Editor’s note: This is the second in a four-part series on religion at UW-Eau Claire

Cappuccino. Rock music. Videos. At church?!

Contemporary services at churches around the nation have embraced non-traditional service aspects such as praise music, causal dress and audio-visual components.

A 2001 study conducted by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research in Connecticut found that about half of all U.S congregations are growing and thriving, particularly those that hold contemporary services and perform some sort of social outreach.

Chad Ott, a pastor at Sonridge church in Altoona, said contemporary services, such as those held at Sonridge, may be inviting because they are more informal.

“When new people come, they (might not) feel as much anxiety about … how things are supposed to go,” he said. “There’s not a secret culture they have to learn first.”

Ott said services at Sonridge embody many of the same characteristics of other congregations’ contemporary services. For example, the congregation sings praise songs and Christian rock songs.

Freshman Abi Zimmer said she thinks the music at her church, Valleybrook, is “awesome.”

The service incorporates a keyboard and drums, she said.

In addition to enjoying the music, Zimmer said she enjoys the laid-back tone.

“It’s very casual,” she said. “The pastor wears khakis and a plaid shirt.”

Zimmer said she likes that congregation members have the option of choosing the way in which they participate.

“(People) can sit, stand or raise their hands … however best they can worship,” she said.

Zimmer said student turnout at Valleybrook is noticeable.

“It’s very much a college church and a family church,” she said.

Those who worship at University Lutheran Church, located in the Ecumenical Center on campus, will find what Pastor Don Wisner calls a more “familiar” style of service.

The service may be more familiar, but a portion of the music used usually is newer, Wisner said. Each week, the service usually contains at least one song from a newer hymnal and one song from an older hymnal.

The types of instruments used in the service often are dependent on student musicians who attend, Wisner said.

Ott said if one chooses to attend a church service, it is his or her individual choice whether a more traditional service or a contemporary service works best with his or her needs.

However, he said, both types of services promote the same message.

“It’s still the same age-old truth about Jesus.”