Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino is offering to help Roxburys historic Charles Street AME Church avoid foreclosure and blasting the bank thats trying to seize the house of worship.

I get frustrated when the bank thinks (its) going to take over a church of this magnitude, the mayor told the Herald yesterday. How greedy can they be?

Menino yesterday called the Rev. Gregory Groover Sr. pastor of the church and chairman of the Boston School Committee to offer help in the congregations fight with Hub-based OneUnited Bank.

The nations largest black-owned bank, OneUnited is threatening to foreclose on the church even though the company itself received $12 million in federal bailout funds in 2008.

OneUnited has scheduled a March 22 foreclosure auction of the church, some nearby storefronts and a Milton parcel that once served as the congregations parsonage.

Charles Street AMEs $1.1 million balloon mortgage recently came due, and the church says OneUnited hasnt responded to an offer to keep making monthly payments while the congregation tries to refinance.

The two sides have long been locked in a bitter lawsuit over a separate $3.6 million construction loan that the church took out in 2006 to build an adjacent community center.

Construction stalled after OneUnited halted payment on the last $800,000 and sued to get funds it had already disbursed back.

Church lawyer Ross Martin claims OneUnited is threatening to foreclose on the church itself as a negotiating tacticin the lawsuit a charge OneUnited denies.

It is not the practice of this bank to take steps to foreclose on a mortgage in the absence of a borrowers default, bank lawyer Robert Cooper said, although he added that OneUnited is sensitive to and appreciates the important roles that (institutions like the church) play.

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Mayor sides with church

28-02-2012 12:20 This is a SBS of my current 1/16 project based in Normandy 1944. The Germans are playing cat and mouse as they are pushed further back toward the fatherland. The scene will depict a Mid Tiger (321) waiting in a ruined church. This has so far taken 8 months to build and is part 1 of 2. The 2nd part will show the SBS of the church construction which is now complete. It is time to paint the Tiger and add the 6 120mm figures!! keep watching !

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1/16 " TIGER IN WAIT" NORMANDY 1944 MY STEP BY STEP MOD - Video

29-02-2012 11:11

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MBA Building Excellence Awards Winner Shadyside Presbyterian Church - Video

by Edward Gately - Feb. 29, 2012 10:10 AM The Republic | azcentral.com

The relocation of a church in Fountain Hills could lead to the approval of two more applications to locate a medical-marijuana dispensary in the town.

One medical-marijuana dispensary will be allowed in the town, in a commercial zoning district that includes the area along Colony Drive off Saguaro Boulevard. The town's medical-marijuana ordinance specifies that no licensed dispensary can be within 500 feet of a place of worship.

North Chapel Community Bible Church, which operates in an office building at 16929 E. Enterprise Drive, has been an obstacle for some previous zoning-verification applications.

Last year, Bob Rodgers, the town's senior planner, approved an application by restaurateur Josh Levine for a dispensary on a vacant lot at 16935 E. Colony Drive, at Panorama Drive, and one by Yvonne Wolf, co-owner of Wolf Brothers Construction Co., for a dispensary on a lot at 12008 N. Colony Drive.

Others applications have been rejected, mostly because Rodgers determined they were too close to the church.

Rodgers verified this week that the church will be relocating outside of the zoning district where a dispensary will be allowed.

"The church has pulled permits to do some internal renovations at another location," he said.

Dan Scruggs, pastor of North Chapel, couldn't be reached for comment. According to construction permits, it will be relocating to a commercial center at 17210 Amhurst Drive.

In the meantime, two new zoning-verification applications are pending, including one by the Healing Co. LLC for 17007 E. Colony Drive, and one by Vladimir Buer and Buer Revocable Trust for 16913 E. Enterprise Drive.

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Church relocation to help Ftn. Hills marijuana applications

by Christian Brown, Staff Writer The Downey Patriot

After 10 years of stop-and-go construction, the 4,000-member Spanish congregation led by Pastor Otto R. Azurdia, at last completed renovations to a multi-million dollar church facility, which includes everything from a new 3,000-seat sanctuary to a 24,000-sq.-ft. radio and television production studio.

As enthusiastic church members gathered outside for the ceremony, one-by-one church leaders and government officials praised the new state-of-the-art facility and the congregation, which spent 10 years hosting fundraisers in order to collect the money necessary to finally complete the building.

Split into three main sections, the expansive church facility includes multi-level administrative offices, a smaller secondary sanctuary, the radio and television studio, and the 75,000-sq.-ft. main sanctuary, which can house a maximum of 4,600 people.

Church leaders boast the house of worship is 100 percent digital, complete with pristine sound and lighting capabilities, multiple video cameras, and a large white backdrop behind the stage that can be used to project graphics and scriptures. Church leaders say Ministerios Llamada Final is one of the first churches to own the innovative multimedia system.

The church has also embraced several green technologies on the property including a water-recycling feature that reuses all rainwater and redirects it into the irrigation of the plants and grass near the church.

During Mondays ribbon-cutting ceremony, Congresswoman Lucille Royal-Allard presented the church with a resolution of recognition and thanked the congregation for its dedication to see the building project through until the end.

"The fact that it took 10 years to build this is a testimony of your faith," she declared in Spanish, drawing cheers from the audience. "You never gave up until the dream of your church became a reality. Now this state-of-the-art facility in Downey is finally your home."

However, Azurdias vision of a large Christian temple came 24 years prior when the then-young immigrant from Guatemala was just starting his ministry.

In 1988, Azurdia moved to Huntington Park and founded a small church, which started with just 70 or 80 people. After less than two years, the congregation had grown to more than 800 people.

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Church cuts ribbon on new Downey campus

28-02-2012 07:47 Sunday, February 26, 2012 Sermon Highlights: "Faith Under Construction" Scriptures: Judges 16:21-31 and Jude 1:20 God has given every man a measure of faith. Now you must build upon that measure of faith intentionally, not by accident. You must build strategically so that you won't forget any area. Faith is not built only by coming to church. Faith comes by hearing the Word of GOD and also by fellowship. Hebrews 10:23-25 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Faith is built through your challenges. It is the bridge between where you've been and where you're going. We have to activate our faith and trust that GOD is bigger than our circumstances. Hebrews 11:1 11 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. God's grace is painted on the canvas of dispair, heartache, disappointment, and hopelessness. Psalm 34:19 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the Lord delivers him out of them all. Please join us on Sundays for Sunday School at 8:30 AM and for Worship Service at 9:30 AM and on Wednesdays for Bible Study at 7:00 PM. Pastor Walter Gillespie Pastors Walter and Sandra Gillespie CHOSEN TABERNACLE MINISTRIES 4310 South Champlain Avenue Chicago, IL 60653

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Faith Under Construction Sermon by Pastor Walter Gillespie - Video

By Beth Healy, Globe Staff

More than a year into a legal battle with a famous black Boston church,OneUnited Bank is taking steps to foreclose on the Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church, its customer of several years.

OneUnited last week ran a notice in a Boston newspaper announcing that it plans to auction off the historic Roxbury church. That was how the church learned of the bank’s intentions, said the Rev. Gregory G. Groover Sr., in an interview.

“It’s unfortunate that they had to resort to that,’’ Groover said today. “This is clearly a result of their anger around the litigation. Or maybe it was simply to humiliate and embarrass us.”

Rev. Dr. Gregory G. Groover. Globe file photo.

Groover vowed that the church would find an answer and would not allow the foreclosure to go forward. The battle between OneUnited -- a minority-owned bank that built its business lending to churches and other community institutions – and the Charles Street AME erupted in public in 2010, when the bank sued the church for failing to repay a $4 million construction loan. The church was building a nearby Roxbury Renaissance Center, to host community events, and fell behind on its payments during the recession.

As bad timing would have it, OneUnited ran into trouble at the same time. The bank lost millions of dollars on investments in 2008 amid the financial crisis and sought a $12 million government bailout, which it has yet to repay. The bank has been coming down hard on commercial customers like the Charles Street AME as it’s tried to shore up its balance sheet.

OneUnited, in a statement, said, “We applaud the important role that Charles Street A.M.E. Church plays in our community. As a Community Development Financial Institution focused on serving low-to-moderate income neighborhoods of greater Boston, OneUnited Bank recognizes the impact the economy is having on our small businesses and not-for-profits.” Bank spokespeople did not comment specifically on the foreclosure proceedings. The statement also said, “We are flexible in our efforts to assist borrowers, while remaining consistent with the safe and sound banking practices. We continue to be hopeful that our efforts will result in a stronger community.”

Groover said the bank has refused to take calls from church officials or their lawyer for months. Meanwhile, the church has continued to make monthly payments on the commercial loan (which is separate from the Renaissance Center construction loan) he said.

“This church, without fail, never missed a payment,’’ Groover said. But in December, the bank returned a payment to the church, in yet another sign of the unraveling relationship. “It’s senseless. It really is.”

Groover said he was confident the church would not lose it’s property. “We’re confident,’’ he said.

Beth Healy can be reached at bhealy@globe.com.

Excerpt from:
One United Bank takes steps to foreclose on Roxbury church

Photo by Zachary Kaufman

Reazo Redinger, Old Apostolic Lutheran Church trustee and building project manager, gives a tour of the Woodland church site expected to be complete in March. Redinger, a water well driller, is one of nearly 1,000 church members who volunteered their skills and labor to construct the nearly 41,000-square-foot building.

What is the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church?

The Old Apostolic Lutheran Church has a small but visible presence in Southwest Washington, thanks to the region’s influx of Nordic immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Along with Minnesota and Michigan, the region is recognized as one of three concentrated areas of Old Apostolic Lutheranism in the United States, according to Lutheran scholars.

Church leaders estimate there are more than 5,000 in the Clark County congregation, which has churches in Battle Ground, Brush Prairie and now Woodland. There is no way to ascertain the exact number; the church doesn’t keep a roster of membership, said co-pastor Dale Schlecht.

Old Apostolic Lutheranism is a “sub-sect of a sub-sect” of Lutheranism known as Laestadianism, said K. Marianne Wargelin, a scholar of the Finnish-American experience and history doctoral student at the University of Tampere in Finland. Wargelin lives in Minneapolis, Minn., where there is a concentration of Laestadian sects, and has visited the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church in Battle Ground as part of her research on that branch of Lutheranism.

The sect is named for founder Lars Levi Laestadius, a pastor in Northern Sweden. He founded the sect in the 1840s, merging tenets of Lutheranism with cultural aspects of the Sami people, Wargelin said. The sect spread throughout Sweden, Finland and Norway. After Laestadius’s death, the sect splintered into several sub-sects, one of which was the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church. Nordic immigrants brought those beliefs to North America.

Old Apostolic Lutherans are distinct in their layman approach to the ministry, Wargelin said. Unlike in standard Lutheranism, pastors are not ordained, and no one pastor preaches every Sunday. Instead, the church has a council of pastors, she said. Schlecht said he and other pastors at the Clark County church take turns preaching.

Another distinction is the amount of conversion to Old Apostolic Lutheranism, Wargelin said. Other sub-sects of Laestadianism typically gain converts only through marriage, while many members of the Old Apostolic Lutheran congregation are not of Nordic descent, she said.

The group believes that confession should be made to another member of the congregation, she said. Standard Lutherans may ask God for forgiveness, but they are not expected to confess their sins to another.

Old Apostolic Lutherans’ lifestyle tends to shun secularism and activities such as watching television, she said. For example, the church doesn’t have a website, though church members use technology for other aspects of their life.

“They have huge churches,” Wargelin said. Members frequently have large families, believing that children are gifts from God.

They also have a strong sense of social responsibility.

“They’re kind of insular, but they take care of community,” Wargelin said. “They take care of everybody.”

— Paris Achen

In the 400-some years following the Protestant Reformation in 1517, Lutheran congregations around the world built their own churches. While the custom has faded with the demands of modernity and forces of individualism that drive American life, it lives on in Clark County’s Old Apostolic Lutheran Church.

Using nearly all donated labor and money, nearly 1,000 volunteers from the church recently erected a new church at 1500 Dike Access Road in Woodland just off of Interstate 5.

“Across the country, it’s been a long-standing practice that buildings are funded with donations,” said Dave Halme, chairman of the church’s board of trustees. “Not all of the congregations have all of the experience and skills. We were fortunate here that we had all the architectural, engineering and trade skills to build it ourselves.”

The church building, at nearly 41,000 square feet, will serve as the third location for a congregation that exceeds 5,000. The church already has locations in Brush Prairie and Battle Ground.

Construction took less than a year and 55,000 volunteer hours, Halme said. It’s expected to be completed in March. The church plans to hold an open house at the new site in May.

All of the design, engineering and construction was performed by members of the congregation with the exception of acoustical engineering in the sanctuary. That had to be contracted out, Halme said.

The volunteer hours saved the church about $6.5 million, he said. The total cost of the project with volunteer hours was $4.5 million, he said.

Volunteers organized the project and scheduling by dividing the group up by trade, said Reazo Redinger, project manager and member of the church’s board of trustees. Each trade was assigned a project manager, Redinger said.

Many volunteers came to work on the church after their day jobs or on weekends, he said.

“It’s been a fun project,” he said. “It hasn’t felt like work.”

Volunteer painter Jeff Muonio of Battle Ground said he’s enjoyed getting to know church members he doesn’t usually see because they attend a different church service.

“It’s been fun,” Muonio said. “It’s been interesting to see it going up.”

Muonio and volunteer painter William Tanninen of Battle Ground helped build the church’s second location in Battle Ground when they were both about 17.

“It’s kind of a satisfied feeling (to see the Woodland church go up),” Tanninen said.

Workers kept track of their hours in order to qualify for workers compensation from the state Department of Labor & In

dustries. The department offers workers compensation at a low rate of 5 cents per project-hour when a project is by a nonprofit group such as a church, Halme said.

The two-story church includes two lobbies, to cut down on congestion as members enter and exit the building; a sanctuary; two multipurpose rooms; an extensive nursery; Sunday school classrooms; and a massive dining hall. The high-ceiling sanctuary offers lower-level and balcony seating for a total of 1,000.

Two multipurpose rooms on each side can be opened to increase capacity by another 160. Two infant rooms in the nursery feature one-way glass so that parents can watch the sermon while calming or nursing babies. Those rooms connect into two toddler rooms with a small kitchen area and bathroom. The dining hall with four serving lines is large enough to accommodate everyone attending a sermon. Once a month, each church hosts a meal cooked by members.

The site was planned about 10 years ago. It took time to launch the project as church members decided where they wanted their third location, a toss-up between Ridgefield and Woodland. A church member donated the property in Woodland. Before construction could start, property had to be added to Woodland’s urban growth boundary in order to connect with water and sewer.

Halme said it’s bittersweet to see the project nearly completed.

“We have so enjoyed it, we hate to see the project come to an end the camaraderie and things,” Halme said. “When it’s an all-volunteer project, it’s a labor of love.”

Paris Achen: 360-735-4551; http://twitter.com/Col_Trends; http://facebook.com/ColTrends; paris.achen@columbian.com.

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Raising a Church

It has taken more than 13 years, but a Catholic church in Aurora has completed a journey from ruin to resurrection.

After years of services in the cramped basement of an adjacent former school, Sacred Heart on Sunday moved Masses to a spacious new church on the city's east side.

A fire started by an arsonist destroyed the original century-old church in December 1998, and the predominantly Latino parish slowly raised $500,000 in reconstruction funds, largely through bake sales and post-Mass meals of tacos, tostadas and other treats. 

Those sales, along with insurance proceeds, funded the construction that began in spring on a $1.5 million sanctuary that seats 450 — double the capacity of the old facility — and drew overflow crowds Sunday.

"I'm so excited that we're actually here. It's been such a long time," Adolfo Garcia, a member of the church's building committee said. "A lot of people had lost hope for a while because nothing concrete was being done ... but we couldn't let this disappear."

Sacred Heart, Aurora's oldest Roman Catholic parish, is at Fulton and State streets in a residential neighborhood about a mile east of the Fox River.

Founded by in the late 19th century by residents with ties to France and Luxembourg, the church has faced difficulties throughout its history, including an earlier fire as well as a more recent string of financial woes.

In 1980, the Rockford Diocese considered closing Sacred Heart. In 1987, another proposal to merge the debt-ridden parish with another Aurora church was scuttled when parishioners raised funds and closed the parish's school to save money.

Then came the 1998 fire that gutted the classic brick structure with the tall spire. The blaze was so intense that only one stained-glass window could be salvaged. It's now on display in a hallway in the new building.

A 15-year-old boy was arrested, but the Rockford Diocese declined to press charges.

Today's congregation is multiethnic, though predominantly Mexican-American. About 80 percent of the congregation is Latino and three of Sunday's four Masses were in Spanish.

"It's marvelous. Especially after 13 years our people were longing and waiting for this moment," said Monsignor Arquimedes Vallejo, wearing purple and white vestments to mark the first Sunday of Lent. "They made a lot of sacrifices. This was a field here. Now it's a most beautiful place." 

The new Sacred Heart is a single-story brick structure with a functional design that includes a slanted roof supporting a modest metal spire. The relatively narrow interior is about the length of a half city block with a spacious, open feel. 

It's well-lit with track lighting and suspended fixtures salvaged from another church. Twelve stained-glass windows also allow streams of sunlight to brighten the interior. The altar area has separate stained-glass images of Jesus and his mother, Mary, along with a large crucifix and seasonal black and purple draping.

The remaining problem is parking, but the congregation hopes to raise an additional $350,000 to level a nearby property and upgrade existing lots. It also wants to renovate the church's rectory and former convent.

Sunday's early Spanish language Mass drew more than 500 people — a mixed crowd of young and old, including families with children who later adjourned for First Communion classes. 

A midmorning Mass in English filled about 40 percent of the space. The 11:30 a.m. third Mass, also in Spanish, attracted more than 600 people who crowded side aisles and a separate entryway.

The parish is described as the least affluent in the Rockford Diocese.

"Despite the poverty, we are rich in faith and in people giving of themselves, their time and their talent," said Sue Niemiec, a longtime churchgoer active in parish affairs. "Maybe the way we do things isn't the most elegant. But we get it done and a lot of people help and it's wonderful."

Bishop Thomas G. Nolan, the chief of Rockford's Diocese, is expected to join numerous dignitaries for an official consecration Sunday.

In the meantime, Vallejo said he's pleased with the new home but was quick to put the move in perspective.

"It's a different place, but the same Jesus," he told congregants at the second Mass.

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Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Aurora reopens

At least eight persons died Sunday following a suicide bomb attack on the headquarters of Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN), Jos, Plateau State, during the church's first service at 7.15am.

Governor David Jonah Jang normally attends the second service which starts at 9am.

An eye witness, Mr. Salvation Goshit, said three of the worshipers and one of the bombers died on the spot, while the other bomber who jumped out of the car before the explosion was lynched by angry youths.

Three motorcyclists (Okada riders) were also reported killed near Hill-Station junction, when they fell into the hands of the angry youths, before the security agents took over the streets.

Furthermore, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Yiljap Abraham, who was worshipping at the church during the attack, was mobbed by the youths when he tried to shield a soldier believed to have aided the bombers to gain entry into the church premises.

Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Meanwhile, Jang has appealed for calm, saying he knew that the enemies of the state were not happy with the prevailing peace there.

Jang said: "I am not surprised that the church was attacked, because they know that is where I worship."

He said government and security agents were taking every measure to ensure that worship places were adequately protected.

He said: "If we are to riot, against whom would we riot? Let's ensure we sustain the existing peace."

A church security guard at the gate, Mr. John Zafi, said at about 7.15am, he saw a Volkswagen Bora car turning swiftly into the church's compound, and before he could stop it, it rammed into the gate.

"Fortunately, there was a motorcycle parked in the compound," Zafi continued. "The car ran into it, squeezed it, and dragged it along. This and the heaps of sand from the new church building that is under construction prevented the bombers' car from getting very close to the building where the people were worshipping."

Another worshipper said he saw three persons in the car, one in military uniform, and the others in mufti.

He said the one in uniform got out of the car before it rammed into the compound, adding that his presence in the car might have paved the way for the car to get to the church without being searched at the various checkpoints in the town.

According to him, the youths wanted to attack the uniformed man when the commissioner prevented them, leading to an attack on the commissioner, who is now receiving treatment at a hospital.

Reacting to the involvement of a suspected soldier, the member representing Jos South/Jos East federal constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Bitrus Kaze, said if it was true, "then it is a very sad development".

COCIN headquarters church is where most of the bigwigs on the Plateau worship. Apart from the governor, others include former governor of the state, Chief Joshua Dariye, Chief Solomon Lar, Gen. Domkat Bali, Gen. John Timlong, and Gen. Joshua Dogonyaro.

A press statement by the military Special Task Force (STF) in Jos said: "The suspected suicide bombers arrived the premises of the church in a Golf Car. The Improvised Explosive Devices exploded with one of the bombers inside the vehicle, while the other suspect that alighted and attempted to escape was killed in the process."

The statement signed by the STF spokesman, Captain Mdahyelya Markus, said the explosion damaged some vehicles at the premises, but enjoined the citizens not to be lawless in their response.

Also, the state Police Commis-sioner, Mr. Emmanuel Dipo Ayeni, who was at the scene of the explosion and at the hospital to see the victims, said investigations were on to unravel those behind it.

At the Plateau Specialist Hospital, where the wounded victims were taken, a compound nurse, Mrs. Esther Gwotts, told journalists that two bodies were brought to the mortuary, while 38 persons are on admission.

Other victims were taken to the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) for treatment.

Part of the church's new building was badly damaged, and several cars had their windshields shattered.

President Goodluck Jonathan last night expressed sadness over the bomb attack, saying the "indiscriminate bombing of Christians and Muslims is a threat to all peace-loving Nigerians".

"Government is gradually and firmly bringing justice to those behind these attacks and exposing their identities and dismantling their terror infrastructure. Those behind similar acts of terror in recent times have been arrested and are being investigated with a view to prosecuting them accordingly, as a deterrent to others. President Jonathan appeals to all residents of Plateau State to remain calm and be law abiding. As we mourn with today's victims, let it be known that efforts are being redoubled to win the war against terror," a statement issued by presidential spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, said.

The Jama'atu Ahlis Sunnah Lid Da'wati Wal Jihad, otherwise known as the Boko Haram sect, yesterday claimed responsibility for the bombing.

Speaking with journalists on the phone, the sect's spokesman, "Abu Qaqa", said the suicide bombing was a reprisal attack against what he described as "Christian terrorist activities against Muslims".

Qaqa warned that the sect would continue to carry out more of such attacks until Christians stopped their alleged atrocities against Muslims.

He also claimed the sect was responsible for the attack on Gombe prison, explaining that the sect launched the attack to free Muslims detained in the prison over their protest against the mutilation of the "Glorious Qur'an" allegedly done by some security men deployed to the city.

Qaqa also said the sect was responsible for the death of some Muslims who were shot while performing a congregational prayer in Kano, justifying the killing on the background that the slain Muslims assisted security men in arresting some of their members.

He also in the interview said the recent burning of a primary school in Maiduguri was the handiwork of the sect, revealing that the sect's action was in reaction to an alleged razing of an Islamiyya school and the mutilation of the "Glorious Qur'an" by some security men in Maiduguri.

He claimed that the attack of the school was not to kill the pupils and their teachers, but rather to warn the government that the sect would frustrate the progress of Western education if Islamiyya schools and Muslim's Holy Books were attacked again.

He, however, called on the members of the public to continue to bear the hardship brought about by the sect's war on the government and security agencies, insisting that the end justify the means.

Copyright © 2012 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

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Nigeria: Suicide Bombers Attacked Governor's Church