31.   It has a gospel choir that rocks and the congregation is racially diverse and the minister is a woman.

32.   Leaders of both the Southern Baptists and the Assemblies of God emphasize that their congregations are autonomous and free to embrace or reject the rulings of their national bodies.

33.   Meanwhile, many congregations are meeting in private homes and other facilities.

34.   Most new congregations are either evangelical or non-Christian.

35.   On appeal, lawyers for the Jewish plaintiffs maintained that most Orthodox congregations were too poor to afford lots that size.

36.   One of the most revered Baptist traditions has been the principle that local congregations are autonomous and govern their own business without interference from a church hierarchy.

37.   Preachers and government officials said financially strapped congregations are reluctant to incur debt to rebuild their churches.

38.   Rep. Tomie T. Green, another Jackson Democrat, points out that many Mississippi congregations are in rural areas.

39.   Six years ago the Plaza congregation was on a path filled with bumps and ruts.

40.   So small is the congregation, it gathers only twice a month, the first and third Sundays.