People Come To Church To Daydream About God

Reflect on Luke’s description of the ideal Christian community and on ways in which your own parish or Christian community compares favourably with that description. Reflect also on ways in which his description is a challenge to your community. Write a one-page summary of your reflections.

I have had a variety of different experiences in parish communities. As far as my current parish is concerned, I am a member because I don’t have the option to choose otherwise at this point in time: the novitiate house is right next door to the church. As I’ve mentioned in my previous portfolio piece, this is a very traditional and conservative parish, which is not a problem in itself, I just don’t feel very free to express my thoughts or feelings about my spiritual journey, or talk about the truth of my life before coming to Christ: which is the basis for understanding how much of a difference an experience of the Holy Spirit has made in my life. It’s also the basis for understanding how much of a difference a vibrant and welcoming parish community can make to ‘outsiders’ who are looking for a way to come to Christ themselves and who would participate fully in the life of the church if they found true communion!

I regard the Church of the Resurrection in Table View as my spiritual home, where I can say that I have had an experience of koinonia: real community, warm fellowship and intimate friendship – and a sense that there was a place for everyone in the parish, whether they were conservative or progressive, whether they were contemplative or charismatic. There may have been some pointing and laughing from one group to another, but generally the different groups accepted that it was okay that there were differences, “to each, his own”, and all of the groups would join in and help make the various parish initiatives (and fundraisers!) a roaring success. Amongst my Alpha Course friends there was also evidence of incredible material generosity: people gave whatever they could to whoever needed something, without keeping score or expecting anything in return. Parish life lived and breathed in the many small prayer groups that met regularly: some on a weekly basis, some three mornings a week (at 6am!), and the parish intercessory team was available to pray for whatever needs people had. There wasn’t an adoration chapel, but that didn’t mean people weren’t praying around the clock! Liturgical celebrations were well prepared and well attended, and were a source of grace in more than just theory. There were also plenty of opportunities to participate in a variety Bible study groups and other pastoral activities and ministries, so there were lots of opportunities for getting teaching from ‘‘the apostles”. The more I reflect on my time at the Church of the Resurrection, the more I realise how incredibly blessed I was to have found that kind of community at the moment in my life when I most desperately needed to experience God’s love and merciful kindness.

And as much as I’m grappling with my current parish experience and telling myself that I’m idealising my time in Table View, I am really battling with being in such a “heady” parish: where knowing and obeying the rules and regulations seems to be a much higher priority for most than understanding the spirit of the law or showing compassionate feeling for people. Even so, it’s not all horrible: there are good people in this parish who do join in with parish activities, and who try to reach out and be supportive of others. The challenges that Luke’s description poses for this particular parish are:

• finding a remedy for the “skinder stories” that do the rounds: too many people freely criticise their fellow parishioners, and it’s not the kind of commentary that helps people to grow in faith or in the exercise of their giftedness, it’s the kind of cruel and snide petty judgemental commentary that “cuts people down to size”, nips a person’s potential ministry efficacy in the bud, breaks down trust and limits the progress of intimacy in relationships, which in turn works against building the kind of community that Luke describes;
• embracing a wider variety of prayer styles: there are a lot of devotional practices on offer, from devotion to the Sacred Heart in the adoration chapel, to various rosary recitations, and benediction; but there’s very little in the way of anything “freestyle”, so it feels like one is obliged to accept very structured prayer as the rule if one wants to participate actively in the community’s prayer life;
• finding a way to soften the hard legal edges on our “formal temple worship”: it would be great if participating in the liturgy of the Eucharist would feel more like breaking of bread amongst friends and less like performing a demanding ballet for the Great Adjudicator who’s just waiting for someone to put a foot wrong so that he can deduct points from the overall score;
• encouraging people to explore the scriptures and the teachings of the Church in an open and respectful discussion forum where thoughtful dialogue is considered to be an invaluable aid to mutual understanding, which in turn is necessary for building healthy community relationships.