Vibrant communities, spiritual journeys and diverse settings are just a few of the many pieces that make up the colorful collection of Christian churches in the Bay Area.
The Bay Area is known not only for its diversity with regards to people, cultures and environments, but for the same within its Christian communities, according to The Christian Post.
Those who run New Beginnings Community Church, which has locations in both Redwood City and San José, believe that the diversity of their church reflects the truth that God loves all people, according to its website.
Hurmon Hamilton, senior and founding pastor at New Beginnings Community Church, said the primary goal of the church is to help people find commonality in their relationship with both Jesus and each other.
“We create (an) authentic space in this place of faith and community for every single person, without exception,” Hamilton said. “My favorite part is walking into this diverse community and knowing that this is what heaven looks like, and what the world should be as opposed to the world as it is.”
Hamilton said what makes New Beginnings Community Church unique is its incredible diversity.
“Our north campus in Redwood City is in a Jewish Synagogue, and every Sunday, we pack that building with people who are Black, white, Asian, Latino, Pacific Islander and with people who are wealthy, poor and middle class,” Hamilton said. “We even have people who are Republican and Democrat, evangelicals, progressives, conservatives; the full gamut.”
According to its website, New Beginnings Community Church has a vision with four key elements: to reach people who feel far from God, to make disciples, to build families and to transform communities.
A disciple is someone who adheres to the teachings of another and takes up the ways of someone else, according to Desiring God.
Mandy Santos, spiritual formation pastor at Echo Church, said the church’s main goal is to develop a pathway for people, no matter how new they are to the faith of Christianity.
The Spiritual Formation Pastor’s primary responsibility is to create and implement a strategic plan that embraces, supports and resources small groups, missional communities and large adult groups for the purpose of fostering continuing spiritual growth of every attendee, according to Church Staffing.
In 2008, four families moved together from across the country to start Echo Church (previously called South Bay Church), according to its website. They were propelled by a vision to start a church that communicated the timeless truths of Scripture in a way that could be practically applied and understood, even for those who felt irreligious and far from God.
“I want to help provide some type of journey for them,” Santos said. “It doesn’t matter how old you are, or what you believe in.”
Echo Church has locations in Fremont, San José and Sunnyvale, according to their website. The church focuses on encountering people and transforming their lives, families and communities across the Bay Area and beyond, according to the same site.
“Just giving people space, that’s what it felt like,” Santos said. “It was beautiful seeing the diversity of young people, old people and nationalities.”
Jenny Ingram, college ministry director at Awakenings Church in San José, said having a community within a church is essential, since as humans, we are made to coexist with other people.
“It shows us the things that we’re not strong in, and then we can lean on each other and encourage each other,” Ingram said. “I really believe the church is such a beautiful expression of that.”
Awakenings Church was founded in September of 2012 at Del Mar High School, and is still located here in San Jose according to their website. However, their story began in the fall of 2007 when Ryan and Jenny Ingram started a ministry to reach out to young adults, called Awakening at WestGate Church, according to the same site.
Ingram said having a community of numerous ethnicities and age groups is the perfect illustration of what a church should be.
“You glean from each other and the different strengths of each culture and experience,” she said.
Awakenings Church believes every single person has intrinsic value, as they have been made in the image of God and are ultimately designed to enjoy a life-giving relationship with the God of universe, according to their website.
Robby Browne, worship pastor at Awakenings Church, said the cross is a perfect representation of the importance of community and faith within a church.
“One of the analogies I’ve heard is that the up down portion of the cross is us connecting with God, and then the left right is us connecting with each other,” Browne said.
Worship pastors are responsible for leading and managing the worship services at their church, according to Climb, a career guidance website. They work closely with other members of the clergy to plan these services, including selecting hymns, prayers, readings, music, and so on.
“I think our faith is expressed through community, since you are able to share your true love and honor for God by expressing your true love and honor for other people,” he said.
Browne also said diversity is paramount in churches, as it mirrors the reason for God making humans different from one another.
“He made people different, so they have different aspects, features, cultures, phenotypes and things that really work together to make something beautiful,” Browne said.
Ed Ware, online campus pastor at New Beginnings Community Church, said making people feel comfortable and coming as they are is one of the church’s biggest goals.
“If people want to dress up, they can dress up,” Ware said. “If they want to dress down, they can dress down. We try to make everyone feel welcome, and for most people that come, that is the experience that they have,” he said.
Ware also said diversity is important within a church because of the different experiences the
members bring with them.
“Churches, just like any other groups, can be very biased in a lot of ways,” Ware said. “However, by having people that look different than you and talk differently than you, you realize that we are all one family.”
