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Show 2 fliiidAjiiiA ghuAjck Jl PoT?tSr?- HfS A URCH DIFFERENT jS1 2ttPESi CHURCHES-rAG A By ADEtE S. HAILEY rHlLDKKN usually have their kwn pla.vg'-oncls' theaters imd hMls but in the beautiful New rtund town bearing the name MM great poet Milton and not f, from where the Pilgrims land- , m their quest for religious Sriom. there is a children's hrch Here yoUnS own special services. The church is the realized dream . ,he wife of the Rev. Vivian Lerov, preacher in the First Parish Unitarian church of Milton, JI3S& jlrs Pomeroy, being a pioneer tt religious ideas for children, be-Heved be-Heved that if young people had church of their own it would scourage them to grow in re-ibility- It was a happy mo-It mo-It for her in 1933 when the congregation of the First Parish jird to follow her plan. An old scioolhouse was moved to the een beside toe church to become tte children's church. It dow stands at a right angle to the parent church with a glis-lening glis-lening white miniature belfry and steeple. Inside, it is complete with '.ail-sized box pews, choir loft, pulpit and altar with candles. rVEKY Sunday at 11:30 o'clock the children leave their parents in the First Church and march to their own, while a husky lad of 15 rings the bell, a call to their dot service. Six young folks are chosen each week to participate in the service. Rile the congregation of young folks from the age of seven to 15 (the wee tots have a still smaller chapel in the Parish House close by) take their seats in the little white pews, a young organist plays Handel's Largo or another classical classi-cal selection. Two children light the candles on the altar and the choir composed of a dozen young folks robed in blue and red take their places. A boy in his early teens conducts the service which follows the order or-der given in the "Beacon Song Sook for Children" and consists of hymns, prayers and scripture readings. A collection Is taken up by two children and the anthem is sung. Mrs. A. H. Stonestreet, wife of the choir director, preaches. She starts her sermon with a few questions that the children answer. QN Mother's Day the children's service was built around the Bible passage, "Honor thy father and thy mother," with suitable hymns and the sermon stressed the teachings of Jesus with references refer-ences to obedience to one's parents. The children conduct themselves in the manner of adults and take a keen interest in every phase of their church service. During the week, Mrs. Stone-street Stone-street receives inquiries from young folks: "May I take part in the service sometime?" " She tries to select those best qualified to conduct the service and she encourages all to prepare for doing likewise. The child who conducts the Sunday service must study during the week so that he may read well and understanding. Parents who are inclined to In dulge in a late Sunday morning nap are wakened by the young folks, who exclaim, "Come on, while you go to your church, we are going to ours!" Consequently the entire family goes to church. , New children coming to town, who are of Unitarian faith, are immediately visited by a member of the children's church and Mrs. Stonestreet, and invited to attend and participate in the church service. Offen the children's church Is bright with a floral wedding display dis-play for the children return to their very own place of worship when the time comes to be married. mar-ried. But only christenings and marriages are allowed to take place in the little white church. People from far and near write letters to inquire about the children's chil-dren's church, but Mrs. Stonestreet, Stone-street, who took over when Mrs. Pomeroy, to whom the church is dedicated, went to her Heavenly Rest, says she is happy to be kept busy giving out information for she believes this is one way to realize more and more fully Dorothy Dor-othy Pomeroy's dream that children chil-dren should have a church of their own in which to worship. 1 |
