Thank God Sunday was sunny in DC because Saturday's cloudiness made leaving Puerto Rico even more depressing! What better way to thank God than to join in a
United House of Prayer for All People's shout band of praise. The world headquarters for the denomination is just three blocks from our house, and one of their many chapels is on 6th & M. The Sunday service started at 11, I arrived late, and by the time I left at 12:30, things were just warming up. People, both attendees and musicians, trickled in slowly; a grand piano, one trombone and several tambourines were the instruments when I arrived. When I left the number of trombones had grown to five, and a drum kit, a sax, a tuba, and washboard played by a 10-year-old boy had joined the crew at the front of the church. Personal testimonies of the goodness of God were the main part of the service while I was there, each punctuated with vocal music. The instrumentals were more dominant during the start of the preaching (which began just as I left) and were used in particular to praise Jesus and the presiding bishop, Sweet Daddy Madison. To find out more about the style of music that characterizes United House of Prayer services, here's a nice article from
Folkstreams that summarizes the four types of music most important in African American Washington D.C.
In the afternoon I drove to Maryland for a different type of prayer service, one much more subdued but just as sincere. I've started to research the
Marian apparition in Emmitsburg, MD, which is about an hour north of DC. My second time attending, I got to this service in time for the apparition of Our Lady of Emmitsburg to the visionary, Gianna Talone Sullivan. I'll continue going there for the monthly prayer sessions and to conduct interviews with the gracious people who are willing to tell me their stories.
Thank God Sunday was sunny in DC because Saturday's cloudiness made leaving Puerto Rico even more depressing! What better way to thank God than to join in a United House of Prayer for All People's shout band of praise. The world headquarters for the denomination is just three blocks from our house, and one of their many chapels is on 6th & M. The Sunday service started at 11, I arrived late, and by the time I left at 12:30, things were just warming up. People, both attendees and musicians, trickled in slowly; a grand piano, one trombone and several tambourines were the instruments when I arrived. When I left the number of trombones had grown to five, and a drum kit, a sax, a tuba, and washboard played by a 10-year-old boy had joined the crew at the front of the church. Personal testimonies of the goodness of God were the main part of the service while I was there, each punctuated with vocal music. The instrumentals were more dominant during the start of the preaching (which began just as I left) and were used in particular to praise Jesus and the presiding bishop, Sweet Daddy Madison. To find out more about the style of music that characterizes United House of Prayer services, here's a nice article from Folkstreams that summarizes the four types of music most important in African American Washington D.C.
In the afternoon I drove to Maryland for a different type of prayer service, one much more subdued but just as sincere. I've started to research the Marian apparition in Emmitsburg, MD, which is about an hour north of DC. My second time attending, I got to this service in time for the apparition of Our Lady of Emmitsburg to the visionary, Gianna Talone Sullivan. I'll continue going there for the monthly prayer sessions and to conduct interviews with the gracious people who are willing to tell me their stories.
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