Wesley TIDINGS talks to Jonathan Huang, Deputy Director of Administry, on the recent Wesley Hall renovations, and the new Wesley Hall look.
Tell us how the need for a Wesley Hall re-make (renovations) arose. What is/was the motivation behind it? Why the need for a re-make? (people wonder why there is a need as it looks quite ‘new’ still, and seems to fulfil the need the church has for it). Was feedback from congregants and church leadership a factor to consider?
John Wesley once said, “The World is My Parish”. He was convinced that the Gospel needed to reach those who needed it most, especially those outside the church. Today, telling the story of the Gospel to as many as possible is still very much integral to the mission of Wesley MC. The pandemic showed us that the online world was one important way of achieving this goal, and that, in particular, video could help us share the Good News of Jesus to the world.
Through the pandemic, our worship services and other ministry activities online not only allowed Wesleyans in Singapore and even other countries to join in worship and study the word together, it also allowed many outside our community to hear the Gospel.
We received testimonies of people who have never been to Wesley watch our online services and who ended up joining our church and small groups! Online worship service views continue to number in the thousands on a weekly basis. We also saw participation in online courses and services over the last few years in numbers far greater than those in pre-COVID days, with up to 800 participants for mid-week teachings. We were also able to allow those who could not leave their homes to continue be part of the Wesley family.
To that end, this Wesley Hall renovation seeks to give our church the tools to engage the digital world. We gathered the current and future needs of the ministries that meet and run programmes in Wesley Hall, such as Prayer & Praise, Youth Ministry, and Mandarin Ministry, among others. The main upgrades were to the AV system to allow us to faithfully carry out our vibrant onsite worship and church life, as well as to equip us to engage people online effectively. This was a capability that Wesley previously did not have in full measure, especially in the areas of livestream worship and online talks and seminars.
We believe that we have the greatest story in the world to tell and should make every effort to do so. With the right tools, we can provide greater access for believers and pre-believers alike, and reach even more people for Jesus. We remain convinced that Wesley MC should continue to grasp the opportunity to spread the Gospel and disciple believers in the online space, and continue to worship together as a vibrant community onsite.
To paraphrase John Wesley, “The Digital World is Our Parish”.
Can you let readers have an inkling of what the Wesley Hall has as history? (when was the place like before the current set-up? What renovations did it undergo before? etc.)
Wesley Hall has had a storied history and is unique as worship halls go. It was originally a multi-purpose hall used for church activities, which among other uses, included badminton games!
It was also where our Prayer & Praise services began in 1985, when our church experienced a charismatic renewal in the 1970s and 1980s. The space allowed our church to remain united despite having two distinct styles of worship. Over the years, it has continued to support our contemporary worship services and countless other church events and activities.
It has undergone various additions over the years, contributing to its very unique shape and features. It most recently underwent a renovation almost 10 years ago to expand seating capacity as well as to upgrade the AV system during the Church Upgrading Project in the 2010s.
This was when the current wood wall panels were installed. These panels have been retained for the new hall as they still serve their acoustic treatment purposes and were a substantial investment from the previous round of renovations. This ensures that we still continue to have (in the words of a former Pastor-in-Charge), one of the “holey-est” worship halls in Singapore!
Tell us about how the church went about to carry out this re-make/process of renovation. How long did the job take? What was/is the thinking about the new venue? – design-wise, purpose-wise, facilities-wise, etc. What feedback was taken on board? (if any?)
The need for renovation of Wesley Hall became apparent during the pandemic when our teams worked hard to piece together a system for livestreaming our worship services in a very short space of time. This worked well as an interim solution and allowed us to maintain our essential ministries during the pandemic. However, it required substantial setup efforts and workarounds from the valiant teams of staff and volunteers who gave of their best with what we had given the circumstances.
Their good work also allowed us time to begin a thorough process to properly think through and design updates to the Hall, which began in earnest mid-2021. This included gathering wish-lists and requirements from the main users such as P&P, MM, YM in order to support current and future onsite and online worship services and activities in order to better engage those attending in-person as well as viewers in the digital world.
The last services in Wesley Hall took place on 24 April 2022, after which preparations were made for the project to commence. The consultants and contractors worked closely together with our Property and AV staff throughout the construction process. With God’s hand over the project, such as smoothing over fears of delays due to shipping issues and with no safety incidents, Wesley MC officially took over the site again on 24 November 2022 for the launch of the first P&P services on 11 December 2022.
Tell us what features the new venue will have. Facilities, seating (any increase?), setting for music, etc. How different will the new venue be from the old one/hall, from all aspects.
Once of the first things that Wesleyans will notice as we step into the new hall is the re-configured layout with the focus of the two main seating areas both on the terrace and the floor area towards the right corner of Wesley Hall where our new modern cross is centred. These follow more natural lines of sight and enable a greater number of seats to experience more direct focus and engagement. The seating for both the floor and the terrace are also completely brand new.
There are also upgraded audio, video and lighting systems installed, which allow us to create and convey a compelling story of the Gospel through our unique Wesley MC perspective. These are a step up from our previous systems, and our volunteer teams and staff are hard at work training ourselves to make full use of these systems.
While these changes and equipment may be novel for Wesleyans at the onset, the goal is to employ these tools to focus our attention towards Jesus Christ.
Describe for us the experience congregants can expect worshipping at the new venue. What will congregants’ worship experience be like?
What we ultimately hope is that everyone who steps into our church and those whom we reach online will experience God for themselves, and that our church will have the tools we need to share the timeless truth of the Gospel to this ever changing world that we live in.
Pray with us as we enter this new phase of church life and ministry, as we seek to reach the world for Jesus Christ!
Read also: Wesley Celebrates! Homecoming for Prayer & Praise
