Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Mystery Worship
Here I was thinking there was some neo-cultic group making a big splash, but mystery worship is alive and well within Christianity. Read this article for the story.
I'm conflicted on the concept of mystery worship.
On one hand I want to laud the effort -- there are so many congregations that some sort of information about them is very useful for people looking for a church. Even when following word-of-mouth, in most cases finding a church is a time consuming process. For the leader, it gives a subjective but outsider's view of the congregation which may highlight some weak points.
However, and I feel a certain amount of sadness and vitriol at this point, it highlights and reinforces the church's captivity to consumerism. How can a mystery worshipper truly measure the heart of a congregation? Spirituality is about the heart of the community. Moreover, church services can change dramatically from week to week. I'd want to ask what sort of validity can be given to attending one worship service?
Obviously this is not a truly qualitative study.
I've been thinking a little about what makes a church better than an other...For me, it has little to do with the service. I want to know how people relate? How do they cope with betrayal/breaches of trust? How do they share their lives? The issues of community are what makes a church, not the packaging of the service.
Of course, if the preacher is talking nonsense, I don't stick around too long.
