Monday Ministerial Musings

By Rev. Mark William Ennis

Blog Number 42

December 7, 2020

An Advent Tragedy

On Saturday a beloved and historic church was ruined from a fire. The church, Middle Collegiate Church in New York City has been a Christian presence in New York City since its founding in 1628 and has been in continuous Christian service since then. The congregation built a new building and moved to its current location, in the East Village of New York City in 1891.

The fire began in an abandoned building that was next to, and attached to the church building. The fire quickly spread. Fires do spread quickly through shared walls. The fire department ultimately called in six alarms to fight the fire and to protect other buildings in the area. Unfortunately, the fire too rapidly to save the church building.

I am not a member of this congregation but I have had the pleasure of worshiping there on several occasions. It is a very spirited place with lively and worship that accepts all kinds of people from many walks of life. The pastor, ministerial staff, and members are true credits to God’s kingdom. The building was also beautiful and the destruction of this historic and elegant building makes me sad. I don’t believe that any new construction will rival the beauty of the one that was destroyed.

And yet, the church continues. The church is not a building. The church is a gathering of Christ’s people and this will continue. Rev. Dr. Jacqueline J. Lewis, who is the pastor of the church, assured viewers on the local television news that worship will continue online. This has been the method of worship since the beginning of the corona plague. She further assured viewers that the programs of the congregation would continue despite the loss of the building.

This is a sad day for this congregation as well as for all of us who loved and respected their work. Now it is simply time to pray for this congregation that God will lead it, and its leadership toward a bright and faithful future.

#ClintonAvenueReformedChurch                         #ReformedChurchInAmerica                    

#PastorMarkAuthordotcom                                    #BergenfieldNJ

#BergenCountyNJ                                                   #MiddleCollegiateChurch

#ChurchFire                                                              #RevDrJacquelineLewis

To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order a copy of his book:https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/