pray and break bread. new york city

Vision  |  Our Story  |  How do we “pbb”? |  Reflections |  Photos

Our Story

In response to a class, “Mission to the City” we took in the spring of 2006, a group of City Seminary students decided that we needed to get to know our city better, neighborhood by neighborhood.  In order to do this, we realized we had to intentionally carve out time and space to go out, look and listen, and pray literally on the streets of New York.  We wanted to acknowledge and appreciate what God was already doing, and also be more informed about the needs and struggles of our neighbors.  

During the fall of 2006, we met to organize and put our vision into action. Using “The Steven Steps” model for Scripture reading (Lumko Institute, South Africa), we spent time reflecting on Psalm 48 in light of God’s heart for the city.  It became apparent we needed to do much more than simply walk a neighborhood and pray.  We had to ground our prayers both in the Word and in the context of the community.  We invited fellow students to host walks in neighborhoods they knew well and share local prayer concerns.  The prayer walks would culminate in a time of reflection and fellowship over a meal. Thus “pray and break bread” was born.

We represent diverse ethnicities and congregations who share in the conviction that God loves this city and we have the opportunity to be a part of His shalom for the city. We hope to partner with local churches and other like-minded individuals who have a heart to pray for New York City, one step and one street at a time.  Please join us.

pbb.nyc core group 2006-07
James Kim (Korean Presbyterian Church of Southern New York)
Dominic Lewis (New Song Community Church)
Maria Liu Wong (Redeemer Presbyterian Church)
Bola Oyesanya (Redeemed Christian Church of God, Brooklyn)
Philip Santos (New Life Fellowship)
Latonja Serling (First Corinthian Baptist Church)
Tony Shaw (Stanwich Congregational Church)
Oghogho West-Erhaber (Redeemed Christian Church of God, Brooklyn)
Eric Yuen (Oversea Chinese Mission)

pbb.nyc core group  and hosts 2007-08
Biju George (Church of God Queens)
Vivian Grubb (True Holy Church)
Sung Lee (Reformed Church of Newtown)
Dominic Lewis (New Song Community Church)
Jonathan Roque (Damascus Christian Church of Hunts Point)
Maria Liu Wong (Redeemer Presbyterian Church)
Bola Oyesanya (Redeemed Christian Church of God, Brooklyn)
Gloria Paoli (Redeemer Presbyterian Church)
Latonja Serling (First Corinthian Baptist Church)
Tony Wong (Redeemer Presbyterian Church)