By Gabrielle Terrett

The Vicksburg Post

King Solomon Baptist Church, 180 Oak Ridge Road, is having a Watch Night service starting at 10 p.m. Sunday.

During New Year’s Eve people go out and bring in the New Year in different ways. Whether with a party, a family get together, lighting fireworks or even just sitting at home watching movies, the year is often welcomed with open arms.

However, King Solomon Baptist Church is bringing in the New Year at the church.

The Baptist church will be hosting a New Year’s Eve Watch Night service with friends, family and even strangers of the church.

King Solomon wants the community to know the doors of the church are open to everyone and encourages the community to come out and celebrate Sunday night.

“We believe that the doors of the church should be open to God’s people at all times,” the Rev. R.D. Bernard of King Solomon Baptist Church said. “Secondly, we should give God’s people an option as to whether they can be in God’s House or if they could spend it somewhere else that night.”

The Watch Night service will be similar to a regular worship service and will last until just after midnight. The audience will be able to witness what the church has done throughout the year while also seeing what is in store for 2018.

“It will be a regular worship service,” Bernard said. “With the addition of us reviewing all of our activities for the past year and thanking God for giving us all of the success we have had with those activities and we will also talk about a few of the things we will be doing in the first quarter of the New Year.”

The Watch Night service is one most Baptist churches participate in. Members of the church come to the building at night to sing, celebrate and reminisce the old year to bring in the New Year.

The service is a great way to feel involved and to feel like part of a family. Many go to Watch Night services because it is a tradition, while others may go to simply celebrate with loved ones.

The service originated from John Wesley, Co-Founder of Methodism, who believed Christians should confirm their relationship with God yearly.

Wesley held his first service in 1755 with words from Richard Alleine, an English Puritan divine and the service was published by Wesley in a pamphlet in 1780.

The first Watch Night service can now be read in a book titled “The Book of Worship” and the title is “An Order of Worship for Such as Would Enter Into or Renew Their Covenant with God–For Use in a Watch Night Service, on the First Sunday of the Year, or Other Occasion.”

The service focused solely on Christians replenishing their relationship with God.

The meaning of the Watch Night service however quickly changed in 1862 when African Americans began to celebrate the end of the year as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation being recognized. The service quickly gained the name Freedoms Eve because of the event.

The Proclamation recognized the Civil War and freed slaves. Free African Americans living in the United States during this era gathered in churches during the time to celebrate the occasion while those still enslaved prayed on plantations.

Although Watch Night Services may have a different meaning for many, the outcome is always the same. People leave the services feeling replenished and are hopeful and eager for the New Year.

King Solomon hopes to encourage the community and strike an interest for 2018.

“We hope that they will be encouraged,” Bernard said. “And that they will be thankful to God for allowing us to see and make it through 2017 and to see 2018 and to give people hope that they will see something to look forward to for 2018.”

NEW YEAR’S EVE SERVICES:

The following churches are planning evening services Sunday night:

• Briar Hill Baptist Church, 707 Highway 469 North, will host a Big New Year’s Eve Gospel Singing program Sunday. Performers will be Tim Frith and Gospel Echoes, Faithful 4, The Revelations, and Jason Runnels. Call 601-906-0677 or 601-720-8870 for details.

• Greater Grove Street M.B. Church, 2715 Alcorn Drive, will host a New Year’s Eve service Sunday at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 601-218-3911.

• China Grove No. 2 M.B. Church and Porters Chapel M.B. Church will host a combined watch meeting at 10:15 p.m. Sunday at China Grove No. 2 M.B. Church. Guest pastor will be pastor Adrian Clark.

• The House of Peace Worship Church International, 1301 Holly St., will host a Prophetic New Year’s Eve service Sunday at 10 a.m. Breakfast will be served.

• Mount Carmel Ministries, 2015 Grove St., will host a New Year’s Eve service Sunday at 10 p.m.

• Clover Valley M.B. Church, 7670 Mississippi 27 South, will observe Watch Night service combined with New Poplar Grove Church Sunday at 10:30 p.m. at Clover Valley M.B. Church. For more information, call 601-638-2070.

• Cool Springs M.B. Church, Bethlehem M.B. Church and Triumph Baptist Church will host a combined Watch meeting at 10 p.m. Sunday at Cool Springs M.B. Church.

• Forest Grove M.B. church will host its New Year’s Eve service Sunday at 10:30 p.m. The Rev. Michael A. White will be the guest speaker.

• New Mount Elm Church will host its Annual New Year’s Eve Watch Night Worship Sunday from 10 p.m. to midnight. The Rev. Elbert Cox and the Rev. Rudy Smith will be guest speakers.