The new holiday spirit: churches reach out to their communities during the holiday season

SOMETIMES the greatest gifts aren't the ones that cost a pretty penny. Sometimes they're the ones made up of a few dollars' worth of turkey and dressing, macaroni and cheese, winter coats and scarves. To the homeless, the poverty-stricken, and even those behind bars, the clothing centers, food drives and other programs funded by thousands of churches every holiday season mean more than the pocket change they're worth. These charities signify that there are people who still care about the well-being of others.

"The holiday season is always the best time for church benevolence and compassion to be seen," says the Rev. James T. Meeks of the Salem Baptist Church of Chicago and vice president of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. "Benevolence and compassion mean expressing an interest in the people who are most needy."

With the American economy still struggling in recession, a Black unemployment rate at 9.6 percent and less and less jobs, more lower- and working-class families need financial and spiritual assistance. And church leaders say that it's their duty to help provide that support within their communities.

"[Our programs] will just be ramped up even more this year," says Bishop Keith A. Butler of Word of Faith International Christian Center in the Detroit area, "We're just reaching out to more and more people who need help. With the way the economy is, we feel we're going to get more and more requests for help."

Many churches sponsor and organize drives and giveaways during the holiday season. Atlanta's Hillside Chapel & Truth Center, Inc. gives away food baskets for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and donates stuffed animals to children throughout the holidays. Word of Faith International also supplies needy families with food and clothing and sponsors a toy drive.

Ministries also tend to provide more than just the bare essentials. Word of Faith also sponsors a "Helping Hands" program that helps people to understand procedures and policies in receiving government aid.

"I think it's part of our witness," says the Rev. Dr. Barbara L. King, founding minister of the Hillside Center & Truth Chapel. "It's important that we go beyond the church walls. They're just there to establish a place for worship, but many people are scared to go to the church. When you see these people involved in our programs, it just makes a difference in their lives."

Some churches also work within the prison system. In addition to its food and toy giveaways last Christmas, Salem Baptist Church gave away copies of the New Testament Bible on cassette to every prisoner in Illinois. The Potter's House in Dallas, home of Bishop T.D. Jakes' congregation, is participating in the Angel Tree project, a nationwide outreach plan in which churches and other organizations receive the names of children whose parents are incarcerated. The churches then provide the children with clothing and gifts, usually a toy. On average, more than 14,000 churches participate in the program annually. Salem Baptist has participated in the Angel Tree project in the past.

"[The program] will give the congregants an opportunity to help a child who may not experience a merry Christmas, and the feeling of giving is the best gift of all," Meeks says.

Rainbow/PUSH also makes its presence known in the prison system during the holidays. The organization visits Cook County Jail every Christmas, which includes a service by the Rev. Jesse Jackson and free HIV testing and voter registration for inmates.

As important as these charities are to the downtrodden, religious leaders say that offering the message of Christ and the Gospel is equally important. Leaders say that the church is obligated to help those in its community in need and minister to them as well. The message spiritually helps the demoralized and depressed, teaching them that they can rise out of their situations and turn their lives around.

"The church exists to tell the people the Gospel story and help those receive the light of the Lord," Bishop Butler says. "Secondarily, churches should provide for those who need help, whether it be training for jobs or education for children."

Church leaders say the message of charity and fellowship that is central to the holiday season has become lost in today's world of self-interest and egotism. Senior Bishop Cecil Bishop of the AME Zion Church says that people are sometimes too interested in their own affairs to notice the suffering of others, let alone offer help. And sometimes, churches are even guilty of turning a blind eye.

"The late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, 'Too often the church is a taillight rather than a headlight,' and I think that's still true," the bishop says. "Very often the church takes on the flavor of the world around it rather than being prophetic to those conditions. It's difficult to take that kind of [moral] stance, and I do not exclude myself. But when we don't [help others], it becomes dangerous."

Churches are teaching their patrons and others in their communities the importance of charity and generosity through these holiday outreach programs. It's only through giving their time and effort for others that people learn that communities are built on helping and supporting each other, and that is the message of Christmas itself. "It's gradually growing within those who did not know that this is what they should be about," says Dr. King.