Church does market research into the viability of English services
"For a while now the need for an English service from our 20 or so English speaking families has been a concern of ours and now is as good a time as any to make a definite decision."
BARBERTON – Keeping up with the times as far as the language issue is concerned, is not always as easy as it sounds, especially if you are an establishment like a church.
More so if your official language is something like Afrikaans – generally seen by the masses as that of the staunch farmer (die stoere boer).
The Full Gospel Cross Generation (Die Volle Evangelie Kruisgenerasie) decided to take a step in the right direction to overcome this problem.
Speaking to Past AS du Plessis (fondly known by Barbertonians as Dupie) last week, he said that currently, praise and worship are being led in both English and Afrikaans, but until now, the service itself has been conducted in Afrikaans.
“For a while now the need for an English service from our 20 or so English speaking families has been a concern of ours and now is as good a time as any to make a definite decision.
“Also, some families drive through to Nelspruit to get the spiritual experience that is so evident in our congregation. We would like to give them the opportunity to experience this here,” he said.
The church therefore decided to conduct proper market research in Barberton. In order to accommodate fellow brethren whose home language is English, they are contemplating presenting two services on a Sunday morning, one in Afrikaans and the other in English.
The evening service will remain the same. What they would like to know is what you, the community, and specifically English-speaking Barbertonians, think about the idea of an extra service on a Sunday.
“We are conducting a poll whereby people can SMS “yes” or “no” to our Coretalk number, 083-272-8704. This opinion poll will serve a dual purpose. Apart from the fact that we will be able to identify the feasibility of such an idea, it will also serve to aid our database,” said Dupie.
A similar poll will be conducted on their Facebook page as well.
Enquiries: 013-712-2871.
Please note that the Coretalk number,
083-272-8704, is not for calls, but for messages only.
Also see read this Afrikaans piece written by Past Dupie
