Comments on: More Church Does Not Equal More Spirituality

By: h sofia

h sofia — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 10:46:42 +0000

Will, good suggestion. I think it’s also important that newcomers have someone - minister in a small church, or newcomers’ guide at a larger church - who can really advise them on this. It’s so easy to push newbies into joining things, but someone should really be looking out for them and helping them to stay spiritually healthy (not burned out and cynical!).

By: » My Wise Commenters Looking for Faith

» My Wise Commenters Looking for Faith — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:44:38 +0000

[…] Several days ago, I posted about the fact that “More Church Does Not Equal More Spirituality” and was feeling a little down afterwards. Reading these comments helped me…. […]

By: Shelby Meyerhoff

Shelby Meyerhoff — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 04:35:41 +0000

Hi Will,

Thanks for commenting. I think you’re right that part of what I’m struggling with is the need to sort out what is truly spiritually nourishing, and what is not, and to get a balance of the two.

By: Will

Will — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 00:58:50 +0000

Some things that folks volunteer for at church are spiritual and some things are work. In my program council days, I told people to be sure to balance the two. And only you can decide which are the work things and which are the things that turn you on spiritually. For me, for example, doing yard work around the church was spiritual in an odd way, while to most people it was work. To others, working on the annual stewardship drive was spiritual but to me it was pure work–stepping in just to fill a void (because /someone/ had to do it) rather than enjoyment.

So mix in an adult ed class or a small group ministry thing along with those things that you feel obligated to do out of a sense of duty.

Will

By: Shelby Meyerhoff

Shelby Meyerhoff — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:45:38 +0000

Thanks for responding.

Hafidha, what you wrote describes really well what I’m feeling now — it’s nice to have your perspective that this is a wider phenomenon and other newcomers experience it too.

Jacqueline, there are definitely times when I’ve considered sleeping-in a spiritual practice!

By: jacqueline

jacqueline — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:05:12 +0000

Volunteering alone does not create spirituality. I think that they augment what we do on our own. Granted, I am not one with a huge spiritual practice unless you count sleeping in… but I know that I go to church more for community then for spirit. It is my solo exploration that drives my spiritual life… not the folks sitting around me on any given Sunday.

By: hafidha sofia

hafidha sofia — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 17:48:52 +0000

The phenomenon I’ve noticed is that newcomers get super involved in church activities because they’re enthused, and then eventually church activities become chores as they become less “new” and less enthused. But somehow, that newfound spirituality they once felt and that committee-joining fervor they once felt have become conflated, and it’s hard to let go of the latter without feeling like one’s giving up on the former.

It’s also hard to not let being disappointed about committees and “church politics” affect one’s feelings about the spirituality.