Some Liberal Churches of Spanish Lookout

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  The following article is the straightforward personal opinion of one individual only and should be understood as such. It does not seek to belittle, mock or ridicule any of these churches.
                         Amazing Grace
  This is one church where personal and physical comfort seem to be a top priority, I believe of all the Mennonite groups in Belize, this is the most modern as far as interior furnishings are concerned. It used to not be like that, since it began in a small wooden building however the new church is the one seen in the picture. To a North American or European visitor there's nothing new or different, but to an average person accustomed to hard benches of typical churches, this is luxury. My body simply loves those soft, comfortable seats. The whole church service seems to run on some sort of mechanical schedule. Pastor has his sermons lined up for each Sunday, all in order. At exactly this time, the worship leader begins. After a certain amount of set time period for singing, the pastor stands up. Preaching is done on time, singing is done on time, praying is done on time. No such thing as getting "carried away with the spirit" and praying on and on with loud exclamations, no extra time for "those who have been touched by the Spirit", etc. Nope, everything moves as quietly, as efficiently and as precisely as the clock itself. A real time-saving church.


 Although they fall under the liberal or "modern" Mennonite category, they are very quiet in the way they hold their church services as compared to others.
                        Fountain of Life
  Below is pictured a charismatic church (pentecostal type). Very lively worship services are held here. Anyone with a flexible body and plenty of energy can join the worship, and often people will sway, dance, or go through certain motions depending on how they feel moved by the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues, prophesying, falling down with fire, groaning with the spirit, etc. are all part of their beliefs.


This is a recent picture

  They are, or used to be, one of the most popular mainstream churches in the area, welcoming black people, Mestizos, Mayas, North Americans, poor people, rich people, in-between, and all those odds and ends of people who showed up and said "halleluja, praise God". Accepting of cultures and mingling with different races is partly why it was popular. While the interior is still not completely finished, it is a fact that it is one of the biggest church buildings in the community. Soon after the new building was built, due to a split in the group, people began leaving en masse to join an already existing liberal church, called Streams of Water which for awhile sort of died down when the pastor and leader suffered a near-fatal motorcycle accident. Another church nearby, Springs of Life, also began losing members to this church. So these 3 groups from FoL, SoL, and SoW formed a new church, called Fusion.
 Fusion and other liberal churches located in this community are not mentioned here but will be the subject of another article. This article was written only to give you a glimpse at the variety of "modern" or non-traditional churches and beliefs that exist in Spanish Lookout. Remember, this is only a personal opinion. The honest and sincere desire of each of these churches is to help people get to know God. 








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