Marcus Craig - Church visit #1

Blog title: Marcus Craig – Church visit #1

Church name: St. Daniel the Prophet Catholic Church

Church address: 101 West Loop Road, Wheaton, IL 60189

Date Attended: 2/8/15

Church Category: Liturgical

Describe the worship service you attended. How was it similar to or different from your regular context?

               If my regular service were a runner in a track and field competition, it would be a middle distance runner. It’s long enough, but you still feel good after it. The service I attended at St. Daniel’s was a one hundred meter dash. It was a rush and then over before you knew it. The service structure was different from what I am used to. The order of everything was different. While I am used to a pattern that goes something like singing-announcements-message-songs, this service did things very differently. I found it to be similar to that of the Church of the Resurrection, as I’ve been a few times to see how they do things there. They had all the readings and songs in a book that one picks up on their way into the sanctuary. After the first couple of songs, they had the message, prayers with more scripture readings, communion, and a couple closing songs. In all, I believe it was forty five minutes.

What did you find most interesting or appealing about the worship service?

               I suppose I did enjoy the precision of the service. It definitely eliminates the showy and entertainment traps that contemporary churches could fall into. I know in the past that I’ve felt disillusioned with contemporary worship services and styles in the times where I haven’t felt close to God or just on a worse day. Seeing someone constantly on stage with a huge smile on their face can be really annoying and it makes one wonder if they’re really being genuine or if it is for show. Here, it felt more like real life. There wasn’t the pressure to play into a role. I can see where this also has downfalls as well. The precision could also hinder the work of the Holy Spirit or it could support a ritualistic mindset of performance Christianity.   

What did you find most disorienting or challenging about the worship service?

               The thing I found most challenging and also disorienting was trying to keep up with the service so that I didn’t look like a complete outsider, which I probably still failed at. I have been to mass with my mom’s family in Indiana but that was quite a while ago when I was a child, so I had wondered if there would be anything I wasn’t ready for. Of course there was. While I did pretty well remembering responses and how to find songs and prayers in the booklet, I either forgot this was common, or it was something specific to this church. While praying, couples and families held their hands upwards and overlapping with each others. I caught on about half the way through after a significant nudge from my girlfriend. I guess I still did pretty well keeping up for having not been in a number of years.

What aspects of Scripture or theology did the service illuminate for you that you had not perceived as clearly in your regular context?

               I think the biggest aspect that was emphasized in this service was the body of Christ. I know, this shouldn’t come as a surprise when going to a Catholic church, after all, that is kind of their thing. I just know that though it didn’t feel very vibrant compared to what I’m used to, I felt like I was taking part in something bigger- like I was one part of a giant Jesus machine. When I’m at my usual church setting, it feels catered toward the individual rather than the church as a whole. While I still know that it is the body of Christ and that we work as a whole, it is easy to feel like I am there for myself and to see what I can get out of it. This experience felt more participatory and brought me into an experience that went beyond myself to a bigger picture conception.