Those of us who are political junkies of whatever stripe have to remember that for the vast majority of people, politics (whether national or ecclesiastical) takes a relatively small role compared to the activities of real life.
We're in Berkeley this weekend, visiting family, and attended All Souls. This was my mom's parish as a child, and where we usually go when we're up here. And while GC was mentioned briefly, the business of the parish was much more focused on the events of the community, the monthly open meal for the hungry and homeless, the anniversaries and birthdays and events of everyday lives.
As for the dark prognostications of the conservatives that TEC is dying? This church surges with youngsters. I think there must have been 25-30 little ones coming up the aisle in this family-oriented parish. We brought a bulletin home to show mom, and she recognizes some of the names from 60 years ago, so there's a good sense of continuity as well.
As always, a warm and friendly welcome to the visitors, like us. They're starting to recognize us, I think. We quite like them too.
11 comments:
Ever been to St. Mark's? (where my parents met and married)
No, we haven't JC. We hear it's nice, but we keep going back to All Soul's which just seems to suit us.
Let's see. Last Sunday you sang in the choir, Friday you were at GC's big Eucharsit. This week in Berkley 8 hours away from home and you went to an Episcopal church for mass. Yep. We got ya.
Well not necessarily. Vaughan Williams wrote music for the CoE and remained at least a cheerful agnostic to the end.
Spoil-sport!
That's right, James:)
She's been to a LOT more church than I have. That's for sure.
It's all about BP for me....she goes, I go with her.
My failure as a spouse is that I won't support her when she's going Roman Catholic.
IT, "how long wilt thou be in denial? I have called thee and thou art mine says the Lord." :)
The Pew Forum has prognosticated your church's decline, not the fundies, whose own churches are having membership problems now.
So long as there are upscale ex-baptists and fundamentalists and divorced/gay ex-catholics, your church will never die. Whether it has anything like the influence and 'prophetic witness' it likes to claim for itself is another matter.
But you'll probably never go the way of the Shakers.
That’s right, Brad, not all Baptists are high school dropouts; once a generation of young people get a college degree, it’s increasingly hard to keep ‘em barefoot and down on the farm with the rest of the snake handlers. Personally, I’m more partial to the many ex-Roman priests (such as our Bishop Coadjutor elect here on Long Island); we get their cream while Rome gets the bottom of our barrel.
Okay, Kurt, I'm sending you the bill for repairing my lap top over which I spewed Pepsi while readig that comment. Bloody brillian', it wos.
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