Church Building

A joyful noise arose when members of Antioch Apostolic Church met to worship yesterday morning. Members of the congregation sang, clapped, danced and shouted "Hallelujah!" Mothers balanced babies on swaying hips as nearby parishioners raised their hands skyward. A few miles down Ritchie Highway in Arnold their 20-year-old church building -- which some members helped to build -- lay in ruins. Its sanctuary collapsed Tuesday under the weight of last week's record snowstorm, leaving a pile of gnarled siding and insulation where hundreds had come to find solace.

A proposal to build a two-story church on a small residential parcel along U.S. 40 in western Ellicott City is stirring hostility among nearby residents, who are angry at having to fight a new battle in what they see as a continuing war to keep more dense projects at bay. Friends of Font Hill formed in 2003 to oppose Kimberly Homes' plans to build 30 townhouses for seniors in their area of older detached homes. The group won the fight, and 10 detached homes were built instead. In 2006, members also defeated the Howard County Housing Commission's plans to build a four-story, moderate-income apartment complex on a 2.5-acre commercially zoned site in the same area.

In what was once an Assembly of God church in Savage, a haze of aromatic burnt myrrh fills the sanctuary as a group of Coptic Orthodox Christians honors rituals that essentially haven't changed since the fourth century. Many people are unfamiliar with the ancient religion practiced in St. Mary Coptic Orthodox Church in Howard County. In the quiet, historic community, the church houses such cultural touchstones as an altar from Egypt and ostrich eggs that represent God's faithfulness. Members say the church helps them preserve their heritage.

A BITTERSWEET farewell marked the end of a decade of service by the beloved Rev. Philip Tocknell and his family Sunday at Greenmount United Methodist Church. Tocknell has been appointed to Baldwin United Methodist Church in Millersville, Anne Arundel County. The Tocknell family includes wife Debbie, and the couple's children, Emily, 13, and Jonathan, 19. "This is very hard on us. We were very fortunate and blessed to have them for 10 years. But since they're itinerant pastors, when the bishop asks you to move, you must go," said Connie Cole, church lay leader.

When the missionaries from Severna Park United Methodist Church arrived in Juarez, Mexico, last year, they found a disquieting sight: people living in cardboard shacks."

The county Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing Sept. 30 on the granting of a building permit for New Covenant Church's education, sanctuary and fellowship hall on Jones Station Road in Arnold.The meeting will be held at 6: 30 p.m. in council chambers on the first floor of the Arundel Center, 44 Calvert St. in Annapolis.Those interested should call the Board of Appeals at 410-222-1119 to confirm that the hearing will be held.

For years, St. John Lutheran Church's Sunday school has been overcrowded, offices have been cramped and space for meetings and programs has been tight. But all that will change when an addition to the west side of the church is finished.By spring, the Linthicum church will have new music and youth rooms, office suites for a bookkeeper, secretary, senior and assistant pastors, a conference room and storage space.The pastor's old office will be converted into a library and a reading room; other space will be used to create additional room for Sunday school.

Jenkins Memorial Church will have its first golf open, starting at 7:30 a.m. May 23, at Rocky Point Golf Course in Baltimore County. Players and sponsors are needed.Tournament proceeds will benefit the church's sanctuary building fund."This tournament will help our efforts in one of the most aggressive building programs that we have ever taken on," said the Rev. Robert Douglas.The $60 entry fee includes greens fee and carts, gifts and prizes, a continental breakfast, outdoor luncheon at the 10th tee and a bull roast at the end of the day's competition.

THIS PAST YEAR was a time of growth for St. James Nursery. Since 1974, thousands of 3- and 4-year-olds have gotten a head start on their education by attending preschool at St. James Nursery in Mount Airy. When last fall's enrollment surpassed classroom space, the school made it a priority to expand the number of classes available to area children. An addition to the nursery school building or portable classrooms were deemed not feasible. So the school looked at using existing properties in the community, said Ellen Bonde, St. James Nursery director for 14 years.

MIDDLEBURG UNITED Methodist Church recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of its building with a Sunday service that included members from its two sister churches, Uniontown United Methodist Church and Brick United Methodist Church. The white clapboard building dates to 1850, but the congregation is older, according to church documents. The first service was held in a log schoolhouse in Middleburg in 1823. As was the custom then, people would meet to worship under the leadership of a "circuit riding minister."