Too lazy to take a picture of a Harlem church today, so I stole this one off the internet. This is my own Harlem church--the one I go to every Sunday. Almost every Sunday someone in the ward tells a story about the struggle the early LDS people in Harlem had to go through before a chapel was built for them to worship in, and how their prayers and fasting was answered with joy when the chapel was finally built. First the small congregation met in someone's home, then above Sylvia's Restaurant. Then a tiny windowless storefront was found and used for Sunday meetings until this building was built in 2005. Now the Harlem chapel houses two wards and fosters much community activity. Where it was met with opposition at first, it is now a source of pride within the neighborhood. The elders were telling me last week that one day a guy on the street ran up to them and told them that they had nothing to fear from the Bloods, the Crips, or any of the other local gangs because they all respected the Mormon missionaries. Sometimes on my way to church, when people see where I'm going they ask me questions about what I believe and why I go to the church I go to. You can't help but notice this big still-new looking church, all clean amidst the old well-worn Harlem backdrop.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Harlem LDS Chapel
Too lazy to take a picture of a Harlem church today, so I stole this one off the internet. This is my own Harlem church--the one I go to every Sunday. Almost every Sunday someone in the ward tells a story about the struggle the early LDS people in Harlem had to go through before a chapel was built for them to worship in, and how their prayers and fasting was answered with joy when the chapel was finally built. First the small congregation met in someone's home, then above Sylvia's Restaurant. Then a tiny windowless storefront was found and used for Sunday meetings until this building was built in 2005. Now the Harlem chapel houses two wards and fosters much community activity. Where it was met with opposition at first, it is now a source of pride within the neighborhood. The elders were telling me last week that one day a guy on the street ran up to them and told them that they had nothing to fear from the Bloods, the Crips, or any of the other local gangs because they all respected the Mormon missionaries. Sometimes on my way to church, when people see where I'm going they ask me questions about what I believe and why I go to the church I go to. You can't help but notice this big still-new looking church, all clean amidst the old well-worn Harlem backdrop.
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2 comments:
I was looking for this picture. Beautiful shot and I enjoyed your post.
Thank you for posting.
I was looking for a picture of the Harlem church to post on my private family facebook page,(after reading about its history elsewhere)and it came straight to your blog entry. Love the picture and your blog entry. Now I'm stealing the picture from you :)
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