3-alarm baptisms offered
___HOUSTON (ABP)--In an attempt to reach the MTV generation, churches are adapting amusement attractions to preach the gospel, according to a recent story in the Houston Chronicle.
___Second Baptist Church in Houston recently dedicated its $595,000 Soul Train City and the Hangar areas for children and teens, featuring Disney-style, almost life-size animatronic figures.
___"Kids today are very visual, very up to date, very modern and with it," Gary Moore, minister of music for the 30,000-member congregation told the newspaper in a copyrighted article Oct. 20. "We have to go where they are to bring them where they need to be."
___The church hired Wacky World, an "edutainment" company in Tampa, Fla., that formerly supplied animation and attractions for movie studios, theme parks and restaurants.
___Two years ago, the firm designed a "Toon Town" children's sanctuary for First Baptist Church in Springdale, Ark., featuring a children's baptistry built inside a fire truck. When a child is baptized, a bell rings and he or she is sprayed with confetti, said Bruce Barry, president and CEO of Wacky World. "It's a pretty big deal to get baptized in Springdale, Ark.," Barry told the Chronicle.



The Baptist Standard