In church with Amy Alkon
On Sunday morning, Antoine and I went to church with my father and stepmother. We went with them when we were last home, for Thanksgiving, and really enjoyed it. About 300 people show up to the early service, so it’s not like one of those churches that surround my older brother in Texas, where they have to run a shuttle service just to get the thousands of worshippers from their cars to the church building. (I’d really like to check out one of those churches someday, though. The mind boggles.)
What we didn’t do last time was stay for Sunday school, which we did yesterday. The topic was humility.
“Who’s someone you can think of who possesses great humility?” the Sunday school leader asked.
“Me!” my dad whispered loudly to me, putting up his hand. Hee.
It was a pretty good conversation, made more enjoyable by the awesome cinnamon rolls and fruit salad that accompanied it. (I seriously do not remember food being a part of every single event in life, the way it seems to be here now, when I was growing up. My parents have big bowls of chocolates and candy throughout the house - though, thankfully, not in the bathrooms - and I know I’d remember it if that had been the case when I was a kid.) The ease of fellowship and intense discussion between everyone was admirable, and made me wish we had something similar in London.
(As I tend to whenever I read or experience anything God-related these days, I thought of my friend Amy Alkon through a great deal of the discussion. In my head, I often play a game called “What would Amy say about that?” Amy is a strident believer that there is no God, and her many writings on the subject always interest me. I enjoy so much the process of thinking these things through, questioning and researching and sometimes talking to others about religion. I’m thankful to have the exposure to so many different viewpoints, and the opportunity to take part in rigorous inner debate is something I find totally positive and enriching.)
Still to come: A friend from blogland (and LA) visits us in deepest southern Ohio.