Christmas Eve without tears
Allen Smalling tells you where to go to church when you don't go to church
Christmas is finally upon us. Despite endless schlock-rock renditions of "Deck the Halls" and "Frosty the Snowman" from endless store loudspeakers, Christmas Eve will find a great many of us in church. After all, even atheists like Christmas carols, and Christmas Eve services dish up a potent blend of seasonal spirit, community unity, and yuletide fellowship, not to mention that inimitable genuine Christmas music.
This Yuletide Newcity has scoped out a variety of churches where even the casual worshiper can feel at home. Just for fun, we've ranked them competitively, on a scale of one to ten. (The maximum score is thirty.) "Liturgy" refers to the excellence of the worship elements such as music, preaching and Eucharist (communion). A "user-friendly" service is one that does its best to make a stranger feel at home: A high score indicates that everything from "meeting and greeting" to the printed order of worship has been well thought out. "Transportation" tracks the relative ease you'll have getting to the church, taking into account parking and public transit in equal measure. All listed churches are Protestant because Catholic churches do not extend communion to non-Catholics unless prior arrangements have been made-not a good scene for holiday walk-ins.
St. James Episcopal Cathedral, 65 East Huron, (312)787-7360.
Christmas Eve Choral Prelude and Festive Eucharist, 9:30pm. The title says it all. The Episcopalians are determined to be firstest with the mostest and this challenging service, which includes music by Haydn and Holst, will delight people who like their worship services high and their worship music classical. The cathedral has good acoustics and a surprisingly intimate feel for its size. Of course, if your idea of Christmas Eve is simpler, like holding hands and singing "Silent Night," you'd best skip this in favor of something more basic. On-street parking to the west isn't too bad, and the CTA Red Line Chicago Avenue station is handy.
Liturgy: 9
User-friendliness: 8
Transportation: 7
Total: 24
Chicago Temple (First United Methodist Church), 77 West Washington, (312)236-4548.
Christmas Eve Worship, 6:30 and 10:30pm. The Temple is the quintessential big downtown church presided over by a liberal pastor, Rev. Eugene Winkler. Typical of a Methodist church, sanctuary design and liturgy are middle-of-the-road and visitors can expect a warm welcome. This Christmas Eve the Temple plans identical services of special choral music, Christmas carols for the congregation, candlelight, and holy communion at 6:30 and l0:30pm. The church is within handy walking distance from all the downtown El lines and subsidized parking is nearby.
Liturgy: 7
User-friendliness: 8
Transportation: 8
Total: 23
Fourth Presbyterian Church, 126 East Chestnut, (312)787-4570.
Christmas Eve Worship, 8 and 11pm. Fourth Pres is another big huge downtown church. Its members come from all over town and-given its Mag Mile location-its visitors come from all over the world. The sanctuary is magnificent if a bit austere and l-o-n-g; come early lest you be forced to sit in the back where it's easy to feel left out. In true Presbyterian style, the nearly identical Christmas Eve services will be oriented more toward Word than toward Sacrament; there will be a sermon by celebrated senior minister John Buchanan, the congregation will sing the good old Christmas carols-but no communion. Transportation is quite good for downtown-subsidized parking in the garage behind Bloomingdale's, and plenty of buses traverse North Michigan Avenue. The CTA Red Line is walkable.
Liturgy: 7
User-friendliness: 7
Transportation: 8
Total: 22
All Saints Episcopal Church, 4550 North Hermitage, (773)561-0111.
Caroling and Candelight Festival Holy Eucharist, 10:30pm. This late nineteenth-century Ravenswood church is such a charming example of "carpenter gothic" that it's downright cute. Inside, Rev. Bonnie Perry shies away from a fixed altar and conducts worship in the center of the sanctuary, in a kind of "theater in the round" setting, creating an atmosphere that is dignified but not overly somber, liberal but not experimental. As the title suggests, the 10:30 service will begin with caroling and culminate with communion. (This is the service for grown-ups; the kids' needs are addressed earlier in the day.) There is ample parking a block west by the Metra tracks, the Wilson bus runs by the building and the Ravenwsood El stops at Montrose.
Liturgy: 7
User-friendliness: 7
Transportation: 8
Total: 22
Church of the Three Crosses, 333 West Wisconsin, (312)951-7916.
Christmas Eve Worship and Eucharist, 5:30pm. This little church, tucked into an Old Town enclave north of North Avenue, is a find for those who value delicacy over size. The sanctuary is modernistic, but not glaringly so, and the music fits the intimate worship space-piano and strings instead of an organ. The centerpiece of Christmas Eve's service will be carols sung by candlelight "and not just Silent Night," promises Pastor Norma Lee Barnhart. Visitors here receive a warm welcome. The church is not on a bus line but parking isn't bad considering that it's Old Town.
Liturgy: 7
User-friendliness: 8
Transportation: 6
Total: 21
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 1218 West Addison Street, (773)248-1233.
Christmas Eve Worship and Eucharist, 10:30pm. Holy Trinity is a lovingly kept church two blocks west of Wrigley Field that has been looking after its congregants' needs for 125 years. The church is small enough to have a neighborhood feel yet big enough to encourage excellence in music and the worship arts. The Lutheran liturgy-much of which is sung standing up-is made user-friendly through a printed order of worship, but is even more elaborate than Episcopal or Catholic liturgy and thus may be too flowery for the uninitiated. For Christmas Eve, the church will adhere to this model with perhaps some additional Christmas carols thrown in. Street parking can be tight but the church has off-street parking at a nearby funeral home and public transit abounds.
Liturgy: 6
User-friendliness: 8
Transportation: 7
Total: 21
Lake Street Church of Evanston, 607 Lake Street, Evanston, (847)864-2181.
Christmas Eve Worship (no Eucharist), 5pm. With its tall steeple, beautiful curving wood pews and arched ceiling, Lake Street Church says "church" even to folks who haven't been in one for years. This Christmas Eve, "We intentionally set the worship service at 5pm because we wanted to start the holiday on a positive, celebrative note," says Pastor Robert Thompson. Adding to the festive mood, the Lakeside Brass Quintet will play and the choir will sing. If you can't park on the street, the Holiday Inn has paid parking, and the church is conveniently situated near the Dempster and Davis stations of the Evanston El.
Liturgy: 7
User-friendliness: 7
Transportation: 7
Total: 21
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church, 925 West Diversey, (773)528-6462.
Christmas Eve Worship, 7 and 11pm. While the official United Methodist Church hierarchy punishes ministers who bless same-sex unions, congregations like Holy Covenant with sizeable gay and lesbian populations flourish anyway. The congregation that fills this modest wood-frame church on Diversey just east of the Ravenswood El really knows how to make visitors feel at home, regardless of sexuality. Neither Christmas Eve service will have a Eucharist, "to keep them more open to the community," according to Rev. Doug Robinson-Johnson. Holy Covenant sure isn't Grandpa's church, but the congregation wouldn't have it any other way. Parking is dreadful; take the No. 76 bus or the Ravenswood El.
Liturgy: 6
User-friendliness: 9
Transportation: 5
Total: 20
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