| Sunny Side Up Sept. 17, 2003 �2003, Kathleen Gibson Observations of a church insider I was raised by a church elder, and I married a clergyman. I've spent a lot of time inside the structure of the organized Christian church, enough to fall in love with it. But we have our weaknesses. Here are a few, offered with love, shared in exasperation. I've noticed that� �God has rebellious kids too, and some occupy front pews. �commitment to God is judged by commitment to church programs. �if they gossip to me, they'll gossip about me. �people with servant hearts are treated like servants. �we'd rather quote a rule than exercise grace. �long-term commitment is extinct. �creative ideas are usually voted down. �our faith is seldom larger than our account balance. �we think God takes summers off. �brilliance in our midst is usually scorned. �sin in our midst is mostly ignored. �nothing forms tighter alliances than a desire to oust the leader. �visitors are welcomed for three Sundays, then ignored. �ignorance speaks loudest and longest. �we'd rather pray for our sick bodies than our withered spirits. �our poor, single, and mentally challenged members rarely receive invitations to lunch. �limping soldiers are sometimes used for target practice. �the faithful few are becoming the faithful fewer. �one gossiper will topple a church. �there are certain scriptures we won't discuss. �the ones who need the preaching think it's for the next guy. �the hardest task in the church is passing the baton. �things were always better yesterday. �we long for joy but are suspicious of those who have it. �teaching it doesn't mean you're living it. �many people carrying Bibles can't find their way around in them. �the healers are often in need of healing. �most of us don't know why, but explain it anyway. �a spoonful of sermon is easier to dole out than swallow. �true praise for others' skills is as rare as frost in summer. �Bible study and prayer meetings have the poorest attendance. �the talkers and complainers outnumber the workers ten to one. �degrees, qualifications, and I.Q. are completely unrelated to wisdom. �the person who instigates change is frequently booted out. �gossip and prayer share a party line. �many run well-fewer finish well. �we'd rather battle over music and paint colors than truth. �when we stopped asking questions, we ran out of answers. �God skips church too, sometimes. So why attend church? Hypocrites go there! I know; I've been one. But somewhere on the road to grace hypocrites may become saints, and you'll find those there too. Mostly, churches are full of human beings who fall down and get up. And finding Divine mercy, learn to walk leaning. As Jean Vanier, founder of L'Arche, communities for the mentally challenged, said, "God dwells in broken reality." Christ said, "I will build my Church, and Hell won't be strong enough to stand against it." Then he founded the universal community for the spiritually challenged. I joined. And, despite its flaws, have found no company as healing as that of fellow travelers on the road to grace. You can respond to this column at [email protected] |
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