Jesus Club is a new opportunity for fellowship amongst Manhattan High School students. Having officially held their first meeting as the club on Jan. 16, members hope to invite many others to their community, spread the gospel and provide another possibility to connect with students of the same faith.
Meetings are open to all, taking place every Friday before school in Kent Hildenbrand’s social studies classroom (A-114) and in a first lunch group. Members have recently started Tuesday meetings, having met on Jan. 27 in Brad Ficke’s English classroom (C-111).
“Jesus Club is the umbrella for other Jesus Clubs too,” senior Ciera Williamson said. “We have our main club, but there’s other people who want to start their own Jesus Clubs.”
The club was unofficially meeting in September of last year as an interest group. Students usually gather and get food such as doughnuts or Chick-Fil-A meals during each meeting, provided by their youth pastor through Rock Hills Church. Students break the ice with a get-to-know-you activity, sitting down to video messages and then come together to do Bible studies.
A lunch club group also emerged, bringing snacks and their Bibles for another opportunity to connect.
Not much has changed since the group started, but that is soon to change. Members strive towards extending the reach of their faith and providing support to others.
“Our motivation is to make the name of Jesus known,” sophomore Mackenzie Knight said. “To have people be in a community and learn what it looks like to have a relationship with the Lord and what he offers.”
Attendance varies between each meet, with 20 to 30 students regularly participating. Faculty members have also come to join in support of the group.
“If you want to be there, that’s awesome,” Williamson said. “If you don’t, that’s fine. It’s here for anyone who wants to be there.”
Jesus Club plans to have a meeting this coming Friday morning as well as a meeting during first lunch.
“Our motivation was to make the name of Jesus known and to have people in the community learn what it looks like to have a relationship with the Lord and what he offers,” Knight said.
