Going to Church

I found out last week that Michael Champion plays in the band for the non-denominational Christian service on Sunday mornings here. I asked if I could come to see it and he said sure! So I did.

That may sound a bit strange, but I'm the sort of person who will attend Mosque in Senegal, Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Bulgaria, Catholic services in Lithuania, Christmas in Bethlehem and so on and so on. I like to see how others worship. When I visit these other types of services I have my little set of rules. I'll sit when they sit and stand where they stand but past that I just observe. No singing or bowing or communion-taking or anything - just watching. Definitely got me a few glares in that Mosque in Senegal, but that's the way I do it.

I arrived to the Fraise Chapel at 1000.. About a hundred people showed up to worship and I was happy for them to have a community of their own that makes them happy and feel like they have a bit of home all the way out here in the middle of nowhere.

The Chapel.

Nobody freak out! I asked permission to take non-flash pictures inside and there plenty of people there taking pictures and videos more obviously than I was.

That's Michael right there haloed by the light from the stained glass.

The service reminded me a lot of the Evangelical church my dad and I went to this past Christmas (now that is a long story involving philosophical discussions between my dad and our auto-mechanic whose church it was that resulted in our attendance). At both there were bands and big screens with the song lyrics displayed and an overall similar air between them.

Sermons anywhere are pretty much about the same thing: be nice to each other, and God is good.

Some aspects of certain churches are strange to me. Interjecting while the speaker takes a very short break with an "amen" or some other statement of agreement simply doesn't happen in my religious background. That one time we invited a couple of black church groups to Park Synagogue and they were interjecting during Rabbi Skoff's sermon sort of threw the rhythm off, not that they meant any harm - just worlds colliding.

Here's something else different to me. Hand-raising as a form of worship:

Hey! That little flag on his arm says he's from Ohio!

Overall it was just as informative and interesting as any other non-Jewish religious service I've attended in the past. Maybe I'll meet people here from other backgrounds and visit their religious services. Who knows?