Auckland's gay-friendly church will celebrate Christmas with a combined carol service at St. Matthew-in-the-city on Sunday 14 December. Auckland Community Church's Mark Hangartner says the service will involve the choir and morning congregation along with the church's regular Sunday evening attendees. "The theme this year is 'light'," he tells GayNZ.com. "There will be biblical readings reflecting the theme and the approach of Christmas, and also reflecting the LGBT community. "The choir will sing some carols and solo items, and well known carols will be sung by the whole congregation." As in past years, there will be a collection taken for Rainbow Youth as part of the service. The Auckland Community Church meets each Sunday evening for worship from 7.30pm, providing an affirming and welcoming environment for all, and especially those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered. Similarly gay-friendly churches meet in Wellington and Christchurch. The carol service on Sunday 14th December will begin at 8pm at St. Matthew-in-the-city on the corner of Hobson and Wellesley Streets in central Auckland.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Sunday, 30th November 2008 - 9:55am