catapult magazine

I find myself in a place of pondering leaving my family’s denominational heritage…you know, the kind where like Paul, one can boast about the richness and credentials and history of belonging to it? Missionaries, pastors, teachers, heritage, heritage, heritage.
This pondering comes from a major life change, spiritual growth, questioning, reading, study, prayer, and working within a largely Reformed community of folks who have become my ‘family’ and whose doctrinal framework I have become drawn to strongly.
What a curious place to find oneself…and I am kind of walking all around this, looking, sniffing it out, and thinking, while all the while sensing rather surely that this ‘feels right’. Sort of a ‘coming home’ for me…a fit…one I have unknowingly been seeking for quite some time now. This is something I have never considered doing before…it has kind of just ‘happened’.
Any thoughts? Questions? Like experiences?

When I met my husband, he was a lapsed Catholic. As he got to know me and my faith (a faith which happens to worship the Reformed way), he was drawn to Reformed theology and Protestantism in general. It resonated with his reasoning and intellect, which I think it a very, very good thing when it comes to Christianity and churches. Emotion has its highs and lows, whereas a church or denomination that hits you in the brain has more staying power when times get tough.

I read something a couple of months ago in the Atlantic Monthly that made me stop and go “hmmm.” The article was about the spiritual revival that seems to have taken place in North America and elsewhere, and the man who wrote the article (I forget his name) said that religions and denominations that try really hard to be “modern” and “relevant” tend to lose their identity or fade away, while more radical, mystical forms of faith tend to thrive. Do you think that’s true?

Sub-question—do you think the cino brand of Christianity, the engaging-culture-through-a-biblical-perspective brand of Christianity, is doomed to suffer identity crises, or worse, fada away?

Sub-sub-question—why is it that the Roman Catholic Church suffers scandal after scandal, attack after attack on their doctrine, but inspires such fierce loyalty? And why is it that “hip”, “relevant”, or “seeker friendly” churches often don’t inspire a lot of loyalty?

Disclaimer: My post contains a lot of generalizations. To anyone who I may have offended, I am truly sorry.

This fall I studied the Muslim Brotherhood, a then-radical Islamic group. Part of their popularity stemed from their ability to meet the physical and emotional needs of its target audience. They provided food, etc. to those who needed it. In exchange they were also able to preach their version of Islam. Radical religion also provides answers to common questions. It is the fact that they are willing to provide answers, no matter how twisted they are that leads to their popularity.

If our “brand” of Christianity is to remain strong and not fade out then we must continue to think, strive, and do all that we can for what we believe in. We are called to serve where we are, whether directly in ministry or to minister through our occupations. It is this example that we set that will be our staying point. Perhaps it would be wise to remember Gamaliel’s words in Acts 5: “… For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourself fighting against God.” (38b-39)
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There are many more examples of recent post-collegers longing for the heritage of liturgical services and old hymns. I just heard a short essay on NPR from a younger woman who was complaining about newer “praise songs” with lyrics that repeat the phrase “Jesus is your name” four times as if the savior of the world needs to be reminded of that. She prefers the traditional style of worship and the heritage of an “old” church. I grew to love our denomination’s hymnal late in life and I appreciate the theology, but I have been angered and frustrated more than once by our denominational magazine. So, I don’t know what part of the denomination to be loyal to.

if i remember correctly, Alice, you come from a Lutheran background, which is interesting because my husband and i have recently taken your same journey in reverse. before moving, we participated in RCA and CRC faith communities. now, we are attending a Lutheran church.

there is a CRC church here in town, but it is very small and conservative and we were not seeking to feel as though we had to “save” a dying congregation for the sake of heritage. for us, it was not so much a matter of finding a church in a specific denomination.

we considered moving to a new area to be an opportunity to explore other faith traditions. we have been drawn for some time to the Mennonite denomination and visited a Mennonite church, but it didn’t feel right.

then, after being invited several times to attend a local ELCA church, we visited and immediately felt that sense of righness you describe—a complete and overwhelming feeling of “coming home” that had nothing to do with the denomination and everything to do with shared interests and with meeting a faith community that was headed in the same direction we were at about the same pace.

i admit we started attending the contemporary service because it seemed in a way like we, as twenty-somethings, were supposed to. but after a lifetime of alternately experiencing vaguely traditional worship and sometimes-too-sweet contemporary worship, i am really excited about being part of a new movement in our Lutheran church to reclaim traditional worship. we are talking about reaching back for somewhat forgotten traditions of not only the Lutheran church, but of Catholicism and Judaism as well.

i think what excites me so much about the possibilities for traditional worship is that contemporary worship is very intuitive—we come, we sing, we lift our hands and there seems to be some expectation of a magic feeling of worship that comes to us, rather than us going to it. but at this point in my life, i’m looking for an experience of God that is more mystical than intuitive, worship that infuses the rituals of tradition with a sense of ceremoniously welcoming God into the space, however frightening or joyful that might be.

anyway, those are just some ramblings on my experience in not-so-officially switching denominations. i wish you many blessings, Alice, as you turn a welcome and unexpected corner in your spiritual journey.

I’m glad you and Rob have found a new church home. However, how do you feel about the ELCA’s stance on abortion and other social issues?

I don’t mean this as an attack on your choice of a church home, and I don’t know how you feel about those things anyway … but it raises questions in my mind about denominations and whether people really have a clue as to what their church believes in an “official” way. I recently worked for an ELCA church and found the ELCA as an organization to be a sell-out to society and was even more shocked at their pro-choice stance. The RCA, too, has a hazy stance on abortion that I find shocking. My parents belong to an RCA church (I go to a CRC), but they figure that within their small, Dutch community, their values mesh with the values of the people with whom they worship … and the larger organizational picture doesn’t affect them.

Hi Kirstin,
Thanks for your response and remembering. It has been so long since I’ve posted or even had time to read *cino. I’ve enjoyed returning.
“shared interests…faith community headed in the same direction and at about the same pace”…yes.
I’ll be visiting a couple of churches and will see what God has in store for me….keeping my eyes and heart in tune and excitedly anticipating this God movement in my life. It seems so natural to follow this path and I am thankful.
I too am liturgical…deeply meaningful and rich to me…God at work, His Word, ancient words…enjoy this journey with you church!
Thank you for your encouraging words…I’ll keep you posted.