"I believe Jesus rides a Harley, there's no doubt about it."
For members of the Northeast Texas Biker's Church, riding a motorcycle can be a religious experience.
"We're not territorial. We're not looking to move in on anybody's space," says one biker in the short documentary Biker Church. "You'll find that in our congregation we have quite an array of people... They found some hope here and that's what's most important.''
According to the Christian Motorcyclists Association, there are currently over 20 biker churches in the United States and over 1,000 chapters of Christian motorcyclists not associated with a specific church. Their mission: "To raise up and equip a team of Christian motorcyclists worldwide that will be highly visible and credible as they reach out on the highways and byways in compassion without compromise."
Biker Church is a short film from Meet Me Here, an award-winning collection of documentaries created by Lucid, Inc. The filmmakers shared a few comments on the making of the documentary:
Biker Church came about while we were in East Texas working on our feature documentary Uncertain. They were tucked away in a small town nearby and we really wanted to go find out more.
At first we were a little unsure—even church-going bikers could be a rough crowd, right? But they were instantly welcoming and very warm. And they were keen to have their story told.
Motorcycles might be the first entry point for some people, but it seems the larger bond is to community. Quite a few people we met had somewhat troubled pasts. Our sense is that finding such a welcoming, non-judgmental group must be very appealing. And being part of the church seemed to give them a greater purpose when out on the open road. They do equally welcome non-riders.
You can learn more about Lucid, Inc. and see the rest of the Meet Me Here films on their website: http://lucidinc.com/meetmehere
