Sunday, May 22, 2011

gathering round the table

It's been quite some time since I blogged about things spiritual.

This morning I went to the 10 year birthday celebration of mainly music running at a church in town. I used to go to this church as a 'young person'...went there for 10 years give or take. I have visited on occasion since, but not been to a service there since 1990.

In the ten years I attended, I got pretty involved - youth group member, then leader. in the band. leading bible study. discipling and being discipled. part of model Christian couple (what a joke but not a topic for this blog!). And yet I never really felt 'part of things'. Can't say why, maybe because I wasn't a 2nd or 3rd generation attendee...maybe because in all that time I personally felt a bit of a phony? I certainly walked the walk and talked the talk. But in the generation above me I often felt I was a bit invisible, and even in my peer group, I felt a bit on the outer - a bit different, certainly way uncooler than them.

So, going back, it was not without a little trepidation. I walked in and felt at home. So far so good. Lots of people greeted me warmly. There were many familiar faces, and lots of new ones.

I watched the children stand on the stage and sing. I sang along with the worship band. I listened to the sermon - even could agree with most of what was said.

But.

Yes, there had to be a but...a big butt:)
It was time for communion/Lords Supper/Breaking of bread/eucharist.

An announcement was made: This ceremony is for Christians. It's for people who love Jesus. It's for people who go to this church. If you don't, or aren't, that's fine, just pass it to the next person. Similarly, when the offering basket comes around, if you are not from this church, then pass it on, you don't have to put any money in.

Excuse me???? Show me where in the Bible it says that 'Christians' are the only ones to take bread and wine. Show me where it says you can only do this if you regularly attend the church you happen to be sitting in. Tell me where it says, that if you regularly attend church, you should be giving them money.

I remember now why I left.

3 comments:

JoGillespie said...

Ah yes...
I have the problem here. I'm Anglican in a Catholic country. So when I go to Mass (ever more rarely these days), I don't feel I can take communion. With the priest we had before, however, I could go and get a blessing. No longer. I feel totally excluded. To top it off, I often have students ask me "How can you say "Thank God" if you are not a Christian?". EXCUSE ME?? Just because I'm not CATHOLIC, doesn't mean I'm not CHRISTIAN!

susan said...

it irritates me beyond words...if i am sitting in ANY church and I want to take communion, then i think i should be allowed to. when my grandmother died (a devout Catholic and it was a looong mass) I was allowed to speak at the funeral but not take communion. I wonder what God thought about that!!

Glen said...

People are divided into two groups - the righteous and the unrighteous - and the righteous do the dividing.

Lord Cohen