EXPLORING A MODERN FAITH
Today, the landscape of Austin is still made
up of traditional religious buildings, but
also includes many inter-congregational
groups not attached to any one house of
worship, as well as resources, which
encourage worshipers to ask questions
about themselves and their faith. One of
these resources is exploregod.com. The
site encourages anyone to ask hard-hitting
questions about the Christian faith, and
answers them in artistic videos featuring “a
bunch of really smart people to help us put
together some legit answers.” Explore God
is a campaign made up of over 300
Austin churches, designed to increase
spiritual awareness and prompt curiosity
and non-threatening discussion of the
Christian faith. It is the largest, most unified
effort in history to raise spiritual awareness
in Greater Austin.
Taking Catholic worship in a modern
direction, is Our Lady’s Maronite Church.
While the church is celebrating 30 years in
the Austin community, the parish is as
diverse as Austin is. Our Lady’s Father Don
Sawyer says “[Our Lady’s Maronite
Church] is different than any other church,
and Austin is fertile ground for it.” The parish
is made up of people from all over Austin,
including worshipers from 27 different
countries — some of whom call Father Don
“coach” for his encouraging and supporting
role in their relationships with God. In Our
Lady of Maronite, Austinites from any
background can feel close to God.
Christians looking for a worship
experience as unique as Austin, will find
the Evangelist Vox Veniae is an excellent
choice. Vox Veniae started out as a church
for Chinese-Americans in 2006 but quickly
became multiracial. The church meets in
what used to be an after-hours B.Y.O.B.
club, and is also used as a yoga studio, art
gallery, and Wifi-equipped work space.
Services are lead by Rev. Gideon Tsang, a
Toronto native with tattoos, who preaches
from a stool instead of a pulpit. Non-
traditional services, which include a six-
piece band and always begin with
gourmet coffee-brewing, fit right in with
Austin’s eclectic reputation.
Austin is also home to places for
progressive Jews to worship as well, like
the Congregation Kol Halev. Kol Halev,
meaning “voice of the heart,” emphasizes
inclusive, meaningful, and joyful rituals,
accessible to both Hebrew and English
speakers. The Congregation also features
services like a unique B’nai Mitzvah
program that focuses on individual study
and varied Shabbat services. It is located
in Southpark Meadows in south Austin.
Another great resource for Jewish
Austinites is the Jewish Community
Association of Austin. While not actually
a worship group, the JCAA is a
community of Jewish people brought
together by the common goal of helping
others. The JCAA is not attached to any
one synagogue and offers various arts
and fitness classes, family and youth
services, and community events for
professional and social groups. “In
