Compare and contrast

Went to church this morning at a Baptist General Conference congegation (http://www.calvarychurch.us/) about 15 min. south. They have a "blended" service and a "contemporary" one, as well as a sister church closer by with only one service, "contemporary." The blended one this morning was more traditional, with use of the organ, hymns from the hymnal, a small choir, etc. From the demographics of it, it appeared to be the "old people's" service. And, um.. no smart remarks, please. ;)

From the very beginning of the service, I found myself noticing the differences between it and the Masses I've attended recently. I instinctively looked to pull the kneeler out, so that I could prepare my heart for worship and pray privately a bit before things got started. Instead people used the time to chat and greet, the way they always do in Evangelical churches. :) I wanted to dip my fingers in the water as I entered and make that sign of consecration, wanted to touch down on one knee as I entered the sanctuary to acknowlege coming into the presence of the Holy with other believers. I missed the attitudes of solemnity, of reverence, of penitence, of humility and of contemplation that I've been so aware of at Mass.

But boy, could they sing at this place! Loud, and good (for a bunch of old folks.) And I do so love the harmony on the hymns and choruses. Why don't Catholics harmonize??? It drives me crazy! Okay, during the liturgy there's maybe not so much place for it, but on the responses and the hymns? C'mon! Sing out! :)

And definitely livelier music, even at a traditional service. The choir today was only 8 voices, but were they good! They sounded like 20. And for the special music (solo) number, they backed up the soloist doing a black gospel song, and goodness me, a bunch of white folks almost made it sound authentic. ;) All those open 5ths... all they needed was synchronized swaying... but that's asking a little too much for people of Scandanavian heritage. :)

Hm. I was certainly aware of the Evangelical dress code being in force. Business casual was the order of the day. Oops. Left my dockers and polo shirt at home, sorry... :( I only got 2 open stares at my shorts, sandals and t-shirt ensemble (hey, it all matched!), so.. they were fairly cool about it.

The sermon was the usual content-driven powerpoint presentation, with the feel of a formal seminar. This is in contrast to the Catholic homilies I've heard recently which were much more like an intimate conversation, or a casual devotional talk. I think that's because the content (both the Word and theology) is embedded in the liturgy, bible reading and prayers. They *are* rich that way. Prayer in the Evangelical church is ... not as content-rich, but more ... familiar and intimate with God. The emphasis on intimacy is kind of reversed for preaching and prayer. :)

I did feel like a spectator most of the time today, which is an old familiar feeling for me, whereas I've not once felt like that at Mass. I've felt clueless at Mass, yes, but never like a spectator. There's way too much participation to be able to sit back and let people "perform" for you. All the responses (spoken and sung), praying out loud, reciting creeds, singing before and after various stuff (yes, in unison, but there's still a *lot* of singing), kneeling, standing, sitting, walking, touching, gesturing... you're busy in Mass! :)

Similarities? Mostly in the theology, surprisingly. The core stuff in the Mass is ... core! You have the occasional reference to saints/Mary, but really very little of that. The whole thing points to Jesus and to our relationship with God through Him. I haven't found myself balking at anything you say or sing there, except maybe 2 phrases. And there's at least that much that I balk at in the Evangelical church, too - especially in the lyrics to some of the choruses. "Yes! Lord, Yes! Lord, Yes! Yes! Lord!" Ugh. Give me a break...

So, for now at least, it will be Mass for me at 4:30 on Saturdays, and Evangelical worship with D on Sunday mornings.

Now, if I could just get the Catholics to sing "Great is Thy Faithfulness" and harmonize! :)