This being the 1st of April, I provide here an update on Project 2011. Some success, albeit gradual and minuscule in comparison to the strength of my desire to move much more quickly (at the speed of the universe).
My grand plan to read, contemplate, and comment on Bishop Schnase's book:
Successfully finished reading Chapter 1 on the practice of Radical Hospitality, as well as Chapter 2 on Passionate Worship. I am proceeding through Chapter e to engage Bishop Schnase's thoughts on Intentional Faith Development. I hope to post my synopsis/outline and thoughts on ch. 1 soon and very soon.
My grand plan to visit 11 congregations in 2011:
Up until today, I have visited 7 churches.
1 UMC - contemporary worship (Webster Hills UMC)
1 Episcopal - Rite 1 (Christ Church Cathedral)
2 UMC - traditional (Grace UMC & Kirkwood UMC)
1 UMC - traditional (Lafayette Park UMC)
1 Community church - contemporary (Metropolitan Community Church of Greater St. Louis)
1 UCC - traditional (Good Shepherd Church of Christ [no website that I could find])
Several notes:
* The selection process was based on synchronicity and opportunity, with no rhyme or reason for why these churches or why not other churches. I am slightly disappointed to see in the list very little diversity, and the list flagrantly reveals my appalling lack of intentionality and focus (so far). I hope to rectify that in the near future.
* I only attended the worship service at their publicized worship times; I did not attend small groups, Bible Study sessions, or social gatherings, and if I did, I will only focus my comments (for this Project) on the service I attended. If the service was supposed to be at 7pm, then I attended that service. For example, if the contemporary was scheduled for 8:30am, I attended that service and not the traditional service that followed.
* I realize that a visitor's first impression of a church is often an unfavorable impression because it is a one-time meeting between strangers (are we strangers in a house of worship?). I am also aware that most, if not all, faith communities need the favor of a second, third, if not fourth, visit by a guest in order for that guest to truly recognize/appreciate & understand the dynamics, relationships, and peculiarities of that community.
* The previous note leads me to this last note... Although I recognize that I may be unfairly evaluating a particular church based upon my preliminary visit, this Project is, afterall, all about (unofficially) documenting my first-time experience of visiting a church. I'm not doing anything new, and I know that there are plenty of books and research on congregational studies. On this blog, I'm merely writing my thoughts about my own experiences, and thinking that perhaps you (gentle reader, ha ha) might sympathize or empathize with something of note.
More forthcoming...
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