Kevin and Dorothy Ranaghan (Branch Relations) spoke on healing at the October 23 prayer meeting in Black Rock.Story by Chris Meehan. Photo by Bob Scott.
Buffalo branch’s outreach in Black Rock, a lower-income multicultural neighborhood northwest of downtown, is approaching its first anniversary. The outreach now includes weekly Thursday night prayer meetings, with one a month serving as a healing meeting, and, for the last six weeks, a men’s group that two neighborhood men participate in.
“This is our response to the Lord's call to us to find those people with whom he wants to share his Holy Spirit,” says principal branch coordinator Tom Shriver. “We wanted to find a way to expand our surface area and meet more people. We're a smaller, older branch, but I'm always impressed at how our members are wide open to serving God in any way possible.”
Rev. Richard Jedrzejewski, the pastor of Church of the Assumption, a Catholic parish in Black Rock, classifies the area as inner-city. He grew up in the neighborhood and has seen it change from a middle class area for stable Christian families to a multiethnic and multireligious neighborhood with a wide variety of family situations. “It is economically depressed. We have many single-parent households,” he says. “Black Rock has big challenges.”
The prayer meetings began in November, 2013, as branch members considered together what work the Lord might be calling the branch to take on. Tom points to a men’s retreat in 2012 as the catalyst, during which Mission Program coordinator Nick Holovaty told stories of the community’s mission work: “Nick sparked a hunger in us to step outside our comfort zone and do more for the Lord.”
“In January of 2013, Tom gave a challenging talk about how to get serious about answering the Lord’s call to us to engage in outreach,” recalls Martha Delaney. Afterward, the branch began exploring possible outreaches, talking with a number of Buffalo pastors and church leaders.
“At some point a friend of the branch suggested we talk to the pastor of Church of the Assumption in Black Rock,” recalls Bud Northway, who led the branch discernment effort and now leads the outreach in Black Rock. “As we talked with Father Richard, it became clear to us that he had a heart for all the residents of Black Rock. He spoke frankly about his concerns for their spiritual health. He wanted them to have a personal relationship with the Lord. When I floated the idea that the People of Praise could run a prayer meeting in the area—maybe in his church—he was very enthusiastic and supportive.”
Father Richard offered a room in the church for the prayer meeting, funds to finance advertising, and his full support of the branch’s ecumenical approach.
About 20 members of the branch began taking turns coming to Black Rock every week to hold a prayer meeting. They promoted it primarily by word of mouth and through a stream of stories in the neighborhood newspaper. A children’s choir including many neighborhood children sang for their annual Lessons and Carols program. During the branch men’s retreat this past September, retreat leaders Charlie Fraga and Luke Glover (Portland) went with the men onto the streets, where they all introduced themselves to neighbors and offered to pray with them.
Bill Toth, a 73-year-old widower who has lived in Black Rock his whole life, says that he has been neighbors with Jim Benson for 20 years, but it wasn't until they joined the prayer meeting and then the men's group that they became good friends. Bill says he enjoyed walking the streets with branch members, “bringing the good news of God's love to Black Rock residents, taking back the neighborhood from the Enemy and introducing the People of Praise to all the beauty in Black Rock.”
Last Saturday, branch members came to a soup kitchen run by Church of the Assumption, where they prayed with the guests. The branch hopes to start a women’s group in the area soon. They have started conversations with pastors of other neighborhood churches about more ways to work together.
Father Richard expresses his gratitude for the People of Praise’s presence in the neighborhood. “That they're not afraid to walk the streets on Saturday afternoon is big. Despite all the programs that exist to help people, it’s one-on-one relationships that make a long-term difference, and that's what they’re trying to do. Doing that takes a lot of people and a lot of time to accomplish.”
Responses
Barbette Brophy says:
October 27th, 2014 at 12:50 PM
Wow, what a generous response to the Lord! Our Buffalo brothers and sisters NEVER cease to amaze me. Thank you Lord for connecting us to Fr. Richard and his parish!! Barbette
Claudia Schmitz says:
October 27th, 2014 at 3:53 PM
Praise be to God for the obedience of our brothers and sister in Buffalo. How beautiful are the feet of those who announce good news! Romans 10:15;Isaiah 52:7.
Carmen Fraga says:
October 27th, 2014 at 4:21 PM
What a wonderful work to help transform the Black Rock neighborhood by your presence and prayer meetings! We are praising the Holy Spirit as he continues to work through your generosity and sacrifices!
John Boughton says:
October 27th, 2014 at 4:23 PM
Our priest this morning, in commenting on Jesus healing of the woman bent over for 18 years, pointed out Jesus laying hands on her, and connected that with our taking time to build relationships with the people we are seeking to serve. Be not afraid! Thanks, Buffalo, for stepping out in this new way. And may more of us do likewise.
Jackie Vaughan says:
October 27th, 2014 at 4:41 PM
Thanks for being courageous, Buffalo!
May God continue to bless your efforts!
Chris Urbanski says:
October 27th, 2014 at 6:13 PM
I was so happy to hear about what God is doing in my old home town! Glory..
Chris Urbanski
Anne Brewer says:
October 28th, 2014 at 6:29 AM
Praise God. Such a hopeful and inspiring story!
Walt Seale says:
October 28th, 2014 at 9:39 AM
Thank you for your response to the needs around you! I love that you approached the work in consultation together. The Lord is blessing your forethought and unity! Come Holy Spirit !
Ruthanne Seitz says:
October 28th, 2014 at 11:02 AM
How wonderful that our community as a whole is reaching out to the poor and needy around us. God is giving us the eyes and ears to see the needs around us.
Nancy Grams says:
October 28th, 2014 at 3:44 PM
What a challenging example you brothers and sisters in Buffalo have set for all of us in getting out of our comfort zone and bringing the good news to the people of Black Rock!
Praise God!
Karen Heintzelman says:
October 29th, 2014 at 9:10 AM
Thank you for saying yes to God's call to serve His people. May God be with you in all you do!
John Broxup says:
October 31st, 2014 at 11:33 PM
Your many, many prayers are appreciated.
It is for me equal parts exhilarating, and terrifying. This is something that just 2 years ago, I would not have considered doing, however it was difficult last fall to drive all the way to the west side and go to my evening class and night lab instead of heading over (immediately adjacent) to Assumption's basement for the prayer meeting(due to a scheduling conflict). For me, what drives the desire to come back is seeing those from BR who continue to come back, continue to be enthusiastic. I think the question at this point is, can POP keep up?
At this point last year I could never have envisioned walking the streets of Buffalo to pray over people. Things seem to be accelerating, and we are blessed to see the Spirit out-poured.
-JCB
JULIE WALTERS says:
November 1st, 2014 at 5:44 PM
I thank God for all your work in the Black Rock neighborhood. I'll pray for more and more people to come to Christ through you.
Julie Walters
John Ostby says:
November 2nd, 2014 at 10:04 AM
Keep it going. God bless you folks.
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