Getting Churchy in a Time of Chaos and Hate: A Personal Journey

From Huffington-

About one city block from the Stonewall Jackson Monument in Richmond, Va., I found St Mark's Episcopal Church. Being in the heart of this former Capital of the Confederacy, I was surprised to see them advertise as being "an inclusive church," which is a code for gay friendly. My first foray into the sanctuary came on an evening in March when there was to be a candlelight prayer service. More prayer, less of a sermon, caught my attention. I was greeted by the Rector in the narthex who held her arms open and welcomed me to St. Mark's. She told me if I liked the service, I should come back for more on Sunday.

I did come back for more, and I met more of the church leaders and some of the congregants. One of the first I met was the Director of Lay Ministry. I spoke with her outside the church kitchen as she was inviting me to go to one of those confirmation classes. I told her I wasn't sold on this whole religion thing. Before I could launch into one of my diatribes about the evils of organized religion, she said to me, "Church is an organization of people. That's all it is, complete with all the foibles and faults that people carry with them."

I stopped and thought for a minute. Had I been wrong about any of this? I rarely misconstrue what is presented to me, even with the big stuff in life like religion. It's what the people believe that I question, I concluded. Then I smugly went about my business.

By early summer, my depression and anxiety had abated. Admittedly, I expected my church attendance to dwindle as well. To my surprise, I continued to go to church, and I even got involved with some of their outreach activities. Clearly diversity is welcomed in this church. From the occasional homeless person who wanders into the service, to the jovial, cigar-smoking, southern-born Associate Rector who is always outside the church to greet everyone, the term "inclusive" is translated literally. There is something rich about worshipping with people who are on the other side of ourselves. It's as if someone has taken a random group of people from Kroger's Grocery Store, and put us all in front of the altar to receive communion. The texture of its people, the acceptance of many diverse families, singles and couples, for me, is why I continue to stay involved at St. Mark's.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-nelson/getting-churchy-in-a-time-of-chaos-and-hate_b_1551423.html