Church bridges divide between poor, more fortunate

Oct. 10, 2008

Shanna Taylor/Lariat staff Charles Lina heaps a plate with barbeque after Church Under the Bridge's 16th anniversary service in September. The church ministers to the impoverished in the Waco community.

By Chad Shanks
Staff Writer

Waco's poverty epidemic is evident to many students and citizens driving to church on Sunday mornings.

A grand gathering of the homeless under Interstate 35 momentarily distracts church-goers from the solemn anticipation of their weekly worship.

Questions about the dirt-covered community's assembly and assumptions about their nature flash briefly in the driver's mind before being overcome by the haste needed to arrive in time for the first hymn.

They drive on, often unaware that this group is also preparing for worship.

The patch of gravel under I-35, between 4th and 5th streets, is home to Church Under the Bridge. Between campus and the Clarion Hotel, it unites two worlds, bringing together the impoverished and the church.

On the surface, Church Under the Bridge looks nothing like a contemporary church.

The sanctuary is the great outdoors, with pews and pulpits replaced by rusty metal folding chairs and a dilapidated green wooden stage. Portable toilets are dragged in and cars hop the curb to park a few feet from where worship takes place.

The phrase "put on your Sunday best" is foreign to the suit-free congregation that prides itself on being a church for the unchurched of all socioeconomic levels.

"Church Under the Bridge means it when they say, 'Come as you are,'" church member Joanna Burrell said. "The normal insecurity for people who never went to church is not evident here. Everyone is accepted."

The church's pastor is Mission Waco founder and part-time Baylor professor Jimmy Dorrell. He started a Bible study in 1992 with five homeless men under the interstate bridge.

In 16 years, that Bible study has grown to a church of 300, and members include Waco's impoverished and marginalized, along with a number of Baylor students and more financially stable members of the community.

"It's fun to look out on Sunday morning to see black and white, rich and poor. People working on their Ph.D. will be sitting next to someone who can't spell their own name," Dorrell said.

A typical Sunday morning at Church Under the Bridge begins with breakfast at 10:30 a.m. A cornucopia of humanity lines up for a free meal provided by the church or various volunteer groups.

For some, this is their only meal for the day.

As they eat, people from diverse walks of life have conversations that would never happen without this venue.

"I've been coming to the church for about a month," Corpus Christi freshman Joseph Horn said. "I like it because they focus on service work in the community and forming relationships, rather than a building and presentation. People want to get to know you and conversations are easily started."

The most unique worship service in Waco follows breakfast at 11:00 a.m. Songs in English and Spanish drown out the noise from passing cars as the wind blows dust from the rock floor across the diverse body of unaffected worshippers.

Church members have active leadership roles and participate in the services. Patrick, a church regular, frequently stands center stage to play his broken two-stringed guitar and sing alongside the worship band. On one Sunday, a guitar-playing toddler even graced the stage.

Other church members whose lack of musical talent would seem detrimental in typical church services are also given a chance to shine.

They deliver earnest, heart-warming renditions of beloved hymns and choruses. Their celebrated passion inspires involvement by others who would ordinarily not receive such an opportunity.

Dorrell preaches in khaki shorts, a T-shirt and an Astros cap as 18-wheelers rush by over his head. His sermons are frequently interrupted. He recalls preaching a sermon about Moses, when a member brought him a staff made of trash.

Other sermons are interrupted by the delivery of written messages, like the time he was given a note that said "Goldie Hawn is a Communist," while he was in the middle of a sentence.

Patrick even sits next to him on the stage and smokes a cigar during sermons.

"I don't take my sermons too seriously," Dorrell said. "I don't think the preacher is the most important part of a church. The people here are baby Christians hungry for biblical knowledge. I concentrate my messages on application. They can see that biblical characters aren't perfect and learn from it. The poor don't need to be fixed; they need to be empowered."

Church Under the Bridge has a sad monopoly in Waco. Associate Pastor Charles Benson recalls his frustration with Waco churches' lack of ministry to the poor.

"I had been so self-righteous in the church walls, wondering why nobody was out in the neighborhoods. But I realized that I was being hypocritical," Benson said. "I saw that these bad areas needed ministering and I understand them because I came from that world, so I started helping here so we could take something negative and make it positive."

Activities typically isolated to Tuesday nights or annual mission trips in some churches are integral parts of Church Under the Bridge's everyday operations.

Although the church is a separate entity, members frequently assist in Mission Waco's other ministries, such as their homeless shelter and rehabilitation center.

The church even has an addiction recovery group that meets on Sunday mornings before the service.

Many of the lay leaders at Church Under the Bridge credit Dorrell and the church for changing their lives.

Danny Flores' first time to attend was the Sunday after being released from prison. He now owns his own home building company and attributes his success to the church helping him get a fresh start.

The church has also helped many members break the chains of homelessness.

"I've been in the church for 16 years," Robert Brown said. "They helped me even when I didn't want it. They took care of me when I was on the streets and helped me get off the streets. I'd rather go here than anywhere else."

There aren't enough chairs for everyone under I-35 on many Sunday mornings, but people gladly stand to be a part of something special. According to Jimmy Dorrell, the average American Christian is hungry for more than what they're getting.

"People need a sense of purpose and shouldn't just tack Christianity onto their lives. Christianity is radical, no matter how we try to domesticate it. Theology must be incarnational," he said.

Dorrell wrote a book about his experiences with Church Under the Bridge. "Trolls & Truth: 14 Realities About Today's Church that We Don't Want to See" chronicles the stories of some of the unique individuals Dorrell has met at the church and the lessons they've taught him.

The people who assemble every Sunday under the highway have found a transforming and nurturing environment where they can come to worship without fear of condemnation. Some have even found a family among these outcasts.

"I came here in 2006," said Naz Mustakim, a student at Texas State Technical College. "I was addicted to drugs and they helped me get clean. Now I participate in recovery meetings. It helps to be able to connect with people who have the same problems. This church has been like a family to me."

People under bridges are commonly associated with despair and condemnation. Now, thanks to this church, a bridge can be symbolic of hope and redemption.

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