A few Sundays ago, something troublesome happened during our worship service. A church is a place one shouldn’t show disrespect. You’d think any church ELDER would know as much. But then, the ME generation is truly cut from a mold all their own. That statement pertains to three young men observed a few Sunday’s ago at my little church off Main Street.
It was time for the worship service to begin and there were only a few seats left. With self-propelled fanfare and swagger, three young men in suits and ties bulldozed their way in and sat down on the far side of the chapel. Everyone noticed them immediately, observing their actions while wondering about their intentions. These days, one needs to be observant in church. There are people wishing harm towards Christians. Sad but true.
I’m pretty sure that, in our church, there are door watchers that are quite prepared for anything. In the high desert, there’s no lack of fire power. These days, churches can be targets sitting under crosses, big signs, and the American flag. One can’t be to careful when observing surroundings and strangers.
Our church has no dress code. Most of the woman folk dress up nicely, while the men usually wear a clean shirt and pants. No ties. Pastor C is one of the few desert men that does wear a tie while always looking sharp with his big puffy beard and sparkling eyes. Everyone knows everyone, down to where we sit. Left front, right rear, or in the middle. Although none are assigned, Sunday after Sunday we sit in the same seats. This probably happens in most churches. In our sanctuary, the back seats fill up first being closer to the door. Spots are always available in the far front corner.
Anyway, these three young men came in and sat down together, making sure to draw plenty of attention to themselves. Fancy-schmancy, young, and a bit cocky, they talked amongst themselves. Three attractive, tall young men in suits and ties were hard to miss. It was obvious the oldest was in charge, being an immature 20-something. None of them shared an introduction with the ELDERLY members they walked right by, so no one in the church knew who the visitors were or what their true intentions were.
According to Webster’s, the definition of an “elder” is …… “A leader or senior figure in a tribe or group”. These ELDERs behaved as boys in suits. In age, they weren’t elders in the church they waltzed into. Why, they were not far from an appropriate age for the Children’s Sunday School in the back.
After much head turning and whispering, our main greeter went over to welcome them. Then it was Pastor C’s turn. The men wore badges. Two were ELDERs from their church. ELDER. What a word when you are only 20 something. The other young soul was a trainee of some sort. The older of the two ELDERs was in charge. That was obvious, as he instructed the trainee to sit between he and the other ELDER. Trapped.
If they’d come respectfully into a house of worship without trying to draw attention, it would’ve been so much more “ELDER-ish”. But, that wasn’t the plan as they sat, arrogantly bathing in the glances they were getting. No, attention they wanted to commandeer. Luckily, they were towards the back of the sanctuary. As soon as Pastor C began with his booming Southern Baptist voice, all focused on the message of the day. Because not many of the members knew who these boys were, there was a bit of uneasiness. You could feel it. A distraction was taking attention away from the reason we show up every Sunday. Worship.
Well, the service progressed. Singing praise. Scripture readings. Offerings. All the things you expect in a Sunday service. When it was time for Pastor C to give his sermon, he began to share the story about Aaron and the golden calf. He was right in the middle of his message when the most disrespectful thing happened.
The three childish ELDERs, who obviously had no training in respectful behavior, stood up in unison, pausing just enough to grab eyes away from Pastor C. They then turned, walked along the back of the church, and right out the door in lock step. An audible gasp from the members of the church could be heard.
Things like this are common these days. No respect for a restaurant, plane, gas station, or even a church service. No respect for those that ARE elders or elderly. No respect for customs. No respect for waiting your turn in line. No respect for anything. There’s a general lack of respect for one’s self these days. Respectable church ELDERs would’ve known if the message wasn’t for them, they should’ve never come. After all, the message in a Southern Baptist Church is a wee bit different from their religion. A real ELDER would know that, too. A real ELDER wanting to shine good feelings on his religion wouldn’t have disrespected another in such an outrageous way. I thought all religions teach respect.
The subject of the three visitors comes up often, even though this occurred months ago. If they were hoping to shine a good light on their own faith, they failed miserably due to their lack of respect for others. Disrespect in a church? There isn’t much lower our society can drop when ELDERs from one church purposely drive to another to disrespect something as sacred as a worship service. Dishonorable.
Today, be just a little more respectful in some way. Maybe, if we all band together, respectful attitudes will come back into style. Our troubled society needs respect and love at the moment.
More tomorrow.