Writing about 150 churches

has certainly been interesting.

The project began over four

years ago, with the advent of our Sunday edition.

I have always tried to be ecumenical,

that is, work in a church from all the faiths as the project went along.

There are approximately 106

churches in Fayette County, but only about 80 of these responded to my

inquiry. When I mentioned to one minister that I didn't understand why

the small churches did not respond, he said, "Carolyn, you just answered

your own question, that's why they're small." Point taken.

One of the first churches I

spoke with seemed only interested in ushering in people in the community

to teach them the Bible and that was all. It is my belief that is only

one third of the equation. I believe the Lord wants us to take that knowledge

out into our community and the world and do something with it.

When speaking with this church

several years later I learned its membership had somewhat dwindled. I

wanted to tell the minister just why that happened, but I felt he wouldn't

grasp it.

Conversely, the number of churches

who have members, both adults and teenagers, who travel around the world

evangelizing boggles my mind. Many hold Bible studies and many just repair

or build new churches. This seems to hold true in congregations that number

200 to those that number 2,000.

I have had to add the names

of several countries to my computer dictionary that I not only had to

look up how to spell them, but find out where in the world they were.

Unfortunately, a number of the adults worked for airlines and those free

passes will be in short supply for awhile.

I've learned a lot about faiths

I knew nothing about. Having been reared a Methodist but growing up with

Baptist, Presbyterian and Catholic friends, I was not ignorant of the

basic tenets of those faiths.

However, when it came time

to write about the Seventh Day Adventists and the Church of the Latter

Day Saints and the Christian Scientists, I really had to do some deep

research. Being a purist, and a member of the community in which these

faiths lived, I didn't want to shortchange them or pass out misinformation.

I spent many hours on the Internet,

along with asking questions to be sure I got it right.

I could see trends that I otherwise would not have realized.

Many new congregations begin

accommodate both worship services and sports events for its youth. The

general plan seems to be that in seven or eight years, it will then have

enough members to build a structured sanctuary. Having been reared in

a structured worship setting, sitting in a room that reminds me of sitting

in a gym would not interest me. Young people today, though, realize that

economically that they must begin with a gym.

A number of congregations are

adding a memorial garden on their land. Often the initial funding comes

from a family and begins as a bench in a quiet place, surrounded by flowers.

One church has built a cascading waterfall and another will create a walking

trail around a lake on its property. All in all, a nice way to gather

one's thoughts away from utility lines and the sound of heavy traffic.

I've had three ministers to

stand me up for an interview; two of them called me