Friend in America goes to church (5)
I believe the answer is:
china
'friend' is the definition.
(cockney rhyming slang, mate is china plate)
'in america goes to church' is the wordplay.
'america' becomes 'a' (common abbreviation - e.g. in organisation names).
'goes to' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'church' becomes 'ch' (common abbreviation).
'in'+'a'='ina'
'ina' after 'ch' is 'CHINA'.
(Other definitions for china that I've seen before include "Modern name for old Cathay" , "Land" , "It used to be called Cathay" , "Dishes, vases or ornaments" , "communist state" .)