(la version francais est ici)
New praises have hit the streets of Malden, as the church located at 264 Salem Street has finally found its owner: the Malden Haitian Church of the Nazarene. The Malden Haitian Church of the Nazarene has thrived for over 30 years. Pastor Jean Carne Pierre and additional Pastors such as Pastor Leslie Phillip, Pastor Paul Jean Denis, and Dr. Ricardo Telemaque lead the church.
In the past couple of years, the church hosted its services at 2 Short Street in Melrose, but due to the growing size of its members, it was time for a permanent move. Brother Jean Claude Fedor, the church’s secretary and youth leader, who began going to the church in 2009 but became a member in August of 2011, mentioned that the church has “a bit over one hundred affiliated members, plus the children and a few people who are not yet members.”
Yet, the process of getting ownership of the building was a long and hard one. It required the church to not only have a multitude of meetings but also to go to court. “It wasn’t easy; it took us a while to finally get the building, but we never gave up, and God had answered our prayers, and we’re so grateful to him,” Brother Fedor highlighted.
The first service held at the new building was on February 2nd, and the atmosphere of the entire service was extremely welcoming as excitement bounced around the room. However, the church continued to face some hardships. In the middle of the service, the area faced a blackout, causing the mics and a multitude of instruments not to work. Despite this, the church showcased its perseverance by joyfully continuing the service as they continued singing and dancing, bringing their community closer together.
Sunday School at the church begins at 10:45 a.m. and ends at 11:45 a.m. Within Sunday School, there are various classes for different ages. Sunday School is an opportunity for the church to get to know one another better and their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. A key part of the Malden Haitian Church of the Nazarene’s Sunday School is the annual competition, where each class competes against one another for a trophy, banner, and several other prizes. This competition encourages participation during Sunday School and serves as another way of bringing the community together.
The Grand Service takes place from 12 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., where the church sings their praises together and listens to the preachings of pastors from the church and many other visiting churches. Every Sunday during service, visitors could introduce themselves as the church applauds them warmly. To gather an even larger audience besides those from Haitian backgrounds, the service includes English alongside the usual Haitian Creole and French every second Sunday of the month.
Additionally, the church takes part in Communion, also called the Lord’s Supper, every first Sunday of the month during service. Communion is a Christian practice that involves consuming bread and wine to remember Jesus’ death and sacrifice. During this practice, the Malden Haitian Church of the Nazarene allows anyone who has been baptized to participate in the event while Pastor Jean Carne Pierre blesses the bread and wine with a special prayer.
Another tradition of the church truly showcases how tightly bonded the church is. Every last Sunday of the month, they highlight those who have celebrated their birthdays in the current month.
As mentioned before, bringing together their community and forming tight bonds is a prime goal of the church. Every summer, the church goes on a special lake trip where they participate in fun games, swimming, eating good food, and most importantly, their baptism service. On top of that, the church celebrates national holidays such as Mother’s Day and Father’s Day by providing gifts to all mothers and fathers while hosting a special service specifically for mothers and fathers.
The church hosts their very own celebrations, including the church’s anniversary, the women’s group Anniversary, the men’s group Anniversary, and many more.
With gang violence currently taking over Haiti, the Haitian community must be brought together. One way of this is through prayer for their beloved country, which the Malden Haitian Church of the Nazarene does every Sunday.
All in all, this new addition to the Malden community located just a few blocks away from Malden High School is sure to bring a positive atmosphere to Malden. “My biggest hope for the church is that soon we will hit the streets of Malden and have the privilege to meet the people in the community and share the Gospel and the love of Jesus Christ with them,” Brother Fedor exulted.
