Chicago -- August 7 & 8

I went to Chicago because I wanted to experience two churches: Willow Creek Community Church in the western suburb of South Barrington and Trinity United Church of Christ on the Southside.

Willow Creek is evangelical and non-denominational. It is also one of the nation’s largest mega-churches. One cannot help but be impressed by the sheer size of the place. I arrived at 3:30 pm for the 5:30 Saturday service, so I had some time to look around. The facilities are on a well manicured campus with multiple buildings, a huge parking lot and a large green space complete with a pond. I felt like I was on the campus of a small college.

Inside the main building were computer kiosks to welcome and orient visitors and a large cafeteria complete with at least 6 food lines where you could order everything from a salad to a slice of pizza to a steak dinner. There was a coffee shop, a large book store, and separate spaces for meetings and classes and smaller gatherings.

The main feature of the main building is an auditorium with seating capacity for 7,200. The auditorium is one of the largest in the United States and includes the kind of screens you would find in a sports facility. Before the service began I found a seat near the rail in the upper-most balcony. “Wow, this place is huge!”

The worship experience was a very typical “praise service.” It began with 30 minutes of music and ended with a 30 minute ‘sermon.’ Sprinkled in between were some prayers and announcements, an offering and a reading from scripture.

I’m not a huge fan of praise music, but one couldn’t help but enjoy it. A large and wealthy church can clearly employ some world-class musicians. And I have always thought that the best of any genre of music is powerful.

There was a guest ‘preacher’ so the senior pastor, Bill Hybels, was present only to make a few announcements, lead a few prayers and make an introduction. I was surprised by how ordinary he looked. I don’t know what I was expecting from this famous pastor and prolific author, but I honestly thought ‘you could plop this guy into any Lutheran church in Iowa and he would look the part.’ One thing that made me chuckle was the idea that no matter how big a church gets, the pastor always makes the same sort of announcements. “We’re really excited about such and such and hope you will stop by the sign-up sheet on your way out.” Bill Hybels and Bill Bernau, both pastors, do some of the same things during a worship service.

The guest ‘preacher’ was Dr. Henry Cloud who is a clinical psychologist and prolific author on the subject of boundaries in human relationships. On this Saturday he was giving the first of two ‘sermons’ on the subject of intimacy.

I should say that I’ve read several of Dr. Cloud’s books and I have a lot of respect for his expertise on his subject. It is also a little unfair to critique part 1 of a two-part ‘sermon,’ so take this critique for what it’s worth and add a large grain of salt.

It was a great ‘talk,’ informative and entertaining; but it wasn’t a ‘sermon.’ God was mentioned only in passing and the Gospel (as I understand it) wasn’t mentioned at all. This is important to me. A sermon can inform and give advice for a better life, but the imperative is to announce the Gospel. It can succeed or fail in any regard (to educate or entertain), but it must announce the Good News of God’s love in Jesus Christ. At least that’s what I think; so I was disappointed.

And that makes me wonder, who am I to criticize Willow Creek? This is a huge and successful church, which reaches something like 23,000 people every weekend. Still, if even for a day the emperor has no clothes…

When the service was over, I streamed out of the auditorium and building with everyone else. Over the course of three hours no one said ‘hello’ or shook my hand or asked for my name or if I needed any help finding a seat or following the service. Willow Creek was impressive, but it was a surprisingly lonely experience in a sea 5,000 people.

Hmmm… something to think about.

On Sunday morning at 6:00 am, I headed into Chicago for the 7:30 service at Trinity UCC on the Southside. When I entered the building the first and most noticeable thing was that I was the only white person in a sea of black people. I wasn’t really uncomfortable about this, but I did feel a little conspicuous. If I had been nervous, and maybe I was just a little, the people of Trinity made me feel very welcomed almost immediately. Within 5 minutes, two people asked me my name and where I was from and greeted me with a hug. One person near the door, who may have been an official greeter, told me that I would probably prefer a large print bulletin and a seat in the balcony where it would be easier to see.

One woman, who may have been the head greeter, welcomed me to “the best church this side of the Jordan.” She wasn’t boasting, just sharing her love for her church. When I told her that I was looking forward to hearing her preacher, she said, “Well you’re in for a treat.”

I have wanted to attend worship at Trinity for a long time. This desire started a few years ago at a preaching conference, where I had heard a sermon by their then senior pastor. During the 2008 elections, he was embroiled in a little controversy which I thought was terribly unfair to him. A few lines of his sermon were quoted out of context by politicians seeking an advantage over an opponent. I honestly don’t care who the preacher is, Jerry Falwell or Jeremiah Wright, conservative or liberal; it’s always wrong and unfair to take words out of context.

I also wanted to attend Trinity, because a former preaching professor of mine recommended their new pastor as a good example of African American preaching. So for lots of reasons, I was excited to be at Trinity.

Physically the worship space was nice but unremarkable. It was the warmth and energy of the gathered people that made it feel electric and holy. The space has one balcony and all of the pews, both up and down, arch around the pulpit in a half circle.

Behind the pulpit was a 30 member all male choir, led by a conductor and backed by a group of musicians: guitar, keyboard, drums, etc. I think the music could best be described as Soul Music, and it was great!

The first part of the service included music, announcements, prayers, scripture readings, a welcome to visitors, and the collection of an offering. As the sermon was beginning, I checked my watch because I wanted to know how long the sermon was when it was over. I was surprised to discover that we were already 90 minutes into what would be a 2 hour service!

And then there was the sermon. If you’ve never heard a good African American preacher before, it’s hard to describe, but I’ll do my best. It was spectacular, a thing of beauty. Reverend Otis Moss, III is a young man in his 30s, but his sermon was mature and majestic. It moved along at a rapid clip for the better part of 30 minutes. It was powerful and inspiring, clearly grounded in a Biblical text. It felt intellectually stimulating and challenging. Gospel based throughout, he touched on national politics and the brokenness of his own community and the goodness of God.

What is so often present in a good sermon in an African American church is a certain cadence, a rhythm. It builds and then slows and then circles around again. It’s poetry.

By the end of my experience with the people of Trinity, I had been hugged by at least a dozen people each of whom asked me my name and where I was from; and then so I knew that they had heard me, they called me by name. I joined in their prayers by holding hands with those seated beside me. It was a great experience and my idea of what church should be.

I don’t love Trinity UCC on the Southside of Chicago more than I love Grace Lutheran Church on the Southside of Adel, Iowa. Instead as a guest at Trinity I was reminded about some of the things I love best about being a member of Grace Lutheran Church: heartfelt music, the embrace of my neighbors and the announcement of the Gospel. So, if you live near Adel, Iowa come to Grace Lutheran Church where you are always welcome; but if you get anywhere near the Southside of Chicago stop by Trinity, because they will make you feel welcome and help you experience the Gospel.

All in all a great weekend.

Peace,

Pastor