Thanks - 62nd St and Throop
Feb 11, 2018 ·
6m 42s
I drive down Garfield Blvd. into a part of the city which has come to acquire a reputation for being dark and dangerous. On this morning the streets are peaceful,...
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I drive down Garfield Blvd. into a part of the city which has come to acquire a reputation for being dark and dangerous. On this morning the streets are peaceful, and bright with sunlight. A viaduct stands over the street a few blocks in the distance, underneath a few CTA ‘L’ trains parked on the tracks above.
This is a space that looks like it holds many stories and many histories.
A short flight of stairs opens into the auditorium. The red carpet on the center aisle divides the two sections of padded dark wood benches and hardwood floors.
Sets of frosted stained glass windows - shaped like a baseball home plate - line the walls. Dark wood chairs, podiums, and tables form the front stage. A glance at the front of the brochure I received when I entered stated:
Founded 1887 - Present Edifice Erected - 1923
I thought about the people who constructed this building, and who formed the first community that assembled in this space on a regular basis. This city was a very different place 94 years ago. I wondered what they hoped for this space, and for the streets that surround it.
As the event began, a 10-person choir in white robes started to sing. They were mainly elderly folks, and although there were less than 20 people in the audience this morning, the choir members sang with enthusiasm, dedication, and joy.
About halfway through the event, time was set aside for audience members to pray. And then, nearly all of the now 40 people in the audience stood up and proceeded to the front stage; where they knelt side by side and began to pray silently, individually.
This was one of the most powerful demonstrations of solidarity and support I’ve seen all year. Each person, talking to God about their own concerns and challenges, pains and pressures...but doing so while kneeling alongside someone else who has come to talk to God about their own stuff.
The journey continues in the Englewood neighborhood on the south side, at the corner of 62nd Street and Throop.
Intro Theme Music: Victory Lap by QSTN ft. Mecca:83
Background Music: www.bensound.com/
Pick up your copy of the companion book at https://godinchicago.com/
Join the conversation! Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Y94abI and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2z6q5W4
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This is a space that looks like it holds many stories and many histories.
A short flight of stairs opens into the auditorium. The red carpet on the center aisle divides the two sections of padded dark wood benches and hardwood floors.
Sets of frosted stained glass windows - shaped like a baseball home plate - line the walls. Dark wood chairs, podiums, and tables form the front stage. A glance at the front of the brochure I received when I entered stated:
Founded 1887 - Present Edifice Erected - 1923
I thought about the people who constructed this building, and who formed the first community that assembled in this space on a regular basis. This city was a very different place 94 years ago. I wondered what they hoped for this space, and for the streets that surround it.
As the event began, a 10-person choir in white robes started to sing. They were mainly elderly folks, and although there were less than 20 people in the audience this morning, the choir members sang with enthusiasm, dedication, and joy.
About halfway through the event, time was set aside for audience members to pray. And then, nearly all of the now 40 people in the audience stood up and proceeded to the front stage; where they knelt side by side and began to pray silently, individually.
This was one of the most powerful demonstrations of solidarity and support I’ve seen all year. Each person, talking to God about their own concerns and challenges, pains and pressures...but doing so while kneeling alongside someone else who has come to talk to God about their own stuff.
The journey continues in the Englewood neighborhood on the south side, at the corner of 62nd Street and Throop.
Intro Theme Music: Victory Lap by QSTN ft. Mecca:83
Background Music: www.bensound.com/
Pick up your copy of the companion book at https://godinchicago.com/
Join the conversation! Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Y94abI and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2z6q5W4
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| Author | Deji Komolafe |
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