Church

It’s Sunday morning – church morning – right?

Well for the last year or so I have been doing various things on Sunday mornings. I’m not attending the church here that I did for some 15 years or so. My choice. As a devoted handbell ringer I have become ‘ecumenical’ the past couple of years by ringing with two different groups at two other local churches. I have found that I was away from MY church twice a month anyway ringing elsewhere, and part of me liked the variety in experiencing other services. All are Protestant so there are lots of similarities for sure. But I have come to a point in my life where I am really questioning where I want to be – and why. I still am as I sit here this Sunday morning.

I just finished a book called ’52 Churches” by Peter DeHaan. Peter and his wife took a full year to go visit a different church in their area each Sunday. Not because they were looking for the ‘perfect’ church, but instead to do a bit of an experiment and to see what works and what doesn’t within each church building. They visited large and small, big stone buildings, and storefronts, Baptist, Mennonite, Methodist, Roman Catholic, some non-denominational, some conservative, some open, some great at greeting visitors, and some not good at it all. Mr. DeHaan kept notes each week and compiled it to make this book. Obviously it’s very subjective. It is through his eyes (and his wife’s who attended with him). All the churches were local in a rural/suburban part of Michigan.

Some of my ‘take aways’ from the book were this:

How a newcomer is welcomed is really important! Visitors to a church get an instant vibe when they walk through the doors. Are they greeted? Are they asked their names? Do members offer to help them? Are they invited to sit with members, to coffee time?

For Mr. DeHaan worship music was not a deal breaker. I admit that I am different. And, if anything he likes the more modern setup with a ‘praise band’ on stage. One thing I found interesting in his research is just how many churches he visited had a band made up of guitars, a keyboard, a drum set – and vocalists, all standing on a stage up front. That is still ‘unusual’ for me. Yes, I have experienced worship with a praise band from time to time but I find that it doesn’t feel like church to me. I love going to a church where I can still experience an organ (because it’s the only place to still hear it), and to hear choir anthems, and hymns sung. Of course I like handbells too! The non-denominational churches (or the ones that sometimes hide their affiliation – yes, some do) are big into ‘performers’ on stage. Lots of repetition with the music. And, I noticed from Mr. DeHaan , and my experiences, that the band tends to play for a good 20 minutes or so to start the service. (Too long for me – especially when it is repetitious.) The music is followed by a few announcements, and a sermon or message. Sometimes scripture is read, sometimes not. Sometimes prayer is said, sometimes not. The band plays again & the vocalists sing on stage again – and it’s over.

I was raised in what Mr. DeHaan calls the ‘high church’ because it has a liturgy (and an order of worship including scripture readings, a creed, the Lord’s Prayer) and follows a church year calendar (Lent, Easter, Epiphany, Pentecost, etc.) Growing up I thought all churches were like mine. There was a reverence in walking into the sanctuary. There was a cross as a focal point.

Okay, here’s one thing I never experienced though: The “Call to the altar” which seems to happen in many churches, especially Baptist ones. Every Sunday! What?

I get the trend to go more casual now a days and to use new technology. I’m all for that. We can certainly spend time together worshiping God that way. It is bringing people in and ‘something is certainly better than nothing.’ Right? Different options are good for people to choose from. Here’s my concern: Most young families are not even walking into Protestant churches to give them a try. As Mr. DeHaan wrote these churches are slowly dying. They are for old people, and that’s okay. But one day those people will be gone and the church buildings will have to close.

I experienced that in MY church where I was for many years. I joined when we moved here, and the congregation had a spirit about it, and there was joy, and yes, music! I watched as the pews became less filled. I watched as Sunday school classes for children went away because we had no children, and then no VBS. I watched as we could not find a good music leader, and then how money concerns tightened the belt. It’s sad to sit there in the pews and see it happening. I missed the days of before. I missed the people I knew, because worship experiences are about the people coming together.

I also sat there and wondered how our politics have hurt mainline Protestant churches, because it has. The church I have always attended is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Yes, evangelical is in it’s name. BUT, it’s NOT that Evangelical. Politics and conservative churches have become attached to the name and therefore has put a new meaning to the word. I am not that. In fact, I am opposite in my beliefs when it comes to a loving, and accepting God, one that offers hope for everyone equally. I am a proud liberal thinker. I am a humble Christian. I saw January 6th and everything that led up to it as a nightmare for our country, and it really hurt how people connected God to the violence and insurrection on that day. I think God must have been hurting big time over it too.

Our country was founded on a separation of church and state for a good reason. Our country was founded on the right for everyone to worship as they want as long as they don’t physically hurt another person. But we are going through a period of some strong willed people in political power wanting to choose how religion beliefs can or cannot be allowed here – to the point of pulling at our democracy.

I would sit in a pew in my church each Sunday and listen to scripture and the message about God’s love, and hear what God wants from us (love your neighbor as yourself), and His gift of forgiveness, with repentance, and salvation. But it seemed to stay there. Maybe I had too much time to think. Maybe aging gives me the time. Or, maybe I have become too much of a deep thinker. Not smart mind you – for that I am not.

So, what to do? My personal faith is strong. My life has always revolved around church. But as I said above, I am questioning what to do.

Next month handbells will start up again and I will be participating in worship at least twice a month. The other two Sundays I may do my own little church visiting experiment. I don’t know. I miss devoting my time to worship and I want to continue to hear the Word, to sing the hymns, and to take communion (that’s a whole ‘ other discussion on how churches vary).

I sense my choice of worship is a dying option. Will my daughters and their kids get the opportunity to experience the way their Mimi grew up in church? Perhaps not. And that’s okay. Maybe a little sad. But as the DeHann book said there are 52 ways – and really thousands more ways – to seek God, to worship together, to continue to learn about how we are God’s people on earth.