New Year's Eve service celebrates history and faith
Watch Night a time to rejoice and reflect
By Vanessa Junkin

Posted 1/06/10
While thousands celebrated the start of the new year at the Inner Harbor and other places last Thursday evening, a group of nearly 70 gathered at Grace African Methodist Episcopal Church on Winters Lane for a more traditional service.

Grace's pastor, the Rev. Howard Wright, said the historic Catonsville church, formerly known as St. John A.M.E. Church, has been celebrating a Watch Night service, since the church opened in 1868.

According to its Web site, the A.M.E. church was actually founded in 1816, though the group that led to its founding started meeting in 1787.

The Watch Night service, which began in the 1700s, became more well-known in the African-American community with the 1862 New Year's Eve service after the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves in 10 states of the Confederacy on Jan. 1, 1863.

Wright, the pastor at Grace A.M.E. since April, 2000, noted that New Year's Eve had been a time for black Americans to assemble even before 1862.

Not only did they gather to thank God and pray, but slave families were sometimes broken up with the new year, he said.

He also mentioned that other faiths, mainly in the Methodist Church but not just in African-American churches, have a similar tradition for New Year's Eve.

Watch Night is a time "to give thanks for the old and anticipate the blessings of God for the future," he said.

He said people come to the Watch Night service for different reasons, from making amends to celebrating the blessings they feel they have in their lives.

While Grace is an old church, it was filled with energy as its members brought in the new year.

Elaine Hairston, of Catonsville, said she tries to come to Watch Night every year. The best part of the service is the fellowship, she said.

"It warms my spirit. My spirit is filled in the fellowship of other Christians," Hairston said.

Hairston and LaVerne Carter, of Lisbon, grew up in Catonsville attending services at Grace. Both are members there after attending other churches.

Sandy Arnette, a member of the board at Grace, said she tries to attend Watch Night each year after growing up with the tradition.

"In spite of everything that might not have gone so well, there's still so much to be thankful for," Arnette said.

The first hour of the two-hour service was devoted to praise and worship, which included prayer, singing and testimonies from the congregation.

Afterward, Wright talked about the Watch Night tradition.

After songs came readings from the Bible, with the third reading setting the stage for an enthusiastic sermon by the Rev. LaVerne Steele.

At midnight, everyone gathered at the altar for prayer.

Then, the group was invited downstairs to enjoy a dinner that included black-eyed peas, a symbol of prosperity for the new year.

Tradition was another motivating factor for some in attendance as Wright said he saw mostly familiar faces at last week's service.

Carter, who grew up in Catonsville and now lives in Lisbon, in Howard County, said she usually attends the service, and especially enjoys the music and the message of the night.

Hairston noted that while the service at the Catonsville church doesn't normally include testimonies, she and Carter agreed that the Watch Night testimonies may make a difference to people.

"You realize others around you have gone through difficult times and at the same time you realize how blessed you are," Carter said.

"You also learn how to maybe help others also who may have gone through those difficult times."

Bern El-Cooper, who said she lives in Woodlawn but considers Catonsville home and always comes to Watch Night, talked about the feeling of excitement expressed during the service.

"This is where I'm supposed to be," she said.