St Paul's Episcopal Church

I am Thomas Wayne Rice, Christ follower, senior, camp counselor. I first started following Christ in the 1st grade, I had always know of Christ, I was raised in church, but half way through my 10th grade year I learned what it meant to actually have a relationship with Jesus. That is when it all changed for me I stopped living my life for myself and began a new life. This is the story of my salvation and where God is leading me.

Beginning just before my senior year I went through a series of trials that continued through most of my senior year. I wanted to do something for myself, and was encouraged to attend the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC). I decide to go, and so in January I set off for Indianapolis. Once at the conference, I listened to music, met other catholic high schoolers, and participated in workshops. I learned a lot about my faith, and about different forms of worship. This was something that I had not previously been exposed to, as while I was a member of one of the largest parishes in Central Ohio, it is a very traditional parish that had not exposed me to much more than the basic teachings of the church, and also had not demonstrated

Southern Louisiana had its distinctiveness; complete with the French and Spanish legacy, an Anglo-American territory, its Roman Catholic bastion; present was evangelical Protestantism, the slave society, its sugar society and historic plantations. But more important it had Centerville, Louisiana, the hometown of William J. Seymour, the son of former slaves.

In recent days I had the opportunity to go back to North Carolina for a few short days. There, with a heavy heart from a loss in the family, I had nothing else to look towards. I’ve always heard of individuals finding peace, faith, blessings, and love of Christ from attending church. I’ve never been a person who put their faith into a higher power. As I was growing up my parents never wanted to force me into any religion without me knowing everything about it and choosing which route to take on my own. As the years treaded on, I never bothered myself to learn about the many different religions and what each stands for. So I used this opportunity as mine to attend church for the very first time. I attended the Roman Catholic services held

In 1905, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, under the direction of Rev. L. L. Downing, erected their persistently famous Stonewall Jackson memorial window. Each Sunday, Fifth Avenue’s pastor still preaches from the pulpit with this picturesque image in the background, denoting the phrase, “Let us Cross the River and Rest in the Shade of the Trees.” General Jackson was, of course, well known for his devout Presbyterian faith. What may be most surprising to those unfamiliar with Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, however, is that it is a historically black congregation. As a local historian has explained:

St. Paul's Presbyterian Church seeks to provide a safe and secure environment for the children

I can’t recall not being a part of New Hope Baptist Church because when I was growing up my parents attended everything and they “had us in tow”. I remember being brought to church in the winter and my parents lining us up on the seats next to the potbellied stove. We were required to take care of our “personal business” before entering because we were not allowed to walk while the services were in progress. I really have a hard time understanding why some young people today cannot sit through an entire service right now today. As children the church conferences often baffled us. While watching and listening, sometimes things got into a disagreeable mode. As children, we thought those deacons were at odds with each other, but when they

May 1, 2016, the Mt. Olive Baptist Church, located in Greenwood (S.C.) County will celebrate its 142nd church anniversary. Many years Mt. Olive have been a church that loved people, gave without limits and took great care of its members. The last five of those one hundred and forty-two years, I have been honored to serve as pastor of this great church. Although this is a great church, Mt. Olive and many churches like it are plagued with a disease that has slowly, but surely, causing the church to drift further away from God and fall deeper into the ways of the world. This epidemic is known as “tradition”. Churches that are bound by tradition and not led by the Holy Spirit will find themselves missing the mark of what God has called us to do. The bible is filled with instructions for the church, but as Christians and Disciples of Christ, Matthew 28 is the foundation upon which we should be operating on in the church as well as in our lives. The Great Commission challenges us to “go, teach and preach to all nations.” Traditional churches will allow church tradition to dictate biblical doctrine. It will allow the church to argue about who’s right instead of what’s right. Sadly, church success has been based on structure and finances rather than saving lost souls.

They practiced practical Christianity and help all night bible studies that I was required to go to every month. These people practiced dress reform, veganism and abstain from wordly entertainment. Being in that environment, surrounded by those people, I was protected. Nothing from the out side could get to me. I wasn’t allowed to use the internet freely, we had daily family worships where everyone had to learn a new verse everyday and we changed our diet and style of dress. I thought that I believed it. I thought that I was in it for the long haul. However, when I graduated High School (homeschooled 10th-12th) and went to Southern, I was exposed to everything and basically stopped doing everything that I was doing at home. I realized that I did all those things because my parents didn’t give me a choice and it was tradition. My parents we’re having a real and thriving relationship with Jesus while I was just following them. I was full of biblical information, I knew verses and theories and spirit of prophecy passages but I still don’t know God. I know that God will take care of us and that he guides us and I know all these promises but I don’t have any real

My story starts in Danville, Virginia on the 19th of December in the year of 1998. I am the 3rd born child. My mother had 6 children and I am in the middle. My first 7 years I lived in a very bad neighborhood in Danville. After that I moved to a middle class neighborhood. And following that neighborhood, I moved out into the county near Danville. There are many churches in Danville and about half of everyone attends church on Sunday, but regardless, a lot of people are not saved. They are numb to the scriptures and the preaching of the word. During the time I was in my second house, I was attending a church where they encouraged people to be saved and to participate in musical worship. After a while of not wanting to do that, I finally decided

I did not come to know Christ until December of 2003 at the age of 25 at First Baptist Church of Gordonsville Tennessee. As a young boy, I had a desire to know GOD, and had even made a profession of faith, but never had anyone

Sunday’s 6:45 pm service on the 14th June at ‘St. David’s Anglican Church, Forestville’ for the young adults of their community, continued their deconstruction of The Ten Commandments, focusing on, “Thou shall not steal”. Through song, discussion and self-devised prayer, Senior Minister Gavin, shared Christianity’s understanding of stealing as “dishonouring to God” and the importance of this to Anglicans.

In the Great Fire of London in 1666, nearly 13,000 houses, over 90 churches and historical building burned down, leaving hundreds and thousands of people of London homeless. One famous historical building that burned down in the Fire was the old St. Paul’s Cathedral. Within days of the Fire, King Charles II started the plans to rebuild the city and gave the task of rebuilding the Cathedral to architect Christopher Wren. Wren had already started working on plans to renovate and repair the Cathedral in 1661, five years before the Great Fire in 1666, so subsequently he continued to lead and design the construction of the new and present St. Paul’s Cathedral. Like many of the buildings and homes that were rebuilt in London after the Great Fire,

St. Paul’s Cathedral has been recognised internationally as a landmark in the London skyline. Since 1938 the City of London Corporation has adopted a unique planning policy known as the “St Paul’s Heights” to protect and enhance vital views of the Cathedral from the South Bank, Thames bridges and certain points to the north, west and east. This long-term consistent implementation of the St Paul's Heights policy has enabled the protected views to be preserved and enhanced for more than seventy years.

London is a city that is steeped in rich history and has many cultural influences that have affected everything from the way that Londoners speak down to the architecture. One of the most influential buildings in this time is one that dominated the London skyline as a reference point for 300 years up until the 1960’s, and that is Wren’s St. Paul’s Cathedral. This building has been recorded to be in existence on its site as early as the 604, but it could have been around as early as the 400’s. St. Paul’s has endured many things throughout its time, but none as disastrous as the Great Fire in 1666. This event, which almost destroyed the whole town of London, but the entire church as well, created a design opportunity for the aspiring architect Christopher Wren. With a huge path of destruction carved out for the fire, the city was looking for an architect to help them restore their city, but with a new style. Wren was provided with the chance to do over 50 churches in London, which St. Paul’s is his most prominent and remembered design. It is his design that is what decorates the London skyline and extends up 365 feet into the sky, and is one of the greatest examples of acoustics inside of a building. This essays goal is to explore the effect of the Great Fire in the design of this buildings current look, as well as explore the various designs of the domes and the interesting phenomenon which is the Whispering Gallery.