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Many twenty-first
century church administrations needing to address the pressures
of increased overhead, try to cover those ever-excalating costs
by increasing membership, no matter what compromises they have
to make. They hope to attract more and more people, by luring
them with the promise of a religious experience that is exciting,
entertaining, "feels good," and comfortable. The concepts
of sacrifice, sin and surrender, having been rejected as outmoded
and irrelevant, do not sell well.
In such a religious construct, even well established churches
compromise their message by introducing such anomalies such as
roaring motorcycles and exploding fire crackers in their sanctuary.
Another church distributes balloons and multicolored eggs during
a sunrise service, God is reduced to the level of some 'magical
genie' that might then be carried in our mind and heart to bring
us good luck, not to change us. The exciting of the human mind
and emotions does nothing towards curing the ills of mankind.
Rather, it pushes the core truths, touching upon God and His path
of salvation for creation, further away, making life a hopeless
circle of futile efforts, failures and frustrations.
We, at the Church of the Transfiguration, have grown to recognize
that it makes a difference how we worship. The maxim, that anything
goes, as long as it attracts large numbers of people, introduces
novelty, emotionalism, hedonism and personal opinion into what
is meant to be Doctrinal and Liturgical continuity. It is this
continuity which promotes community, zeal, sacrifice and spiritual
growth. We believe that there must be a return to the sense of
awe of God and fidelity to ancient truths, or modem society will
continue to conclude that God is not relevant. Are we not at that
turning point in history? Does not the future sociological stability
and salvation of our world depend on it? We are prepared to shoulder
our part in the return to fidelity to God and His Holy Church.
Today, when at Transfiguration parish, we worship in this small
but exquisite church, it is difficult to remember many of the
details of its genesis, but the fruits are here manifest, witnessing
that, when we offer our time, talent and treasure in total faith,
“in all things
God works for the good of those who love him”. Romans 8:28 (NIV) |
