Church plans hog roast outreach for muslim neighbours

ROGERS PARK – Larger cities often have small communities where ethnic and religious groups have settled to make it their own. San Francisco’s Chinatown and the neighborhood known as Little Italy in New York City are famous examples.

These communities are often close-knit with cultural and language barriers that can be hard to “break”. Pastor Les Clew is trying to do just that in the heavily Muslim Chicago suburb of Rogers Park.

Pastor Clew and His Church – Our Lady of Perpetual Ignorance – will be hosting a weekly hog roast with the intent of drawing in his Islamic neighbors and tearing down some of the barriers.

The church is investing a good deal of money in the meals, renting the community center next to the Mosque, and other promotions.

Several large banners now hang along Western & Devon with the following invitation to the community:

تعال وأكل الخنزير
Come and eat the pigs
Midday on Fridays

Pastor Clew spoke to the Cee briefly about the reasons behind the churches outreach efforts:

“We just wanted to show the Muslim community that we are good neighbors and friends. What better way to do that than over a delicious bun of pulled pork with BBQ sauce? The smell alone is inviting. We just want to show how much we love and respect them as people and communicate the love of Jesus in a tangible way.”

Pastor Clew is hoping that this outreach will be the beginning of Muslims asking questions about Jesus and their church. 

We at the Cee certainly feel they’ll be successful at that. 

Reporter: Furious Christian