Week 9: First Presbyterian Church

This past Sunday I attended the weekly service at the First Presbyterian Church in downtown Cedar Rapids. My experience with Presbyterianism is somewhat limited. In elementary school I went to a local Presbyterian church for Vacation Bible School every summer. I still remember the chorus of the song that helped us memorize John 3:16. My sister's family also attended a different Presbyterian church years ago, and I remember going with them a couple of times as well.

First Presbyterian is part of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States. Presbyterians are traditionally Calvinists, but I have no idea how closely the PC
(USA) holds to Calvinist thinking. For example, the articles on predestination on the theology portion of their website acknowledge the difficulty many people have with the idea of God creating people with the intention to damn them.

First Presbyterian

The church building is gorgeous. I went in the front doors, but I think people are supposed to come through the glass doors to the right. At least, that's where most of the people seemed to be coming from inside and I had to walk over there to get the worship outline from the greeter.

I wasn't able to get a good shot of the sanctuary without a lot of people in it, but it really is lovely. Click here for a good picture of it. It's probably my favorite of all the worship spaces I've seen so far.

There was a gentleman playing the trombone as a prelude to the service. He was doing a great job, but it felt like a really odd choice of an instrument. When I think about instruments to get people in the mood for worship, a solo trombone doesn't usually come to mind.

The Service

The service began with a call and response type prayer, followed by the hymn, Now Thank We All Our God. There wasn't a choir, and my side of the church sounded a pretty weak. Across the aisle, however, were some really strong male singers that made the hymns sound great.

They had a period of greeting similar to what I've seen at other churches. People left their pews and walked around the church greeting others. This was probably the most awkward period of greeting I've had. At other churches that have done this, congregants greeted everyone they saw regardless of whether or not they knew them. No one really greeted me this time except for the people immediately in front of and behind me. I just sort of stood their awkwardly while people people walked past me and greeted everyone around me.

There were a few prayers following this, including a recitation of the Glory Be, which surprised me. I don't think I've ever heard it in a non-Catholic context. There was also a children's sermon, although only three children came to the front for it. I couldn't see into the balcony, but it looked like there were around 70 people with me on the ground floor, the vast majority of them over 50.

The Sermon

A selection from Judges 4 & 5 was read, and the sermon focused on the prophetess Deborah. The minister mentioned that Deborah's story tends to be overlooked, both anciently and today. For example, St. Paul left her name out of his mentioning of the Judges in Hebrews 11. It made me curious as to whether or not Deborah's story was in the Catholic lectionary. After a search it does not appear that Judges 4 or 5 is in there. Kind of a bummer.

She briefly made mention of the many atrocities commanded by and committed in the name of God in the Old Testament. She explained that the ancient Jews existed in a different "theological framework" than we do today. It didn't feel like a great way to explain away God-sanctioned war, genocide, rape, etc., in your holy book.

I was stuck thinking about that for awhile and missed a bit of the sermon. When I tuned back in she was talking about what a Deborah would look like today. She would be someone who went with you to chemo, for example. Also, asking Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave a restaurant is not the sort of thing a modern day Deborah would do. That last comment probably wold have been more appropriate in a sermon on Jesus dining with tax collectors. It was a really odd way to try to fit current events into the sermon.

An "Affirmation of Faith" followed the sermon. Very similar in structure to a creed, although I have no idea who wrote it. The first line went, "We believe in God, the Root of all living, Creator of all things." The minister then prayed for current concerns in the congregation and world events. There was a mention of the children at the border, which I appreciated. We all prayed the Lord's Prayer and sang a doxology, which I knew as the hymn Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow. Finally, there was an offertory and benediction, and the service finished after listening to some more trombone music.

Final Thoughts

As I was leaving a sweet elderly gentleman thanked me for coming and said he hoped I would join them again. I think he was the only person I actually spoke with when I was there. I'm sure I would have been able to talk with more people had I been able to stay for doughnuts. I suppose I'll have to work on being more outgoing at certain churches. Going into a brand new place alone where everyone knows everyone else but you is intimidating, and I'm always hoping I won't be the one that has to initiate conversation. 

Week 8: Zazen and Zen Buddhism

On Wednesday a friend and I went to the Cedar Rapids Zen Center to attend their monthly introduction to zazen and Zen Buddhism session. While the Zen Center does have weekly Sunday morning activities, I thought it would be a good idea to go to something geared more towards beginners as I know very little about Zen.

Cedar Rapids Zen Center
Source

Buddhism, which began approximately 2,400 years ago in India, is the world's fourth largest religion. There are several different schools of Buddhism, each with their own practices and beliefs. The Cedar Rapids Zen Center follows Soto Zen Buddhism, founded in Japan in the 13th century. I'm not terribly familiar with Zen, so I don't feel comfortable giving a rundown of beliefs. I do know that they have the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path in common with other Buddhists.

The Four Noble Truths

1. Life is characterized by dukkha (suffering, dissatisfaction)
2. Attachment/desire/ignorance is the cause of dukkha
3. It is possible to be liberated from dukkha
4. The Noble Eightfold Path is the path to end dukkha

The Noble Eightfold Path (taken from the Cedar Rapids Zen Center website)

1. Right View
2. Right Thinking
3. Right Speech
4. Rich Action
5. Rich Livelihood
6. Right Effort
7. Right Midfulness
8. Right Concentration

The Zen Center

The Cedar Rapids Zen Center is run out of a house in the Wellington Heights area of town. I'm not entirely sure, but I think the resident teacher may live there. A Buddha statue was our clue that we had found the right place. 

Directly inside was a small area for shoes and coats, as well as a bookshelf and a little bit of seating. There were already three other people there besides the teacher and ourselves. After some light talk, everyone introduced themselves and the teacher (Zuiko), explained that she was an ordained clergyperson. Her head was shaved and she was wearing dark robes. 

Before we went into the zendo (meditation room), we stayed in the small area for a short "pre-introduction" on zazen (zen meditation). Zuiko explained that it was best not to wear distracting or loud clothing as a courtesy to others, and we went over the different postures and positions to take as we enter the zendo. Everyone enters on the same side and walks the same direction around the zendo. At the entrance, you place your palms together in front of you and bow to the room. As you walk in the room your left hand is held in a fist holding your left thumb and your right hand covering your left. You again bow to your seat when you get to it, as well as bow to the people across from you and when you leave the zendo.

Zafu on a Zabuton, Source

The Zendo

We made our way into the zendo, each of us bowing at the entrance, and Zuiko directed us to our seats. There were about 8 spaces to meditate around the edge of the room. Most of them consisted of a zabutan (a large flat square cushion) with a zafu (a thick round cushion) on top of it. One space had a chair instead of a zafu, in case someone preferred to sit in a chair to meditate. 

After we bowed towards our seats and each other we all sat down as Zuiko taught us the proper way to sit while meditating. Basically, you want to sit in such a way that your knees are below your bottom. Ideally, you sit on the zafu while your knees touch the floor in front of you. This forms a sort of tripod with the zafu and your knees. It tilts your lower body forward and gives you stability what you sit. Some people place their knees to the side of the zafu instead, kind of like they're kneeling, and others use a tiny bench or chair. 

We also learned how to hold our hands while sitting. You hold your right hand underneath your left in front of your stomach and let the tips of your thumbs touch so you make an oval. Additionally, your eyes should remain open during zazen, as part of the purpose is to remain fully present in the moment. While it's ok if thoughts come during zazen, you should let them go instead of dwell on them. Every time thoughts come forward we should return to feeling our breathing instead. 

Zazen

We all got the chance to practice zazen for 20 minutes.  Zuiko rang a bell three times to announce the start. Instead of facing forward, you turn towards the wall to avoid distractions. I would say I did alright for the first 10 minutes or so. After that, restlessness set in and it became harder to let my thoughts go. I also had to move around quite a bit to keep my leg from falling asleep. We were told such movement was ok. 

It definitely got tough after a while. I'm not used to not being able to tell how much time has passed. Staring at nothing but a wall (or a curtain covering a doorway in my case) really doesn't help. I couldn't tell if 5 or 15 minutes had passed. It got kind of disorienting. Also, someone starting screaming at a family member in the yard of the house next door, which obviously added a level of distraction. It became hard to keep my eyes open as well. I'll admit that I did peek at my watch 17 minutes in.

At the same time, it was definitely nice. I wouldn't necessarily call it peaceful. I'm too used to outside stimuli for the stillness and nothingness to be peaceful yet, put it was still something that I would practice on a regular basis, if for a shorter period of time at first.

The bell was rung two more times to signify the end of the zazen session. We actually ended up going for 25 minutes instead of 20. We all turned back towards each other and shared our thoughts and questions. I mentioned that I had had trouble keeping my eyes open, and Zuiko said that that was why we had gone for 25 minutes instead of 20. She had closed her eyes close to the end and had accidentally fallen asleep.

She spent some time after that sharing with us a little bit about Buddhism. She relayed a story of how the Buddha spent several years in the forest learning under different teachers for 6 years, but never found what he was looking for. Finally, he remembered a childhood experience when his father left him under a tree with no toys or anything to distract or entertain him. After the restlessness and annoyance of having nothing to do passed, he eventually sat there completely present and in the moment. 

Finally, she shared with us a little bit about the activities of the Zen Center. There noon and weeknight sitting sessions, a book study, all day sittings, and more in depth intro classes. They also meet on Sunday mornings for a 40 minutes zazen session, a talk, working meditation, and tea. She also gave us several brochures and a book list before we left and encouraged us to learn more about Buddhism.

Final Thoughts

This is probably one of the best things I have done so far. Everything I had done so far had been related to Christianity in one way or another. This is the first time I had to go into something knowing I really didn't know anything about it. Zuiko was incredibly nice and accommodating of our questions. It was also nice to be surrounded by people who also were there for the first time and to learn along with them. Normally I'm the only "outsider," so it was great to be with others in the same boat. I'm planning on ordering a zafu for myself to start practicing short periods of zazen. 

Week Seven: Grace Episcopal Church

On June 10th I attended an Episcopal church for the first time. Grace Episcopal is an adorable small church in downtown Cedar Rapids.

The Episcopal Church is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion, an association of churches in communion with the Church of England. It's hard for me to get a good grasp on what Episcopalians believe. Some seem to have beliefs that are nearly identical to Catholics while others seem to be more Protestant or evangelical in nature. They accept the Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian creeds, and the Protestant canon of the Bible (although I think some may make use in the Deuterocanon?). Historically the Thirty-Nine Articles were used, but I have no idea how closely those are followed by each of the churches in the Anglican Communion today or how uniform the interpretation of them is. If any Anglican or Episcopalian reads this and has corrections or wants to share their own experiences please be my guest.

Grace Episcopal Church

Grace Episcopal is downtown, kitty corner from the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple. (ETA) Grace has a medical lending closet, which fulfills a vital need in the Cedar Rapids community. People in the community can borrow things like wheelchairs when emergencies occur. I remember my mother making use of the closet when she hurt her leg. I really appreciate how they serve a need not usually met by other churches or organizations.

I didn't see a sign anywhere that said which door to go through, so I just went straight through the front red doors. This is the first church I've been to that didn't have a greeter of some sort, although there could have been someone I didn't see at a different door. 

The church itself had a lot of lovely elements, but due to its size everything seemed close together and somewhat constricting. Although you can't see it in the picture, there were some pews removed from the left to make room for an organ. A few things stood out to me-

• In the front left of the church there was a statue of Mary, but I noticed that there were curtains that were pulled to cover statue. I know some communities have the tradition of veiling statues and other images during all or part of Lent, so maybe that's why the curtain was there? It was odd to see a built in curtain for a statue.
• What looked like small brown cubbies were on the back wall of the left and right of the sanctuary, many with names engraved on them. I'm nearly positive it's a columbarium. I've never seen one in a sanctuary before, but upon reflection it seems like the perfect place for one. 
• One of my pet peeves is having the national flag in the church. I suppose it makes sense to have one when the church itself is associated with a specific nationality, but it still rubs me the wrong way.
• Finally, the chairs for the presider and the deacon were against the wall facing towards the altar, which I appreciated. Nearly every Catholic church I've been in has the presider facing towards the congregation, which I always felt puts too much focus on the priest and detracts from actual worship.

The Service

Apologies if this is long. Liturgical services have a lot of parts which make describing them quickly difficult. 

Coming from a Catholic background, many of the prayers and motions of the liturgy felt familiar. A few of the prayers were so close to the version I have memorized that I would get too confident in reciting them without reading, only to flub when coming to a point when the versions differ.

The service was led by a female priest and deacon, with an acolyte assisting, and I counted about 35 people in the congregation. The priest reminded everyone that for the summer they would be using services from different parts of the Anglican Communion (this week from the Church of Nigeria), so everyone should pay close attention as some things may be slightly different to what they were used to.

As in most modern Catholic churches, there were four readings from Scripture. It appears they were using the Revised Common Lectionary, which on many Sundays is identical to the lectionary that Catholics use.

The first reading was from Genesis, detailing how Adam and Eve hid from God after eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The psalm was recited antiphonally instead of as a responsorial, which is what I'm used to. I actually liked this better as it reminded me of the Liturgy of the Hours. I didn't pay close enough attention to remember the Epistle reading, but it looks like it was from 2 Corinthians. 

Before the deacon read the Gospel, he processed with it behind the acolyte into the middle of the nave (place with the pews where the congregation sits). He read the Gospel standing there amidst the congregation. I thought that showed a nice bit of symbolism.

The Sermon

The sermon was fine, nothing really enlightening or even inspiring. It was based off of the Gospel reading and the pictured quote from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, which I actually quite like. It was basically a sermon on loving your neighbor. Don't get me wrong, it would be great if all Christians actually lived out the command to love their neighbor. Speaking from my own experience, the subject is preached on and taught about a lot but generally not done well. It's essentially feels like we're just constantly telling be people to be nice without telling them what that means or what it looks like. Very easy to tune out a sermon like this when you feel like you've heard it a hundred times before. Maybe it would have been different if she had gone into how we should love people we have political disagreements with, etc., but I don't recall her actually doing that.

Following the sermon was the Nicene creed and the intercessions. My goodness there were a lot of intercessions. I've been to churches where there were regularly around 10 intercessions, which felt like too many, but there were at least 20 here.

Around this time I started to notice that people didn't seem to know what they were supposed to be doing at any one time. People tended to take whatever posture they wanted to in the pews unless the presider specifically said to sit or stand. Only about a quarter of the people knelt for the communion prayer when the booklet said to. I remember there being a point when part of the congregation stood and the others sat. It was very strange. It could be that the liturgy from the Church of Nigeria was just different enough to throw people off from what they were used to, but I really have no idea.

Before the Eucharistic prayer there was a sign of peace, which was definitely the highlight of the service. I'm pretty sure I ended up shaking everyone's hand. Everyone got up and moved around and some had small conversations. Honestly, it was kind of nice to have fellowship as a formal part of the service. 

The announcements actually followed the sign of peace, which was shocking to me. The presider gave some announcements, and the deacon shared that he would be ordained soon and invited everyone to come to the cathedral to take part. Members of the congregation were then invited to share any announcements they had. Even though the placing of the announcements felt odd, it's definitely a way to make sure everyone actually hears them.

Communion

The Eucharist Prayer was similar to the Catholic prayers I was used to. Ushers let each row now when they could go up to kneel at the altar rail. The priest went down the rail giving people the bread, saying "The Body of Christ in the bread" with the deacon following with the wine. One thing that was very interesting to me was that although everyone knelt at the altar rail to receive communion, it looked like they were still receiving in the hand instead of on the tongue.

Also, the communion hymn was the only hymn sung that familiar to me (It Is Well with My Soul). Unfortunately, both the three loudest singers and the pianist failed to notice that half the hymn was printed on the back of the paper, which made for some very choppy verses and a confused congregation.

The Lord's Prayer/Our Father was said after communion, followed by a few more prayers and a closing hymn. Not much happened after the service. One person stopped to thank me for coming, but that was pretty much it. 

Final Thoughts

This service felt very "meh." No one really seemed to know what was going on, which was odd. I could tell that this was a very tight knit community, which is admirable. The worship booklet had birthdays and anniversaries listed in it, and everyone seemed pretty warm and welcoming to each other. I kind of felt like an outsider looking in, which I suppose I was. Don't get me wrong, people were very pleasant to me during the sign of peace and no one was hostile or looked like they didn't want me there. Maybe I've just been spoiled by the last several churches I've gone to which actively seem to seek out and welcome newcomers and visitors.

Week 6: Peoples Church Unitarian Universalist

Peoples Church UU

This past Sunday (June 3rd) I joined the congregation at Peoples Church in Cedar Rapids for their Sunday service. Peoples Church is part of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), a very unique religious organization. The UUA was founded with the merger of two liberal Christian denominations- The Universalist Church of America and the American Unitarian Association.

Although the UUA has its roots in Christianity, it is not a Christian religion. The UUA has no creed or single set of beliefs that members must adhere to. Personally, I would describe it as a group of people coming together to explore the meaning of life and existence, create safe and supportive spiritual communities regardless of belief, and be a force for good in the world.

Instead of a shared set of beliefs, Unitarian Universalists have a shared set of Principles (taken from the UUA website)-

1. The inherent worth and dignity of every person
2. Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations
3. Acceptance of one another and encouragement of spiritual growth in our congregations
4. A free and responsible search for truth and meaning
5. The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large
6. The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all
7. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part

They also draw upon six "Sources," which include: Jewish and Christian teachings, personal experience, wisdom from all religions, Humanist teachings and ideas, and Earth-centered traditions.

All of this means that within any single UU congregation you could find a Christian, atheist, Buddhist, agnostic, pagan, etc.

Unitarian Universalism also strongly oriented towards social justice and service. More on this later.

Peoples Church UU

Old "First Universalist
Church," demolished in
2011*

Peoples used to be located in downtown Cedar Rapids, but after the 2008 flood they sold the building and moved to a residential area on the north west side of town. It's definitely not an area that I would have ever looked for a church. I remember their old building downtown and it definitely gave them more visibility in the community.

One of the first things you see when you enter is a nametag wall. This is one of my favorite things to see a church do and I wish more congregations did it. Especially when someone is new to a community, learning and remembering the names of people you usually only see once a week can be incredibly difficult. Nametags help to breakdown one of the barriers to building a community. 

Symbol associated with UU

As I entered an usher asked me if I was new and invited me to make a disposable nametag. She also let me take several brochures and gave me the order of service. 

The sanctuary itself was small. There was a chalice at the front enclosed by two connecting circles, one of the symbols of UU. The front wall had different colors of fabric hanging from the ceiling in a rainbow pattern. There were two lovely upholstered chairs and a piano in the front as well.

I counted only about 50 people in the congregation. It sounds like during the school year they have a religious education program that runs concurrent to the main service, so I would guess that there are more people during the school year  than the summer. 

Before the service began a woman who was helping to lead worship came to the front to welcome everyone and give announcements. One of the announcements that stood out to me was that there would be a meeting after the service for people who were helping with the Peoples Church table at Cedar Rapids' Juneteenth celebration. They would be discussing how they could be present at the celebration without coming off as "privileged white people." Apparently they've been reading some books on white privilege throughout the year and were going to discuss how they could put what they learned into practice. I really appreciated their awareness and sensitivity surrounding the celebration, as well as their willingness to participate in the event. I'm curious if other churches are joining in the celebration.

The Service

The service started with a couple playing traditional Irish music on their violins. If you know me you know I love traditional Irish music, and they were fantastic. I was having a hard time staying still in the pew and not tapping my hands or feet. So. Good.

After that the minister read a call to worship. They were having a Flower Communion/Ceremony this Sunday, so everything was more or less centered around flowers. After the call to worship the chalice was lit.

Following that was a hymn called "Oh, Give Us Pleasure in the Flowers Today." I don't think this hymn was suited well to a congregation singing without a choir. A small pet peeve of mine is when congregations are invited to sing a song that is difficult to sing, either because the music is difficult or the notes are hard to hit. A lot of people (myself included) did that whisper-singing thing that people do when they can't sing the song. Basically, lips were moving with a tiny bit of sound coming out. Thankfully, this was the only song where that happened. 

There was an affirmation in the program (which read like a mission statement) that everyone read, followed by a responsive reading, similar to a responsorial psalm. The response was "May our lives bloom like the flowers."

They then did a "Story for All Ages." A gentleman came forward to read a story called Miss Rumphius, which I had never heard before. It was a really cute story that fit well with the theme of the day, and the man reading it read it very well. He has a very good story telling voice. It did feel kind of long though. My guess is that it's intended to help engage children, but the kids I noticed weren't really paying attention. It probably would be a good idea to project pictures on the wall or even invite the children up to the front and have the story teller show them the pictures in the book after each page.

Following that was an offering and more violin music (traditional Scottish this time). It sounded like any extra money they were receiving that week would go to ACLU Iowa. 

There were two poems read following this- I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth and Hearts Like Wildflowers by Nikita Gill. The minister offered a reflection after this focusing on flowers and beauty. She was a fantastic speaker and it was very uplifting.

During the offering they had invited people to write down their concerns or joys. Those were used to help the minister lead the Prayers of the People. She also invited people to spontaneously share their concerns and joys. This was punctuated with the congregation singing verses from How Could Anyone that were projected onto the wall. The two components together honestly made it kind of an emotional moment, which is probably what they were going for. 

A "Flower Ceremony" followed. The minister gave a brief history of the ceremony. It is a Unitarian tradition started by Norbert Čapek, the founder of the Unitarian Church in Czechoslovakia and who was killed in a gas chamber in Dachau in WWII. The Flower Communion is supposed to emphasize the unique people coming together to form a larger group. The idea is that everyone brings a flower, which are put together in vases, and leaves with a different flower than the one they came with. It's a very neat idea.

I was a bit worried I wouldn't be able to take part since I didn't bring a flower. The usher noticed my hesitance and assured me I could join in. It really was kind of like going up for communion. I chose a lovely yellow flower to take with me (which promptly wilted when I left it in my hot car). We were also invited to light a small candle on our way back to our seats.   

De Colores was the final hymn sung before the chalice was extinguished and the violinists played one more song and the minister gave a benediction. 

Final Thoughts

This was a very positive and uplifting experience and I honestly had a great time. I think it's great that people have a place they can go to for spiritual growth when their beliefs don't line up with more traditional beliefs, or even when they have no beliefs at all. I really appreciate just how active the UUA and local congregations are in advancing social justice. The only thing I'm bummed about is that the UUA is officially pro-choice. I'm pretty much in agreement with all of their social positions accept this one, and it stinks that they officially reject one of my most important convictions. 

Regardless, my experience at their worship was amazing. I went in wondering if it was possible to have a whole serving centered around flowers, but they did it and they did it well. Nothing seemed out of place despite the many different parts of their service. You can tell when people practice and genuinely care about the worship they are leading. I would love to go back when I have the chance.

*Source: By RifeIdeas - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14589741

Week 5ish: The Community of Christ (RLDS)

This past Sunday I attended the Cedar Rapids Community of Christ congregation. The Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS) has its roots in the Latter Day Saint movement founded by Joseph Smith Jr. in 1830. I've long had an interest in the Latter Day Saint movement, and have been looking forward to attending a Community of Christ service.

A (Very) Brief History of the Community of Christ

In 1827, Joseph Smith Jr began translating a set of golden plates he claimed he retrieved from Hill Cumorah in New York after the angel Moroni revealed their location to him. These plates, which he said were written in "Reformed Egyptian," purportedly contained writings of ancient Jewish peoples who traveled from Jerusalem to the Americas and the societies that resulted from them. It also contains an account of Jesus visiting the Americas sometime after his ascension and sharing many of the same teachings their that he did in the New Testament.

In 1830 Smith formally organized the "Church of Christ." This church went through several name changes during Smith's life, eventually becoming The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Smith claimed that this church was a restoration of the early Christian church, which had apostatized. He was held to be a "Prophet, Seer, and Revelator" by his followers, and church theology grew more sophisticated, complicated, and controversial throughout the remainder of his life. In 1844, Joseph Smith Jr. and his brother Hyrum were murdered by a mob while they were being held in jail in Carthage, Illinois. 

Succession Crisis

Smith's death resulted in a crisis as to who should take his place as President/Prophet of the church. The majority of Latter Day Saints accepted Brigham Young as Smith's rightful successor, eventually moving west to what would become Utah and becoming the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). Other prominent members claimed they were the rightful successor and had their own smaller followings. 

Many people rejected all of these claims and opted to stay in the Midwest. Among them were Joseph Smith Jr's widow (and first wife) Emma Hale Smith, as well as their children. Eventually these groups asked Joseph Smith Jr's oldest son, Joseph Smith III, to be their leader. He at first declined, before accepting in 1860. The church viewed the time between 1844 and 1860 as a period of "disorganization" for the church, and eventually added "Reorganized" to their church name to reflect this.

Until 1996 all of the Presidents of the RLDS church were descendants of Joseph Smith Jr. and in 2000 the name of the church was changed to the Community of Christ.

Beliefs

It's important to understand that many of the beliefs of the Community of Christ are similar or identical to those of mainstream Christianity. For example, they believe in both the divinity of Christ and the Trinity. The beliefs below are only some of the things that distinguish them from mainstream Christianity and the ones that I find most interesting..

My copies of some
Community of Christ
scripture

• Scripture: Three books of scripture are accepted - The Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants. Belief in the Book of Mormon is not necessary for membership in the church, and as far as I can tell the church as a whole seems to be de-emphasizing it. Doctrine and Covenants mostly contains revelations given to Joseph Smith Jr., Joseph Smith III, and subsequent presidents of the church and is added to regularly. They also make use of the "Inspired Version" of the Bible, also called the Joseph Smith Translation. 
• Continuing Revelation: The current president of the church is also regarded as a prophet. Because of this, they have an "open-canon" of scripture which can be added to.
• Priesthood: There are two priesthoods-The  Melchisedec Priesthood and Aaronic Priesthood. Within each priesthood are specific offices. The Aaronic Priesthood contains the offices of Deacon, Teacher, and Priest. The  Melchisedec Priesthood contains the offices and specialized offices of Elder, Seventy, High Priest, Evangelist (formerly called "Patriarch"), Bishop, Apostle, and President. According to wikipedia, 10% of Community of Christ members are ordained.
• Sacraments: The church practices 8 sacraments
• Baptism is by immersion and can be performed by those who are 8 years old or older. They recently began accepting baptisms from other Christian denominations, so if someone converts they do not need to be rebaptized. I am not sure if this includes people who were baptized younger than age 8, however.
• Confirmation 
• Lord's Supper/Communion is practiced once a month using bread and grape juice.
• Blessing of Children gives children under the age of 8 the opportunity to be brought before the community and blessed.
• Ordination is offered to men or women who have been properly called.
• Marriage, including same-sex marriage in some areas
• Administration to the Sick with oil
• Evangelist's Blessing, formerly called a "Patriarchal Blessing." Individuals can request this blessing at important moments in their lives, and it can be received more than once. Families and congregations may request the blessing as well.
• The modern church places a huge emphasis on peace and justice. There is a daily prayer for peace in their Independence Temple, focusing on a different country each day. 
• Speaking of the temple- Both the temple in Independence and the temple in Kirtland are open to everyone. 

Cedar Rapids Community of Christ

*Note* They live stream their services. If you're interested in seeing the service I was at, click here.

The church itself is small. Even though there are are two large doors facing the street, the entrance being used was around back in the parking lot. The door had one of those numbered locks on the handle which made it look kind of weird. If I hadn't been following someone else in I wouldn't have thought that was the entrance.

The sanctuary area was simple. The podium was centrally placed and there was a really neat looking large cross that looked like it was inlaid with several smaller pieces of wood. On the upper-center of the wall was a projector screen that was displaying announcements. I counted around 50 people there altogether. Being Memorial Day weekend probably hurt the numbers, and looking back at past live streams it does look like there are normally many more people. Also, from past live streams, it looks like the section below the screen comes out and becomes a window to the baptismal font, which is neat. 

The Service

Before the service officially began the pastor came up to give announcements. One of them was inviting a woman to speak who was again organizing the congregation serving meals at a trailer park over the summer. When she asked if there was anyone who would like to help this year about a third of the congregation raised their hands, which was impressive. My experience with church volunteering has always felt like people were begging for people to step up to help. For so many people to be willing to help was astounding. 

The service itself began with the pastor reading from Isaiah, before the congregation sang "I, the Lord of Sea and Sky." I'm not really a fan of that hymn, but it was nice to sing something familiar after so many weeks of unfamiliar music. I was impressed by how well the congregation sang. I don't necessarily mean the quality, although it was good, but that you could actually hear people singing. My experience in congregations without a choir has been that people barely whisper the words to themselves. Not the case here.

There were a few prayers followed by another song, based off of the prayer for peace attributed to St. Francis of Assisi.

Following that was a testimony given by a young man (also an ordained elder) who was probably close to my age. I'm not sure if the pastor knew what he was going to say beforehand or not, but he spoke about his doubts and struggles with his faith and asked everyone to pray for him. Certainly not a testimony in the traditional sense, but I made sure to thank him afterwards. Having doubts and struggling with faith can be a lonely experience that people are afraid to talk about. Hopefully his openness inspired people who may be struggling themselves.

Following that a woman played "On Eagle's Wings" on her guitar. Once again, I was happy to hear a familiar song. 

Before the offering a woman gave a short talk. She talked about how it feels like people are always asking for more and more, and we only have so much to give that it can be annoying and overwhelming. But then she remembered all of the things she took for granted in life, like nice bed sheets, and that encouraged her in her giving. When the deacons came forward she offered a prayer and they passed the plate. This reflection on giving seems like a weekly occurrence. It puzzled me at first, but upon further reflection I think it's a nice addition to the service. Collection plates are so often passed around that it becomes mechanical. Having a reflection each week gives people the opportunity to look at their giving in a fresh way and reminds people about why it's important. 

Another woman gave her testimony about how God has been with her in her life. It was a very sweet testimony of her experiences with medical problems and how she knew God was with her. There was yet another song after this.

The pastor then shared a "spiritual practice" with us that she encouraged us to use, the Examen developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola. The program didn't put the "St." in front of his name, and no mention was given of him being the founder of the Jesuits. It felt odd. I feel like if you introduce a spiritual practice you shouldn't divorce it from the spiritual tradition from whence it comes. 

The service was over after one more song and prayer.

After the Service

Several people introduced themselves to me and said hi after the service. The pastor introduced herself and when I said I had questions introduced me to a man to help answer them. He told me he was an evangelist and that many people in the congregation were ordained to one office or another. We talked a bit about the Book of Mormon. He explained that its purpose was to bring people closer to Jesus, but because for some people it might actually be a stumbling block the church didn't require anyone to have any specific belief about it. It definitely raises some interesting questions about Christianity in general.

I did try to ask if he felt like the Book of Mormon was literally (historically) true. I was trying to ask it delicately and am not sure if I got my point across, but he seemed to say he thought it was. 

I asked him a couple of questions about being an evangelist. He mentioned that the name was changed when women were admitted to the priesthood, as "Patriarch" doesn't quite work for them. He also said that in addition to having open communion, evangelists's blessings were open to non-members. Definitely different from the Utah-based LDS church. He did mention that they were "bi-vocational," and as I was talking with him the pastor zoomed by saying she had to get to work. I don't believe ministers are normally paid at the local level. 

This was the first time I've felt free to ask questions with someone at a church I've attended, and it was nice to be able to have such a discussion.

Final Thoughts

I honestly had a great time going to this congregation. The people were incredibly nice and welcoming, without being overbearing. It's great to meet people who genuinely want to live out a mission of promoting peace and justice in the world. The service itself seemed kind of choppy. It felt like there were a bunch of different things just thrown in there, with music breaking everything up. It felt like it lacked a "flow." I think most of their services have a sermon by an ordained member, so it could have just been the unique nature of this week's service that made it feel that way.

Week Four: Lighthouse Church of the Nazarene

This past weekend I visited my mother for Mother's Day, which meant finding a church to go to out of the Cedar Rapids area. I like to sleep, so I decided to go to Lighthouse Church of the Nazarene in Moravia because they have a 6pm service.

The Church of the Nazarene describes itself as a "Wesleyan-Holiness" denomination. The denomination is the product of multiple mergers of smaller denominations that were part of the Methodist and Holiness movements.

Some positions and beliefs of the denomination include-

• Belief in the Trinity
• Use of the Protestant Bible 
• An emphasis on grace, holiness, and Entire Sanctification/Christian Perfection
• Baptism by immersion, pouring, or sprinkling
• Communion with bread and grape juice
• Total abstinence from alcohol and tobacco

Lighthouse Church of the Nazarene

The Church

I wasn't able to get a look at most of the building. The sanctuary/worship almost gave off a town hall vibe. The seats looked like auditorium or movie theater seats. In the front was a raised area with a projector screen and podium, and several seats facing the congregation (none of which were sat in when I was there).

The Service

The service began at 6pm with a hymn that was projected onto the screen. Only the piano was used, and it felt somehow out of place to sing such a traditional hymn in such a modern and secular looking place. I'm not sure if they always sing traditional hymns during the evening service or if it varies.

The church was maybe 10% full. The congregation has both a morning and evening service on Sunday, and I believe they are both different. so someone can go to both services if they choose. I would assume that the Sunday morning service usually has more people, as that is the service that has children's church running at the same time. It was also both Mother's Day and graduation weekend. In a small town that affects a good chunk of the congregation.

An offering was taken up for anyone who hadn't given in the morning, followed by another hymn. After that a mother came to the front with her three little girls to sing, "He's Still Working on Me." It was pretty adorable and definitely the highlight of the service.

The Sermon

This was definitely one of the more...interesting sermons I've heard. The pastor went off on a lot of tangents and it was difficult to keep up with him. The main message seemed to be:

• The prophecies concerning the Messiah in the Old Testament are clearly fulfilled in Jesus. The Old Testament prophets didn't know exactly what the Messiah would be like or how the prophecies would be fulfilled, but we have the gift of hindsight.
• The New Testament writers could see how the Old Testament prophecies show Jesus to be the Messiah, but couldn't see how their own writings would reveal a bigger picture for future generations.
• We have the benefit of seeing how everything in the Bible fits together, but we don't know how exactly how or when the events concerning the 2nd Coming of Jesus will come to pass.

Now for a few of those tangents I mentioned-

• After mentioning a specific prophecy in the Old Testament and commenting on how Jesus clearly fulfilled them, he would mention how he just couldn't believe that people didn't believe that people didn't believe in and accept Jesus as the Christ when he so clearly was. This happened multiple times. Either he was playing this up for dramatic effect or he genuinely doesn't understand why people may have trouble believing Biblical narratives.
• He mentioned how bizarre it was that there were still Jewish people today who were waiting on the Messiah when it is clear that Jesus was the Messiah. He said these people were called "Messianic Jews." Couple of notes about that-
• Messianic Jews are actually Christians who do believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
• The New Testament uses quotes from the Old to prove that Jesus was fulfilling ancient prophecies. It can be easily argued that they are simply proof-texts.  When looking at the sources of the quotes and their contexts, it's not always clear how they're supposed to refer to a future Messiah. So it's actually pretty easy to see why someone wouldn't just accept Jesus as the Messiah.
• The US embassy in Israel being moved to Jerusalem is Biblically significant...somehow. He mentioned how interesting (he started to say fun but corrected himself) it was that we could see the events predicted in here (pointing to the Bible) play out over there (the Middle East). No mention of the fact that people are dying, or anything that could be done to alleviate it. Just how interesting it is. 
• After reminding people that people have been guessing at who the antichrist would be and have never been right, he gave the following examples he remembers hearing-
• Osama bin Ladin (who he also referred to as Osama bin Hidin' and Osama bin Swimmin'), because he was shot in the head and thrown into the ocean.
• Mikhail Gorbachev, because of his birthmark.
• Anwar Sadat for reasons I can't remember.

Add all of this to the fact that the congregation would verbally express their agreement with the things he was saying...it was just a very bizarre experience.

Final Thoughts

After the service I talked a bit with an elderly woman who noticed I was visiting. She let me pick a couple of visitor gifts out of a basket, which was very kind of her. Other than that and the kids singing, this wasn't a particularly positive experience. The sermon pretty much ruined it for me.

Week Three: First Church of Christ, Scientist

Christian Science

Yesterday I attended a service at the local Christian Science church in town. Christian Science teaches that the material world is an illusion. God, being spirit, only created spiritual things. Because God is good, all of God's creation is therefore good. Negative things, such as illness, are therefore illusions. When we fix our thinking these illusions can be overcome and we can be healed. This has obviously caused problems. Christian Science followers may choose not use medical treatment, for themselves or their children. People (including children) have died from preventable causes because medical treatment wasn't sought.

Christian Science was founded by Mary Baker Eddy in the 19th century. Her book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures is considered central to the faith. Both the Bible and Science and Health are considered to be the Pastor of the modern church. Because of this, sermons are simply passages read straight from both books.

A few other interesting beliefs and practices of Christian Science that I've been able to find-

• Neither Jesus nor the Holy Spirit are considered to be God.
• There are no paid clergy, at least at the local level. Two readers are elected from the congregation who read the passages from scripture and Science and Health.
• There are no rituals, ordinances, or sacraments practiced. The words baptism and communion are used in a spiritual sense, and don't correspond to physical rituals.
• The church is the publisher of the well-known Christian Science Moniter. I remember that newspaper being in our high school library.
• Christian Science members can take classes to be certified as a "Christian Science Practitioner." For a small fee they "provide spiritual help that results in healing of all types of difficulties—physical, emotional, relationship, financial." (Source)

The Church (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Cedar Rapids, Iowa)

*Note: I was one of only 13 people at the church service. I chose not to take pictures because I already stood out like a sore thumb. I didn't take notes for the same reason*

The church building itself is adorable. After going to large, auditorium like services the past two weeks, it was nice to be in a church that actually looked like a church.  The sanctuary had about five rows of padded pews in three sections around a raised platform. The platform had two chairs and two podiums on it, one each for the First and Second readers.

When I entered the church an elderly gentleman greeted me and handed me a booklet with the "Bible Lesson" in it. The Bible lesson was basically an outline of most of what was read at the service.

The Service

The service began with a song. Something I found odd was that before each song was sung, the First Reader would read the entire first verse to the congregation. I can't think of a reason for doing this. There was an organist and a lead singer/cantor, which I thought was impressive for such a small congregation. 

Except for more hymns and a collection, the majority of the service was dedicated to the Bible lesson/sermon. Like I said above, these passages are considered to be the sermon itself, so there was no one to explain or give meaning to them. The week's lesson was on "Everlasting Punishment." The Second Reader would read different verses of the Bible, and the First reader would follow with verses read from Science and Health. This was repeated five times with different verses. I had a bit of a hard time following along. It was a lot of information to retain without being able to read along with them. I remember some of the following from the passages read from Science and Health. There was mention of God creating only spiritual things, because God is Spirit. God, being good, wouldn't create anything like hell. The effects of sin on a person are the punishment of sin. There was more, some of which I didn't feel had much to do with the subject at all. Without a subscription to the Bible lesson I don't have a way to refresh my memory.

We also said a version of the Lord's Prayer written by Mary Baker Eddy in Science and Health. The congregation would read the prayer itself, and the first reader would interject with the words written in italics.

"Our Father which art in heaven,

Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious,

Hallowed be Thy name.

Adorable One

Thy kingdom come.

Thy kingdom is come; Thou art ever-present

Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Enable us to know, — as in heaven, so on earth, —

God is omnipotent, supreme

Give us this day our daily bread;

Give us grace for to-day; feed the famished affections;

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And Love is reflected in love

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil;

And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth 

us from sin, disease, and death.

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love,

over all, and All." (Source)

After the service, I went with the First Reader to the "Reading Room." I think each Christian Science church is expected to have a Reading Room associated with it. It included copies of books for sale or to borrow, and some past-dated issues of magazines that people were welcome to take. The church has a lot of regular publications. Besides the Christian Science Monitor and the Bible Lesson, they publish a weekly Christian Science Sentinal and monthly Christian Science Journal. I was able to pick up a couple of back-issues. 

I was able talk with some of the members after the service. One woman asked me if I had been "practicing Science long." It was such an odd phrase that it threw me off-guard. After looking it up it seems to be a common phrase used by people who follow the religion. One woman mentioned that their congregation used to be much larger, but the younger generation simply didn't gravitate towards it as much. 

Final Thoughts

The local congregation was very kind and welcoming. The service was...odd, but I did appreciate the silence and emphasis placed on listening and quiet as opposed loudness of the previous weeks. The religion as a whole I find to be dangerous. It's one thing to use spiritual practices in addition to medical care. It's another thing entirely to encourage people to avoid medical care altogether. It's not really surprising to me that this religion flourished when modern medical care was in its infancy.  It appears to be experiencing a pretty steep decline, both here in Cedar Rapids and worldwide.