It seems as if we spend a great deal of time concerned about the
fact that church attendance is declining everywhere. In some ways, we should.
This is sad. The fact that we each hold our own laundry list of ideas about how
the church can improve is simultaneously sad because of the fact that not many
people will speak up about these projected concerns. We wait and wait and wait
for our “pastors” or elders to be the people of change without realizing that
we are equally a part of the body of Christ, therefore we are all equal parts
of the bride, the one Catholic Church. This
kind of reality invites and begs participation.
Without realizing that we do this, we spend so much time complaining to one another, we rarely spend time rejoicing in what is good, true, and holy; that is, Jesus Christ. We drive home at 11 am on Sunday morning and criticize the last hour of performance that we attended at church and grumble about how “that place just isn’t feeding me anymore” or rants of “were we at a rock concert, that music was horrible?” We have missed out on the point of church. We have missed out on the object that Jesus came to provide for us: full life in Him.
In my opinion, the point of church is to meet God and be in fellowship with other believers. And I strongly believe that this can’t just happen Sunday mornings at 9am. It has to be a decision and a relationship that we choose every single moment of the day. It has to be lived out in relationship with other believers, it has to be lived out among those who have not yet come into the faith, and it must be consistently shared. Relationship with God is a severe gift; one that must be continually held in awe.
Katherine
