[ Home ] [ Introduction ] [ Biographies ] [ Themes ]   As well as being the place of worship in a community, the church was often also the center of social activity. Usually, special dinners and social teas would be held there as it was an important, if not the most important, building in the community. Visiting among friends in the community was often also associated with Sunday worship. After church in the morning, family and friends would visit and gather together on their day of rest. Also, many of the holidays and festivals celebrated in the community were part of the Christian calendar such as Christmas and Easter. It can be said that the church was the social heart of the community.   Mrs. M. Rodgers told us in her interview that when she was growing up she had a huge crush on a boy but he was Pentecostal and she was Anglican. Her mother forbid him to go out with anyone who was Pentecostal. Today he is a millionaire and she looks backs at it and laughs. The following is an excerpt from an interview with Mr. Jim Langor "There was very little in the way of, I guess, organized groups and things like that in the communities but the church organized fund-raising events, social teas and dinners and things like that to raise money and also to provide entertainment for the members of the community. So the church was really the focal point of a lot of activities and involvement of people in the community socially. The church also, of course, because the ministers often didn't live in the communities full-time, they would welcome people coming in and visiting from other communities. If there was a church service in one community on a Sunday evening or afternoon, people would normally try to get there from other surrounding communities too. So it was a way to bring people together, not only in their communities, but from surrounding communities as well. So the church was really was one of the most basic, I guess, of the important elements of life in those tiny communities on our coast. "   The following is an excerpt from an interview with Mrs. Glenda Knight "Here's how it began and this is the truth. At 10:30 we had to go to what was called junior soldiers were we learned about the catechism of the church or what the church believed in. 11:00 then we had to go to church. 2:30 was Sunday school. 4:30 was singing company, which you people would probably know as junior choir in our church. 6:30 was junior was junior soldiers. Church was again at 7:00 and sometimes church would last until 10:00 and we had to stay 'til the end. Then we'd have to get up and go to school. We were not allowed to leave the porch, knit, ride our bike, go to the store, or buy ice cream. Sometimes I would keep $0.10 from my Sunday school money and go up to the little store called Powers and she used to make candy. Instead of putting $0.25 I'd only put $0.15 and go up and buy $0.10 of candy. I was found out once and wasn't able to go anymore then. Right? Sunday was a day really for Church and family."