Sunday has become take care of Cynde day. When things go really well I’m at Mass then getting a manicure maybe a pedicure if I’m due. I’ve gotten into going to church in a whole new way and really try to focus on the message I’m supposed to be receiving vs. what the priest is actually saying or what I have to do as soon as I can bolt out of there. Today was a little difficult because the pastor was talking about the proper way to approach the altar to receive communion and he has a little schtick about how people do strange things with their mouths if receiving by mouth, or with their hands if receiving in the hand. He also pulled out his lost & found box of kid items to talk about things people leave behind. I got there a little late and stood in the vestibule where the sound is piped in. It was interesting to see a guy standing there drinking from a bottle of Gatorade. At one of the breaks in action, when the ushers typically show people in and out of the main space, one of them approached him and asked if he was Catholic. I caught the response which was “I believe in God” and missed the rest but I’m thinking it had something to do with how we don’t enjoy a beverage during the service. So the guy caps his Gatorade, slips it into his pocket and went inside to take a seat. I was impressed because so often people are turned off easily and between how the usher approached the situation and thisguy’s frame of mind – it turned out ok.
The message today was to not be indignant about pastor’s response to a parent’s request that his kid be allowed to switch days for the religious ed class so that he could also attend football practice. The response was negative and the message was we have to make choices and prioritize. My thought was to give the parent credit for asking as there are really only 2 months left and this is a kindergarten class we’re talking about. They could have easily opted to skip the rest of the sessions for the year. I was disappointed in the response because there was an alternate day available and I can’t see the logic in making this an either/or decision for this boy. I believe this the type of experience that turns people off from the church. What disappoints me more is that they tag the church with the turn off vs. the person representing the church who made the decision. This pastor seems to revel in the fact that he has a reputation of ruling with an iron fist. I would love to see some examples of him acting out of kindness rather than fire and brimstone. There’s no reason to be a hardass about every single situation. I will say that this episode was the turning point for me in my ability to get over the fact that Jackson didn’t get accepted there for kindergarten. I understand that I’m living in a different place in a different age and the Catholic education I was privileged to have access to virtually unconditionally is not something I can expect for my kids. And I’m fine with it now.
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