When I was a kid, we went to College Church of the Nazarene in Olathe, Kansas. The pastor, Paul Cunningham, was a good speaker in a Garrison Keillor kind of way - pleasant, amusing, and entertaining, if a bit somnambulant. I think he gave the congregation a sense of well-being, orating in inoffensive metaphor and ministerial hyperbole. The services went like clockwork. Folks gathered in the foyer, shaking hands and chatting amicably before taking their seats. The program started exactly on time (and exactly five minutes prior to the arrival of the young Metz family), and a schedule was rigidly observed. In Sunday School we memorized John 3:16 and listened to bible stories. Jesus was a blue-eyed white guy, and God was sort of a cross between father time and Jor-El - not an actual person or being, but a nice idea anyway. No one at College Church spoke in tongues or fainted in the aisles. Or stood up or sat down when they weren't supposed to. Or said, "Hallelujiah" or "Amen" out of turn. Coughing was frowned upon. Breathing was okay as long as it wasn't too loud. At least that's how I remember it.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
God - Part Two
When I was a kid, we went to College Church of the Nazarene in Olathe, Kansas. The pastor, Paul Cunningham, was a good speaker in a Garrison Keillor kind of way - pleasant, amusing, and entertaining, if a bit somnambulant. I think he gave the congregation a sense of well-being, orating in inoffensive metaphor and ministerial hyperbole. The services went like clockwork. Folks gathered in the foyer, shaking hands and chatting amicably before taking their seats. The program started exactly on time (and exactly five minutes prior to the arrival of the young Metz family), and a schedule was rigidly observed. In Sunday School we memorized John 3:16 and listened to bible stories. Jesus was a blue-eyed white guy, and God was sort of a cross between father time and Jor-El - not an actual person or being, but a nice idea anyway. No one at College Church spoke in tongues or fainted in the aisles. Or stood up or sat down when they weren't supposed to. Or said, "Hallelujiah" or "Amen" out of turn. Coughing was frowned upon. Breathing was okay as long as it wasn't too loud. At least that's how I remember it.
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God has a way of showing up, in a place and at a time that you'll least expect and find amazingly personal. If you didn't meet Him at College Church, that's OK. One day you'll open a door and He'll be there! Because He loves you.
ReplyDeleteOMG....what is GOD? I know that is an ENTIRELY different blog. The point being (from the agnostic point of view)..."god" how ever you want to think about her/he/it is in all of us. It is difficult to me to believe in an entity that guides us. We all F*ck up. I do everything on my own. and I F*ck up too. I liked the founding fathters' idea...the eternal clockmaker. he/she/it set the universe in motion and stepped back to see what would happen. I have been a pagan or agnostic for most of my life. Church does nothing for me. I hadn't been in a church in probably 10 years before my aunt made me an usher for her wedding. I didn't spontaneously combust...which was a good thing. But she is a mess :) Anyway...I really enjoy the blog. talk to you soon.
ReplyDeleteShawn