Today, I went to church! It is the first time in my life I ever set foot inside a place of worship for service, other than that of my former kingdom hall. Here is how it went:
Today I got up around 7:30 aware of the strange familiarity that I once had of getting up early to go to the kingdom hall ever Sunday. I participated in a protest last Saturday against an anti-gay group called Focus on the Family, one of the groups represented at the protest was a small congregation of members from the Community Church of Hope in Central Phoenix. I was able to get a copy of events the congregation was holding and decided that I would check it out. As I was driving to church the one thing that surprised me was how relaxed I was, I was almost positive that I would have some degree of foreboding knowing that I would be "sinning against the holy spirit" by observing a church service in the heart of "Babylon the Great". The Community Church of Hope is a gay-friendly church that organizes social and political events for its congregation, including the protest I mentioned earlier. As I drove into the church's parking lot, I again felt totally comfortable, that what I was doing didn't bother my conscience. As I entered the gathering room of the church I was greeted by a gay volunteer (cute, too!) who gave me some information on the church as well as a name tag. He also asked me to sign the church's register, which I did willingly. Before I entered the church I was greeted by an older gentleman wearing a bola tie and he gave me a hug. I sat down, put my Bible (It's twue, I brought my NWT with me!) and put it under my seat. I was greeted again by another person who told me about what the services would be like. The first thirty minutes focused on music, accompanied by a rock band (think of a more Mr. Rogers version of Creed) headed by a women wearing a dashiki (!) The musicians seemed to step right out of a cover of JW brochure. It then hit me that even the people that you see in the paradisiacal settings would viewed as being too "worldly". The music was emphasized by a dancer wearing a golden vest, waving around a flag. The music was followed by church announcements. The main focus was the protest that went on last Saturday. Instead of indirectly chiding those who didn't attend, she (yes, women can speak) wanted to remind them that they were there in spirit. After a collection (because you need money to pay for all the bills, silly!) we were asked to randomly hug a couple of people (I was hugged a few times). What followed afterwards was talk by a minister who wore a colorful vest, and a white collar. It was a very positive, scholarly, and above all interesting presentation that focused on the general topic of peace. After the discourse we had prayer, and communion. For this communion, everyone was encouraged to partake (I received a wafer from a kid who was probably no older than 12, who prayed over me). After communion there was another prayer and then church was over for the day. In the waiting room I looked at the message board (yup, I still do that) where they had fliers for church events, including a men's groups, a women's group, a youth group, and some other events. I was greeted again by the bola tie gentleman who told me a little about the church, and then I left for the day.
I'm at a stage right now where although all things theological interest me, the community aspect of church is something that fascinates me more. I felt truly welcome there. The progressive atmosphere made me remember once more why I absolutely despised my life as a JW
Thank you for reading my essay, and if you found it too long to read and decided to read just his last paragraph, you were there in spirit...