So I had the chance to go back to a place I spent much time in as a child - the church building of my youth. My cousin Jessica had her open house in the hall o' fellowship. The punch and pasta salad was flowing... and I briefly got bored. Upon catching the eye of my wife, we walked hand in hand towards "The Sanctuary." (Aside: I realize now, that to most people this term brings about imagery of futuristic human sacrifice.) When we entered the "Narthex" (Aside: I realize now, that no one really knows what the crap a "narthex" is...) I was shocked at what I saw. No, it wasn't the awful ceiling tiles that have been dropping white junk from the ceiling for years - I expected that. What shocked me was that all the doors to enter the worship center, the chapel, the temple, the place where we symbolically meet with God were chained and padlocked shut.
I know we meet with God wherever we are ever since the veil was torn... but this symbolic imagery of being locked from the presence of God made me kind of sad. I remember that as a child I would be so excited to enter those very doors. When I was first reading I attended this church; I can remember practicing on the brass letters that adorned each side of the middle door.
"Enter into his gates with thanksgiving in your heart... and into his courts with praise."
Those letters had been torn off... but if you looked hard enough, you could still read the words through the paint job that was meant to cover all remnants...
1 comment:
Good boy..this is why I keep checking. :)
I remember the same sense of surreal horror last time I was there and saw the padlocks..and to take it one step further, not *everyone* is barred from entering at will. If you have "passed the test"/"met the requirements"/"entered the inner circle", you probably have a key. Like Big Daddy(yeah you know) or staff or really mature and trustworthy long-timers..
I spent most of today creating a visual display that will parallel tomorrow's message about Jesus in the temple..how he wasn't just angry because of the commerce, but also that the temple leaders had totally missed the original point - they had lost God's heart to reach all people(gentiles,open house attenders) and had made the temple an exclusive place for Jews only - and added layers of qualifications and requirements for correct standing with God..
in the display, the "insiders" were small in number, looked similar, statuesque; and only one young girl was beginning to see the "outsiders", peering through the glass, many shapes/sizes/cultures, odd people who don't fit in, forgotten people, angry people, all far more interesting and human than the statues and clones huddled inside.
Post a Comment