Keeping up appearances

[Lev]

Right on, KLP. As a fellow former conservative NI COCer, I appreciate you putting it so plainly.

Lev

[Ivy]

There was a kid over on the 'other side' of the board who flat out stated that services are 'not supposed to fun'.

Where in the bible does it say anything about "services" in the cofc sense.....much less whether or not they should be
enjoyable.

[agricola]

Ah - but 'services' = 'worship'! In coc-speak. Worship is something you do on Sunday morning (and Sunday night, and Wednesday night).

[KLP]

ok, so don't ask, but this morning I was looking up something and the internet results included topics of labia elongation. I had never heard of such and it is practiced in some cultures, mainly Africa...in Zambia. I was reading long article on this and the practice and how the families and grandmothers pass this genital shaping/modification on to the next generations and it is bizarre (to me). But on the sort of summary section it was talking about how women who had been raised this way from a very young age considered elongated labia as a status symbol, positive self-image, and as comparison to others in the community.

OK...wow....and yet we came to feel the same way about attendance and endurance at such things as meetings. That such endurance and attendance gave us a comparative positive self-image. You have to start young and build up the capacity to endure such cultural standards and certainly it takes a long time before they become your status symbol and obtain bragging rights.

[Lev]

Ah - but 'services' = 'worship'! In coc-speak. Worship is something you do on Sunday morning (and Sunday night, and Wednesday night).

Wednesday night isn't worship, it's Bible Study. That's how come women can talk then.

Lev

[margin overa]

Ah - but 'services' = 'worship'! In coc-speak. Worship is something you do on Sunday morning (and Sunday night, and Wednesday night).

Wednesday night isn't worship, it's Bible Study. That's how come women can talk then.

Lev

Bite your tongue. You've clearly been spending time with the digressive progressives if you think the Biblical standard is relaxed in any way on Wednesday nights!

[cathym]

Jumping back a bit -- I've been out of town -- another thing we weren't supposed to do was shop at the Salvation Army thrift store, because that would be financially supporting another religion.

[agricola]

cathym - you are absolutely right! We also weren't supposed to ever drop any money in the bucket for them at Christmas either - same argument. Can't support such a deviant suspect religion as the Salvation Army! Who were they to claim the word 'salvation' when EVERYBODY knew that 'salvation' was only 'in the church' and 'in the church' was codespeak for 'the church of Christ'!

The only valid place to put your donations is the collection plate.



I don't think supporting and helping church members is a bad thing - but since when is 'being a church member' a prerequisite for getting aid? In my opinion, need is need.

[margin overa]

But...but...but...we have to do good especially to those of the household of faith! Let's forget that very few CofCs I've known do much good to anyone charity-wise, of the household of faith or otherwise.

Speaking of this "guilt by association" fear that drives the most conservative CofCs, my parents have been at that bloody "Polishing the Pulpit" this week, and they sent me a study guide they picked up there on how to appropriately limit this guilt. It essentially comes down to strictly limiting your fellowship circle in person and on Facebook to only those that Jesus would approve of if he saw your friends list...we can't bid Godspeed to anyone who might entertain some notion of false teaching.

[Lev]

Bite your tongue. You've clearly been spending time with the digressive progressives if you think the Biblical standard is relaxed in any way on Wednesday nights!

Well, if the dress code was any indication, some standards were definitely relaxed on Wednesday nights.

Lev