At Your Service: Reviewing the East Bay's Houses of Worship

The New Mt. Hermon M.B.C (Missionary Baptist Church)
- Lake Merritt / San Antonio District













Pastor: Rev. Clyde H. Ignont, Jr.

Presiding Pastor: Rev. McKinley (whose first name I was unable to acquire)

Attendance: 31 adults and children

Service Length: 2 hours, including opening call and response prayer.

Sample Worshiper Dress: Black t-shirts, jungle cat- and zebra-print dresses, suit-coats, and painfully small and pointy high-heels.

Distractions Observed: Text-messaging, a bottle of Vaseline, and a box of tissues.

DEVOTIONAL FERVOR:
Amidst the copious clapping and spirited invocations of praise, parishioners sang a number of high-energy songs of worship accompanied by lively drumming and smooth organ melodies. Reverend McKinley also gathered them in hand-in-hand prayer at the foot of the altar on two occasions.
A particularly spirited female worshiper was fully taken by the preacher's message, and, apparently on the verge of tears, she was hollering loudly in praise in the church's outer foyer. Several of the younger worshipers were distracted from their devotions and unable to keep a straight face. The woman then burst into the service, ran around the auditorium a couple of times, danced in front of the drum set, and then breathlessly stood with the congregation. Grade: B+

FOOD FOR THE SOUL:
The Reverend McKinley, claiming that all he knows how to do is "preach expository," focused his homily on the later half of Genesis 8, wherein, on the first of the year, Noah debarks from the ark (dearks?) after the flood to find the land dry, thanks to the mercy and blessings of the Lord. Following a rather dry and academic preface to the passage in question, McKinley lit the fuse and burned along steadily as he interpreted the reading as one of hope for prosperity and faith in the new year. He implored parishioners to get out of the box (as he translated the word "ark") after a year beset by hardship and rain, to praise the Lord for his mercy and salvation, and, as the fuse burned down and lit the powder, he erupted into full-blown Gospel worship, the parishioners participating in rousing call and response as the drums and organ kicked in. Grade: B

FOOD FOR THE BODY:
Even after a rousing and, for some, athletic service, neither food nor beverages were offered to the congregation, but I did notice a small jar of peppermint candies up on the altar, the Pastor's own stash, one would assume. Grade: D+

OVERALL WORSHIP POWER:
The New Mt. Hermon church is an inclusive and gracious house of worship. Its members displayed enthusiasm, endurance, and obvious devotion to their beliefs. They enjoy their worship, the visiting Reverend McKinley obviously knew his scriptures, and the drummer was really good. Grade: B

(Note: I would like to acknowledge and give my thanks and gratitude to Aaron Leitko and the Washington City Paper for the idea for this column.)