New Around the Mission
New Church Pushes Past the Familiar to Reach the Suburban Dechurched
January 12, 2011
On an unusually brisk Christmas Eve in the Bedford Falls neighborhood of North Raleigh, North Carolina, people bustle alongside a row of village shops lit up with twinkle lights. Many dressed in heavy coats and colorful neck scarves dash inside Café Buongiorno, where the aroma of fresh coffee beans and sugary treats warm the senses. While the sfogliatelle, canoli and gelato fill glass cases inside like a Michelangelo masterpiece on display, those milling around aren’t just looking for a holiday treat; they are joining St. John’s first Christmas Eve worship service held at the cozy cafe.
The Rev. William Allen delivers a Christmas Eve message at Cafe Buongiorno in North Raleigh, NC.
St. John’s Raleigh is a regional church plant started less than a year ago and is supported by three congregations: All Saints Church in Chapel Hill, Church of the Apostles in Raleigh and Church of the Resurrection in Fuquay Varina. Meeting at Trinity Academy of Raleigh School on Sunday evenings for the past seven months, the congregation is reaching a segment of the large population of suburban residents in North Raleigh who know about God but walked away from Him for countless reasons.
“We encounter many people who are transplants from other states brought here by their employers, the majority of whom are Roman Catholics disconnected from God,” reports the Rev. William Allen.
Allen is fulfilling a vision God gave him 10 years ago while a Methodist minister to plant a church in the Raleigh area known as the Triangle. While on ministry sabbatical, the Allen family began attending Church of the Apostles, and he says that “the more I learn about theAM, the more I realize their vision to evangelize through church planting lines up with the heart He has given me to reach others with the Gospel.”
St. John's members, Karen Haring (left) and Carlene Crisafi (right), pass out candles to people prior to the Christmas Eve service.
St. John’s decided to host their Christmas Eve service in a coffee shop located in the center of a neighborhood of 500 homes because they realize those burned out with past wounds from other churches “won’t go looking for another church.”
While people get to know one another through events at the Allen family home and in routine small group Q and A on Sunday afternoons, Allen admits, “We are doing church in a way that is unfamiliar to me. My default mode is to manage existing congregations, but people are embracing what we offer.”
If you’re in the area, join St. John’s on Sunday at 4pm at Trinity Academy located at 10224 Balleywick Road in North Raleigh.
Learn more about St. John's here.
Posted By: Cynthia P. Brust
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