needed a place, and they needed a church.
"Some people might think it's strange, sure," Harlis Burton said. "They should come out and see for themselves."
Parishioners were so excited to have a place to meet for services that they didn't balk at the idea of meeting in a bar. They even took advantage of the opportunity to make light of the situation.
"May I see some ID, please?" asked member Alicia Perez as she greeted the more than 80 people who came through the door.
Others reminded people they were a BYOB church - bring your own Bible.
Chairs were set up along the dance floor, facing opposite Budweiser signs and pool tables, while the church choir performed on the bar's bandstand.
The Burtons aren't open for business on Sundays, but did open the kitchen for hungry churchgoers anxious to taste their chicken fried steak.
The disco ball above the dance floor turned slowly, occasionally hitting the sign to the right of the room, highlighting two small words - BEER BAR.
"We thought about covering up the sign when we were setting up but decided that it took something away from the atmosphere," said member Lynda Ramos.
Ramos said the bar just seemed to fit the church's personality.
"We are used to doing things differently," she said.
Gomez, who is an ordained Southern Baptist minister, operates his church on a concept of cells and celebration. Members meet in small groups, or cells, once a week to study Bible verses and answer tough questions about how each one relates to them. Then on Sundays the congregation gathers for a joyful service of singing and clapping before the sermon.
The goal, Gomez said, is to bring people closer to each other through the cells, and bring them closer to God during services.
The cells, or huddles, are held in cities all over the Coastal Bend including Corpus Christi, Kingsville, Alice, Bishop, Freer and Refugio.
"You get to know people on a more personal level," he said.
The Kingsville site is one of many that the church hopes to plant in a community over the next several years.
The idea is to have planted 10 churches in 10 years that will in turn plant churches in other communities. Gomez said that Alice would most likely be the next site.
In the meantime Gomez is encouraging everyone he sees to come out to Christopher's.
"They can come in and enjoy a meal, maybe sing a little karaoke on Saturday night. And then come on Sunday night and hear some truth."
Dwight L. Moody would sweep up a bar every early Sunday morning and have Sunday school.
The church is not a building, but a body of believers.
God bless this man. He has exactly and precisely the right idea. Christ's congregation isn't a stone building downtown or a mega-church out on the highway. It's the hearts of men. The poor souls in this tavern are the ones who realize they need salvation - not the hypocritical socialites in the pews listening to the Rev. Mumbles yatter on about togetherness.
There was a tiny Baptist church right across the street. Both the poolroom and church had very small parking lots. One day the owner of the poolroom told me that the minister had asked him if it would be alright if members used the poolroom parking lot on Sundays, the owner told the minister that it would be fine with him if the minister would allow the poolroom customers to use the church parking lot on the days that they held pool tournaments. The minister declined and in turn so the the poolroom owner.
After the poolroom closed down the church bought the building and now use it for Sunday school classes and church suppers.
We've often joked about how many churches could there be out there that have seen that much bad behaviour inside their walls.
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