Posted on 07/09/2007 1:08:32 PM PDT by Between the Lines
Church "hopping" is the ultimate "all about me" experience.
I'm not talking about church "shopping" - say, moving into a new community, or deciding to start attending church altogether, and then visiting churches until becoming a member of one as soon as reasonably possible. And I'm not talking about leaving one's church after finding un-addressed scandal in a church's leadership, for instance, or when a person's conscience becomes persuaded that something foundational to the belief system of that church is very wrong.
I'm talking about the growing tendency in America's evangelical churches for folks who decide, after they have officially joined a particular church, that "Oh, that pastor down the street is a little more high-energy than mine," or "Gee, the music here isn't really meeting my needs right now," or "I really am not crazy about that new children's church director."
They just up and leave, and go to a new church in their community.
Until they hop from that one.
Respected Christian pollster George Barna, the Christian Science Monitor and other publications, and any Protestant pastor will tell you that church hopping is an increasing and, it appears, insidious trend. Here's where I really agree with my Roman Catholic friends when they say: "You Protestants are so focused on your `personal relationship with Christ' that you forget it's not all about you."
Exactly. I see people come and go from my own (growing and vibrant)congregation. Sometimes I know the reason, and sometimes I don't. But I do know that every time a person who has made a public vow of membership to the church body leaves for superficial reasons, he leaves a unique hole. The departure dispirits the pastor and often the children of the congregation and other members of the body.
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
How about those who leave because the sermon is too “dumbed down”?
That’s also why many of us like the ad orientem posture from the priest — “back to congregation” as the libs like to call it. It takes the personality of the priest out of the mass so you don’t go to one church over another because “he’s reeal guuud” like I hear the prots say.
OTOH, I can see church shopping in the Catholic church because of all the novelty and deformation of the liturgy.
There’s an old, worn out joke about a man on a desert island who was rescued after living there for years by himself. The captain of the boat that found him asked, “If you were alone why are there three huts on the beach?”
The castaway said, “Well, that one’s my house, and the other is where I go to church.”
The captain says “What about the third one?”
“Oh, that’s the church I used to go to.”
My opinion of the “back of the priest” to the congregation is that it discourages the congregants from participating - they are observers rather than participants which discourages feeling close to G-d. that is just my opinion.
The more I think about it, the ad populum posture is just flat wrong. It ought to be abolished.
Please forgive the accidental strikeout.
Have they spoken with the pastor prior to leaving?
Please clarify:
Is this some kind of attempt at "redneck talk" humor?
What was the purpose of including it in your comment?
Is this the way all "the prots" you know talk?
Is this the level of discussion that should be occurring between Christians?
Thanks
I found this amongst many of my friends when I was still living in the Nashville, TN area. They were always looking for the “perfect” church home (you know——perfect theology; “dynamic” minister; growth-oriented; etc. etc.—you get the picture.) They didn’t understand why my husband and I wouldn’t consider leaving our church when little problems might crop up. I would remind them that since we Christians are all still human, that they weren’t likely to find a perfect group of them at any church! We were committed to our church community, and felt responsible to those in our congregation.
You can say what you will about the United Methodist Church, which I am part of, but one thing I’ve grown to appreciate over the years is that most congregations will get a new pastor every couple of years. I think this prevents the “pastor-shopping” that is all too common. Your membership in church is more about being a community of Believers, rather than spectators at Sunday morning services.
can you post whole article please?
The author seems to be painting Protestants with a pretty broad brush by agreeing with her Catholic friends' "You Protestants" tag.
I couldn't find, anywhere in the article, just how big this insidious trend is.
Is there some authoritative data and data source to indicate that it is, for example: 25% of Protestants?, 45%?, 95%?
If it can be proven that 100% of Protestants are church hopping, and it can be proven that all of these hops were a result of Protestants being so focused on their personal relationship with Christ, then perhaps the author would have an arguable point.
Since (in the author's opinion - by agreement with her friends' comment) all Protestants are so focused on their `personal relationship with Christ' that they forget it's not all about them, I fail to see how she can attribute this belief as the reason for the insidious church hopping, when not all the Protestants are church hopping.
Perhaps the author needs to ask GOD for guidance, and then offer up some concrete plans to resolve the "problem", instead of just painting all Protestants with the same brush.
Church hopping is the ultimate ''all about me'' experience.
I'm not talking about church shopping -- moving into a new community or deciding to start attending church and then visiting churches until becoming a member as soon as reasonably possible. And I'm not talking about leaving one's church after finding unaddressed scandal in a church's leadership.
I'm talking about the growing tendency in America's evangelical churches for folks who decide, after they have officially joined a particular church, that ''Oh, that pastor down the street is a little more high-energy than mine,'' or ''Gee, the music here isn't really meeting my needs right now.'' They just up and leave and go to a new church. Until they hop from that one.
Respected Christian pollster George Barna, the Christian Science Monitor and other publications, and any Protestant pastor will tell you that church hopping is an increasing and insidious trend. Here's where I really agree with my Roman Catholic friends when they say: ''You Protestants are so focused on your 'personal relationship with Christ' that you forget it's not all about you.''
Exactly. I see people come and go from my own congregation. Sometimes I know the reason, and sometimes I don't. But I do know that every time a person who has made a public vow of membership leaves for superficial reasons, he leaves a unique hole. The departure dispirits the pastor and often the children and other members.
Hopping from a church when a desire, or even a real need, isn't being met in the moment means that person can't ultimately be held accountable in his religious life. He just hops if he doesn't want anyone reaching out to him.
One of the best ways to discourage hopping is for the receiving church to encourage him to return to his home church, but there are a lot of unfortunate disincentives to doing that.
Unlike a job, or a neighborhood, or a school, the sentiment of Christian Scripture is that, barring something extraordinary, church members really don't have a right to hop. We have little sense anymore that we are to join a church body and submit to its authority. Even when there are things that don't suit our fancy in the church. Sure, we often can and should try to change those things for what we consider the better.
Submission may even entail suffering, like dealing with conflict with other church members instead of just walking away.
We treat our church membership a lot like we treat our marriages. Hey, if I'm not ''happy'' in the moment, just move on, right? The impact on others or a pledge to something bigger than ourselves doesn't matter because ''it's all about me.''
Hoppers are typically unsatisfied no matter where they hop -- because perfection doesn't exist in this world. Many churches say they are seeking to be relevant. But the way to do that isn't to accommodate or enable insidious cultural trends. It is to do what churches are called to do, and stand as a bulwark against such trends.
THANKYOU!
OUR CHURCH COMMUNITY IS COMMITED TO STRICT BIBLICAL STANDARDS REGARDING DISCIPLESHIP,HENCEFORTH KEEPING A STRONG CHURCH FAMILY INTEGRITY.
WE HAVE HAD SOME HOPPERS,WE ARE VERY MUCH SOVERIEGN GRACE AND NOT SEEKER SENSITIVE.
GREAT ARTICLE,CONCERNING THE I I ME ME PROBLEM.
I’ve heard certain individuals, who go to churches where the sermon is everything, say things like “yew ought to go to that there church, ah like him.” OK, the accent may be unfair, but the point is it’s all about the guy delivering the pep talk, and not really about worshipping. It’s the nature of charismatics. Hey, some of ‘em can deliver a real stem-winder. Well worth the price err... love gift of admission.
I agree. I think circulating preachers helps avoid the ‘cult of personality’ syndrome. Besides, they run out of things to say and start repeating themselves.
Thanks for the clarification.
I believe I understand your view, and your previous post better now.
assisnine statement - but all too telling of some RC's spiritual fruits....."i were batized soze Im a goin to heaven regardlisss"......same deal - sounds just as assisnine eh
brighten up a tad newbie
I don’t have much use for church hopping.
At the same time, I can’t really put together any strong biblical theology of church “membership” the way the game is played in 20th & 21st century western culture.
There are things about not forsaking assembling together, there’s 3000 being added to their number on Pentecost, and there are letters to churches. There’s no proof, though, that this meant these folks signed on the dotted line and “joined” Jerusalem First instead of Samaria Grace.
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