Shopping for Jesus

So, Dan & I have been on the local neighborhood church circuit, shopping around for a church that both of us can live with--well, not just live with, but enjoy and leave feeling fulfilled.  This is a little easier said than done, it turns out.  While as adults we may not think we are very attached to the ways in which we were brought up, it turns out that the human desire for routine and familiarity remains a strong power.  I am starting to understand the Crusades a whole lot better. 

It seems that the new trend in churches of many denominations is to reach the congregation via PowerPoint.  This is quite ironic to me.  If I wanted to read about God on a computer, I would just type "New Testament" in to Wikipedia and see what I got.   These days in church, you can bring in your coffee, your donut, your Palm Pilot--we even had people eating popcorn behind us at one service!  The popcorn was just a bit much.  Is it church or a baseball game?  (For my dad, those are one and the same).  

Anyway, for this Catholic girl, this has been quite a change.  I mean, if as kids we weren't guilty, sleepy, starving, and cramping from kneeling for so long, it just wasn't a real mass.  But seriously, one thing I do like about the Catholic church is the solitude and the introspection.  I like the study and the work.  Maybe that's why I am still in grad school.  But, I come to church to get away from PowerPoint.  I don't need a rock band to feel grateful or blessed.  Dan & I can feel connected to people without being forced to.  In fact, we made some new Presbyterian friends today and had them over for lunch.  

Praise the lord!