Easter 2011-My Adventure at an African Pentecostal Church

Happy Easter! Being in Korea means I get to learn a lot about Korean culture. What's even better is that I have made friends from all over the world and have had the advantage of being in Korea yet also learning about my Canadian, South African, Australian, and English friends' cultures. I've tried all kinds of food and visited many places. However, it has been difficult to find a place to worship where the service is not entirely in Korean, especially since I live in such a tiny, small town.

I recently met an American soldier stationed in Seoul who invited me to attend church with him on Easter Sunday. I was ecstatic! FINALLY!! Church in ENGLISH!! With no sight of chocolate bunnies in Uljin and no hope of my little Korean church suddenly accommodating me with an English sermon, I was thrilled to accept the invitation and make the four hour trek to Seoul to celebrate Easter with people who shared my language.

Upon arriving at the church, I immediately noticed there were not many women in the midst. Happily, they did come in a bit later, though I was still the only Caucasian person accompanied by one Filipino and one Korean woman. The service began with praises in English, French, and a native African tongue.There were no words on a screen to follow and no hymnals to read. Even though the band, containing a keyboard player, drums, African drums, bass guitar, and trumpet had not practiced, they made beautiful, rhythmic music together.

As the music continued, the men all seemed to move forward into the front area of the room. They danced together in a circle praising God with song and dance. After the men left the area, the women all began to move forward. A beautiful woman in traditional African attire grabbed my arm and insisted I join them in dancing and praises, so (with a bit of protest) I did! It was amazing! I mean, here I am in the middle of Itaewon (Seoul), South Korea, in a basement church with a group of people of African descent, dancing and singing praises to God on Easter Sunday! This ain't your Grandma's church! Words cannot describe the feeling of knowing these people were praising the same God I was praising every year prior in a far different fashion, and now I was a part of their worship and being accepted as a sister in Christ. Amazing!

The praises and worship went on for quite some time. There was time for individual testimonies and people went forward one by one to give God praise for something in their lives and some even sang short songs. Just prior to the sermon, the pastor introduced me and asked me to come sing. I led the church in a popular chorus I was sure they knew, "Our God is an Awesome God". I was right...they knew it, the band chimed in and we all sang about our Awesome God!

The service continued with a short sermon being delivered in an unfamiliar African tongue and was immediately translated into English by an interpreter standing next to the Elder who delivered the message. Throughout the sermon, people were called upon to read passages from the Bible. They were read in English, French, and an African tongue so everyone could understand.

More singing and dancing ensued after the sermon and things finally wrapped up two and a half hours after beginning! To make things even better, the service was followed by a potluck lunch full of new and exciting foods I had never seen or tried! Though we had plans to return to the military base for a traditional American Easter brunch of ham and prime rib, we opted to stay and savor the delicious offerings of this potluck gathering. Oh! I am so glad we did! I had two kinds of rice with various seasonings on it, carrots that were both sweet and intensely spicy, along with spicy hen. It was absolutely delicious!

Somewhere along the way, I managed to make friends with this little miniature man who really took a liking to me. It was nice to see and interact with a child smaller than five who understood English!

It was a wonderful Easter Sunday. Though there were no Bunny Big Ears, jelly beans, or Peeps, this was a time filled with true praise and worship for the Risen Lord, which is exactly what Easter is all about.