King Henry VIII

‘We are, by the sufferance of God, King of England; and the Kings of England in times past never had any superior but God’ – Henry VIII

 

I went to visit the local Episcopal Church today.  I originally wasn’t going to visit this church because in truth we are probably not going to be Episcopalian.  I knew they were very small and I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up or endure harassing phone calls and pressure to come back.  But again good sense won out.  I like a lot of what the Episcopal Church stands for and I like their emphasis on ritual so I decided that if we are truly going to do an exhaustive search for a church this one had to be on the list.

This was the second time I have visited an Episcopal Church.  I went to a large, progressive Episcopal Church in a big city about fifteen years ago.  (Gawwwd! I’m old!)  I went with my friend, M, who had just left the church of Christ and joined the Episcopal Church.  I don’t really remember much about that visit other than the church was big and I was disappointed I couldn’t take communion.

This whole church visiting thing is getting easier.  I didn’t even flinch when I went in the doors today.  Services started at 9:30 and being my typical self I got there right at 9:30.  I went into the sanctuary and found exactly 3 people, one of whom was wearing diapers.  Oh crap, what have I gotten myself into?!

A gentleman quickly explained that the other people were drinking coffee and chatting and that service would start in a few minutes.  This is the second church where the actual start time was later than the times posted on the sign outside.  But I am ok with a flexible start time.  Flexible times are always a good thing with small children and this was a point of contention in our old church.  The old people who did nothing, liked to get started right on the dot or even about 5 minutes early.  They were very grumpy if the people who were actually working and trying to serve the world in Christ’s name didn’t hop to their schedule.

I sat down on the back pew and had a look around.  This church was teeny meeny tiny.  They had a pipe organ which took up one whole side of the sanctuary.  The altar of course was in the front, flanked by two newish stained glass windows and various crosses.  The ceiling was wood and the entire back wall was covered with a pictorial quilt of Christ as the good Shepherd.    It was a simple, beautiful church with a rural, hippy kind of vibe.

As the rest of the congregation started filtering into the sanctuary, a lady sat down next to me and introduced herself.   She offered to help me through the service and I gratefully took her up on that offer.

Before long the congregation got settled and the female priest and a teenage altar boy processed in.  Then we were off and running.  Up, down, up, down, this book, that book, now the program, now a different book.  Holy cow! That was the most confusing service I have ever been to.  I couldn’t understand it even with the nice lady’s help.  There were three different books that we were switching back and forth between and then using the call and response printed in the bulletin.  I was so confused; I think it would take me months even to understand the worship service.  Forget the “getting to know you” nerves; I would be too busy just trying to keep up.

Then the priest began the sermon and I had a second to catch my breath and look around.  Not only is the church teeny meeny tiny, but the congregation was too.  I counted 27 people in attendance.  Four people were youngish adults; one teenager, four tweens, and a baby.  The rest were retirement age.  I also noticed that there were only 7 men in attendance.  None of whom played any part in the service.  Except for the teenage boy who carried the cross in the procession, this service was run entirely by women.  It scares me a little that if you remove the prohibition against women participating in public worship the men slowly disappear, leaving women to truly do everything.  But then again maybe (like me), these women have been prohibited from taking part in public worship most of their lives and now (also like me) relish the chance.  Who knows?

Since the congregation is so small, the priest is only part-time.  In her regular life she is a mathematics professor at a huge well respected university in the next town over.  It is interesting to me that she comes from such a rational and logical background and chooses to be a priest in her down time.  She preached a good sermon about Peter and his misconceptions about Christ; how Christ did not come to solve all our problems but came to call us to help each other and solve each other’s problems.

Then after more confusing singing and reading it was time for communion.  I was surprised to find that this church offers open communion.  This time, I was excited to be able to take communion.  After the priest prepared the bread and wine, each member of the congregation went forward and knelt around the altar rail and the priest gave each of us a communion wafer similar to the one I had received in the Catholic Church.  I said a short prayer asking God to help me on this church search, asking Him to guide me to the best church for my family and to bless the people of this particular church.  I quickly swallowed the wafer.   Then the lay person came around with the cup.  I took a tentative sip because I wasn’t sure if it was real wine or grape juice.  It was the real deal and about the time I realized it the lay person tipped the cup up sharply and almost drowned me.  I swear I got half the contents as I gulped for air in surprise.  I was weaving a little as I went back to my seat.

They had a pre-written prayer for the sick and the leaders of the community, which I found a little impersonal.  Then a lady raised her hand and asked a question.  She asked why, in one of the numerous call and responses, had the female priest inserted “fathers and mothers” instead of just “fathers?”  Interesting question.  The priest said she knew the man who had written this particular prayer (I thought these prayers were hundreds of years old!?) and he told her that he had tried to add “mothers” right before it went to press and it was too late.  Because of that information she felt justified in changing it when she led it.  She also felt that adding “mothers” honored the Bible matriarchs as well as the patriarchs.  No one seemed irritated or upset that she had changed the wording, just curious.  Interesting discussion but it came at a strange time (in the middle of worship) but this seemed like a casual group, nothing much ruffled their feathers.

The service ended with an invitation to come for healing after the service which of course I at least had to stay and watch.  It was a beautiful thing, one which I wish more churches would do.  The people who were seeking healing knelt around the altar rail as we had done for communion.  The priest then went to each one and asked what they would like to heal.  Some asked for prayers for themselves, some for prayers for family members.  The priest then drew the sign of the cross on their foreheads with oil, put both her hands on their shoulders and said a prayer out loud for them.  Nothing scary just a beautiful moment of human connection that is sorely lacking in our world today.

After today can I be Episcopalian?  Probably not.  After church, another woman introduced herself and told me that this church was small enough to “be a family.”  For a brief moment, I fantasied about that, and then reality kicked in.  This is the town where our children go to school, the town where we want to go to church and this is the only Episcopal Church in that town.  It has 27 active members, most of them elderly.  We just came from a church like that. It wears you out.  It is like your family—— like the crazy drama filled family you turn off the lights and hide from when they knock on your door unexpectedly.  I have enough of that kind of family, thank you very much.  This church wins the prize for the best communion experience, though.  It felt very meaningful to walk up to the altar, kneel, and have an interaction with your spiritual leader as opposed to just passing a plate to the random person sitting next to you.    The call and response left me a little cold.  I freely admit I didn’t understand its’ purpose or history but it felt very rote and a little like, “we have to do this so let’s get it over with as quickly as possible.”  There was no attention and careful consideration of Pastor E’s prayer and praise time.  There was no time in the service for quiet contemplation, which I have come to appreciate.  Another problem with such a small church is that the minister is always part time.  As I have said before, church work becomes less of a priority to everyone because it is not the minister’s main priority.

A good church experience but probably not the place for me. . .

When I got home, my husband and I had an interesting discussion on human nature and religion.  Why do some religions like to claim that they are ancient?  Like the Baptists claiming a direct line back to John the Baptist (Not really) or the church of Christ claiming it was created on the day of Pentecost (Nope) Even the Wiccans like to claim kinship with the witches who were burned in Salem in the 1600’s (A man named Gerald Gardner started the Wiccan religion in the early 1900’s.)  Is your religion more valid or true because it is old?

What about how it started?  Does that matter?  Take the Episcopal Church; which was started in the 1500’s because Henry VIII didn’t like the Pope sticking his papal nose into the King of England’s sex life.  Does that matter now?  Does all the good that Episcopal Church has done in the last 500 odd years blot out its dubious beginnings?

What is the “original” church?  Many people would say that the Catholic Church is the original church.  It is historical fact that almost all mainstream churches in America today can trace their roots back to the Catholic Church.  Is your church better or more valid if it is closer to the Catholic Church?

For instance, this is the history of the church of Christ——– 1) The Catholic Church came first, 2) John Calvin and the Presbyterian Church broke away from the Catholic Church; 3) the church of Christ broke away from the Presbyterian Church.

Now here is the history of the Apostolic Church———-1) The Catholic Church came first, 2) Episcopal Church broke away from the Catholic Church, 3) the Methodist Church broke away from the Episcopal Church and 4) the Apostolic Church broke away from the Methodist Church.  Is the church of Christ a more “true” church than Apostolic Church because it is one generation closer to the Catholic Church?  Are the Episcopal or the Presbyterian churches better than the cofC because they are one generation closer to the Catholic Church?   Or does being farther away make you a better more “reformed” church.

Sigh. . .   It makes my heard hurt.  This is another big check in the Disciples of Christ’s positive column.  The DoC (so far) mirrors my beliefs.  Culturally, I don’t have to leave the church of my fathers (and mothers) and deal with all this crazy reasoning.  Maybe God really does love variety and diversity and He has given us poor blind human creatures many choices so we really can find something that will support us and help us through this tangled mess called life.  Mostly, I don’t believe there is any one true church.  Church is mainly culturally.   Everything is too mixed, mingled and convoluted.  God will call people, not churches.  I am just trying to be one of them.

~ by guideguardanddirectus on February 19, 2013.