Watch Night: Pastor says, ‘We will be praising the Lord’

The centuries-old service is being held across The T&D Region with a meaning that has not changed, particularly for African-Americans who will be ushering in 2024 with praise and thanksgiving.

“One of the reasons we still have it is to be thankful that the Lord has brought us, kept us and sustained us for an entire year and down through the years in spite of the bad, but also to pray for God’s blessing for the coming year,” said the Rev. Kenneth Carter, pastor of St. Stephen United Methodist Church in Orangeburg.

Services at St. Stephen UMC will be held at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, in conjunction with the church’s regular service.

Carter said testimonials will be part of the service.

“People will have an opportunity to express their thanks, whether it be in singing, a poem or just a testimony. They decide that for themselves to let other people know that the Lord has been good to them,” he said.

“It is a good time to take out for the Lord in order to be thankful and prayerful because we’re living in perilous times,” the pastor said.

Watch Night was first celebrated by slaves, with the services often lasting until the dawn of the brand-new year. It was the culmination of a weeklong gathering that began on Christmas Eve when some planters allowed their slaves to celebrate with neighboring family and friends.

The special week would come to an end with a New Year’s Eve vigil that began early in the evening in a church or praise house and featured songs, prayers and a “watchman.”

In the midst of prayers and songs, the watchman would be asked what time it was, and he would tell the congregation the time.

The services are also a time of reflection and testimonials, which were started in connection with President Abraham Lincoln’s issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863.

Slaves would go to church on New Year’s Eve and pray in the new year with an expectation that the proclamation would be honored by the government.

“They were going to stay up all night because they wanted to make certain that they woke up as free men and women. It’s important for us to remember what our ancestors have gone through. The struggle is not over yet,” said the Rev. Timothy Johnson, pastor of Emanuel AME Church in Cope.

“The struggle must continue, and we should use New Year’s Eve not as a day of just shooting off fireworks, but we should use that day as a day of remembering where God has brought us and push forward to even higher heights,” Johnson said.

Services at Emanuel AME Church will be held at 10 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, followed by a light breakfast at the conclusion of the service.

“It’ll be over with when it’s over with because we will be praising the Lord. We’ll have testimony, services and preaching, and we will be down on our knees in the dark at midnight witnessing in the coming of a new year. The main thing is focusing on the Lord and recommitting ourselves to do more in 2024 than we did in 2023,” Johnson said.

The Rev. Clyde D. Holliday, pastor of Turkey Branch Baptist Church in Neeses, said the importance of Watch Night lies in its history and ties to the present.

“As African-Americans, we were historically watching and waiting in anticipation of the emancipation, but now we also have Watch Night service in waiting for the second advent of Jesus the Christ. We also enter into a new year,” Holliday said, noting that he has hope for the future.

“Without hope, we will perish. So we walk by faith, not by sight. We have hope that better days are coming. Turkey Branch has been through death, sickness and fire, but we’re still marching on to Zion,” Holliday said.

Services at Turkey Branch Baptist Church start at 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 31.

The Rev. Jimmy Washington, pastor of Canaan UMC in Cope, said Watch Night services are a tradition that should be upheld as individuals wait for the new year to come in.

“I think it’s important in the understanding of their salvation and trusting in God more. We’re hoping for a new change, but that salvation through Jesus Christ is the most important thing,” Washington said.

The pastor continued, “I’m praying for more attendance because of the message that will be delivered. I’m hoping that people will understand the meaning of Watch Night and the meaning of Christ, what they really stand for and their significance.”

Washington said the title of his service will be “One for the Road.”

Services at Canaan UMC will be held at 10 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, in conjunction with the church’s regular service.