Friday, March 21, 2008

catholic

"I believe in the holy catholic Church."

In our contemporary Evangelical Covenant version of the Apostles' Creed we've changed the wording to "the holy Christian Church" in order to avoid sounding like we're pledging allegiance to the Pope. But the change has always bothered me.

I like the idea of the Church as being catholic in the original sense: universal, for everyone. God's Church is not an elitist group. The twelve that Jesus chose included tradesmen (fishermen) and professionals (the well-heeled Judas Iscariot), a religious fundamentalist (a Zealot) and someone who had turned his back on religion (a tax collector), commoners and those with friends in high places (John, with family connections to the high priest). Jesus, a Jew, even reached out to the hated Samaritans and other Gentiles.

"Catholic" today is a kind of mark of separation: Catholics v. Orthodox v. Protestants. Even the name Christian can be seen as a call to division: Christians v. Jews v. Muslims, etc. But Jesus came to break down walls of separation. Christianity isn't just for those with enough willpower to live a pious life, or for those smart enough to articulate the theistic arguments or build an irrefutable case for why an omnipotent God allows evil and suffering in the world. I'm a follower of Jesus because he offers to me the grace I need. Through him I have new life, something I can't earn, something which must be given to me as a gift because I'm completely unable to attain it on my own.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8)

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

kids in worship

This week is Holy Week, celebrating the most significant events of our salvation history: Jesus washing the disciples' feet and giving us the command to "love one another", Jesus' institution of the Lord's Table, Jesus' crucifixion, and Jesus' resurrection.

How do you celebrate these events with little kids?

I was curious about billboards for "Catholic Radio 1260" so I tuned in for a few minutes. The radio host (I have no idea who she was) was answering someone who called to ask how she could get anything out of worship when she was so distracted by her kids. Since most Roman Catholic churches expect that the entire family is together during the worship service, I could understand why this mother of young kids (they were in the 2-7 year old range, if I remember) was seeking some advice.

The host started by saying that it was pleasing to God that the mom (and dad) were bringing their kids to worship and getting them started on the right track. The host even said that if there were any times when the mom felt like she was getting anything out of the worship it was "triple grace" for the mom.

Then the host gave some very practical tips: pray, practice, and prepare. Pray for your kids, that they will sit still and maybe receive something from the time in worship. Practice what happens in the worship service ahead of time with the kids. Young kids love to role play and it will make them more alert to what's happening during the worship. And prepare: bring coloring sheets and small toys in case they're needed.

We Protestants can learn a lot from the Catholics. At least, from Catholic radio.