Tiana Warner Project #1 COMM 2150

Overview I decided to attend a New Pilgrim Baptist Church service. My close friends mom actually goes to this church on a regular basis, so I decided it would be a benefit to know someone at the church. Beforehand, I did some research online and found out their core beliefs and what I would expect at the meeting. It was interesting to read that I would be experiencing a lively entertaining environment. From the value theory Belief Comparisons of the Worlds Major Religions I realized that Baptists are Christians. I could look over the chart and see comparisons and differences to other religions which I found fascinating. I learned through analyzing the theory that the Baptists believe in loving God and man, and that they can be saved through Jesus blood (Sprunger, 2013). Overall I gained a better appreciation for different religions. I now plan on visiting other religious functions. Religion Ive never really looked into a Baptist church. I always thought that they sang upbeat songs during their whole meeting. I didnt really know exactly what they believed. I realized that they are Christians who believe the similar things I believe in. They focus on Jesus Christ mainly and thats a center of my religious beliefs as well. That we strive to be like Christ and make changes through his sacrifice for us. They highly value the love of God and man, believe in the Ten Commandments, and believe that through the blood of Jesus there comes salvation. (Sprunger, 2013). But they dont really emphasize importance in the Ten Commandments, they do strive to

be better, but it isnt as crucial for a Baptist to follow the commandments as it is for a Mormon. When I looked up the New Pilgrim Baptist Church online, I found under their tab Who we are this statement, Our vision is to be a community of believers from every nation. We will be demonstrative worshippers, servant leaders, Christians committed to spiritual growth, using our gifts, talents and financial resources to further God's kingdom. We will be evangelists within our personal relationship circles, the local Utah community and throughout the world. I feel like this summarizes their overall goal as a church and what they believe.

Religious and Cultural Function It was tough deciding what religious or cultural function to attend. I decided that going to the New Pilgrim Baptist Church was a good option for me because my friends mother attends the church service every Sunday. It made me feel comfortable knowing she would be there. As I entered the big room I noticed two large screen projectors displaying a video. It was about how to get along with Mormons and how to share your beliefs with them. Next, the pastor came on the stage that was lit with green lights and told the congregation to shake hands and socialize with new faces. It showed that they value loving their neighbors. The next portion of the meeting was the message the pastor wanted to give. As Baptists, they use the Bible only and believe that it is their guide. The message was Luke 15. It was neat to see the way he taught. He would yell at times and repeat words over and over. He would also have the congregation repeat words or phrases. It really stuck in my head because of all the repetition. During this lesson, it showed that anyone can be saved. Everyone has their flaws, some flaws might be visible (like smoking or drinking alcohol), while others may be not visible (like being judgmental, or prideful). Thats what their religion focuses on; no matter where you are in your life you can be saved. With this

message they began to sing in song. They had a band up on stage with singers. As they sang, the pastor had the congregation join in. It was a catchy and good song. I really enjoyed the music. During the song there were people in the congregation who would stand up and someone would come pray with them. After the song, there were some brief announcements, baby blessings, donations, and a pray.

Value Theory Since I attended a religious function the Belief Comparisons of the Worlds Major Religions applied most to my experience. It is laid out in sections showing the dominant values, explanation for evil, salvation, afterlife, dominant emphasis, scripture and revelation, founder and origin, and ultimate reality of each major religion. It was interesting to go through each religion and see their beliefs about each section and see how they relate and differ from one another. Since I attended a Christian church, I felt that the dominant emphasis column explained what I kept on hearing Jesus as Lord; Fatherhood of God; Brotherhood of man; Kingdom of God (Sprunger, 2013). I plan on visiting other religion functions in the future. Having this chart available will help me see the main beliefs of each religion. It will allow me to compare and contrast each religion and gain a better appreciation for each major religion in our diverse world.

Analysis From my experience I can conclude that there are two major beliefs that the Baptist church I attended has. First, the belief that Salvation comes from faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ, and second, the belief that we should love God and man (Sprunger, 2013). For the first belief, I saw how they believed that they can be saved all because of Christs

sacrifice. The pastor told the entire congregation that they can change and be a better person because of Christ and if they had the faith. They could come and confess their imperfections and he (the pastor) would help them overcome their problem. That anything is possible because of the blood of Christ. The church focuses on salvation and that anyone can be saved. For the second belief, I could see the love the people in the congregation, and on the stage, had for God and each other. It was so sincere when we shook hands and hugged random strangers. You could feel that you were welcomed. Also, during the whole meeting, the way they express their love for God and Christ was so lively. They showed their appreciation and love towards them through music and talking out loud.

Reflection This project was overall a great experience. I really enjoyed going to a different church and viewing the way they worshiped. It was exciting to be in a church that was so enthusiastic and lively. It was for sure not a boring service at all! At first I was nervous to find a church to go to because I am kind of shy. Its sometimes hard to go somewhere where I dont know many people. But I was also excited because Ive always wanted to go to different churches to gain a better understanding and be more open. I learned that the people of this Baptist church are great individuals. They have a desire to be better and want to be more like Christ. The religion teaches great principles and wants their congregation to leave a better person and try harder each week. The theory helped me learn about other religions and grow a better appreciation for them. The chart displays that all religions has great characteristics. It was cool to compare and contrast the differences in the major religions. It has made me want to attend a religious meeting of another religion. I hope to attend the Buddhist Temple down town in the next few months. It will be a

neat experience to see how their service differs from my own religion and the Baptist Church I went to this last week.

Works Cited Who we are (n.d.). In New Pilgrim Baptist Church. Retrieved February 22, 2014, from http://www.newpilgrimbaptist.com/who.php Sprunger, M. J. (2013). #25 Belief Comparision of the World's Major Religions. Utah: Salt Lake Community College.