I called the church office this morning to share my experience and how it made us feel as "new people". The secretary on the line thanked me for my observation and explained how important the curriculum was to the children's time and how there shouldn't be any interruptions after a certain time..... (don't forget we were talking about a two year old classroom....) All I could think was, wow, I'm glad that this experience isn't what would make or break my desire for church fellowship. And how sad that "program" comes before people.
(Luckily this is the first experience like this in all of the 32 years of attending church. I know that this experience is not a normal one thus the blog dwelling on it.)
5 comments:
You said luckily this is your first experience with something like this. What if someone who has been struggling about church for years finally got the "nerve" to go and they were treated that way? They would never go back again, to any church. Very sad.
This is exactly why the situation bugged me so much! It makes me a bit sad to think this is what is representing "church" which in turn is representing God....
Let's just say I'm still thinking about this one.
When I read what happened, my first thought was, "What would Jesus do."
Gretchen, how very kind and Christian of you to call this Church on the phone and give them a second chance... (Were you able to speak to the person who is in charge of this church? Seems like they would appreciate first hand feedback, I mean, perhaps they don't even know this is happening?)
I wonder how Anders recalls what happened? I hope this was not a traumatic event for him, and I really hope you're able to find a children’s program for him were they practice what they teach & preach :-) Hmm, perhaps being a few minutes late when checking out a new Church is a good method for finding out! (Of course---only if Anders is not harmed by it.)
I just had to reply to the church policy! It stinks! I feel a church nursery or children's program makes or breaks a family's chance of returning to a church (right?) I ran Granada's nursery for 3-4 years and have worked in it once a month since Philip was a baby. It is crucial that the kids are happy and safe and that the parents feel positive about the experience.
There is a famous women's Bible study that does not let the women come more than 10 minutes late. When Granada started our WOW Bible study years ago, Lois Lindley changed that rule immediately! She never wanted someone turned away who was there to study the Bible and get fellowship.
I am SO sorry about your miserable experience. It really is a shame!
Aunt G
Luckily Anders thought it was all pretty fun and novel. He had his little backpack on and was just happy to say hi to the guy who showed us around. I think that he thought that it was supposed to turn out that way!
Post a Comment