More than 600 people attend Zion Baptist Church on Sunday mornings.

The church sits along highway 351 and Zion road in Henderson, where construction is already underway to make the road safer for drivers.

"The biggest concern is that curve on the road and at night if you're not used to it, it can be a dangerous curve to negotiate," said Worship Pastor Bill Chase.

The road work will directly affect people driving to and from Zion Baptist. In an effort to get ahead of the construction, the church has already begun to communicate detour information to the congregation.

"We've put some fliers in our worship bulletins in the last couple of weeks. With those detours we also have all that detour information on our website and just really trying to communicate it to them," said Equipping Pastor Dr. Marcus Daly.

The church made a map of four detour routes and posted it to their website to help people get to church once Zion road closes. Church member Renee Russell says she tried one of the routes and it took her longer than she expected.

"An extra like fifteen to twenty minutes to me it did. It felt likeI was going on a long trip," said Renee Russell.

Pastor Bill Chase says he is more worried about newcomers trying to visit the church for the first time, but he is glad the dangerous road will soon be fixed.

"Our biggest concern is the person who doesn't know anything at all and they're just driving out highway 351 and they get to this construction site and don't know what to do," said Chase.

Ultimately, the church feels they will not lose their congregation presence because of the road construction.

Link:
Zion Baptist Church Reacts To Highway 351 And Zion Road Construction

Brian Wentzel, director of music at First Evangelical Lutheran Church, loads the salvaged pipes from the churchs pipe organ into a truck in September after the church was destroyed in an arson fire. CHRONICLE FILE

LORAIN A decision on the new First Evangelical Lutheran Church is expected by months end, according to the churchs pastor.

The Rev. Jimmy Madsen said Sunday that parishioners are deciding whether to build a new church or relocate to a former church building. If a new church is built, a decision hasnt been made on whether it will be at the site of the old church at 603 Washington Ave.

Weve been looking at all kinds of options, said Madsen, adding that the new location would probably be in Lorain.

The church, built in 1924 at the corner of West Sixth Street, burned in an arson fire Aug. 28. No arrests have been made, but the fire, connected to a church basement burglary, remains under investigation.

Madsen said parishioners by an 86-1 vote Sunday approved a vision statement for the new church. The statement said the new church will be built, on the heritage of the past, appeal to the current congregation, is appropriate to the size of our worshipping community and has the flexibility to serve the needs of future generations.

Among the goals for the new location: good acoustics for music the church was known for its acclaimed pipe organ recitals modern, environmentally friendly technology without detracting from sacredness and a full-service kitchen. Madsen said insurance is expected to cover most of the more than $2 million in damages, including replacing a $1 million pipe organ.

Madsen said its premature to say when construction will begin if a new church is built. While a decision is being made, church services are being held at Johnnie Wilson Middle School, 2700 Washington Ave.

Input on the decision is coming from members of the New Building Committee and the Working Space Working Group, which toured newly built or newly renovated churches in Akron, Canton and Solon on Jan. 31.

Group member Barbara Macgregor, a parishioner for 70 years, said the group will tour churches in Columbus on Saturday. Macgregor said she supports the statement and hopes the new location will have more space than the old one. Macgregor said she is unsure about whether to rebuild or relocate. She noted some nearby churches have closed due to declining numbers of parishioners

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Lorain church plots future

HD Church Time Lapse Remodel - St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church 2014
North Hollywood, California 8 Minute Construction Time Lapse Video with Before After Photos HD 1080p option available in settings.

By: Anthony Parrillo

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HD Church Time Lapse Remodel - St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church 2014 - Video

Christ Church construction February 3rd 2015!
via YouTube Capture.

By: George Nuber

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Christ Church construction February 3rd 2015! - Video

THE MANAOAG shrine at the backdrop of a procession of the image of the Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag WILLIE LOMIBAO/ CONTRIBUTOR

MANAOAG, PangasinanFrom a small chapel built and visited by Augustinian missionaries in 1600, the church called Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag will finally be proclaimed a minor basilica, the highest title that a Catholic church outside Rome can earn, on Feb. 17.

This is really an honor and prestige for the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan. The title minor basilica is given only by the Pope and no one else, said Fr. Ronald Mactal, the churchs chaplain and liturgist.

Pope Francis bestowed the churchs new status on Oct. 11 last year, more than three months before he visited the country on Jan. 15.

As a minor basilica, the church has been recognized for its devotion and for its role as center of liturgical celebration, Mactal said.

It earned its new status after a tedious documentation and validation that began in August last year. The process required the church leaders to answer a 14-page questionnaire in Latin.

We documented everything: the vessels, the vestments, how many masses, sacraments, baptism. In a secular way, [getting the] minor basilica [status] is like [going through an] accreditation. We are being accredited by the Pope himself, Mactal said.

The church became a parish when the Augustinians turned it over to the Dominicans in 1605. But it was only in 1701 when the construction of a big church at its present location began, according to the Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag website (www.manaoagshrine.org).

It was destroyed by an earthquake in 1882 and what was left of the building was burned by revolutionaries in 1898. It was rebuilt after the Philippine Revolution and was completed in 1912.

To date, it is the only Catholic church that has been operated by the Dominicans in Pangasinan since 1925, with the approval of the Holy See.

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Manaoag now home to newest minor basilica

Students in teacher Amy Hofstetter's pre-k class tie prayer ribbons to the fence of a new playground at Stepping Stones Trinity United Methodist Church Preschool on Wednesday,

It was someone running a red light and his daughter's vehicle being T-boned that left her with a traumatic brain injury and confined to a wheelchair.

Since then, for Dan Johnson, senior pastor at Trinity United Methodist Church in northwest Gainesville, providing accessibility for everyone has become personal.

The church has made efforts to become fully accessible for all and, at 12:15 Sunday, a dedication ceremony will culminate three years of research and construction and the completion of a fully accessible, inclusive playground on the church's property.

Most of us tend to assume that other people are just like us and that's where you run into problems, the Rev. Johnson said.

Meeting the Americans With Disabilities Act standards, the playground will make available to the entire community an outdoor adventure for disabled and abled children to come together, along with their parents.

The only one of its kind in North Central Florida, the playground features a Noah's Ark and Bible verses on signs in Braille. There's also a Crooked House Chapel with specially designed wider doorways.

A steel drum that looks like a lady bug sits on the artificial turf installed especially for crawlers and new walkers. The engineered mulch around the attractions is meant to remove barriers for wheelchairs.

A Wheelchair Gondola has been installed so that all children can swing together.

Trinity Director of Communications Kelly Ping has watched the integration occur.

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Church to unveil fully accessible playground

OKLAHOMA CITY -

After years of deterioration, a metro church is now one step close to redemption.

News 9 first aired the story about the Teepee Church more than a year ago. Now with the help of countless donations, the pastor is sharing good news.

News 9's Justin Dougherty went back to the Teepee Friday.

"And I will fill this temple with glory says the Lord of hosts, the silver is mine and the gold is mine says the Lord of hosts. The glory of this ladder temple shall be greater than the former," said Pastor Terry Ward, of the Teepee Church, when reading from his favorite Bible verse.

Whether you're passing by or live in the neighborhood, Pastor Terry Ward knows his Tepee Church has been an eye sore and it was on him to open the door to its salvation.

"To see this building in the shape that it was in I know it bothered them and it bothered me. But there was nothing I could do about it," said Ward.

Until, all the silver and gold came rushing in like the rain through the church's roof.

"Oh, I was just floored," said Ward.

Contractors donated their time, roofers donated their effort, and someone, who remains anonymous, donated $50,000.

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Metro Church Closer To Being Complete After Numerous Donations

MITCHELL CO., GA (WALB) - An Albany construction company will volunteer its services to rebuild aMitchell County church building, which was destroyed by fire.

The Pastor of Beautiful Light Baptist Church says he has been praying for a miracle, and now he feels Kendell Crawford was sent to answer those prayers.Senior Pastor Reverend Rogers Chatmon said, "Our ambition is to rebuild."

Beautiful Light Baptist Church was destroyed by fire January 24th. The 140 year old church only has about a dozen active members, including Mary Marcus, who has attended all 73 years of her life.

Marcus said "Lord, I'm still hurting because this is my heart down here."

Crawford Construction owner Kendell Crawford now has stepped forward to help rebuild the church,

Crawford said "This is not a nightclub. This is the Lord's church. I think it's only proper and fitting that the community come together and help the church. Give a donation. Give some time."

Crawford said he has already talked with material suppliers and contractors, getting pledges for the materials and people needed to rebuild the burned out building. Reverend Chatmon says God is answering his prayers."We are determined to continue to have church. And work to save souls for the Lord.First move we will have to make is demolition the building. Take it down and come back up."

Members say the church building was battered by a tornado in 1978. Now a fire consumed the building, but the members say they are confident their church will go on.

Chatmon said "One round does not determine who will win the fight."

And thanks to Crawford's help, they believe their prayers have been answered. However, they would be grateful for any donations.

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Parishioners say their prayers have been answered

TAMPA The New Salem Missionary Baptist Church, led by embattled Pastor Henry J. Lyons, was heavily damaged by a fire that began before dawn Monday.

No one was injured, but the roof and virtually the entire interior of the church was destroyed; damage was estimated at $400,000.

The church building had stood in North Hyde Park for nearly 65 years. Church members milled about Monday morning as Tampa Fire Rescue firefighters stood by, occasionally hoisting an extended ladder over the smoldering building, dumping water onto spots that flared up. Some congregation members wept and hugged each other.

The church, organized in 1906 and at its current location since 1950, had recently been in financial trouble and was placed under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2012, though it has since emerged from bankruptcy.

The church was for sale but still was home to some 450 members in this neighborhood just west of the University of Tampa.

The 4,700-square-foot brick church building at 405 N. Oregon Ave., and some adjoining lots were placed on the market for $1.8 million in November, according to the website of AKA Commercial Realty, which is listing the property.

Tampa firefighters got a 911 call at 6:30 a.m., a half-hour before the day-care in the building was to open, said fire-rescue spokesman Jason Penny. When firefighters arrived, flames already were breaching the shingled roof, rising about 30 feet above the structure.

The first arriving firefighters immediately called out a second alarm, Penny said, because of the flames and the age of the building.

Flames could be seen on Interstate 275, a dozen blocks to the north, Penny said.

The second alarm doubled the units responding. In all, about 45 firefighters were at the location on the corner of Oregon Avenue and Fig Street, considered the north part of Hyde Park.

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Hyde Park church led by Henry Lyons gutted by fire

REUTERS/Enrique De La Osa

A remote town in western Cuba is set to be the first parish in the country to build a new church, as official government policy in the Communist nation towards religion makes a major shift.

According to CNN, a new Catholic church is set to be built in the remote town of Sandino. The new church will take two years to build and will have a capacity to accommodate 200 churchgoers.

Rev Fr Cirilo Castro told CNN that Sandino's Catholics have celebrated Mass once a week in a converted garage for many years now. The priest drives to the town every week to officiate as part of his ministerial duties to the province under whose jurisdiction the town falls. However, when the new church is completed, Fr Castro said that he will minister full-time in the town.

The diocese assured Sandino's residents that "everything is ready" for the construction of the new church.

"There is money to start, there is the construction material to start, there are the permissions to start," Bishop Jorge Enrique Serpa Prez said.

CNN reported that most of the money that was donated for the church's construction came from the St Lawrence Catholic Church in Tampa, Florida.

"Much of Tampa's history and culture comes from Cuba," Rev Tom Morgan, St Lawrence's vicar, told CNN. "It's absolutely fantastic they are building a new church, and I hope to be able to visit one day."

Fr Morgan also hopes that the changes in the US Treasury's policies could make it possible for St Lawrence to contribute materials for the church's construction.

Religious freedom was suppressed after the 1959 revolution that brought the late Fidel Castro to power. However, since 1998, the Cuban government began easing up on its restrictions on the Catholic Church. This year, the government began approving requests for the construction of churches in the country, with the project in Sandino being the first to receive a green light.

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Cuba to get its first Catholic church since Castro