Finding a New Church
Last Sunday was Palm Sunday, the first Palm Sunday of my life where I did not have a church home to be at on a Sunday morning. My family and I have been searching for a new church home since the beginning of the year. At the end of 2022, the church we were connected with closed, and we are trying to find our place.
Since January, we have visited numerous churches from various traditions and expressions. This isn't easy. I feel for anyone in this place in their spiritual journey. Here is a bit of what we've experienced so far as a family.
Every church we've visited has been kind. In all instances, we've been greeted by someone and welcomed to join the service and have some kind of lunch afterward. We accepted the invitation for food twice and enjoyed it both times.
Each church experience has been unique. They've all had a very distinct culture, and the experience seemed to be meaningful and important for those who attend. I say this because the last thing I'd like to be is some kind of church critic. People are encountering God in many different churches. I'm happy for them all; they have found what is working for them. We are doing our best to be open to new experiences. There have been services that really just were not for me. One, in particular, I can only describe as incredibly spiritually dissonant. It bothered me for a few weeks because I didn't expect that to happen because it was an experience very close to my roots. Again, let me emphasize it seemed to work well for hundreds of people, but I felt like a spiritual alien. I had to stop myself at one point from looking all over the sanctuary with a bewildered look on my face. In my head, I had to say, "Jordan, You look like a stupid tourist, just sit down, relax, enjoy the show, and be polite. That's all you need to do today. Remember, these people love you."
We've also been pleasantly surprised to see churches on a journey. Two of the churches we've visited began their service with a land acknowledgment and are making an effort to take ownership of the church's role in Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. In both cases, I wanted to stand up and give everyone a thumbs up. But that would have been weird.
Children's ministry. Everyone has been kind and welcoming to our kids, which has been heartwarming. Every church we visited demonstrated a love for kids and ensured they were cared for in a safe space. This is a big deal for us. I'm who I am today because of the friendships I made in those early days of Sunday school. I learned information from the lessons but was taught the faith by watching others live it out.
Finally, our experience has involved a lot of consideration around what is essential for us.
We don't believe a perfect community exists. We totally get that, but we want to connect with a church that loves God and the world and wants to see it become a better world for everyone. Truth and reconciliation are great examples of that. Seeing justice restored to the land for indigenous people should be a spiritual imperative for Christians in Canada. Our experience so far this year is that some understand this, but others do not. An interesting aside here, the churches that read and referenced scripture and prayer more were the ones with land acknowledgments, inclusive language, and other socially conscious policies.
At the end of the day, we are looking for Christian community. People that know us, care about us, will pray for us when we need it. Do we need a specific church organization for this? I don't think so, but I understand it can help.
We currently have people in our lives that fit this bill, and we are very grateful to have them on our journey. Honestly, though, we often wonder why we need to keep searching for community if we already have it.
We haven't landed yet, but our search continues with the belief that there is a place for our family.