Field visit: Join a session with the Young Adult Group
Date and time: 6.15 p.m. Oct 26 (Sat), 2019
Quota per visit: 30
Address: The Vine Centre, 29 Burrows Street, Wan Chai
Quota per visit: 30
Address: The Vine Centre, 29 Burrows Street, Wan Chai
Visit programme
6.15 p.m. - 7.00 p.m. - Welcome by the church and join the Young Adult Group
7.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. - Prayer session
7.30 p.m. - 8.00 p.m. - Ice-breaker game
8.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. - A talk on "Old Testament stories"
8.30 p.m. - 9.00 p.m. - Group discussion
6.15 p.m. - 7.00 p.m. - Welcome by the church and join the Young Adult Group
7.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. - Prayer session
7.30 p.m. - 8.00 p.m. - Ice-breaker game
8.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. - A talk on "Old Testament stories"
8.30 p.m. - 9.00 p.m. - Group discussion
Introduction: I am the Vine, you are the branches
The Vine Church (photo retrieved from https://church.oursweb.net/)
What you will first see on sight in the Vine Centre is a coffee shop like a lounge next to the reception counter. On the brick wall you can find four big Chinese characters 京都戲院 (The Imperial Cinema)—the cinema that occupied the location before the church. But where are the crosses? Where are the benches for Sunday’s services? Hardly can you find any religious symbols that one may expect to see in a Protestant church. A Vine member who have been serving in one of the ministries writes, “I know that it is a must and a calling for me to take action: to be on the frontlines of bringing the wall-less church to places that need Jesus.”[1]
A cafe lounge inside The Vine Church
(photos retrieved from https://hk.ulifestyle.com.hk/ and https://www.openrice.com/)
(photos retrieved from https://hk.ulifestyle.com.hk/ and https://www.openrice.com/)
Jesus in John 15:5 said, “I am the Vine, you are the branches.” The name of the Vine Church derived from this passage, which, as their website explains, encourages people to be Christ-centred and relationship-based in everything they do. The Church introduces itself as “a vibrant church community based in the Wan Chai district of Hong Kong” who are “both a local and international family, made up of people born and raised in Hong Kong and others who have moved here from other countries.” For more information, please browse their website: http://www.thevine.org.hk/
YouTube clip - Vine News: March Highlights New, uploaded by The Vine Church March 3, 2019.
Some of their religious practices: Sunday’s services, fasting and baptism
The building comprises a theatre hall for Sunday’s services and a couple of activity rooms. One exclusive facility is the prayer room “The Sanctuary” where one can put up his prayer card on the shepherd staff, or take some rest at the green pasture corner, or express one’s prayer by paintings. Each year the Church calls for a 21-day “Daniel fast” (in the month of January for 2018) which echoes with the biblical passage Daniel 10:2-3 “At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips; and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over.” In one booklet, the Church explains three meanings of the practice of fasting: (i) a focus on God, His heart, and His Spirit, (ii) an intentional form of sacrifice that clears a path for us to spend more time with God and understand His heart and Kingdom desires, and (iii) a personal, private discipline that draws us into intimacy with our Father.[2] To learn more about their fasting practice, please read the booklet assigned as suggested further reading below.
YouTube clip - Baptism at the beach, April 20, 2009
Another unique religious practice conducted by the Vine is “open beach baptism” which is usually held at Repulse Bay. Their website explains, “Baptism is an outward expression of an inward reality of the commitment to belief in Christ. Baptisms was exemplified by Jesus’ own baptism, yet he also commands us to be baptised and to baptise others via the Great Commission in Matthew 28 when he spoke the powerful words, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’” But why is it being performed in a beach open to public? You can try to ask them about it during the visit.
Their church life
You can watch one of their Sunday sermons below: Vision Sunday 2019. Apart from sermons, the Vine Church has developed a number of ministries assigned with distinctive functions, such as the Young Adults Ministry that holds worship, biblical teaching, and prayer session for 18-30 adults, the Creative Art Ministry that produces visual arts, media, and communications, and the Pastoral Care Ministry that provides spiritual, relational and practical care at crucial times in life for their members. Their outside church activities include elderly home visit, mission trip to Philippines, and remarkably the “Bikeathon” joined by 20 members riding bikes three days in Taiwan to raise fund (see YouTube video Bikeathon 2013).
YouTube clip - Vision Sunday 2019
They also offer different courses, such as marriage preparation, community group leaders training, and cleansing stream. One remarkable highlight is the Alpha Course which welcomes everyone to join and explore topics of “Who is Jesus,” “Why and how do I pray” and so on. For more information, please check their Alpha Course webpage: http://www.thevine.org.hk/alpha-course-english/
Social justice
On the day we visit The Vine Church, we are going to experience a session joint by African asylum seekers in Hong Kong. In the YouTube clip “To teach a man to fish” produced by The Vine, the African asylum seeker mentioned how the Church offered him material help, how he received formal training in The Vine, and how his life was transformed.
Offering help to asylum seekers in Hong Kong, some South Asian and some African, is part of the Church’s recent involvement in social justice. They have been extending their actions towards more and more groups, such as the prostitutes in the Red Light District in Wan Chai (not officially recognized) and the victims of human trafficking. The Church lays four layers of meaning for social justice: (i) social justice is at the very heart of the gospel, (ii) the gospel is at the very heart of social justice, (iii) the grace of God will transform lives and bring justice, and (iv) the church should be a voice for justice. Find out more at: http://www.thevine.org.hk/social-justice/
Offering help to asylum seekers in Hong Kong, some South Asian and some African, is part of the Church’s recent involvement in social justice. They have been extending their actions towards more and more groups, such as the prostitutes in the Red Light District in Wan Chai (not officially recognized) and the victims of human trafficking. The Church lays four layers of meaning for social justice: (i) social justice is at the very heart of the gospel, (ii) the gospel is at the very heart of social justice, (iii) the grace of God will transform lives and bring justice, and (iv) the church should be a voice for justice. Find out more at: http://www.thevine.org.hk/social-justice/
[1] The Vine Church, “Hope in Christ Everlasting, Change in God’s Timing.”
[2] The Vine Church, The Spiritual Practice of Fasting, 7.
[2] The Vine Church, The Spiritual Practice of Fasting, 7.
Online resource
The Vine Church website: http://www.thevine.org.hk/
The Vine Community Services Ltd. website: http://vcsl.org/
YouTube channel of The Vine Church: https://www.youtube.com/user/thevineh
The Vine Community Services Ltd. website: http://vcsl.org/
YouTube channel of The Vine Church: https://www.youtube.com/user/thevineh
Suggested further reading
The Vine Church. The Spiritual Practice of Fasting. Hong Kong: The Vine, 2018.
The Vine Church. Fasting booklet 2018.pdf | |
File Size: | 3144 kb |
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The founding pastor Tony Read writes about human rights:
Read, Tony. “Human Rights—The New Normal,” The Vine Church Pastor’s Blog, March 20, 2015. Available at
http://www.thevine.org.hk/the-new-normal/
A Vine member writes his reflections of reaching out to the prostitutes in Wan Chai:
The Vine Church. “Hope in Christ Everlasting, Change in God’s Timing,” The Vine Church News, April 28, 2015. Available at
http://www.thevine.org.hk/hope-in-christ-everlasting-change-in-gods-timing/
Read, Tony. “Human Rights—The New Normal,” The Vine Church Pastor’s Blog, March 20, 2015. Available at
http://www.thevine.org.hk/the-new-normal/
A Vine member writes his reflections of reaching out to the prostitutes in Wan Chai:
The Vine Church. “Hope in Christ Everlasting, Change in God’s Timing,” The Vine Church News, April 28, 2015. Available at
http://www.thevine.org.hk/hope-in-christ-everlasting-change-in-gods-timing/
References
The Vine Church. The Spiritual Practice of Fasting. Hong Kong: The Vine, 2018.
The Vine Church, “Hope in Christ Everlasting, Change in God’s Timing,” The Vine Church News, April 28, 2015. Available at http://www.thevine.org.hk/hope-in-christ-everlasting-change-in-gods-timing/
The Vine Church, “Hope in Christ Everlasting, Change in God’s Timing,” The Vine Church News, April 28, 2015. Available at http://www.thevine.org.hk/hope-in-christ-everlasting-change-in-gods-timing/