It wasn’t a typical service.
Adults and children lined up at the entrance of the Belle Vue Methodist Church on Nov. 4 with fresh produce, pastries and crafts. Then they walked down the aisle and placed the items on the altar.
Later, after the preacher prayed over the items, they were carried out and sold in the church compound.
The harvest service celebration is a familiar site in November at Methodist, Episcopal and other churches around the territory.
Harvest services have long been a part of Virgin Islands culture, according to Luce Hodge-Smith, director of the Department of Culture.
“It started with the Methodist and Anglican churches but always involved the whole community,” Ms. Hodge-Smith said. “It’s been a tradition passed on for quite some time and continues to be a traditional practice.”
See the Nov. 29, 2012 edition for full coverage.
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