Years ago, I used to hear that the city and county had 1,000 churches — I am pretty sure that was based on literal numbers, though it remains cloudy how that number was calculated.
Church membership has declined, generally speaking. Even so, there are still more than 700 religious organizations and churches in the city, according to Cause IQ, a site designed to boost nonprofits.
Most of those churches are Christian, so that means for a sizable slice of the city, this week has been Holy Week — the most solemn and important time on the Christian calendar. In traditional Christian Bible teachings, Jesus sacrificed his life for sinful humankind and was resurrected after three days — illustrating God’s power over death. The Cliff Notes version is John 3:16.
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Several churches have multiple services scheduled, including this coming Easter Sunday, March 31, 2024.
Carrying the cross
The Rev. Rob James and First Baptist Church on Anderson Street downtown are bringing back their Stations of the Cross; it is an interactive exhibition based on a Catholic tradition that predates the Middle Ages and is based on the path Jesus would have walked through Jerusalem on the way to his crucifixion. The church has dedicated 14 rooms for these 14 moments in Jesus' journey and includes more than 300 pictures, plus video, props and other information.
Self-guided tours of the stations are 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Guided tours led by James or trained deacons are scheduled both days at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
The tour, James said, starts in the garden and ends at the tomb.
“Some stations of the cross have a 15th station, which is the resurrection,” he says. “I don’t do that because you got Easter.”
He prefers to end the ceremony more traditionally, with a loud slam of a door, symbolizing the tomb being shut, which would have in Jesus’ day set off three days of uncertainty among his followers before his power was revealed.
In different rooms, guests of the 14 Stations can carry a cross, as Jesus is said to have done, bearing aloft the means of his own execution. There are other items meant to make his suffering more present to people who visit — nails, a crown of thorns, even a cat-o'-nine tails that James made himself.
James visited Jerusalem in 2012.
“I took video of my feet on the actual road,” he said. That picture is included in the exhibition.
James said the 14 Stations is family-friendly and that the more graphic images are kept in folders with labels.
“I don’t want to sugarcoat the crucifixion, but I also don’t want to scar these children for life,” he said.
Good Friday
This marks the Crucifixion of Jesus and his death. Many churches celebrate this very somber occasion.
Among them: Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church on Johnson Street, where the pastor is Dr. Carl E. Brinkley Jr., and which has for years partnered with WIDU, a gospel and community news station, for a Good Friday service at noon that streams live.
It’s an “annual tradition (that) goes back quite some time,” said Wes Cookman, station co-owner.
My folks’ church, Beauty Spot Missionary Baptist Church on Old Raeford Road, where the Rev. Dr. Taijuan O. Fuller is pastor, also has a Good Friday service, scheduled for 9:30 a.m., and where members play host to the Fayetteville-Cumberland Ministerial Council.
The church has added an exhibit out front that includes three crosses, signs that say “He is risen” and a model of a tomb — one where the stone is pushed back to reveal the tomb is empty, in line with what Biblical scripture says about Easter.
For non-Christians who wonder why Good Friday is "good," since it involves Christ's death, it's a good question and many Christians have asked the same.
Sunday sunrise
Sunrise service is my favorite. It is not a separate Holy Week event, just part of Easter festivities.
Maybe it’s the sunrise, but I get real reflective during these times, and the meaning of it all comes on me like the morning itself. Also, I like that it’s often outside, if the weather is not ridiculous. People who knew me before kids are surprised I get up that early, but I am usually up that early just not out and about.
I will be observing it with my family at Camp Ground United Methodist Church, where my wife is associate pastor.
An interdenominational sunrise service is set for 7 a.m. at Cross Creek Park off Ann Street. The Rev. Jeff Shaver, associate pastor at Westminster Presbyterian, is scheduled to deliver the sermon. The service brings together faith leaders and lay members from several churches: First Baptist Church on Moore Street; Westminster Presbyterian Church; First Presbyterian Church; One Church Covenant Fellowship; First Baptist Church on Anderson Street; St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church; and Hay Street United Methodist Church.
The Highland Brass Quintet will provide the music, according to a Facebook announcement, and a benevolent offering is taken up for Fayetteville Urban Ministry.
Easter Sunday
The Easter service later on Sunday is probably the one most familiar to the public. It was the “new suit” and “new dress” service when we were children, so always an exciting moment for our daughter, Helen Ann. It is the most crowded the church gets in the run of a year, with the only contender being homecoming.
Easter Sunday service tends to be just alive with Spring colors and folks you haven’t seen in a minute.
In some respects, the vibe could not be more different than the sunrise service. But the first Holy Week was probably something of a roller coaster of emotion, too.
Opinion Editor Myron B. Pitts can be reached at mpitts@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3559.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: ‘I don’t want to sugar coat the crucifixion.’ What Holy Week means for Fayetteville Christians
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