We Have Done Church

We’ve done the no church thing.  The home church thing.  The mega church thing.  The tiny church thing.

We’ve done the Catholic thing. The Pentecostal thing. The Presbyterian thing. The Lutheran thing.  The Nazarene thing. The Baptist thing.  The Non-Denom. thing. The Family Integrated thing. We’ve done the Adventist thing.

We’ve done church.

We’ve done the raising hands thing.  The keeping the Sabbath thing. The speaking in tongues thing.  The recitation of liturgy thing.  The sit on your chair thing.  The hymns thing. The incense thing.  The powdered grape juice and dissolving wafer thing. We’ve done the Social Justice thing.

We’ve done the Bible Study thing.  The Street Ministry thing.  The Mime thing.  The Homeless Shelter thing.  The Child Sponsor thing.  The Rock Concert thing. The Summer Camp thing.

We’ve done the behind-the-pulpit thing.  The worship-leading thing.  The piano-playing thing. The children’s class thing.  The youth leader thing. The pew warming thing.

We’ve done church.

We’ve meditated in Basilicas.  We’ve confessed at Celtic ruins.  We’ve wept intersession in the haunting halls of death camps for the Jews.  We’ve joined hands at flag poles.  We’ve sung praise on seashores.   We’ve prayed all night and early morning and over restaurant food.

We’ve worshipped beneath domed ceilings.  Squared ceilings. Gym ceilings. Treed ceilings.  Ceilings of Sky.  Ceilings of metal roofing (with the tip-tap-tapping of rain).

We’ve hushed reverently in Rome.  We’ve praised loudly in Spain. We’ve danced holy in Mexico City.

We’ve worshipped hidden and freely behind drawn curtains in communist China.

We’ve partaken in Filipino Churches.  Korean Churches. Spanish Churches. Taiwanese Churches. African Churches. English Churches. Black churches. White churches. Youth churches.  Gray-headed churches.  Military churches. Ex-pat missionary churches.  Country churches. Cowboy churches. City churches. Happily undefined churches.

There has been Reformed theology.  Post-trib theology. Rapture theology. Calvin’s theology, Wesley’s theology, Luther’s theology, Spurgeon’s theology, Jim Elliot’s theology, Brother Yun’s theology, Mother Teresa’s theology, our own theology. There have been the late Pope and Ellen G. White.

There have been Catholic Fathers and Syrian Fathers and Coptic Fathers and Byzantine Fathers; the rockin’ Reformation Fathers, the Hebrew Fathers, Missionary Fathers, the Current-Someday-Will-Be-Fathers, the Chinese House Church, two millennia of Mothers,  the Apostles, the Saints, and the dancing Messianic Jews.

We’ve broken bread with the religious right.  Poured the wine with the religious left.  Held communion with the believing-non-religious and with the religious-off-the-grid.

We’ve regarded as sacred the institution of marriage.  Regarded as duty the plight of the orphans.  Regarded as right the care of Widows.  Regarded as holy the conception of life.  Regarded as worthy the being of women. Regarded as honorable the dignity of children.  Regarded as estimable the image of God in man.

We have burned for Justice.  Wept for Mercy.  Stumbled in Love.

We have done church.

And Church has been good.