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15 Dec 2007 Alpha Course: Week 9

[Alpha] The final session of the Alpha Course and it is entitled “What about the Church?” If there was one message to be taken away from this week it is that the church is not the stereotypical church building that people know and go to, whether it be through their own will or otherwise.

People have this common misconception that the church is just the building people go to. Or its the dull Sunday service that they are forced to do, or the clergy, or a particular denomination. In actual fact it is the people that make the church. It is the coming together of people, communities, and faith that make the church.

And that is when the blessing of God is at its greatest. So the minister says.
He went on to talk about how having many different people together brings diversity to the church, which is a good thing. Different people with different interest and talents (which of course God has given each of us) that could be put to good use. The minister gave the analogy of the church being a body and everyone was a part of the body. Each person is important and is needed to keep the body alive.

And the other benefit the minister spoke of? Well it gives Christians access to God, like a priest has. So now any person can reach God through any old Christian that happens to be on the street instead of going to a priest in the church. Which, in a way, almost seems to put priest out of work doesn't it?

But it's not necessarily all jollies in the house of the Lord. Whilst it's true that there is much love for God and one another and it all about about having a relationship with God and stuff, it doesn't always come naturally. Like other relationships sometimes you have to make an effort for it to work. It's the idea of respecting one another despite their differences (isn't that true for most religions in one form or another, if not all religions?). The feeling of love and acceptance is one reason why people turn to Christianity. But the amount of effort to put into loving one another can also turn some people away from it.

The minister rounded up his talks and we got into our discussion groups for one last time. It was kinda silent in the group. Maybe it was the last-session blues kicking in. Maybe it was because we couldn't think of anything decent to talk about in regards to the church talk that the minister gave. We exchanged a few words of reflection about the Alpha Course as a whole, some of it was positive, some negative, some stating that people would like to carry on with the course. Indeed the people running the course did offer me the chance to carry on with the discussions as part of their 'Post Alpha Course' groups.

I declined the offer. After all I did the course, I feel I'm slightly more educated in Christianity, and besides I don't really like Christianity enough to drive over a hour and a half every week to talk about it.

... I could always form my own church at my house! Get people to come to me. And I can soak up the collective energies being produced by it!

Grax, you're a genius!

Posted at: 20:52 PM

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