There are no lush gardens, no high brick walls towering into the heavens, no magnificent stained glass windows depicting the crucifixion. There is just a white building with a brick facade that was bought in 1998. The building is home to Eastchester Church of God located on Eastchester road in the Bronx. It was started in 1990 by the current Pastor Devon Dixon and his wife Heather Dixon and a few other members of the church. It consists of 267 members, with visitors of about 300. Many of the members come from the Caribbean with many coming from the island of Jamaica. There are Americans and African members as well. The members are mostly women, “That is the problem with most black churches, they have more women than men,” commented Pastor Dixon.
Often as you approach the church on a Sunday morning you will hear the chiming bells of the nearby Catholic Cathedral announcing the hour. The church, on Sunday, is filled with members and visitors worshipping.
The sanctuary from the inside is long. A narrow isle runs up the sanctuary with chairs on either side. The altar has an organ on one side and drums on the on the other. In the middle, a wooden pulpit with a cross carved in it and a basket of flowers at the base. Behind it are seats where the pastor, his wife or any other guest speaker the church may have, sits. People stand shoulder to shoulder to shoulder. There are two services on Sunday one in the morning at eight and one at eleven. Many people go to the earlier one because it offers a chance to testify. Testifying in church is a practice that you can say is sort of fading. It is when one person stands up and talks about something God has done for them or just share a verse of scripture (elaborating on it). It is also less crowded than the eleven o’clock service. Some people who attend the eight o’clock service go home right after, some stay for Sunday school then leave, while there are others who stay for the next service then go home. Sometimes the two services are joined together, like recently when the church had there Family Deliverance Conference. At this service the children were removed as at other times, to make room. (In the family deliverance conference families said the opening prayer, read the scripture and blessed the offering). They were brought to another section of the building. The pastor Reverend Dixon preaches most of the sermons but other members of the church also give sermons.
The service begins with praise team singing various hymns. There are only women in the praise team. After they sing the pastor is escorted in along with is wife and other elders of the church. Then the Morning Prayer is said and the welcome is given. Then someone comes on and gives a talk about giving tithe and offering, afterwards that person prays and the offering is collected. While it is being collected there is an item, (it is usually a song performed by the church choir, the youth choir/chorale or an individual member of the congregation). Then the pastor comes and gives his sermon. This is basically what happens every Sunday with a few exceptions.
On Tuesdays they have a prayer meeting; members and visitors of the church gather together to pray. They pray for various things, from the country to a specific member of the church. There was no crowd on the day I went. It was a cold rainy night. Four women were already in the sanctuary when I arrived. They had on regular clothes, no fancy clothes or hat like what was seen on Sunday. Three paced at the alter singing a hymn, “Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.” They sang it repeatedly, while one walked up and down the aisle singing also. As I stood there, more women started coming. Finally one young man came, and then the pastor and his wife, in all nine people came despite the weather. They stood at the alter praying; they did not kneel. Some with hands held high; others with hands clasped before their faces. At that meeting they prayed for the sick, the youth of the church, for a deliverance service they were going to have and for the pastor. Individual people were asked to pray and while that person prayed the rest uttered words like “yes,” “hallelujah,” and “in Jesus’ name,” in agreement to what was being prayed.
On Wednesdays they have Bible Study. They have youth and adult bible study. The bible study class was to take place in the sanctuary but it was too cold. Instead it took place in the room where they had baptisms. The room was warm. It was wider with higher ceilings than the sanctuary but still smaller. There were Christmas lights still hanging on the wall supposedly from last year. The heater was hanging visibly in the ceiling and it hummed on and off like a reminder to us that it was still there. There were still more women than men but significantly more people than the prayer meeting. The teaching was a collaborative effort. The pastor encouraged the people present to give there opinions on what was being talked about. A glass stood on a chair for the pastor just in case he needed it but he never drank from it.
There is a young adult meeting some Fridays and youth zone along with youth choir/chorale practice on Fridays at different times. Friday night activities were cancelled on the Friday that was Halloween (The church does not believe in Halloween. They believe it is devils worshippers’ day. They had a day when the kids of the church could dress up as their favorite bible hero). When I arrived five girls were practicing a song called My Mind Is Made Up. They were led by Ese, who is a member of the praise team. While they practiced, two boys ran up and down the aisle playing. They also had the young adult meeting. One young man was present in the meeting. The pastor’s wife was there.
There is an overwhelming presence of women in the church. The members pride themselves on being friendly and welcoming. After every service, the pastor and some of the elders of the church, greet the congregation by shaking the hands of the people leaving the sanctuary. This behavior is unheard of in some churches. Most go to the church because of the pastor’s realness. “The genuineness of the pastor, he is the same on the pulpit as he is off,” said Samuel Smith, a member, “some pastors tell you what to become but they are not. This pastor is an example of what he tells you to become, he is a role model.” They pride themselves on the fellowship they have with each other. “They are very welcoming, they are like an extended family, they look out for you,” says Rukey, a member of Eastchester Church of God. Eastchester Church has many young people. The youth of the church are being groomed to one day take over the church, without them the church will die. They participate in choir, help out in the church office, write and perform in plays among other things. Many probably did not start out wanting to do these things. “People change when they come here, little kids that were bad give then a year, later they singing on the choir, praise dancing, people change when they come here,” Alicia, a member of Eastchester Church. Eastchester Church is a growing church. There are currently plans to build a new sanctuary to accommodate the new members and visitors expected to come and worship with them. There is a sculpture of the new sanctuary by the exit in a glass case for people to see.
My first impressions of this community was that they would hide their face from me not wanting me to take their pictures but they did not. They allowed me to talk with them and observe their day to day happenings. To document, in a way how, how they worship God. It was hard to take the pictures at first, because of my shyness. There were some technical problems as well. Most of my pictures were blurred. I found out that photography is not an easy art and I have developed more respect for photographers. I wanted to capture this community not only on Sunday when everyone is out and about praising God feverishly but on other days. I wanted to see who came out on those other nights. Even though it was for a short time, I saw some people who came out not just on Sunday but other nights as well. In the end I believe I did what I set out to do.
I think it’s interesting what you discovered throughout photographing your community (such as how open they were to being photographed). It’s interesting how you really showed two communities, the one that comes even on weekdays and the one that only comes on weekends. I think your pictures really show a passion and connection with religion/God.
Your essay is amazing. I think it is a great companion to your photos, it helps us understand your point of view and where you stand as you encounter images and try to frame them.
Your ability to capture the passionate intensity of these people while they pray is truly illuminating. As simple a gesture as it seems to close your eyes and put your hands together, each prayer photo displays it’s own emotional thumbprint. Your writing is extremely visual and perhaps exhibits the best qualities of great a great storyteller. Your photos were quite provoking but I think I was able to see more with your words than your images.
Many of your photos capture the fervor of these church goers. This was not easy to do because you were reluctant to get in their way. Still, you managed to be a presence. Your essay does a good job at describing the church and its rhythms. You might, however, have brought in some more reflective and analytic issues: What kind of lives do these people live and what does the church offer them? Several interviews with parishioners would have strengthened your essay.
I agree with Roz here. You really capture the rhythms of the church, some of its practices and the things one sees or hears while there. But getting some more in-depth interviews would have provided a fuller illumination of the dynamics that hold this community together, or, alternately, threaten to tear it apart, whatever the case may be.
And again, what denomination is this church?
Still, great close-ups of the congregation. You show a lot of bravery in being able to capture these photos. And your in-class presentation was appreciated.
You are a very insightful photographer. Your images tell a lot of the story. I like your essay too. It true, this church not look like one from the outside, nor is it very ellaborate inside, but it seems to mean just as much to its members as any other.
I do wish that you would include more of the people, the interviews with them, their words I feel would add to the essay and the picture of their community.
You effectively showed us how inclusive the church is and how it draws people into its many activities. The text and images really complement each other. The essay was well-written with a strong opening. It would have been helpful to also give us some background info on how the black church has been such a powerful influence and such an important conduit of black culture. So many musicians, politicians and artists were deeply formed by their experiences in the church.
As others mentioned, it would have been good to hear other voices besides the pastor’s. It would also have emphasized how much of a participatory experience this is and why it helps hold a community together.
As a member of Eastchester Church, I found the depiction of our community routine quite accurate and well-written. It captures well the mechanics of what we do. Still, a little more digging with the “regulars,” as opposed to those in or close to Church leadership would reveal that we are not always one happy bunch of holy rolling church folks. There are some who don’t come anymore because they didn’t feel “the love.” Some still come but are not always totally supportive of our pastor’s vision for the Church.
The membership, which includes Black folks from all over the Caribbean, Africans and African-Americans, is educationally and economically diverse. Some are babysitters, nursing home attendants and taxi drivers. Others are educators, lawyers, and medical professionals, who come from affluent communities in Connecticut, New Jersey, Upstate New York and Pennslyvania, as well as those from just “around the way.”
And yes, many come because of Pastor Dixon’s leadership. He does keep it real and evidently practices what he preaches. His two sons are polite and well-mannered and his wife is beautiful, yet humble and open. He delivers the Word of God with power, grace, and conviction, qualities which have attracted many a lonely wandering immigrant and dare I say “sinner,” who needed the comforting Word of salvation through Jesus Christ, without being crucified for the errors of their past.
Still, this was a great piece and I appreciate the effort and level of research spent on putting it together.
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