There’s a meme going around some of the blogs I read about the reasons people do or do not go to church. I’m not talking about being personally religious; I’m talking about the act of going to a place at a certain time and congregating with others for the purpose of worship.
I’ve been very interested to see other people’s remarks and I thought I’d add my own thinkings and justifications.
Now, I’m a Mormon. I’ve attended other religions’ services, and enjoyed them for the most part. There are, however, significant procedural differences between Mormon Sunday services and your general protestant or Catholic services. For one thing, the music isn’t nearly as good. For another, there is no paid clergy; sermons are given by the general congregation, which can be very interesting. (Example: the plumber you hired who charged you too much and who used shoddy material giving a sermon on honesty… The father you saw, red-faced and swearing at the refs in his son’s soccer game, giving a sermon on living peaceably with others… etc) The point of this is that within Mormonism, at least as I see it, Sunday worship is about MORE than just prayer. It’s about service.
Mormon Sunday services last three hours. That’s right– three hours. Generally, there’s an hour of Sunday School; an hour where males and females (ages 12 and up) meet in separate classes; and and hour for the worship service. Practically all adults in a congregation have a responsibility to fulfill within those three hours, as a teacher, or choirister, or what have you. Our congregation (called a ‘ward’ in Mormonism) consists of about 300 people– there are a lot of positions to fill. Again– Sunday services for Mormons are not so much about singing and praying as they are about serving.
It’s with that understanding that I approach church attendance– and also why I understand the very real emotion of not wanting to go to church at all. 🙂 I go to church for many reasons; I believe that God wants me there, for one thing, and I know that at church, I’m doing something good (or I hope I’m doing some good). I feel good serving others– whether that means giving a sermon, teaching a class, or whatever. The Sunday service is a collaborative effort in my understanding of Mormonism. The theme of unity, collaboration, community, and mutual service is essential throughout Mormonism– it is correct to say that, from a Mormon standpoint, we are not acceptable to God without others. This is reflected in our beliefs regarding marriage and family; our dedication to charitable works; and our devotion to our ancestors. (And I’m also aware we don’t always live up to the ideal, and that some of the ideal is offensive to those who have other ideals.)
To illustrate with a tidbit from my own life– the time when I felt closest to God while at church was when I served in Nursery (very young children’s ministry– 1.5 to 3 years old). The level of dedicated service it requires to do the job at all– we had something like 18-30 kids in our class– was such that it either burned you out, or caught you aflame. I was…kindled. 🙂 I think much of my thinking on Sunday services was formulated in that time. There was never a moment for reflection; there was never time to be by oneself and quietly ruminate on blessings or curses. There was work to do– and I always left church feeling buoyant. At the very least, even if I slept through the worship services, I had accomplished something; I’d served those who could not actually, or practically, serve themselves.