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St. Jerome Catholic Church

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On Sunday September 27, 2015, I attended St. Jerome Catholic Church. The address for this Catholic Church is 116 Denbigh Blvd, Newport News, VA 23608. The service started at 12pm that Sunday afternoon and Father Jong Bayta gave the reading as well as held the communion for the church. There were two other fathers there as well; Father Thomas Pasiden and Father Luke Sanchez. They didn’t say anything throughout the service but helped Father Jong when needed. I soon found out that they were in training to open up their own church soon. The outside of the church was very simple. It is a brick church all around with white trim around the top of the church. They also have family life center (gym) connected to the church were they have many of…show more content…
The choir sat in pews instead of the normal choir stand. There were also stands in the church where it listed how many people attended the service every mass. The visitors are greeted with a warm smile and a firm handshake. When you walk in the three doors, there is a person greeting you at each with a welcoming personality. The majority of the people there seemed to be between middle and upper class. There was a mix of Asian Americans as well as the majority being Caucasians. There were African Americans here and there. There was a huge percentage of women there compared to men and the average age was thirty five and up. This Sunday, there were approximately two hundred and thirty people. It was a very packed service that afternoon. During the service, I set alone towards the back of the church. There were a couple of people who sat around me but no one sat right next to me. Even though I was unfamiliar with the religion and the rituals that took place, I didn’t feel uncomfortable. I’m a very sociable person so I didn’t mind speaking to others around me and attempting to engage in conversation. No one offered to sit with me but anytime they sang a song, the gentlemen to my right would bring me the hymn and direct me to the song that was being sung. I feel as though he could tell I was a visitor because from time to time, he would ask me if I understood what was going on and I just smiled.
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