Sometimes the Rev. Andrew Stephens warns prospective members that The Village Church is a little different. He says, " The Village Church PC(USA) is an African-centered Christian witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. We seek to provide an authentic expression of worship and community that is firmly rooted in African cultural forms. We affirm that Christianity is a world religion with deep African roots and is not the property of any one nation but meant to be embraced, inculturated and expressed in forms that are authentic to the cultural context of a given worshiping community. This claim is supported by what we read In The Acts of the:

Apostles 17:5: "Now there were staying in Jerusalem God fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language."

The gospel that is proclaimed through the life and ministry of The Village Church is one of love that acknowledges that love and justice are inextricably linked. Consequently, the struggle for social justice plays a central role." ''We understand our love of God to be intimately involved with action, with change,'' Stephens said one recent Sunday. The God worshipped here, he said, is a God of justice.

On Sunday you'll find African drumming and dancing. Members often use the Swahili word ''ashe'' (pronounced ''ah-shay'') meaning ''it is so'' in addition to the more familiar ''amen.'' When it's time for the offering, members dance to the front of the church to drop their money in a basket. If they have nothing to give, they just dance at their seats. This Presbyterian congregation is probably the most Afrocentric church in Nashville. But there is more to Village Church than Sunday worship.

''Without that concern for justice, the love of Christ does not exist. You cannot love people who you are willing to watch constantly subjected to the forces of evil and you do nothing but worship and sing praises to God within the walls of your church. If you're looking for that, you're in the wrong church. We pour outward into the streets.''

This is a church that not only merges African cultural practices and Christian beliefs but also is working to change the city. The congregation is involved with community organizations such as Tying Nashville Together and Rediscover East. The church started in the James A. Cayce Homes, Nashville's largest public housing development, in 1998 with no members. Each year since moving to Nashville, Rev. Stephens has spent a week sleeping under a tent in the middle of the Cayce homes, talking to people and praying for their concerns. Today the congregation has about 200 members, with a regular attendance of more than 100, consisting of poor public-housing residents as well as college students, doctors and lawyers.

A growing trend

Churches such as The Village are cropping up throughout the Presbyterian denomination, said the Rev. Lonnie Oliver, pastor of New Life Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, one of the denomination's first congregations to have an African-centered focus. Oliver encourages new churches starting out to take that approach, he said, because it provides a cultural connection that other congregations don't offer. ''It has enhanced our growth and development,'' he said of his own church. Rev. Stephens leadership extends beyond Nashville to many national forums.