Thinking About Returning to Church? Why Not Try It

If you are a spiritual person but have been away from the church for awhile, or, if you have been thinking about religion, but never practiced a faith, perhaps it is time to take the plunge and attend a church service. "Church" can mean any religious institution, whether it be a christian church, synagogue, mosque or temple.

Religious services were an important part of life in the first half of the 20th century and earlier. Since the 1950's, attendance at christian religious services slowly declined, and more recently have almost plummeted in the U.S., and in many countries in western Europe. Obviously, the change in mores has had a lot to do with this decline, as well as a perception that religion is not keeping up with societal changes and needs. Add to this the Catholic priest scandals of a few years back, and you have a situation that engenders doubt and cynicism about the church.

Many people I know today are truly spiritual, but do not attend their churches or other religious institutions on a regular basis. The reasons they do not attend can range from a bad experience they had with a priest or other clergy, either recently, or more often, many years ago, to just the feeling that they don't "get anything out of" a religious service. It is true that the way clergy conduct themselves during church services, as well as outside of church, has a lot to do with the perception of "church". However, if these individuals really looked at the meaning of "church", perhaps it would change their minds as to the benefits of going to services.

The origin of the word "church" comes from the Greek word "Ekklesia" from the early Christian days. It means "the called out", or "the assembly". The Church in Christian terms means the body of the people who are followers of Christ. (Ref: Truth for the Word / Churhes of Christ) Therefore, going to church means assembling with the people of God. For those who are truly spritual, and want their faith and prayer life to grow, church is really an important part of a faith life. By coming together in an assembly to pray and praise God, churchgoers are following in the footsteps of their ancestors and allowing themselves to be open to the word of God as spoken in the services through the clergy. It is through this word, and in Christian churches, through the Eucharist, that faith is nourished.

I have seen several of my friends and colleagues return to church, after not attending for many years. Usually growing older, and seeing life from a different perspective and realizing the need for prayer, have been the catalysts to bring them back to the church. There is another element though that is a factor in peoples' return to church, and that should encourage others to attend services. Today, clergy are more aware than ever that church must reach out to the people and offer true spiritual guidance in a very open, accepting and encouraging manner. The new clergy, for the most part, represent an open and forgiving church, while still keeping the church rooted in its fundamental dogma.

I have been privileged to work closely with my church's clergy on a variety of projects, and have seen how human and open they can be. In addition, many of the newer clergy coming out of seminary bring real life into the liturgy with their freshness, and have such an encouraging manner that you would have no fear of going to confession or sitting with them discussing a very difficult situation in your life.

Those who do attend church services regularly may attend first out of a sense of obligation, but many of those who attend go beyond what is obligation and attend other services and become involved with various church activities because of what it means in their lives.

If you are sitting on the fence of wanting to grow your spiritual life, but are not quite sure if you're ready for "church", why not try attending one service and see how you feel. Maybe one won't do it for you, but there's no harm in trying a second time. In time, you may suddenly realize that something is happening, and your faith and sense of peace is growing stronger.