HOUSE OF WORSHIP : Orthodox church engages senses in worship
Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2003
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Religion/26099/
St. Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church
105 S. Blair St.
Springdale (479) 751-1830 WORSHIP 10 a.m. Sunday PASTOR Father John Atchison ATTENDANCE 25 DENOMINATION Antiochian Orthodox Christian
CHURCHES IN
ARKANSAS 1 * * Glenmary Research Center HISTORY Worshippers have been meeting in the current location for about a year and a half. The congregation met in Fayetteville for several years.
The Orthodox Church includes several branches, including the Antiochian church, Russian and Greek. The Springdale congregation is an Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church.
According to How to Be a Perfect Stranger: The Essential Religious Etiquette Handbook, the first Antiochian parish in North American was established in 1895 in Brooklyn, N. Y.
The church’s history dates back to the apostles Peter and Paul and the Syrian city of Antioch, where Jesus’ followers were reportedly first referred to as Christians. Reference books indicate there are 210 to 227 Antiochian Orthodox churches in the United States, with membership of 70,000 to 80,000. ABOUT THE PASTOR Father John Atchison has been priest of the Springdale church since November 2001.
A native of Oregon, Atchison was an Assembly of God pastor in Wyoming when, he says, he began to yearn for more of God. He found what he was seeking in the Orthodox church and converted. He led an Orthodox church in Wyoming before coming to Northwest Arkansas. PROGRAMS A vespers service is at 6 p.m. each Wednesday and Saturday. Morning prayer is at 9 a.m. Sunday, followed by a service of divine liturgy at 10 a.m.
The church building includes a wall of icons — colorful images of Jesus, Mary, John the Baptist and St. Nicholas, as well as others. Atchison says the services include many candles and the use of incense and may be overwhelming to visitors not accustomed to the particular liturgical style of worship. Incense is used to represent prayers rising to heaven.
Worship is meant to involve all the senses, Atchison says.
Atchison says the divine liturgy is meant to give worshippers a time of heaven on earth and is meant to be a joyful occasion. "We enter into the kingdom of heaven for just a little while," Atchison says of the liturgy.
As priest, Atchison sings the service of liturgy. He says the priest sings because it’s supposed to be a happy day, celebrating Jesus’ rise from death.
The service also includes chanting, and worshippers stand much of the time. "We chant the songs. It quiets a person’s heart," Atchison says.
The Saturday vespers service is common among Orthodox churches as a way to prepare the heart for Sunday.
Atchison welcomes visitors to come for worship. He says more than one visit might be necessary because the service is very different from mainline Christian worship. EVENTS The church observes 12 religious holidays or feast days, in addition to Easter. The feast days are observed with special worship services. NEEDS Atchison says plans include renovating the building and eventually moving to a permanent facility. House of Worship is a weekly profile of the places where Arkansans worship. Suggestions for House of Worship profiles may be mailed to Religion Editor, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P. O. Box 5105, Springdale, Ark. 72765, or fax (479) 927-5284.