Not that I haven't had a spiritual aha in awhile, but the following is too good not to share--from the pen of Franciscan writer Richard Rohr:
All the Christian churches are being forced to an inevitable, honest, and somewhat humiliating conclusion. The vast majority of Christian ministry has been concerned with ‘churching’ people into symbolic, restful, and usually ethnic belonging systems rather than any real spiritual transformation into the mystery of God. …Religious people are even harder to transform because they don’t think they need it. …I find much more openness and response at the county jail than among the typical group of churchgoers. The incarcerated know that the separate self has not served them well. (The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective, p. xv.)It's trendy in spiritual(?) circles to ditch the church--per the graphic above. However, as Luther says, “…thank God, even a seven-year-old child knows what the church is, namely, holy believers and sheep who hear the voice of their Shepherd.” (Smalcald Articles)
God is in the church, imperfect though she be. True, we could all find better churches but, instead, I'm choosing to love the church I'm in. Time is too short to too much strive for perfection that can't be. Besides--and to agree with Rohr--there are plenty of open and responsive places also to frequent. Cheers!
