Abyssinian Baptist Church

This is one of the oldest Black churches in the United States of America; 200+ years old to be exact.
Many people are not fond of the long lines. What they fail to understand is that it’s a world famous tourist attraction. You will see very long lines of tourists from various continents (not just countries).
You can’t come dress like you are going to a party, club, and/​or the park and many tourist don’t understand that. You must remember that it IS a place of worship and not a site-​seeing location.
The various choirs CAN sang!!!
You CAN NOT take pictures and record videos. It’s a REAL church!!! ;-)
I love the feel of the church community here because there are so many role models for young people. Many of the members are professionals who volunteer their time to mentor the young children and are very active in the surrounding community overall.
If you aren’t able to visit, you can still attend worship service via LIVE STREAM on the official web site; you can even download the church bulletin for the service you are viewing.
Please take a tour of the church web site to become more acquainted with Abyssinian Baptist Church.

i’m not sure i can categorize this as a church. it’s more like a circus freak show. is this place for real? i mean really, i half expect snookie or one of the kardashians coming out of the doors by the characters stalking the doors. lines down the block after service time is supposedly past (i’m sorry, how long are they going to continue waiting to go in? it’s a hundred degrees out!) oh, and i am rejected because i’m wearing «spandex.» (i was wearing tights and a nice shirt). but girls wearing backless dresses and short dresses were allowed in because they brought a sweater. please. it’s fine if they say it nicely but you’d think i came in stripper gear with pasties and stilettos the way the guy and girl (old, but not a lady) sized me up. the attitude dripping at the doors of this church, can we say «do not make my Father’s house a house of trade»? i mean really. it’s about respect and communion but this is just really, a freak show. go check it out one day. i’m sure it’s gorgeous inside. but that just leaves me with such distaste that i’d rather not. negative stars.

The most uplifting worship I have ever experienced. I still can’t believe I was actually a part of it! Got inspired by a powerful Mother’s Day sermon and the magnificent choir & soloist had me fighting back tears. Every part of the service was wonderful. I attended today with a friend who grew up in the Baptist church. We arrived wearing suits and ties and came to worship, not to gawk or be entertained and so were able to go in (usually there are no visitor’s on Mother’s Day). Meanwhile, European tourists in shorts and t-​shirts with cameras dangling from their necks were turned away with a firm «no visitors today.» And rightly so. This is a church that’s home to a devoted congregation who come to worship God. They are not there to perform or satisfy cultural curiosity. Abyssinian Baptist is not a tourist attraction. If you expect to drop in and see a Gospel floor show put on by colorful characters doing backflips down the aisles you are sadly mistaken. Should anyone from the church come off as curt or less than welcoming to a visitor it’s probably because they’re tired of their religion being disrespected as someone else’s entertainment.

My wife and I went to go experience Jesus in NYC; was turned away because all visitor passes were given away at 8:30. I guess this a new problem for churches; too many visitors. If you want to go make sure you get in get your «vip» passes early. Jesus is the bouncer at this church. Sorry Bonhoeffer. Maybe next time.

I was really looking forward to going here, but what a pity that they are not that much of a visitor friendly community.
I went the first time with my brother, and after finally making it to the entrance after an hour long line, the guy at the door was kind enough to tell us that there were no visitors allowed. We tried explaining that my brother was only in the city for the weekend and that we’d come a long way to visit the church, the guy was having none of it. Another man however, seeing how disappointed we were at this, invited us to come back next week.
This time I took my girlfriend, but same story. Even though I called just to make sure that they were allowing visitors to go in for that day, when we got there, after making the same line, we got told «no visitors allowed». This guy was even more rude than the other. He even told my girlfriend that she was not even going to be allowed in dressed «like that». I guess long black pants with a long shirt covered in a black sweater is not good enough to enter the house of God.
Its incredibly ironic that a church felt even more elitist than a nightclub, where only the privileged vips are allowed an entrance and the bouncer not only coldly rejects, but disdainfully disses those whom he does not consider fit to enter
Again, what a pity that the image of what seems to be such a happy, graceful, and tight knit community, is marred by such an unkind attitude that the Jesus they follow would be incredibly disappointed of.

The place is amazing! Is one of the best experiences I ever had. But there is a few things that you need to consider if you go as a «walk-​in» tourist.
1) The service starts at 11 on Sunday, but you have to be there earlier because a very long line forms. We got there around 9:00 and barely enter the church. The service last about 2 and half hours and you must stay for the whole time. Leaving in the middle of the service is considered rude. They mentioned that a new service schedule is made for Wednesday evening, you can check the website.
2) They have a very strict dress code and make no exceptions, so: no flip flops, no shorts, no shirts, no back packs, no tight pants, no athletic clothes. We saw a lot of people being pull out of the line because they were not dressed properly.
3) As they say, this is not a gospel concert, this is a sacred ceremony so, no cameras, no cell phones and no recording… makes sense.
4) Be polite and respectful, the people attending church regularly don t enjoy see people look at them as entertainment. The «people in charge of the line» can be really annoying and even rude in their attempt of enforce the rules, but once you re inside everybody is really nice. So as a retribution don t be cheap with the donation to the church.
My advice is that if you don t like these rules, you better stay home and watch the service streaming on the web (yes! live broadcast from the church!!!)
I would definitely come back whenever I m in NY again. Hope you enjoy it!

Despite the long long line you have to make to get in (and it was freezing outside) the experienced is beautiful, it’s not what I expected (up and dancing and praising the lord) but more of a holy experience, the singers are top of the notch, so it’s more of like sit down and enjoy a holy concert.

Beautiful church from the outside, but wasn’t able to get in. If you want to visit the church, and are not a member its recommended to come to the Wed evening service, as Sunday service has a line around the block, and church members get priority.

While visiting NY, I went to Abyssinian in Harlem to get The Word. I was stunned to find out that the church is a tourist attraction with a line of would-​be worshippers LITERALLY extending down the street and around the corner. I managed to get in (wink) and get a seat and made friends with the gentleman sitting next to me who wasn’t a tourist, but he was originally from the same city I lived in! Small world. I don’t think Reverend Butts was in top form (not that I’ve seen him before, but his reputation precedes him), but I still got what I went for. Didn’t know a soul, but felt right at home. One usher in particular was very nice to me.

Considering I’m not a member of the church, nor have I ever been, nor am I even Christian, I don’t know if I’m exactly qualified to review the church, but I enjoy rebelling so what the hell (guess that phrase isn’t really appropriate for this review). I do have a few qualifications that make me eligible:
–I live on the same street
–My good friend has just become an usher here
–Calvin Butts once spoke at my school
So here goes…
–Reverend Butts is an incredible speaker
–Harlem is not as scary as you think (if I were a white woman who jogs I’d be more afraid to walk by Central park after dark)
–It’s 200 years old, which probably makes it a landmark
–They own so much real estate in Harlem that if you live there you might be paying them rent
So hey come on over to my neck of the woods and get your pray on. Oh and I’m not even gonna open up the floor for discussion on their tourism practices (oops just did)
…bet you’re just a little curious…