St. Mark's Episcopal Church offers kid-oriented service

Date: 4/25/2011

EAST LONGMEADOW — St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 1 Porter Road, has put a new spin on traditional services.

Each Saturday at 4 p.m., Rev. J. Peter Swarr hosts a children's service specifically designed with their needs in mind.

"Kids are not meant to sit in pews and be quiet. This lets them dance and ask questions," Swarr said, noting that a professional musician is in attendance to help entertain the children.

"The service is always made to be understandable for children [age] 5 or older," he explained of the Bible stories told at each service.

"We call it 'breaking God's rules' as opposed to 'disobeying Commandments,'" Swarr added as an example.

The service was developed by a "core group of the church's mothers" who took into account the wants and needs of children, he noted.

"It's a 'mom-approved' service. It's fun, it's laid back, it's understandable and it's short, 30 to 40 minutes," Swarr said. "It's a Saturday evening service that kids want to come back to. It's fun; it's not what you think church is. It's a blast!"

For more information about the children's service, contact the church at 525-6341 or visit http://stmarksma.org/services.htm.