The Pittsburgh Gospel Tabernacle, a non-denominational Christian Pentecostal church, brought its message of welcome to a park in Whitehall yesterday.

The Brentwood church's worship and praise team performed and sang in Prospect Park as people sat on benches and milled around a table stacked with food and children kicked a soccer ball on the baseball field.

A man at the picnic called the neighborhood a "microcosm of the United Nations," with dozens of languages and nationalities represented. The same could be said of the Tabernacle's congregation, led by Pastor Isaac Jere. He said he felt called to establish the church in 2005, not long after he first arrived in Pittsburgh from his native Zambia.

Pastor Jere, who is 45, said he thinks of himself as a minister, and yesterday's event was another way to reach out to the community to fulfill its spiritual needs but also other needs, such as food and clothing.

Many of the members of the congregation are immigrants and refugees from Thailand, Cambodia, Rwanda, Burundi and some countries in Eastern Europe, Pastor Jere said. He sees part of his ministry as helping them to adjust to their new country.

"Everyone, when they come into this country, is expecting a lot," he said. "Everyone says that America is a land of opportunity."

Tables in the park were covered yesterday with clothes, especially warm weather gear, that Pastor Jere's wife, Charity, who is also a minister, said many will need as the weather turns colder.

In the park yesterday, the Jeres moved easily among the attendees, speaking to the people who had come to know them well through the church services and their involvement in the community.

John and Nicole Phiri of Whitehall, who were married by Pastor Jere, were at the event with their son. They said they had been members of the congregation for two years.

"They just make you feel like you are family," Mrs. Phiri said. "They welcome you with open arms. It doesn't matter what color you are or who you are."

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