Great place for a coffee and quiet time. Unique environment with options for meetings and one on…read moreone sessions.

I sort of accidentally visited the Binford Campus of Northview Christian Church today for their…read more11am service. I'd originally gone to another church that I've been visiting recently, but in wheeling across the street after this weekend's snow storm found myself stuck and tossing myself out of the wheelchair. Rather than go in soaked, I opted to return home to change clothing. However, I was really in the mood for a church service and after doing some quick checks realized that Northview had an 11am service. So, off I went. Northview Christian Church is likely what would be called a "mega-church," a multi-campus non-denominational church with seven "campuses" including Binford, Carmel, Fishers, Anderson, Greater Lafayette, Kokomo, and Westfield. They also have a couple of "community" locations inside senior living centers along with a "God Behind Bars" ministry. The Binford campus is relatively new, in fact currently undergoing fairly significant construction, and located in what used to be a long vacant medical complex on Binford Boulevard. So, if you look on their website and see "campus pastor" that means the pastor is essentially the pastor of that particular campus/location. As seems to be the new trend in evangelical churches, there's a huge parking lot with volunteers outside to guide you in. If you're visiting, you're supposed to flash your lights so they know to park you toward the front in identified visitor parking. While I was visiting, I knew I was seeking accessible parking and opted to go my own way. They have several accessible parking spots in their front row - they were nicely cleared for the most part post-storm, though perhaps a bit more clearing between space and sidewalk would be appropriate. Still, I was impressed. Their front door is automatic, a nice accessibility feature, and I saw two other adults in wheelchairs. They have a defined Special Needs ministry that goes through high school (if I recall correctly, it started at elementary age). I knew that the main campus, which I believe is the one in Carmel, had Special Needs Ministry (that I believe includes adults) and I was pleased to see that taking place here for the children/youth. The kids area seems very well developed. The temporary auditorium holds about 220, though the new auditorium will be much larger. On the day after a major snowstorm in Indy, my guess is the 11am service was about 1/3 full but it could have been a bit more. Worship is contemporary with guitar, electric guitar, drums, and two female vocalists - the worship leader, whose name I never caught, was a dynamic young woman with a dynamite voice. I wasn't familiar with any of the songs used and the overall vibe seemed fairly low energy today within the congregation. The campus pastor, Garrett Edwards at Binford, leads a fairly brief intro before all eyes are turned on video screens where the Northview senior pastor, Steve Poe, delivers a message that is broadcast to every campus. It's an interesting approach - it creates a consistency of message, which I like, but as a speaker myself I will admit the lack of a personal presence makes it feel like something's missing. However, it seems to work for the good majority of folks present. I was greeted at the door - the actual welcome person had stepped away, but I was impressed that someone else stepped in when it was obvious I was new. She handed me some information and showed me the auditorium. I sat alone for the most part, greeted by one person, Steve, who sat one row up. While I probably gave off a loner vibe, I will admit the lack of human contact surprised me a bit. Overall, my visit today helped me understand why Northview has grown so immensely. The vibe is positive and the energy contagious. Yet, if I'm being honest I just didn't feel comfortable. While that's not totally strange on a first visit, it was a bit disappointing. I love the openness to disability, obviously an important issue to me, and I enjoyed the worship music even if it was unfamiliar to me.They definitely make a strong effort to connect people to smaller groups, important in a big church, but it's still important to build those initial connections on Sunday and, as much as I hate to say it, I just didn't feel particularly welcome. I didn't feel "unwelcome," but that sense of hospitality didn't seem to flow. Was I part of that? Probably. I was nervous about visiting a mega-church and that probably showed in my naturally introverted personality. Again, it feels weird to "rate" a church. However, Northview Church, not to be confused with Northview Church of the Brethren 2-3 miles away, was a place where I understood the appeal but it didn't seem like the right faith community for me.

I'm here for Catholic Youth Organization sports. Tonight it's wrestling. Very nice gym facility in…read morethe school building. It accommodates the hundred or so participants and spectators this evening. I loved their reminder on the gym bulletin board to "be the nice kid."

I had a quiet evening on tap and decided it would be a good night to visit a new church in the…read moreIndianapolis area. While I've been on my journey for a while and have been visiting one church semi-regularly, I remain intrigued by Catholicism and decided to visit a new parish. St. Pius is located on Indy's Northeastside near 71st & Keystone in a mostly residential area. The parish includes an elementary school within its community and is set well enough off the road that you really kind of have to look for it a bit before you realize it's there. Part of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, St. Pius is pastored by Father James Farrell with Father David Bunyar as associate pastor. With over 1600 families belonging to the parish, St. Pius has grown quite a bit in its 60 years of existence. St. Pius can be accessed via two different entrances off of East 71st Street, though if you need the accessible parking in the center lot you're best pulling in off of what I believe is actually Sarto Drive. The parking lot is a tad confusing and gets quite busy after a Mass is held, plus the parking lot is one way where the accessible parking is and you can't really access it easily from what looked like the main entrance. As seems to be true of most Catholic parishes, attempts have been made to make the church accessible including accessible parking with curb cuts (at least 3), at least one automatic door closest to the accessible parking, and audio devices to help those with hearing impairments. I could not tell if the altar area was accessible - it wasn't from the front, but it may have been from the back. This is pretty common in Catholic churches, though I have seen some that haven't made this area accessible. The sanctuary reminded me of St. Matthew's - somewhat contemporary with wooden pews and the expected Catholic features. A multi-person worship band led mostly traditional hymns off to the side led a female singer who also played guitar. I realized a little too late that one entrance had the bulletins, while the entrance I used did not. As someone who is inexperienced with Catholicism, this meant I spent most of the Mass rather confused. About halfway through, however, they did start announcing the hymns. There was a guest speaker from a Grenada-based mission - I seem to have a knack for visiting Catholic churches when they have guest speakers. He was quite personable, though the message itself didn't give me a strong feel for the parish. As is usual for Catholic churches, Communion is done toward the end of the Mass and is not open to those outside the Catholic faith. I appreciated that one of the ushers asked if I wanted Communion brought to me, though I obviously respectfully declined. There's a "passing of the peace" type moment during the service, which practically guarantees that as a stranger your presence will at least be acknowledged. I have some friends who appreciate you can go into a Catholic church and just blend in and be left alone, while I've had others bothered by the fact that you could easily attend week after week without ever really encountering people. As a person in a wheelchair, I tend to at least get acknowledged. I would say that St. Pius was on the low end of actual hospitality, though. This was somewhat surprising as I saw multiple people with disabilities, mostly intellectual/developmental, and it would seem the congregation is comfortable with disability. I also noted that they have at least some ministry outreach to Indy's large Burmese population. Overall, this was a middle-of-the-road experience for me. I didn't really feel welcome, though I also didn't really feel ignored or rejected. The congregation is definitely mostly older and my sense was they probably skewed conservative. My sense was that if I appeared regularly that I would likely eventually be greeted. I did really like a sense of welcome for the kids - I'm always a bit bothered when fidgety kids are sent outside. I think it's important for kids to be in the service and I felt like a couple of fidgety toddlers were embraced. As evidenced by the fact that a 60-year-old congregation didn't even have a Yelp page, St. Pius's older population and more traditional service would likely not resonate as deeply with those seeking a more contemporary experience but I found it somewhat soothing. The auditorium had plenty of space in the back for wheelchairs, though I didn't see any other identified places and I would note that during the standing portions of the service it was difficult to see and fully participate. While I doubt I'll return for a second experience, for those seeking a more traditional Catholic experience with mostly, but not exclusively, older congregants St. Pius offers a wonderful option.

Been going to CPCC for a good while now... The church is focused on its mission of connecting…read morepeople to Jesus and each other. The highlights I like most are: 1. Phenomenal worship / music experience. Sets the tone up front. 2. Meat-and-potatoes sermons. I'm challenged and encouraged each Sunday to give life my best. 3. Kids/young adults ministry. They've bet large on this area, with hiring 2 full-time people to develop a Worldview curriculum that has grown the kids/young adult involvement in the church and community. Big church that is composed of plenty of small groups / serving opportunities to make us feel a part of it all. I'd give it 6 stars if I could.

I came here for an event and did not know what to expect. This is a borderline mega church. The…read morestaff and congregation there was so friendly and welcoming. I felt right at home. They have a kids play land and the auditorium is very nice with comfortable seating. It has balcony seating and I do not think there was a bad seat in the house. Not that it should make a difference in church selection, but the auditorium has an amazing sound system, video screens on bot sides and in the center and awesome light show. The church has more than enough parking available. The lot is huge and they do offer shuttles with golf carts if you have to park too far away. The conjuration is a melting pot and consists of people of all ages, races and religions. It was definitely a melting pot. They offer in person denominational worship (3 on Sunday and 1 on Saturday), and for those that do not feel comfortable in a group setting or simply just cant make it. The church claims to have over 4,000 people attending weekend services. The church touts a 600 seat chapel and a 40,000 SF state of the art children's center known as "Kid City." They alway have something going on. I really like their Academy which runs Monday through Friday from 6:30 AM to 6 PM, for children ages 2 months to Pre-K. I wish that this church was not such a far drive for me. I recommend this place for those looking for a very nice church home. I really enjoyed my visit here and felt at home.

This church is a friendly place for singles and families. There are three types of church services;…read moretraditional, contemporary and chapel. The children, youth and adult Sunday School classes are high quality. There are small groups for all ages as well as youth groups for grades 5&6 and 7&8th and 9-12th.

My grandson plays the youth sports at the church. These events are always well managed. The coaches…read moreare trained well and are patient and kind with young ones learning new skills. The fields are well maintained. Parking is tight on Saturday during soccer season. The prices are reasonable for the length of season and quality of programs.

Beautiful church. Chapel is quiet, incense included. Plenty of parking. Lots of meeting spaces for…read morea quiet place to read and pray.

Beautiful church in such a pretty area! Parking was a breeze. I definitely want to check out the…read morelovely grotto area they have. I really enjoyed the service and felt right at home.

One purpose: to glorify God by making disciples of all nations. Imperfect people living for and…read moreloving God and the community. Bible saturated. At Harvest, you will experience and be part of vertical worship to the living God, and biblical, expository teaching. Children's and student ministry is fun and discipleship focused. Authentic. No cover art needed. Great place to be reminded that YOU ARE LOVED!

We love Harvest North Indy and have been coming for 8+ years. Senior Pastor Brian White and all the…read moreother teaching Pastors are authentic and preach straight from the Bible verse by verse. No pieced together topical teaching here! I could go on , but what I'm really excited about in this moment is that I just found out all the communion wafers are now gluten free!! Not something many realize, but the typical communion wafers are not gluten free and this is really awkward for people like me who have Celiac and cannot take communion. Thank you, Harvest staff for taking away the awkwardness! :)

I love this church. It has a great sense of community once you get involved. And the school is…read moregreat if you have kids. It's one of the more conservative Catholic churches in the area. There are lots of masses throughout the week, so you should be able to find a time that suits your schedule. The interior is in need of upkeep, but they just started renovations, so that should change soon.

Beautiful old church built between 1875 and 1895, had a major fire in 2001 has been rebuilt, and is…read morein the process of rebuilding the church and doing work on it to this day. Very ornamental church beautiful Stainglass windows a beautiful Alter area. Old wooden pews down the aisle. Built in a traditional cross shape. A wonderful place downtown and a great place for a celebration like Christmas.

I had only been to this church one other time many many years ago for a wedding. I only remembered…read moreit by its beauty, but thought due to the fire that there's no way it could be restored. Much to my surprise, I had a wedding there recently and the interior is still unbelievably beautiful. It really should be a must see on itineraries for those who like to visit churches and those who like to attend mass while out of town. The church is nestled in an area downtown that has seen few updates, but don't let that deter you from visiting.